GTD '26 Day 1 - Fargo, GA to Lake City, FL
51.37 Miles
9.5 Avg. Spd

My 2026 Go The Distance Fundraising Bike Ride began at the Stephen Foster Memorial Monument in Fargo, GA.  Why?  Because I originally I was going to ride the Florida Divide Route but after looking at the Route I decided that I would ride some of the Route but deviate from the Route to visit family, friends of UFCCH and UFCCH Alumni.

 

My neighbor drove me to the Monument so I could begin my journey.  After snapping a few photos I began my ride to Lake City.  It was blue skies and mid 80's.  The first hours were in the countryside on decent roads.  My Route research indicated that I would transition from asphalt to dirt at some point.  When the transition it occurred it was on to a spongy dirt road.  

The road was slow going but the countryside was beautiful and peaceful.  I finally got back on to asphalt and into White Springs, my first resupply stop and stop for lunch.  Lunch was really good, I washed down some fried fish, mashed potatoes and mac n cheese with a Mtn. Dew Code Red.

During lunch I enjoyed chatting with Adrian who was out for his daily long walk as he prepared for an upcoming 72 mile Walking Event.  We chatted about my Ride, Campus Ministry and Church.  Very pleasant.  As we were finishing up he inquired about my Route to FCC Lake City.  I showed him the Route on the Google Maps Bike Map.  He suggested a different Route that would have a bike lane.  It was a good ride into Lake City and on to the Church's Guest House.  Seth said it would be open and after I got cleaned up we would go to dinner.

Dinner and visitation with Seth & Erin at Texas Roadhouse was awesome.  After dinner they gave me a tour of the Worship Center, very nice.  After the tour it was time to ready myself for the next day's ride to Gainesville (home)  and get some rest.  Good first day.

GTD '26 Day 2 - Lake City, FL to Gainesville, FL
53.42 Miles
9.8 Avg. Spd

Day 2 began with a stop at the Lake City Starbucks for breakfast.  Once finished I began a ride that I was very familiar with.  441 south can be a bit busy at times but the bike lane is more than adequate.  After a bit I turned off 441 and ventured out in the countryside heading to Providence.  

The countryside riding continued after Providence until I was approaching Alachua.  

Once in Alachua I decided to get back on 441 and work my way  home via 43rd St., 53rd Ave. and 39th Ave.  These are streets that I ride all the time in training or commuting.  It was great to pull into my neighborhood and see C waiting for me at the edge of the driveway.  In addition to cleaning up my body and my bike was I was able to unload my camping gear since it was decided that camping was a no go due to the warm temperatures at night.  Tomorrow I will once again ride a familiar Route to Palatka, FL.

GTD '26 Day 3 - Gainesville, FL to Palatka, FL
45.95 Miles
10.1 Avg. Spd

I knew today was going to be a shorter day so I didn't get started till just after 8:30am.  This allowed me to make sure everything was good at the house and my set up was dialed in for the next 20+ days.  I kissed C goodbye and set out on 222 to Putnam Hall where I would then jump on the Lake Butler Palatka Trail.  The ride out to Melrose was great as always and the Dollar General resupply stop was welcomed as it began to warm up.  Once I got to Putman Hall I stopped to get some Krunchy Krispy Chicken Strips at the Corner Store, they are so good!  No tables inside so I had to head to the Florahome Trailhead Rest Area to eat because the flies were terrible.  It's a nice rest area with a nice covered pavilion and nice restroom.  

After lunch I continued on the Trail just short of Palatka where it ends.  

From there I rode Hwy 100 to St. Johns Ave. in Downtown Palatka, this goes straight to the Hampton Inn plus you get to experience the Downtown Business District and its murals.  After settling in I walked across the street to Velchoff's Corner for dinner.  Tomorrow I will ride to Greg's house in Ormond Beach.  This will be my first chance to see the ocean!

GTD '26 Day 4 - Palatka, FL to Ormond Beach, FL
58.29 Miles
9.7 Avg. Spd.

I knew that this would be a long hot day so I set out just before 5am.  

After crossing the St. Johns River I got on the Palatka Lake Butler Trail and rode to Hastings.  There I stopped at the Kangaroo for breakfast and to top off my fluids.

After breakfast I hopped back on the Trail for a bit before turning east in Hwy 206, this is a straight shot to Crescent Beach which afforded me another Kangaroo stop before setting out down the coast.  

