here is a complete list of everything that we will be taking with us on our trip.
Cycling Gear:
- (2) pairs cycling shoes w/ cleats
- (2) 2 liter hydration systems
- (2) bicycle helmets
- (2) head lamps
- light weight lock
- adventure cycling association cycling maps
- map holder
- (2) backpacks
- handle bar mirror
- front and rear lights
- plastic squirt gun (for chasing away dogs)
Camping:
- tent w/ ground cloth
- sleeping bag
- twin sheet
- (2) sleeping pads
- (2) camping pillows
- deck of cards
Personal Care:
- first aid kit
- (2) camping towels
- chapstick
- sun screen
- toilet paper
- monkey butt powder
- bug spray
- 2-in-1 shampoo
- toothepaste
- tooth brush
- razor
- tampons
- baby wipes
Cailyn's Clothing:
- sanuk sandals
- sleeveless jersey
- short sleeve jersey
- long sleeve shirt
- (4) pairs of socks
- (3) sports bras
- pair of underwear
- swimsuit
- zip-off pants
- cotton t-shirt
- (2) pairs riding shorts
- gloves
- riding jacket
- sunglasses
- riding pants
- bandana
- t-shirt sleeve (to hold back hair)
- fanny pack
Brad's Clothing:
- (4) pairs socks
- (2) short sleeve jerseys
- (2) riding shorts
- riding jacket
- zip-off pants
- cotton t-shirt
- gloves
- swim trunks
- sandals
- riding sleeves
- riding leggings
- head beanie
- fanny pack
- sunglasses
Cooking/Food:
- (2) aluminum water bottles
- (4) plastic baggies
- plastic knife
- small jar of peanut butter
- electrolyte tabs/mixes
- clif bars
Maintenance:
- (3) 26" tubes
- (3) 26" tires
- (1) 20" tube
- (1) 20" tire
- (1) 16" tube
- (3) tube repair kits
- floor pump
- spare chain links
- multi tool
- (2) tire irons
- chain lube (8oz.)
- 40ft. roll duck tape on a pen
- zip ties
- (2) replacement cleats
- 50ft. rope
Tech Gear:
- laptop
- laptop charger
- (2) cell phones
- (2) cell phone chargers
- (2) ipods
- ipod charger
- cycling computer
Books:
- Bicycling Coast to Coast
- Bible
- (2) journals
- (2) pens
Bike:
- (2) recumbent bicycles
- bob trailer
Misc:
- knife (Gerber 3")
- debit card
- drivers licenses
- insurance card
- id holder
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Century Ride...Check...
century ride: a one hundred mile bike ride.
a century ride is a pretty big deal amongst cyclists...and so, as our final training ride, on sunday, we did a century ride. actually by the time we rolled back into our backyard, we had logged 101 miles.
it was a good experience all in all. we carried all of our gear, just like we will be carrying next week. it was a little more weight than we had been training with, and we did notice a difference. we are really starting to understand why people say that getting rid of any weight you possibly can is a big deal. as a result, we are planning on dropping down from two sleeping bags, to a sheet and a sleeping bag (we will put the sheet underneath us, and open the sleeping bag up on top of us).
cailyn did absolutely great. the morning was pretty windy and she was seeming a little bit demoralized (and i was a little worried about that), but by about midday, the wind died a little and she gained a lot of confidence as we started moving faster. we rode the second 40 miles much faster than the first 40 miles, and cailyn was still going strong. and as a matter of fact, i think that at 101 miles she could have kept going.
i on the other hand could not. with about 10 miles to go the heat (85 degrees) and sun really started to get to me and i started to get dehydrated. i had plenty of water but not nearly enough electrolytes. with about 3-4 miles to go, my legs started to cramp and i had a killer headache. so, cailyn led the way home, and i literally limped home. only peddling when i absolutely needed to. it was not a great ending, but at the same time, it was a good learning experience. i now know what some of that feels like, and i think i know what i need to do in order to avoid some of that stuff.
