Father And Son Bicyclists

Make It ‘Over The Hill’ Together

By Nancy K. Crevier

Seeing the countryside from the saddle of a bicycle has given John Boccuzzi, Sr, and John Boccuzzi, Jr, a renewed appreciation for the East Coast, they said Tuesday morning, August 26, just seven hours after arriving back in Newtown in the wee hours of the morning. The father and son team set off under the umbrella of bicycle touring group America by Bicycle from Kittery, Maine, Saturday, August 16, on a 500-mile trip that ended the afternoon of August 25 in Washington, D.C.

“John wanted to do something exciting and different for his 40th birthday,” said John, Jr’s, wife, Cynthia, “so I got him this trip. Then my father-in-law said he would go with him. My father-in-law has always wanted to do a cross-country bike trip, so I guess this is a first stop toward that goal for him,” said Ms Boccuzzi.

“Cynthia’s gift was right on the money,” John Boccuzzi, Jr, said. “Thirteen years ago, when we had just met, I was looking for a challenge and decided to bike solo to Midland, Michigan, for a conference. She knew that I had enjoyed that so much and that it had so much value that she saw the trip this year as a new ‘vision quest’ for me, and she was spot on,” he said.

He was surprised that his dad was going, too, since the senior Boccuzzi had just had a knee replacement last October, “But it’s great,” said Mr Boccuzzi. “He lost over 20 pounds just to get ready for the trip. We have a great relationship,” he added.

This is not the first adventure the two have embarked upon over the years. “Ten years ago, my dad and I climbed down into the Grand Canyon together. This is sort of ‘our’ thing.”

 Despite his earlier biking adventure, calling himself even a recreational bike rider would be generous, joked John, Jr. The present day CEO of Kenosia Corp in Danbury said that if he had biked 45 minutes a week since then over the years, he would be surprised. His father, however, considers himself to be a regular bicyclist.

“Years ago, I commuted about seven miles to work each day where I was teaching,” said John, Sr, who recently retired as assistant superintendent of New Fairfield schools. “After I got into administration, I probably biked only about once a week, but when I’m on vacation I try not to take my car out at all,” he added. But training was definitely a priority for them the earlier part of the summer, said the elder Boccuzzi. “And I wish I had spent more time training. They recommend 12 to 15 months of training, but 10 months before the trip, I was in rehab for the knee replacement. So I only trained for two months. It wasn’t quite enough, but I made it,” he laughed.

“The tour guides tell you that ‘the bike gods get it from you when you train, or they’ll get it from you during the tour,’” John, Jr chuckled, “and boy, is that true.”

But first things first, and that was equipment.

Money Well Spent

Along with ramping up their bike time, the Boccuzzi men prepared for the trip by researching bicycles. The decided finally to purchase Cannondale bicycles, and when John, Jr, spoke with The Bee briefly August 21 from the road — taking a break after a 1½-mile ride up a 16 degree grade hill in Delaware — he said they could not have made a better choice. “My dad was going to do this trip on a Trek hybrid, but I talked him into getting the same bike as me from Cannondale, a carbon fiber Synapse 3, and he says it’s the best thing he ever did,” said John, Jr. His dad liked the idea of supporting a bicycle company that manufactures the product stateside, and found the Cannondale Company to be extremely helpful in the final decision on which bicycle to purchase.

With only four flats between them over the nine-day trip (two on the first day for John, Sr), and no broken spokes or mechanical breakdowns that other tour members experienced, they feel that the $2,500 spent on each bike was money well spent.

Having good bicycles was just the tip of preparing for the 500-mile bicycle expedition, though, the men said. “We started training by riding 20 or 30 miles a day, on and off, but that wasn’t enough. So in July we each did our first century ride. My dad went from Newtown to Westerly, R.I., and I went from Westerly, where I had been vacationing, to Newtown. It gave me the self-confidence to know I would do fine on the big trip,” said John, Jr.

“It actually almost made me a little cocky, finishing that century ride in July,” said the senior Boccuzzi. “But when you do 90 miles one day and then get up and do 90 miles again, and again, then you don’t feel so smart,” he said. He was extremely grateful for the support and positive reinforcement provided each day by the tour company, said Mr Boccuzzi, Sr. At 62 years of age, he was one of the most senior bicyclists on the tour, he said, superceded only by a much more experienced, 63-year-old biker. The bulk of the group was made up of others between the ages of 40 and 60, said the Boccuzzis, and with everyone encouraged to set their own pace — so long as they reached the day’s destination before dark — there was no pressure to “compete” or “hurry up,” they said.

