Here’s some of the images from the Oregon/California border to San Francisco:
On this episode…an episode-long mid-tour report on the border to border tour from foggy San Francisco.
[sc_embed_player_template1 fileurl=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/pedalshift/Pedalshift005.mp3″]
hey, it’s the direct download link to The Pedalshift Project 005!
Special shoutout to Kevin form Honolulu for reminding my addled brain to include a direct download link to the last show!
And because this is episode 005 all Bond junkies want to know who Agent 005 was… a quick check on wikipedia shows,
“005 Stuart Thomas was 005 until defective eyesight impaired his marksmanship, and he was made head of Station G (Greece) in Colonel Sun.”
If you followed the @pedalshift feed you saw some mentions of rerouting the tour and going to Calgary… I was about to help out a friend who had a pretty bad accident on tour in Alberta that included some injuries. His helmet probably stopped a concussion, but in his words, he was lucky how he landed (despite the injuries he did suffer, they could have been worse). He has someone else who is better equipped to help him on his return than me (you know, actual medical training) so I’ll be pushing south.
Moral of this story: be prepared for your conditions (he had a device to summon help), and be prepared for bad things to happen. This is not a risk-free thing, but we can manage the risk and enjoy ourselves!
Follow along the route @pedalshift and on the raw podcast feed Tour Diaries: Pedalshift! I’ll be uploading snippets from the road on this tour, possibly compiling some for the main podcast next episode. I’ll be uploading snippets from the road on this tour, possibly compiling some for a special edition of the podcast when the tour is done at the end of August.
Any questions? I got at least a few on Twitter so far, but feel free to reach out at pedalshiftproject@gmail.com too.
Hey, The Pedalshift Project is on iTunes (we’ve even been featured in the Outdoors section already!) but if you like you can use your favorite aggregator (like iCatcher on your iPhone for instance), with old timey RSS. Email me at pedalshiftproject@gmail.com – I’d love to bring more voices to the show!
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his debut album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ new release, Habitat, including this track, wherever cool music resides:
Sometimes images tell the tale better than words… click on each image for a closer look:
I’ve written a version of this post a few times, but I find I’m constantly refining my “must bring” list for bike touring. This tour is no exception.
I bought this on Amazon, but there are assuredly versions all over the place. It has two 3-prong outlets on each side and it’s been a total savior in situations where I would like to charge multiple devices and batteries, but I can only find one free outlet. Well worth the minimal space!
Spoiler alert: caffeine is a mood enhancer and a performance enhancer. Rather than suck down a soda or a Red Bull in the afternoon, I’ve had a couple of these with my normal hydration cycle and it has proven to make a great difference. Light, cheap and easy to carry… big fan for those afternoon hills!
I mix up two bottles of grape (the only truly great flavor in my opinion) every morning. Doesn’t matter if there isn’t a store or shop within 50 miles selling it, I have it always.
I love the sounds of screaming children romping throughout campgrounds on summer weekend evenings. Oh wait, I don’t. Also good for morning raven ca-caws.
The rumors are true… it has better coverage. Ironically, I’m posting this using Sprint, which usually has the worst… but that’s because my Verizon doohickey has been the workhorse and is getting a charge right now!
Hey, don’t forget to check in @pedalshift and listen to the (so far) daily Pedalshift Tour Journals (subscribe to the podcast version here)!
It’s hard to believe, but this tour crossed the 500 mile mark today, day ten of my travels from Victoria, BC to the California-Mexico border. Each morning I record a short tour journal… Follow along at soundcloud.com/pedalshift or keep an eye open on the @pedalshift Twitter feed. The Pedalshift Project will get a shiny episode of its own in a week or so once I cross the Golden Gate into San Francisco for a few down days. I the interim, check out the Pedalshift Tour Journals!
Quick reminder: the best way to follow the tour is to follow @pedalshift on Twitter. That will be the hub of all the thoughts, pics, tour journal podcasts, etc. Daily or near daily Tour Journal podcasts are on Soundcloud, or you can subscribe to the feed here.
Some quick thoughts from the last few days:
That’s it… more to come tomorrow!
The Heat Stroke Avoidance Alternative Border to Border Bike Tour has begun! I may just refer to it as the Border to Border or B2B tour from now on, largely because I can’t remember the larger name and because it’s so far from warm on the coast that the memories of forecasts in the 107-109 degree range are all but a memory. Take a listen to episode 004 of Pedalshift Project for more on that.
I began my journey with a visit to my cousin in Seattle, which was a nice treat considering my original plans did not take me north of Portland. Since he was planning on rowing the next morning, I got up with him at 5:19am. I felt every bit of that early hour through the day… trust me. A 40 minute ride later and I was boarding the Victoria Clipper to Victoria, BC.
First, I took a dramamine. I. Am. Not. Fit. For. Seafaring. I’m a landlubber. Whatever. But thanks to this wonderful concoction that I used to have to take crushed in applesauce before long car trips (#protip: not recommended) I got through the rough seas to Canada.
I saw a sign that made me happy:
And then I was full and happy. Bless you Canada for poutine.
I spent a leisurely couple of hours winding my way north on a series of regional trails through suburbs and agricultural areas. A stop for blackberries was a welcome layover from the unusual heat and steady sun exposure. After about 20 miles (translation: “aboot 33 kilo-meeters” – I love you Canada. Don’t ever change.) I was at the picturesque McDonald Park, part of the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. Camping was a little pricey at CDN$13.75 (no showers, primitive toilets, but water, so yay for that) but the tree cover was spectacular, reminding me Burlington Campground in the redwoods of CA.
