The Snake River

I have ridden about 125 miles along the Snake River here in Idaho and I love it. The river runs through some really rugged country. If there was no irrigation, the country would be all desert. As it is, the land immediately near the river is green and abundant with the corn, onions, beets, wheat and of course potatoes.
The giant sprinklers are everywhere, just like eastern Oregon and it is just as hot. Sometimes they would overlap the road and I would ride through them. I rode 53 miles yesterday (the first day over 50). When we went by a bank clock on the way to Boise, the temp stood at 101 degrees! I never knew I could drink so much liquid.


I am not pushing my limits here. I have been stopping regularly and the boys have been filling up my water bottles every few miles. They also give me a cold drink at those stops. Boy does that taste good!! Any water that goes into my bottles become lukewarm in a matter of minutes.
I went the whole length of a state route (route 78) over the last two days. I would recommend this route to anyone. There are plenty of hills, but that’s what they are, hills with a beginning and an end. What follows after a climb is several miles of gentle downhill. The only time that the ride got tough was around Murphy, ID, where the route left the river for about 20 miles. It was hot dusty, dusty, but it was only a couple hours.
Matt rode for 26 miles with me today. He is getting more comfortable on the bike and he is getting into the rhythm. It is great to see his cadence improve. Josh started to ride yesterday and he got cramps in his stomach. I’m sure it was wise to take it easy in the heat. We’ll get him out there again soon.

We are in a hotel tonight in Mountain Home, ID after spending two nights camping in Givens Springs. Given Springs in a hot mineral springs. It was kind of neat to use the water for showers. However, the toilets were also using that water and it was different to sit on the hot seat, so to speak. Although the days were hot, the nights cooled off and were very comfortable. In fact, this morning, I had to wear a fleece while we were breaking camp.
It is always nice to get into a hotel. Just shaving and a hot shower is a treat. I’m going to sign off now. I have to get the laundry out of the dryer and get to sleep. I want to get up early tomorrow and do my miles before the heat gets too tough. I hope I can post this. The wireless at this motel is very sketchy.
Later.

Back To Idaho

We are back in the van after our baseball trip to Seattle. Alas, we saw 2 losses from the Boston club. Both games were pretty good except for the final scores.
We went early the first day and saw batting practice. What a beautiful ballpark. It probably ranks in our top 10. It was just not able to break into our top 5. Fenway, Wrigley, Camden Yards, PacBell and Comerica take those places in our parks to date. Nice facilities, just not unique enough. The fans were very courteous and friendly. Even when we were swept by their home team, they were polite. In fact, it almost seemed that there were as many Red Sox fans as Mariner fans. The boys stopped for a couple beers after last nights game and the bar was almost strictly Red Sox nation.
The town was beautiful. “A pleasant, upscale community: as characterized by my sons. The weather was great for Seattle. No Rain!!
So we got back into the van and started back to get back on the bike. We will stop later tonight before midnight somewhere in OR. We have a few errands to do before we get biking tomorrow. We stashed the bikes and camping equipment in a self storage place. It cost us $6 and we probably made that up in the first tank of gas. It was a lot less weight, more room and no security problems when we hit the big city.
We are actually going to wash the van. The bugs are all over the front grill. It is probably time for another blog entry devoted to them. I just cleaned the windshield 30 miles back and I looked up from this writing several times thinking it was raining. It was bugs hitting the car. The windshield is gross again. Oh well, it will be clean for a few hours tomorrow.
Not much else to report. I put out an email to friends a couple days ago and I have been swamped with replies. Sorry if I don’t respond in a timely fashion, but I am grateful for all the support. Some of the witty comments should appear on the blog, such as. “How do we know this picture (of me in Idaho) is not just a back lot production from Medford OR” or “I guess you won’t want to hear about my two 10 mile rides this weekend” Most of all I got to connect with some people I haven’t connected with for a while.
I have been keeping the announcement of the trip low key until I was sure the body was going well. Now we will step up our communications efforts. I expect Josh will have us appearing on the Today Show by the time we reach the Atlantic. Stay tuned for more as we go East.
That’s about it for now. More from the road later.

