(Written May 8th, 2018)
There’s something about travelling with your entire life strapped onto you. Something that is so liberating, being able to have everything you need to survive within arm’s reach. Traveling at a slower pace than the hustle and bustle that everyday life tends to go at. Going to bed and waking up with the sun. Spending every moment in the fresh air, rain or shine, hell or high waters. Giving up the luxuries that we tend to take for granted in our normal lives. Meeting strangers on the side of the road who extend such a profound kindness that it restores your faith in humanity. There is a stillness that accompanies you when you free yourself from all the constraints that you’ve allowed to be set.
I fell in love with all these things last year when I thru hiked the Appalachian Trail (AT) in my gap year between high school and university. Biking across America was always in the back of my mind as something else I could do after my hike. Another way I could see this beautiful world in a sustainable way. Another way to push myself past my limits, see what I am capable of and to allow the kindness of humanity to be further engrained upon me. Something that I could knock off in the few months that I get as my summer. I realized, however, that I have the capacity to do good in this world, as do you. I’ve gotten a lot of beautiful things out of this world and will probably continue to do so. I want the capacity to extend that beauty to every soul I meet and every soul I do not meet. I want this Earth to be around to be cherished for generations to come. I want to preserve and protect what has protected me. So, I decided to try and raise $1 for every mile I bike, to donate to the Sierra Club. I want to spread positivity from Virginia to Oregon, and help others see just how much good and beauty are in the world, because we all know how difficult it is to see it sometimes.
Two of my brave amigos, Jenny and John, decided to join me upon being intrigued by the same things that lured myself to the quest. Together, this Saturday we will head down to Yorktown, Virginia and then leave from there Sunday and begin our 4,288-mile journey to Astoria, Oregon. We will be riding along the Trans American bike route, one of Adventure Cycling’s many bike friendly routes around the country. This route can be traveled east to west or west to east and goes through Virginia, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and finally Oregon.
I decided that I was embarking on this journey sometime in January, where I promptly kicked myself for not deciding earlier and scoring some bike gear as Christmas presents. With a quick look into my bank account and some calculations of how long summer is, how much ramen noodles and instant Idahoan potatoes cost and of how strong my will is, I decided I could make this work. It wouldn’t be easy, but nothing worth achieving ever really is. I began my search for a trusty steed to take me across the country. After a month or two of looking for the perfect bike, that also fit my budget, I happened across a Trek 520, which is a very nice, steel touring bike, from the 90’s in pretty good shape, and the best part? Only $200! My trail friend Surly, who had biked the TransAm before and has been my biking guru since I decided to do this thing, gave me his stamp of approval and I went ahead and gave the guy a call. I met up with him and took it for a spin and knew it would be a perfect fit. The man said he had gotten a couple better offers on the bike but he liked that a young person was getting into the sport of cycling so he decided to sell it to me for the original asking price. I took that as a lovely sign that the universe is on my side, and willing to work with me to make this dream a reality.
In the months since, I have been doing my research and gathering the necessary items. I have also been coming up with many excuses of why I don’t need to spend money on certain things that experienced cyclists and people who know what they are doing say I really should get. I’ve been hounding the nice fellas at the bike shop for all their wisdom and help with the many questions and bike challenges I faced in getting my bike in cross country shape. I’ve also been trying to get out on my bike as much as possible; whenever there isn’t a foot of snow or I don’t have to work, or go to class or do homework that is. It’s been tough but it has also been an excellent excuse to avoid some of my responsibilities. I probably managed to ride an average of 3 to 4 times a week trying to get anywhere between 10 and 20 miles. Every now and then when I was able to free myself for more than an hour or two I would do longer rides. My longest ride thus far has been only about 40 miles, I am banking on the human body’s ability to adapt to make up for my lack of lengthy rides. After all, I will have plenty of length rides on the road ahead of me.
I fashioned some panniers (basically backpacks for a bike) out of some old kitty litter tubs by drilling a couple holes and putting some hooks in them (thanks mom!). Not a conventional nor efficient method of carrying luggage across the country but it was free and I like its comedic affect so we shall we if it works. My dad painted them black and put some reflective tape on them (thanks dad!) and that is how I shall carry my few belongings this summer. I had all of my camping stuff from the AT, what I will be carrying over to this trip is my tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, and a trekking pole to set up my tent. Things that I will need for the bike portion of the trip: my bike, a single rear bike rack, my kitty litter tubs, two water bottles and water bottle holders, a camel back for extra hydration, a multi tool, a small hand pump, inner tube patches, an extra inner tube, lights, a rear-view mirror, chain lube, tire levers, extra brake and derailleur cables. The clothing that I will be taking is as follows: one pair of padded bike shorts, a pair of athletic shorts, a pair of merino wool leggings, one shirt/ tank top for riding, a long sleeve shirt, a rain coat, a puffy jacket, 2 pairs of socks (one for riding, one always dry pair for lounging), 1 sports bra, 1 pair of underwear, a pair of riding (moms old weight lifting) gloves, some glove liners for chilly mornings/evenings, 2 buffs, sunglasses, a helmet, and I may bring along an extra shirt for town and laundry days, I haven’t decided quite yet. I will be riding in my tennis shoes (which is a big no-no if you ask any cyclist) but we will see how it works, and I will be bringing my crocs along for when I am off the bike. Some other things that will be making the trek with me are a first aid kit (basically athletic tape and gauze), a sewing kit, my jetboil and a spork, a rechargeable phone battery, Dr. Bronners soap, toothbrush/paste, bike lock, and a journal and pen. I tried to keep it down to the bare essentials, I am sure I’ll end up sending some things home and picking up some things along the way though, but it is all part of the process.
It is getting down to crunch time now and there are many unknowns ahead of me. I don’t know how I’m going to navigate across the country, I don’t know where I will lay my head each night, and I don’t know what challenges lay ahead of me. I do know that the human spirit is capable of achieving anything it sets its mind to, I do know that the human body adapts to what is needed of it, and I do know that no matter how things play out this summer, I am going to be alright, one way or another. With a positive mind set and a good sense of humor by my side, I look forward to the bloody difficult road ahead, and many uphill climbs. Miley Cyrus said it best “it ain’t about how fast you get there, it ain’t about whats waiting on the other siddeeeeee, it’s the climb”.
Come back here every two weeks for an update of life on the road. Until then, do good things, and be good to others. Oh, and share the road please!
Peace and love,
Lynne “Lioness” Wummel
