The Bay to Beach Magazine

bay o

beach t

an inside look on the ride of a lifetime

ing lot around noon and pro-ceeded to bike to the Bay Bridge where Mr. Morris, Clay’s father, would be waiting to pick them and drive the boys and their bikes across. With the adrena-line rushing through their bod-

ies, Clay and Joey biked the first ten miles with ease, arriving at the bridge in about forty-five minutes. As arranged, the boys were driven over the bridge. The two bikers were dropped off at the Pier One lo-cated at the first right after the Bay Bridge. They glanced down

The Bay to Beach RideA Foreword

“Let’s do this!”

Outside of Severn School, Joey Kaelin (left) and Clay Morris (right) are ready to embark on their first day of biking.

DAY ONE 45 miles to Denton

Follow Joey Kaelin and Clay Morris on their round trip journey from Severna Park to Ocean City, Maryland. From May 17 to May 21, these two graduating seniors of Severn School’s class of 2010 embarked on a bike ride aimed to raise money and awareness for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Titled “Bay to Beach”, the bikers dedicated their ride to Reegan Morris who was diagnosed with Type One Juvenile Diabetes one year ago. Sponsored by the Bike Doctor, Gary’s Grill, and Jeno’s Subs, the bikers covered over 220 miles in five days and raised over 4,000 dollars to donate to JDRF.

This is their story.

By Amelia Wang: May 17th be-gan with a cold, drizzly, windy morning – not the most ideal weather conditions to begin a 220 mile bike ride. However, this did not deter Clay Mor-ris’ enthusiasm as he slammed the door to his car outside his house shouting, “Let’s do this!” Not long after him, Joey Kaelin and Connor Bateman ar-rived, equally as eager to start their day. Today, Joey and Clay would be riding about forty-five miles to a campground in Den-ton to spend the night after the first leg of their round trip bike ride from Severna Park to Ocean City, Maryland, aimed to raised money for the Juvenile Diabe-tes Research Foundation. Mean-while as the boys biked, Amelia Wang would follow close by, driving the cyclists’ “sag-wagon”, while Connor Bateman would act as a cameraman, filming the two biker’s journey for a subse-quent documentary to be made. At first, it seemed as if the boys were blinded by their excitement to begin; while the mothers of Joey and Clay frantically tried to put together a final direction packet for the boys to fol-low before they left, the two bikers quickly inched to-ward the door. “We’ll be fine!” They both rapidly assured. After some last minute errands, including a visit with their outside advisor, Scotty, who works at the Bike Doc-tor, Joey and Clay were finally ready to start. They began their ride in Severn School’s park-

at their directions and they gave each other one final, reassur-ing handshake before biking towards Denton, thirty-three miles away. As the two headed off, Amelia and Connor drove ten miles ahead to the Queen-

stown Outlets, where they planned to meet and check in with the cyclists. While wait-ing there, they took the op-portunity to spread awareness about the Bay to Bridge fund-raiser; as a result of talking to

a number of salespeople at the various stores, the two managed to collect five dollars and two corporate numbers to which they were told to call for the possibility of bigger donations from the companies as a whole. Before long, Clay and Joey arrived at the outlets, ready

DAY ONE 45 miles to Denton

DAY TWO61 miles to Ocean City

for some lunch. The break was short – the bikers still had an-other twenty-five miles to go and time was running out before it began to get dark. The boys quickly returned to the road after some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, made hastily

in the back of the sag-wagon.At first, it seemed as if all was going well, until the cyclists re-alized that they were lost while biking down Connolly road. Un-able to find the next road they were supposed to ride on, Clay and Joey began to ask for direc-tions – a tricky task to do when there are few people to be found on the small country back roads the two were taking. Luckily, Amelia and Connor were able to find them and set them back on

the right track again – but the confusion had cost the bikers the time. Nearing four in the afternoon, the boys had to cover some distance fast in order to make it to the campground in time. With a few hours to spare, they did so, collapsing

