Kind townsfolk

Ashkum residents assist bicyclists who lost all their gear in local theft

By Janet Cremer
janetcremer@daily-journal.com
815-937-3384

Ashkum residents managed to turn dismay to delight for two bicyclists pedaling across the country who landed in their town earlier this week.

Nick Batcheller and his girlfriend Liz Brown, a waiter and waitress from San Diego, pedaled into Ashkum on Tuesday, the 78th day of their ride from Washington to Maine.

They found the village park, parked their bikes and tote trailer and pitched their tent.

But it wasn't long before they noticed Lions Club members getting the park ready for the Ashkum Homecoming and Sesquicentennial Celebration.

"We started chatting with the guys and became good friends from that," said Nick.

The following morning they woke to the shock that their belongings had been stolen from the tote trailer. Their clothes were stolen, along with a guitar and case, bongo drums, backpack and journal of the trip.

"It was pretty devastating," said Nick. "We didn't feel like riding on that day because we were hoping our stuff would show up."

Triumph resulted, not in recovery of their goods, but in the fact that they were "blown over" by residents who have come forward to help them out.

If one or two local residents ripped off their stuff, it seemed that the other 722 or 723 made up for it.

"Everyone's been great," said Nick.

Townsfolk were spreading the word about the theft, some even looking through trash bins in hopes of finding their belongings. The Lions Club put up a $100 reward. Garry Lanoue of Garry's Highway Garage made up fliers to try to find the gear, he said.

"We've had tons of people offering to put us up for the night," said Nick, who noted that since the theft, they stayed with Jerry and Krystal Alberts, then Steve and Kim Goodman.

Besides giving the two some Sesquicentennial shirts to make up for the loss of their clothing, the Lions Club also offered them a Gator utility vehicle to make it easier to get around town and look for their things.

"People have been so nice. They'll tell us we need to stay one more day because something's going on during the homecoming that they think we'd enjoy," said Nick.

He and Liz managed to give some back to the town, volunteering their services by cutting 200 pies in the pavilion one day.

"They were awesome," said Kim Goodman, who fed and put the couple up a night. "We'll miss them so much."

The Goodman children -- Michael, 10, and 7-year-old twins Nora and Maggie -- were equally taken by them, said Kim, since Liz works as a nanny in California and Nick just graduated with a degree in education.

The clincher for the Goodman's son Michael was when Nick offered to take Michael's Yoda Pez dispenser and include it in photos of U.S. landmarks they come across on the rest of their trip. (Photos and a log of their journey can be viewed on their Web site www.folksonspokes.blogspot.com.)

Still, all good things must come to an end. The two Folks on Spokes left Saturday to head east to Brook, Ind.

"Out of bad, good things have come," said Nick. "We'd love to have our stuff back, but we've made such good friends here and have such great memories."

They hope to finish their trip sometime in October. But it's certain not many towns will make the same impression as Ashkum.

"I think if we stayed any longer, we might get the key to the city," Nick joked.