Two idiots on bikes
Forest Baker and Annie Kallus Joined: May 2nd 2005
Logged in: July 6th 2009
Logged in: July 6th 2009
Travel Blog Posts
RECOVERED
url='/Videos/3974.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3974.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;' Turkish Babushkas heading home from work Last roads in Turkey There are 4 easy steps for paving a road in Turkey: 1. Knock down trees, villages, etc 2) Spread Tar 3) Find the biggest rocks in your regions and drop them on said tar 4) Open road to traffic As cyclists, we like to be as helpful as the next person, but we're not really into spreading out the loose rocks out for the big rigs that ride next to our heads. First, I don't think that they appreciate our work. Not to mention, we end up feeling like we''re being dragged by horses when we ride over this stuff. Still our last days riding in Turkey were beautiful. Riding through orchard-covered valley floors... looking up at roman tombs carved into cliff, looking ... read more
Day 5
Week 1 Forest Baker and Annie Kallusurl='/Videos/3585.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3585.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;' Istanbul Concerturl='/Videos/3586.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3586.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;' Climbing Gallipoli Bluffsurl='/Videos/3599.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3599.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;' Farmers near Troyurl='/Videos/3602.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3602.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;' Prayer call Blue Mosqueurl='/Videos/3601.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3601.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;' Riding through goats Well, we made it to Turkey. Our review of Turkish Airlines: Good legroom, poor service, nice goodies- Forest, as witnessed in th... read more
We graduated.
We graduated. We sold our house. We said goodbye to our friends. We felt a little sad, so... before we head back to California to work, we decided to go on a little trip through Eastern Europe on bikes. AND we're dragging you with us... from Turkey to Austria via this blog (your escape route is the unsubscribe link). For those who don't really want to work at work....keep posted for our adventures. Stay tuned for... -number of miles ridden in a day -number of times we're asked to buy a carpet, toga, Sound of Music memorabilia, etc -number of catcalls -number of Yodels -number of times we're chased out of town after an "ugly American oopsie" -number of NON-BIKERS we see wearing bike shorts in Europe -various "Mentos/Freshmaker" moments -amount of cabbage eaten in ... read more
Day 51
When we last wrote, we were ahead of schedule and had only 600 miles to ride to the Virginia coastline. After the Appalachians were going to be home free. We had only one more state ahead of us and a reasonable riding schedule planned…Suddenly the Atlantic felt just too close for comfort- the reality of finishing the trip and acting like adults loomed. So, we balked. Instead, we blazed a quick trail south following the tracks of Daniel Boone through the Cumberland Gap and crossing Tennessee in one day. The Great Smoky Mountains After a 100-mile day of riding, we arrived in Gatlinburg, TN at 10pm on a Tuesday night, expecting a sleepy-town nestled at the foot of the mountains where we could lay our bikes and our heads. Instead, what we got was a theme ... read more
Day 33
We're sending out love from Bardstown, KY! That's right- we've made it to our final time zone. Surrounded by history of several wars and accents thick as gravy, we think we are about 10 days from the Virginia Coastline and we've been making the most of it. Missouri was bittersweet. The Ozarks were beautiful, but hilly! The scenery was fragrantly lush and mysteriously foggy, but that meant for buggy riding and sleeping. The drivers were either very cautious or willing to KILL, KILL, KILL. Yes, Missourians seem have a distaste for bicyclists. We even had a woman, who was driving in the opposite direction, slow down to 15mph, poke her head out her window, and call us every obscenity they have thought of in Missoury. She wasn’t that imaginative and, thus, ended up repeating herself several ... read more
Day 25
Writing to you from the hometown of John Ashcroft and Brad Pitt... Springfield, Missouri! When we last wrote, we were in Taos, NM for two days. On our second day off we battled through some amazing rapids on a rafting trip down the Rio Grande. Water was running at some of the highest levels they'd seen in 15 years- Our guides actually seemed a little scared, but we all lived and had a good time with everyone. (A guy on our trip named Andy owns affordableadobe.com. He, his son and nephews build houses out of mud and straw using backhoes for families -mostly native- who can't afford the rising cost of living in Taos. Using mud bricks, they construct 5-7 multi-level homes a year.) Fresh from the water, the mountains and pueblos looked as inviting as ... read more
Day 8
After battling heat and desolate highways, we find ourselves in Taos, New Mexico, more than 1,000 miles from our starting point. Getting through Arizona was a learning experience. For instance, did you know that Chinese buffets in Arizona include Cheetos as an entree? Or that AZ desperately needs to update their tourist motto from "Get your Kicks on Route 66"? Despite this, we got some kicks, too much sun, and a lot of flats. We spent as much of our AZ time as possible on 66- after being warned NOT to bike 4 days through "Indian Country"- or did they say "Injun"? anyway, a huge reservation with no services and non-biker friendly crowds- We hopped from the shadeless Mormon outpost of Jackrabbit (where we tried grape Gatorade for the first time- mmm) to the world's ... read more
Day 3
Ahhh! Taking a break in Lake Havasu City. After 6 days and 350 miles of biking, we're kicking back and trying to blend in with either the MTV Spring Break Crowd or the masses of retirees that we've found out here in the desert. At the moment, we're sporting biker's tans that don't exactly make us the envy of either crowd, but we're excited to be off our feet and out of the heat. Yep, there's been plenty of sun in the first week of our trip. The extreme heat started in Palm Springs- land of golf courses, restaurants, shopping malls and NO outdoor quality-of-life. By the time we got across the desert floor, we both were a whole shade darker. This experience led us to the conclusion that biking is a noctural sport when one ... read more
Gearin' up
We’ve quit our jobs, packed our bags, and we’re going for a little bike ride ...across the US We're just getting our gear together, but we'll be hitting the road on Tuesday (May 10th). The plan is to pedal from Southern California to Virginia… or Canada if we don’t feel that 3,200 miles is enough. Barring accidents, failed joints, or break-ups… we’ll get to dip our tires in more than one ocean. We hope to succeed or fail before August, when at least one of us is due for grad school in North Carolina. Our friends are already lending us a hand. Before we leave, they’ve made sure that we DON’T GET BIG HEADS, by sharing some predictions about the events that ahead of us… Smallest Town We'll Ride Through...(pop.) Alexis: 10 Jason and Chrissy: 33 ... read more
