2012 (Total so far 342 Miles)
- May – 78 Miles so far
- April – 75Miles
- March – 189 Miles
2011 (Total of 1137 Miles)
- Sept – 26 Miles
- Aug – 23 Miles
- July – 77 Miles
- June – 550 Miles
- May – 412 Miles
- April – 59 Miles
2010 (Total of 2329 Miles)
- October – 42 Miles
- September – 91 Miles
- August – 163 Miles
- July – 774 Miles
- June – 551 Miles
- May – 417 Miles
- April – 206 Miles
- March – 85 Miles
2009 (Total of 427 Miles)
- November – 80 Miles
- October – 37 Miles
- September – 248 Miles
- August – 67 Miles
(These are actual road or trail miles, not on the bike trainer)
I passed the 4,000 mile mark since I started riding my bike back in the summer of 2009. Wow, it sounds like an awful lot of miles, but it’s like I always tell people, it’s just one pedal push after another. If I looked at the large numbers of any trip I’d probably not go, but I try to break down all my rides into mini rides. For example on my daily rides I try to get to the next park or the next trail. On the state wide trips I just try to go to the next SAG stop.
To put that 4,000 miles in perspective, it is the same distance as if I had ridden from Omaha to Sacramento, CA, to Seattle, WA, and back to Omaha.
I have plenty of excuses why I did not do RAGBRAI last year. Gear problems and lack of training where high, but the biggest reason I did not go was the 100+ heat index days the first two days that included a lot more hills than I am used to. For 2012 I am not as concerned. Still having some shifter problems, but I’m stoked to be in my best shape ever and the elevation (climbs) for this trip are much more manageable regardless of what the temperature is. Here’s the Ragbrai route for July 2012:
Sunday, July 22 (54 miles, 1,583 feet of climb)
- Start Town: Sioux Center
- Pass-through Towns: Orange City, Alton, Granville, Marcus
- Overnight Town: Cherokee
Monday, July 23 (62 miles, 2,062 feet of climb)
- Start Town: Cherokee
- Pass-through Towns: Aurelia, Hanover, Schaller, Nemaha, Sac City
- Overnight Town: Lake View
Tuesday, July 24 (81 miles, 1,724 feet of climb)
- Start Town: Lake View
- Pass-through Towns: Auburn, Lake City, Lohrville, Farnhamville, Gowrie, Dayton, Stratford, Lehigh
- Overnight Town: Webster City
Wednesday, July 25
- Start Town: Webster City (77 miles, 2,018 feet of climb)
- Pass-through Towns: Kamrar, Jewell, Story City, Roland, McCallsburg, Zearing, Saint Anthony, Clemons
- Overnight Town: Marshalltown
Thursday, July 26 (84 miles, 3,576 feet of climb)
- Start Town: Garwin
- Pass-through Towns: Clutier, Garrison, Vinton, Shellsburg, Covington,
- Overnight Town: Cedar Rapids
Friday, July 27 (42 miles, 2,272 feet of climb)
- Start Town: Cedar Rapids
- Pass-through Towns: Mount Vernon, Springville, Viola, Fairview
- Overnight Town: Anamosa
Saturday, July 28 (69 miles, 2,890 feet of climb)
- Start Town: Anamosa
- Pass-through Towns: Hale, Oxford Junction, Lost Nation, Elwood, Delmar, Charlotte, Goose Lake
- Final Destination Town: Clinton
A Top Ten Day!!! Self portrait while riding, son Aric behind me.(OMG, is my helmet really on crooked? Oh, heck, I'll just blame it on a strong side wind!)
Who would have thought March 14 would be a top 10 day for riding? It was, a wonderful 74 degrees with a 5 mph wind. Went out with my son Aric (also a recumbent rider) and did 27 miles down the Big Papio trail here in Omaha. Two days in a row of 27 miles each, I could feel it today. Icing up the knee as I write this. But all in all it was a great ride and fun with my son. Rode 27 miles yesterday with my other son Alex. These two, age 17 and 20, are going to get me into shape quicker than if I did it on my own.
Taking a break tomorrow. Weather will be perfect, but it’s my birthday and getting together with my mom, my wife and all four kids. Those opportunities will become rare soon enough, so enjoying them while I can. Gotta give that knee a rest anyway, right?
Here’s what I’m hoping to do in 2012:
- April 14, Bike For Sight, 20 or 40 miles, Omaha, NE
- April 21, GPBC Spring Fling, 30 or 60 miles, Louisville, NE
- May 19, Wear Yellow Ride, 22, 34, & 47 miles, SAC Museum, Ashland, NE
- June 2-9, BRAN (bike ride across Nebraska) 455 miles, www.bran-inc.org
- June 23-27, NUMB ride, 270 miles, www.numbride.org
- June 17, Rollin to Colon Ride, 20 or 53 miles, Valley, NE
- July 12-17, Areas Unknown and Beyond, possible week ride with www.ricumbent.com
- July 21-28, RAGBRAI (bike ride across Iowa) 471 miles, 16,125 feet of climb, www.ragbrai.com
- August 10-12, 7 Cities Century, 100 miles, Madison County, NE
- August 25, Onabike, Onawa Iowa
- Early Oct, Wish Ride near Nebraska City
February 4th snowfall
Looking out the window at the deep blanket of white over this last weekend you would think that biking would be the last thing on my mind. Quite the contrary. I’ve been off the bike for nearly five months, skipped out on my last two multi-day state rides (Yes, including RAGBRAI!) and for months have been trying to figure out what the heck happened. I went from riding a couple hundred miles a week to absolutely no riding at all (and gained 15 pounds in the process).