Seattle Bound

Idaho to Seattle 6/25/07
On the border of Oregon and Washington
I am starting this while we make our way to see the Sox play the Mariners on Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon. A strong dose of sorely needed hometown heroes. It has been a source of frustration for my sons to not to be able to walk into a bar and see their team.
So I’m in the backseat and the boys are up front. And this looks like the best arrangement I just fired up the pc to get a dose of my own music. Their music is cool to some extent. I like The Killer’s and Modest Mouse and especially the new Maroon 5 album so far. But sometimes I just have to go back to familiar territory to think.
This musing is an update of the trip to date. I think a progress report is in order. Most of the time on the day to day reporting, I just gave the tourist, play-by-play type of reporting. My thoughts usually go much deeper. For instance,
“Mile Markers - Friend or Foe?” The best thing about them is that they tell you just how far you’ve come. The worst thing is that they tell how far you’ve come. I can’t begin to describe my mental weight as I approached mile 1 outside Florence that first day. Today there was a stretch when I didn’t check markers for 6 miles. I have passed the “100 mile” marker 3 times, on the same state route in OR. I never figured out the reason for that. The markers just don’t have the importance of those first days. I imagine they will diminish further as time and miles progress.
Thanks to all the people that slow down as they pass me going up a hill (by the way - this is about everybody but the big truckers who wouldn’t slow down unless I was lying in the road) What all you kind people don’t remember that I am still behind you after you pass me. In fact, I am just about tailpipe level when you gas the car to bring it back up to speed. God Love You All - but when I need Oxygen the most, I am catching really foul air thanks to your deserved attention. It really makes me appreciate the clean air I am taking in when the cars aren’t there.
We just stopped for dinner and watched the Sox get beat by the Seattle Mariners. That won’t happen when we are there tomorrow.
Seriously, let’s talk about my progress.
Geographical.
We are a little bit behind the schedule. I wanted to get through Oregon in about 2 weeks. It was closer to 3. I took a couple extra days off for the body (the wrist). I knew I would be playing myself into shape. My knee prevented me from being at the weekly mileage that was recommended before the ride started. In the first 2 weeks, I did bike the 150 miles that they said to be able to do before beginning the trip. I am getting faster and I’m staying on the bike longer between rests. The miles will be no problem in the future if the body holds out.
I was upset and impatient (Imagine that?) when I wasn’t moving according to plan. As soon as I stopped worrying about it, I began to eat up the miles. “Special Thanks” to my coach, Larry Hart who suggested I have fun if I was getting frustrated. Some suggestions were like “Get off the bike and start re-directing traffic.” or “Hold up a sign for free ice cream. When someone stops, explain that I am not giving ice cream away…I WANT SOME” He got me laughing and realizing that I am in such a unique situation, that should appreciate it and have some fun.
Physical
The Knee. I have been pleasantly surprised by the knee on this trip. There are times when I wake up that I forget about the pain for about an hour. I am walking without a limp unless it has stiffened up for some reason - like sitting in a car for 8 hours to Seattle. To be truthful though, as I start spinning the pedals, I sometimes push bigger gears than I should to get some speed. That is not good for the knee as my coach let’s me know. I look forward to the 2 days off. Maybe it will rest it for a while. I expected to live on ice and anti-inflammatory while on the trip. I am not surprised by the knee.
The Wrist It was pretty painful when the arthritis hit. I had to take 2 days off because I couldn’t grasp the handlebars. It’s OK now. It is stiff, but it wouldn’t be any better if I was just sitting at home.
The Posterior. This is still the chronic pain (in the you know what). It is getting better. Some days, I settle right in and it’s OK for the first few miles. Ultimately, it always hurts at the end of the day. Sometimes it is the reason to end the day, even if the legs are still ready to go. It is improving and I shouldn’t have this complaint by the time we get through Idaho.
The back. I have some pain here from looking like a turtle all day over the handlebars. I am doing some stretches to minimize this. It comes down to good posture and I should have heeded my mother when she told me to stand up straight.
The Weight. Oh yeah, I’m losing. I can’t say how much for sure, since I haven’t stepped on a scale. I did roll across a truck scale but I won’t give out the weight of me and my bike. My legs are feeling great, although my quads sometimes feel like they will bust out of the spandex (that image is for you, Jerry). I’m noticing subtle things like my balance improving. Swelling in my lower legs that happened early in the trip is pretty well fixed. My son’s continually comment on the improved definition in my calves.
Oh and of course my lung power is getting awesome. I am really belting out the tunes in the shower. I’ve even tested myself on “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and I can almost get that tough note on the last line. I plan on touring when this trip is over.
I am looking at each day like a workout. I am staying within parameters on heart rate. I am running out of energy 3 to 4 hours into the ride, so I am still experimenting with my food, both before and during the ride. I’m sure there will be changes here, especially when we hit the really hot weather.
The Budget.
We are a little over here too. We spent more nights in motels than we have planned, Basically the first week it rained the whole time and we only camped one night. I think I needed a bed then too. We are camping much more frequently now.
God, we eat a lot of food, but no surprises there.
Gas and mileage will be blown out of the water. Our original budget, developed in April was 10,000 miles at $3/gal. We are already 3000 miles into the budget and we just got through Oregon. We will put 1,000 just on this trip to Seattle. I’m sure it will get better as I eat up the miles, but the price per gallon will be way beyond $3 per.
By the way we just stopped in Yakima, WA and got gas for $2.99/gal. That's a first since I got gas in AZ on the way out west in May.
The Relationships
We are all getting along just fine. We have our occasional spats, but they’re over quickly. It’s usually because Dad is throwing a fit and he gets set straight by the boys.. The boys are getting along famously. I don’t know how we’ll be after 3 months, but we're enjoying it now.
So, we got into Seattle late yesterday and got to the ballpark for batting practice. We struck up some good conversations with the locals (including two guys from Idaho who said I rode past their farm). There was a huge Red Sox fan club too. It didn’t help. We lost. Just got up and doing my emails, etc. Then we are off to the park for a 1:30 game. I’ll probably write again on the trip back to Idaho.
Later

