Angela Parrotta
Northern U.S. 2010
Miles: 3810 / 3810
Days: 69 / 69
Build Days: 10
Rest Days: 2
Location: Route is over
Mmmm BIKE & BUILD 2010 - Bigger, Better, Faster, Stronger.
A summer without biking and building is no summer at all.... My name is Angela (not to be confused with Vangela) and I am a NC2SD'08, CWM'09 & '10 alumni. I took last summer off while all of my friends biked across the country. Big mistake! My summer without a B&B jersey, thermarest, chamois butter, pb&j, and 30 fellow riders to roll deep with proved to be lame so I've decided to come back for more!
In real life I am a graphic designer and live in New York City. I graduated in 2005 with a BFA in Fine Arts from The School of Visual Arts and spend Monday-Friday, 9AM-6PM working at a wonderful design studio. I live in Brooklyn with my over weight cat, Tino, and love every second of it. I grew up in a large and loud family of Italians who own restaurants. So if I sound like I'm screaming...I'm probably just really excited, and if I offer you food...just take it. Cycling has become a big part of my life...I've formed my own cycling posse in Brooklyn and completed a duathlon....thats run, bike, run. No swimming for me. In my spare time I enjoy reading, music, cooking, boxing, and pretending to be a runner.
Since my summer of '08 my facebook friends have increased by at least 100 B&Bers. This is why B&B is so amazing! I regularly try to convince everyone I know to do a trip and often find it hard to go 10 mins without having a B&B related thought. The bonds and community this organization forms is incredible. I now have friends all over the country. There's nothing better then being on the open road while waves of communities are clapping for you as you ride into their town. Meeting the families that will live in the house that you just put a roof on is a truly humbling experience and I am very much honored to have another summer to lead a group of amazing people and together give back to the community.
Now, what miles lunch?
Oh and I love Kristie Gearhead, P2S '09 & P2SF '10
At the Canadian border. I got in trouble for taking this photo...
Ride from Surrey, BC to Vancouver!
We finally hit the water as the weather started to clear up.
About a 1/2 mile from the wheel dip...our last ride as a whole team.
Leading the group to the beach!
"singing forever young..."
The leaders and Brendan!
T-Bear love
Superlatives
Celebrating at Fountain Head
Finally made it to Bourbon.
Walking to Granville Market
It seems fitting that it rained on our last ride together into Vancouver because thats exactly how we started this journey 68 days prior. Coincidentally by the time we reached the pacific the clouds parted to blue skies and it turned into a perfect afternoon just like the wheel dip at the Atlantic. It was perfect! We all stripped down and ran into the ocean, dipped our front tires, greeted our friends and family and then enjoyed a great BBQ.
Micheal & Diane headed up superlatives...I got most likely to call someone by, "hey, GIRL! or hey, BOY!." Ha
Vancouver is a beautiful yet very strange place. We are staying in the West End area. Its also the gayborhood. During the day everything seems normal but we went out last night and the feeling quickly changed. I've seen hookers, girls that are cracked out of their mind, and an enormous amount of homelessness. Drug dealers are everywhere. Despite all of this, its impressively clean.
Being here is cool but has made me miss NYC. Tomorrow we leave for the road trip home. We are stopping in Seattle, Portland, the red woods in CA, Moab, Breckenridge, Denver, Indiana, Columbus and then a long stretch onto to Jersey to drop off Kyle, see my parents and the restaurant, Philly to drop off Elvis and the trailer and then back to sweet, sweet NYC.
We are down to almost half of the group now and its getting sad seeing people go home. This has been an amazing journey with 31 incredible people and I am honored to have been able to spend the summer getting to know everyone. What an accomplishment! Bravo!
My friend Gabe climbed this pass a week before I got here with P2S. He buried me a time capsule at the top. It was an epic way to climb a mountain. Love you, Gabe!
At an ice cream shop in Winthrop...P2S was just here a week ago!
Climbing Washington Pass.
The overlook at Washington Pass
Lake Diablo. The reason I wanted to do NUS!
Camp in Rockport was sweet!
Washington has many mountains...In the past 5 days we've climbed 6 mountain passes. Flowery trail, Sherman Pass, Wauconda Pass, Loup Loup Pass, Washington Pass, & Rainy Pass. Cycling at 4-6 mph has caused me to laugh uncontrollably, lose my mind, yell at the mountains, etc. Its been insanity! Some of things that have been coming out of our mouths have been ridiculous.
For example, during one of our climbs I was talking about losing my mind during a ride on CWM and how a friend Becca had called me a giddy bitch. Well, I sweat A LOT and I lose a ton of salt...all of my cycling caps have impressive salt stains, so everyone here calls me a salty dog. Kelsey shouts out in delirium, "Fact: Giddy bitches are always salty dogs..."
Another funny moment...Kelsey and I are riding together up to Loup Loup pass. I am in front. Angela K rides up behind Kelsey and asks if she's hungry. Kelsey in confusion repeats the question and AK asks her if she wants and Angela sandwich...
"Do I have a flat?" This is something I have been asking people I ride with every 3 miles. Riding on a flat tire slows you down...It also feels the same when you are climbing mountains at a much slower pace...lets say 4.5 mph. So in reality I never have flats, I just suck at climbing and now its funny every time I ask the question.
Ride into Sandpoint, Id
Kate & I flew today.
Night out!
Sam and I got competitive.
Yup...got my own place!
Everyone tried it. Everyone.
Climbing Sherman Pass. Elevation 5,575 Feet.
My legs were tired but I stopped to chalk.
Rodeo in Glasgow, MT
We saw MOOSE!
AMERICA!
Riding to Cutbank, MT
Sweep Day with Leisl. All smiles despite the head wind.
Marty sent me a mail drop. Nice joke. I'll use them as rags.
Glacier National Park
Starting to climb Glacier
Taking a break at the bed & breakfast and getting some puppy love.
