chunkyd

While i've not done any research as of yet..just in the idea phase. I find these adventures help keep me motivated. The tour i was on earlier this year was amazing but my back is too destroyed to camp on the ground and i ended up having to call it quits waaaay to early..So a long self supported tour like that is out of the picture....unless i suddenly become a millionaire and can stay in hotels wherever i'd like and have a bus follow me...hahaha

My first idea is something to raise $$ for Cancer...(i have some family members fighting for life as i type.....yes...Members) i was thinking 50 states 50 rides... or something like that.. i'd like it to be
something different..but just surfing for ideas...

I don't want to deal the actual $$ donations so ...i was thinking of just linking to Livestrong or ACS
at the end of the day... perhaps with a little bar of how much has been raised...

Thought's... ideas?... just trying to keep myself motivated for next year and do something to help.

txvintage

Hitting all 50 states may be more of a logistical nightmare than you think. This doesn't even take into consideration the cost of getting yourself and a bike to Hawaii and Alaska.

I dunno, maybe if you could plan on driving to a location where you could ride where 4 states share a corner, or close, you might be able to do something like 4 states in 2 days or so, but that's still gonna take some driving and hotel expense.

Your travel route would look like someone was playing on an etch-a-sketch and had a seizure.

bbeck

sounds like something to work for.

Herbie53

I want to do this someday...

https://www.letapedutour.com/2010/ETD...s/parcours.htm

Bit rich for next year, but it's a good reason to go ride hills!

Neil_B

What were you sleeping on? I don't recall your gear list, but did you carry a sleeping pad in addition to a sleeping bag and tent? I find a sleeping pad is the difference between sleep and no sleep for me.

chunkyd

TxVintage - Yeah i have to say..i think your right.... but I'm at least hoping for a couple week journey, I'd drive for sure and couch surfer was pretty successful in the past, I'd use some hotels as a backup. It would be cool to document it also with my film cameras but that would be extra not a top priority.

Herbie53 - I'm pretty sure those hills would claim this mans life! hahah a motorcycle would struggle pulling me up those hills! hahah

Historian - How is your tour planning going?
also I had a basic 2 man tent, sleep pad and bag... my back has always been a problem when it comes to the ground...haha.. no MRI (x-ray only) but i have some pretty nasty looking disk per my practitioner... but he said thier not ruptured yet. Also found out my right hip tilts quite a bit higher than the left..making it very close to the nerves..so wrong twist,lifting and sleeping hit me instantly.
It gets better as i lose the weight and use better mechanics..but still a touch and go thing sometimes ahha

Neil_B

You might want to work with a physical therapist on the biomechanical problems. You could probably get your pelvis a little more level. Do you have legs of uneven length? Bow legs or knocked knees? I find some mild stretching useful on tour, and it really helps before a long day of riding.

I've used both a foam rubber and an inflatable sleep pad, and I'm not sure which I prefer. The inflatable tends to deflate under my weight.

My tour planning is going OK. I've found state parks across Ohio I can camp in, and they are cheaper than the parks here in PA.

Neil_B

May I suggest two alternatives? Either the Katy Trail in MO, or the Great Allegheny Passage and C & O Canal Towpath from Pittsburgh to DC.

In the latter case, it's easily a 1-2 week trip if you throw in the connecting Montour trail (380 miles total.) There are relatively inexpensive hostels and B & B along the way to stay in, and you ride through a large part of the history of the US: industrial towns, railroad tunnels and bridges, canal towpaths, Civil War battlefields and river crossings, Antietam, Harpers Ferry, DC.

Cyril 

try a hammock.
i use one and sleep better in it than i do at home.
Cyril

cod.peace

How about starting or ending a New England tour by riding the Pan Mass Challenge? It is the country's original bike charity and 100% of donations go to the Jimmy Fund, for cancer research and treatment at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute of Boston. It's a 2-day ride from Sturbridge or Wellesley, MA out to Provincetown at the tip of Cape Cod. Fundraising is steep though - last year was $4200 for the full 2-day ride although they do have shorter ones with lower fundraising limits.

chunkyd

The Historian - That Great Allegheny Passage sounds pretty interesting....i'll start researching... any chance you wanna join up or attempt to hahah How long are you planning to be on the road?

