Tag: summer

August 17, 2017

The Pedalshift Project 090: A Southern Tier Bicycle Tour

Friend of the show and Pedalshift Society member Mark van Raam checked one off the bucket list this year… a cross country ride on the southern tier bicycle tour route across the US. From deserts, to mountains, to encounters in the deep south, this was a trip of a lifetime! On this episode of the pod, we chat with Mark and get his thoughts on the adventure, what it was like being in an organized tour, and what might be next.

Hey it’s the direct download link for The Pedalshift Project 090: A Southern Tier Bicycle Tour (mp3)

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Have some bike touring or overnight stories to share? Send your pics, audio or a quick tweet – all welcome. Email the show at pedalshift@pedalshift.net or call the lightly-used Pedalshift voicemail line at (202) 930-1109.

Pedalshift Tour Journals Vol.8: Western Penn

Available now at Pedalshift Plus!

Hey I’m riding the Pacific Coast again!

I’m planning on an October tour from Newport, OR to San Francisco, revisiting a section of the 2014 full coast ride and one I just adore. Looking forward to sharing more details with you in a future pod!

The Journal: A Southern Tier bicycle tour with Mark van Raam

What was the drive behind biking across country? Did you choose the southern tier for a specific reason?
You rode with a unique sounding tour leader… how did you get acquainted with Bubba?
Your buddy Robb came along too. How important was it to have someone you knew ride with you from the start?
You’re a fellow Novara Safari rider (let’s pour one out for this discontinued beauty!). How did it perform and would you recommend it for an organized tour where you ride less loaded than self-supported or would you have rather ridden a lighter bike?
With nearly three weeks in one state… did Texas ever feel like it was going to end? I hear it’s big.
You met some interesting people on the trip… astronauts, friends of Ray Charles… who was the one that stood out to you and why?
What was the most challenging time on tour?
We love each and every state in this fine country. But you had to have had a favorite one and one that wasn’t your favorite on this route… tell us each one and why.
How long did it take to readjust to coming home afterwards?
You’ve mentioned this is a one and done thing. What smaller routes are catching your eye for next tour?
Marks’s tour was organized by Bubba’s Pampered Pedalers

Connections

Velo Cetera in Oz

Hi from Australia! Thanks heaps for your podcast, it’s my listening staple on my commute to and from work each week. Thought I’d share a video of my 9yo daughter’s first overnight bicycle trip here in Australia. She’s also a big fan of The Pedalshift Project – we listened to 7 hours worth of episodes last weekend on our road trip to and from the start point of our ride! 🚴‍♂️🚴‍♀️👍

More connections are rolling in and I have some super cool ones to share in a future pod!

Pedalshift Society

Help support the show and join the Pedalshift Society with monthly or one-shot contributions!
Ethan Georgi
Kimberly Wilson
Caleb Jenkinson
Cameron Lien
Andrew MacGregor
Michael Hart
Josiah Matthews
Keith Nagel
Brock Dittus
Thomas Skadow
Seth Krieger
Marco Lo
Terrance Manson
Noah Schroer
Harry Telgadas
John Sikorski
Richard Killian
Chris Barron
Scott Taylor
Brian Hren
Mark Van Raam
Brad Hipwell
Paul Mulvey
Stuart Buchan
Todd Stutz
Mr. T
Roxy Arning
Nathan Poulton
Harry Hugel
Ferguson Meek
Stephen Dickerson
Vince LoGreco
Ruth DeVorsey
Michelle Miller
Matthew Lewis
Michael Baker
Billy Crafton
Paul Culbertson
Scott Culbertson
Matt Perry
Danielle Jepson

And all anonymous and past contributors for helping make this show happen!

Music

You’ve been hearing about Jason Kent and his music for many fine episodes. I got news for ya. New. Sunfields. Album. SEPTEMBER 15th. I’ve heard it. It’s top notch.

August 10, 2017

The Pedalshift Project 089: Water treatment and management on bike tour

No matter what style of riding you practice on tour, you need to drink your water. On this episode of the pod, water treatment and management for bicycle touring. We revisit tips on treatment along with ideas on how to handle your hydration needs.

