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)
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#heatindex ride!
Hoping to get an overnight on the C&O… aaaaand it might be 100 degrees. So there’s that.
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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.
A winter bicycle tour on the C&O is a rare treat for me… but warm February weather in the DC area made it impossible to resist. Come along for the ride with Belle Starr and me!
Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.
Have some bike touring or overnight stories to share? Send your pics, audio or a quick tweet – all welcome. Email the show at pedalshiftproject@gmail.com or call the lightly-used Pedalshift voicemail line at (202) 930-1109.
A big thank you to all of the monthly supporters of the show! If you like what you hear, you can help me keep the show listener-supported while expanding the offerings. Five bucks, two bucks or even 1 helps with the costs of hosting the podcast and the website, and you can do it for a bit and cancel anytime. One-shot support is welcome if you’re not into the small monthly thing. Check it out and join at pedalshift.net/society. And society members please go to pedalshift.net/stickers and let me know where to send some Pedalshift stickers to you! On to the Society!
Ethan Georgi
Matt Buker
Kimberly Wilson
Caleb Jenkinson
Cameron Lien
Andrew MacGregor
Michael Hart
Josiah Matthews
Keith Nagel
Brock Dittus
Thomas Skadow
Michael Riscica
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
And all anonymous and past contributors for helping make this show happen!
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his self-titled solo album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ latest release, Habitat, wherever cool music resides. And a little birdy tells me Jason’s recording some new music. More when I know…
Follow-up on bike touring stove tests, an overview on intermittent fasting for those of us who, ahhh… maybe put on a few pounds since the end of bike touring season? Plus counterintuitive advice on keeping your feet warm on tour and more!
Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.
Have some bike touring or overnight stories to share? Send your pics, audio or a quick tweet – all welcome. Email the show at pedalshiftproject@gmail.com or call the lightly-used Pedalshift voicemail line at (202) 930-1109.
Maryland’s regional commuter rail system is *finally* adding bike cars to all lines through 2017, which means you have another fast forward option to/from Brunswick, MD and Washington, DC… and it’ll be much cheaper than Amtrak’s Harpers Ferry option just 5 miles away. ($9 vs. $34)
Retrofitting of the first bike rack-equipped cars is expected to start early next spring and will be advertised once work on a critical mass of cars has been completed. Projected completion of this round of bike modifications should be sometime in fall 2017, with the rest of the fleet completed as funding allows. (MTA)
My typical post-touring season weight gain rears its ugly head. Need to drop 20 pounds before touring season plus I would like to try to make it more permanent this time.
Trying something new this year: intermittent fasting
Important: I do *not* recommend this while on tour. In fact it could be dangerous if timed wrong. Also, check with your doctor before trying anything like this because fasting is not recommended for a lot of people (the young, pregnant women, etc.)
Combines calorie restriction with regular periods of fasting
Studies show it’s good for a variety of things beyond weight loss
Check out Eat, Fast and Live Longer by the BBC for more
5/2 (5 days at “normal” caloric needs and 2 days at 25%)
18/6 (18 hours fasting, 6 hours feeding)
Results? I just moved to the 18/6 method a few days ago and have continued to see fantastic results from a weight loss perspective. No issues with hunger although you’d be surprised how hard it is to jam all of your calories into a 6 hour window, even if they are reduced!
Reiterating: I do *not* recommend this while on tour. In fact it could be dangerous if timed wrong. Also, check with your doctor before trying anything like this because fasting is not recommended for a lot of people (the young, pregnant women, etc.)
PSS Member Seth Krieger!
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his self-titled solo album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ latest release, Habitat, wherever cool music resides. And a little birdy tells me Jason’s recording some new music. More when I know…
As the temperatures dip, I test out a new sleeping bag… how does it handle colder weather bike touring? Plus, my dog Belle Starr joins me for an overnight, plus connections and more!
Hey it’s the direct download link: The Pedalshift Project 062: Colder weather bike touring (mp3)
Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.
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.
FOTS Todd Tillinger from Helena, MT
Just wrapped up my first self-supported bike tour, an 8-day 7-night trip across Missouri with my old friend Mark who lives in Kansas City. Our goal was to ride through urban KC to the rural town of Pleasant Hill, where the new (and not quite completed) Rock Island Trail begins and runs to Windsor, MO. That’s where the RIT intersects the well-known and well-traveled KATY Trail, and where we would turn and use the KATY to cross the rest of the state. It took two full days and over 103 miles to reach the KATY, and given the urban and rural detours it was an adventure. Luckily the weather was fabulous and we were soon on the KATY. The next 5 days were on the KATY, all the way to the very eastern end at the old rail stop of Machens, MO, just a stone’s throw from the Mississippi River and Illinois. We caught the Amtrak out of suburban St. Louis in Kirkwood, rolled off the train at Union Station in KC, and rode the last 16 miles to Mark’s house to finish the tour. All told, it was 8 days, 7 nights, 383 miles. We camped 5 nights, friends put us up 1 night, and we camping cabin’ed it at a County Park on the night after our one rainy cold damp day’s ride. I am attaching a few pictures for your information, and to let you know that the 237-mile long KATY is a great way to introduce someone to touring and a great way to spend a week if that is all you have. Towns are reasonably spaced, supplies and way are easy to come by, there are restaurants and inns if that’s your thing, and camping is easy to find off-trail at city parks, nature areas, or RV parks near the trail. The KATY itself is a long, linear state park so they don’t allow camping on the trail but that was not a problem at all.
