Day Nine: Warren, PA to Orange, NJ
Today started with a pleasant ride through 70 miles of fog!!! Noe and I rode together for a while, mostly so we could trade off leading and going through the fog. I froze my ass off. When I asked the locals at one of our gas stops how far the fog went, the responded "Oh, it usually burns off around 11 a.m." It was 9 a.m. when I asked this! Out of all the weather we have had on the trip, the fog was the worst.
Eventually, Noe and I split off from riding together. I stopped to check on Earl who was still having problems with his battery and also needed to pick up some more Ibuprofen at a pharmacy. I had a nice day of riding after the fog burned off. The scenery through Northern Pennsylvania on Route 6 was spectacular. I got lost going around Scranton, PA, which was not fun. I finally met up with Noe and Scott, so we rode together the rest of the way to NJ, which ended up being a good thing. We rode down Route 23 into New York and New Jersey, which was beautiful, especially the twisties around Port Jervis. Once we got near NYC and New Jersey, traffic got worse and we got lost. The map/directions we had were not good, the hotel we were staying at had changed names after the maps were printed, and we still had to go to Scooters Originali for the finish. We finally made it to Scooters Originali and people cheered as we arrived. I had barely gotten off my scooter and Andrea was already offering me water, beer and a burger. The crew at Scooters O did a bang up job in welcoming us to New Jersey. All of the Cannonballers stuck around until, Bagel, the last rider rolled in. Then we headed to the hotel to get some rest for the Coney Island ride the following day. Officially, the Cannonball is over!!! I made it!! My scooter made it!!! Yes!!
Eventually, Noe and I split off from riding together. I stopped to check on Earl who was still having problems with his battery and also needed to pick up some more Ibuprofen at a pharmacy. I had a nice day of riding after the fog burned off. The scenery through Northern Pennsylvania on Route 6 was spectacular. I got lost going around Scranton, PA, which was not fun. I finally met up with Noe and Scott, so we rode together the rest of the way to NJ, which ended up being a good thing. We rode down Route 23 into New York and New Jersey, which was beautiful, especially the twisties around Port Jervis. Once we got near NYC and New Jersey, traffic got worse and we got lost. The map/directions we had were not good, the hotel we were staying at had changed names after the maps were printed, and we still had to go to Scooters Originali for the finish. We finally made it to Scooters Originali and people cheered as we arrived. I had barely gotten off my scooter and Andrea was already offering me water, beer and a burger. The crew at Scooters O did a bang up job in welcoming us to New Jersey. All of the Cannonballers stuck around until, Bagel, the last rider rolled in. Then we headed to the hotel to get some rest for the Coney Island ride the following day. Officially, the Cannonball is over!!! I made it!! My scooter made it!!! Yes!!