at the campground around six. Commenting on how the last mile felt, Clay Mor-ris said, “My legs did not want to work anymore.” “It was the longest day ever,” Joey added. While Connor and Clay began to set up camp, Joey and Amelia drove off to find some dinner to bring back to everyone. Returning with Chinese, the team ate tiredly and got ready for bed around nine. As everyone settled in, Joey and Clay began providing some feedback about their journey so far: How long do you believe it is going to take you tomor-

row to bike from here to Ocean City? “I think we are going to leave earlier because the birds are going to wake us up. Maybe around nine… and then we will get there at about three or four .”

– Joey

What is your biggest concern currently about the trip?

“Not making it tomorrow.” – Clay

“Getting lost and having to ride

an extra ten miles tomorrow.” –Joey

Deciding to prepare very little for this trip, do you wish you had properly trained for this ride?“Nope. Training would just have

meant more biking! ” – Clay and Joey

As the night drew on, there was only one question left to be an-swered, before going to sleep.

Any last words you would like to say before turning in for the night?

“Laugh hard, live harder.” – Clay

As for Joey, he was already asleep.

A quick bite at Einstein’s before beginning the bike ride.

Biking in Denton.

Setting up camp.

Meeting with outside advisor, Scotty, at the Bike Doctor.

Joey’s predictions proved to be correct when the team woke up early the next day – but it wasn’t because of the birds. Ignoring the storm outside, the bikers had been lulled to sleep by the night’s downpour, only to awake to a waterlogged tent the next morning. The weather outside hadn’t improved much either; gingerly climbing out of their soaked sleeping bags, the disgruntle boys welcomed another rainy, foggy, (and this time) frigid day. By 7:30 am, all of the camping equipment was packed back into the car. After a quick breakfast at a nearby Dunkin’ Donuts, Clay and Joey hit the road. With even worse weather conditions than the day before and a much farther desti-nation to bike to, timing and en-ergy conservation was essential.

Unfortunately, the cyclists did not have a very good start that morning. As soon as they left from Dunkin’ Donuts, the two ended up taking what they good-naturedly called a “fif-teen mile detour” when they got lost trying to find a road called Farmer’s Lane. Luckily, Amelia and Connor were able to find the bikers who had stopped at the corner of a farmer’s field after traveling an hour and a half in the wrong direction. As Connor figured out a way to put everyone back on track, Clay and Joey gave a quick recap on their confusion. “That road literally did not exist,” they said fa-natically. “So we just kept going… and eventually we took a road because it said it was east and we knew

Ocean City was east. We weren’t concerned about being lost ex-actly…we were just concerned about having to ride more.” Once the mistake was corrected, the two were back on the road. Biking was sluggish against the rainy winds; a num-ber of pit stops had to be taken along the way in order to change into warmer, drier clothes. For-tunately, the rain stopped about halfway through their day’s journey. While still cloudy, cold, grey, this change in weather in-evitably raised the boys’ spir-its as they changed shirts for one final time outside of a local auto repair shop. As they neared Ocean City, the scenery began to change. Small towns began to replace the flat farmlands and rolling fields that extended as far as the eye could see; the clos-er they became to their destina-tion, the more busy and populat-ed the world seemed to become. After over seven hours of biking, the boys experienced an adrenaline rush as they crossed the bridge to Ocean City. Now riding faster than ever, Clay and Joey arrived at the Fountainhead Towers in a matter of minutes, where they excitedly ran to the beach to celebrate. Collapsing in the sand, the two basked in

Thirty miles away from Ocean City, Clay and Joey are seen riding down Old Furnace Road.

Packing up the waterlogged tent.

Posing on Bethesda Road, twenty miles away from Ocean City.

Clay and Joey enjoy the weather as they ride back home.

Deciding to bike home in a day.

Taking a pit stop for water.

DAY TWO61 miles to Ocean City

Despite the pouring rain, the bikers continue to ride, only stopping to change into drier clothes.

