From the assistant editor

Lost, not lost

Wed, 05/29/2019 - 8:45am

    It wasn't the infamous take-out coffee cup in "Game of Thrones," but a word that found its way into a video interview Friday was ironic: "Lost."

    There it was, on a piece of cardboard behind the interviewee, Bike the U.S. for MS (multiple sclerosis) route leader in-training Emily Gregory, in a First Congregational Church of Wiscasset hallway. The minister, Rev. Josh Fitterling, confirmed Monday, that's the lost and found area where the church puts things people have left behind.

    But on Friday, in front of it, Gregory, of Winchester, Virginia, had her sleeping mat out and was setting out group T-shirts. After biking the East Coast or segments of it, she and others on the Atlantic Coast route of the annual trans-American event antithesized lost. They take routes planned to avoid the biggest traffic and their nights’ stays are lined up in advance.

    But most of all – as evidenced by the interviews and the cyclists’ making it that far in 34 days, from St. Augustine to Wiscasset to help MS charities and projects – the group’s members weren’t the other kind of lost – aimless or lacking focus. Think about the focus it took to safely pedal, negotiate and navigate the turns, hills and weather along the daily distances, for as long as five straight weeks. And the cyclists, some more into distance cycling than others,  and some cycling with family members, shared a goal of helping people with MS, including doing home projects along the way.

    Lost? Hardly.

    Week’s parting positive thought: At press time, hope lived for New England to have three reigning pro champion teams at once. Go, Bruins!