America by Bicycle provides full support to the tours. Riders, of which there were 15 in the group that traveled on the Boccuzzis’ trip, ride on tested routes, get daily directions and maps, travel with a rolling bike shop and two Support And Gear vans carrying water and snacks, and experienced riders accompany the tour group. “America by Bicycle is above and beyond what we thought it would be,” John, Jr said.

Ending the day in a hotel instead of at a campsite was a real plus, too, they said, since each day was seven to ten hours of what is termed “hard to very hard” bicycling, covering 65 to 90 miles. “We have seen some beautiful country side, but the hills!” exclaimed John, Jr. “It has not all been easy,” he said on August 21, with nearly four days left to go. The first day the group traveled 90 miles, followed by a 68-mile day, and then a 90-mile jaunt taking them from Poughkeepsie, N.Y., to Port Jervis, plus a few “bonus” miles when the men veered off the mapped route and had to backtrack. “That leg was hard,” said John, Jr. “We were doing okay and then I think on that third day it all caught up with us,” Having a bad meal the night before at a buffet did not help, he added. “Something just didn’t sit well, so that was kind of tough,” he said.

Tough Day, Tough Course

It was the seventh day that tested his spirits, said John Boccuzzi, Sr, as he reflected on the trip Tuesday morning. “It was a tough day, a tough course, after a tough day the day before. We biked from 6:30 am to 5:30 pm and I really needed a break day. I wasn’t even having fun at that point. I just wanted to get through the day,” he recalled.

His son noted, though, the upside to the difficult moments, and added, “When you challenge the body, you challenge the mind.” It also helped, John, Jr, said, that while biking through Connecticut, Cynthia and his children met them and feted them with cake. “On the fifth day, my mom, Vicki, sent brownies, and that was a real home run. I got a letter from my family that day, too,” he said.

But for the most part, the days were enjoyable. In a car, it is not possible to appreciate the beauty of this region, said the Boccuzzis, but taking the time to bicycle caused them to take notice of scenic sites, especially those close to home. The route took them through parts of Connecticut (where at one stop Cynthia and the children met up with the bicycling group and feted them with a cake) that they had not been aware of before the trip. “We stopped at this beautiful reservoir in Connecticut that we plan to go back to and walk and picnic there,” said John, Jr. “I never even heard of it before this trip, and if I hadn’t been bicycling, I’m sure I never would have heard of it,” he said.

“That was the Barkhamstead Reservoir,” his father remembered. “I’ve lived in Connecticut my whole life and never seen that reservoir. It was such a pleasant surprise and a breathtaking view,” said Mr Boccuzzi, Sr.

Traveling by bicycle gave them the opportunity to meet new and interesting people, as well, said John, Jr, again an experience that is not usual when traveling swiftly by plane, train, or automobile. “In the small town of Salisbury, in the western corner of Connecticut, we stopped at a deli to get a sandwich and struck up a conversation with a family from Austria. We had a guy from Belgium on the ride and another guy from Great Britain,” John, Jr, said. He was particularly impressed by a fellow rider from Connecticut who was on his tenth bicycle tour. “He has been riding for charitable causes since 1999. He has raised over $150,000 for Alzheimer’s research. It’s amazing, and I wish we had thought to do that,” he said.

People along the way were extremely friendly, said Mr Boccuzzi, Sr, and except for one or two spots on the road, drivers, too, were exceptionally considerate of the bicyclists. “One hill in Delaware was giving me a heck of a time, but I was determined to get up, just taking it in segments,” Mr Boccuzzi, Sr, said. “It was at least a mile long. I was fighting my way uphill when this fellow in a car pulls up beside me and asks if I’m okay or if I need a ride. Then, here he came down the hill, checks on me again. Here he came back up the hill again and asks if I’m sure I don’t need a ride. Finally, I get to the top of the hill and the SAG van, and there’s this guy. ‘I had to wait for you,’ he said, ‘and congratulate you.’ That was pretty nice,” said Mr Boccuzzi, Sr.

The long days of biking made the “vision quest” more of a quest for dinner and just going to bed, said both men. “Going to bed at 7:30 pm was not a problem,” they declared.

The true quest, though, was time spent together, the Boccuzzis agreed. “We had time to talk and we shared a lot of laughs along the way,” said John Boccuzzi, Sr.

The phone call to The Bee on August 21 reflected that same feeling. “My dad and I spent about an hour gliding along the Delaware Watergap this morning and not one car passed us that whole time,” said John, Jr, that day. “We just visited and rode. That’s what this trip is all about. I’m a lucky guy.  My parents have been supportive of me my whole life. Cynthia has taken care of our 5-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter while I’ve been away and I get to spend time with my dad. You only get one family, so you have to enjoy them,” said John, Jr. “We’ve had some amazing days.”