Clay and Joey are caught in the spray of a large truck passing by.

Joey smiles in excitement as he passes over the bridge leading into Ocean City.

In the late afternoon, the cyclists arrive at Clay’s condo, exhausted but proud.

Clay and Joey pull each other in a brotherly embrace as they reach the beach.

DAY THREEA Break in Ocean City

“The trip was definitely

worth doing.”

their sense of accomplishment. They then pulled each other into a proud embrace before heading up to the twelfth floor where Clay’s condo was locat-ed. As Clay and Joey waited for their turns in a well-deserved shower, the two offered some commentary on the day’s ride:

How did the weather affect your ride?

“When it was pouring, the wind was going the opposite direction of where we were

riding so we pretty much felt like we weren’t moving. It was so much harder to peddle…we were moving so much slower.”

– Joey“It turned fun into gloom.”

- Clay

How did you keep your spirits up?

“All we thought was ‘peddle, peddle, peddle.’ We didn’t think.”

– Clay

What are you currently most looking forward to?“I’m so excited to get up tomor-

row and not get on a bike” – Clay

“I’m excited to sleep in and rest my legs.”

– Joey The team spent the remainder of the evening tiredly relaxing as they ate pizza and watched some TV before falling in their beds, exhausted.

The Bay to Beach team spent the third day of their trip taking it easy. After sleep-ing in and grabbing some breakfast, Clay, Joey, Amelia, and Connor went mini golf-ing and explored the board-walk on another overcast day. Although Clay and Joey did not want to exert themselves too much, everyone managed to get themselves on the beach to

play some football in the after-noon. The rest of the evening was spent cleaning the condo and packing up the car once more in preparation for the next day of the trip. While reluctant to start biking again, Clay and Joey were both eager to return home so that they could see how much additional money had been collected while they were gone. The two also agreed that this trip, despite its challenges, was definitely worth doing. Em-powered by confidence and ac-complishment, the two bikers were ready for their ride back home.

Along for the RidePhotographs of the Week

an hour and a half. Given their rate, the boys were convinced that they could bike all the way back to Severn School and re-turn a day early. By choosing to change routes, Clay and Joey ambitiously faced another nine-ty miles in addition to the twen-ty-five they had already biked. “We were feeling really good after the first twenty-five miles, so we decided to try to get home and not have to ride anymore the next day. It was [a] totally sponta-

neous [decision].” They commented in reflection. No longer fol-lowing a printed set of direc-tions, the boys were guided by Amelia and Connor as they mapped out a new path to get back to Severn School. At first, it seemed as if adrenaline and confidence were fueling the boys’ energy as they continued to maintain their pace. But as the day wore on, the bikers began to tire and their speed slowed. Still wanting to make it back a

day early, Clay and Joey contin-ued on and biked past Denton, despite how they were feeling. When evening ap-proached, the bikers were ten miles outside of Easton – still fifty miles away from Severna Park. With daylight rapidly fad-ing and their bodies aching from eight hours of continuous riding, the boys were forced to stop in Easton and find a ho-tel for the night. They chose

to stay at nearby Holiday Inn Express, whose receptionist kindly gave a discount on their room as a donation to the Bay to Beach fundraiser. Exhaust-ed, the boys settled in for the night, answering a few ques-tions before drifting off to sleep:

So far, what has been the hardest day for you?

“Today, because we rode a

long time and our rest day didn’t help as much as I expected.”

- Joey“Tuesday, because it was rainy

and windy and miserable.” - Clay

What has been your most favor-ite road/trail and why? “The Island Trail by the

Kent Narrows Bridge be-cause it weaves through

the woods and there is a lot to see. From trees to creeks to a school to fields

to an industrial park to for-ests…the scenery changes a lot.”

– Clay and Joey

In spite of one grueling day of biking, Joey happily con-cluded, “I think tomorrow is going to be a good day. I’m ex-cited to get home and see all the footage. After some rest, on Monday, we are editing with Mr. Gvozden.”