Idaho, baby!

The picture says it all. Oregon has been a long state and it was an amazing feeling to cross the Snake River around noon on Saturday. Actually, it was the best day I had for road conditions, slightly downhill, tailwind. I flew. Did the last 35 miles of Oregon in just about two hours. Called it quits for the day because we had a lot of catching up to do - laundry, maintenance on the bikes, etc. Didn't really have the energy to do this blog entry, knowing I hadn't done it for about 4 or 5 days.

We have been in the high desert since we left John Day, OR last Wednesday. Oregon was up and down, our longest state except for Montana. Friday I went through 3 passes between 3, 500 and 4,500 feet. I must say that I am getting in better shape, but I don't really enjoy the mountains. Of course, the uphills are taxing, but I also don't enjoy 5 to 9 mile downhills. My brake hand cramps after a while!

If you look closely in the above picture, you can see Matt and Josh sitting on the cooler by the tent, the only shade in the area. We lived in sagebrush and sand for a couple days. Real Desert.

We came out of the last pass and took a break at the local store. We met a couple coming the other direction on bikes, from WI. They helped Matt plan out our route through Idaho, and also through WY before we go up to Montana.

I think we hit our rhythm for the first time this week. The boys are keeping busy weight lifting and soccer. Matt wants to ride pretty regularly, so he rode 25 with me on Friday. He will have more to say on his own about that. In fact, I don't know what he will say about his time spent along the way. I think I will have to read about their exploits last night in his blog. They walked out to go to a bar and ended up coming home from the next state in a limo. The details were very sketchy this morning.
We learned a lot in the desert. We know that vast quantities of liquids are consumed on hot days. We ran short in the desert and had to buy single bottles which got pretty expensive. We won't make that mistake again. We came into agricultural land with irrigation the closer we got to the Snake River and we will be biking through this type of land for the next few rides. I love this farmland. It reminds me of my youth. It will still be hot and we will need the water.

So we have been on the road 3 weeks. I knew I was going to be playing my way into shape and I feel the effort is paying off. I believe I have made good progress and I know that I have a long way to go in the fitness department. I am getting my music going on the bike and it really helps the rhythm.

