Perhaps as a twisted cosmic reminder of the horrible events that occurred six years ago... today sucked. Enormously. My bike is now squeaking and skipping gears, I am limping around the motel room, and I am riding lighter by a factor of one camera bag.

I started off this morning on the three day, 300 mile leg to Detroit, Michigan bright and early, aiming to catch up with Jon and John who got a head start on me by leaving the city yesterday afternoon. I was proud of myself for getting on the road by 5:45am, a feat which has happened maybe two or three times in the last two months. I decided to celebrate by using the camera mount I had engineered on my handle bars for the first time to capture my sunrise departure from the city.

Chicago's Millennium Park

I got it rigged up and wove my way through morning traffic, people and the beautiful Millennium Park - the largest green roof in North America; which I had the pleasure of interviewing the architect of on Friday. By the time I was out of the city, the sun was out and the view was breathtaking. I stopped, turned off the camera and turned to put it away... in a camera bag that was not there. Apparently I did not attach it properly and it fell off somewhere in town. That bag contained my sound gear, two weeks of interview tapes and B-roll, batteries, charger, wires, intervalometer and the contact information of everyone I have met on this trip; pretty much everything except the actual camera.

What followed was not my best show of practical problem solving: hyperventilating, hands shaking, I jammed the camera and now useless bungee cords into my dry bag and flew back into town ignoring all traffic laws and plowing a few people over. After frantically pedaling around I realized I had no idea where I had gone. To make a long story short after riding up and down every block that looked vaguely familiar, running into every storefront I could find to ask if it had been turned in, questioning every bellman, homeless individual and having an episode on a street corner that involved being laughed at by a group of 9 to 5ers who thought a spandex-clad maniac swearing and hopping on one foot after kicking a surprisingly sturdy trash can was the highlight of their day... I quit.

Nothing drives you quite like guilt and anger, I covered the first 60 miles to catch up with John and Jon in three hours.... 8mph faster than the trip average. We had lunch, during which they were kind enough to limit cracks about who the responsible figure of the ride really is. We made it perhaps five miles beyond Michigan City when a car passed me a bit too close for my comfort, pushing me off the shoulder at 15mph onto loose gravel. My wheel rubbed against the curb and slid out. I went over the handle bars, landing on a combination of knees, elbows, and hands... pretty much everything except the helmet. I emerged more pissed off than hurt, though I'm sitting on ice packs and limping around. And, with a squeaking bike that echoed my sentiments, rode another 50 miles.

Having said all that, with the exception of the last few hours, my time in Chicago was everything I could have asked for. Joey Feinstein, organizer of Climate Cycle; an annual charity ride that will be held starting next year to raise money for renewable installations on public schools, offered to house me as well as arrange all of my interviews while in town. He certainly held true to his word. Thursday and Friday were jam packed with talks. I had opportunity to speak with:

• Suzanne Malec-McKenna; the new Commissioner of the Department of Environment
• Baum Development on the Green Exchange, aimed at being the epicenter of green businesses in the midwest
• Brandon Leavitt; owner of Solar Service, one of, if not the oldest solar systems installer in the US. Solar Service specializes in solar thermal heating systems, one of the most cost effective renewable technologies today
• Ben Gomberg - Bicycle Program Coordinator for the Chicago department of transportation. Mayor Daley aims to make Chicago the most bicycle friendly city in the country
• Architects of Millennium Park; the largest green roof in the country
• And a guy who aims to commercially produce biodiesel from algae

Note: Interview/itinerary suggestions for the trip can be emailed to me.

Ride To Sustain will pass through the following cities: San Francisco, CA – Sacramento, CA – Reno, NV – Salt Lake City, UT – Denver, CO – Omaha, NB – Des Moines, IA – Chicago, IL – Detroit, MI – Cleveland, OH – Pittsburgh, PA – Washington, DC – Philadelphia, PA – New York City, NY – Hartford, CT – Boston, MA