Rhode Island is not flat!

The weather was cool (in the high forties) and clear at start time, with a moderate headwind, requiring long pants and long-sleeved jersey until the turn-around point. Our arrival in Providence fairly late the night before and my continual struggle to organize and provide for all the food, drink, documents, etc., necessary to mount a record attempt resulted in even less sleep than I usually have the night before a state crossing attempt — about 20 minutes instead of the usual three hours sleep. The most important condition affecting speed, however, was the great number of traffic lights and stop signs I would have to negotiate in getting out of, and back into, Providence, which stretches across nearly one third of the state.

Why do a record attempt? Breaking or setting nine state crossing records in one week (even if only in the smallest states in the Union) seemed like a worthy adventure, but I've been asking myself this question more and more every time I get 80 to 100 miles into a ride. I'm learning that I am not an especially gifted ultramarathoner, and by 80 - 100 miles, most of the fun has evaporated and been replaced by serious discomfort and often real pain. From there on it's a slugfest between the pain nagging at me to give up, and pride, fear of failure, and something else I cannot quite as yet identify, perhaps simply my sense of adventure, urging me on. A definite factor has to be the sense of urgency visited on a man on arriving at his seventh decade of life — the sense that there's a big ending coming up sooner than later, so let's make the best of what one has left to give. During a ride (and at other times as well), I often find myself pondering the value of this and hoping that this hard adventurism is pleasing to God.

Quick change artist he's not! With crewchief Mikki Eddlemon at the turnaround at the RI/CT state line

I've always been fascinated by just how far and fast this union of body, mind, and spirit we call a human being can push itself, with or without the mechanical leverage provided by bicycles, sails, paddles, skis, or wings (soaring was my all-time favorite sport, but athleticism is definitely tertiary to the mind and spirit — excepting the occasional forced landing far from help of any kind). I was a runner and speed hiker for many years (twice held the record for hiking the 70-mile length of Great Smoky Mountains Nat. Park for a total of 16 years and the first transit in less than 24 hrs). Cumulative damage to my knees eventually led to surgery and no more running. Frustrated at having nothing to do athletically while my wife Mikki won race after race in track and road racing in Senior Games around the country, I noticed many of these events had cycling, which I had always thought would be even more satisfying than running because of the speed and reduction in joint trauma. So, at the ripe old age of 60, I took up road cycling, did my first century and the 12-hr Sebring bike race in the same week in February 2006 (where I won my age class), discovered the UMCA web site and found there were still state crossing records to be set.

Eddlemon at the finish line at the RI State House in Providence (also the start)

I rode my Tennessee-designed and -built Litespeed Teramo titanium bike (purchased from West Bike of Knoxville) with mostly 10 spd Ultegra components, Speedplay X2 pedals, Ritchey WCS compact crank assembly, SpeedCific wheels and hubs built by Mike Garcia of Odds and Endos, and, because long reaches of the road consist of fairly rough pavement, 26-mm Michelin Pro Race tires for the entire ride.

I consumed one or two Ensure Plus's or Equate energy drinks, Gatorade, water with a pinch of salt, a Marathon bar or two, and a Cliff Bar.

The beauty of the Rhode Island countryside once Providence is left behind was the best part of the ride. The generally courteous motorists and their passengers who not only drove carefully and gave me a wide berth, but also cheered, applauded, and gave thumbs-up and other morale boosting gestures. On certain other rides, I've seen and heard a lot more of the less friendly kind of yells and gestures.

Traffic lights, stop signs, backed-up traffic, and a touch of asthma were the hardest problems to deal with. In such a short ride (total of 50.8 mi), traffic lights and traffic especially take a toll on average speed. There's nothing quite like sprinting to beat a traffic light only to have it turn yellow right at the critical moment when one doubts he can make it through before it changes to red. I tend to be very conservative about yellow lights since I found how costly it can be to be charged with a traffic light violation during a record attempt (I lost 15 minutes for my only violation during last year's crossing of Connecticut from south to north to south). The roads were fairly hilly and often quite rough — the fatter 26-mm tires were probably a good idea.

Eddlemon and wife Mikki celebrate a successful double-crossing at the State House

The behavior of most motorists ranged from neutral to courteous, to expressions of cheerful encouragement for the rider, but a very few were downright nasty in their dangerous and aggressive behavior. Example: one well-dressed, professional-looking young woman driver pulled out right in front of my follow-car from a side road, forcing my driver to slam on the brakes with coolers, boxes of food, etc, flying into the floor. The young woman's response? A nasty look and repeated one-fingered salutes as she sped away.

My heartfelt thanks to my crew captain and bride, Mikki Eddlemon; UMCA official, and most professional Judge, Dr. Mark Cristy of Oak Ridge, TN; and outstanding crew-woman and ultramarathoner, Martha Gingrich of Chappaqua, NY. Their generosity in time, encouragement, and support was absolutely essential to the success of this record attempt.

I dedicate this effort to a dear friend and former colleague of my Oak Ridge National Laboratory days, Robert "Bob" Miller, whose cheerful perseverance and courage in the face of a dangerous and difficult-to-treat illness is a true inspiration to all who know him.

Official Record: Rhode Island E-W, 25.3 miles, 1:38, 15.5 mph
Start: Route 14 at the RI/CT state line
Finish: Route 44 in front of the Rhode Island State House in Providence, RI
Official: Mark Cristy

Official Record: Rhode Island W-E, 25.4 miles, 1:30, 15.8 mph
Start: Route 44 in front of the Rhode Island State House in Providence, RI
Finish: Route 14 at the RI/CT state line
Official: Mark Cristy

Official Record: Rhode Island E-W-E, 50.8 miles, 3:13, 50.8 mph
Start: Route 14 at the RI/CT state line
Turning Point: Route 44 in front of the Rhode Island State House in Providence, RI
Finish: Route 14 at the RI/CT state line
Official: Mark Cristy