Here's a thing about bike touring.

Your job every day is to ride your bike.  Your job also involves finding food, finding a place to go to the bathroom (and this answer varies from person to person), figuring out where you will sleep that night.

It is hard work and it is stressful, but it's pretty simple.

Your job is not (necessarily?) to go to your office, answer calls, write sermons and bulletins (in my case), or be a super busy undergrad with midterms and life (in Will's case), or if you have people you tend to, to keep on tending.

Ergo, I am beginning to miss the bike tour.  If you're a pal on Facebook, you get to see the photos that I've been uploading.  Here are a few to give you a sense of our start in Washington.  I don't know when Will and I are going to get together to write stories, but I know that we should.  That's what people who have many Life Experiences have been telling me.  (In fact, I presided over a burial yesterday, and the deceased's lawyer said as much.)

A lot of this kind of action

We camped a lot.  Here we are, the night before we began our biggest climb of the whole trip.

So there you go.  Back to work-like activities.

At the friend's in Poughkeepsie

What you can do #2

Horns. Horns. Let's talk about horns. One thing that many (not all, natch) cyclists agree on is how much of a pain car horns are. It stinks something rotten to have someone honk at you, especially because it's a looooooot louder outside the car than inside it.

Perhaps you're just trying to let the cyclist know you're there. Awesome for safety! There's a good chance she already knows... unless you're in a prius, and then maybe the large can of Arizona iced tea could be your indicator. (I keed, I keed. Love you and your gas mileage.)

But it's really loud and jarring, and it's already hard enough to share the road with cars. A gentle, teeny honk is OK. But usually the horn means anger and it's also pretty scary.

If you're trying to say "hi" or "RIGHT ON, BIKE RIDERS!!!!!!" you could roll down your window and offer a "woo hoo!" or a thumbs up. We loved getting those on this trip!

Un idea! One of many. Go forth in safety, amigos.

Backwards....

Will's on vacation, so I'm going to write a little about our last day of travel. We slept our last night in Poughkeepsie and took off south and south east. Will will (heh) have to fill you in on his last day.

As I mentioned before, it was probably the most difficult day of riding for the whole trip. One of the hardest things about riding through New York and Connecticut (when you're not on bike routes) is finding good routes. There are a lot of little roads that wander and that go over hills. Big hills. For a little while I felt like I was in Washington again - not because the hills were nearly as high but because of the feeling of constantly climbing. But that's a wholly inaccurate comparison as CT has nothing on WA. But the poor route options were way worse. We ended up taking 34 in CT to get back to New Haven, and normally I really dislike riding this. It's a busy road, but not a major highway. We rode it later at night (our only time riding at night), so it wasn't as bad as it probably is during rush hour.

Another challenge is that the drivers are a little more, shall I say, East Coast-y here, and it felt like a pretty dramatic shift to come into upstate NY and then into CT again. But there were some really nice people, too. Ashley and I stopped at a Middle Eastern restaurant for lunch, and the server took it upon himself to clean our water bottles as he was putting water in. A nice man in a Porsche thought we were lost (we were) and helped give us directions. A couple we ran into in the POURING rain offered to drive us all the way back to New Haven. We declined. (That was my first moment of 'I've ridden across the country and I'll be darned if rain and crappy routes are gonna stop me!')

There are many cyclists in these states and many great rides, but that last day was pretty tough. Probably about a hundred turns taking half a mile on each road with half of it climbing.

We got back to New Haven at about 9:30, ordered Chinese food, and slept a lot. Ashley let me stay at her place since I couldn't get in to my house. (The sub-letters had the keys.)

We have a lot left to write and do, but I need to go work more on my sermon for this Sunday. Since you asked, I'll tll you. It's Canaan United Methodist Church in Canaan, CT (not New Canaan, CT).

Next time... staying in Kinderhook! Riding through Albany!

How do you...?

People ask about the trip, naturally, but I don't know how to describe it. What do you say? Long? Tiring? Ridiculous?