Hey it’s the direct download link for The Pedalshift Project 089: Water treatment and management on bike tour (mp3)

Subscribe to The Pedalshift Project:
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Pedalshift Tour Journals Vol.8: Western Penn

Available now at Pedalshift Plus!

Gear Talk: Water treatment and management on bike tour

Revisiting PSP 023
Sawyer mini filtration system – these have gotten really good and are really cheap. Alternatives: Lifestraw and Katadyn
Easy and light – iodine tabs (plus Vitamin C to remove flavor)
Better version: Oasis Tabs (H/T Brian Hren)
Even higher tech – UV pens (Steripen, for one.)
Low tech – carry your water from trusted sources
Emergency bottle – don’t use unless it is one.
DO NOT refill or use containers that held untrusted water without filtering.

Pedalshift Society

And all anonymous and past contributors for helping make this show happen!

Music

You’ve been hearing about Jason Kent and his music for many fine episodes. I got news for ya. New. Sunfields. Album. SEPTEMBER 15th. I’ve heard it. It’s top notch.

July 27, 2017

The Pedalshift Project 088: Hot weather bicycle touring tips

On this episode, after a weekend overnight in triple digit heat, we cover some hot weather bicycle touring tips. Plus, followup, a tour to follow and more!

Hey it’s the direct download link for The Pedalshift Project 088: Hot weather bicycle touring tips (mp3)

Subscribe to The Pedalshift Project:
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Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.

Pedalshift Tour Journals Vol.8: Western Penn

Available now at Pedalshift Plus!

The Journal: hot weather bicycle touring tips + more

How’d that #heatindex ride go?

Heat index when I left was 104F!
Rode really strong out there. Not tempted to stop at MM16 campsite when in past heat index rides, I usually caved.
Collapsable cooler full of good stuff – never did this before, but will absolutely do it again for hot rides. More weight, but to have cold drinks and food when I arrived, it was so worth it.
Rain cooling me down but made things wet – how I handled it.
Camping and hammocking
Let’s be cool with each other when we share campsites?

Hot weather bicycle touring tips

Time your riding (early AM or even night riding where appropriate)
Hydration + electrolytes (my NP suggested Hammer Nutrition, but these by Lyte Fuel are similar, although with a slightly different balance.)
Sun protection (hat, sunscreen, arm sleeves)
Frequent breaks (AC and shade preferred)
Core cooling (drinks and snacks that are cold)

Followup

Summer Tour to follow…

snoringyogi on Instagram… he’s a buddy from DC who’s touring Scandinavia right now on a fat tired Surly. Looks like a great ride and I hope to get him on the show later this summer or fall to talk all about it. By the way, this is his first really big tour, so for all of you who are new to this, know you don’t have to be some pro-level tourer to do big things!

Flying with your bike

Alaska Airlines appears to be the best US carrier with its new $25 policy for sporting equipment – we covered that last week. There was an open question about Virgin America’s policy since they’re about to merge with Alaska… answer:

Virgin America for the moment has a $50 fee (previously amongst the lowest and still a good deal) but will presumably drop to $25 once the merger with Alaska happens.

Emergency items

From FOTS and PSS member Ethan Georgi:

EMS (& I imagine REI etc) have pre-packaged First Aid Kits with everything you need. This way you don’t have to figure out what to put in it & assemble all the stuff yourself: done for you. They come in various sizes depending on the number of people in your party. I’ve been carrying mine for years.

ICE card: RoadID (dot com) has a ton of great options. Most importantly they are easy to find by First Responders. Expecting anyone to dig through your panniers while you’re bleeding out sounds like an unnecessary hassle.

Another thing I’d add as a “varsity” level comms device beyond the SPOT is the Garmin inReach… added bonus of having the emergency call is the ability to send text messages via the satellite network that’s a little more robust than the minimal messages for the SPOT.

Connections

You were *busy* people!

Check out Matt’s blog at 4ranges.wordpress.com. A lot about finding time to bike when you can, especially in cool places he travels to for work!

Pedalshift Society

And all anonymous and past contributors for helping make this show happen!

