Posted: 8/27/03

Just a summer bike ride

Cliff Buchan
News Editor

What could be better than a leisurely summer bicycle ride?

The answer to the question may be found in the word leisurely.

If your name is Bryan Beatty, the definition might be stretched a bit.

Beatty, 25, who hails from Jacksonville, FL, stopped in Forest Lake on Aug. 19 nearly halfway through a bicycle adventure that will carry him from the West Coast in Oregon to the East Coast in Maine.

Beatty peddled into Lakeside Memorial Park here just in time for last weekís Arts in the Park entertainment and Farmerís Market.

ìI always wanted to do it but never had time. ìNow I have time,î Beatty said, resting by his bike in the park last week.

At more than 4000 miles from coast to coast under a straight course with no major detours, Beatty is carrying his ride across America to new extremes. He is making numerous unplanned side trips as he makes his way east and the miles are piling up.

Before heís done, the journey may total 6000 miles, he said.

Beatty has worked in a bike shop in Florida and decided to take the summer to travel across the northern tier of states. He left Bend, OR, on May 22 where he spent time visiting his father, Jim.

He traveled south along the Pacific Ocean to Coos Bay, OR before looping back east and circling west to the Portland area. He eventually peddled north in Washington to the Seattle area where he turned his bicycle east.

He traveled through the Glacier National Park region and northern Idaho, Montana and North Dakota before dropping south into the Black Hills of the Rapid City area of South Dakota. He also spent a week in Redfield, SD, visiting relatives before entering Minnesota.

On most days, when there is nothing of interest that catches his eye, he is traveling anywhere from 70 to 120 miles a day.

His journey to Forest Lake alone covered some 3400 miles from his starting point. More than 2600 miles were in front of Beatty as he headed east on Aug. 20.

He was off to Wisconsin and eventually the Upper Peninsula of Michigan region. He hopes to end his journey in Bar Harbor, but canít predict when that might be. He plans to visit friends in Columbus, OH, and wants to see Niagra Falls in New York.

He is doing the trip on a low budget. He pitches a tent each night and on his visit to Forest Lake was given permission by city police to use the south end of Lakeside Park for his overnight stop.

He carries a good supply of food for his nightly camps and carries fruits and veggies for quick-energy snacks while on the road.

To date, Beatty said heís encountered no hassles but has met a lot of good people. ìPeople have been really nice,î he said.

A cross-country bicycle ride is something Beatty says he has always wanted to do. And the reason is simple, he says when asked why heís doing it.

ìWhy not,î he responds with a smile. ìIíve never been to Maine.î

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