Pell will raise money for charity at age 72.
By: Lea Kahn
When Stuyvesant Pell was a student at Princeton University, he often dreamed of riding a bicycle in the Tour de France. A half-century later, Mr. Pell is fulfilling that dream but on this side of the Atlantic Ocean, in a cross-country jaunt that could be dubbed the Tour d’Etats-Unis.
Mr. Pell, a Lawrence resident, plans to bicycle from Washington state cross-country to Palmer Square in Princeton this summer. In all, his journey is expected to take about five to six weeks. Mr. Pell is 72 years old.
"This is a one-time opportunity," Mr. Pell said. "I was on the 150-pound crew at Princeton University. If the team had a good season and was the best one in the United States, the Princeton University Rowing Association would pay for a trip to the Royal Henley Regatta in England.
"If you are going to row at the Royal Henley Regatta, then the next challenge is to swim across the English Channel. Then, you ride a bicycle in the Tour de France. That’s a sophomore’s logic. But it never materialized, so this will be a good substitute," he said.
The idea to ride a bicycle across the country grew out of his desire to visit his daughter in Snohomish, Wash. Mr. Pell said he had been planning to make the visit for the past several years, but was unable to do so until now. He is driving to her home now with longtime friend Don McSween, and they plan to begin the eastward bike ride June 6.
"I thought I would drive out there to deliver some furniture to my daughter, and fly back," he said. "It occurred to me, I won’t get another chance to do this (ride a bicycle cross-country) again. I mentioned it to Don and he jumped on it. He’s even more pumped about it than I am."
Mr. Pell’s younger daughter, who lives in Ewing Township, was concerned about her father’s venture. But she relented when she learned that he would be accompanied by a friend and that her father broke down and purchased a cell phone.
It is easier bicycling from west to east, he said, because the prevailing wind direction is from the west. They will be riding with the wind not into it.
The two men hope to average 80 miles per day. They plan to ride on or near major highways, he said, because they expect to stay in a motel rather than at a campground.
"A credit card is much lighter than a sleeping bag, a tent and pots and pans," Mr. Pell pointed out. The goal is keep their load as light as possible, he added.
Although Mr. Pell dropped off his bicycle at a Princeton bicycle shop to be tuned up, he did not take any special steps to prepare himself for the trip. A frequent bicyclist and an avid rower on Lake Carnegie, he said he felt that he was in good shape for the trip.
"The first day of our trip will probably one of our toughest," he said. "Monroe is about 300 feet above sea level. Stevens Pass (through the Cascade Mountains) is 49 miles from Monroe, and it is 4,061 feet above sea level. It will be downhill until we reach the Rocky Mountains.
An acquaintance cautioned him that traveling through South Dakota would be the hardest part of the trip. The land is "dead flat," Mr. Pell said. In the morning, there will be a tree on the horizon and at the end of the day, that tree will still be on the horizon, his acquaintance told him.
Mr. Pell also hopes to raise money for the Princeton Outreach Project Inc., which is a nonprofit organization that provides financial support for the Crisis Ministry and the Trenton After-School Program. POPI is a ministry shared by the Nassau Presbyterian Church and Trinity Church, both located in Princeton Borough.
Soon after he conceived the idea of riding a bicycle from the West Coast to the East Coast, it occurred to him that he could turn the trip into a benefit for POPI, said Mr. Pell, who worships at Trinity Church. Parishioners may pledge from 1 cent per mile to 25 cents per mile which, for a 2,800-mile trip, amounts to anywhere from $28 to $700.
"I don’t have any doubts that we are going to make it," Mr. Pell said. "I’m sure there will be dull days, when we will look at each other and say, ‘Why are we doing this.’ But I am looking forward to it."