Connie Eppich
Ever since I can remember, I’ve ridden a bicycle. Every since I met Rob in 1981, we’ve ridden together.
For stories of our prior cycling tours go to: http://eppichwriting.blogspot.com. It contains our 2016 2-week Prince Edward Island tour, 2017 4-week New England/Quebec tour (in the rain), 2018 11-day Germany Danube tour, and our 2019/20 9-month, 9500 mile tour almost circling the continental United States.
Here you will find the stories of our cycling adventures beginning in 2021.
Who We Are
My husband and riding partner, Rob Drugan, recently retired from his position as a psychology professor at the University of New Hampshire where he taught courses in Behavioral Medicine and the Neurobiology of Mood Disorders. I quit my software engineering job in 1993 to focus on raising our two children and since then have taught violin, worked as a substitute elementary teacher, and presently spend time in the winter teaching adaptive skiing in Colorado.
For forty years we have shared a love of the outdoors and sports – running, hiking, skiing, tennis, bicycling, camping. We love spontaneous travel, which is why we travel self-supported, carrying food and camping gear. We’ll make a plan for the day, but it can change. Like probably every other married couple we have our challenges, but we are most in sync with each other when we are on a bicycle tour. 99% of the time we agree on when and where to stop for a snack, a meal, a swim, or a place to spend the night.
In 2012 Rob was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension, a rare lung disease. He can’t be at high altitudes – say, above 8000 feet – without supplemental oxygen. Even at sea level it slows him down on the hills. Where he used to ride ahead of me, now he has to work hard to keep up. When I get too far ahead of him I stop and wait. To pass the time hanging out on the side of the road, I’ve taken up the penny whistle. I’ve taught myself six tunes. When Rob hears it, he knows he’s almost at the top of a climb.
Rob Drugan: My Riding Partner and Husband
Out Spokin'... 