HB Today article 31 May 2011 (local newspaper)

Neither rain nor snow nor wind nor hills nor potholes nor mis-read route instructions could prevent Hastings brothers Patrick, 42, and Jason Kelly, 40, from riding 5,584 kilometres between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean across the United States. Vertical climbing totalled almost 35,000 metres – the equivalent of nearly 90 Te Mata Peak climbs.

To use the immortal words of Sir Edmund Hillary, they knocked the bastard off after just 31 days in the saddle. Riding an average of 180 kilometres a day, they started in Costa Mesa, California on 21 April and reached their goal of Amesbury, Massachusetts on 27 May.

Riding as part of the Fast America Ride run by the America by Bicycle company, 21 riders accepted the grueling challenge, including 3 from the UK and a Norwegian. A typical day involved breakfast at 6am followed by being on the road at 7am for a full day of riding. The company provided full support including energy food, snacks, water and lunch for fuel.

The first day’s riding included a strong tail wind for the last 50 kilometres which saw speeds on the flat of 75km/h reached and the riders being flashed by a speed camera as the local speed limit was just 40km/h. Some riders, not used to these speeds, were applying their brakes to keep within their comfort zones.

A day of note included one in which the first 64 kilometres were essentially uphill and into wind. This took over three and half hours of hard pedaling and still left over 100 kilometres to ride for the day to the hotel.

Riding from Albuquerque also provided a unique experience as they rode through a snow storm which coated their faces, bikes and clothing in snow. This was also the longest day in the saddle  with just under 8 hours 30 minutes of cycling required through the freezing weather to reach their destination.

The wild spring weather in the USA largely missed the riding group with only a couple of wet days being encountered. However, the wind had a major effect on a number of days with one day spent battling a strong head wind all day on long, straight, relatively flat roads. On another day, even soft pedaling saw them climbing small rises at over 50km/h with an average speed for the day approaching 40km/h for the 154 kilometre ride for the day.

Punctures were only a minor irritant with Patrick recording four and Jason just one for the entire journey.

Rough road surfaces in places caused major strain on the bikes with two of the group’s bike frames cracking and Patrick’s back wheel rim cracking and being replaced.

Prior to travelling to the USA, their bikes were prepared and packed by The Hub Cycle Centre in Hastings.