I was going through some old photos, and found this one. It was toward the start of our ride across the U.S. We were on our third day riding from the Pacific Coast and were traveling pretty light. Our route, U.S. Highway 20, went right by our house, and we were going spend the night there. I was also going to put on my front rack and panniers for the rest of the trip.

My wife forgot one of her water bottles at a convenience store about 1 mile back. I told her I'd ride back to get it, and this was my victory sign on the return. I was riding my cross bike, a Bianchi Volpe, with two rear panniers, and camping gear on the back. I also had a bar bag. The bike was very stable, and there was never any "tail wagging the dog" problems.