On a bicycle built for two, Brian and Dena Squire are taking a once-in-a-lifetime, 5300 mile trip through the central part of the U.S., visiting family and stopping along the road to “meet America.” They stopped in Brownwood Wednesday at a local hotel and were able to share the story of their travels.
The Squires were high school sweethearts and have been married for 33 years. They lived and worked in Cleveland, Ohio for years before moving to Fort Collins, Colorado to retire. He had worked for a municipal parks system for 32 years, she had worked in finance, most recently for the Cleveland Browns in their accounting department before retiring.
The pair often bike shorter rides and Brian commuted to work for 32 years by bike. He stated that he “loves the health aspect of it.”
Their plan is to ride from Fort Collins to Austin, Texas to visit their daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren for a week, then ride to Cleveland where they will visit old friends and family before returning to Colorado in time for their son’s wedding in October.
The Squires’ bicycling adventure began on March 29th and will take over 6 months. Brian stated that he has always wanted to bicycle on a long trip through many states since he was a teenager. Although both Brian and Dena are very athletic, both taking part in cycling and Dena even running a half marathon about once a year, this is a “once in a lifetime trip”–the longest bicycling tour that they have ever set out to accomplish.
“I’ve been wanting to do this for 25 years while we’re still young enough to accomplish the trip,” said Brian. “I didn’t want to be a little old man who had to say I wish I could have…I believe you should chase your dreams.” He explained that after this tour, he also wants to hike the Appalachian Trail one day. Dena laughed, saying, “He will have to do that on his own.”
Each day, the couple allots $50 for food and has anticipated a certain amount of repairs to their bicycle, along with lodging expenses. Brian said that most cyclists are younger and do more camping along their travels due to financial limitations. He explained that being retired, he and Dena feel fortunate to be able to stay in hotels or bed and breakfasts along the way for a more comfortable stay. They try to cycle for up to 79 miles a day, depending on the best stops for a day off to rest—allowing their bodies to rehabilitate from the workout of the ride and to take in some local flair along the way. Brian explained that they had ridden five days in a row to get to Brownwood. They will ride three more to get to Austin.
“We have met so many nice people on this ride. As we ride through a town, we try to talk to the local people, to meet America,” said Brian. “It restores our confidence that (as a country) we are still doing ok.”
Safety has been a concern for the Squires as they travel slower than most of the other traffic they encounter. Helmets equipped with mirrors, a slow moving vehicle sign on the back of their trailer and an orange flag on their bicycle, help them to be noticed and enable them watch the other drivers they encounter. The trailer the Squires pull on their trip weighs approximately 76 pounds and the bicycle is another 50 or so, loaded down with a bag of food and bottles of water for the ride. Dena said the bike and trailer is a heavy load to pull adding to the physical challenge of the ride itself. The Squires have calculated 99 days of riding will be needed to complete their tour.
The time of year the couple began their trip, Colorado was still getting snow. In fact, Dena said Fort Collins got three inches of snow just last week. The Squires are really enjoying getting to see the countryside’s changing of seasons and terrain.
“It’s been fun, we’ve been riding into spring,” said Dena. “As you go further south the wildflowers have been blooming and it’s been great.”
With spring comes unexpected weather. The Squires stopped along the way to avoid being out in the bad weather when a tornado was sighted just two miles from their route, bringing hail and heavy rain. So far in the ride, the Squires have not been caught in bad weather. Forecasts for this week in Texas could change that with expected thunderstorms in central Texas Thursday and Friday.
Their next stop is Marble Falls, where the Squires are participating in the Warm Showers Program through which another cycling family will host them overnight. The Squires found the Warm Showers Program has wider participation in Colorado with 56 families in Fort Collins alone, but only this one family (in Marble Falls) along the way through Texas.
Brian explained that they have tried to send postcards along the way, but that it’s been a challenge finding post cards to send through the post office in today’s world of technology and instant messaging. Their young granddaughter in Austin has been mapping out the progress of her grandparents’ trip with tacks and is anxiously awaiting their arrival.
Taking on the trip has allowed the Squires to meet many interesting people and also historical figures. While riding through the Texas panhandle, they met the family of Quanah Parker at a bed and breakfast one evening, while the family was in town for a dedication ceremony in honor of their forefather.
Before they reach Cleveland, the Squires will stop in Hillsboro, Ohio where they will be honored with the task of delivering a letter recognizing Colonel William Collins from the mayor of Fort Collins to the Mayor of Hillsboro, the home city of Collins who is the namesake of Fort Collins (which was founded in the 1860s).
Brian stated, “We were very impressed with Brownwood and wish we had more time to see more of it.” The Squires will return to their home in northern Colorado, just east of the Rocky Mountains in October. Until then they have many miles of America yet to discover and hope to meet even more new friends along the way.