I will go for a few hours tomorrow morning, probably getting close to Boise, then the fun begins. We are off to Seattle to see the Red Sox. We plan on stashing the bikes, weights and camping paraphernalia in a storage locker and making the 450 mile trip Monday night. The first game is Tuesday night @ 7:30 then Wednesday at 1 pm. Then we'll be back in the bike business by Thursday late and take my next ride Friday.

So, I feel that the long trip may be a good time to evaluate my progress so far. It's time to get the gear ready for the ride tomorrow and the baseball trip. We're having a ball.

Later.

Another Beautiful Day

I got out pretty early this morning to get on the road to John Day, OR. We stayed there last night and it seems like every few days we got to get out the tent and into a hotel. If nothing else, we have to charge all the various appliances (CPAP, the GPS for the bike, cell phone, computers, etc)
I really haven't talked much about the actual biking. I kind of wish I had somethig to record my thoughts while on the bike. It seems so witty at the time, but I forget most of it when I sit down to this PC.

For instance, the asphalt here is very rough. I'm not talking of potholes. The stones rolled into the tar are coarse and bumpy. I have found that the white line separating the shoulder from the lane is actually the smoothest surface to bike. It's kind of like sking the edge of a trail. It's smoother, but more dangerous if you make a mistake. It brings to mind the saying - "If you aren't living on the edge, you are taking up too much room." I am amazed at how long I can stay on the line. If you tell me to do it, I couldn't hold it for 20 feet.

My sense of what is up and what is down is totally out of whack. I have biked 20 miles uphill before. After coming to a change in scenery it looks like this to me.



In fact it really is this:




So when I get to the change in grade, I stop pedaling and try to rest. I don’t go anywhere. I simply keep on my pedals at this point and try to pedal the same cadence by changing my gears. It is really frustrating to think I am about to go downhill and the best case is that I am doing to bike the flats. Worse case scenario is this:




At this point if I stop pedaling, I start going backwards!
Today’s ride was 30 miles that went like this:




Very little downhill. Mostly uphill with the occasional flat. Add a headwind to that and you get a pretty good workout in 90 degree weather.
Anyhow, that is enough for today. I’ll try to remember to keep my brilliant witty thoughts in my head for future posts.
Later,

Father's Day?

Welcome back to the real world.
We left the Indian casino and went back to the bike route through Redmond (for the last time - I hope!). We went to see the Fantastic Four movie. It was pretty good except I slept through the part of how they met the Silver Surfer. Kind of hard to figure out why things were happening.


We looked high and low for a campsite over about 70 miles. The views were stupendous. We finally set up camp in a town park in Mitchell, OR, a real Western town of 163 residents and a bear in a cage in the middle of town.

Met a man and his 3 daughters who are biking to WI and then on to DE. Two of the daughters live in WI. One just graduated from college and is going to Australia to work, has a job lined up for November. Another is an actress in NYC. The father ran a bike shop for 10 years and then became a hospice nurse. He quit his job in Jan (burnout) and put this trip together. A son will be joining them in Idaho while the actress flies back to NY for a movie. Really nice people and my boys enjoyed the female social interaction.

