i just read a newspaper article about a 61 year old guy named Paul Kramer who is a native from this area
(North Olmstead, Ohio), & now lives in Huntington Beach, California. he decided to pedal his $1000 touring bicycle to Ohio! this add i cut from an old paper here in the warehouse where i work as it "caught" my attention, but i don't know the date of this article though. anyway, here it is: YOU MIGHT RECALL THAT FOREST GUMP (ALIAS TOM HANKS), IN THE POPULAR ROBERT ZEMECKIS MOVIE) STARTED JOGGING AND DIDN'T STOP UNTIL HE BECAME A CULT HERO. POP CYCLE (ALIAS PAUL KRAMER) IS SORT OF A FOREST GUMP ON WHEELS. HE STARTED PEDALING APRIL 12 IN CALIFORNIA AN STOPPED TUESDAY AT HIS BROTHER'S HOME IN NORTH OLMSTEAD-A ROUNDABOUT 4,250 MILES AND 71 DAYS LATER. "THIS IS TH END OF THE TRAIL," SAID KRAMER, 61, WHILE REMOVING A REAR VIEW MIRROR ATTACHED TO HIS GLASSES. "I',M A LITTLE SWEATY". KRAMER, A NATIVE OF PARMA, NOW LIVING IN HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA CYCLED HERE FOR A NIECE'S WEDDING SATURDAY. HE STUFFED A STOVE, GAS BOTTLE, TENT, SPARE INNER TUBES, AND BICYCLE REPAIR TOOLS INTO FIVE BAGS AND HIT THE ROAD APRIL 12. AND HE GOT HERE BEFORE HIS LUGGAGE. HIS SUIT ARRIVED THURSDAY. KRAMER STRAPPED HIS BAGS AND A REFLECTIVE TRIANGLE TO HIS $1.000 GREEN TOURING CYCLE AND LEFT HOME TWO MONTHS BEFORE THE WEDDING, JUST IN CASE OF BREAKDOWNS. "IT'S NOT AS BAD AS IT LOOKS," HE SAID, REFERRING TO THE 60 POUNDS OF GEAR. IT TOOK THE AVID CAMPER AND CYCLIST SIX MONTHS TO DECIDE ON WHETHER TO MAKE THE TRIP. "I DECIDED TO GO FOR THE BIG ONE," KRAMER SAID. KRAMER DIDN'T WANT TO ARRIVE EARLY AND INTRUDE ON THE WEDDING PREPARATIONS. IN FACT, HE WAS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND DETOURED TO PITTSBURGH TO VISIT RELATIVES. "I TOOK THE LONG WAY AROUND," HE SAID. "THE WEATHER WAS SO NICE." KRAMER SAID HIS WIFE WAS CONCERNED ABOUT HIM TRAVELING ALONE. HE DIDN'T CARRY A CELL PHONE BECAUSE THERE WAS NO WAY TO KEEP IT CHARGED IN REMOTE AREAS. KRAMER HAD A WATCH BUT DIDN'T USE IT MUCH. WHEN THE SUN ROSE, HE SADDLED HIS GEAR AND HEADED EAST, AVERAGING 60 TO 65 MILES A DAY BEFORE PITCHING HIS TENT IN CAMPGROUNDS AND REST AREAS. "IT'S A LITTLE SCARY," HE SAID. "YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN." KRAMER RELIED ON E-MAIL TO STAY IN TOUCH. HE LOOKED FOR PUBLIC LIBRARIES AND SENT PERIODIC UPDATES THAT READ LIKE A TOURIST'S DIARY. THE MESSAGES WERE SIGNED WITH HIS SELF-COINED MONIKER "POP CYCLE." IN AN E-MAIL TO FAMILY ON APRIL 26, KRAMER DESCRIBED THE 6,300 FOOT-HIGH CONTENTIAL DIVIDE IN NEW MEXICO: "IT WAS JUST ANOTHER HILL." HE EASILY CONQUERED MOUNTAINS THAT CHALLENGED DIESEL-CHUGGING, SMOKE BILLOWING TRUCKS. "IT'S A LOT MORE MENTAL THAN PHYSICAL," KRAMER SAID. KRAMER HAD NO SECOND THOUGHTS ABOUT TRAVELING BY BICYCLE. HE SAID HE MET MANY INTERESTING PEOPLE ALONG THE WAY AND EVEN PEDALED WITH SOME. BUT HE DID WONDER IF HE WOULD EVER GET TO OHIO. IT TOOK HIM NEARLY 3 WEEKS TO CROSS TEXAS. KRAMER, WHO WILL PEDAL HOME IN A FEW WEEKS, SAID NOTHING COMPARES BY TRAVELING BY BICYCLE. "YOU ARE PART OF THE ENVIRONMENT," HE SAID. "YOU RE WITH THE BIRDS AND ANIMALS." NO DOUBT, FOREST GUMP WOULD AGREE. there is a lot i don't understand about this trip. for example, his bike had no lights on it that i can see in the photo. i wish i could post the pic of his bike here, but i don't have a scanner here at work. so how did he travel at night without lights? he must have traveled SOME time in the dark i would think. you can barely even see the bike, just some of the front wheel, & handlebars, because it's covered with so many bags. it's a wonder that the bike don't collapse with all that weight on it. another point is where did he ride? around here by law, you can't travel on the freeway, or major arteries, so where did he ride? i wonder how much maintenance the bike needed. how about weather? how did he cope with bad weather? this feat is amazing especially for a guy his age. anybody else here ever hear of a trip like this? please post it here......
