Practice run...
11 months ago
No plans to do this yet, but I’m going to Japan next month, and I plan a tour across that country. It’s obviously a lot smaller than the U.S., but also more mountainous. Good practice!
How to bicycle across the country
It made me
who I am now 
"There are no places that should be poisoned and abandoned."
How I did it: I rode my bike to the train station, took a train to the coast, and rode my bike east to the other coast.
I rode, and ate, and rode, and ate, and rode, and ate, and slept.
I rode with some strangers over the Internet. It was easier and harder, in different ways, than riding alone.
It is possible to talk for weeks about the logistical aspects of riding your bicycle all day, living out of your saddlebags, finding food and water, washing your clothes, staying healthy, finding places to sleep, and everything else that one needs to think about on the road. The amount of thought that goes into each of these things is different for everyone. Some of us are extensive planners, who need to know where we will sleep and eat days in advance. Some are happy letting things come to them.
The only thing everyone who has accomplished this goal will agree on, I think, is the need to keep the pedals turning and not give up. There will be good days and bad days; the good days for me, were better than any other good days I have had. The bad days are easy to forget, except for the ones that make good stories.
Lessons & tips:
- Have at least a vague notion of where you're going and how to get there
- Ride your bicycle a lot before you leave, with all the gear you plan on taking with you
- Be open to what the road brings you
Resources: Crazy Guy on a Bike has tour journals and resources for planning trips or finding companions. Adventure Cycling sells really great maps and equipment, and also leads trips if you'd prefer to go the guided route. Couchsurfing is a great way to find warm, dry places to sleep.
People doing this are also doing these things:
Entries
Shaun3180
16 months ago
This is a long-term goal for me. I’m not even sure I’ll do this all in one go. I think I’ll start by buying a new bike and completing Ride the Rockies first, but this is definitely something I’d like to complete within my lifetime :)
joie de vivre is mellow
Untitled
19 months ago
I adopted this goal when I was depressed one day. I am going to put it on the far back burner now. Maybe after I complete a ride to San Francisco, I can consider across the country.
Got lazy over the winter
20 months ago
Didn’t hardly break the bike out at all during the last 6 months. Too much time doing spin training in my exercise bootcamp probably didn’t help.
Cleaned up the bike this week, and got out on it twice. Somehow in the last several months I broke the wire to my cycling computer. Need to get that fixed.
Starting Monday, I’m back to riding daily if at all possible. Not feeling real ‘hard-core’ yet, so I may let bad weather deter me. I probably should sign up for some cycling event to force myself to rise to the occasion. The “Hotter than Hell 100” comes to mind…
Untitled
22 months ago
I lost my bicycle. :-(
Will have to get a new one, but this goal is at least a couple of years away, so I have time. =)
joie de vivre is mellow
QQT - ride across America by 2018
23 months ago
I was lying in bed this morning, thinking up reasons to live, beyond not terribly upsetting members of my immediate family, and this idea came to mind.
I’d probably do the ride to San Francisco first.
This is a long term goal.
2 years ago
I’ll need about 3 months to accomplish this at a minimum. Ideally, I would like 4-5 months but that will be extremely difficult to accomplish. I could ride across the U.S. along the southern route in 3 months, but my ideal would be to start in the south and then head diagonally north east until I reach Maine.
Untitled
2 years ago
The fun thing about getting back on here after many months is the things that happened with my goals since then. Last summer I bought a nice bicycle, with the money saved from work. I rode it alot. I haven’t gone on any really long rides yet, but I’ve gotten much better. I conquered a very steep 2-mile hill that I’d NEVER been able to get up before:) And I’m very proud of myself for that:D
Untitled
3 years ago
Did an 80 mile ride last saturday, probably another one this weekend. Hope to ride home for thanksgiving (>500 miles).