I've noticed a shift in the past couple of days in how everything just feels. We were used to getting up and riding almost everyday. We always had that one thing to do. And then we also had to figure out a route, figure out where we were going to sleep, eat, find water, find bathrooms (yesterday I caught myself making a note of the nearest port-o-potty), check in with each other if we weren't riding together, see if it was snack time, calculate miles, and just try to keep each other's spirits up. Now, I'm packing up my old place, moving in to a new place, writing a sermon, answering emails and phone calls, interviewing for a second job, and visiting friends. It's pretty great, but it's ... different. Shock.

It was also odd to finish the trip apart from my riding buddy. If you do a trip like this with someone, I recommend finishing the trip with that person. I think it makes the ending better. But Ashley and I finished strong into New Haven!

Back to boxes... more profundity later.

Can I tell you about today?

Ashley, Will and I left Poughkeepsie around 9 am. My flat delayed us.from a planned earlier start.  A few miles in to the ride Will left us to keep heading south toward NYC and Ash and I veered southeast.  We had many turns with little distance between and lots, I mean LOTS of hill climbing. It reminded me a little of our.days in Washington, Idaho, and Montana. 

During one hill climb a bee stung me in the face.  Win #1.

I recovered and kept riding.  Then, a person driving a silver prius (!!!!!) with the yellow NY plates threw a full can of Arizona iced tea at me.  He/she missed. That was neat.#2

Some other bug stung me.#3

Then it rained and then it poured.

And then there was rush hour.#56

It was really hard riding today.

BUT! The New Havenites are back! There is so much more to tell you but o think that should wait until we have real keyboards (I'm not.actually at home.yet. long story) And just wait til you see more pictures!

So tomorrow, think of Will and his dad.riding home.  That's pretty great.

My bike is on its last legs

There is so much creakigng and claging in my bike, I am terrified it wont survive. Today i had to stop at nyack bicycle outfitters to get the right shifter fixed because it was slipping to the highest gear.

Why I am still not home

So hopefully, Rachel and Ashley are arrivinng home safely right about now. I am not, even though if it weren't pouring I could probably see the tip of the city. While the rain was a compelling reason to stop, i was already planning to. Not only did I not want to do another 100 mile day this week, but I really want to do the last day with my dad.

For his birthday two years ago, I promised my dad that we would kayak from west point to a landing near our apartment. The trip was derailed by a tornado (ok, a storm that later touched down), so while we will do that, tomorrow is a stand untill we do it

Last day! Almost home!

And one more flat

Today

We are tired. Like yesterday and the day before. I think it's because we are so close to home...and maybe because Will and I started on June 5, more than 3,300 miles ago.

Moving on...

Utica, NY

Two flats, pouring rain

May we get home now?

He doesn't "do" detours

A little adventure for Will

The Mays' place

BAM

Western NY

New Haven

There is a chance we will be home in NH on Tuesday. Want to ride in with us? We will probably be riding in from the Poughkeepsie area that day.  Maybe we should all just ride in to the bike shop and have a bike party.... anyway. 

Will will probably be home in Nyc on the tenth.

Leaving Golden Hill State Park today.

Guess what?

Many Ontario stories to come...

Oh, Canada!

We are off to Ontario today!

Lucky breaks

Outside Kalamazoo, I broke a soke on the drive side of my rear wheel. As I realize i cant get the spoke out, an ex mmechanic, now semi pro racer and team co-owner, Mark drives by. He runs to his house to get parallel wire cutters which let the broken spoke slide out, but he cant get the free wheel off. Because I am riding an older bike, it still has a free wheel system rather than a cassette system. Mark only had a cassette tool, but told me where to go in town. He also mentioned his friend who had comleted race across America in 9 days solo. Someone please look this up.

Luckily, Ashley and Craig, her cousin, who we were staying with camme to get us because my wheel was so wraped it couldnt clear the break enough to roll. When I went to the shop, Alfred E., turns out Mark had called ahead. His teammate Evan and another mechanic were able to fit us in to the packed schedule take a look at Rachels computer and my wheel. Rachels computer is working, but my wheel was done. I will make it into a clock when I get home. Any guidance areciated on that.

Hell's creek is not aptly named

Just had a swim in the nce swimmng pool and now oft to a nce warm shower.

And then there were three...

W ell, but not in the classic sense.  Ashley H has joined us! She's another div student, taking a leap by joining us on this trip.

