I drag myself to 8am spin classes
fifteen minutes early during the long and dark winter months while living in
State College, a small college town in Central Pennsylvania, along with my
wrench to swap out my pedals, so I can get my favorite bike. As the music blares loudly I can’t help but
enjoy it even at this hour. After 20
minutes, the quads are burning, I’m playing air guitar and a little air drum
and my minds drifts.
I had wanted to do a Go ‘n
Groove (my home based “Organized Women’s Trips” business) trip to the Finger
Lakes area of New York, and for a couple of years had fantasized about bringing
a group of ladies to the Aurora Inn to take over their EB Morgan House. Unfortunately, I wasn’t sure there would be
enough to do in the area to draw women for a couple of days. But as my heart rate rose and I started to
sweat, which I loved, I thought “Ah, but
what if we did it on bikes?” So I took out highlighters, guides, and Google
Maps and tracked three days of biking in and out of Ithaca, which included a
stay at the Aurora Inn.
But did the idea really start
then? Or was this cycling trip an
unconscious attempt on my part to make things right from my last few weeks
before graduating from Cornell University in ’84?
I started at Cornell in
’79. Along with our required academic
credits, two semesters of Phys Ed had to be completed along with a swim
test. Well, these requirements were not
on the top on my list. Most everyone I
knew knocked these off early, but I wasn’t like everyone else! I also wasn’t very athletic or interested in
any of the classes offered. I can’t
recall how I completed the credits for the first Phys Ed class; I think I got
them by “managing” the Men’s Gymnastics Team as suggested by a neighbor in my
apartment building who was on the team.
I went to the meets and that was that. I think that was the semester
that I also passed my swim test. I knew
I could do it, but it was hiking all the way to the pool (Cornell’s campus is
VERY large), getting undressed, miserable and wet for 10 minutes, getting
dressed again and heading back down the hill that was daunting to me so I had
put it off as long as I could.
Fast forward to Spring
’84. Five months to commencement day and
I was still in need of my final Phys Ed credits. Nothing interested me! I decided I wanted to take a sailing class,
but it was full. Then I saw a “Women
Outdoors” class. Okay, that sounded
good. It didn’t meet twice or three
times a week, just a couple of outings here and there. I didn’t mind being outdoors. Two meetings in and immediately I already hated
it. There wasn’t much snow, but on a
Sunday we were out there cross-country skiing on gravel. I don’t remember many of the other outings,
but I do know that the leaders of the class, fellow students, knew I wasn’t
much into this class or them. They were
nice enough women, but in my opinion, they were taking the class and their responsibility
way too seriously. Remember, all I
wanted was to get these credits over with!
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| Jenny & Karen At A Party Senior Week |
It came down to our final
adventure, a two-night bike ride in and about Trumansburg, a rural area outside
of Ithaca. Okay, I thought, I can do
this. I didn’t make the first overnight
as I had a prior commitment, which didn't sit well with my leaders, but I was
there bright and early Saturday morning to take off with the group. I’ll never forget the looks on my roommate,
Jenny’s, face and our friend, Peter, as they dropped me off. They were in my Chevy Luv Pick Up Truck
trying not to laugh at me; we took out my backpack and 10 speed yellow Fuji bike
I had gotten freshman year in High School.
I must have looked pathetic and I am sure they giggle all the way back
to Collegetown as I reluctantly joined the group.
Then we hit the road. It wasn’t that bad! I actually enjoyed it. The scenery was beautiful and I loved the
solitude of the ride - just the bike and me and all that landscape. Until of course, it was time to stop for the
night. Then the rain started and it got
heavy. Also, at the time, I was a
smoker. What can I say? It was the mid 80’s and I was 23. So off to the woods I went alone to smoke a
butt in the pouring rain and to take care of business. I hate
this class, I thought, and I couldn’t wait to get back to campus the next
afternoon as there was a big fraternity party I was so looking forward to.
 |
| Karen & Jayne On Graduation Day |
The next morning we were back
on the road, the rain had subsided, and we arrived in Ithaca mid afternoon. We weren’t expected to cycle up Buffalo
Street, the notorious steep hill leading from downtown Ithaca to Cornell’s
campus. So I walked my way up the hill
thinking it would be just a couple of hours until party time. At the top of Buffalo at University Avenue,
my friend, Jayne, just happened to drive by in my pick up truck. Pure coincidence! Remember there were no cell phones back then
for me to tip her off that I was almost home.
We got chatting and the group went ahead. When I realized that they were all gone, I
decided to put the bike in the pick up and meet them at Barton Hall. No problem, right? At the final meeting place we said our good
byes and Jayne drove me home. Yeah, it
was over! But no…
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| Cornell Grads From the Early 80's After Completing The Ride |
About three days later, I
received a call from one of the leaders of the group saying that they had
noticed that I didn’t keep up with the group all the way to the end. In order to receive credit for the class I
would have to meet them at the Chapter House, a local watering hole, on
University Avenue and ride from there to Barton Hall, the athletic center in
the middle of campus. Although it was less
than a mile ride it was almost all up hill.
 |
| Karen Before Taking Off Out Of Ithaca |
The next morning, I was back on
my Fuji bike and I rode in between the two leaders. And, yes, I made it all the way to Barton
Hall no problem. Thank God for the red light along the way – a brief stop. Yes, I graduated, but I certainly thought it
wasn’t going to be a bike ride that might keep me from my diploma with exams in
Accounting, Wines, Engineering and Computers that I was also busy studying for
that week.
Fast-forward 22 years and my
business, Go ‘n Groove, Organized Women’s Trips, is planning a bike ride in and
out of Ithaca. This will be our 7th
ride in and around the Finger Lakes and our 3rd in and out of
Ithaca. Starting from downtown, we
cruise through Cornell’s campus and up along the east side of the lake to the Aurora
Inn. From there it’s through the beautiful farm country to Skaneateles with a
stop at MacKenzie - Childs farmhouse. The next morning we get shuttled over to
the top of Cayuga Lake and then we cruise down the west side of the lake with a
stop or two along the way at a winery or the Amish Market or Taughannock Falls
or to the Glenwood Pines for their infamous burger. Back in Ithaca we stay at the wonderful
William Henry Miller Inn at the bottom of the ever-famous Buffalo Street hill.
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| THE CYCLISTS THAT RODE IN & OUT OF ITHACA, SUMMER '10 |
Every time I finish this trip I
can’t help but reflect on my “ride” from the Chapter House to Barton Hall and
can’t help but think, boy, I’d like to see those leaders and show them that now
I can not only do that ride, but can also kick ass up Buffalo Street!
For more information on Go ‘n
Groove’s Trip To The Finger Lakes (Cayuga & Skaneateles) go the site
page: http://www.goandgroove.com/fingerlakes.html