AK is pointing out the road we will eventually be climbing.
AK, Chris, and I taking a break.
We made it!
The airport run day. Corker posing while we wait for the construction trucks to pass on Glacier.
Finally, we caught up with some riders!
Roofing!
Sam and I giving massages.
The view from the HFH house.
Last build day in Whitefish, MT
The group in Whitefish
Sadie Hawkins Ride Date
Lake Dickey. We got a tube ride from the locals.
The majority of time we were riding along Highway 2. The cue sheets looked like this: Make a right out of the church [.01 miles], Left onto Highway 2 [75 miles], Arrive at church. I have a love/hate relationship with this road mainly because it could really use some new pavement but the shoulders are pretty roomy. The flat count of the entire trip has gone up significantly since we entered Montana's Highway 2. 21 total in one day. Thanks Montana.
Once we entered the state we were ambushed by mosquitoes. I've never experienced anything quite like it. I would literally have to spray my body down with OFF if I wanted to survive pumping my tires in the morning. If you think we were safe while riding, you're wrong. My body was covered with bites, and now probably covered with scars.
After the mosquitoes came the grasshoppers. Millions. Hanging out in the grass along highway 2. We would ride in pacelines and they would jump all over us and because we were so close to one another they would jump from one person to the next. They got me in the face at least 4 times. That lasted for about 4 days.
We've also seen and learned some really interesting things along the way.
For starters, apparently Meth is a really big problem here. There are signs and billboards everywhere along highway 2. "Meth. Not even once" or "Close the door to Meth" (this was written on several doors)
Along highway 2 are train tracks that carry cargo carts and every once and a while we'd even see a Amtrack train. We had great success getting the train conductors to blow their whistles for us. These made for really beautiful landscapes. Also Montana has gotten an abnormal amount of rain this summer so everything is still super green which made the scenes incredible.
Huckleberries: I've never even heard of them until this state and people here are obsessed with them. Pies, Ice cream, Slushies, etc. They look like a blueberry but they taste a little more bitter. And apparently are expensive. So good!
Now for some specifics about the towns we stopped in:
Wolfpoint: An Indian Reservation where we saw a Pow Wow. A modern pow-wow is a specific type of event where both Native American and non-Native American people meet to dance, sing, socialize, and honor American Indian culture. There is generally a dancing competition, often with significant prize money awarded. Pow-wows vary in length from one day session of 5 to 6 hours to three days. Major pow-wows or pow-wows called for a special occasion can be up to one week long. There were 2 tribes. One being the Sioux. We had a native tell us a little about the culture and the traditions and later in the evening the group went back and even got to get to dance with them. I used that time to catch up on sleep.
Glasgow: There was a Rodeo in town. I've never been to a Rodeo so you can imagine my excitement. Also, the beers were $2. Win!
Glacier National Park (St Mary's campground): It rained this whole day. And it was freezing. And we were climbing! By this time we were entering the mountains and the terrain was AMAZING! I dressed in every piece of cold weather gear I owned and still there were times where I felt like crying and calling the van to come and get me because it was so cold. Nathan (CUS '08, NUS '09, & NC2SD '10) and Molly (NC2SD '10) along with her parents met us in a town called Browning and provided lunch and hot cocoa. Things started to turn around. I spent almost 2 hours in their car trying to warm up and figure out how I could not finish this ride. I put my big girl pants on and carried on. The rest of the ride was incredible. Ang K and I stopped at a bed and breakfast to get coffee and warm up a bit. The owner had a million dogs. They were cute, she was nice! Moving on the ride ended with a crazy decent into the campground. I was glowing. I was so happy the ride was over and we could finally warm up and eat good food at The Park Cafe where Sarah had worked last summer. They are known for the homemade pies! I got a 3-berry slice and it was heaven. When we arrived to camp the tents were pitched and everyone was trying to warm up by the fire. It rained on an off for the remainder of the day making a camping experience not so nice. None of us showered because I'm sure you can imagine how awful it would feel to use the hose when we were already frozen. So we were smelly and frozen and most of the riders snuggled throughout the night for the warmth.
My night however was a different experience. I had to drive a rider Mark to the airport so he could return to Alaska to teach children. This meant I had to wake up at 2:50 Am. So I slept in the van. When my alarm went off I got my flashlight and opened the van door to find a spot to pee. I heard rustling and got nervous there were bears around going through our stuff. I waited for my eyes to adjust perfectly still and realized that the black blobs I was seeing were shadows from my flashlight. Perfect. Mark, Kira, and Andrew joined me in the van and little did we know, we began our journey through hell. In order to get to the airport, which was in the town we would be riding to in the upcoming hours, we had to go up and over the mountains and Logan Pass. It was still pouring out and through most of the switchbacks there was thick fog. So we were moving very slowly. At some point I noticed that every time I breaked the interior lights would flicker. Great. When I finally had to use my breaks the lights went out and then we smelled burning. While having a heart attack I decided to turn the van off. Then get out. Then have another heart attack because we were in the middle of nowhere, on a mountain, at 4AM, in a habitat where bears live. Right. I got back in the van and we drove with a flash light on for interior lights. The headlights worked, the rear ones did not. Hmm... We got to the airport 30 mins before Mark was supposed to get on his plane. I panicked, worrying he would not make it in time. We dropped him off and then tried to find a manual for Elvis ( the van). No luck. But the sun was coming up by this point so we found a gas station and tried to get service on our phones to use the web and look up the fuse box manual. No luck. The last resort was to call Brendan at 5AM and when he didn't pick up Kristian finally did. He worked on getting us the interior lights fuse number but by that point we just started pulling fuses to see which one was blown. About 30 mins later with the sun up, we were on the road again driving back to St. Mary's campsite to pick up the trailer. At this point the riders had a 4 am wake up and were already climbing to Logan pass. With the sun up we actually got to see the crazy views I was driving through hours earlier. I've never seen anything more beautiful and scary ever. It wasn't so bad when I couldn't see the drop from the edge of the mountains on the way there, but now I was actually using caution. Finally, we started passing riders and I felt better seeing them. It was still pouring, fyi. Once we got the trailer hitched we set out again only this time we went around the mountain and that entailed backtracking to where lunch was the previous day. It should be noted that all moving vehicles put me to sleep...so at this point I had 3 red bulls and 3 coffees and I was still having a hard time staying awake. I was flying because I was afraid I would miss the riders at the bottom of the park for the lunch stop but to my surprise I caught the first group as soon as I pulled up. 220 miles later, we had made it and I was cracked out. That was Glacier. I wish I could have been on my bike that day. OOF!
