moshker

I had a great time on the STP this year. Beautiful weather. Lots of riding that was for the most part uninterupted by stop signs, signals, and traffic. The first food stop was great. The other food stops were less great. I stayed with a host family in Napavine just past the halfway mark. Staying with a host family is totally the way to go. Great dinner, nice shower, my own bed, great breakfast, and they used the money for a local athletic club. Wonderful.

Some of the roads are chip seal, which really sucks to ride on… especially if you have especially narrow, high pressure tires, like I do. There was a hit and run this year by a drunk driver, but they caught him and no one was killed. The ride was well organized, but some of the folks in Cowlitz county don’t like us too much. Oh well.

Overall it was a blast. Lots of camaraderie. I might do it again next year, but do the one day ride… but I think I’m leaning towards doing RAMROD instead.

This really wasn’t that hard. Like walking briskly for 6 or 7 hours. No problem. Helps to warm up slowly. If you are in the Seattle area there is a bike club and they have training rides for noobies that I found very very helpful. There are lots of great group rides during the year hosted by Cascade.org and other clubs.

If you need any advice for picking a bike or training feel free to contact me.

Oscar

I’m home. I did this! Total time in the saddle was about 11.5 hours. I feel tired and stiff, and so happy.