We certainly hope you have enjoyed keeping up with us during our trip. We appreciate your support and enthusiasm for Educational Talent Search and our many Adventures.

Thanks again too all those who helped us pull this ride off! Your gifts of time, equipment and resources are greatly appreciated!

You can keep up with Talent Search Programs throughout the year from our

home page.

Jody's comments:

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Troy's comments:

I feel honored to have been chosen for this trip. It is a once in a lifetime kind of thing. I know that if I can accomplish a goal like this, I can accomplish anything I put my mind to.

The road is like life. You have to climb to the top before you can coast. In life you have ups and downs. You just have to keep working to get to the top of the hill. You CAN'T give up halfway through. I have learned to work harder for a better payoff instead of just doing enough to get by.

I had alot of encouragement from all my friends and teachers at home but what really got me going was when I talked to my mom at nights and she told me how everyone at school had kept up with me on the web. Just knowing that they were really interested and behind me helped keep me going strong.

Todd's comments: Troy, Therese and Todd on climb

Therese and I are very proud of the two young men who dug down deep on so many occasions to finish well and make it to the end of the road each day. These guys have demonstrated that determination and a positive attitude are tools that work in obtaining a lofty goal.

In many ways this trip really has been like life. There is alot of up and alot of down...mostly up. We have climbed over 60,000 feet in our tour of the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive. That is like riding to the top of Mt Everest from sea level, twice! It takes a great deal of effort to climb. It also takes a great deal of effort to succeed in school, sports, or other extra curricular activities. When the rubber meets the road, it is up to you to "see the hill and take the hill." That means sometimes you just have to put your head down and grind out the work. On the Parkway the Bike-Chain Gang had a saying for these times..."What time is it?" someone would shout. The group in unison would shout "It's time to climb!"

This is the beginning of a new school year for you. The Bike-Chain Gang wants to encourage you to set a lofty goal. Put your head down so to speak. Crank out the effort. Because, for all of us, it is now time to climb!

See ya out there!

Todd