Whitefish Build Day: This city is really cool. We worked on a smaller Habitat home but we got a lot done. Really refreshing especially since most of our build days have been a huge bust. Shout out to Dan at the church that made magic for us during our stay. We decided to do a twist on a Sadie Hawkins day so the ladies got paired up with the guys and we had to find creative ways to ask them for "a day on the bike date." Our numbers are off so I got matched with Kelsey and decided to have our friends send random text and photo messages to her giving her clues on who her date was. I did this at the build site so most of the clues had to do with building and the tools we used. For example, "Fun fact #3. Your dates likes to get hammered."[HAHA] I gave myself up with Fun fact #8. "Angela wants to know if you'd be her date." Liz took a picture of me sitting on a deck beam in front of the house and when Kelsey came out of the house she found me sitting there. And she accepted.
Eureka: Today was our Sadie Hawkins ride! Kelsey and I doubled with Ange K and Diane and we had a crasher, Steph because her date, Andrew was in the van. Kelsey was putting a lot of pressure on me to do something good for lunch and all I was planning was to find a diner and get food. Lucky for me the lunch spot was at this cafe that looked like a country club out back. It was a perfect lunch spot and it even had water fountains and bench swings! We got amazing burgers and hung out for a while. On the ride to the church we were riding along Lake Dickey. It was the most beautiful water I have ever seen in my life and we were determined to find our way to swim in it. We found a little beach and other B&Bers were there as well. Jamey let us know that Josh and Jess had scored a sweet tubing ride with a locals boat and then Kelsey gave me the look. So as her date I asked these people if they'd take us out and they did! I've never been tubing before so it was hysterical! Diane was on my right, I was in the middle, and Kelsey was on my left. This guy had youngsters so he knew how to make the tube go crazy and thats exactly what he did. They both got thrown off a few times while I was hanging on for dear life. It was awesome. Perfect bike date ride.
We had a stare down. He won.
The buffalo that held us up
campsite @ TRNP
The ride inside the park was incredible
We got Diane. And we got to TRNP!
AP
AK
Ange2
they were petting the horses for a while
waiting for trucks.
We got Denis at lunch!
hello gravel roads
Ange sandwich with Kels & Sarah
Weeding
I started taking naps. Apparently my body does need sleep and it showed the past few days. After dinner we finished watching Breaking Away (best movie ever) and I suggested watching American Flyers after. I got 2 minutes into the movie and past out. When I awoke it was 11:54 PM and mostly everyone had gone to the bar. I went back to sleep.
The next morning was great. We had a build day and I woke up super early since I got almost 11 hours of sleep. I enjoyed many cups of coffee and got some work done while everyone else was sleeping and our hosts were making us breakfast. (french toast, scrambled eggs and sausage) mmmm.
The build day was pretty much a bust again. 32 people to build 1 shed. Thanks HFH. Our build days hate us. The leaders rallied and made some phone calls and took half of the group to a nursing home to do some weeding. That was actually really nice.
New Town: This ride was awful. Apparently North Dakota is the Saudi Arabia of the Mid West. Highway 23 (which we were on for 50+ miles) is a 2 lane highway with no shoulder that oil tankers and semis hog. Riders were getting blown off the road & buzzed. We were pretty scared for our lives. No joke. It was mentally and physically draining. I HATE OIL! The funny part is that we were supposed to be on it the following day into Teddy Roosevelt National Park but we decided to re-route. Kelly & Kyle were out driving the new route until 4 AM. Wake up was at 6. There was almost 30 miles on gravel roads. In case you all are not aware, we ride road bikes. Yup, gravel sucks. It sucks so bad I even skidded and fell. And I'd ride a century on it over dealing with Highway 23 ever again. OOF.
TRNP: This was Angela Day. Angela Kowalski and I decided to ride together today and make as many Angela sandwiches as possible. It was amazing. As I mentioned above, we had a 75 mile day and 30 of those miles where on dirt and gravel roads. Those roads are a reminder to stop eating cookies and start doing push ups. My flabby arms were giving me whiplash. ha! The ride was beautiful despite seeing oil rigs everywhere. Once we got closer to the park we started seeing cattle farms again. I never thought I'd be so happy to smell cow poop again. Camping was fantastic. There was a gigantic fire place where we cooked our hobo meals and smores. The temperature drop significantly and it was nice until the morning where we were freezing our butts off. On the van ride out of the park I came up to a bunch of riders stopped at a top of a hill. I pulled up really confused and then finally realized that they were all pointing to a huge buffalo in the road. We all observed a sign coming into the park warning pedestrians that buffalo are extremely dangerous. Right. So after waiting almost a half hour for the buffalo to walk away and stop looking at us so intimidating like, a group of riders road along side the van and trailer while we passed the buffalo. Nice way to start a 95 mile day...
My date, Nolan.
Kira & Sam
Kelly and her incredibly jingly dress.
Kristen & Chris
We gave Josh a mullet today. Him and AK.
Kyle Lee ladies and gents with his date, Heather.
Nolan in an Angela sandwich.
farmers making beats.
Kyle Lee left a card with the most beautiful words and a single white rose for Heather.
Josh chalked a gigantic mustache on a ride, stating there was a new mustachio in town. Later that day during AH presentations he put on a fake mustache and asked Angela K to be his date.