Cod.peace - I'll looking at that now...seems pretty cool...i think logistically i need to keep it simple and straightforward instead of trying to make it some big complicated trip hahah ..i do however like the idea of the donation just going strait to American Cancer Society or Livestrong as the $170 reg fee and donation minimums just add to the complications. Thanks for the link..!!!!

Neil_B

Chris, my summer plans are Pittsburgh to Chicago. I don't plan on riding the Passage or towpath next year, but depending on your schedule I might be able to join you for a day around Harpers Ferry, which is about three hours from my home.

Here's a budget indoor tour on the GAP and C & O, starting on the Montour Trail from BF poster Spinnaker's home. I've plotted this to hit the cheapest indoor lodging; there are many other places to stay along the way, of course:

McKees Rocks, PA to Boston, PA, 60 miles by trail, 30 by roads, stay at the Yough Shore Inn, 45 dollars.
Boston to Ohiopyle, 55 miles, stay at Falls Market, 70 bucks
Ohiopyle to Meyersdale, 41 miles, stay at Allegheny Trail Hostel, 15 dollars.
Meyersdale to Hancock, MD, 80 miles, stay at C & O Cycles bunkhouse, 10 dollars (the 80 miles includes a 16 mile continuous downhill at a 2 per cent grade.)
Hancock to Knoxville, MD, 62 miles, stay at AYH Hostel, 24 bucks.
Knoxville, MD to DC - 60 miles.

chunkyd

Historian - Thanks for the ideas...i've been looking at pictures and ride logs of folks that have done that route, it's pretty fantastic looking. I might just do that ride on my own and not try to make a
event out of it...hahah.. Bring my cameras and take plenty of pictures. Thanks for the help..

I'll let you know more about my plans.. it would be cool to meet up and perhaps i can pretend i can beat you at chess..hahah, grab some coffee in one of those famous northeast cafes.

If you need any help planning stuff around chicago let me know..

StephenH

I never did much like the idea of touring for a cause. I guess it just always sort of came across wrong. I'm all in favor of having fun by cycling or touring, and I'm all in favor of supporting charity work. But I'd just as soon not combine the two.

As far as touring goes, my currrent ambition is to go to Paris. Specifically, Paris, Texas, which is about 90 miles from here (I'm in Garland). Then from there to Hugo, Ok, and back one day, then from there to Bonham and back the next day, then back home. Don't have a date set yet. This would be a motel thing, which Paris is well supplied with. Hugo was my mother's home town, and the highway between there just looks interesting. The trip to Bonham would make for a PBP event (Paris-Brest-Paris is a famous randonneuring event normally abreviated PBP). I've always wanted to find the Jesus-in-cowboy-boots statue in the Paris cemetery there, too.

I've slept on the ground on occasion with mixed results. First off, I found the thinner you are, the better you fit the ground. But I also found it took some getting used to. I spent three nights backpacking in Guadalupe Mountains National Park. It was cold and windy and as soon as I ate supper, there was nothing to do but crawl into my sleeping bag to stay warm. Well, the first night, I woke up every half hour, it seemed like. The second night, I woke up two or three times. The third night, I slept right through, 12 hours. Of course, that won't solve back issues, but just general comfort issues can sort of correct themselves. A good pillow helps, too.

I was at the Tourist Information place up on Hwy 75 at the Red River on Saturday, and picked up a bunch of brochures of places that sounded interesting. Does Flatonia sound like a Clyde's paradise or what? Big Bend was fun, but I've never cycled there. I've never been to Lost Maples. I've been through Langtry, but it was after dark, and never been to Ft. Davis. Marfa was a neat place, very different from here. I wonder if a cyclist can keep up with the Texas State Railroad? So many places, so little time...

chunkyd

Hey Stephen - I kind of agree with you on the Charity event thing but i want to be able to make a statement for my ailing family members, Instead of just doing a already existing event..kind of a this is for you type of thing..but the fund-raising would go directly to a real charity..no $$$ to me.

Your ride plans sound cool! i rode the Greenville Cotton Patch ride and had some fun... i was a little worried about riding around on Texas roads..i heard so many horror stories..i never rode down when i live here previously.

When do you ride locally? You mind a tag-a-long? I'm in the HEB area.

StephenH

I normally ride in the evenings when I get home from work, ride on Saturday mornings either at the bike shop here in Garland or a charity ride, and ride various places (such as out to White Rock Lake) on Sunday afternoons.