High-schoolers cross country on two wheels

BARSTOW • Five-and-a-half weeks ago, Amy Levine dipped the front tire of her bicycle in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Savannah, Ga. So far, that tire has traveled through seven states in the lower half of the country. In just two days, Levine and the nine other cyclists in her group will wheel their tires into the froth of the Pacific Ocean at Santa Monica as the symbolic finish to their literal coast-to-coast journey.

Levine is part of a 10-person group, eight high-schoolers and two adult leaders, who are on a cross-country trip organized by a Overland, a Mass.-based group that organizes outdoor summer trips for students. Because the group spent the day Tuesday biking 110 miles through the Mojave Desert, they’re resting for the day in Barstow before picking up the last leg of their journey.

According to group leader Katie Spira, biking through the desert has been the hottest part of their trip.
Levine said that was only part of their trip where they had assistance from vans traveling alongside the group with extra water and frozen snacks.

“Otherwise, we would literally die,” Levine said.

The group of cyclists do everything together: bike, stop for snack breaks, cook meals, and set up camp at night. Each cyclists carries all of his or her supplies on a rack attached to the backs of their bikes.

For 17-year-old Chip Potter, his first cross-country excursion has been an eye-opening experience.

“We’ve seen more of the country than most people will ever see,” said the Chicago native. Potter said he and the group have been taking lots of photographs to capture the different sights they’ve passed. So far, one of the most memorable has been Wolf Creek Pass, Colo., where the group trekked up to elevations reaching 11,000 feet.

To keep occupied during long stretches of open road the cyclists talk, sing and keep busy entertaining each other, said Sita McDermott, a native of Ireland who traveled to the U.S. for her first time just for the cross-country trip.
To encourage each member, the group has a tradition of passing around a “power object” — a small stuffed animal hawk named “Gami” that has traveled cross country with different groups for four years.

The group has crossed paths with colorful characters, said Potter. Some cars passing by have yelled at the bicyclists. In Arkansas, a stranger walked up to the group and wanted to pray for them.

For Spira, the trip is about bonding and cooperating as a group as much as seeing the sights and sounds.

“It’s been amazing,” said Spira.

Contact the writer:
(760) 256-4122 or elee@desertdispatch.com