Woke up early and got out on the road after being away for 3 days. It was almost like starting over. It was a long day. The first 12 miles were all uphill. God, I thought someone said Eastern Oregon was flat. BS!!
I got to the top and was joined by Matt for the 7 mile downhill. He wasn’t the slow one there. He was much more comfortable than I was with the speed.. We made it back to Mitchell for lunch about 3.
Maybe it was the hills, maybe it was the hour at the top of the pass, or maybe it was poor eating (breakfast at 7 and just a banana till 3, but I hit a wall. I rested for an hour and then started up another pass. After 4 miles of uphill (*&%!!?), I hit the wall again and had to walk. I didn’t want to face that hill again the next day, so I walked the final 3 miles to the top. That’s where I start today.
I knew the biking would be tough, but not so much uphill. But the other conditions are tough too. It was cold every time the sun went behind clouds. I would sweat on the up hills and then freeze on the downhill parts. The camping is great except for the cold. We wake up every morning to 40 degree weather. I am having trouble with my CPAP. The battery is not working for 8 hours, so I have to go plug it in the car and sleep there for 3 or 4 hours every day. I don’t know how we fix that.
The days off were so relaxing that I had my first real tantrum and thought seriously of quitting. The boys wouldn’t hear of it. “If it’s your knee or the wrist, then OK, take a break. If not, push it. You aren’t quitting. We aren’t even out of Oregon yet” OK, fair enough.
So it was a long tough day yesterday. Finished with a nice steak and potatoes for dinner. Got a decent night’s sleep (in the car at 3 AM) and now were ready to get going again today. There is no cell phone service here, so couldn’t call Mom on Sunday. I tried from a pay phone, but it was busy, so someone must have called that day.. Hope cell phones get better soon. We depend on those for communication on the road.
Speaking of the road, it’s time to get a shower and get going. Hopefully, we’ll get some internet access soon to get this out to people.

Monday June 18

OK, I started the day at the top of the hill. It actually was the best downhill I had for a while, over 20 miles of downhill. It was very gradual and easy riding. However, as soon as we got onto mountain passes, I tightened up and started riding the break again.
About 25 miles into the day, I stopped for a drink and just stood over my bike for 15 minutes. I was really deciding whether or not I want to keep doing this. Yes, I enjoy biking, but 7 hours of it a day are starting to wear on me. These mountains are really tough, and it ain’t the Rockies yet. What the hell am I going to do there?
I had my tantrum and the boys were extremely understanding without letting me off the hook. I have wanted to do this for a long time and we are still adjusting to the trip itself. I guess I will just plod along and keep on going. Eventually this attitude will pass.
I am also wondering if I can make Iowa in another month. We agreed that I that’s a problem, we will go back to where we left off and do the Montana to Iowa stretch if we have to skip it for schedule purposes.
Anyway, I really felt the support and I know they love and believe in me. That’s pretty good motivation. We are a team.
Anyway, I did 35 miles and decided to cut it short for today. I had a lot to do with emails and laundry, so the blog is getting done early. I will get a good early start tomorrow and hope to put in a good day.
Later

Out Of Touch

Today is Saturday June 16. Haven’t written in a couple days. We have been out of Internet contact in the wilds of Central Oregon. Actually, you can re-read my last post and get the gist of my ride on Wednesday. beautiful country, beautiful weather and a great ride. I rode along this lake, Ochoco for about 4 miles an it was gorgeous.
I almost got to the top of Ochoco pass that day. It was hot and I ran out of water. The cell phones don't work much around there so I couldn't get in touch with the boys. Since my task has been to be mindful and within my limits, I only biked a few more miles before I pulled off the side of the road. Another couple of bikers stopped their car and gave me about an inch of water for my water bottle, took Matt's phone number and gave him a call when they got within cell range. the boys got there with water, but it was late in the day, so I planned on getting over the hill after my rest day.
We camped back down by the Ochoco lake in the above picture. It was a great campsite with hot showers, but it was a lot different than the site along the MacKenzie river. The sites are a lot more open, so we can see our neighbors. We fixed a great steak dinner over a wood fire and played Yatzee until bedtime.
Whoa, woke up the next morning cold as ...well just damn cold. Got in the van to warm up and the temp was 41 degrees. Wow, probably as cold as camping gets without snow. It warmed up quickly and we went to Bend, OR for the day. Ran a few errands, Matt bought some shoes at a Nike outlet, Josh got some golf shoes on sale. We found a sports bar and watched the Red Sox for the first time on the trip. They lost, but it still felt good to connect. We are planning on taking our first baseball break at the end of the month to see the Sox in Seattle.
Went back to the lake and turned in fairly early.
This is where the trip took an unexpected turn. I woke up in the middle of the night with a very painful wrist. My arthritis flared badly. The wrist is swollen and I can't bike with it in this condition. I can bike one handed, but not going downhill. My next leg of the ride is 12 miles of uphill (OK) followed by 7 miles straight downhill. I can't use the brake with my good hand and still steer. Called my coach, Larry Hart and he agreed it would be a good idea to take another day off, even though I felt guilty doing it.
Well, we decided to go to this Indian casino where I am writing this now. I am taking an opportunity to use the steam and hot tub (twice yesterday) and just chill. I am disappointed and anxious about getting on with the journey, but I can't hurry the process here. Today the wrist is still painful, but it is loosening up a little, so maybe tomorrow.
Actually, it may be hard to leave this place today. Here is the view from our balcony.