One more thing: the 47 mile section of the Rock Island Trail is scheduled to be complete after this winter. But there are still some impassable sections, such as bridges over streams that are missing or surfacing that is nonexistent. That 47 miles from Pleasant Hill MO to Windsor MO actually took 60 miles, and two hours longer than expected. The lesson: be flexible, be self sufficient, and always carry lights. We ended that day (and three others) needing to use our headlights to ride and to set up camp. Good old fashioned type 2 fun!
We left downtown Kansas City last Friday Oct. 21, and returned Friday night Oct. 28 via the Amtrak River Runner (with roll aboard service). Thanks to your tips, I knew to buy the train tickets in advance and make the bicycle reservations. That was essential, and I am glad we did!
Shelli Snyder is doing much, much better. Her fund is over $100k and we played a small part in that…
Go read more about her progress on the GoFundMe page.
Rob Pupke from the great Empire State of New York…
One subject I’d like to hear covered on a podcast would be electronic equipment. Phones, computers, GPS, cameras…? What is absolutely necessary? What is nice to have? What about charging? Apps? Maps? How do these things work when your cell signal is gone? I hear you mention various things about electronics while covering other subjects, but I feel it is assumed that everyone is fully up to speed on these subjects when I listen. I’m not a Luddite, but I don’t know the ins and outs of traveling with electronics, and how they can be helpful in remote areas.
Hey there, I started listening a few months ago and enjoy your podcast. I am a fellow cyclist, however have yet to ride a bike packing tour but I will in the future and find your podcast helpful. I am an avid backpacker though and have done several backpacking trips. Just a quick note for your alcohol stove that you were fueling with the “Heat” made for cars, this product is Isopropyl alcohol and has additives for automotive use, you are correct it does not burn very good at all in an alcohol cook stove. The ideal fuel for an alcohol backpacking stove is “denatured alcohol” which can be found at hardware stores in the paint and finishes department (used for cleaning brushes etc.) This very pure form of alcohol will burn super clean and a small stove will boil 2 cups of water an under 10 minutes easy. I carry this kind of setup for backpacking and t is very light, yes I do the minimalist thing.
Chip Lang
Troy, NH
Followup… I was in WalMart the other day getting epoxy for an unrelated project and lo and behold there was an enormous can of denatured alcohol for 4 bucks! Now I know where to get it I might do some more experiments… thanks for the heads up!
Just thought I’d send you a note and say thanks again for the podcast, it has been a huge motivator for me to start getting things together to start touring and bike camping. Here is a photo of my old mountain bike after being re-purposed into my first touring bike. Ditched the flat bars for drop bars, switched the knobby tires for some Schwalbe Marathon Pluses, and got the rear rack and panniers on there. Took it for a 20 mile test ride today on the Ohio to Erie Trail (which is conveniently only two miles from my house), just to get a feel for riding a loaded bike with the extra weight. Other than a 15 mph headwind on the first half of the ride, everything went great! … The weather and lack of daylight is working against me getting any trips in this fall, but I’m already looking forward to planning for next spring. Thanks again for the show and the website!
Chris in OH
A big thank you to all of the monthly supporters of the show! If you like what you hear, you can help me keep the show listener-supported while expanding the offerings. A buck, two bucks or even 5 helps with the costs of hosting the podcast and the website, and you can do it for a bit and cancel anytime. One-shot support is welcome too… annual or “choose your own adventure” if you’re not into the small monthly thing. Check it out and join at pedalshift.net/society. And society members please go to pedalshift.net/stickers and let me know where to send some Pedalshift stickers to you! On to the Society!
Thank you for supporting the show!
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his self-titled solo album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ album, Habitat, wherever cool music resides. I heard Jason’s new album in January and it is AWESOME. More info when that drops!
Fall bike touring my favorite kind of touring… just hopping on a bike, hearing the crunch of the leaves under the tires and enjoying the cool temperatures inside a warm tent. This episode I chat about my recent mini-tours on the C&O plus my plans for a winter ride in 2017!
Hey it’s the direct download link: The Pedalshift Project 060: Fall bike touring and planning for winter (mp3)
Reach out to the show via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. Don’t forget to join the newsletter too.
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.
Best,
A big thank you to all of the monthly supporters of the show! If you like what you hear, you can help me keep the show listener-supported while expanding the offerings. A buck, two bucks or even 5 helps with the costs of hosting the podcast and the website, plus the Pedalshift Society allows me to do cool new things I’ll be rolling out in future shows. AND brand new by popular request… one-shot annual support and “choose your own adventure” one shot support if you’re not into the small monthly thing. Check it out and join at pedalshift.net/society. On to the Society!
Thank you for supporting the show!
The Pedalshift Project theme is America courtesy of Jason Kent off his self-titled solo album. Check out his band Sunfields‘ album, Habitat, wherever cool music resides. I heard Jason’s new album in January and it is AWESOME. More info when that drops!
Hey it’s the direct download link for The Pedalshift Project 067: More bike touring stove tests, intermittent fasting and counterintuitive foot-warming advice