Patricia McNeal has some tips if you鈥檙e planning听to cycle cross-country:听look for听the nicer truck stops along the interstates for a hot shower,听eat a lot of pancakes (shout out to IHOP),听and when you reach the mountains, shift into an easier gear. In 2018, the 57-year-old grandmother of four rode听from her home in Panama City, Florida, to Los Angeles. She听trained constantly for her long-distance ride, logging up to 100 miles a day on her Trek bike for months in advance, but it was all done on听Florida鈥檚 flat roads, so she never bothered shifting gears. She learned how to do that roughly 1,700 miles into her听journey, when she was faced with the steep Santa Catalina Mountains听in Arizona. 鈥淚 get to these freaking mountains, and I鈥檓 still on that same gear, and I was crying,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淢y legs were burning. But I kept doing it, and I finally figured out changing gears. It was like a light bulb. It was so much easier.鈥澨
The 2,200-mile pedal-powered听adventure was a learning experience for McNeal, who didn鈥檛 start cycling until she was 51. She didn鈥檛 even know how to change a flat tire when she set off on her solo ride鈥攍uckily, she didn鈥檛 get any听flats听along the way. Still, McNeal听decided to tackle the long haul as a way to prove a point to herself and others. 鈥淚 wanted to show women, and African American women in particular, ,鈥 she听says. 鈥淚 bumped into a couple of black guys in Mississippi听who said they鈥檇 never seen a black woman on a bike. On TV听you see cyclists, but they鈥檙e white and small. I鈥檓 a grandma. I just want to show people鈥攜ou go anywhere in the world on a bike.鈥
That said, McNeal understands why some听might be uneasy on听two wheels. She didn鈥檛 grow up biking听and only started after years of gentle pressure from her husband, who is a longtime recumbent cyclist. When she began听to ride in earnest, her husband had to push her up any slight hill. 鈥淎n old man on Rollerblades passed me by while I was pedaling,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how slow I was going.鈥 McNeal immediately fell in love with the sport, though, riding daily and eventually swapping her car for her bike. She likes to show people听that it鈥檚 never too late to acquire a听new skill. 鈥淚t was like being a little kid, learning things for the first time,鈥 she says.听
Familial health problems had always plagued McNeal鈥攈er mother, father, and sister all died from strokes. McNeal herself 听but used the setback as inspiration to continue on her newfound healthy path. She adopted a vegan diet and was back on the bike just two weeks after the incident, slowly building up to 50-plus-mile training sessions. 鈥淏icycling changed my life,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淚t gave me a lot of freedom. It gave me my health back. I now have the blood pressure of a 16-year-old.鈥
McNeal isn鈥檛 one for cross-training, though her son is trying to convince her to take up yoga. She relied completely on her daily mileage听to build strength and endurance for her cross-country trip. As soon as she completed听a century ride, she knew she was ready. 鈥淔or me to go cross-country wasn鈥檛 a big deal,鈥 she says. 鈥淚t was just completing my daily ride, only I was riding into a different state each day.鈥
McNeal started pedaling west at the end of September last year, averaging 135 miles a day for the first several days of her journey, then settling into a pace that had her knocking out a century every day. She even worked sprints into her daily rides. McNeal fueled her journey听with grits and pancakes, carried only a small backpack,听listened to a lot of Tupac, and stayed in hotels or听with friends and family every night.听She finished听in 45 days. 鈥淚 was moving,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淚鈥檇 start early in the morning and have plenty of time to ride and stop and talk to people and still finish before dark.鈥
After her journey, McNeal founded the nonprofit听Heels on Wheels, with a mission听to inspire other women to take up cycling. She鈥檚 also prepping for another cross-country trip, this time riding from Seattle to Key West, Florida. 鈥淭here will be a lot more elevation on this route,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淚 know how to change gears now, but I鈥檓 still scared of going downhill.鈥澨
Learning how to navigate steep mountain passes won鈥檛 be the only skill McNeal picks up on this next venture.听She鈥檚 also hoping to camp for the first time in her life. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know anything about camping, but I just heard of a guy that did this same route and camped outside of churches along the way,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淚鈥檓 a city girl, so I鈥檒l have to learn how to do that while I鈥檓 riding, too.鈥
She also has an altruistic motive for her upcoming听ride:听to raise money for听women new to cycling and for听victims of Hurricane Michael,听which听hit Florida听in 2018 as a Category 5 hurricane. 鈥淚 want to change my community,鈥 McNeal says. 鈥淚t was hit so hard by the hurricane, and I want to make it more bike-friendly. I want to get more women riding bikes. I want to get more kids riding bikes. People see me riding 75 miles a day, and they think it鈥檚 too far for them to go. I try to explain to them where I started not that long ago. Anything is possible.鈥