Got in a little riding before ole man winter came back. Got in 85 miles over the past weekend, but back in the gym to keep the fat monster away. Definately need the bike time, but concentrating time on mapping trip, campgrounds, getting equipment lined up and trying to elimnate all unnecesary stuff to cut weight. I really had no idea how much was involved in making this type of journey when I first got the idea. I'm not sure if I had realized what it entailed, I would have ever started. I guess I thought I'd just ride the bike, get in shape a bit and take off cross country. Never thought of all the camping gear ( lightweight ) , knowledge needed to work on the bike, mapping, communication while on bike, dangers, etc, etc, etc. Not sure I have a firm grasp of it all yet, but I am sure about half way home from Portland, I will be much smarter about traveling by bicycle.
Charlotte's dad passed away this week, so that has been a bit rough.
As my luck would have it, our governor and legislature is considering moving the starting date for school next fall up a week. Not that I care a whole lot about that except it takes a week out of the time I have to make the 4000 mile trip. I had a week built in to allow for bad weather, bad days, and maybe a relaxation day. I now will need to do one of two things. I will need to ride 60 straight days without a break, or increase my daily milage, or both.

" Faith is believing that something will happen. Hope is that it will be good. Love is understanding when it isn't."  mod

"When we face our greatest enemy, we will recognize self."   mod

Got in a little riding in this weekend, 56 miles, even with the rain. Good to test out the rain gear. Everything worked as it should, but a flat tire wasn't planned. Good experience though, changing the tire in a downpour along Rte 50. Weight is stabilizing around 189, so an increase in intensity is in order. Target weight before leaving for trip is 180. Why carry any extra weight up all those mountains? That's my theory! Got the last three maps and will be planning camping sites, etc. I'm sure there will be many "on the fly", adjustments due to bad weather, fatigue, etc, but its nice to have a plan.  I know the next 4 months will go by very fast! Practiced pumping my tire from flat to 80psi with the hand pump on the bike. Had to know this in case my tire gauge quits working. It will take about 130 pumps. In other words, if I have very many flats along the way, I may be able to get a job at a tire shop hand pumping tires when I get home. Or maybe refilling all the "airheads" in Congress. Lord knows they're all full of hot air!!

" It's not important to be recognized for what we do, but to know the world is a better place for  our having done it! "   mod

Two weeks of snow and severe cold has slowed the riding a bit, ( as in completely stopped it ), but am increasing time in gym. Focus at this point is building strength and flexibility. Working on a 6 day a week schedule with 3 days of endurance lifting and three strength building. Will begin an arobics class this week to add additional cardio and endurance work. Will get back on bike as soon as weather breaks a bit. Have route planned to Grand Rapids, MN and waiting on last three maps from Adventure Cycling to route me to Monroeville, IN. From there I am on my own to plan a route through Ohio. Looks rather simple. Will ride the Ohio route prior to leaving for trip, to check times, etc. Will be good training. I have no scheduled rest days as of now. Will wait to see what the additionl route maps involve before I will know how many I can allow. Will update each Sunday until leaving.

" My life is my message." Gandhi

This is my first blog about my cycle journey this coming summer. Plans are to ride from Portland, Oregon to Parkersburg. I plan to leave Parkersburg on June 11 and fly to Portland. My daughter, Courtney, lives there. I will stay with her until the 14th and begin the long journey home. I plan to be home sometime in the middle of August. I will need luck and prayers.

A few notes:

• I named my bike "PJ" for Pile Jumper in honor of my former jumpers and my class I call "The Pile"
• My bike is a Surly - Long Haul Trucker
• I will be mostly camping along the way with an occasional hotel stay.
• My equipment list is too long to mention here but will weigh approximately 40 pounds.
• The trip will be approximately 3700 miles depending on the exact route.
• My biggest obstacles ..... being lonely and cars.
• I am dedicating the trip to my family and Toby! ( if you don't know about Toby, you don't know me)
• The only book I will take is the Bible.

My preparation included:

• Months of training ( riding, flexibility, and weight training )
• Volunteering at Bob's Bicycle Shop - to learn to fix broken things ( Thanks Kenny )
• Hundreds of hours of searching the internet for best tires, routes, etc, etc, etc.
• Talking to riders and reading cycling journals ( Crazy Guy on a Bike web site )
• Practicing loading and unloading my gear
• Dieting to get to riding weight ( the worst part ....... food tastes great!! )

" Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will " Gandhi