Cross-country cyclist pauses in Lovell en route to Washington

The energy flows from Suzie Williamson like a rushing mountain stream. But even an energetic veteran bicyclist riding from coast to coast needs a break every now and then.

That most recent break in the retired special education teacher and U.S. Army veteran’s cross-country trek occurred in Lovell Thursday as she stopped to rest and recuperate.

Williamson, 56, who hails from Milford, Pennsylvania, spent seven years in the U.S. Army serving in active duty and then served another 13-plus years in the New Jersey National Guard after attending the New Jersey Guard’s version of officer candidate school.

A native of New Jersey, she has ties to many locations in the Tri-State area of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. She taught special ed in Hamburg, New Jersey, for many years, and as a member of the Guard, she has drilled in Dover, New Jersey, and other places. 

After her retirement in December, she applied for a program for veterans called Warrior Expeditions, which on the organization’s website is called “a veteran nonprofit outdoor therapy program that helps veterans transition from their wartime experiences through long distance outdoor expeditions” like hiking the Appalachian Trail, kayaking on the Mississippi River or, like Williamson, cycling coast to coast.

She applied for the cross-country bicycle ride last summer and received word that she had been selected for the program on Christmas Day.

“It’s pretty special,” she said of her selection. “But I was also afraid, because this is a long commitment, right? This is a long commitment.”

Hitting the road

After preparing for months, Williamson traveled to the Washington, D.C., area and met with her team of seven riders May 6-7 at Lockhouse 6 in Bethesda, Maryland, just north of Washington. The group rode into Washington on May 8 for a grand kickoff event in front of the U.S. Capitol Reflecting Pool.

“It was an amazing day,” she said, including several inspirational guest speakers.

The group then rode west, using the Great American Rail Trail whenever possible. Unfortunately, the rail trail is less and less complete the further west a person rides, forcing cyclists to travel on main highways, which is dangerous, Williamson said.

Through a national initiative, a coast-to-coast route is being planned and gradually constructed. In Wyoming, 510 miles of trail are planned, but only 17 miles have been completed or designated, just 3.4 percent of the planned route.

The Warrior Expeditions group traveled together until Ohio, where they began to spread out, all heading to Washington for arrival at La Push Beach. Two riders have already finished the trek, and on Friday Williamson rode into Montana, with one of the seven riders behind her.

“When we got into Ohio, that’s when everybody just took off, so I’m on my own right now,” she said. “So far, we’re all doing well. We’re just at different places.”

After the two riders who have finished, one more was close as of last week, two more are ahead of Williamson and one rider is behind her. The general goal is 50 miles a day, and she uses an app called Far Out to help plan routes and stops. She was in Greybull Tuesday night, July 9, and arrived in Lovell Wednesday, laying over Thursday.

She found Lovell through the Warrior Veteran Support Center, run by Les Files, when she was in Worland and looking ahead for veteran assistance.

“I tried to plot it out, and I was looking around for a VA or something, and then when I did that, his sign came up. So I got lucky,” Williamson said. “When his sign came up, I called the number, and he picked up. And I was like, ‘Well, thank God you picked up the phone (because armories weren’t answering).

“We really have to depend on community support. And let me tell you, the community support that I found along this way is endearing to my heart. They pick up the phone, they talk to me, they’re allowing me to be safe, because as a woman, I feel like I have to be locked in, and I’m in a strange town, and they give me the security that I need to sleep. So, I am also finding places myself, like I stayed at the KOA in Greybull. I’ve had to stay in other places when I see a storm coming. But nothing is better in my mind than finding someone to just talk to, like Les.”

Williamson said Lovell was welcoming during her brief stay, from Files to the fellow customers and staff at the Mustang Café.

“I’ve been hanging out at this diner (Mustang Café),” she said. “It’s so nice to meet the people in the community. It makes me feel like I’m at home. Les has made me feel like that, and I’ve been hanging out here at the Mustang. I’ve had three meals there. It’s great.

“I think I need that. I need that small town thing, because that’s where I’m from. I’m from a small town in northern Jersey and Pennsylvania. It’s tiny, but all the little communities there are all close. They’re not 30 miles between. So, little town, little town, little town. And I’m a teacher, so I need to talk. I talk a lot, so I feel like I have been fortunate enough to need that.”

Army and Guard service

Williamson worked as a drug and alcohol counselor while on active duty and was stationed in Germany, then deployed during the Persian Gulf War, 1990-91, where she served doing general counseling with soldiers.

Upon leaving the Army, she went to college at Kean University to become a special education teacher and joined the New Jersey National Guard, going through officer candidate school. Her unit was called up at the time of the 9/11 attacks in 2001 to guard the Holland Tunnel from New Jersey to Manhattan and again during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. She rose to the rank of major.

She married a fellow veteran, Brian Williamson.

In school, she coached track and ran a junior police program, with students trained to help fellow students.

“I did everything with the kids, spent a lot of extra time with the children at school,” she said. “We did what’s called patrol silver, where you train the kids to be the security of the school. You train them to help children, like the little ones to get to their classroom or to the nurse or to whatever program.

“That was a great part of my life. I kind of miss it. Now I’m done, and it’s only been December, and I’m kind of feeling lost. I don’t really know what I’m supposed to be doing next, because I’ve had such a busy life.”