We left Ashley's awesome cousins' yesterday. Thanks, guys!

We are headed toward Hell Creek in Michigan today. It's rainy!

Homeward bound

Left the northside of Chicago, made it through Indiana, and now in Michigan and back finally in eastern standard time.

Hammond, IN!

After five days in Chicago, we are on our way again!

The bouquet, thrown to me

No comment

Will dancing

With my awesome friend Sandra

A wonderful wedding day!

A treat

Inexpensive sushi in Evanston

Chicago

We are in Chicago, where I used to live.

The first night, We stayed at the White Rose Catholic Worker in Chicago.  If you get a chance, look up some of the history and values of the.Catholic worker movement.  They have a full house at the WR right now, including a young man who just got out of a 6-month prison term for trespassing into the School of the Americas.  It's incredible, humbling, and inspiring to be with people who are.giving their lives to work for peace.  Thank you, friends.  I hope to continue to learn from you.

On Wednesday I got to see a tiny new baby in the DeSantiago-Cardenas family. Super sweet! She folds her legs up like a tiny frog when she's on her mama or dad.  Little Delilah Adele! We love you.

Last night I went to hear my bro's band, the Lowdown Brass Band, play at the Mayne (stage?) Theater on Morse.  They are great and I had mucho fun.  Check 'em out:

http://www.google.com/m?hl=en&gl=us&client=ms-android-verizon&source=android-launcher-widget&action=devloc&q=lowdown+brass+band

Waukegan, IL

"Mmm. You make that outfit look so good, baby."

Repeated

What a champ

What a champ

Colossal failure

Before reading this, mother, please remember I am complete fine. I have not a scratch on me aside from the endless number of mosquito bites on my arm. Keep that in mind as you coontinue reading. For those of you who care, Rachel is fine too.

So for a while now, I've been riding with a bent derailer hanger. Anyone with bike knowledge can now tell me I'm a complete fool. So, I was still able to shift quite easily, but the chain had a tendency to drop if I coasted too long. This didnt happen everytime, so it wasn't easy to gather what was happening. I went to a couple of bike shops, but it was a repair that would have taken a while and as always time was limited to make it to the wedding in Chicago.

After lengthy observation, I have no real clue what was going on but I am guessing the derailer allowed the chain to hang too loose which allowed me cassette to move when the wheel san fast enough, throwing my chain.

After a while I've gotten pretty good about managing to get the chain back on while still on the bike, but recently the chain was falling off the cogs of the derailer. This means I had to get off the bike to fix it, but Chicago was 4 days away. I just had to make it that far.

Saturday, we were climbing out of La Crosse (Wisconsin has real hills, who knew?). Having made it up to St. Josephs Ridge we were going down to Coon Valley. As the names suggest, there is a difference in elevation. The hill was about under a mile of 8%; nothing bad, but I knew my chain would probably be an issue.

I let Rachel go down first, assuming I would need the space and might be a little dangerous to be near. While I was right, it was a big mistake.

Very quickly, the chain fell off, even though I was going slowly (under 25 mph). I tried to pedal it back on and had mitigated success, but it was not to last. The chain fell off and I could feel it was off the derailer. I spotted a pull off where I could fix and tried to maintain control. All of a sudden, the back wheel jammed up and I started skidding out of control. I managed to remain up right. I unclipped as I neared the pull out, braking the whole time. I put down my right foot, unclipping the other foot as I turned into the pullout. I let the bike slid out from under me, and managed to land standing. The bike, protected by my panniers, came to a rest a few feet in front of me.

Sounds pretty badass, right? Thats because I left out the part where I was freaking out like an idiot.

The chain had wrapped itself between the cassette and my spokes, preventing the wheel from spinning.

There was a 50 foot skid mark behind me. It looked awesome. I wore straight through a new gator skin, so there is a quarter sized hole of nothing and scraped thin area in an inch around it. The derailer was bent, the cogs had snapped, but the body of the derailer, and the wheel had survived well.