It's now about 8:30, so I'll go back and wake up the boys and start the day again. We will go back to the bike route and be ready to go again tomorrow.
It has been hard to drive in the van lately. I guess I have been spending so much time on the bicycle that the road goes by too fast in the van. I am driving my sons crazy with my comments and physical tightening up when they are going around curves or driving down the road. It sounds weird, but I am more comfortable with bike speeds.
So, we'll let you know the status of the wrist as soon as we can. Don't know what the Internet access will be in the days ahead. It is still pretty rural. We have actually used a WiFi at MacDonald's the other day. We are also in some very spotty cell phone service, so we will connect when we can. Hope all is well at home.
Later.

A Glorious Day

Yesterday made all the days before in the Cascades worthwhile. It was a gorgeous day with a cool breeze and DRY. That was the first day I didn't see some precipitation and it was wonderful. The pain of the past few days is fading, just like the mountains behind me.
I want to say, it is not flat here. We are riding buttes, which are hills with flat tops. So there is some up and down hills between the buttes, but they are finite and not too bad. I did about 30 miles and spun really light gears. I finally past Redmond, where we have been staying for a few days while I got over the mountains. The boys went off to play golf and had a real good time. I think they enjoyed the break of routine. We quit somewhat early and went to see "Knocked Up" at the local theatre. Very good day!!
I don't have a lot of new picture that I have taken. The other photographers have been monopolizing my camera. I want to start bringing Matt's point and shoot on the road. I have been seeing some amazing scenes that a person in a car couldn't stop to shoot. The boys have taken some amazing shots and they will figure out a way to show them, either on the website or their blogs. Sometimes the camera is not appreciated.

We have another 250 miles of Oregon. We should get back to the 50 mile per day range today if my butt holds up. Maybe it was the Cascades giving me other pain, but I didn't notice the soreness there till yesterday. My foot may be developing a blister too. Got to take care of these little chronic things that can become serious.

I want to get started earlier in the day. It seems that this blog and maintenance on the bikes take up a couple hours in the morning. I'm just too tired at night, but as we get into the hotter parts of the country, we need to ride in the cooler parts of the day.

We plan on camping tonight, so maybe no blog tomorrow. Looking forward to another great ride (with Josh) today.

Later

Over The Mountains and Through The Woods

Just finished my bike through the Cascades and I am glad to be done.
I had 11 miles to get to the top yesterday. Again, all uphill with no chance to rest while on the bike. I did have to walk for a while, but there is no shame in that. If my heart rate monitor tells me enough is enough, I obey. It took almost 3 hours to do those 11 miles. Then, after lunch, I did 22 miles. That's more in the last 2 hours than I did in 2 days. Was it fun going downhill? Not really. I had to ride the break for about 7 miles. My hand cramped up! After it flattened out a little, I really enjoyed the rolling hills. I did the last 12 miles in about 45 min. That is pretty close to the pace I want to set all the time. So, if I can keep the speed and put in the hours, 50 miles will only take slightly more than 3 hours. If I keep working for 5 or so hours a day, we should be making our miles with no problem.
I'm looking forward to doing some regular riding today. The boys will drop me off and then go golfing. There is enough civilization to take care of me with water and snacks. They deserve the day off. They were with me when I needed them this weekend, even though the going was slow. They were able to do a lot of reading and writing. In fact, now you can read all our blogs. Go up to our website and the links to each are on our individual pages.
OK, as you probably have read, it is overwhelmingly in favor of doing the biking in the order God gave it. I will bike in sequence. It's OK now. I'm over the mountains and can get on without the rationalizations. Such thoughts helped me get over the mountains. By the way, Matt took some great pictures of the mountains. I'm sure some will be up in his blog.
Anyhow, it's getting late and I have to get on the road.
Later.