I checked my map and it showed just over 30 miles to Greg's house.  This seemed to be one of the longest 30 mile stretches I have ridden, I think heat, familiarity and road construction had a lot to do with it.  Fortunately the ocean view helped!  It was great to arrive at Greg's, he opened the garage so I could pull in and have room to unload.  After an awesome dinner I was able to do laundry, visit for a bit then fall off to sleep.  Tomorrow I will ride to Winter Springs, FL to meet my brother.

GTD '26 Day 5 - Ormond Beach, FL to Winter Springs, FL
50.3 Miles
10.4 Avg. Spd

After a quick breakfast with Greg I was treated to an awesome sunrise leaving his neighborhood and turning south on A1A.  I got into the Ormond Beach Business District and enjoyed my Go To Starbucks drink, an Iced Dubai Chocolate Matcha, before heading down US 1 to Port Orange.  

Heading down US 1 I realized that I needed to double check my map and take care of a few messages that came in while I was riding.  That's when I discovered King Donut & Deli.  A very nice International family owned and ran King Donut, we had a great time chatting about my bike ride as I enjoyed a Mango Smoothie and an Apple Fritter (bakery tradition during my rides) plus extra donut holes that the husband threw in for free.  

I ate and finished my communications so on to Port Orange.  From there I zig zagged my way to the intersection of Tomoka Farms Rd. and Hwy 44 by New Smyrna Beach Speedway.  The Circle K had a Subway so I got lunch and took time to correspond with Seth and my brother.  Seth was hoping to meet up with me if it worked out, it didn't.  My brother and I made a plan for pick up in Winter Springs.  With that done I started south on 415.  As I was riding it was awesome to have a video chat with my EC friend Pourya, very welcomed interaction!  After the chat over the next    21/2 hours I encountered several strong rain storms that made things a bit dicey.  The road was 2 lane with minimal shoulder.  It was raining hard so it was difficult to watch the traffic coming from behind in my eyeglass mirror.  Fortunately there were no impatient drivers!  415 turned into East Lake Mary Blvd. and led me to the Wawa in Winter Springs where my brother would pick me up.  I arrived and had time to get a snack and drink before he arrived.  While I waited I was able to enjoy the planes leaving or arriving at the Sanford International Airport.  My brother arrived and we loaded up my bike on his new bike rack (only used once).  We had plenty of time before dinner so we headed to his house to drop off the bike and clean up.  Within miles of his house the bike rack malfunctioned and I could see in the rear view mirror that it had fallen off , the rack and was bouncing on the road.  My first thought was, ride over.  He stopped the car and we jumped out to retrieve the bike and the parts of the bike that had fallen off when it impacted the road.  Fortunately a big truck stopped to shield my bike from any other cars that might try to pass, awesome guy!  We gathered up the bike and parts and secured the bike to the rack and proceeded to his house to actually access the damage.  Fortunately there was not as much damage as I thought but some things would have to be replaced.  We cleaned up and headed out to dinner, as he drove I communicated with Bike Shops to see if they had what I needed.  The Trek Store in Clermont had exactly what I needed and could do the work in the morning, I was relieved but my brother more so.  We met Dave & Denise at Gary's Restaurant (Napolis) and enjoyed a great Salad & Pizza Dinner along with great conversastion.  Dave, Gary and I all grew up together in Pine Hills so its always fun to catch up when possible.  After dinner we returned to my brother's house and made a plan for the morning.  Fortunately the next day's Scheduled Ride was a short one to Chad & Jenni's house. 

GTD '26 Day 6 - Donald's House in Apopka to Chad & Jenni's House in South Orlando 
18.45 miles
9.7 Avg. Spd

Must have been Divine Forethought when I was planning my Route and days.  Yesterday's situation with my bike did not alter my trip in anyway.  My plan for this day was to hang out with my brothers in the  morning then head to Chad & Jenni's around 2:30pm.  I did hang out with my brothers in the morning but instead of at the house it was at the Trek Store in Clermont.  Within 2 hours my bike was like brand new and we were heading back to the house for leftover pizza before I started to ride.  

The ride through Orlando is always busy but having a bike lane helps a lot.  If no bike lane then sidewalk.  When I got on Edgewater Drive I remembered that there was a Starbucks.  I pulled up to find that it was a Mobil Order only Starbucks.  I placed my order and began my wait.  As I was waiting a man began to inquire about by bike and Ride.  Come to find out it was Uncle Matt of Uncle Matt's Organic Juices.  We had a great chat about my Ride, Church and Missions.  Before I left he asked me if I liked Orange Juice, of course I said.  At that point he gave me a Coupon for Uncle Matt's Juice.  I said goodbye and set out for Chad & Jenni's.  

I rode thorough a portion of Downtown Orlando on the way, it was fairly quiet since it was Satruday.  I encountered some construction that caused me to reroute a bit, no problem.  

