Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 25, 1995 TAG: 9506260079
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DIANE STRUZZI STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It was soggy and overcast and, oh yes, no one said anything about the trains that rumble through in the middle of the night.
Despite the rain and the noise, Victory Stadium was packed tight with pup tents, bedrolls, bikes and bikers Saturday.
The participants were up by 5:30 a.m. and out by 7. Nothing was going to keep them from the first leg of the Eighth Annual Bike Virginia Tour that began in Roanoke.
They were on their way to their first taste of chriscakes. Similar to pancakes, these flat, doughy creations are energy-packed and were to be cooked fresh by the roadside for the 950 riders. It was an incentive to make it to the first rest stop at Diamond Hills in Bedford County.
Frannie Meshorer had her own incentive - antiquing. She likes to shop. Her husband, Hank Meshorer, likes to bike. So the Maryland couple kissed goodbye near the parking lot. She got into her car anticipating a day of shopping. He got onto his bike and pedaled away in the rain.
"We get together at night, and I see how much money she's spent," he said.
Inside the stadium, on the field, Cathy and Bill Bearden of Woodbridge were packing up from their first honeymoon. Well, actually, their fourth if you count the other weekend trips they've done since their marriage in January.
But who's counting?
"In January, it was too cold to do anything fun," Cathy Beardon said. "And we didn't have money for the Grand Canyon."
So why not a five-day tour across the state that also dips into parts of North Carolina. Sure, they got a little wet during Friday night's stay in Roanoke. But this is about adventure, challenge and fun.
"It's going to be tough, we're going over the Blue Ridge" at some point, he said. "Bikers like downhill and flat. ... We're fat and middle-aged."
Actually, the 47-year-old research analyst for the U.S. government and his 46-year-old wife, a high school English teacher, are neither. Early Saturday, the two banter back and forth like dueling talk-show hosts high on caffeine. Between the two, they have seven children, ages 14 to 23. The bike tour was a perfect getaway from everyone and everything.
"I want a flat tummy and muscles and to have a good time," Cathy Bearden shouts as she packs up her belongings.
Several tents away were the Armstrongs, a family of three on a week's vacation, headed off on their first tour with Bike Virginia.
"It's just something different," said Barbara Armstrong. "We're not TV people, we're not couch potatoes. Cycling is a form of relaxing."
"We like adventure," said her husband, Carl Armstrong.
On the first leg of their trip, much of the adventure was finding a dry spot to sleep without the chug and roar of the Norfolk Southern locomotive. They were not successful.
Despite the discomfort, the Armstrongs were up at the crack of dawn. And, near 7 a.m., Barbara Armstrong was trying to figure out how to repack her husband's duffel bag.
Everything fit in perfectly until it was taken out. Kneeling by her husband's bag, she shoved and pulled, but to no avail.
"I tried to recreate it and I couldn't," she said.
There was an option to stay at a motel, but that wouldn't be nearly as much fun.
Friends "talked up the camaraderie and the social activities after the day is over," said Carl Armstrong. "There's more comfort in the motel, but you miss out on the fun."
by CNB