all in all, it was a good final training ride, and left us feeling fairly confident. and the legs haven't felt too bad the last two days.
the bikes are in at the bike shop getting tuned up. it is crazy to think that the next time that we get on the bikes that we will be in virginia. crazy to think about.
over the next couple of days i will continue to post about some of the emotions leading up to the trip, why we are wanting to do this trip and what we are hoping to get out of it, as well as a list of exactly what we are taking.
the countdown is definitely on. 4 days till we start heading east.
a century ride is a pretty big deal amongst cyclists...and so, as our final training ride, on sunday, we did a century ride. actually by the time we rolled back into our backyard, we had logged 101 miles.
it was a good experience all in all. we carried all of our gear, just like we will be carrying next week. it was a little more weight than we had been training with, and we did notice a difference. we are really starting to understand why people say that getting rid of any weight you possibly can is a big deal. as a result, we are planning on dropping down from two sleeping bags, to a sheet and a sleeping bag (we will put the sheet underneath us, and open the sleeping bag up on top of us).
cailyn did absolutely great. the morning was pretty windy and she was seeming a little bit demoralized (and i was a little worried about that), but by about midday, the wind died a little and she gained a lot of confidence as we started moving faster. we rode the second 40 miles much faster than the first 40 miles, and cailyn was still going strong. and as a matter of fact, i think that at 101 miles she could have kept going.
i on the other hand could not. with about 10 miles to go the heat (85 degrees) and sun really started to get to me and i started to get dehydrated. i had plenty of water but not nearly enough electrolytes. with about 3-4 miles to go, my legs started to cramp and i had a killer headache. so, cailyn led the way home, and i literally limped home. only peddling when i absolutely needed to. it was not a great ending, but at the same time, it was a good learning experience. i now know what some of that feels like, and i think i know what i need to do in order to avoid some of that stuff.
all in all, it was a good final training ride, and left us feeling fairly confident. and the legs haven't felt too bad the last two days.
the bikes are in at the bike shop getting tuned up. it is crazy to think that the next time that we get on the bikes that we will be in virginia. crazy to think about.
over the next couple of days i will continue to post about some of the emotions leading up to the trip, why we are wanting to do this trip and what we are hoping to get out of it, as well as a list of exactly what we are taking.
the countdown is definitely on. 4 days till we start heading east.
Friday, May 21, 2010
The Route - Transamerica Trail
over the past weeks and months we have had a number of people ask us about the route that we will be taking across the country. it is a route called the transamerica trail. it is a bicycle touring route that is specially mapped by an organization called the adventure cycling association. (if you would like to check it out, you can go to their website at www.adventurecycling.com)
it is predominantly small town america...they try to keep you away from high traffic roads and yet make sure that you are not going to be riding on gravel.
below i will include a state-by-state list of some of the cities that are on the route or close to the route, in case you are interested in trying to piece together on a map where we will be. and if you are somewhere close to the route, we would love to see visitors along the way. just send us an email or text or leave a voicemail and we can get back to you.
so here are some of the towns and cities that are along this epic journey that we are about to embark on:
Virginia
Yorktown
Williamsburg
Richmond
Charlottesville
Roanoke
Christiansburg
Wytheville
Damascus
Kentucky
Elkhorn City
Hindman
Booneville
Berea
Harrodsburg
Springfield
Bardstown
Sebree
Marion
Elizabethtown
Illinois
Goreville
Carbondale
Murphysboro
Chester
Missouri
Farmington
Centerville
West Eminence
Houston
Bendavis
Hartville
Marshfield
Fair Grove
Ash Grove
Golden City
Kansas
Pittsburg
Girard
Chanute
Benedict
Eureka
Newton
Hutchinson
Rush Center
Alexander
Scott City
Colorado
Eads
Sugar City
Pueblo
Williamsburg
Canon City
Fairplay
Silverthorne
Dillon
Heeney
Parshall
Hot Sulpher Springs
Rand
Walden
Wyoming
Riverside
Saratoga
Sinclair
Rawlins
Jeffrey City
Lander
Dubois
Moran Junction
Colter Bay Village
(Yellowstone National Park)
Madison
Montana
West Yellowstone
Ennis
Sheridan
Wisdom
Darby
Hamilton
Stevensville
Missoula
Lolo
Idaho
Lowell
Kooskia
Grangeville
Council
Oregon
Oxbow
Halfway (Half.com, OR …no, seriously. It’s true)
Baker City
John Day
Prineville
Redmond
Sisters
Nimrod
Eugene (Largest city along the route. Population 140,000)
Harrisburg
Corvallis
Monmouth
Salem
Tillamook
Astoria
in the next day or two i will post a list of the gear/equipment we will be taking on the trip, along with a few pictures of the gear laid out as well as what it will look like when it is all packed on board.
