A Day to Be Prepared For

s

I started my trip!!!!!! The day went very well and the send off was amazing. And so the Adventure begins. One step at a time. The entire day was strait up hill all the time....I'm not lying....vertical! MA 135 is a road to do if you want to work on your climbing skills. I am feeling excited and scared but if I take this one day at a time I will be more prepared to do this. I will go to sleep now.

BIKE TRACKS: "She's Got a Ticket to Ride"

TODAY'S MILES: 60 miles

TODAY'S TIME: 7 hrs

TOTAL TRIP MILES: 60 miles

TOTAL TRIP RIDE TIME: 7hrs

The New Camera Mount

Last minute things are always there but I am feeling pretty good about leaving.  Today was a big day for bike mount testing.  My friend Scott built what I like to call the Lance.  It is a camera mount for the 7d. take a look.  It is a aluminum square rod the is attached to the front rack of my bike.  then there is a tripod head that holds the camera.  It is extremely sturdy and would only be used for short amounts of time on smooth roads but it will add alot of dynamic shots to the documentary.
It was a little scary riding with it but I got used to it pretty quickly.

So I set off on my adventure tomorrow at 10:30am EST.  Expect to hear from me on twitter and facebook.  and then when ever I get wireless I will be updating the Journal.  

And stealing from my friend David Lawson,  there will always be MORE TO COME!!!!

Test Ride Down... Leaving Soon!

This last weekend I jumped on my bike and road to Portsmouth New Hampshire. Well I didn't "jump" on my bike but I did ride to New Hampshire. it was 140 miles round trip and It was a great experience. I was able to pack everything I needed into my panniers strap my pelican case onto the front rack and ride off into the freezing 25 degree sunset... I was surprised that I was able to get everything I needed onto my bike but it all worked out pretty well. on my trip back the next day I was called by the Brookline Tab (local newspaper) to get interviewed and on this last Thursday they released this article (HERE) . check it out and let me know what you think. I am very excited to see more people involved and after a day of hanging out with people tomorrow I will be leaving on Sunday for the trip. Thank you all that have been apart of this for the last year and a half and thank you for the new people that I hope to talk to soon.

BIKE TRACKS: The Pixies: Caribou

TOTAL DISTANCE FOR DAY (TDD) : 355 miles

TOTAL TIME FOR THE DAY (TTD) : - hr

TOTAL TIME TRAINING: 1 yr 4 months

TOTAL TRAINING DISTANCE TRAVELED: 2714.84 + Miles

New Sponsors and Hanging Out With My Friends

David Lawson Came up for the weekend which gave me a chance to play with the new camera (Canon 7D). It is amazing, I am so very excited to be using it for video and for stills. I will be doing a full review of it shortly. The picture above was a focus test. David would through a piece of paper at me and I tried to capture it in the frame so it was in focus and he was out of focus. This is the closest we got which I really like. I put it through photo shop to make it look 70's.
Adventure Cycling Association is Sponsoring "Bike Against the Wind" they are an amazing website for mapping and getting on a guided bike tour. I am really excited to be working with them because they promote a great lifestyle. (And they help crazies like me do the crazy things I do)

NEW!!!! Our website is about to change. we are moving on to bigger and better. Cody has been working him self to the bone to get us out new site and it is almost complete! This week when you go to www.bikeagainstthewind.com you will find a new home page with many new things. Such things like a map that will show you where I am, my latest video and blog updates and much more. I am excited to see the site develop and I hope you are to. We do also have the facebook group "Bike Against the Wind" please join and post all you want.

BIKE TRACKS: Dave Mathews Band

TOTAL DISTANCE FOR DAY (TDD) : 50 miles

TOTAL TIME FOR THE DAY (TTD) : - hr

TOTAL TIME TRAINING: 1 yr 6 wks

TOTAL DISTANCE TRAVELED: 2359.84 + Miles

Why Biking Rocks

So I am definitely an advocate for biking. I will by no means yell at anybody for driving a car. I understand the importance of a car and well Lara has a car and I drive it quite often. So call me a fake but I still love bikes for several reasons. The exorcise I get when I ride compared to going to a gym is a million times better because I workout AND get places I need to get. Also the exciting sites that I get to see when I am on my bike is different from when I drive or walk. But best of all is something that I just discovered today. If you bike to Build a Green Bakery on 223 first ave in NYC you will get 25% off your purchases. The cookies are amazing and the place is entirely made out of recycled material (including the wall paint). This thought that since I am one to bike that I deserve a discount on goods is an interesting thought. what if bikers were to get a bigger tax cut if they road to work (all ready might be happening) or if I bike to a restaurant I would get a bit of a discount. This is an amazing Idea.

Bike Track: David Lawson's Floundering about in an Age of Terror

30 Days and Counting

Ladies and gents 30 Days till my trip! I need your help getting the word out about this trip and documentary. When people put comments and post videos on Facebook, Youtube, Vimeo or on Bikeagainstthewind.com they are participating in the final creation of the documentary. Your posts about places you have always wanted to go or things that you have always wanted to do could possibly be used in the final cut of the film. Plus I get to talk and meet with more people all across the country and world. So please make comments, post videos and participate with me in this project.

Watch the video update at www.bikeagainstthewind.com if you can't see it here.

BIKE TRACKS: Dave Mathews Band

TOTAL DISTANCE FOR DAY (TDD) : 30 miles

TOTAL TIME FOR THE DAY (TTD) : 2 hr

TOTAL TIME TRAINING: 1 yr 5 wks

TOTAL DISTANCE TRAVELED: 2309.84 + Miles

Starting to Say Goodbye

Tomorrow I am going up to New Hampshire so I can see my Grandparents before they leave to go to Florida. I was talking to my grandmother over the phone today and it was during that conversation that I realized that I am not going to be seeing her before my trip, so I convinced her that it would be a good idea for me to come up and see her and Grandpa even if it is for only 4 hours.

This is the start of the goodbye for now's.

One thing that I have learned growing up is how to leave a place with out much emotional trouble. Saying goodbye to people is not hard for me because I feel as though I am just a phone call or a text or facebook post away. I have moved from Garden Valley Idaho to Penang, Malaysia back to Idaho and to Boston with out much trouble (other than packing and unpacking). Some people I know have trouble even leaving their home for a day let alone 3 months. This interests me because it is different from how I feel.

What keeps people from leaving places that they have lived? What makes people so strongly attached to a person or a place that they never venture past the city limits? Is that OK? Is it the smart thing to do? Is it the Right thing to do?

Do you have trouble leaving friends and family for extended periods of time? What do you think it is that keeps you from leaving certain places?

Is it easy for you to leave people and places? What do you think about when you make that transition time after time?

Make a post on this blog. I would like to hear your stories.

BIKE TRACKS: Tea and Scrumpets

TOTAL DISTANCE FOR DAY (TDD) : 18 miles

TOTAL TIME FOR THE DAY (TTD) : 45 min

TOTAL TIME TRAINING: 1 yr 5 wks

TOTAL DISTANCE TRAVELED: 2279.84 + Miles