America by Bike

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[americabybike]

So it's been a while since I've written on here. I guess I just needed a little break from updating. I didn't intend to just let this website stop at once, and for that, I apologize. I'm going to try to recount my adventures after the trip, but I'm not promising the most exciting material - certainly not as exciting as riding across the country. =P Anyway, after I left the group at Oregon, I headed to Vancouver to go to a media conference called SIGGRAPH. I'm not going to go too much in detail with this because it doesn't really pertain to cycling, but it was super exciting to be around so many people in the media industry. I got to talk with Disney, Pixar, Framestore, and so many more large companies. I even had an interview with Disney Animation Studios! Anyway, the conference lasted for about a week, then I got on a plane to head home. Even though the airport lost my luggage (which was found and delivered later), it was so nice to be home again. As soon as I walked outside the airport, it was extremely apparent that I was in the humidity that was North Carolina in summertime. I got to eat local food and meet with so many of the people that followed my blog. If I didn't get to see you in the few days that I was home, I apologize. If you'd like to reach me, just comment and I'll be happy to hear what you have to say. Last weekend, I went home to pick up my bike box! It has been almost a month since I've touched a bike and that feels like way too long. I put it together and rode it around a few times. The feeling of flying is still there after so many days on the bike. It's a feeling I'll probably never grow tired of. I also received a package from across the ocean! Many thanks to Brendan Traynor for sending me awesome socks! It was such a great early birthday present. I've already worn them around campus a lot, but haven't gotten a chance to write about it until now. Thanks again! On Friday, I was feeling a little down due to being loaded with school work. I decided to take a break for about an hour and a half to climb the mountain I trained on - Elk Mountain. It looked really cloudy and sure enough, as soon as I reached the start of Elk Mountain, it started pouring. It didn't let up until I got to the top. Due to the weather conditions and my lack of recent riding, I didn't expect to beat any of my times, but I was very wrong. I beat all of my ascending times! I didn't beat all my descending times because I was being careful on the wet road. One thing I noticed different about going up the mountain now is that my legs weren't suffering at all. It was all a heart workout for me. I imagine that if I do enough cardio, I can shave another few minutes off my time. Pretty exciting! I'll get around to doing the last two week's videos eventually! I promise! Thanks all of you for following the blog and thanks to all the ACA riders that joined me on this adventure of a lifetime! Until next time Alex

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[americabybike]

Day 80

Salmonberry park OR to Florence OR I MADE IT ACROSS THE COUNTRY! I woke up and had a nice breakfast with the group before heading out this morning for one last time. The plan was to meet at a cafe in Waldport so we could ride to the shore together. I was extremely excited about making it across the country, so I pushed very hard to our meeting spot. The air was cool and the shade from the surrounding mountains made the morning a little chilly. I told myself that if I felt cold, I should just push harder to warm up, and that plan worked pretty well. I actually was the first of the group to make it to Waldport. Bob L got there a few seconds after me, so we headed a few blocks over to see the shore after 12 weeks. The view of the ocean might have been small, but it was there in front of us after all the cycling we've done. My dad and brother drove up next to me shortly after I saw the ocean and it was very nice to see them! We all headed to the little cafe to meet up with the rest of the group. I ordered way too much food, as I normally do, and had a great time talking with everyone and seeing how excited everyone was. After our meal, we got back on the bikes and rode together on highway 101 down the coast to where we would dip our front wheels in the ocean. It was such an amazing feeling to be on the beach again after all this time. We took plenty of pictures with the help of my dad and brother. We still had quite a bit of cycling to go after the wheel dipping though. We had over 30 miles to go on a pretty busy highway to get to Florence for our final night. The wind was blowing hard, but for once, it was to our back. Whenever I got off the bike to take pictures, the wind would almost blow me over. It made those beachside mountain climbs a lot easier than they would've been otherwise. I've organized the things I need to take with me on my plane ride and I've taken my bike to the bike shop to be shipped back home. Tonight, I will join the group for the farewell dinner where we will celebrate riding across the country. Thank you all so much for following my journey! I plan on writing a bit more about the trip later on when I get more time to write, but for now, that's it! Stats Part 1 Miles: 31.9 Time: 1 hour 55 minutes Average MPH: 16.6 Max MPH: 29.3 Elevation gain: 975 feet Max elevation: 342 feet Part 2 Miles: 33.7 Time: 2 hours 11 minutes Average MPH: 15.4 Max MPH: 34.7 Elevation gain: 1,700 feet Max elevation: 440 feet Keep in touch! I'll be editing a video of the last two weeks and a long video of my entire trip! Until next time Alex

[americabybike]

[americabybike]