“It looks nice out…I can’t believe we’re leaving the beach…time to wake up Joey.” These were some of Clay’s first thoughts as he arose on the fourth morning of his trip,

ready to begin his journey back home. However, nice was an un-derstatement in regards to the weather. After three cold, rainy, overcast days, the boys wel-comed the warm, sunny, blue

skies of their Thursday morning. “I was really happy that it was nice out and that we could ride in the sun.” Joey concurred later that evening. As the team prepared to leave the Fountainhead, all were surprised when they found out that all of the elevators were under maintenance for the day. With four duffle bags, two bi-cycles, one cooler, and a large, unfolded tent still sitting on the balcony of Clay’s 12th floor condominium, the team was forced to haul their belongings – bikes and all – down the end-less sets of stairs. Finally reach-ing the bottom, Clay and Joey were off to the Denton camp-ground by ten in the morning. Whether it was the per-fect weather conditions or their day of rest beforehand, the cy-clists were biking at an all time best speed, covering the first twenty-five of sixty miles in

DAY FOUR71 miles to Easton

DAY FOUR71 miles to Easton

Leaving Ocean City.





Leaving Ocean City.





Leaving Ocean City.




Taking a pit stop for water. Leaving Ocean City.





Leaving Ocean City.





DAY FIVE40 miles to Severn School The team woke up ear-ly Friday morning when Mrs. Morris, Clay’s mother, had called to say that they should aim to arrive at Severn School around 11:45. With forty more miles to bike, this would be a challenge. On the road by eight, the bikers took the most direct route to the Bay Bridge by riding down Route 50 for the majority of the way. As they passed the Queenstown Outlets, Clay and Joey returned to the Island Trail by the Kent Nar-rows Bridge and began to retrace the route that they had taken on the way to Ocean City. Rac-ing the clock, the boys arrived at the Bay Bridge around 11 am, where Mr. Mor-ris was once again waiting to drive them across. With only forty-five minutes left to bike from the Sandy Point State Park to Severn School, Clay and Joey pushed themselves to ride as fast as they possibly could down the Baltimore and Annapolis Trail. Meanwhile, Mrs. Morris and Mrs. Kaelin were secretly ar-ranging a large welcoming com-mittee by gathering the majority

of the middle school children, some teachers, and the headmas-ter in front of Severn School. In addition, a photographer from the Severna Park Voice was called to capture their arrival. As the boys approached Severn School, loud whoops and cheers could be heard echoing through the air as they crossed the yellow finish line. Dis-

mounting their bikes, the boys were swarmed by a countless number of peo-ple offering their congratulations. While Clay hugged Parker and Reegan, two of his younger sisters, Joey be-gan speaking to many people from the crowd. “I had a good time and

it’s a great feeling to have actu-ally finished,” Joey told one on-looker. “Now I can tell every-one who said I couldn’t do it, ‘I told you so!’” He jokingly added. After the crowd had cleared, the boys faced each other with grins reflecting both pride and accomplish-ment; they returned home re-warded in more ways than one.

“I had a good time and it’s a

great feeling to have actually

finished.”

Clay and Joey fly past the crowd as they cross the finish line.

A crowd awaits the bikers’ arrival.

Clay hugs his grandmother.

Biking down the B&A Trail.

Parker and Reegan lovingly embrace their brother.

Clay and Joey pose with Mr. Lagarde, headmaster of Severn School.






















Want to support the Bay to Beach Ride?While Clay and Joey’s journey is over, their support for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is not. The Bay to Beach team will be collecting donations until the end of June 2010. Contact Joey Kaelin (443.866.8863) or send a check made out to JDRF to 433 Severnside

Drive, Severna Park, MD 21146. All proceeds will be directly donated to the organization.

This magazine is written, photographed, designed, and edited by Amelia Wang. All rights reserved.

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The Bay to Beach Magazine