Tag: bicycle touring

Stanley ND: First Real Touring Day

Posted on July 8, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

My very first night camping in a very long time was actually quite nice. The Thermarest pad held tight and I was surprisingly comfortable on it. If there was any undue noise in the park at night, my ear plugs wiped them out properly. I had started out the night on top of my Marmot sleeping bag, but temperatures dropped to something around 50F, and I crawled inside the bag to find it really comfy and warm. A very brief rain hit us in the middle of the night, which woke me up. After securing the rain flaps, I sort

Williston ND: Redemption

Posted on July 7, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

Four hours later I was up and getting ready for breakfast, hoping to get over to the airport before they gave this seat away. Round 3 at the airport! I arrived at 7:30am, ran the (always insulting) gauntlet through security, and arrived at the gate around 8am. I was hoping that 3 hours would be sufficient to secure my seat aboard a Great Lakes flight. The gate agents were astonished that I’d gotten through security with my flight voucher alone (no boarding pass). One of the gate agents called me “sweetie” so I asked if it was OK if I

Limbo: Travel Day

Posted on July 6, 2010September 7, 2010 by Rich

Up at 4AM this morning in order to catch my 6:30am flight to Denver. Johnny and Colin were just deciding to go to sleep, so I decided to tap a sleepy Linda for the drive to the airport. I unexpectedly met my friend Rob Zienkewicz in the airport, and talked briefly about happenings at Viasat AMP. The delayed flight to Denver was cramped but uneventful. Although the plane landed late I still had 40 minutes to make my connection, and I already had a boarding pass and seat assignment, printed out the night before. Arriving at the gate to Williston,

Getting Ready: Training

Posted on July 2, 2010November 18, 2010 by Rich

In early May, my new Surly arrived, and I spent the next few weeks riding it with tools in hand, adjusting as best I could for optimal comfort. The horizontal tube distance on these Long Haul Truckers is unusually long for a given frame size, and I found it a bit difficult to strike a proper balance. In the end, my handlebar stem looked like the neck of an African tribal wife, but was comfortable for me. Met Jesse repeatedly for weekly breakfast rides, and also started doing all my errands on the Surly. I began to notice that the

Getting Ready: Gear

Posted on May 3, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

When my friend Jesse asked me in January to go with him on the annual Ragbrai ride, the answer came out easily and without hesitation, “Sure I’ll go with ya!” I had heard about the granddaddy of all annual event rides for decades, and had always wanted to see what it was about. The prospect of going to this event with Jesse defined my riding plans for the summer, and really psyched me up. When my friend Randy asked me in April to join him for a few weeks on his cross-country tour, my adrenaline started to flow faster still.

J&P 10: Florence to Mesa

Posted on February 15, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

Phil was again up before me, no surprise. This Holiday Inn had a much more decent continental breakfast. I sat with Jan and Annette at first, and when they finished I joined into a nice conversation with Geni. Randy was scheduled to drive the RV for the first segment, and so he stationed himself in the parking lot collecting riders’ bags. Sally, Phil, me, Darlene, Tom, and one other rider (guy with grey curly hair) rode though Florence, and stopped at the Blue Mist to see what was happening. Tom decided to wait for Paul, and suggested we take off

J&P 10: Tucson to Florence

Posted on February 14, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

I awoke around 6am, but rolled over and dozed off again, especially when I saw that Phil had decided to do the same. About 6:45am I decided to get moving, and just about then a key went into our lock and the door opened. Only then did I realize that “Phil” was actually a pile of pillows on his bed, and that the real Phil had been up for quite a while getting coffee. Phil left again, and I eventually got dressed and headed out across the cold parking lot, still well before sunrise. We had debated last night on

J&P 10: Casa Grande to Tucson

Posted on February 13, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

Breakfast was included with the room at the Holiday Inn, so Phil was up by 6:15am. A nice looking buffet table turned out to be meagerly supplied, and the breakfast area was quite understaffed. The eggs and pancakes were passable, the bacon not so. Other riders slowly drifted in and scrounged up their morning fare as well. Just about ready to go, Phil stowed his bags in the RV. We generally congregated for a while out front, just socializing and seeing what other riders were doing. Pretty soon there were 7 or 8 cyclists all ready to go at the

J&P 10: Mesa to Casa Grande

Posted on February 12, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

Took off about 9:15am in order to meet the tour group at the Starbucks at Dobson and Warner Rds. by 10:45am. The bike handled quite well. I could feel the extra weight, especially in terms of slow starts, but not as bad as last year. I left the house no less than 3 times, each time remembering something else, like bringing the garage door opener with me, or taking a daily vitamin. Heading south down Lindsay Rd., I was increasingly bothered by a nice creak every time I pushed on the right pedal. I must have missed that with the

J&P 10: Preface

Posted on February 11, 2010December 4, 2014 by Rich

Having a century under my belt in December, I kept up a decent riding schedule throughout January in anticipation for this year’s J&P Tucson Tour. This being my second year for it, I knew better what to expect and how to pack. My front tire, which had been rotated from the rear a few months ago, was showing serious wear, so I decided to again change both out for my touring tires, reasoning that they would handle the additional weight better, and be more resistant to road debris. Just like last year, those tires were a real beast to get