While I was trying to get my bike fixed on the side of the highway, only three people stopped. Two were bikers who tried to help me before going to explain my predicament to Rachel (she did bike up a mile and a half to help me). The only driver who stopped was a young guy who made sure I was alright before going on to find Rachel. I even tried to hail down the pickups to get a ride to the campsite that was only a mile and a half down the hill. I like to think it means something that in a region of farm land in a state known for being friendly, only someone of my generation stopped. Take that all you who complain about the young. (Sorry for the rant. Its annoying people ignoring your pleas for help.)

Anyway, Rachel made it up the hill, helped me get the chain free, and tape the derailer to the frame. It was downhill all the way to the campsite, so I put a new tube in. The tube looked like a child crowning out of the tire and maybe made it a few rotation before exploding loudly.

After a long walk down, we ended up camping in the town park. Of course, all the bike shops in the nearby towns were closed on Sunday and I couldn't even pedal a foot. However, Rachel's friend Katy (Snacks), who was in the area graciously volunteered to pick us up.

I took my bike to Ben's cyclery in Milwaukee, an awesome bike that has a theater as a warehouse, which managed to squeeze my bike in for reppairs and got me running. They informed me I had also managed to break my freewheel, but its all good now and we head to chicago tomorrow.

Ok. That's it.

More

Lots of kitten fans out there...

my broken spoke

Number 2! We fixed it ourselves and I did a quick true at the campsite. The kittens helped.

Best.campsite.ever.

Cats love bikes. It's a fact.

We are not alone

So I forget who asked us if a book could come of this trip. Yes, this trip is interesting enough to write a book about. However, I think people underestimate the relative ubiquity of this trip.

Some people, upon seeing our bikes, know exactly what we doing. Adventure cycling association ppublishes maps that are quite popular, and back when we were on one of the routes we would see multiple groups a day.

Even, when we were in the middle of South Dakota, far from any routes, we met a couple from Alaska who were doing the trip.

The groups we have seen generally come in three flavors: two young men, a college age couple, or a retired couple. Of course, there are exceptions. We met a father son pair, a married couple between jobs, and even a large group of retired people.

Yesterday, we were lost getting out of st. Paul and a commuting cyclist, Mike, offered to guide us in the direction he was going home (he also let us use his computer to check our route and fed us pizza. Thanks.) He was wearing a cycling shirt that had a cross country route on it. It turned out his wifes family had done it as a big group.

A NY times columnist is doing the trip solo for his second time.

So all types of groups do it.

Life on the road

Fun: pulling into a coffee shop to get out of a storm, meeting the locals, getting a history of the local areas

Less fun: setting out again, only to realize you need to find cover because two bolts of lightning strike a hundred yards down the road

Fun: watching the said lightning from cover

Btw, you were right, Pete. The storm did not break. Thanks again

You had to be there

W: you are such a failure

R: at what?

W: Digesting

R: Racoon!

dear parents

We do indeed take cover when there's lightning. Dear Wisconsin: that's enough for today.

Willard Scott over here

Referring to the thunderstorm with mucho lightning that we are waiting on to pass:

W: "the eye of the storm is passing."

R: (long look)."you're fun."

W: "I know I make up shit."

Prescott, WI

Bring on the cheese curds! We visited some yds/school friends yesterday and today and it was swell.  Now we will head southeast again!

Today

We started off in rain with wet tents stuffed into their bags. Rode in the rain for a while.  The weather cleared. 

Will had the first flat since Montana.  Then I got one later- another staple.  Then I found this broken spoke.  I consulted with Cale, an great bike friend, but couldn't quite get it in.  Plus it was late and we were on the side of a highway.  And mosquitos.

Minnesota: 10,000 lakes and 10,000,000,000,000 mosquitos.  I just went back and added more zeros so that you'll get my point.

If you were to talk to me now I might whine a little, perhaps about this rain jacket that no longer seems to be.waterproof.  But then I'd remember that I'm typing this to you on a phone and about to drink water from a tap and will continue on a bike ride tomorrow.  So.

My dinner involved the following: sardines (in water, NOT in mustard sauce, que no me gustan, cabbage, ramen (the vegan top ramen "oriental" flavor, instant lentil soup mix, and salt.  The sardines and cabbage were on sale.

I ate it in my tent because 10,000 of the mosquitos were hanging around our spot tonight.