Denis took a whole bunch of creepy photos of his date, Beth with him kinda of peeping/creeping the the backgrounds. During the same AH presentation, he interrupted it and showed these photos and asked Beth.
Jamey came galloping into the church parking lot that evening on a horse and asked Kate.
The following morning at breakfast, Steven, came dancing suavely into the gym with Barry White or something of that nature while Kyle G and Mark presented sparkling grape juice to Sarah. She accepted.
Kelsey wrapped herself into a mail drop box for Leisl.
At a lunch spot the next day, I was off playing 2 games of volley ball and when I returned to my bike there was a red string tied to my handle bars. About 3 minutes later of following it around peoples yards and looping around trees, there was Nolan laying in someones back yard on a towel with greased hair reeking like Axe body spray. He stuffed his shorts and fed me grapes. Clearly he thought I would be touched by the Jersey shore, touch. It was amazing!
So in Rugby, ND we stayed at a gym which was the perfect setting for prom. Everyone got dressed in their farmlike prom outfits and got ready to dance our butts off. We even took pictures with our dates before we entered prom. At the end, Liz and Micheal announced some superlatives; Kelly got best dressed, AK got best dancer, Kira got prom Queen and Steven got prom King. It was a great, great night. Here are some pics.
This is what we do. A lot.
Grand Rapids, Mn lunch spot...a golf course!
Some lov'in
Furman
Sarah giving her best impression of AK with the backwards helmet, Abby feeding Nolan and Kyle being a creeper.
Beth...Nice girl...
Kira and Mark participating in the sweep challenge of the day. Make sweep creative sandwiches.
The goods. A cookie with nutella, peanut butter, pretzels, bananas...yum
A moment of greatness.
We found Paul Bunyan in Bemidji, Mn
and this...
"I don't feel like dancin..." 6AM. Getting ready for 118 miles into Devils Lake.
105 miles into Devils Lake. Lunch stop number 3...dance party.
Jamey & Kelly
Josh & DenisThanks for everything Minnesota...You're wonderful. Lets talk about the first stop in North Dakota. Do you remember the documentary Jesus Camp from a few years ago...yeah well it was about that church in Devils Lake, North Dakota where the children were nearly brain washed. Yeah. We stayed with that church and showered in that camp. Reaaaaaaaaaaal Nice.
I'm sitting here in Duluth updating this blog listening to Pandora and, "Let her cry" by Hootie and the Blowfish came on. Its been a long rainy day...a day for thinking.
I wanted to share the lyrics
She sits alone by a lampost
trying to find a thought that's escaped her mind
She says Dad's the one I love the most
but Stipe's not far behind
She never lets me in
only tells me where she's been
when she's had too much to drink
I say that I don't care, I just run my hands
through her dark hair then I pray to God
you gotta help me fly away
And just...Let her cry..if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
This morning I woke up alone
found a note standin' by the phone
saying baby, maybe I'll be back some day
I wanted to look for you
You walked in I didn't know just what I should do
so I sat back down and had a beer
and felt sorry for myself.
Sayin'...Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...awww...Last night I tried to leave
cried so much I could not believe
she was the same girl I fell in lovewith long ago
She went in the back to get high
I sat down on my couch and cried
yellin' "Oh mama, please help me!
Won't you hold my hand?"And
Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
I wanted to share the lyrics
She sits alone by a lampost
trying to find a thought that's escaped her mind
She says Dad's the one I love the most
but Stipe's not far behind
She never lets me in
only tells me where she's been
when she's had too much to drink
I say that I don't care, I just run my hands
through her dark hair then I pray to God
you gotta help me fly away
And just...Let her cry..if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
This morning I woke up alone
found a note standin' by the phone
saying baby, maybe I'll be back some day
I wanted to look for you
You walked in I didn't know just what I should do
so I sat back down and had a beer
and felt sorry for myself.
Sayin'...Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...awww...Last night I tried to leave
cried so much I could not believe
she was the same girl I fell in lovewith long ago
She went in the back to get high
I sat down on my couch and cried
yellin' "Oh mama, please help me!
Won't you hold my hand?"And
Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
Let her cry...if the tears fall down like rain
Let her sing...if it eases all her pain
Let her go...let her walk right out on me
And if the sun comes up tomorrow
Let her be...let her be.
Rose garden in Duluth
A chalking for Calves
A chalking for curls
The ride into Sandstone was primarily on bike paths and AWESOME! Finally a chance to ride 2 abreast and not have to worry about cars. Kelsey and I decided to spend the day together and spend some time thinking about Paige and working on chalkings for her. We also talked a lot about family and our relationships. She likes to dig deep...
Later in the day we picked up Liz and spent the 8 hours ahead of us talking about nonsense, stopping for pop, trying to pet cats, and picking out our outfits for Llama Proma on Aug 1st. This ride was awesome...i love these girls.
Lets talk about Llama Proma: Micheal and Liz planned this whole elaborate prom for us. The guys and Kels had to pick out prom dates out of a hat and in the following days have to come up with creative ways to ask the ladies.
The ride into Duluth I was sweeping with Josh. It was nothing short of amazing. We gave the riders a challenge to capture amazing photos with locals. I also casually mentioned that chalkings for sweep would be appreciated. We were in for a BIG surprise! A couple miles into the ride there was a love poem for me, "Angela P. my queen to be..." and arrows pointed to a gift. 7 miles later there is a chalking to "curls" and "calves." I've been wearing my hair curly for this trip and Josh has the sickest calves next to Lance. Every 7 miles following we received a chalking from "dressy" & "mofaux"...we finally figured out it was Abby, who always wears new dresses, and Kelsey, who has a mofohaux. Ha. Captured in the photos above are the wonderful messages and illustrations they left for us. At some point we caught up with Denis and Nolan chalking a message for me but they got spooked and sped away leaving an empty circle where a new gift was supposed to be... I've got my suspicions about the 2 of them but they might just be trying to throw off all of the girls. There are only a couple more days for them to ask us... Kyle Lee wrote a sermon to Heather tonight and gave her a single white rose. That's pretty good!