it is predominantly small town america...they try to keep you away from high traffic roads and yet make sure that you are not going to be riding on gravel.
below i will include a state-by-state list of some of the cities that are on the route or close to the route, in case you are interested in trying to piece together on a map where we will be. and if you are somewhere close to the route, we would love to see visitors along the way. just send us an email or text or leave a voicemail and we can get back to you.
so here are some of the towns and cities that are along this epic journey that we are about to embark on:
Virginia
Yorktown
Williamsburg
Richmond
Charlottesville
Roanoke
Christiansburg
Wytheville
Damascus
Kentucky
Elkhorn City
Hindman
Booneville
Berea
Harrodsburg
Springfield
Bardstown
Sebree
Marion
Elizabethtown
Illinois
Goreville
Carbondale
Murphysboro
Chester
Missouri
Farmington
Centerville
West Eminence
Houston
Bendavis
Hartville
Marshfield
Fair Grove
Ash Grove
Golden City
Kansas
Pittsburg
Girard
Chanute
Benedict
Eureka
Newton
Hutchinson
Rush Center
Alexander
Scott City
Colorado
Eads
Sugar City
Pueblo
Williamsburg
Canon City
Fairplay
Silverthorne
Dillon
Heeney
Parshall
Hot Sulpher Springs
Rand
Walden
Wyoming
Riverside
Saratoga
Sinclair
Rawlins
Jeffrey City
Lander
Dubois
Moran Junction
Colter Bay Village
(Yellowstone National Park)
Madison
Montana
West Yellowstone
Ennis
Sheridan
Wisdom
Darby
Hamilton
Stevensville
Missoula
Lolo
Idaho
Lowell
Kooskia
Grangeville
Council
Oregon
Oxbow
Halfway (Half.com, OR …no, seriously. It’s true)
Baker City
John Day
Prineville
Redmond
Sisters
Nimrod
Eugene (Largest city along the route. Population 140,000)
Harrisburg
Corvallis
Monmouth
Salem
Tillamook
Astoria
in the next day or two i will post a list of the gear/equipment we will be taking on the trip, along with a few pictures of the gear laid out as well as what it will look like when it is all packed on board.
Friday, May 14, 2010
From Coast to Coast...Here We Come...
it is incredibly surreal to think that in just two weeks we will be headed towards the east coast to start this epic bicycle journey across america.
over these next two weeks we are going to post a number of things talking about the trip and also our preparation leading up to the trip. so...if you are along for the journey...let the journey begin.
part of any great story is the combination of positive turns and negative turns. we have definitely had some of those over the last couple of weeks. let me share with you one of each from the last couple of weeks.
first the negative turn:
the monday before last, we were riding after work and had ridden the first half of our ride (the out) and were starting into the second half (the back) and as we were cruising along, cailyn took her eyes off the road for just a split second (to wave at someone getting ready to cross the road) and she hit a huge pot hole dead on. It sent her front tire flying up in the air and when it came back down she couldn't keep the bike upright and she crashed...pretty hard...we were probably doing 18mph or so. she wasn't hurt too bad, but the really crazy thing is that as it turns out, there were people outside of the house that she crashed in front of, and so they came out to check on us right away...and as the first guy gets out to us he says..."are you okay, my son was just killed here a couple of days ago." which is not really something you are prepared to hear and was incredibly hard to know how to respond to. we found out later that the boy was only like 8 years old and apparently he had been hit by a car while riding his bike.