70 ish miles.  Le Sueur, MN.  Minneapolis tomorrow, we plan.

Como una jefe

So my theory is that rachel's electric personality combines with the rotation of her rims to create a magnetic field that attracts staples. We were eleven miles from camp and the staple was holding tight, so she decides to ride on it. She makes it six miles. While replacing the tube, she notices a spoke is broken. So right now we are half way done with our first spoke replacement. (All the others were done by shops because I magically only broke spokes there/ only noticed)

It's raining

We have to get on the road.  Some kind of covered space would be awesome right now so we could pack up our stuff and keep it dry


Dems da breaks

Edit: Joyce, the campground host let us eat breakfast on her porch! And we chatted a lot.

the story ended! Well!

So, I contacted devils gear, who knew it would be best if I called Sram directly.  I did all that, and they gave me the option of an Apex in Kalispell or a Force in Whitefish.  I chose Whitefish.  It was on our way to Glacier and..... well....(don't worry if the bike parts stuff doesn't mean anything to ya.)

Ron at Glacier Cyclery was waiting for me!  (It took us about two days to get there.) A Force would have been a sweet upgrade, but the problem was that Force is a road der. and I still needed all my gears for mountain climbing.  So he took an Apex der. off of a stock bike, got a new 10 speed chain, and set me up!  We had fun consulting the numbers and all that just to make sure that the Force wouldn't work.  (And I got my bike math right!) 

So, I'm stick with my big mtn cassette, an Apex Der., and the lovely double in front.  If anyone with a keyboard wants to explain some of this in the comments, please have at it.

I got to meet two local bike shops in all this fun and get really great service. What's your local bike shop?

For Matt

Buffalo Gap National Grassland

Prairies are nice

Caption contest!

At sunset

Go

Why weather matters

Weather changes everything on this trip. It can put a serious damper on a site, like the storm did to mount rushmore, or the setting sun can make the badlands stunning. The wind can push us along and make the day so much fun, or it can sap us of all our energy.

Today the heat destoryed us in the afternoon, plus we lost an hour at the time zone line. we upgraded to a "rustic cabin" for just a bit extra and now we will be sleeping with ac. Amazing

Badlands

24 miles of.riding through the upper part of the park. 


Go to here. It's incredible.

Badlands

Cute. Lethal.

Well...

Two more faces

Wyoming, just before South Dakota

He already had a new tire

Deadman's Basin - MT

Cheat?

I have a clear conscience.


sundance, WY

We cheated :(

Many years from now when I brag about this trip, I hope no one finds this blog because I will lie through my teeth about today. We are taking a ride.

Honestly, it pains me to take this ride and I can't forgive myself. I know there's no excuse. That being said, here's my list of excuses:

1: It is the fourth of July. Not only do we deserve a holiday, it is a bad day to ride. We got buzzed so many times yesterday, I was scarred about riding today.

2. I am suffering two mechanical issues. My seat bolt is stripped so badly that after I made a small adjustment the seat wont stay tight. Its fine to ride, but uncomfortable. Also, my tire has a two inch gash on the top layer; the bottom layer is fine but still not what I want to ride on. I have a back up tire in Sheridan. Of course, all bike shops are closed today.

3. We have a dealine. Rachel has to be in Chicago by the 21st. This ride saves us a day, which cuts our average by 5 miles a day. Trust me, that makes a huge difference.

4. The ride is mostly south. We are only gaining 45 miles east. We have done more extra than that. In fact, from Seattle to Billings it is only 822 miles on roads. We have done over 1500 miles already. Just going to glacier pretty much covered this trip. If we had gone straight to chicago from seattle, we would be 500 miles outside it right now.

5. There was no camping on the Res, so we had no idea where we would camp tonight.

6. We havent taken a full day off, so we like the rest after our two past big days.

7. Rachel's Steripen needed its battery replaced. She did not know this. Bad water makes a day even harder.

8. Our hosts just happened to be going to Sheridan. Plus, they are hilarious. We have been laughing none stop.

Ive had a lot of time to come up with these excuses.

If it isnt obvious, i feel bad about taking this ride, but I'm enjoying the AC. Rachel calls it tactical advancing. I guess part of this trip is not letting my ego in the way of enjoying the trip.