After an awesome lunch with donated nectarines, we carried on and took a 7 mile detour into a dead end. We came across chalk pointing out amazing clouds with a B&B arrow...we were busy looking at the clouds and missed the directional arrow. Whoops. Once we hauled our butts back we caught up with a group cliff jumping into the St Louis river. Pretty awesome! We finally got moving once again and then ran into Kira and Kelly suspiciously standing outside a supermarket cleaning their faces with a roll of paper towels...
After dinner, the group displayed their local pictures with us. Leisl won herself one slow dance with us by getting herself and her bike tossed into a garbage truck. Kelly and Kira also won by taking a picture with Tom. Kira posed as a bloody vampire with jelly covering her mouth and arms and Tom using a string of garlic to fend her off.
We are staying at a Temple in Duluth and it has been really wonderful. Our host, Gary let us have a Q & A with him about Judaism and brought us into the sanctuary where he took out the Torah.
Our day off was a relaxing rainy one. We had Thai for lunch which was nice to get a little spice into our lives again. I also decided to put a hoop in my nose...
Later in the day we picked up Liz and spent the 8 hours ahead of us talking about nonsense, stopping for pop, trying to pet cats, and picking out our outfits for Llama Proma on Aug 1st. This ride was awesome...i love these girls.
Lets talk about Llama Proma: Micheal and Liz planned this whole elaborate prom for us. The guys and Kels had to pick out prom dates out of a hat and in the following days have to come up with creative ways to ask the ladies.
The ride into Duluth I was sweeping with Josh. It was nothing short of amazing. We gave the riders a challenge to capture amazing photos with locals. I also casually mentioned that chalkings for sweep would be appreciated. We were in for a BIG surprise! A couple miles into the ride there was a love poem for me, "Angela P. my queen to be..." and arrows pointed to a gift. 7 miles later there is a chalking to "curls" and "calves." I've been wearing my hair curly for this trip and Josh has the sickest calves next to Lance. Every 7 miles following we received a chalking from "dressy" & "mofaux"...we finally figured out it was Abby, who always wears new dresses, and Kelsey, who has a mofohaux. Ha. Captured in the photos above are the wonderful messages and illustrations they left for us. At some point we caught up with Denis and Nolan chalking a message for me but they got spooked and sped away leaving an empty circle where a new gift was supposed to be... I've got my suspicions about the 2 of them but they might just be trying to throw off all of the girls. There are only a couple more days for them to ask us... Kyle Lee wrote a sermon to Heather tonight and gave her a single white rose. That's pretty good!
After an awesome lunch with donated nectarines, we carried on and took a 7 mile detour into a dead end. We came across chalk pointing out amazing clouds with a B&B arrow...we were busy looking at the clouds and missed the directional arrow. Whoops. Once we hauled our butts back we caught up with a group cliff jumping into the St Louis river. Pretty awesome! We finally got moving once again and then ran into Kira and Kelly suspiciously standing outside a supermarket cleaning their faces with a roll of paper towels...
After dinner, the group displayed their local pictures with us. Leisl won herself one slow dance with us by getting herself and her bike tossed into a garbage truck. Kelly and Kira also won by taking a picture with Tom. Kira posed as a bloody vampire with jelly covering her mouth and arms and Tom using a string of garlic to fend her off.
We are staying at a Temple in Duluth and it has been really wonderful. Our host, Gary let us have a Q & A with him about Judaism and brought us into the sanctuary where he took out the Torah.
Our day off was a relaxing rainy one. We had Thai for lunch which was nice to get a little spice into our lives again. I also decided to put a hoop in my nose...
July 20th was a sad day for every Bike & Builder. Paige Hicks, leader of P2S '10 and alumni from '09 had been struck by a truck and was killed. She was only 21. My best friend Gabe was her co-leader. He had called me with the horrifing news later that day. I hope I never have to hear him like that again. Its been heart breaking for all of us but the response from the Bike & Build community has been tremendous. As a tribute to Paige, all of the trips and many alumni have been chalking messages in her honor.
E E Cummings is one of my favorite poets and these words have been in my head since that tragic day. Kelsey and I got it down on the pavement of a bike path on Sunday on the ride into Sandstone, Mn. It's our small way of honoring Paige.
i carry your heart with me
i carry your heart with me(i carry it inmy heart)i am never without it(anywhere i go you go,my dear; and whatever is doneby only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)
We love and miss you Paige
Nolan is the jokester of the group. Well...a select few got him back. ahem.
The dance party into Chicago.
LOVE HER!
Hmm...I love me a good manstache
One of the funniest moments when we finally realized that we matched.
On a bike path into Chi-town
Trav...looking real good.
Steph getting Josh on his B-day with water balloons.
Ride into Soldiers Grove...Mark pulled me going almost 24 mph. It was awesome.
Trav and I are obviously obsessed with cheese.
Build day in South Bend...we were sodding. (is that aword?)Wisconsin was a really beautiful state to bike through. Some high lights include:
Madison day off: Dan Carmody from NC2SD '08 came out to say hello and joined our whole group later at a local brewery. There was pool, shuffle board, darts, and a TON of beer. The following day we started with breakfast at a diner and that's when my hang over kicked in. The rest of the day was spent exploring Main street near the college and doing some impulsive shopping. I got a new camera though. I was mistaken for a homeless person when I fell asleep on a bench outside of a sporting goods store that Kelly was shopping in for 2 hours...that was nice and hysterical. Mind you I was wearing a fancy new dress I just bought and had my aviator sunglasses on. Homeless?...sure.