Day 79

Harrisburg OR to Salmonberry park OR This has been a wonderfully beautiful and short day. I'm posting this in Alsea, the town before camp, because I've been told there's no service in camp. I purposefully separated from the group again today for multiple reasons. After research, I found a different route that was shorter, had less traffic, and had less climbing than the other route. My route took smaller roads rather than the more populated road the group was taking. The road started winding about 12 miles in and got pretty steep for about 4 miles. The scenery was beautiful! The trees canopied the street and made the trip up mostly in the shade. The journey down was even better, as it passed the Alsea Falls. The road was winding until I got to Alsea. I've been stopped for a little over an hour just relaxing before I head to camp. It's been a really nice day of riding and I can't believe tomorrow is my last day of riding. I'll post stats tomorrow after I finish today's ride. Until tomorrow Alex

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[americabybike]

Day 78

Mckenzie Bridge OR to Harrisburg OR Today had been a very easy day. We are still traveling down from the mountains from yesterday. There's not really much to talk about today as I didn't stop much. The ride was easy, so I just got into a rhythm and rolled on through today's ride without any trouble, even though it was a 70 mile day. The air was cool and the scenery was nice. The one place I stopped today was a little diner in Vida where I ate with Jeff, Brendan, Bob L, Adell, and Christi. I had one massive pancake with an egg and sausage. I headed on after that and the route began to have pretty rolling hills. It's a shame I got so into today's ride that I forgot to take pictures like I usually do. It was just a really nice day of riding. I got to camp in Harrisburg and lounged around until we went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner. The sun is just starting to set, and I'm excited for the next couple days of riding. Stats Miles today: 70.6 Time: 4 hours 47 minutes Average MPH: 14.7 Max MPH: 34 Elevation gain: 679 feet Max elevation: 1,324 feet Until tomorrow Alex

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[americabybike]

Day 78

From yesterday because I didn't have service. Sisters OR to Mckenzie Bridge OR Today has been one of my favorite days of the trip so far! I was woken up by Dave, who regularly is the last to leave. I had slept in far longer than I expected to, but this wasn't really a problem at all. Today we climbed the last pass of the trip and it was a piece of cake. The mileage was low and the views were amazing. The climb up the mountain started almost immediately after I left Sisters, but it was very gradual. I started getting into a rhythm by the time the road got a little more steep, so it was easy getting to the top. I stopped at a scenic viewpoint to take a few pictures. I didn't expect at all to see that the scenery from most of the way up the mountain was so rocky. I quickly learned that these sharp black rocks were the result of a lava flow that happened from the nearby volcano. I got to the top and there was an observatory built out of these volcanic rocks at the peak of the climb today. I got off to look around, as there were lots of signs with information on them. I've never been this close to a volcano before, so this was a completely new experience for me. I could see the three sisters mountains, Jefferson mountain, and Washington mountain while standing on top of the observatory. It was really quite incredible. Coming down the mountain was a blast! It wasn't too fast or steep, and had loads of switchbacks along the way. The air felt different when coming down the mountain. It might have been all in my head, but it seemed by the atmosphere and some scents that the ocean could've been right around the corner. It got significantly more humid coming down this side of the mountain, and I had almost forgotten what humidity felt like. I won't, however, say I've missed it. Even after waking up late, I managed to get down the mountain around noon, so I stopped in a local restaurant to get a bite to eat before heading into camp. The camp is pretty rustic, but nothing we haven't done before. However, the trees here are huge and covered in moss. Those trees hang out above the river that runs right by camp and it is really beautiful. I can't believe I only have 3 more riding days before the trip is over. Stats Miles today: 43.6 Time: 3 hours 16 minutes Average MPH: 13.3 Max MPH: 33.8 Elevation gain: 2,645 feet Max elevation: 5,324 feet Until tomorrow Alex

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Day 77

Rest day in Sisters It's pretty difficult to talk about rest days, but I'll try. Today I rested. I did a lot of sleeping and lounging about today, which I've been craving for a while. It's nice to relax and not worry about anything on a rest day. Since David and I visited the town a lot yesterday, I didn't feel the need to do that today, but we did go out to eat in town a couple times today. I woke up after sleeping in, and Dave and I headed to eat some breakfast in town. Aside from being pretty expensive, the breakfast was fantastic. Afterward we got coffee from a coffee shop down the road. We lounged a bit in the coffee shop before creed let us know that he had arrived. The group slowly arrived to camp as I organized my bags a bit. When everyone got here, we all went to eat at the 3 Creeks brewery. It felt really nice to have the group reunited again and we shared experiences the others didn't have. I'm really going to miss all these riders after the trip is over. Until tomorrow Alex

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[americabybike]