I will deny this every happened in the future

Big rides

Yesterday, I did my first century ride. Admittedly, I did not set any speed and I had to turn around to get the remaining 4.62 miles to make it a clean 100, but I did every mile with the panniers on. There was even a headwind most of the day.

There was a point when we didnt think we would make it to our fallback of 70 miles.

Of course, today was the opposite. We started really strong for the first 20 miles, but hit a rough headwind that destroyed us in a valley. As it was our hottest day yet, it descimated us. In fact, the only reason we made it to 100 was a thunderstorm gave us a massive tailwind that allowed us to clear 20 miles in little over an hour. Of course, it eventually caught us and we had to take shelter, which was a blessing in disguise. A couple in a car pointed us to an airpport hanger where some WWII planes were on display as part of a show. We just missed the B52 trying to land in the thunderstorm.

Hi!

We stopped in missoula for a night and had a really great time thanks to some new friends.  We had had a second 80 mile day and were pooped.  Having a futon to sleep on was simply maaaaarvelous.  Thanks, Roe and co.! 

Then we proceeded east on 200 out of missoula and camped at the Russell Gates campground.  RG is one of Montana's many fishing campgrounds. Note: MT charges you more to visit, camp, and fish if you are not a resident. 

Then we headed to Helena, which promised a campsite on the state map but did not deliver. We were pooooped again, and in asking a family at the park if they knew of a campground close, Will secured us a place to sleep on the family's new lot.  Way to go, W!  Conversation can be so productive!  Also, we cleared the continental divide at McDonald Pass, which was much easier than Washington Pass, possibly because we were already much higher.

Will got a voice recorder and a small radio in Helena, and the radio has been super sweet.  Classic rock has re-entered my life and it is indeed a pleasure.  Also, it keeps the extrovert AND the introvert happy on this trip.

Yesterday we made it to Skidway campground in Helena National Forest. We saw a moose!

Most of hwy 200, 12, and 294 have been incredibly beautiful. I saw one of the most beautiful places I've seen in through rolling hills out here. The photo is on my camera, though, so it will have to wait until August.

Will is pounding back the trailmix and encouraging me to eat more. I'm trying. I learned that a cinnamon roll is not good for a ride snack. Calorically it's fine, but it sits heeeeavy. Will knew this. I did not. So riding yesterday was tough for me. Will says I did not train right for the trip. That is, not enough junk food.

We are aiming for 90 miles today, so I better jet!

Also! I left some shorts and a jersey somewhere. Maybe missoula. So, I'm down to two shorts and oneish jersey. .:)

Still here!,

Super long days, little juice, and little reception, though.

Two nights!

Two nights in one place means laundry time! But then we went hiking and I got mud on some clothes.

I kind of miss dressing up nicely...and being clean. And grooming. I need to buy a comb. My one skirt is falling apart, as well, and I need to get a sewing kit. I also should have brought some pants, as hiking in leggings is not ideal.

Amigos, when you see me, pardon the mess.

Yesterday

So we have been hanging around glacier for a few days now in the hopes that we could ride the road to the sun. The rumor was that the crew clearing the snow took sundays off, letting peopple ride all the way to where they had cleared. However, yesterday was the first sunday the didnt take off. The snow pack is 180% more than normal this year.

So we went for a hike upto avalache lake. A bit of a muddy trail, but the lake was amazing. Anyway, we continued down the trail until we found a snow mass we then climbed a few hundred feet up and then sledded down on our butts. Not a bad consolation prize

Avalanche lake

See the snow mass on the right? We climbed that. 


Awesome scrambling and a good slide down.  Wish we had hiking gear.

Glacier

Back in Stanpoint, I teased Rachel about the series of flats she was having. Well now the tables have turned. I have had two flats where the tubes had upwards of three or four holes in different places. Right now, im hoping the tire will still have air tomorrow.

On the other hand, there are worse places to be stuck than in glacier national forest. It is amazing here. I wish my phone would let me upload photos to the blog.

On the advice of the guys at glacier bicylcery in white fish we are hanging out in glacier until Sunday, so we can ride as high as possible on the road to the sun. With luck, we can get to the weeping wall.

