Day 1) What can you say? A send off out of Columbus can not get any better than that. From CSU main campus feeding us a great breakfast, to showing all the support from students and staff. Then we get escorted to the down town campus, by CPD motors, and we have what looks like every nurse in the program waving signs and cheering us on. But then to see our great friend and fellow rider, the one and only Mr. James Cole, there to support us. I will say that makes the hurt of leaving our loved ones back home a little softer of a blow. Then we stop to eat lunch and did a pretty good job of telling the story of the ride, the kids, and what we are all about because people started handing over money.
Day 2) What great weather for a high mileage day. It was so good I think it gave Scott a little boost. We had what I could call a Miracle Ride record. We did well over 500 miles and was at the hotel before the end the Alabama/Miami game. But even with everybody trying to get a location to watch football on a Saturday we took time with people and kids along the way. We meet this one family that built a custom Bronco with matching trailer for their son to be able to travel and go to car shows. I am sure there will be pictures around on that.
Day 3) The day that we got pushed around a little. Started off with us not being able to unlock the handlebars on Tim’s bike. But that was able to be overcome with a quick 6:30am phone call to a great sponsor THE HARLEY TECH (John Maxwell) with Maxwell Motorcycles. So he helps get us over that one and we get on the road in the rain. Just as we get passed the rain and it looks like we might be able to start making some good time, the road gremlins jump on Scott’s bike. The back tire goes flat riding down the highway in where I think was New Jersey. So we hang out there until the rain gets back to us. Don’t let me leave out the fact that John Maxwell got some calls on that also. And what does he do, start looking up places to try to help. So sad news we had to leave Scott, Ronnie, and M. Jolley behind to figure it out. So we get on the road in the rain driving pass an entire state that we have to turn around to come back several miles to catch Rhode Island. As we all get off our bikes and grab some pizza because it is the closest and fast for us to eat, we discover that a woman was traveling to drop her daughter off at college saw us riding in the rain, looked us up on our website (www.rideformicales.com) and left us a message and even gave us a donation. That is a big time boost in our spirts and helps us get to the next day
Day 4) What a beautiful day. It started off with the opportunity to pass out stuffed animals and poppers to kids and tell their parents about what we are doing. Then it turned into a beautiful day of riding. I am not a fan of the big cities that we had to deal with on day 3 but today (day 4) was small town USA in the north east corner of the USA. Weather was great and traffic was just as good. There was a few spots that traffic got backed up just like there was a little rain during lunch. But as we got on the bikes from lunch the sky’s opened back up and the sun came back out. It was a sunny 75 degrees for almost all day. But the good news is that the group is back together and under one roof.
Please if you are reading this and you have seen us on the road or we have ran into you at one of our stops please checked out our page.
Cody Jolley