Trans-Am tips

A friend of Boy Blunder’s sister sent along some tips about the Trans-Am. I’ve included several of them here:

1) Missouri drivers were the rudest (think beer cans thrown at your head from moving vehicles). Don't provoke them...they will aim for you. Kansas drivers were wonderful.
2) Buy a big box of large dog biscuits. Keep them handy in a front handlebar bag. These serve two purposes - as weapons and distractions for the PACKS of dogs that chase bicycles out of hollers in Kentucky (and other SE states). Truly lifesaving tools when you have five dogs on every side of you. Throw at the nose - surprises them and they are generally starving and will stop to eat the biscuit.
3) Sun-protective lightweight clothing! I wore a jog bra with a long-sleeved sun protective jacket the entire time. Not a bit of sunburn and amazingly comfortable.

I may disregard the first and second tips but not the third. I think I can rock that look – jog bra and boy blunder cape! How that might exasperate tips one and two, I can’t be sure. But for the sake of social science and personal comfort, I’m dedicated to trying it until the first projectile leaves a jacked-up truck window or a slobbering dog gums at my cape.

Speaking of beer cans and hounds, I’ve decided that if my adventure is going to be successful I need a wingman (or wingwoman), someone to ride shotgun (possibly literally). So I’ve put out a Superhero call-to-arms. The applications have started to roll in. So this week, I’ll be reviewing them and setting up interview times.

T-Minus 3.5 weeks

I did the test pack this weekend and was surprised that everything fit and there was even space for food. And I'm not talking about a clif bar jammed in a side pocket. The weight of the dry bag with tent, tarp, sleeping bag and pad was 9 pounds, the pannier with clothing was 10, pannier with gear was 12 and the handlebar bag was 6 pounds. So all told, the gear weighs less than 40 pounds. But when I add food and the mini-keg, it's going to increase significantly.

I must have been day dreaming of all the food that I could fit in the pannier when I wrecked. But even with the wreck, I managed back to back 100 mile days. For the trip, all I have to do is 28 more consecutively...

That beach vacation is sounding awfully good!

Boy Blunder bounces!!!

Boy Blunders bounce - just like that loveable character from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer! I wasn’t setting out on Saturday to test this particular hypothesis but nonetheless it can now be stated as fact.

I was riding up near Petaluma. Along a stretch of road with little to no shoulder, I was jolted from my daydream when my wheels dropped off the pavement. As I tried to stay out of the ditch and get back on the road, I suddenly found myself and the bike horizontal. It’s interesting to note how the space/time continuum shifts when you’re flying through the air at 25 mph. As physics tells us, for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction. So what was slow in the air was accelerated when I returned to terra firma. The first thing to hit was my backside followed in quick succession by my back, shoulder and head as I skidded down the highway (and that boys and girls is why you should always wear a helmet)! Luckily, there was no traffic and so the only observers were some nearby diary cows.

After a quick check of bike and body, the only thing that had suffered damage was my left hindquarter and the shorts that had been covering it. So back on the bike I went for the 40 mile ride back to San Francisco. The only problem was the very large hole in my shorts and the very white butt cheek showing. And of course, it had to be on the left side so that every passing car could appreciate it.

All this and the adventure hasn’t even officially begun.

T-minus 4 weeks

I'm not sure if the pit in my stomach is from nerves or bad mu shu pork. White Lightnin' is still at the bike shop. The part that had to be ordered wasn't exactly shipped. Well, a box was shipped with bike parts. However, my part was noted on the shipping manifest as Quantity 0.

I took advantage of the fabulous weather in SF last weekend to put in 100+ miles on saturday followed by a morning of climbing the headlands on sunday. No body parts fell off and I still had plenty of energy to celebrate the weather with late night revelry.

On tap for this weekend - the big test pack. Followed by weighing all the gear. And then some foul language and a reassessment of the packing list. Stove and fuel? I don't need to eat hot food or make coffee; I'll just eat dirt and small reptiles!

T-Minus 5 weeks

Things are slowly starting to come together:

My vacation request was approved.

The plane ticket to VA is purchsed - a lovely redeye through Philly to Williamsburg.

White Lightnin' is at the bike shop getting an overhaul. This is no joke. When you resurrect a nearly 20 year old bike, it takes more than cosmetic surgery. In this case, that means new crank, both derailleurs, chain, shifters and saddle. White Lightnin' was the very first road bike that I bought. I remember that a high school friend said that he paid the same amount for his first car - $400. Soon, my dear old steel frame triple crank friend and I will be reunited on the road - for better or worse.

The packing list is of constant worry as I haven't done a test pack yet. I have a feeling that all my gear will fit but there will be no room for food. Or as Boy Blunder's brother says "You'll have so much weight on the back that you'll be riding a wheelie across the country." I refuse to have front panniers - just a vanity thing. Plus, I need to keep the bike as light as possible.

Hmm...what's that leave. Oh right, fitness. I'm still not convinced that I can maintain an average of 116 miles a day. This is what really keeps me up at night. Not so much the miles - but the miles with a fully loaded bike. Guess it's time to man up!