Day 76

Mitchell OR to Sisters OR Today has been one of my favorite days of cycling on the trip. It has felt very much like an adventure from start to finish. I had a little extra packing to do today because I'd be leaving the group for a night to travel farther. The group planned on staying in Prineville and Dave and I planned on going almost twice the distance to Sisters. The advantage to this would be that we get a rest day the day after the long ride. The rest of the group will be taking 2 half day layovers instead of our full one. The disadvantages mainly just include eating without the group and carrying a lot of extra baggage. I put my extra pannier on the bike this morning and filled it with a change of clothes and my thermarest mat. On top of my rack, I tied down a sleeping bag and tent. My bike now felt enormous. The weight difference was very apparent. The start of the ride was the most difficult part because I had to climb a couple thousand feet to the top of a pass. This climb was long, but it wasn't too slow going. I suppose the fact that it happened in the morning made it seem a little easier than it could've been in the heat. We made it up after much sweating and had a snack before descending. The descent was great! It seemed to last until mile 45, where we arrived in Prineville. The town looked pretty cool. It was almost lunch time at the time we got there, so we stopped at a little diner to get a bite to eat. We saw Bob L, who was just finishing up. I had little burger sliders for lunch there. We continued on until we got to Redmond, where we immediately went to a coffee shop to get smoothies and water before the final leg of the trip. The shoulders have been wide and in fantastic shape all day and the views leaving Redmond were amazing. We were the first to see the mighty Cascade mountains. There was an unbelievable amount of snow on top of the peaks. We got to Sisters after a while and set up our tents after paying for tent camping. We were getting hungry, so we headed into town to get a couple burgers as usual. We headed back to camp after a while of touring the town. Today has been a fantastic and relaxing day. I can't believe how close the end of this trip is. It feels like it's flown by, and it's been such an amazing experience. Thanks for all the support. Stats: Miles today: 86.7 Time: 6 hours 27 minutes Average MPH: 13.4 Max MPH: 34.9 Elevation gain: 4,194 feet Max elevation: 4,737 feet Until tomorrow Alex

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[americabybike]

Day 75

Prairie City OR to Mitchell OR Today was a very long day of cycling with little sleep last night. I left camp long after the others left because I couldn't sleep last night. On top of that, the trip is starting to be winding down pretty quickly, so that put me in a little bit of a bad mood this morning. As great of a ride yesterday was, I managed to injure both of my knees and they gave me trouble as soon as I got on the bike. Alright, enough with the complaining. Today's ride was actually fantastic. After realizing that my knees would be giving me an issue today, I decided to take it slow. The slow pace was just what I needed. It helped my knees feel better and it helped extend the trip a little bit for me. The scenery today has reverted back to the desert-like hills with a little bit of smoke from nearby wildfires this morning. I stopped in Dayville to take a break and eat a few snacks where Creed caught up with me. While I was having a few energy drinks and a sandwich, Creed talked with the lady that was running the store. I heard them high five and walked over to see what was going on. The lady had just found out she was cancer free from stage 2 breast cancer. We talked and exchanged stories for a long while before I headed back on the road. I took a slight detour to the Picture Gorge scenic overlook. It was a fairly short, but steep hill up to the viewpoint. It was marvelous to see the rock formations and hills. After taking a few pictures, I went back on route and met up with Christi, Adell, and Creed, and I rode with them the rest of the way to camp. It was a long ride, but I had great company along the way. We got to the hotel we are staying tonight and got ready for dinner next door. I had the usual burger with a key lime pie for desert. Tomorrow will be interesting. Where we are staying isn't really determined yet. Since there is a fair in Redmond, the town is packed and it is very difficult to find a place to stay. If a place isn't found, the fallback plan is for the group to stay in the town before Redmond. Hopefully, we will get a place in Sisters and have a rest day the day after. Stats Miles today: 85.1 Time: 7 hours 27 minutes Average MPH: 11.4 Max MPH: 44.7 Elevation gain: 4,057 feet Max elevation: 4,395 feet Until tomorrow Alex

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[americabybike]

Day 74

Baker City OR to Prairie City Today has been really nice, with a few unexpected surprised along the way. I left camp knowing what was lying ahead. There were three passes to go over today and they looked pretty steep and intimidating from the elevation profile. The views today completely changed as well. We left the desert-like hills to mountains filled with pine trees. About 20 miles into the trip, I saw another group of cyclists on the side of the road. It was the 4K for Cancer group, and it was full of energetic cyclists that are also riding across the country to raise money for cancer awareness and research. I visited with them for a bit and they graciously offered me snacks and water. Right after I left their group, I headed up the first of the 3 major climbs I had to do today. It wasn't too terribly bad, and passing the other cyclists my age pretty easily gave me enough of a mental boost to get over the first hill. The second hill was pretty similar to the first, and I stopped partially up the mountain to have a snack. I got to the base of the third mountain where I found a small cafe where I had ice cream and fried green beans with a Jeff, Brendan, creed, Adell, and Bob P. Before leaving, Bob L, Christi, and Dave showed up. The third climb was the easiest. It was the longest, but it was the least steep. I powered up the hill and quickly made it to the top. The downhill of the final climb was amazingly long and pleasant. The strawberry mountains came into view and they looked incredibly tall. It was a nice descent until camp at the Depot Valley RV park and museum. At first, I had absolutely no service, so I figured I had to go into town to find wifi, but magically, I have full service now. It's been a fantastic day! Stats Miles today: 68.5 Time: 5 hours 28 minutes Average MPH: 12.5 Max MPH: 40.7 Elevation gain: 4,725 feet Max elevation: 5,225 feet Until tomorrow Alex