Category: Cycling

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Start: Boise, Idaho
End: Mountain Home, Idaho
Mileage today/cumulative: 53.5/694
Elevation Ascended: 1,589
Weather: Sunny, 64° at start;  sunny, 80° at finish
3D Video

There’s a saying that any day on a bike is a good day. If so, then 54 miles on flat, open roads with fresh legs and a 10+ mph tailwind for the entire ride is a really good day. After a slow, six-mile warmup on a greenway bike path, the pace picked up and we sailed to the finish, happy to have the wind at our backs. Leaving  Boise, we climbed about 500′, giving us a nice view of the valley looking back at the downtown skyline. Then it was 12 nice miles on Interstate 84 East and our only SAG stop for the day at a truck stop. I got a few questions about our funny looking shoes and some truckers said that riding our bikes across the country was a great idea.

We enjoyed our two nights in Boise but we were itching to get back on our bikes after a rest day. We were ready to roll and spent the morning singing On The Road Again. As we left our room at the Courtyard by Marriott, we passed a room full of people attending a training session, eyes already glazed over at 8am, staring at their binders of material. I thought “I’m so glad I’m riding my bike another 3,000 miles to the Atlantic Ocean instead of sitting in that room.” One has an element of suffering but the other would be torture.

Today’s route was bigger skies, open roads, and lots of sagebrush. We also come across something odd. In the middle of a landlocked state, in the middle of nowhere, with no signs of civilization nearby, we saw a street sign for Ocean View Lane. It was a real sign, perhaps placed by a climate change believer or a seismologist with a crystal ball. Or maybe someone just had a good sense of humor. Regardless, we took a photo of it.

Because we finished the ride so early and it appears that the wind never stops here in Mountain Home, Idaho (another misnomer because there are no mountains to be found, probably created by the same person who named Ocean View Lane) , we were able to hand wash our shorts and jerseys and dry them in the relentless wind. This worked quite well and Bev even got creative, drying our socks by clipping them to the outside of our room’s A/C unit. It was a total white trash look but it worked.

Tomorrow we move on to Twin Falls, Idaho and the route promises to be more scenic. It’s a 91 mile ride, eventually crossing the famous Perrine Bridge that spans the Snake River Canyon, nearly 500 feet above the river and near the site of famous daredevil Evel Knievel’s unsuccessful 1974 jump across the canyon. It should be another epic day!

 

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Start: Boise, Idaho
End: Boise, Idaho
Mileage today/cumulative: 0/640.5
Elevation Ascended: 0
Weather: Sunny, 88°

Our first rest day – woohoo! What fun stuff are we going to do with all of our time off? Laundromat. Go to the bank. Restock supplies from the local bike shop. Buy more toiletries at Walgreens. Clean and inspect our bikes. Say what???

We also fit in massages, some geocaching, and casual walking around just to keep our legs fresh. We’re also looking forward to a nice dinner at a farm to table restaurant recommended by an old friend.

I’ll now turn this post over to Hot Wife………

Bev’s Random Thoughts On Rest Day #1:

After eight days of riding, I am surprised how good my legs feel and how badly my butt (sit bones) feels.  Despite riding multiple days in a row during training, my booty just wasn’t prepared for so much time in the saddle.  I’m not the only one experiencing this problem.  Conversations over beer, dinner, and breakfast have been quite interesting and those not participating in this insane adventure would perhaps find them to be “TMI”.

I’m so thankful I own a home with a washer and a dryer.  On a related note, laundromats would be much improved if they served alcoholic beverages and crunchy snacks.

In addition to missing my washer/dryer, I miss home cooked meals.  We’ve been served good food for the most part, but I miss veggies and Arbonne shakes.

When we arrived at the hotel in Boise yesterday, a couple of riders were met by family members.  Nikki’s husband flew in for an expected visit, while former Delaware governor Jack Markell’s daughter surprised him with a visit.  Both of them were positively glowing with happiness.  It just made me even more thankful I get to share this adventure with Greg.  I would have a tough time leaving him for 50+ days even to do something I love.

These group adventures we participate in are sometimes difficult for an introvert like me.  I generally seek out the biggest extrovert in the group so I have cover in anxiety-causing social situations.  (Graciela – you know I’m talking about you!)  I haven’t quite found that person yet and have, instead, fallen in with several other introverts.  Luckily, they are cool with extremely sudden decisions that socializing time is over because down time is needed.

Related to the introvert situation….there is a rubber ducky being passed around the group in recognition of someone being kind or inspiring during the day.  Each night, the possessor of the duck has to make a speech and present the duck to someone new.  The receiving person has to make a short speech, spend the following day figuring out who deserves the duck, and then make a speech that night as part of the grand presentation. This causes me enough social anxiety stress to consider being very mean to whomever has the duck just to avoid it being passed on to me.  I might resort to the old “stick in the spokes” trick if cornered.  Extroverts will read this paragraph and not get it.  My fellow introverts will totally understand.

There is nothing better than discovering the hotel has a bar.  More points for air conditioning, comfortable seating, local brews on tap, and free, salty snacks.  So far, the winner of this totally made up category is the Best Western in Baker City, Oregon.

Our country is so beautiful.  I’ve met some wonderful people along the way, all with a story or two to tell.  Most people think we are some combination of brave, crazy, and lucky to be riding across the country on our bicycles.  I can only agree.  Bring on the next nine days!