One other thing to note… the smells. I love that hint of salt water as you get near the coast, but around here you also get the cedar-ish smells of the conifers mixed in. It’s a nice balance and one I don’t get very often.
Here’s today’s Tour Diary – a reminder I’ll be doing more of these audio snippets and tweets than posts. The tour diaries will be tweeted but you can also subscribe to them as a podcast or check them out on Soundcloud.
On this episode… a pre-ride report from the biking land of sunshine and bunnies, Portland, Oregon… a crossover show with The Sprocket Podcast 192 featuring a sit-down with co-host Aaron Flores.
[sc_embed_player_template1 fileurl=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/pedalshift/Pedalshift004.mp3″]
Hey this here is a direct download link for episode 004!
News from Amtrak on unboxed transport of bikes.
Lewis+Clark/Teddy Roosevelt tour update – transforming into the Heat Stroke Avoidance Alternative Border to Border Tour!
Deconstructing bikes, reconstructing them, etc.
How to pack your panniers for your next tour – America ByCycle and Traveling Two.
Special thanks to Bike Gallery in downtown Portland for their help in making a simple fix – memo to bike shippers… bag up those top tube spacers!
Follow along the route @pedalshift and on the raw podcast feed Tour Diaries: Pedalshift! I’ll be uploading snippets from the road on this tour, possibly compiling some for the main podcast next episode.
Would love to hear from you! pedalshiftproject@gmail.com
Sanyo dynohub for juicing my ride
2012 ideas – generating green energy by bike via uncommonsilly.com
2013 implementation
Tips and tricks for keeping your devices powered up
Doubling up: DEET vs. Premethrin for mosquito control
Using a dry bag as a beer cooler – @brockmon
Have cool ideas to share with the show? pedalshiftproject@gmail.com
Rental revenue adjusted for cleaning costs – not a carrying cost, so I want to factor it it:
$2534/ 38 days
=$66.68/day … getting into the “cheap hotel every day” range but I plan on camping everywhere except SF and L.A.
Described by his friends as “35 and going nowhere,” Aaron is a relative newcomer to Cascadia with only 3 years in Portland under his belt. His formative years were spent in the rural lowlands of south-east Michigan where he did things like can vegetables, pick apples, climb trees, and eat fried baloney. He’s lived many different places and enjoyed learning various skills since then. He has many stories about the colorful places and people in his long life and shares these experiences on The Sprocket Podcast. You can’t follow Aaron on Twitter, but you can follow his red Surly Disc Trucker, which is not at all part of a cult: @RdHareAmngHrses.
Hey, The Pedalshift Project is on iTunes (we’ve even been featured in the Outdoors section already!) but if you like you can use your favorite aggregator (like iCatcher on your iPhone for instance), with old timey RSS. Email me at pedalshiftproject@gmail.com – I’d love to bring more voices to the show!
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his debut album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ new release, Habitat, including this track, wherever cool music resides:
File this under “cautious optimism.”
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Amtrak will be installing new baggage cars with what may allow roll-on service for unboxed bikes on all of its long haul routes “by the end of the year.”
The bike touring community has long been prodding America’s long distance train transportation provider to consider making such a service available, particularly at stations that serve active touring routes. Amtrak has had roll-on service available on a limited number of lines, but now it appears the country is figuratively opening up for multimodal bike touring adventures.
A few questions remain to be answered:
Amtrak has periodically announced big things for bikes on their trains, but this may be the first time it has announced a timeline with all routes getting a boxless option. From a bike touring perspective the notion that we can now roll up to the stations without having to disassemble and box our bikes is beyond welcome. I believe this will be a huge economic win for Amtrak and the towns with stations near bike touring routes.
Update – A careful read of the Amtrak blog post about its new baggage cars reveals something in what it doesn’t say.
Also, the new cars will be equipped with built-in luggage racks that will be able to secure unboxed bicycles (hooray!).
Hooray indeed! But, notice it doesn’t mention roll-on service? It’s possible this new baggage set-up will allow roll-on service (they are certainly testing it in some locations) but it’s also possible bikes will continue to be treated as checked baggage, without a boxing requirement. More to come!
(The post has been updated to reflect this important distinction.)
Hey, we have such great stuff that this episode came out early! We have an overflowing Journal with great tour updates, insanely successful experiments in The Lab, an update on Pedalpreneur Challenge with my summer tour, plus connections with listeners.
Hey, download episode 003 (mp3)
Featured tour from listener Mysterious James: Idaho Hot Springs
Follow last week’s guest Brock Dittus @brockmon on Twitter for a beautiful insight into his amazing NW tour.
Summer Lewis+Clark/Teddy Roosevelt tour update
3 things I take, 3 things I leave behind
Ultralight stove experiments – what I’ve settled on (hybrid Esbit/alcohol with windscreen)
Lab recommends: dried cheese tortellini made freezer bag style
Tracking the revenues and expenses of my summer tour
Justin Martin on Twitter – thanks for checking in!
Roger on the blog – will I be as CRAZY as Brock and Aaron on Sprocket?
Reach out on Twitter @pedalshift, or pedalshiftproject@gmail.com
Hey, The Pedalshift Project is on iTunes (we’ve even been featured in the Outdoors section already!) but if you like you can use your favorite aggregator (like iCatcher on your iPhone for instance), with old timey RSS.
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his debut album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ new release, Habitat, including this track, wherever cool music resides: