We punched the clock at 11:51 p.m. Aug 16, 2005 a couple of hundred feet south of the Canadian border on Route 9B in Rouse's Point, New York. (Border officials strongly suggested that we begin a wee bit south of the actual border).

Bud Eichorn racing south on route 12 to Granville about eight hours into the record ride across New York.

We decided on a midnight start after considering the following. Putnam county in New York prohibits all bike riding at night on their roads. We figured that in order to minimize night riding and to clear Putnam county during daylight, a midnight start would be optimum. Further, like many riders, I tend to start the ride at a higher/harder pace/effort than is sustainable. Night riding tends to bring a slower pace on its own so it seemed reasonable to begin the attempt in the dark.

We were welcomed with a calm, moonlit night as we headed south towards Ticonderoga, our first planned stop. Late night partiers greeted us warmly as we passed through downtown Plattsburg. We continued along the western shore of Lake Champlain and at some point during the night I began to question my efforts!

A sleek black and white kitten darted out of nowhere and proceeded to run? gallop? bound? along side of me for a stretch, then apparently needing a faster pace zipped in front of me and crossed route 9! Fast cat or slow rider? Beats me.

Changing from road bike to the time trial bike shortly after sunup.

The rising sun and lazy fog greeted us as we stopped to stretch and swap bikes in Ticonderoga.

Summer usually brings winds out of the south to this part of the northeast. We had a calm start for the record attempt. After sunrise and for the next eight hours or so the southerly winds exerted themselves.

Heading towards Whitehall, the challenging terrain and gnarly headwinds began to take their toll. My crew picked up the changes in my riding and suggested I switch back to the road bike I had been on earlier. Two hours on a TT bike in those conditions left an imprint. It turned out to be a wise decision as we continued south, reestablishing our earlier pace. Route 22 near Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut provides some of the most awesome scenery a rider could ask for.

Eichorn at the end of the New York record.

A quick stretch at 200 miles provided the boost for the rest of the trip. The final stretch brought light and variable winds. We finished at 8 p.m. on the border of New York and Connecticut on American Lane in Greenwich having traveled 310 miles.

A special thanks to Matt LaCroix and Dave Fike (The Peloton), Henri Perez (jack of all trades) and Lisa Windman (UMCA official), for without their support it ainít happenin. Also thanks to Fred Boethling for his assistance with this effort.

The exact record is 310 miles 20 hours 9 minutes, 15.38 mph