 

Monday, June 26, 2017

Start: Ontario, Oregon
End: Boise, Idaho
Mileage today/cumulative: 64.5/640.5
Elevation Ascended: 1,568
Weather: Sunny, 65° at start; sunny, 90° at finish
3D Video

We crossed our first state line right out the gate this morning, a half-mile from our hotel in Ontario, Oregon, a town overrun by fast food chains and big box retail. This also allowed us to add one more state to our cycling map. When we crossed into Idaho, the scenery completely changed and within minutes we were on country roads riding through fields of onion blossoms, corn, lettuce, lavender, and basil. It is also bison and black angus country – yum! The terrain reminded us of East Tennessee, with lots of rolling roads and we joked that all 1,568′ of today’s elevation was gained ten feet at a time. There was no “serious” climbing today and it appears that will be the case until we ride through the Grand Tetons National Park and over the Continental Divide in about a week. Near the end of today’s route we rode past the Idaho State Capitol, which was pretty darn cool. The pace was moderate and a bunch of us rode into downtown Boise as a group, wearing our America By Bicycle jerseys. That was also a pretty cool sight. Our hotel is less than a block away from Boise State University’s football stadium, famous for its blue field. If you look closely at the end of the route video, you can see the field.

The miles on this trip have flown by and neither of us can believe that we’ve already completed the first leg. Sure, there are four more to go but we’re really enjoying the entire experience and wish that it weren’t going by so quickly. This group of riders continues to bond through shared experiences and mutual encouragement. Our legs feel good and we seem to be getting a little stronger each day. That’s not to say we don’t feel fatigued, but that magically disappears after a hot shower and joining friends for a cold beer and comparing notes from the day. Still, we’re ready to hang out in Boise tomorrow for our first rest day. A day with no alarm clock and no butt butter. It’s going to be a beautiful thing.

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Start: Baker City, Oregon
End: Ontario, Oregon
Mileage today/cumulative: 83.5/576
Elevation Ascended: 2,088
Weather: Sunny, 51° at start; sunny, 89° at finish
3D Video

When riding a bike across America it’s inevitable that you’ll have a few days that don’t serve much purpose other than getting you from Point A to Point B. Today was one of those – a good ride but not high on the spectacular scenery scale. We remained in the high desert and began following the Snake River into a huge agricultural region. The Visalia onions smelled sweet as we passed by and I expect that these will be the first of thousands of corn fields we’ll see in the next six weeks. There was also the scent of lavender and clover. Our route has followed much of the Oregon Trail, so we’ve seen a lot of interesting history along the way. Today we passed the Van Ornum Wagon Train Massacre Site. We didn’t stop to read about it but it makes you think of the hardships people endured to claim a piece of land and seek a better life.

Our big excitement for the day was riding on the Interstate for the first time. In the wide open West, there are stretches where it is the only option to get where we need to go. Mom wouldn’t have approved but the staff gave us thorough instructions and it turned out to be much safer than many other roads. The shoulder is extremely wide with rumble strips between us and the cars – nothing like your busy Interstate in cities. We were on I-84 eastbound three different times for a total of seven miles. Traffic was light and we had plenty of room. That said, we still rode like our pants were on fire and were relieved to avoid getting a flat on the Interstate.

We lost an hour today crossing into Mountain time. Practically speaking we really lost it at an ungodly hour this morning, before we even left the hotel. In anticipation of the time change, the staff scheduled breakfast at 5:30 am to get everyone on the road early. We all moaned and groaned, then sucked it up.

We also learned that one of our riders is Jack Markell, the former Governor of Delaware. Jack completed two terms from  Jan. 2009 to Jan. 2017 and won his second election by the largest margin in any race for governor in Delaware’s history – and Delaware was the first state! He’s riding across the country to raise money for local Delaware charities. He seemed to be in politics for all of the right reasons and I wish there were more like him. Speaking of politics, we have no idea what’s happening in the world and we’re going to keep it that way until the end of our journey. With our daily routine (wake, dress, eat, load luggage, go ride, eat, unload luggage, shower, eat again, pack for the next day, and sleep), there’s no time to watch television or read the news online. There are no political discussions among riders and, with very few exceptions, we haven’t heard the “T” word since we arrived in Astoria a week ago.  How refreshing!

It’s hard to believe we left the Oregon coast a week ago. Tomorrow we say hello to Idaho and have been promised a BBQ for dinner!

 

 

Saturday, June 24, 2017

Start: John Day, Oregon
End: Baker City, Oregon
Mileage today/cumulative: 81/492.5
Elevation Ascended: 5,016
Weather: Sunny, 52° at start; sunny, 84° at finish
3D Video

Today’s ride was one of our favorites, even if we’ve only been at this for six days. We departed from John Day, a town named after a man who went insane. That seemed appropriate given that we are all attempting to do something that most people have described as nuts. We passed through Malheur National Forest and Wallowa -Whitman National Forest, and even rode through a Forest Service prescribed burn area. Smoke was a bit heavy at times and we had been warned that there could be small flames licking the roadside, giving a new meaning to the phrase “ride from hell.” There were smoldering spots just off the road for miles and miles but, luckily, the fire stayed away from us and the wind was generally favorable. The route included three major climbs with two beautiful seven-mile descents that required little braking – wheeeeeeeeeeee!

After yesterday’s ride, several of us had been asked by the staff to dial back our pace a little bit on today’s ride. The ABB staff maintain a support window that can get very extended on longer or more difficult days. There are several ways that they can shorten that window, including sending slower riders out first and asking them to decrease their non-riding time, and asking faster riders to slow down a little and enjoy the journey. We did as we were told and it made for another memorable day.

We cross into Mountain Daylight Time tomorrow and will begin to encounter heat, finishing the day just west of the Oregon-Idaho border.