Introducing the Even Older Old Men Touring on Bicycles

John, with a bigger forehead than in 1997

John: the routemeister, rode a Trek 520 with front panniers. With a wife and two kids, John had the best excuses for not having trained much for OMBT and he used them all prodigiously. Plus he was recovering from a serious poison ivy attack. And the sun was in his eyes.

Chris traded in his 1997 pink sweatband for a snazzy hi-viz chapeau/brim

Chris: the designated EMT, rode a Cannondale T600 with front panniers. While Chris had minimal mileage in calendar 1999, over the past year or so he has done multi-day tours on the Blue Ridge Parkway and the C&O Canal, as well as done a lot of bike commuting. Chris experimented with novel ways to carry gear, including a cute little Tupperware baloney sandwich container replacing his rack trunk. In later years, Chris went on to do the ACA Trans America route, east to west.

Rick, as usual, was the peacock of the bunch

Rick: in charge of telecommunications and whining, was the only one who upgraded his bike from OMBT 97 and was now riding a Trek 2120 carbon fiber bike with skinny little tires – his bike weighed about the same as John’s water bottles. Having overpacked on OMBT 97, Ricked carried minimal weight in his rear panniers, having removed all the labels from his toiletries and underwear.

Mike, as usual, was always tilted one way or the other

Mike: the official photographer and webmaster of the tour, rode a Trek 730 hybrid with rear panniers. As the only single person on the tour, Mike had absolutely no excuses for his lack of training. Mike’s pannier/rack trunk arrangement required complicated and delicate engineering with an intricate web of bungee cords.

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