Mountains and Rain and Cold

I am writing this Monday morning. I have just finished some maintenance on the bikes and I'm getting ready to go biking this morning.
I would like to say that I am excited, but I'm dreading this day. I have had two tough days getting through the Cascades and there is at least one more. I only did 15 miles Saturday and 17 miles yesterday. It is ALL uphill. There are no places to coast and relax. If I'm not pedaling, I ain't moving. Today's journey should take us over the summit at 5,000 feet after nine more miles of uphill, but the road down is steep and I doubt I will relax much there. I am now about 39 miles from the end of the mountains. If I get to the top and change clothes and feel OK, I might make it all the way today.
It has rained every day and so I am biking in the wet and cold and it is taking a lot out of me. I don't think I have ever exercised and still been so cold. The minute I stop, I'm cold. The cell phones aren't working in this remote area, so I can't always get inside the vehicle when I stop. I don't want to sound like I am whining here, but I am discouraged. Am I ready to quit? Noooo, but I would like to rest and change some scenery.
I was walking up a hill yesterday and met another biker doing the same walk. His name was Spencer and he was a personal trainer and body builder from Lebanon, OR. It made me feel a little better that he had to walk occasionally too. These mountains are tough on all of us! Spencer gave me encouragement I needed and it helped me make it through the day. I stopped to rest and a person stopped their car to give me a power bar. He said it looked like I needed it. I had plenty, but I appreciated the gesture.
We have been at this for a week now, I think it has been a good one. We are still feeling out our routine The food is still an experiment. We started with big breakfasts, but it is too much in the morning. I have gravitated toward a bowl of cereal and a banana. Lunch is somewhat an issue because it sits in my stomach much like the big breakfast. And if I rest too long, the knee stiffens up. So far, what feels comfortable is more bananas (the lifesaver for a biker with the potassium) and this product called "GU" which is just what it sounds like, a sticky concoction that is straight carbs. Dinners has been normal, but I have trouble eating quantities because I am so tired.
I expect the miles to be better as we get into the flats soon. I want to get started earlier in the day, especially as we get hot weather. My cadence and pace were improving before I hit the mountains and I'm sure it will return as I get out on to some nice, flat, sunny road.
Anyhow, it's time to get going. Time to wake the boys and get that last 9 miles behind me. That will make two mountain ranges down (Coastal and Cascades) and one more big one (did someone say "Rockies"? don't want to think of those yet!) before we roll into Iowa in July.
OK here's a question that I could ask for feedback from the readers - Do I need to bike all segments in sequence? I wanted to get out of the mountains and do a little flats, then go back and finish the mountains later. Is this cheating? The boys think so, but I was in the midst of rationalizing and could see an argument for either one. What do you think?

Day Off

I would like to say that our day off was relaxing, but we had so much to do that we have to finish up today before we get going on the road.
We went back to Eugene to get some stuff for the bike and camping.
After visiting Target, we tore the van completely apart in their parking lot and re-organized the van. We got a lot of looks on that one.
We have had a lot of people come up and ask about us. We are getting different comments than we got before we started. people are very envious and say that we are living their dream. People before the trip (if they weren't family or dear friends) looked askance and deferred an answer. Now that we are in the reality, people are more believing.
Anyway, I was exhausted yesterday. I slept 11 hours. I can't remember sleeping that long since I was a teenager. I guess I needed it. Woke up this morning and spent a half hour in the hot tub. I feel almost normal again. Ready to take on the Cascades.
More later.

Day 3 , Day 4 and a Rest Day

Here's my new do-rag. It’s in camouflage colors, so you might not see it in the picture. It’s a different look for me. I’m thinking a goatee and an earring. A tattoo? I knew this ride would change my life.

