RUTLAND, Vt. - It was just a few short months ago that Adrienne Skanes and Alison Carpenter did not even own bikes.

Yesterday they joined 195 other riders in what was close to cycling nirvana for the Anchor House Ride for Runaways.

The 26th annual Ride for Runaways started yesterday from South Burlington, Vt., in near perfect conditions with a route that had both veteran and rookie riders marveling at its scenery and enjoyable terrain.

The riders may have ridden a total of 5,198 uphill feet, but the grades were moderate, while there were plenty of stretches during the 79 miles through river valleys that made for smooth, fast riding.

The ride continues today with a 64-mile route from Rutland to Glen Falls, N.Y., that features three miles' worth of uphill terrain in the opening 10 miles.

Skanes, Carpenter and Rachel Van Horn, another rookie rider who joined their group through training rides, were thrilled with their first day on the ride.

Carpenter was sold on the Anchor House Ride for Runaways through veteran rider Livy Glaubitz, and it didn't take long before she talked Skanes into taking the plunge into the world of cycling to prepare for Anchor House.

"We never had shoes," said Skanes. "We never had a bike; we had to learn. It was something that would challenge us and it was a good cause."

The two riders put in some serious training miles (1,300) and shook off taking a few falls, while getting used to their clip-less pedals.

"I felt like I can't believe I was doing it," said Skanes when she first started training. "It is hard, it is a challenge."

Skanes and Carpenter clearly felt all the effort was worth it yesterday.

"I feel good," said Skanes. "I felt like the training did us wonders. I am looking forward to the next six days."

The ride yesterday was made even better by the fact that several tubs of ice cream, donated by Vermont-based Ben and Jerry's, were waiting for the cyclists at the hotel at the end of the day.

The lure of ice cream helped Pete Harris speed through his day. Harris is one of the leaders of the Slow Spoke Team, which is known for its tortoise-like pace and its love of ice cream. The team debuted jerseys featuring a snail on the front and the motto "We break for ice cream" on the back.

The team has grown to 12 riders in the last couple of years, after Harris and Tom Imbrigotta, adopted riders dropped from other groups.

"That shows you how many slow people there are on Anchor House," said Harris. "I am very slow. It was fast for me today. I passed some riders who are normally much faster than me and they said, `The only reason he is going faster is because of the ice cream.' "

-- -- -- There was a simple message at the start of the ride as cyclists left the hotel in South Burlington yesterday. A heart with the names Cory, Bambi and Phylis in the middle was written in chalk. Cory Golis, Bambi Cross and Phylis Stewart are all riders or support crew who have passed away. Stewart died in late April after a long battle with ALS.

Phylis's husband, Norm Stewart, is working on the sag support team for the first time after riding for several years with his wife working sag.

The always amiable Stewart, who wore an apron that looked like a kilt yesterday, feels working the Anchor House Ride is a good way to cope with his wife's death. The couple would have celebrated their 39th wedding anniversary on Saturday.

"It is therapeutic," said Stewart. "Phylis told me to go on the ride and enjoy myself. I bring her along in my head. This is what she wanted me to do. She is still with me. This is an extended family for both of us. She loved everybody in this group. We always spent our anniversary week here. It is like a vacation for us. It is not the same without her, but I do what I can."

NOTES: The riders had more than ice cream for a treat after the 79 miles yesterday. Steve and Carol Dutko, who participated in the Anchor House Ride in 1986 and 1987, stopped by from their home in Weston, Vt., with muffins.

The Dutko residence in Pennington, N.J., is the site of the picnic for riders before they make their final trip to Quakerbridge Mall. Carol Dutko asked her parents if they could host about 40 riders in 1987 and it has become an Anchor House tradition long after Carol moved to Vermont 15 years ago.

-- There were plenty of horses and cows lining the route yesterday, but there was one oddity on one of the farms along the road: a camel.

-- You know it is probably not a good idea to try to follow someone up a hill who is wearing a cycling jersey with a mountain goat pictured on it, but you would figure it would be OK off the bike. Not so with Peter Failla.

Failla, who has participated in the Mount Washington Hill Climb in New Hampshire and enjoys watching riders suffer on a hill in front of his house in Flemington, led a group of riders for a hike up a steep patch of grass following the ride in search of food.

Failla and his group made it up the hill, rated the toughest climb of the day by one, and also found something to eat.

Here are a few of the participants of the Anchor House Ride for Runaways.

John Costantino, Connie Cox, Tom Csapo, Dick Currie, Meg Currie, Steve Czelusniak, Gary Dambro, Lois Davino, Ed Delikat, Joe DeLuca, Dan Dodson, Reggie Dorsey, Kathy Drulis, Sean Duffy, Jason Earle, Michelle Emerson, Peter Failla, Frank Fanning III, Duncan Farquhar, Joe Feeney, Beth Feltus, Gary Feltus, Mike Finerty, James Fitzgerald, Kathleen Fitzgibbon, Tom Florek, Will Fogler, Todd Frounfelker, Don Frounfelker, Bob Fuller, Bill Garrett, Joe Genovay, Lisa Germann, Sarah Geser, Sue Glass.