Lure of the Open Road

[horsemom]

Don't know if this has been mentioned here before, but it is the story of two 21 year old girls who road their bikes cross country in the '40s. They went right by my house in Chautauqua County NY on their second day! Amazing considering the equipment at the time!!

http://mjgradziel.com/thelmajones/lu...eopenroad.html
Laura

[Zen]

"This shouldn’t be hard at all," Doris said as she knelt on a cleared spot and began shaping the twigs in tepee fashion. I began cutting the potatoes into smaller pieces, washed the lettuce in an inch of water in the canteen cup and laid out the veal chops.

"There it is!" She began blowing gently on the yellow spiral of the flame. Then - the sizzling of the chops in butter, the bubbling of the water about the potatoes, the lettuce dividing - we sat back on the grass balancing our cooking kits and canteen covers. It was the first real cooked-out meal, and a well earned one.

With the dishes washed and the prunes put in to soak for breakfast..."

Beats the hail out of a Power Bar
The next morning they had bacon and eggs!

[horsemom]

Uh, yeah, they RODE their bikes down the road......sorry. I should really not do six things at once!

[Chicken Little]

That was an adorable story. I am nostalgic for those time, when it seemed just a slower, safer and friendlier. Thanks for the link. It was a great post.

[Zen]

I can't believe they signed on to the boat! They really were adventurous women for those times.

[fidlfreek]

Can you imagine riding day after day in a skirt or shorts *WORSE*. Life without a chamois is one I don't want to have to live.

[Biciclista]

I am still reading this story. They darned their socks at night, because they only had two pairs each!!

[Tuckervill]

I read it a while ago. It was a FABULOUS story. What women! We should all be so lucky and adventurous.

Karen

[andtckrtoo]

I spent last night enjoying this story! What adventures they had!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Here is the story of another woman cycling adventuress from long ago:
http://www.annielondonderry.com/index.html
and
http://www.annielondonderry.com/images/BI05ANNIE.pdf
Inspiring, especially if you read about what her bike was like!
(and to think we complain about every little insignificant annoyance on our bikes...)

[Biciclista]

and one of the toughest women that ever rode a bike:

Alfonsina Strada

http://www.radiomarconi.com/marconi/...a_inglese.html

[shootingstar]

Loved the makeshift handlebar from broom for Alfonsio for one of her rides....

[Biciclista]

I wrote to the grandson hosting the website and he said:

hello mimi,
I will certainly pass your thoughts on to my grandmother - she is so excited to hear about people reading her story. Thanks for writing!
-Mike