Haven’t had access to an Internet for a couple days and don’t know exactly when this will be posted.
There are a lot of people that have expressed an interesting our map. Where are we going? Where have we been? I am still fooling around with the GPS in that respect. I cant get it to map any more than 1 of the days at once. I’m pretty sure you can get them strung together. In the meantime we are experimenting with Google map to give you an idea of what’s coming up. We are working on it.
Day 3 was rather strange. On the one hand it was a very beautiful trip. I had stopped just short of Eugene the night before, so I started across the city and quickly found some neat bike trails. These had bridges and tunnels, so you never messed with traffic. Long story short, I rode 30 miles, but hardly made any progress west to east. I rode the Mackenzie River for most of the last two days. It is making me appreciate the journey and not just the goal of getting to Kennebunk Maine . I was enjoying the ride so much, I went 2 miles off track before I asked directions and had to backtrack. We stayed in Eugene again, since I was only about 15 miles east of town. We did a quick dinner at Denny’s and the went to a sporting goods store. Josh bought 100 pounds of weights and I got some bike supplies.

Anyhow, we camped out for the first time last night. The boys bought inflated mattresses and they are now still sleeping. My sleeping pad was not very comfortable, but the CPAP worked fine on batteries. We had sausages and potato salad and turned in fairly early. Right before dark I took some photos along the river. Pretty artsy!!

Yesterday, Matt rode the first part of the day with me. Again, I got a believer. He now knows what I am doing every day. He wants to ride across a state. He has to develop a training program that will do it by say South Dakota.. Anyhow, we stopped for lunch when he was done for the day, then I got on the bike and did 15 more miles. My cadence and pace is improving, but we’ll see how I do in the Cascade mountains on Saturday. I climb about 4,000 feet in a 10 mile stretch. The downhill should be cool though!

Here is our camp. We took the van to a Target parking lot today and cleaned it out and re-organized things. It should be interesting to see how long it lasts.

Well, there is so much more to do on our day off. We got to get to a bike shop and a place for a steam bath and whirlpool. Just a treat before the mountains.

Doing Well. More later.

Day 2

Well, I don't have any pictures today. Matt and Josh took the camera and took really artistic pictures. I'm sure they will show up on the website soon.
We went back to the tunnel and started day 2. It was still raining occasionally, so I was wet most of the day.
Josh rode 18 miles and decided to take a break. I think he knows now what I will be going through and he is impressed. Matt has now said he wants to ride across a whole state, just doesn't know which one. He will start the training after we get to the eastern part of Oregon. It's pretty open and flat.
I had a pretty good day yesterday, doing 32 miles. What I thought was going to be downhill wasn't really downhill. At best it was flat, but mostly a gradual uphill which really beats up the legs.
I am feeling the zone occasionally now. I need to get the cadence consistent and sometimes I hit my stride. Another couple days an I'll be there. The knee is going well and the wrist is OK, but it is getting a little sore. The main issue right now is my butt. It is sore and the thought of getting on the bike today is scary. All the rain has made for a lot of irritation and there are some open sores right now. We'll see how long I last today.
It was great to end the day yesterday..I was tired, but feeling well, almost like an athlete. Had a good dinner and went to bed as soon as I did some laundry.
Life is good.

Baptism

Well, we are under way. We have pointed to this for a while and here it is. I didn't order the rain, though. We got under way Monday morning June 4 in Florence OR. Shown below is the support team that was there to wish me well. Plans are now underway to get back together at the end of the trip in Kennebunkport ME at the end of the summer.
Sooooo, I went into the very cold Pacific ocean to place my bike in the westernmost part of the journey. We'll do the same when we get out east. It was cold and raining, so it was a good baptism for the trip. I imagine we'll meet more weather going forward. I'll probably be praying for such weather during one of the 90 degree days in the Dakotas

But it was cold and uncomfortable. I changed shirts and jackets at noon, but they soon got soaked again pretty quick. My shoes felt like they weighed about 30 pounds apiece. I did 25 miles, just about all uphill. When I quit/hit the wall, I didn't know that I was less than 1 mile from the mountain tunnel that signals the highest point on the road to Eugene.

So, I'm dry and well rested for today. The weather will probably be the same as yesterday. But the big news is that a lot of the terrain is downhill. In fact, when Josh saw that the next 10 miles of the trip is all downhill, he volunteered to ride the next segment with me. It should be fun,

So we are on our way.