Sidenote, chris at the bike shop totally tuned up my bike. I went in just to get the rear brake tightened (of course, it was because a spoke was broken), but he found and fixed a couple other problems.

Also, our fellow campers have been great. The people next to us fed us great pineapple cobbler, and would have even given us some chicken if we had not already eaten. In other news, Im approaching my goal of 4000 calories a day. I've taken to having a quart of 2% milk for dinner. Life is good in glacier

Story pt 3

...been in Dennis's garage for 35 years. One day someone asked him to work on their bike, and it all took off from there.  He went to UBI (mechanic school in OR) some time ago.

Dennis didn't have an Apex or any other sram compatible 10 speed in stock, but he put on a sram x-9.  Not ideal, but better than a single speed. 

We also talked a lot. He recently revamped his diet, he has 4 or 5 gardens, bakes his own bread, attends an Assemblies of God church, and has four kids.  He's looking to retire soon, what with all the fancy new bike changes happening.  ("Did you know they make eleven speed now?")  But to me it seemed like the shop is gonna be around a long time.  Thank goodness.

But you can't ride a 9 speed derailleur on a 10 speed cassette with a cobbled-together 10 speed chain for long. So...

Story, pt.2!

Joyce and Frank drove me to Troy Bicycle Shop, which has ...

A story! Pt.1

Just outside of Clark Fork, MT, my derailleur broke.  In half. About 3 miles from the nearest anything.

Some other tourers passed us and told some of the folks ahead that some busted cyclists might be coming through. We were greeted warmly when we arrived at the convenience store, directed to a nearby campsite, and were even offered some free firewood.  Later on, an older couple stopped by to tell me that they'd be taking me to Libby or Troy the next day.  We met up at 9 the next morning and they drove me, my bike and gear and panniers, and will's gear to libby and then to Troy to find a shop.  Will had a fun ride up 56 in the meantime. 

The couple, Frank and Joyce, are United Methodists and were delighted to hear that I will be serving in a UMC church in Connecticut soon.  Joyce is a retired nurse and Frank a retired geologist.  They live off of hwy 56 near Nixon, MT. We talked a bit about life out there and tensions with Libby over the mines. 

They dropped me in Troy at....(more soon!)

Glacier national park

We have so many posts but each takes quite a bit of juice. So until then, here's this!

Also, my friends Rebecca and Jacob just had a baby! Welcome, little Esther. See you soon.

Ortlieb

One of the clips on one of my rear panniers broke a few miles after we got back from canada. I went over some railroad tracks and heard a snap.

Our panniers are made by ortlieb, which is known for its good quality. So, i was a little suprised and annoyed it broke. We were able to make it rideable and once we got back in cellphone range we called ortlieb.

Rachel's rear derailer broke, but sram is providing her an upgrade once we get to white fish. Soon, hopefully we can write a positive about sram.

Ian at ortlieb usa only asked for a picture of the damage, approved the warranty, and mailed out the replacement part the next day. I got it monday, installed it, and have been riding great since. Great customer service like that really means alot when you are riding cross country.

Sam Owen campground, outside Hope, ID

Wauconda, Washington

Hey, so we decided to stay in this wonderful place called Sandpoint. We ended up in a bike shop (greasy fingers) for a little longer than we planned, and we didn't want to try to beat rush hour traffic. So here we are in the bike friendly motel, K2.

Its our first motel stop and it will be nice to go out to dinner showered and not have to sleep on the ground.

I really want to do a summary post of washington, but I need a bit to figure it all out, but last Sunday we stayed in this awesome little town.

Wauconda, Washington is a town owned by one family, in so much as they own the post office, the grocery store, the gas stop, and the restaurant. Of course, it's all one building. I tried to take a photo, but Rachel's rear tire blocked the entire town.  The owners knew we were coming into town, and remembered our names when we went in for breakfast. The RV park was outside the old schoolhouse where the park's owner was a student. A great town.

Check out this article on waucounda.

Sandpoint, ID

Yesterday!

We enjoyed our leisure tour of Washington.  Now Idaho!

Kettle Falls, WA

Delicious breakfast and helpful directions!