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Published: January 3rd 2018
Before I begin this adventure,I must express some of my trepidations.
Number one on the list is accommodations. I have never been a camper, but much of this trip will be camping. Learning how to sleep on a pad on the ground will be a challenge. At 69 and having spent a lifetime overnighting in 4 star plus accommodations with comfortable hotel beds, this will be very different. Of course I will use Motels and B&Bs quite often along the way as well.
Secondly, I am also a little concerned about my knees. Although I ride bikes often, there is a vast difference between an 18 pound road bike and a 50+ pound fully loaded travel bike.
On the road bike, the real limiting factor is simply the heart and how fast you can ride before it is screaming at you to stop. The legs, of course, are also quite noisy, ( as Jen's Voigt famously said, 'shut up legs'). When one rides a loaded travel bike, the feeling is very different. The bike is simply too heavy to ride very fast and the legs get tired long before the heart screams at you, or at least that was my experience when pedaling from Vancouver, Canada to Tijuana, Mexico with four wonderful friends in late 2015. 50 miles on a loaded travel bike is simply a much longer endeavor than 50 miles on a lightweight road bike. I must use caution, and listen to my body. If the legs or especially the knees tell me it's time to stop and rest, I must listen. If that occurs, I might have to modify my itinerary to stay healthy and finish the adventure.
Thirdly, three months of solo bike riding is a long time. I hear a lot of bicyclists travel this route, so my hope is to meet a lot of people and ride with some fellow travelers for some of the time.
At the moment I am reading others adventures, planning my itinerary and days off, and considering what I want to pack and what I want to leave home.
Fortunately I have over three months to prepare.
More to follow as I progress on my preparation.
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John Fry
non-member comment
Bend to Eugene: Eugene to Florence
Hey Bob Great to hoist one with you tonight. I know the last segments of your adventure are a long way off but do you have a very rough idea when you might be in Bend, ready to push on to Eugene? we'll be in the UK in September so i wanted to be sure about my availability to pull for you in Oregon. bon voyage. John