Soldiers Grove: This was a century ride, 103 miles, and I was riding strong. The terrain was hilly but really nice. We had 2 lunches at ranches in the middle of nowhere. Kelly handed out water guns which were a huge success. Once we got close we were riding through apple orchards which the town is known for. I rode in with Micheal, Josh and Steph to finish out the ride. We stayed at our first school.
Madison day off: Dan Carmody from NC2SD '08 came out to say hello and joined our whole group later at a local brewery. There was pool, shuffle board, darts, and a TON of beer. The following day we started with breakfast at a diner and that's when my hang over kicked in. The rest of the day was spent exploring Main street near the college and doing some impulsive shopping. I got a new camera though. I was mistaken for a homeless person when I fell asleep on a bench outside of a sporting goods store that Kelly was shopping in for 2 hours...that was nice and hysterical. Mind you I was wearing a fancy new dress I just bought and had my aviator sunglasses on. Homeless?...sure.
Soldiers Grove: This was a century ride, 103 miles, and I was riding strong. The terrain was hilly but really nice. We had 2 lunches at ranches in the middle of nowhere. Kelly handed out water guns which were a huge success. Once we got close we were riding through apple orchards which the town is known for. I rode in with Micheal, Josh and Steph to finish out the ride. We stayed at our first school.
Onalaska: We got a late start today due to crazy fog. I think most of us appreciated it though. It was a sad and frustrating day for all of us. I rode by myself for some of the morning and then Sam caught up with me which was a nice distraction. The terrain was really hilly and my legs felt like jello. We re-routed onto a road that was really beautiful with rolling hills and by that point we were with Travis, Josh, Stephaine and some others. To pass the time, Travis asked us to think about a meal that we could have prepared by anyone we wanted, a guest to invite, and a location for the meal. Everyone started talking about food and we got really hungry, really fast. I think my meal would be prepared by my mom. I love her pasta putanesca and homemade white pizza with Gorgonzola and onions. We would be on my grandparents farm in Italy and I'd hope to share the meal with both of my parents. My dad is opening the restaurant again. Its bittersweet for me. I miss them. Our stay in Onalaska was really great. The hosts and community members were amazing and the dinner was really, really delicious.
Pepin: It was Josh's Birthday today! I drove the van today and it was raining but the riders loved the ride and it went quick for most of them. Once we got into town the rain had stopped and everyone ganged up on Josh with water balloons. Today was also mail drop. Another letter from Emily and Tom. I love them, thank you so much. I also got a package from Mal-thanks so much!
Janesville was our first stop in Wiscaaaaansin and is home to 2 of our riders, Sarah and Kate. Also home to former NC2SD co-leader, Ben Ryan. I was driving the van that day with sickly Kelly in the back. She had been battling a cold for several days but by lunch time she was pretty lifeless with crazy pains all over. I stopped at a bar called Como Inn for the riders lunch spot?it had a shaded area with picnic tables and a volley ball court. The perfect combination for crazy people like us. Once people started rolling in they formed 2 teams and played a couple of games. For some reason we the leaders have whistles on our keys (which we don't use on the riders) so it seemed appropriate that I get up on the refs chair and call the game. It was pretty amazing.
Once we got into town, Nigella met us at the church and took Kelly to Urgent Care and we later found out that she had a kidney infection. Real nice. She set up camp at their house for the rest of our stay in Janesville and pretty much slept for 72 hours.
Friday night: Sam Ryan picked me up and we headed over to Sarah's house to meet the group for a bonfire and some beers. Sarah's dad is from New Zealand and taught the boys this chant/dance. Its now part of Sam Ross and Travis's 100 step handshake. Tonight I got to sleep in the guest room at Nigella's BEAUTIFUL house. It was so great to have a bed.
Sat: Today was a build day and when we got to the Habitat site we quickly noticed that the site supervisor looked like he could be brothers to our own, Paul Northrup. Seriously, they were the same person. Sarah showed up late so we told her that he actually was Paul's brother and she later approached him asking him all kinds of hysterical questions. Both got very confused and we laughed a lot! Today was crazy hot and there was little to no shade around the house. The group split up? some were on the roof and some were doing siding. There weren't quite enough jobs for 31 so Denis and Kyle went to get Elvis, our van, fixed and I made sure everyone was staying hydrated. The build was a success...everyone shared the job duties and we all got a taste of everything.
Later that evening we were shuttled over to Kate's dads house for dinner and were blown away. The driveway was chalked "pasta free zone" and our hearts sang with joy. (We've been eating tons of pasta and lasagna and are sick of it!) Kate's step mom works in design too so she printed huge banners with a collage of photos from our trip and also had yellow NUS 2010 t-shirts printed with our names and itineraries on the back with matching "thank you" cards. It was incredible. Let's talk about the food...beer brats, the most amazing and juicy burgers I've ever had, local famous subs, chicken, salads, dips, fruit, desserts, and local beer! It was the perfect ending to a great weekend and a warm welcome to Wisconsin.
Thank you to Nigella & Jim for taking care of Kelly and opening your home to us and for providing lunch for us the ride into Madison. You guys are truly wonderful people and I feel blessed to know you.
Once we got into town, Nigella met us at the church and took Kelly to Urgent Care and we later found out that she had a kidney infection. Real nice. She set up camp at their house for the rest of our stay in Janesville and pretty much slept for 72 hours.
Friday night: Sam Ryan picked me up and we headed over to Sarah's house to meet the group for a bonfire and some beers. Sarah's dad is from New Zealand and taught the boys this chant/dance. Its now part of Sam Ross and Travis's 100 step handshake. Tonight I got to sleep in the guest room at Nigella's BEAUTIFUL house. It was so great to have a bed.
Sat: Today was a build day and when we got to the Habitat site we quickly noticed that the site supervisor looked like he could be brothers to our own, Paul Northrup. Seriously, they were the same person. Sarah showed up late so we told her that he actually was Paul's brother and she later approached him asking him all kinds of hysterical questions. Both got very confused and we laughed a lot! Today was crazy hot and there was little to no shade around the house. The group split up? some were on the roof and some were doing siding. There weren't quite enough jobs for 31 so Denis and Kyle went to get Elvis, our van, fixed and I made sure everyone was staying hydrated. The build was a success...everyone shared the job duties and we all got a taste of everything.