(North Olmstead, Ohio), & now lives in Huntington Beach, California. he decided to pedal his $1000 touring bicycle to Ohio! this add i cut from an old paper here in the warehouse where i work as it "caught" my attention, but i don't know the date of this article though. anyway, here it is: YOU MIGHT RECALL THAT FOREST GUMP (ALIAS TOM HANKS), IN THE POPULAR ROBERT ZEMECKIS MOVIE) STARTED JOGGING AND DIDN'T STOP UNTIL HE BECAME A CULT HERO. POP CYCLE (ALIAS PAUL KRAMER) IS SORT OF A FOREST GUMP ON WHEELS. HE STARTED PEDALING APRIL 12 IN CALIFORNIA AN STOPPED TUESDAY AT HIS BROTHER'S HOME IN NORTH OLMSTEAD-A ROUNDABOUT 4,250 MILES AND 71 DAYS LATER. "THIS IS TH END OF THE TRAIL," SAID KRAMER, 61, WHILE REMOVING A REAR VIEW MIRROR ATTACHED TO HIS GLASSES. "I',M A LITTLE SWEATY". KRAMER, A NATIVE OF PARMA, NOW LIVING IN HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA CYCLED HERE FOR A NIECE'S WEDDING SATURDAY. HE STUFFED A STOVE, GAS BOTTLE, TENT, SPARE INNER TUBES, AND BICYCLE REPAIR TOOLS INTO FIVE BAGS AND HIT THE ROAD APRIL 12. AND HE GOT HERE BEFORE HIS LUGGAGE. HIS SUIT ARRIVED THURSDAY. KRAMER STRAPPED HIS BAGS AND A REFLECTIVE TRIANGLE TO HIS $1.000 GREEN TOURING CYCLE AND LEFT HOME TWO MONTHS BEFORE THE WEDDING, JUST IN CASE OF BREAKDOWNS. "IT'S NOT AS BAD AS IT LOOKS," HE SAID, REFERRING TO THE 60 POUNDS OF GEAR. IT TOOK THE AVID CAMPER AND CYCLIST SIX MONTHS TO DECIDE ON WHETHER TO MAKE THE TRIP. "I DECIDED TO GO FOR THE BIG ONE," KRAMER SAID. KRAMER DIDN'T WANT TO ARRIVE EARLY AND INTRUDE ON THE WEDDING PREPARATIONS. IN FACT, HE WAS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND DETOURED TO PITTSBURGH TO VISIT RELATIVES. "I TOOK THE LONG WAY AROUND," HE SAID. "THE WEATHER WAS SO NICE." KRAMER SAID HIS WIFE WAS CONCERNED ABOUT HIM TRAVELING ALONE. HE DIDN'T CARRY A CELL PHONE BECAUSE THERE WAS NO WAY TO KEEP IT CHARGED IN REMOTE AREAS. KRAMER HAD A WATCH BUT DIDN'T USE IT MUCH. WHEN THE SUN ROSE, HE SADDLED HIS GEAR AND HEADED EAST, AVERAGING 60 TO 65 MILES A DAY BEFORE PITCHING HIS TENT IN CAMPGROUNDS AND REST AREAS. "IT'S A LITTLE SCARY," HE SAID. "YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN." KRAMER RELIED ON E-MAIL TO STAY IN TOUCH. HE LOOKED FOR PUBLIC LIBRARIES AND SENT PERIODIC UPDATES THAT READ LIKE A TOURIST'S DIARY. THE MESSAGES WERE SIGNED WITH HIS SELF-COINED MONIKER "POP CYCLE." IN AN E-MAIL TO FAMILY ON APRIL 26, KRAMER DESCRIBED THE 6,300 FOOT-HIGH CONTENTIAL DIVIDE IN NEW MEXICO: "IT WAS JUST ANOTHER HILL." HE EASILY CONQUERED MOUNTAINS THAT CHALLENGED DIESEL-CHUGGING, SMOKE BILLOWING TRUCKS. "IT'S A LOT MORE MENTAL THAN PHYSICAL," KRAMER SAID. KRAMER HAD NO SECOND THOUGHTS ABOUT TRAVELING BY BICYCLE. HE SAID HE MET MANY INTERESTING PEOPLE ALONG THE WAY AND EVEN PEDALED WITH SOME. BUT HE DID WONDER IF HE WOULD EVER GET TO OHIO. IT TOOK HIM NEARLY 3 WEEKS TO CROSS TEXAS. KRAMER, WHO WILL PEDAL HOME IN A FEW WEEKS, SAID NOTHING COMPARES BY TRAVELING BY BICYCLE. "YOU ARE PART OF THE ENVIRONMENT," HE SAID. "YOU RE WITH THE BIRDS AND ANIMALS." NO DOUBT, FOREST GUMP WOULD AGREE. there is a lot i don't understand about this trip. for example, his bike had no lights on it that i can see in the photo. i wish i could post the pic of his bike here, but i don't have a scanner here at work. so how did he travel at night without lights? he must have traveled SOME time in the dark i would think. you can barely even see the bike, just some of the front wheel, & handlebars, because it's covered with so many bags. it's a wonder that the bike don't collapse with all that weight on it. another point is where did he ride? around here by law, you can't travel on the freeway, or major arteries, so where did he ride? i wonder how much maintenance the bike needed. how about weather? how did he cope with bad weather? this feat is amazing especially for a guy his age. anybody else here ever hear of a trip like this? please post it here......