I arrived at Chad & Jenni's, it was great to see them and a neighbor who went to my high school.  I got settled in, cleaned up and then we went for an awesome dinner.  Tomorrow is a Rest Day so we will do church, lunch, hanging out, resting and getting ready to head to Cocoa Beach.

GTD '26 - Day 7 - Rest Day

Church with Chad & Jenni was great as was lunch afterwards.  

The afternoon was spent relaxing and making sure my bike and gear were ready.  I also took time to go over tomorrow's Route options to Cocoa Beach.  The one that Google Maps Bike suggested was one that I was a bit skeptical of due to a past experience riding to Cocoa Beach and ending up on a road that I was told I was not to be on.  Nonetheless I decided to ride the Suggested Route.

GTD '26 Day 8 - South Orlando to East Orlando

52.9 miles

10.3 Avg. Spd

The goal for the day was to get to First Christian Church in Cocoa Beach.  After breakfast and goodbye to Chad & Jenni I set out to accomplish that goal.  I rode through some nice neighborhoods till I got to Semoran Blvd.  Semoran would take me to Hoffner which would later turn into Narcoossee Rd.  This was familiar territory due to past trips to Moss Park for Triathlons.  I missed my left turn on John Wycliffe Blvd. so I had to backtrack.  After riding through the Wycliffe Campus I turned right onto Wewahootee Rd., this is where the fun would begin.  The chipseal road was fine but then it stopped as I passed a construction staging area, there it turned to gravel then to dirt.  

This was the portion of the Route I was nervous about and for good reason.  In the distance I could see a closed gate and signage.  As I got closer I also saw another set of bike tracks going in the opposite direction.  I approached the gate and read the sign.  No trespassing.  Felony offense.  

What I was skeptical about had become reality.  What now?  I went into Google Maps to see what my options might be.  From what I could tell, I was going to have to backtrack the Route I had been riding much of the morning.  I started to ride then saw a runner coming toward me.  It was Phillips, an ultra runner out for a long run.  I asked him about the closed gate, he indicated the property owner got upset with people passing through and littering his property so he closed and locked the gate.  I once again opened Google Maps and Phillips confirmed what I was guessing, if I wanted to be able to resupply I would have to backtrack what I had ridden.  

I wasn't excited about this but not totally surprised.  At this point I knew there was no way to get to First Christian Church in Cocoa Beach so I had C search East Orlando for a hotel.  She found one and booked it for me.  As I was heading to the hotel my phone died so I had to find a place to charge it up.  Without my phone it would be difficult to navigate my way to the hotel.  I came across a Wendy's, perfect.  It was lunch time so I was able to charge my phone while I ate.  Once done eating and charging my phone I set out for my hotel which was close to UCF.  It was an easy ride and I was happy to put this long challenging day to rest.  After loading my Route on Strava my brother contacted me to let me know that I had ridden 52 miles to make it 17 miles from my morning starting point, thanks!  

Now it was time to clean up, eat and make a plan for tomorrow.  I would now have to get to Melbourne in order to meet up with friends for dinner.  I am sure it is going to be an adventure.

GTD '26 Day 9 - East Orlando to Melbourne

68.76 miles

10.5 Avg. Spd

I woke up around 4am and decided I should get my ducks in a row and get riding since I had a long day ahead.  I rode through the UCF Campus on my way to Hwy. 50 East.  I turned onto Hwy. 50 and made my way to Starbucks for breakfast.  I had my usual turkey bacon sandwich and my iced dubai chocolate matcha.  I took a few minutes to look over the Route, pretty easy today.  Hwy. 50 to 520 to A1A to US 1.

It was 5:30am and the east Orlando traffic on Hwy. 50 was crazy.  Even though I was lit up like a Christmas tree with blinking lights 2 cars made quick right hand turns of Hwy. 50 right in front of me.  Much of my time was spent on the sidewalk, felt safer.  Once I got to 520 everything got better.  By this time the sun was rising and I was riding in the countryside.

There is something special about early morning riding in the countryside.  Mostly quiet and generally awesome sunrises.  The stretch on 520 to Cocoa Beach is long and lonely, no services until you come to a Chevron Station just outside of Cocoa.  It is a welcomed sight!  After leaving Chevron I rode through Cocoa to Cocoa Beach.  Tons of services along this stretch so I stopped at Starbucks for another iced dubai chocolate matcha drink, it was getting hot.  I took time to touch base with Troy at First Christian Church of Cocoa Beach, I would be stopping there for a visit and lunch.  I will never forget the turn south off 520 on to A1A, not only was it hot but there was a headwind.  I kept a consistent pace and finally arrived at FCCCB.  I met up with Troy inside and we had a nice chat over lunch.  Cool thing, the church has a slushie machine!  I enjoyed a couple of slushies during lunch and filled one of my insulated tumblers with one to go.

