I was starting to look for flights and hotels to do this, and was on the fence due to the cost. I guess that settles it. My wife had suggested I do it as an incentive to lose 20 pounds. The problem is I'd have to pay up front before I lost the weight. I'm a one-time Seattle resident that did this 5 or 6 times in the 80s.

I'm thinking of doing a few days of RAGBRAI instead. That is done by lottery, as is Bike New York/5 Boro. Last year BNY sold out in a day, this year they did a lottery and cut off.

Whatever happened to just getting on your bike and riding...