Ride to Montauk – 152 miles (yes, in one day)

September 15, 2018
New York, NY – 5am

Yes, that’s right – it’s 5am and my son Matt and I are standing in the dark outside Penn Station in Manhattan about to embark on our “bragging rights” longest one-day ride out to Montauk, Long Island.  Did I mention that it’s dark outside?  This ride usually takes place in May, but for logistical reasons too boring to go into, it was moved to September this year.  That means, sunrise an hour later and dark for us an hour longer.

Eventually, though, the sun does come up and we just keep that big yellow thing in front of us since we are heading east for the entire day.

We always keep an eye on the weather for this ride, and usually (hint, hint), there is a prevailing westerly wind (wind out of the west, and helping us all day).  But this year (as has happened a few other times as well), we had a 7-8 mph headwind the entire day.  It got old really quickly.  But, we soldiered on and finished in under 12 hours.  Ok, Matt finished a lot under 12 hours.  I was just happy to finish.

Please enjoy these photos from the incredible day.  Man oh man, we were beat by the end.   Best part though – hot showers and a big party at the finish.

(Click on the first photo for a slide show.)

Here’s our route: 153 miles from midtown Manhattan out to Montauk. And no, we did not take the Long Island Expressway.

Things are a little dark and fuzzy at 5am at the starting point.

Things are a little dark and fuzzy at 5am at the starting point.

34th Street needs those billboards to provide shed some light on the subject.

Crossing the Williamsburg Bridge and heading into the dark.

Heading east …

… just keep that big yellow thing in front of you.

Hey Matt, do you want to go to Jones Beach instead?

Matt shows me how it feels to bike 150 miles on only a couple hours of sleep.

On Dune Rd, we pass the century mark. Note the elevation: 8 feet above sea level. See next photo for an illustration…

… this is what 8 foot elevation looks like. Dune Rd floods easily.

Heading to the Ponquogue Bridge.

We pose for our traditional photo op.

We pose for our traditional photo op.

Check out Matt’s awesome Teri bike. He looks fast standing still.

Riding through the Hamptons…

Welcome to the Hamptons, aka Ground Zero in the Land of Entitlement.

That sign signals we’re near the end of this trek.

Best part of the ride? Taking a nice hot shower and feeling human again.

Celebration on the beach with music, food and beer …

My wonderful family and Uber drivers Joanne and Samantha.

The boys did it!

From sun up to sun down, Samantha gets ready for the drive home.