A Chat With Margaret Fox

This afternoon I had the chance to talk with Margaret Fox, a kind-hearted woman who lives outside Middletown, NY in the Hudson Valley. Margaret lost her husband six years ago on Sunday when Bill Fox, an experienced long-distance bicyclist, crashed and died in a bike accident in the Hudson Valley.

This weekend, she said, was particularly tough given the loss of her husband's life six years ago. What gives her a smile, though,is that Margaret is a new grandmother again, as her son and daughter-in-law just had a daughter a week ago. Her son Roland, and his wife, had a boy three years ago.

Margaret appreciated the Ocean2Gulf Bike Ride that I'm doing on Sunday, along with the efforts of friends who will be helping me along the way. I always wanted to bike across the state in one day from Vero Beach to Clearwater Beach and see the savannah-like terrain of Florida along State Road 60 in the middle of the state.

Bill Fox was a long-distance cyclist, too, who loved to share his infectious love for bicycling with anyone who would listen. He turned out to be a kindred spirit and I'm proud to bike in his memory on Sunday. I think Bill would be proud, and I'm proud to carry on his legacy and love for bicycling.

This blog will have reports and photos throughout the day on Sunday. Steve Swiger will be providing vehicle support and also sharing in the writing, photography and blogging throughout the day with me.


This is the very tentative State Road 60 schedule. It's subject to weather and mechanical changes:

Atlantic Ocean, Vero Beach: 4:15 AM

SR 60/I-95, Vero Beach: 5:15 AM

SR 60/Turnpike, Yeehaw Junction: 6:15 AM

Lake Wales: 10:30 AM

Bartow: 1 PM

Brandon: 3:30 PM

Tampa: 5:30 PM

Gulf of Mexico, Clearwater Beach: 7:30 PM