I didn't have time to spare after lunch because my English Corner Online Class was at 2pm.  I had hoped to make it to the hotel for the Session but that was impossible due to the slow going in the heat.  I found a Starbucks down the road and got there about 20 minutes before 2pm.  I got a cold drink and initiated the Zoom Session.  I enjoy these Sessions as it keeps me connected with some students who have returned to their home Countries.

After the Session I got back on my bike and started toward my hotel in Melbourne.  This was a change from the original plan due to yesterday's Reroute.  At this point I crossed over the Indian River to Eau Gallie  and US 1.  It wasn't too long before I arrived at my hotel.  I had dinner appointment with Marvin & Pam so I got cleaned up and headed to the lobby to meet them.  They have been awesome friends and supporters of UFCCH and my GTD Rides for a long time.  We had a great dinner and visit then I took care of what needed attention before setting out in the morning.  At then end of each day there are different devices, especially lights, that need charging so I have to make sure that is done before going to bed.  Tomorrow I am heading to Vero Beach, FL.

GTD '26 Day 10 - Melbourne to Vero Beach

45.2 miles,

8.9 Avg. Spd

I knew today's ride wasn't going to be high mileage but I also knew that the heat and headwind would be quite the challenge.  As you can see from my Avg. Spd. I was right.

I didn't leave my hotel till 7:39am.  Fortunately there was a Starbucks within a 3 minute ride.  I got my usual breakfast then set out through Melbourne on my way to A1A.  Once on A1A there was nothing for the longest time.  Finally in Wabasso Beach I was back to civilization.  I crossed over the Intercoastal Waterway to Wabasso and was able to resupply.

I started to ride down Old Dixie Hwy. but with no shoulder and high traffic I looked for a better alternative on my Google Maps Bike Map and found a road that ran parallel to Old Dixie Hwy., much better.  It eventually joined back in with Old Dixie Hwy., fortunately there was a sidewalk I could ride on.  Once I got to Vero Beach Regional Airport I was able to turn west on Aviation Blvd. and make my way to 27th Ave. which would take me to the Barlow's house off of 8th St.

The Barlow's were awesome hosts!  Great dinner and great time of visitation.  Tomorrow I am heading to the Campbell's house in Palm City.  Clint and Sarah met at Campus House and were very active in the ministry while there.  It will be great to see them and their kids again.

GTD '26 Day 11 - Vero Beach to Palm City

46.35 miles

9.9 Avg. Spd

Vero Beach to Palm City. Mainly US 1 before heading to Palm City. Enjoyed 2 Planet Fitness, 1 Starbucks and 1 Small Publix Sub.

Met Mark at SB, awesome brother in the Lord.

Had wind, rain, heat…quite the diversity.

With Clint, Sarah & kids. Tomorrow West Palm Beach.

GTD '26 - Day 12 - Palm City, FL to West Palm Beach, FL

51.19 miles

10.4 Avg. Spd

After leaving Clint & Sarah's neighborhood I got on US 1 and rode to Hobe Sound. Before leaving the house Clint told me about the Hobe Sound Tree Tunnel and that I should ride through it on the way to Hobe Sound Beach. It was really cool.

The ride down South Beach Road to Jupiter was really nice. Before leaving Hobe Sound Beach several cyclists joked that I should watch out for Tiger as I was approaching the area where he has a house. No Tiger sighting today. Once in Jupiter I grabbed some lunch and started a search for a Trek Store so I could refresh the sealant in my front tire. I located one in North Palm Beach so I headed that way. I found the store and they were very awesome. They had me taken care of and ready to go in no time. While I was at the Store the heavens opened and it was raining hard. I waited it out a bit and then decided to don my rain jacket and start riding to West Palm Beach.

The ride down North Ocean Drive was really nice now that the hard rain had slowed to a drizzle. Once I got to Singer Island I had to cross the bridge to Riviera Beach and turn south. From this point on it was neighborhood and city riding. I finally made it to the hotel and was able to have a photo op in the hotel lobby.

Tomorrow I will head to Sunrise to hang out with Tim & Heather Gray for a few days. I am looking forward to some rest, great fellowship and then worship at Community CC on my 2nd Rest Day.

GTD '26 Day 13 - West Palm Beach to Sunrise

50.02 Miles

11.4 Avg. Spd