Music

You’ve been hearing about Jason Kent and his music for many fine episodes. I got news for ya. New. Sunfields. Album. SEPTEMBER 15th. I’ve heard it. It’s top notch.

July 20, 2017

The Pedalshift Project 087: Emergency items for your next bike tour

I hope you never need (most) of them, but it’s always a good idea to consider these emergency items for your next bike tour… plus some good news from a US airline that might impact your bike touring and previewing my #heatindex overnight coming up!

Hey it’s the direct download link for The Pedalshift Project 087: Emergency items for your next bike tour (mp3)

Subscribe to The Pedalshift Project:
RSS – iTunes – Overcast – Android

Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.

Pedalshift Tour Journals Vol.8: Western Penn

Available now at Pedalshift Plus!

The Journal

#heatindex ride!

Hoping to get an overnight on the C&O… aaaaand it might be 100 degrees. So there’s that.

Gear Talk: Emergency items for your next bike tour

credit card battery (like this one)
extra bottle of water
mylar blanket
first aid kit
cell phone (or something that uses satellites like a SPOT or a Garmin inReach)
ICE card (card – bracelet examples)
weather radio (some even come with hand cranks and USB chargers)

Connections

Another 5 star… who absolutely gets it.

Alaska Airlines now flies bikes for $25 each way! Hat tip to Pedalshift Society member Mr. T for sending that along.

Pedalshift Society

And all anonymous and past contributors for helping make this show happen!

Music

You’ve been hearing about Jason Kent and his music for many fine episodes. I got news for ya. New. Sunfields. Album. SEPTEMBER 15th. I’ve heard it. It’s top notch.

June 22, 2017

The Pedalshift Project 084: Bicycling Western Pennsylvania

I had an amazing adventure bicycling western Pennsylvania last week…. and on this edition of the pod, I tell stories all about biking the Great Allegheny Passage, the Montour Trail and the Panhandle Trail. Spoiler alert: it was hot.

Hey it’s the direct download link for The Pedalshift Project 084: Bicycling Western Pennsylvania (mp3)

Subscribe to The Pedalshift Project:
RSS – iTunes – Overcast – Android

Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.

The Journal: Bicycling Western Pennsylvania

Route

A 5-day adventure that includes the full Montour trail, a hefty helping of the Panhandle Trail and a through-ride of the Great Allegheny Passage. Nearly 300 miles. It was hot.

Highlights

Segment riding the Montour to completion
Big help from Dave at The Tandem Connection in Hendersonville… huge help with a weird rear flat
Through riding the GAP fro 150-0
Wildlife, except the rattlesnake
Exploring Pittsburgh off the beaten path
Hammock lounging every night
Camping every night (but getting showers the last 2!)

Lessons Learned

Sugar isn’t always you friend, until it is.
Hydrate and block the sun
Lighter is better
Frame bags are dope

Pedalshift Tour Journals Volume 8: Western Penn… coming soon!

Full gallery of pictures from biking Western Pennsylvania.

Gear Talk

A Partial Fairing?

Connections

Another 5 star review from @pedalingpair and feedback on the Ohio route from Pedalshift 082.

Pedalshift Society

Help support the show and join the Pedalshift Society with monthly or one-shot contributions!

Ethan Georgi
Kimberly Wilson
Caleb Jenkinson
Cameron Lien
Andrew MacGregor
Michael Hart
Josiah Matthews
Keith Nagel
Brock Dittus
Thomas Skadow
Seth Krieger
Marco Lo
Terrance Manson
Noah Schroer
Harry Telgadas
John Sikorski
Richard Killian
Chris Barron
Scott Taylor
Brian Hren
Mark Van Raam
Brad Hipwell
Paul Mulvey
Stuart Buchan
Todd Stutz
Mr. T
Roxy Arning
Nathan Poulton
Harry Hugel
Ferguson Meek
Stephen Dickerson
Vince LoGreco
Ruth DeVorsey
Michelle Miller

And all anonymous and past contributors for helping make this show happen!

Music

You’ve been hearing about Jason Kent and his music for 79 fine episodes. I got news for ya. New. Sunfields. Album. This August.