the whole night shook both of us up pretty badly, and it was difficult to feel like we should just can the whole trip. but we both knew that would make for a terrible story and that we could not let that emotion win out.
now for the positive turn:
i was talking to a lady in town on the phone the other day about a program we are going to be running this fall. she was going to check on some things and then get back to me in a couple of weeks, and so i wanted to let her know that i was only going to be around for a couple of weeks and then i was going to be gone for a couple of months. and then i told her what i was going to be doing for those two months. and the lady say, "no way, we are getting ready to take my son to the west coast on may 29th (the same day we are leaving) to ride his bike across the country." so she and i start talking more and basically her son is riding almost the same trail (the exact same one from Pueblo, CO to the east coast) and he is wanting to do it in the exact same time frame as we are wanting to do it in. it was very surreal to say the least. and it felt like a great little piece of inspiration...a reminder that we are not totally crazy, but that things like this are what great stories are made of.
and so...a negative turn and a positive turn...i am sure just a pair of many more to come over the next couple of months.
over these next two weeks we are going to post a number of things talking about the trip and also our preparation leading up to the trip. so...if you are along for the journey...let the journey begin.
part of any great story is the combination of positive turns and negative turns. we have definitely had some of those over the last couple of weeks. let me share with you one of each from the last couple of weeks.
first the negative turn:
the monday before last, we were riding after work and had ridden the first half of our ride (the out) and were starting into the second half (the back) and as we were cruising along, cailyn took her eyes off the road for just a split second (to wave at someone getting ready to cross the road) and she hit a huge pot hole dead on. It sent her front tire flying up in the air and when it came back down she couldn't keep the bike upright and she crashed...pretty hard...we were probably doing 18mph or so. she wasn't hurt too bad, but the really crazy thing is that as it turns out, there were people outside of the house that she crashed in front of, and so they came out to check on us right away...and as the first guy gets out to us he says..."are you okay, my son was just killed here a couple of days ago." which is not really something you are prepared to hear and was incredibly hard to know how to respond to. we found out later that the boy was only like 8 years old and apparently he had been hit by a car while riding his bike.
the whole night shook both of us up pretty badly, and it was difficult to feel like we should just can the whole trip. but we both knew that would make for a terrible story and that we could not let that emotion win out.
now for the positive turn:
i was talking to a lady in town on the phone the other day about a program we are going to be running this fall. she was going to check on some things and then get back to me in a couple of weeks, and so i wanted to let her know that i was only going to be around for a couple of weeks and then i was going to be gone for a couple of months. and then i told her what i was going to be doing for those two months. and the lady say, "no way, we are getting ready to take my son to the west coast on may 29th (the same day we are leaving) to ride his bike across the country." so she and i start talking more and basically her son is riding almost the same trail (the exact same one from Pueblo, CO to the east coast) and he is wanting to do it in the exact same time frame as we are wanting to do it in. it was very surreal to say the least. and it felt like a great little piece of inspiration...a reminder that we are not totally crazy, but that things like this are what great stories are made of.
and so...a negative turn and a positive turn...i am sure just a pair of many more to come over the next couple of months.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Boxing Day...
cailyn talk on the phone yesterday with an older lady who was originally from england. they apparently talked about just about everything under the sun.
one of these things that they talked about was boxing day. apparently in england there is/was a holiday that took place on december 26th (the day after christmas) and the whole premise of the holiday is that you take your old stuff that you don't want anymore and your leftover food from your christmas dinner the day before, and you box it all up and take it to the poor and needy.
sounds like an amazing idea to say the least.
