Day 44 Day Off in Erie, PA
On this 17 July 2006 day, I rose at about 0700, cleaned up and headed to Starbucks for a real cup of coffee and a chance to read the paper. I walked the 5 blocks with Debbie who was heading to the Laundromat. It was great to just sit outside and read the Erie Journal and watch the world go by from a static position. While I definitely enjoy the moving adventure of the past seven weeks, this too is a wonderful way to let go.
At about 7:55, I headed back to the hotel to rendezvous with Rick, Lisa and anyone interested in touring Presque Isle, a scant 26 mile, totally flat trip along a wooded, coastline. We all peddled in a very relaxed fashion for about 5 miles and we stopped at Hyatt's for breakfast. This small hole in the wall looked like a regular breakfast hangout for the Erie locals. We all paraded in about 8:30 and I almost immediately corralled the owner and the waitress and told them of the upcoming "flyover" and how I needed their help. They were slightly perplexed at first, but as the mission evolved, they were as excited as our 15 bikers.
At 8:43, I asked everyone in our group to put their menus down and follow me for a "surprise." Hard to believe, but all complied without objection!
As we huddled in the parking lot at exactly 8:45, Larry Fariss and my USAFA classmate, Tim Fyda, overflew our parking lot in the Cessna Citation, a 2 engine business jet! Their time on target (TOT) was perfect and Larry's navigation to our location was exactly right. After overflying the parking lot at about 1000 feet (completely legal!) they circled around again in preparation for landing. Their final approach gave us an even better view and they now had the landing gear down so they were going slower. The crowd, to include our owner and waitress were thrilled. The King has returned in rock star style!
We then finished a super breakfast and had a marvelous bike tour of Presque Isle. One of the highlights was a chance to walk along Lake Erie (not too cold) and take some pictures. On the way home we also stopped at Sara's, a hot dog diner that has been there since. So many quintessential beach enterprises along the way.
After a couple hours of checking email and blogging, I headed back to the room to prep my bike for the next day and then I went over to the Seawolves (AA) baseball game just 2 blocks away. It was dollar night for beer, soda, hot dogs and popcorn, so the crowd was large. It was a lovely place to play baseball and relax with friends. After sweating like pigs for the first game of the double header ( the Seawolves lost), Larry, Bill, Tim, David and I headed for an Irish Pub for a light dinner. One salad and some lies later, we headed for the hotel and called it a day.
Our last "rest day" was complete and it's on to Portsmouth!
At about 7:55, I headed back to the hotel to rendezvous with Rick, Lisa and anyone interested in touring Presque Isle, a scant 26 mile, totally flat trip along a wooded, coastline. We all peddled in a very relaxed fashion for about 5 miles and we stopped at Hyatt's for breakfast. This small hole in the wall looked like a regular breakfast hangout for the Erie locals. We all paraded in about 8:30 and I almost immediately corralled the owner and the waitress and told them of the upcoming "flyover" and how I needed their help. They were slightly perplexed at first, but as the mission evolved, they were as excited as our 15 bikers.
At 8:43, I asked everyone in our group to put their menus down and follow me for a "surprise." Hard to believe, but all complied without objection!
As we huddled in the parking lot at exactly 8:45, Larry Fariss and my USAFA classmate, Tim Fyda, overflew our parking lot in the Cessna Citation, a 2 engine business jet! Their time on target (TOT) was perfect and Larry's navigation to our location was exactly right. After overflying the parking lot at about 1000 feet (completely legal!) they circled around again in preparation for landing. Their final approach gave us an even better view and they now had the landing gear down so they were going slower. The crowd, to include our owner and waitress were thrilled. The King has returned in rock star style!
We then finished a super breakfast and had a marvelous bike tour of Presque Isle. One of the highlights was a chance to walk along Lake Erie (not too cold) and take some pictures. On the way home we also stopped at Sara's, a hot dog diner that has been there since. So many quintessential beach enterprises along the way.
After a couple hours of checking email and blogging, I headed back to the room to prep my bike for the next day and then I went over to the Seawolves (AA) baseball game just 2 blocks away. It was dollar night for beer, soda, hot dogs and popcorn, so the crowd was large. It was a lovely place to play baseball and relax with friends. After sweating like pigs for the first game of the double header ( the Seawolves lost), Larry, Bill, Tim, David and I headed for an Irish Pub for a light dinner. One salad and some lies later, we headed for the hotel and called it a day.
Our last "rest day" was complete and it's on to Portsmouth!
posted by Steve King at 11:44 AM
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