Peter Sidlauskas came a long way to attend his high school reunion on Scranton, PA. But not only did he travel all the way from San Diego - he did it on a bicycle.
In a recent "You Be the Judge" episode, attorney Todd O'Malley caught up with Peter, who is 67 years old, and talked about his 3,000-mile journey. Peter pedaled his bike to attend the 50th anniversary reunion for Central High School's class of 1965.
The journey took 44 days. Peter told Todd that he started in San Diego and headed toward Yellowstone National Park and then Grand Teton National Park. He then made his way east through Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and finally Pennsylvania.
While the mountains out west are taller than anything in Pennsylvania, Peter noted that cycling up the Allegheny Mountains was more of a challenge. In fact, he called Western Pennsylvania "the hardest part of the trip." The terrain is steep and he encountered one mountain after the other.
As a personal injury lawyer, Todd O'Malley understands the risks cyclists face when they are sharing the road with other vehicles. Todd spoke with Peter at a dedicated cycling path, the Lackawanna River Heritage Trail. "Every day cyclists like myself put our faith in drivers that they are going to be attentive and responsible," Peter told Todd. "With trails like this, we don't put ourselves in that kind of jeopardy."
Peter also emphasized the importance of taking safety precautions, such as wearing helmets.
