Myrtle Beach - peaceonabike

HILTON HEAD, SOUTH CAROLINA

It was another pleasant morning. My group consisted of Meg Shipman, Jae Slye, Gwyn Reece, and me. We were Group 1 and this time we could roll out of the hotel after the dedication circle.

Atlantic Ocean

With cue sheets showing left turns when they should be right turns andvice versa, the cue sheets have become a thing of the past. We just followed our driver, Alex Wright. Each day was special and this would be a special day.

It was yellow jersey and I wore a yellow jersey. My Team Fight jersey was dirty and smelly so I wore my CCC jersey as the back was a tribute to Jake the Hero Grecco.

Alex, Meg, Jae, Barry, Gwyn

Alex drove ahead and would wait for us at the turns. While we would pass he would be jumping up and down and waving the Team Fight flag. LSU must have lost a hell of a good cheerleader when he left.

Alex Wright

As we meandered down the coast we occasionally had to go inland on US 17. That is not a fun road to cycle on.

Ferris Wheel, North Myrtle Beach

Twenty eight miles in we missed a turn as he wanted us to turn on 16th Street. Instead we went to 15th Street then turned back one block. As we passed the First Baptist Church of Surfside Alex spotted a playground full of kids. He had an idea – the right idea – and we all doubled back for a photo op. Alex first asked the teachers if the kids would pose with the flag but they suggested we be in the picture as well. And we did. Yep, we used this kids for a photo op.

The Kids of the First Baptist Church of Surfside

It was very meaningful meeting those kids and their teachers. I wonder if they went home and told their parents about these cyclists riding by.

One teacher told us about a pediatric cancer center at the Medical University of South Carolina and told us to contact Jacqueline Kraveka. And we would. Well, we would try.

It was fun, and more relaxing, riding on the coastal road. But eventually the coastal road ran out and we had to ride on US 17.

I don’t like Rte 17 in Virginia and I don’t like it in South Carolina. Four lanes, no shoulder, and heavy traffic. But Alex followed right behind us for more than 20 miles which gave us a protective barrier. Because cars were coming at speed on a large vehicle and not four cyclists, they had to move over. But many saw “honk if you hate cancer” written on the van and gave courteous honks as they passed.

Gwyn and Meg coming over a high bridge near Georgetown

Our moment of truth came when three sheriffs’ cars went by and none stopped to warn us not to block traffic. That made the rest of the ride even better.

We had a good ride. At 63 miles it was a personal best for Meg.

Jae, Barry, Gwyn, Meg

On the drive to Hilton Head I called three numbers to reach Dr. Kraveka. We wanted to come by and visit their cancer center. When I reached someone who seemed to know what I was talking about I was informed they were having an open house today at 4:00 and it would be a bad time to swing by. I was disappointed and I think my colleagues were too.

We had located one of the other groups and could have had two groups visit the cancer center. I have a personal interest in pediatric cancer and count this failed visit, even though it was not planned, as my one disappointment in the trip.

Andy Veliuona and Rob Keleher
at Sonic in Charleston SC

As we drove the two groups met up at Sonic in Charleston. Rob Keleher had never seen car hops on roller blades so this was a treat. Then we motored on to Hilton Head.

Dinner tonight was Dominos Pizza by the pool.

MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA

It was a comfortable 60 degrees and getting warmer. A great day to ride. No warmers would be necessary today. I dedicated my ride to my friend Elaine B.

I was in Group 1 with Meg Shipman, Jae Slye, Paul Lemle, and Chris Zahlis. Except for Chris, all were cancer survivors but Chris may be the biggest survivor of all since he lost his 10 year old son, Dominic, to cancer five years ago. Unthinkable pain for a parent.

Barry, Chris, Jae, Meg, Paul

Arriving in Durham, we parked one mile away so we could at least give the appearance that we had biked in from somewhere. We did. Dunkin’ Donuts. We rode in from Dunkin’ Donuts.

Inside Relaxation Room at Duke

We were to visit the Duke Cancer Center. But this organization was not about giving hope to patients. This ride was loosely “modeled” after the Spokes of Hope ride from Indianapolis to Washington DC/Baltimore in 2012, but was more about relationships. With hospitals.

We were given a tour of the facility. We saw a relaxation room. And a store of wigs for chemo patients. Met hospital administrators. Yippee. But at the end Duke arranged for us to meet some patients and the organization warned us not to take any pictures due to HIPPA. Of course, the law applies to medical providers releasing patient information, not a bunch of cyclists. We called B.S.

The day at Duke spoiled a day of riding. Not that we didn’t have enjoyable riding. We did. We just weren’t able to complete our 50 miles which we were supposed to do.

On a gorgeous day our other groups rode by the U.S.S. North Carolina and took a ferry across the sound. Those were routes I would have preferred but I knew, if done right, our real mission was to bring hope to patients. Today I got to do that if only briefly.

Samantha, Paul, Meg, Chris, Kristy, Jae, Barry, Laura

Although disappointed that I could not ride more today, I was honored and humbled to have spent part of my day off the bike visiting patients at the Duke Medical Center. I can bike anytime. This was a special day.

We finally were “wheels down” in the early afternoon. As we rode we twice discovered the cue sheets weren’t that good. Sometimes they told us to go left when it should have been right. After twice going the wrong way we came to an intersection. Cue sheet right. Barry left.

My group challenged me but I told them to look at the sun. Key Wets was east and south. The cue sheet said to go west. That did not make sense. Although they started into the sun, eventually they turned around and followed me. We sort of blew up the cue sheets after that.

The group activity and dinner was at a firehouse in Myrtle Beach which we missed because we spent so much time at Duke. Three days in a row late for dinner. Once we arrived at our hotel, last, we went to Outback Steakhouse.

Campbell University
Chris, Barry, Meg, Paul, Jae

And at night in the hotel lobby as I was doing referee assigning, I was up so late that the night manager opened the restaurant for me to get some breakfast.

Photo Credits: Matt Brown (for most but I claim credit for the bike on top of the van photo)