Retirees setting off on 1,200 mile bicycle trip
 

By: Associated Press printed in The State
Originally Published on: 3/3/03
 

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Three local retirees are staying active during retirement, so much so they plan a 1,200 mile bicycle trip to Florida and back. Pat Clarke, 64, Doug Huffman, 54, and Edward "Bubber" Robertson, 57, plan to leave next weekend on a journey from Seabrook Island to New Smyrna Beach, Fla. and then return. They are doing it both for fun and the physical challenge. "There's an incredible feeling of seeing the country from a bike - going at about 12 mph - and meeting the people who make this country great in their element," said Robertson, who used to work at the old Charleston Naval Shipyard. The trio plans to camp out most nights, carrying everything they need in bags and small trailers attached to their bikes. They plan to meet an organized, mass ride called Bike Florida in Amelia Island, Fla. Then they will then travel down to New Smyrna, as well as taking some bike loops on the way. Clarke met Huffman and Robertson at Bike Florida last year and started training with them this past year. She calls the excursion to Florida a "cycling dream trip." "This is something I would not do alone," said Clarke, the semiretired owner of three retail shops on Kiawah Island. All three have trained by riding a few thousand miles each in the past year. Clark and Huffman often ride with bike trailers carrying 40 pounds of rocks to simulate the weight of carrying their camping gear. The three expect to average 10 mph. They figure they can do 8 mph in bad weather and 12 in ideal conditions. In all, they hope to ride about 60 miles a day. Last month, the three warmed up by biking, loaded with gear, the 54 miles from Seabrook Island to Givhans Ferry State Park. There they camped overnight in high winds and rain before returning the next day.

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