Nationwide cycling tour stops in Fairmont

FAIRMONT - Raising money for ALS and the less fortunate in areas like Peru and Ghana, Pacific Atlantic Cycling (PAC) is on a quest to make it from Everett, Washington to Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, 3,850 miles in 36 days.

Lon Haldeman and his wife, Susan Notorangelo, founded the organization. Haldeman was the first person to ride a bicycle across the United States in less than 10 days in 1982, and Notorangelo was the first woman to do so in 1989. Through this and other tours they do each year, PAC strives to raise 10 cents per mile, or $20,000 per year.

The couple has worked with the ALS Network since their daughter, Ericka Notrangelo Haldeman, died of infantile Lou Gehrig's Disease on Feb. 15, 1992, when she was 11 months old. That same year, the first Cycling across the USA route was completed. Currently, the route is done once every three years. This year, a crew of 25 cyclists from across the nation and abroad, including Spain, Peru, Michigan and Pennsylvania, registered with PAC, made the trip to Everett, and headed on their way together.

As far back as he can remember, Haldeman said they have always stopped in Fairmont. Monday was the day they made it that year, day 19 of 36, and a little over 2,000 miles of their journey is now in the books. A crew of 25 cyclists from across the nation and abroad, including Spain, Peru, Michigan and Pennsylvania, went from Worthington to Fairmont in the morning, and stopped in Fairmont, in a parking lot along Lake Avenue, for a break before continuing to Albert Lea.

As for why Fairmont, PAC Partner Connor Brady said there are good roads in and out of town, and great areas to park and stay out of the way of people. Haldeman said usually they would start the ride in June, but this year they started in August, and the roads were slightly different from what they were used to.

"I don’t know what’s going on today with the grain trucks," he said. "We’ve had more grain trucks, and I don’t know if it’s the time of year. Normally this road is not that busy. It’s not so bad."

Overall, in his stops to Fairmont, Haldeman, who lives in the country by the Janesville-Beloit area in Wisconsin, said the people have always been good.

"I’m from the Midwest," he said. "I like the area. I like the small towns. Everybody’s been nice so far, so it’s good."

Waiting for the riders in Fairmont were three trucks, which Brady said had everything the riders need when they reach their breaks.

"One we call the motel truck because if you peek inside, it carries all the gear for the individual riders. Sometimes we have upwards of 50 riders, so they have to carry 50 luggage bags for each person and all the backup equipment for each bike. Each person has their own bike, so they have to bring a certain number of backup parts and things in case things break. They carry all that equipment and then a bunch of other standard equipment to fix bicycles."

There's also a trailer specifically for food. It can serve hot meals anywhere. On Monday it was grilled cheese, but it also has string cheese, beef jerky, vegetables, fruits and anything else a bicyclist would need to fuel themselves.

One of these bicyclists is Andy Wickham. Originally from the United Kingdom, he currently resides in Orba, Spain. This is only Wickham's second time in America, and with half the journey in the books, he said things have gone well.

"We’ve enjoyed it," he said. "I’ve been fortunate with the weather so far. It’s been pretty good. We do roughly about 100 miles a day. We've been through some very scenic parts of America so far. We did the Badlands the other day and went up and saw Mount Rushmore. First few days we had were a bit smoky from the fires and things in Washington, but no, it’s been good."

For Wickham, it was a chance to challenge himself. Even though he successfully completed the Tour de France course just a few years ago, Wickham said this course across America has been on his bucket list, and he's never done anything as extreme before.

"The [Tour de France] is only three weeks," he said. "This is five weeks."

So far, Wickham said his legs have been holding up well, and he has enjoyed the camaraderie of the team and the views as they have gone across America.

"Some of the towns have been really scenic," Wickham said. "It's always nice to stop and take some pictures on the way."

For more information and to donate, visit pactour.com/.