Date: Fri 22-Aug-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

Mangold-Heiser-bicycle-trip

Full Text:

with photo:Cross-Country Bicycle Adventurers Welcomed Home On Hanover Road

B Y S TEVE B IGHAM

Tricia Mangold and David Heiser arrived in Newtown to a crowd of cheering

friends and family members last Thursday afternoon.

Their homecoming was a special one because it had taken the two nearly four

months to get home. They made their 3,000-mile trip across the United States

on bicycles, taking the northern route from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic.

Tricia, a 1987 Newtown High School graduate, has been working at Yosemite

National Park in California the past five years. She and the man she hopes to

marry someday met while teaching outdoor field science programs at the park.

Both will be attending graduate school at the University of Minnesota in

September and decided they wanted to share in an adventure together before

they hit the books.

"We had a chunk of time, and we thought about a trip to Europe, but then we

thought, `we really don't know our country that well. Let's bike across it,'"

explained Tricia, 28, who grew up on Hanover Road, where her parents still

live.

So, with a $10-a-day budget each, the two set out on their journey May 20 from

Seattle. They made their way across the country roads of Washington state,

through Idaho and into the huge state of Montana. By then it was June and they

sweated their way up to the top of the 11,000-foot Bear Tooth Pass where there

was still snow on the ground. They also cut down into Wyoming where they spent

time at Yellowstone National Park. Tricia and David continued on through the

Badlands of South Dakota, across Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan, up into

Ontario, then down into New England.

Along the way, Tricia and David usually camped out wherever they could. Almost

always, they ran into people who welcomed them with open arms.

"The trip really restored our faith in humanity," they said.

One Montana rancher pointed the two in the direction of a camp site only to

come up with a better idea. "Heck, you two can stay with me on the ranch. I'll

take you down to the Dairy Queen for a burger, too," he said.

All in all, David said the people they met seemed to respect what he and

Tricia were doing, never passing judgment or playing them off as a couple of

free spirits wandering the country.

As the two experienced bikers pedaled their way through Big Sky country they

encountered lots of rain and head winds that slowed them down. But they

trudged forward, averaging about 55 miles per day. Their bikes held up well,

sustaining just two flat tires.

"It was a challenge," Tricia said. "It wasn't always easy but we told each

other that if we can get through this, we can get through anything."

Though Newtown was the symbolic end to the journey, the two weren't finished

yet. Last Friday, they hopped back on their bikes for the "short" trip to

Fairfield and Long Island Sound.

Tricia and David joked that they each averaged about 60 miles to the gallon in

water. That means they combined to chug more than 100 gallons of water during

their trip.