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	Daily updates		Latest update		E-mail Mary		Pictures

Who:

WomanTours is a bike-tour company run by & for women. They specialize in rides for women over 50, tho' women of any age can participate. They organize rides in the US & in several countries overseas. Other companies do cross-country tours every year also, but I chose WomanTours because (1) their overnight accommodations are always indoors & (2) their daily pace is slower than most cross-country rides. Other tours can average near 90 miles or more per day; our trip will average in the 60-65 range. I'll be smelling lots of roses.

There will be about 28 women in the group most of the time. Fifteen of us will make the whole trek (we hope); others will join us for one or more of the four trip segments. Most of the riders are from the east & west coasts; the closest to Iowa is from Minnesota.

Where & When:

Early the morning of April 9 we'll dip our tires into the Atlantic at Yorktown, VA. We'll follow the path of westward expansion through Virginia, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, & Kansas to Colorado. Then we'll head north (up over the Rockies at Breckenridge) to Wyoming (the Tetons), Idaho, Montana (West Yellowstone), & finally Oregon. This TransAmerica Trail--approximately 4250 miles long--was created in 1976 by the Adventure Cycling Association (Bikecentennial) to celebrate our nation's bicentennial. It is still the most popular route across the country, encompassing much of our nation's history--including colonial Virginia, plantations, Civil War battlefields, Lincoln's birthplace, & the Oregon Trail--as it passes through 10 states, many small American towns, & a variety of landscapes. Outside magazine calls the TransAm the "ultimate bicycle tour." We'll dip our tires into the Pacific at Florence, OR, on June 28.

Why:

When I'd originally planned to retire from The University of Iowa in the year I turned 57 (2000), I developed a goal of doing a special bike ride in commemoration of my retirement. The pull of full-time volunteerism was too strong & I ended up jumping the gun on retirement by 2 years. But I've stuck with my plan for a special bike ride in my "retirement year."

How:

Atop my trusty purple cannondale hybrid, that's how. It was a retirement gift from my sons Mark & Scott in February '98. By now it's been souped up to the point where it practically rides itself once i climb aboard. WomanTours recommends riding a road bike; they also recommend clipless pedals. We'll see how I do with neither.

National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund (NBCCF)

if you would like to make a donation to the NBCCF in the name of the hardy group of women you read about on this web site who are making this 4000-mile cross-country trek, please send your check, made payable to the National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund (NBCCF) to the NBCCF, 1707 L Street NW, Suite 1060, Washington, DC 20036, Attn: CeCe Ragland - Accounting. if you'd like, make note that your donation is in the name of the WomanTours TransAmerica 2000 bikers.

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Click on one of the days below to go to its update.

April 8 - 23

Day 1 - 16:	Virginia

4/8 FIRST DAY
4/9 Hopewell	4/13 Charlottesville	4/17 Christiansburg	4/21 Breaks Interstate Park
4/10 Ashland	4/14 Afton	4/18 Ft. Chiswell	4/22 Breaks Interstate Park
4/11 Mineral	4/15 Lexington	4/19 Damascus	4/23 Pippa Passes, KY
4/12 Charlottesville	4/16 Troutville	4/20 Rosedale

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April 24 - May 1

Day 17 - 24:	Kentucky

4/24 Booneville	4/28 Bardstown
4/25 Berea	4/29 Elizabethtown
4/26 Harrodsburg	4/30 Rough River Dam State Park
4/27 Bardstown	5/1 Dixon

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May 2 - 5

Day 25 - 28:	Illinois

5/2 Cave In Rock
5/3 Giant City State Park
5/4 Chester
5/5 Chester

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May 6 - 10

Day 29 - 33:	Missouri

5/6 Pilot Knob	5/10 Everton
5/7 Eminence
5/8 Houston
5/9 Marshfield

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May 11 - 19

Day 34 - 42:	Kansas

5/11 Pittsburg	5/15 Newton	5/19 Leoti
5/12 Pittsburg	5/16 Larned
5/13 Chanute	5/17 Ness City
5/14 Eureka	5/18 Ness City

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May 20 - 30

Day 43 - 53:	Colorado

5/20 Eads	5/24 Canon City	5/28 Breckenridge
5/21 Ordway	5/25 Guffy	5/29 Kremmling
5/22 Pueblo	5/26 Fairplay	5/30 Walden
5/23 Pueblo	5/27 Breckenridge

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May 31 - June 6

Day 54 - 60:	Wyoming

5/31 Saratoga	6/4 Dubois
6/1 Rawlins	6/5 Dubois
6/2 Jeffery City	6/6 Jackson
6/3 Lander

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June 7 - 19

Day 61 - 73:	Idaho and Montana (and Idaho again)

6/7 Driggs (ID)	6/11 Dillon	6/15 Lowell	6/19 Cambridge (ID)
6/8 West Yellowstone (MT)	6/12 Jackson	6/16 Lowell
6/9 West Yellowstone	6/13 Hamilton	6/17 Lucile
6/10 Ennis	6/14 Lolo Hot Springs	6/18 New Meadows

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June 20 - 29

Day 74 - 83:	Oregon

6/20 Halfway	6/24 Redmond	6/28 Florence
6/21 Baker City	6/25 Redmond	6/29 Florence (END)
6/22 John Day	6/26 Mackenzie Bridge	6/30 Astoria
6/23 Mitchell	6/27 Eugene	7/1 Seaside

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