Take my advice: if there's a nor'easter the weekend of the ride, just say no. Forget about how much you already spent on pre-ride registration. It will take you 2 hours just to travel the 5 miles leading up to the Bay Bridge, by the time you get to Salisbury the cafeteria will be closed so you won't be able to eat the dinner you pre-paid for, and you will have to buy new bike shoes because it will rain so hard during the ride that they will fill with water and your feet will go squish-squish when you pedal and then when they dry they will shrink.