Later that evening we were shuttled over to Kate's dads house for dinner and were blown away. The driveway was chalked "pasta free zone" and our hearts sang with joy. (We've been eating tons of pasta and lasagna and are sick of it!) Kate's step mom works in design too so she printed huge banners with a collage of photos from our trip and also had yellow NUS 2010 t-shirts printed with our names and itineraries on the back with matching "thank you" cards. It was incredible. Let's talk about the food...beer brats, the most amazing and juicy burgers I've ever had, local famous subs, chicken, salads, dips, fruit, desserts, and local beer! It was the perfect ending to a great weekend and a warm welcome to Wisconsin.
Thank you to Nigella & Jim for taking care of Kelly and opening your home to us and for providing lunch for us the ride into Madison. You guys are truly wonderful people and I feel blessed to know you.
Niagara Falls!
X-tina rode with us into RIT.
The dock at Avon Lake.
John & Cathy Berner provided 2nd lunch on one of the hottest rides. The riders were so happy to jump into Lake Erie in their back yard!
About 2 miles away from the church in Niagara with Kelly & Kate.
The whole crew showed up!
Beth carried this flag the whole 1.5 miles to see fireworks. It was great for photos.
Leaving RIT on the 4th. We sang the Star Spangled Banner.
In Ashtabula, the night before our build day. This was the dance party. Club Northern.
On the Maid of the Mist in Niagara.
Ride into Rochester, NY. Sam (1oolbs) was on the seesaw with Paul (250lbs) and obviously was stuck in the air so I jumped out to even the playing field.
3 states in one day. We left Westfield, NY, hit PA, and then onto Ashtabula, OH. Notice Nolan creeping in the background.
Watching the fireworks in Lockport, NY
Paul got go-carts donated while we were staying at RIT.
Obviously, we were really excited.
Avon Lake, Ohio. This was the home of one of our home stays hosts. Everyone went swimming in lake Erie with the sun setting. A-MAZING.
Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois pretty much all looked the same with lots of farm land and flat terrain.
Chicago is legit. I rode in with Jamey, Sarah, Kate, Paul, and Liz. The first 85 miles were pretty awful because the roads were terrible but once we got into the city and on the Lakeshore bike path we were all blown away. Probably the best 15 miles I've ever had on the bike. Once we were close enough to see the sky line we got off the bike and Jamey hooked us up with our theme song; Scissor Sisters, "I don't feel like dancing." People were looking at us like we were crazy but that pretty much happens everywhere we go. Diane, Sarah and I went exploring Lincoln Park once we were all showered up and treated ourselves to some sushi. Man, I miss sushi! Liz, Sarah, Jill, Kels, Beth, Kelly (and her friends) and I went to a bar after dinner. Kate and her aunt met up with us a little later and her aunt put $50 on a tab for us. I think I had 5 beers. Nowadays, I really only need 3. I'm a lightweight again. Let's just say I slept really well last night.
We pushed wake up to 9AM this morning which is a real treat compared to the 5AM norm. So Kelly, Denis, Ang, Tyler and I went to breakfast. We felt like normal people again. Thanks for picking up the tab Tyler.
We rode into Grayslake today and Kelly and I stayed together for the whole day. Most of the day was on bike paths and the first 10 miles were hysterical. We were on a path that had many sculptures that made for great photo opts. There was one incident with a gigantic red horse...I climbed up as Kelly set up her camera on our bike tripod. She climbed up fast, the picture took, and she proceeded to climb down. I, on the other hand, was unable to get down that easily. After about 5 1/2 minutes of her directing me where to put my feet and hands I suggested she cup her hands and hold my foot so I could hop/catapult down . She knew better and said no. Finally, I got my footing and was able to get down. Note to self: I fail at climbing things.
Here are some pics from the past couple of days.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!
This past Thursday was amazing. Becca, thanks for the "WOOF" socks. Emily, thanks for the half- Birthday, Birthday card. Happy half Birthday to you too! Janine, thanks for the cute card and maps of Chi-town. And to Robin, Katie, Kelly, & Amy...you ladies are too much. The spread of goodies were so amazing, it really warmed my heart...and gave me a belly ache! Magazines, girl scout cookies, chapsticks, cliff bars, hair ties, sun screen, candy, etc. I love you and miss you guys!
I love you Ohio but your temperatures have been insane. Apparently we brought a heatwave with us...
Yesterday was awesome/not so awesome. We hit the road around 7:30, biking from NY, hitting the PA state sign and then into Ohio. Nolan's parents and 2 brothers came out to meet us and provide 2 lunches. It was incredible-chicken wraps, bean & corn salsa, and fresh fruit. (P.S. I'm eating entirely too much nowadays) But the heat was ridiculous and the day ended up being super long. I was pretty close to bonking...like 2 mins away from the church. OOF!
Last night, Jamey found a stereo system in one of the rooms of the church we are staying in so of course we had a little scheming session. Kelly and I hit up Wal-Mart for glow sticks, bubbles and ridiculous sunglasses and Jamey worked on the signage for our surprise dance party. We transformed the kitchen into a dance floor and used our headlights as strobe lights. Paul was the bouncer. It was hysterical.
In other news, my tan lines are getting ridiculous. And by ridiculous, I mean awesome. Also, my camera broke. Who wants to buy and send me a new one?
Thanks to Becca & crew, Emily, and Babs for the mail drops. Love you guys.
Yesterday was awesome/not so awesome. We hit the road around 7:30, biking from NY, hitting the PA state sign and then into Ohio. Nolan's parents and 2 brothers came out to meet us and provide 2 lunches. It was incredible-chicken wraps, bean & corn salsa, and fresh fruit. (P.S. I'm eating entirely too much nowadays) But the heat was ridiculous and the day ended up being super long. I was pretty close to bonking...like 2 mins away from the church. OOF!