My guess is it was two things. One, the gear skipping problem on my bike was never resolved even after replacing the entire shifting system (crankset, shifters, derailleur, cables, chain, etc). Made my rides very frustrating. The other is the 50-60 hours a week I’ve been working since September. There just has been no time or energy for biking or fitness. It’s unhealthy and I know I have to get back in the saddle.
So, overweight, out of shape and with limited free time, I’ve signed up for BRAN and RAGBRAI. Yeah! Crazy!! The only way I seem to able to get fit is to have an incentive and what better incentive than to look forward to and plan for my week long trips across Nebraska and Iowa. Those rides are the most grueling things I have ever done in my life but the rewards are worth it. I look forward to the miles and miles of peaceful open roads, the endless horizon and the absolutely beautiful vistas these two states have to offer. Evenings with old and new friends, the energy and friendliness of everyone, food that never tasted so good and, yes, even being so exhausted you can barely crawl into your sleeping bag at night. It is all so stimulating.
I’ve been planning and looking forward to going on Tour de Nebraska for about six months, but it did not happen. I’m still having shifter problems with my bike (not as bad as on BRAN though), but I also was a little under the weather the days before the ride. I’m hardly ever sick so I took heed, followed my instincts and stayed home. The weather has been so bad the last couple of weeks, pollen counts exceptionally high and pressure systems are haywire. I would not be enjoying myself on this ride I now see.
Maybe next year.
At least it is a short day and through some familiar countryside, but the terrain was more like a roller coaster. Okay, okay, I’m tired and cranky and it just seemed that way. 55 miles brings us from Oakland to Waterloo, which is just outside of my home in Omaha. The day started out very foggy with a wet dew over everything.
But ended up one of the best days ever…
Overall it has been a great adventure. Had you told me three years ago that I would be riding a bicycle, a recumbent at that, across Nebraska (and Iowa in July), not just one year, but two, I would have said you were nuts! Seriously. All I can say is once you get the bug, once biking gets into your blood, you can’t stop. As I like to quote Lance Armstrong, from his book, It’s Not About The Bike! I don’t have to write a book to tell you what it is about for me (although this blog is becoming dozens of pages). It’s all about the journey for me, about getting in shape, about eating right and feeling healthy, about hours on a bike contemplating the universe or nothing at all. It’s seriously about making new friends and visiting with old ones. And yes, it is about the food. I have to maintain a low fat cardiac diet at my age, but when you are burning 6,000 calories a day, all rules go out the window. Okay, almost, but it is fun to eat that much in a day and then burn it off the next.
Cheers to all of those whom I rode with this last week. It was a real pleasure! And thank you so much to all the volunteers who made all this possible. Your tiring hours, your enthusiasm and your dedication made this such a great time for us all.
It' always fun to interact with the the locals, but wait a minute, did we make a wrong turn?
Today we traveled 70 miles from Battle Creek to Oakland, Nebraska, population 1300. Darn, looks like we just missed the Swedish Festival which was held last weekend.
Our journey today was due South for about 11 miles, then the remainder due East. Straight routes like this can be a bit boring, but I am at least thankful we are one day closer to home. As much as I love these rides, I do look forward to getting home for warm showers and my own bed. When you are on a ride like this you are in what they call survival mode. Up before dawn, packing your tent and gear in the dark, searching for a hot and hardy breakfast, then off on your bike at the crack of dawn. Food and water are all that matters for the rest of the day until you reach the next town, making sure you stay fueled and hydrated. Because, quite frankly, if you fall behind on the food or water, especially on a hot and grueling day, you may not make it to your destination. I know, as I had to give up on the last 25 miles or so of BRAN last year.
What today lacked in curvy roads it made up for in hills. Geeeze, and that 300 foot climb at the end??? What joker put that there!!!
Another dreary day and misty, but at least it was not hot.
First breakfast here. Potato casarol, sausage, bacon, fruit, coffee and juice.
Second breakfast, a couple miles down the road. Pancakes, sausage, fruit cup and coffee.
70 miles in 6:25 hours, not counting breaks.
End of trip meeting and recognition of accomplishments (not all good, quite a few that werte humerous).
70 miles and barely any hills to speak of, a steady drop of 400 feet today. Tonight we are in yet another new town for me, Battle Creek, Nebraska, “Pride City” (it says so on the sign entering town). With a population of around 1,000 friendly folks, this is a great host town. Too bad we can’t stay just two more days and enjoy the annual Battle Creek Fun Day on Saturday with a street dance and beer garden. Frankly, after being invaded by over 600 Branimals, their Fun Day may seem a bit quite and tame after we leave town.