after cailyn told me about it, she said that she thought that it would be a great family tradition to start, and i really don't think that i could agree more. i think that would be an awesome family tradition. what an awesome show of the fact that Jesus has been born into the world. and what a great learning experience that would be for children!
boxing day...here we come!!
one of these things that they talked about was boxing day. apparently in england there is/was a holiday that took place on december 26th (the day after christmas) and the whole premise of the holiday is that you take your old stuff that you don't want anymore and your leftover food from your christmas dinner the day before, and you box it all up and take it to the poor and needy.
sounds like an amazing idea to say the least.
after cailyn told me about it, she said that she thought that it would be a great family tradition to start, and i really don't think that i could agree more. i think that would be an awesome family tradition. what an awesome show of the fact that Jesus has been born into the world. and what a great learning experience that would be for children!
boxing day...here we come!!
Friday, March 5, 2010
Giving Up Control...
this coming wednesday i am teaching on giving up control.
so, as often is the case when you teach, there is this bittersweet thing that happens. God brings personal examples into your midst...which is sweet...the bitter part is that it often means that you have to grow and change personally (which, of course, in many senses is also sweet) which can be a little uncomfortable at times.
this has definitely been the case this week. God has been showing me an area where i struggle to give up control...and it seems it is one that may not be typical or obvious.
i have trouble giving up control of when and under what circumstances i am challenged and grow. i want to be able to orchestrate those times and i don't really like the idea of just stumbling upon those times. ultimately, i don't trust God to be able to set those times up...i would rather be in control myself.
glad to be coming to that realization...and yet, incredibly challenged to begin to figure out how i progress forward in it.
Lord lead me!!
so, as often is the case when you teach, there is this bittersweet thing that happens. God brings personal examples into your midst...which is sweet...the bitter part is that it often means that you have to grow and change personally (which, of course, in many senses is also sweet) which can be a little uncomfortable at times.
this has definitely been the case this week. God has been showing me an area where i struggle to give up control...and it seems it is one that may not be typical or obvious.
i have trouble giving up control of when and under what circumstances i am challenged and grow. i want to be able to orchestrate those times and i don't really like the idea of just stumbling upon those times. ultimately, i don't trust God to be able to set those times up...i would rather be in control myself.
glad to be coming to that realization...and yet, incredibly challenged to begin to figure out how i progress forward in it.
Lord lead me!!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
A Perspective on Prayer...
i have been realizing lately that when people ask me to be praying for something, there is this piece inside of me that just innately cringes. i have been quite perplexed by this and by what causes me to have this reaction.
and i think that much of what brings this reaction out in me is that in my mind i feel like if people need prayer that bad things are happening or that life isn't going well and i just don't want the inconvenience and pain of it. as if, maybe my perfectionism creeps into my attitude on prayer to the point where i would rather have things be perfect and then i wouldn't have a "need" to pray.
however, i realize this is totally and completely the wrong perspective on prayer. i realize that what i need to do is to embrace the privilege of talking to God about the things that matter most. to cherish the fact that the God who created all things is also willing to communicate and talk with me. instead of striving to not have a need to talk with him...i need to embrace every chance and moment as a wonderful opportunity to be able to connect with him.
i pray that my attitude and perspective on prayer can begin to change one opportunity at a time!
and i think that much of what brings this reaction out in me is that in my mind i feel like if people need prayer that bad things are happening or that life isn't going well and i just don't want the inconvenience and pain of it. as if, maybe my perfectionism creeps into my attitude on prayer to the point where i would rather have things be perfect and then i wouldn't have a "need" to pray.
however, i realize this is totally and completely the wrong perspective on prayer. i realize that what i need to do is to embrace the privilege of talking to God about the things that matter most. to cherish the fact that the God who created all things is also willing to communicate and talk with me. instead of striving to not have a need to talk with him...i need to embrace every chance and moment as a wonderful opportunity to be able to connect with him.
i pray that my attitude and perspective on prayer can begin to change one opportunity at a time!
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