Last night, Jamey found a stereo system in one of the rooms of the church we are staying in so of course we had a little scheming session. Kelly and I hit up Wal-Mart for glow sticks, bubbles and ridiculous sunglasses and Jamey worked on the signage for our surprise dance party. We transformed the kitchen into a dance floor and used our headlights as strobe lights. Paul was the bouncer. It was hysterical.
In other news, my tan lines are getting ridiculous. And by ridiculous, I mean awesome. Also, my camera broke. Who wants to buy and send me a new one?
Thanks to Becca & crew, Emily, and Babs for the mail drops. Love you guys.
B&B Prom @ the Ferry in VT to enter NEW YORK!
Done with the White & Green Mountains
Other side of the ferry
YMCA in Silverbay, NY (this stay was like Kellerman's in Dirty Dancing)
We found a big chair along the way
Awesome house in Rochester Vt (notice the cat!!)
There were cats everywhere. Some had no eyes, some had no tails... Rochester VT, everyone.
Grams & mom
Kels & me in Lebanon, NH
Mustachio ladies & Denis
After the rain & the huge hills
Salon D'Angela opened. Shaved 2 female heads and gave one mofohawk.
At the wheel dip showing off our bibs
Dance party mid climb of Bethal Mt road
The crew on our first ride together. So good looking!
Cutting the faux hawk
The girls at Francie's house
awesome foggy morning
Leaving Rochester, Vt. Thanks Ginny!
Exploring with B-money
Kelsey working on my tattoos. love this so much.
Well we've made it through 2 states and have arrived in the moutains of New York. Internet has been spotty and I haven't had cell service in 2 days...also this post is being written from my phone so expect some typos.
We climbed the White & Green mountains and then the Adirondacks kicked our butts. Seriously. But the scenery was incredible. Almost makes me want to move to the mountains. Maybe not. I miss the city.
I love this group so much...I've never laughed so much!
Leadership team doing our dance move...The Northern
At the wheel dip
Team NUS
Nigella! Ben Ryan's mom (NC2SD08)
Cheryl from Habitat for Humanity in Portsmouth and Brendan being a creeper.
Showing off our best assets at Francie's house.
Oh hello hills
Such a great group!
Gramelly on the left. Momgela on the right.
Partner Families with HFH & NUS at a cookout at the church in Portsmouth
Building in Farmington, NH
The whole crew
Jim & Nigella Ryan helped with shuttles
So far, so good.
New Hampshire has been great to us! Orientation went well thanks to a number of people. We ate a lot, and slept very little. The riders arrived on Sunday, we built with HFH on Tuesday and we dipped our tires and rolled out on Wednesday.
The group is incredible...really. We've had 3 riding days so far with little to no snafus. Salon De' Angela opened up in Concord and I shaved Liz & Stephanie's head. Kelsey got a faux hawk. These girls are brave!
The ride into New London yesterday was probably one of the best kind of days a Bike & Builder could have. We rode along rolling hills setting new top speed records with the sunshine beating down on us. We found a lake along the way and pretty much ALL of us jumped in and hung out at the dock. With less then 5 miles to go we found an ice cream spot along the water and indulged and upon arrival into town there was a free BBQ going on down town right next to the church and bike shop. Everyone was glowing! I hope we get to have many more days like this.
Next up tomorrow, Rochester Vermont...definitely one of the hardest riding days of our summer.
You did the right thing by donating to my summer with Bike & Build but if you want to feel even more warm and fuzzy inside you can send me a care package. You know you wanna...
Anything would be appreciated...from earplugs (still need to get those suckers!) to MoJo Cliff Bars to Butt Butt'r, to nuts, sour patch kids, to mix cds (!!!!!!!!! I'm looking at you Becca). A card, postcard, a 40oz. Haha.
Please be sure to send mail in ample time to arrive prior to the pick-up date and only through the United States Postal Service (The Post Office will not accept mail from any other carrier). Address mail to:
Bike & Build
Attn: CYCLIST NAME
General Delivery
STREET ADDRESS (if noted)
CITY, ST ZIP
Please mark the envelope or package with "Please hold for pick-up on DATE."
Late mail will be forwarded to the mail drop two weeks ahead. Late mail from the last two mail drops will be returned to sender.
| June 24 319 Newport Rd New London, NH 03257 |
| July 01 214 S. First St. Fulton, NY 13069 |
| July 08 4307 Station Ave. Ashtabula, OH 44004 |
| July 15 75 Commerce Dr. Grayslake, IL 60030 |
| July 22 420 2nd St Pepin, WI 54759 |
| July 29 401 Irvine Avenue Northwest Bemidji, MN 56601 |
| August 04 361 Main St. New Town, ND 58763 |
| August 12 37 South Central Avenue Cut Bank, MT 59427 |
| August 19 204 North 4th Avenue Sandpoint, ID 83864 |
| August 25 600 Front Street Lynden, WA 98264 |
Thanks guys!
<3 <3
Elana you're coming with us.
Bike & Build Northern United States Team 2010
Denis deVerteuil, Angela Parrotta, Kelly (kitty cat) Kraft & Kyle Gamsby
?Do the Northern
Northern U.S.
Donate to support Angela
| Angela has currently raised $5,008. That's 125% of her $4,000 fundraising goal. |
Northern U.S.'s Affordable Housing impact:
Jun 22 - Portsmouth, NHJun 26 - Lebanon, NH
Jul 3 - Rochester, NY
Jul 8 - Ashtabula, OH
Jul 13 - South Bend, IN
Jul 17 - Janesville, WI
Jul 24 - St. Paul, MN
Jul 27 - Duluth, MN
Aug 3 - Minot, ND
Aug 15 - Whitefish, MT