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"ns_db gethandle subquery"
    invoked from within
"set db [ns_db gethandle subquery]..."
    (procedure "gt_category_id_list_inner_swcm" line 3)
    invoked from within
"gt_category_id_list_inner_swcm "236760" "static_pages" "Content Type" "1" "0" """
    ("eval" body line 1)
    invoked from within
"eval $tcl_statement"
    invoked from within
"set statement_value [eval $tcl_statement]..."
    invoked from within
"if { ![info exists generic_cache_awhile_value($tcl_statement)] || ( [expr $generic_cache_awhile_timestamp($tcl_statement) + $oldest_acceptable_value_i ..."
    (procedure "Memoize_for_Awhile" line 11)
    invoked from within
"Memoize_for_Awhile "gt_category_id_list_inner_swcm \"$id\" \"$table\" \"$category_umbrella\" \"$limit\" \"$min_weight\" \"$department_id\"" 90000"
    invoked from within
"set list [Memoize_for_Awhile "gt_category_id_list_inner_swcm \"$id\" \"$table\" \"$category_umbrella\" \"$limit\" \"$min_weight\" \"$department_id\""  ..."
    invoked from within
"if {[regexp {article-view|article-upload} $url_stub1]} {
	    set list [gt_category_id_list_inner_swcm $id $table $category_umbrella $limit $min_weigh ..."
    invoked from within
"if {[info exists id] && [info exists table]} {
	if {[regexp {article-view|article-upload} $url_stub1]} {
	    set list [gt_category_id_list_inner_swcm ..."
    (procedure "gt_category_id_list" line 181)
    invoked from within
"gt_category_id_list 1 "Content Type" $page_id"
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"gt_category_name [gt_category_id_list 1 "Content Type" $page_id]..."
    invoked from within
"set content_type [gt_category_name [gt_category_id_list 1 "Content Type" $page_id]]..."
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GORP Rides Across America
Day 2: June 20, 2000, Update
Skykomish, WA, to Cashmere, WA
Today's Miles: 69.4Miles since Seattle: 133.4


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Big Ride Logo

For many of the 201 riders on the 2000 RadioShack Big Ride across America, 4,061-foot Stevens Pass in the Cascade Mountains represented a special kind of pinnacle — by far the biggest and longest hill they had ever climbed. But every single rider made it, thanks to support from fellow riders and crew and their own will power — one of many tests they will face on their 3,260-mile trip across the United States.

Riders stood over their saddles as they climbed the grueling 4,061 feet over Stevens Pass
Riders stood over their saddles
as they climbed the grueling 4,061 feet
over Stevens Pass

Sharon Basile, a nurse from Douglasville, Pennsylvania, had never owned a bike before last August. Then while taking classes at the University of Pennsylvania, she came upon the American Lung Association Web site, with news of the Big Ride. The next day, she decided to sign up with a close friend in mind who has lung cancer."Three years ago she was told she had three months to live," Sharon said. "She's had her lower left lobe removed and three courses of chemo — and she has the word 'believe' cut in her hair."

Early Tuesday morning, with her friend's laminated 8-by-10 picture hanging off the end of her bike, Sharon set off to tackle Stevens Pass. "My biggest problem was staying cool — I kept shedding stuff," she said. "I was going so slow my [bicycle] computer actually registered zero at one point!" Sharon reached the summit at 1 p.m., garnering cheers from crew members waiting at the top. "But coming down was pure joy," she added.

Doug Gorrell of Xenia, Illinois, felt the same exhilaration, hitting 42 mph on the eastern side of the pass — and that was while towing the Dream Machine, the bike cart containing the names of hundreds of persons, the Chain of Hope, who have died from or are suffering from lung disease. Doug said he had volunteered for the day's towing job — riders take turns pulling the cart "because it's something I had read about and knew I wanted to do. I'm just glad that God has given me the ability, the health, and the breath to do it."

What Doug didn't tell anyone was that this was the first mountain pass he had ever climbed. "It's kinda flat in Xenia," he said. "I received an enormous amount of encouragement on the way up from crew members and riders," he added. "They kept me going."

Unlike Sharon, Doug has been a bike rider for years. His first long ride, he recalled, was a surprise 55-mile ride to visit his girlfriend. This week, the couple celebrate their 14th wedding anniversary and Doug is looking forward to meeting her near where he grew up, near Kendallville, Indiana, where Big Riders will spend the night.

A dirndl salute awaited Big Riders as they toured the Bavarian town of Leavenworth, WA
A dirndl salute awaited Big Riders as they toured the Bavarian town of Leavenworth, Washington
For Bob Schaet of Jupiter, Florida, Stevens Pass was a frustrating learning experience. He discovered that the gears he had on his bike were woefully inadequate to the task."By the time I got to the foot of the pass, I was already in my lowest gear," he said. Bob ended up walking most of the last seven miles to the top of the pass. His first visit when he got into camp at the end of the day was to traveling bike mechanic Harlan Kruger, who promised to install a new rear cassette and derailleur as soon as possible.

For just about everyone else, though, Day 2 was mostly unalloyed joy, despite the rigors of the pass. Clear skies, an almost uninterrupted 40-mile downhill, a following wind, and mountain scenery provided a memory many will cherish for years. An added bonus was a visit to the Bavarian village of Leavenworth, with dirndled waitresses and an accordion player in the town square, and the chance to partake of such specialties as wiener schnitzel, spaetzel, and red cabbage. The last dozen or so miles to the camp in Cashmere at the Chelan County Fairgrounds, past the irrigated cherry orchards along the Wenatchee River, presaged the dramatic change in store for riders. On Day 3, they complete the transition from the nearrain forest climate of the Cascades to the hot sagebrush desert of eastern Washington.

For more information about today's ride, check out the GORP Big Ride Log.




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