What's in a name?

In theory a bike trip would include a trip...on a bike.

Amtrak must not have completely gotten this concept, but with some southern charm and some strong will I think we got the point across.

In theory.

So the first 14 hours have been eventful. Please be warned I'm on about 4 hours of quasi, upright train sleep as I recount this...

We show up about 2.5 hours before our train so we can break down our bikes (ended up being pedals off and handlebars lowered and swung to the side). We get to the ticket booth to check in and ask about the bike boxes.

The woman at the ticket counter took a phone call on her cell phone, pulled out her wallet to show us her new lisence picture (Liz commented on how my picture was more zoomed in) and then preceded to tell us that there was no luggage cart going with our train and we would not be able to check our bikes.

So we went to baggage to see what the deal was. The crate or whatever for our train was broken from the previous trip or something and no one was able to check baggage. Amanda at baggage was very helpful and apologetic which helped but I was fuming. What kind of bike trip would it be without bikes?

We talked to a manger (Wandelina) and she said no there was nothing they could do, they could not accommodate us for any part of this and that our only real option was to get on he train and trust that they could check it he following day and send it down...

This would mean that we have to spend an extra night in Charleston and not be biking until Friday...keep in mind due to mother nature we are already two days behind.

Our angel Kevin, luggage attendant extraordinair, who said he would talk to the conductor to see if our bikes could just go in one of the regular cars was very sweet. We hope he is married to someone who appreciates him. Anyway. Try as he might due to all the weather stuff there were too many passengers and no room..otherwise the conductor (who we chatted with later, "we're the bike girls!) would have been cool with it.

We weighed our options and decided that our best bet was to get on the train, bum around Charleston for a day and pray our bikes get there tomorrow.

So that's what we are doing. After watching our mothers dance to stay warm in the train station after this escapade we told them to hit the road and about 5 minutes later Kevin yelled "get your bags let's go!) and let us board early with the families with small children...then we were off! Not to mention the train was late, the seats not terribly comfortable and being near delirious. We will get to Charleston tonight and hopefully get our bikes tomorrow night, if they make the next train...we think Amanda and Kevin will make it happen.We just started our train ride to Charleston from DC and it is very pretty...

We might change up our plan and route a bit to better accommodate time and whatnot but we are excited to get this show on the road.

Afterall, a bike trip without a bike, is still a trip! (although cross your fingers our bikes will be on the way)

More to come soon!

Cheers and Spokes, Esther

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I'm leaving, on that midnight train to Georgia...

Well, it's really a 9pm train to South Cackalacky.  We'll get to Georgia at some point. À bientôt, Boston!

view from my kitchen on this snowy Tuesday.

I'm starting to feel very, very excited.  Before I was excited but now with the delay, I'm just feeling as though I just want to get there and see what this trip will be like!


I'm pretty excited to be going by train.  It will take us about 22 hours with our layover (do they call them that for trains? sitovers?) in D.C.  What's funny is neither Liz nor I have been to D.C. before but looks like we'll have about 3 hours in their train station, not sure we want to lug our gear anywhere to rush back.


Anyway, I'm excited to see the countryside from the train.  It will feel like we're already on the road trip in a way.  I never thought about how much flying is really disconnected from the land you're traveling through, I mean it's obvious, but in terms of the experience it is much different.  Think of how amazing it is when you can actually see something like the Grand Canyon or the Rockies from the plane.  I don't know about you but I've been mesmerized and guilty of taking pictures through the windows.


Okay so I know we're not going through the Grand Canyon or the Rockies on this trip, but, you get the idea.  Trains = better connection to the places you travel through.  Let's hope we meet some fun people, or I'll probably finish my book before we even get there! (I'm reading The Unbearable Lightness of Being - I recommend it).


The one thing I'm not thrilled about is we have to take apart our bikes to put into "bike boxes".  The thing is we're not sure if we have to take the wheels off, or the pedals off. The website says one thing and the lady on the phone says another.  We'll figure it out, but it's annoying either way.  Ah well, what can we do?


I hate taking off the back wheel, and for some reason my front wheel is trickier than my old bike, so hopefully that isn't an issue.  Taking off the pedals doesn't look too too hard if you have a pedal wrench and a stand...but we'll manage with the 15mm wrench I think, and putting the bikes upside down if we have to do pedals.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMG4I_IyzzY


Anyhow, we'll make it work.  Now let's hope that the 2 carry on rule ignores the fact that we each have a bundle and 2 panniers...shhh.


Okay off to finish getting prepped physically, emotionally and mentally!


Please keep us company on this trip by riding along with us, it will be great to hear from you all to encourage us to keep pushing even when the hills are killing our thighs and our butts are too sore to sit (never mind go dancing like we hope to!)! haha.


Cheers and spokes,
Esther


Ps.  I'm thinking of chopping my hair when I get back (similar to what I've done before).  "New me" for 2011?  I have a feeling it will be a fantastic year, so just wanting to look the part.  ;)

Remember when snow days were the most exciting thing, ever?

Well I'm able to get excited for this storm, actually.  We changed our reservation for Tuesday and when we're down in South Carolina on Wednesday it will already be *51 and sunny*.  No complaints here.

Since I won't be heading down south until Tuesday, I'm able to enjoy getting snowed in by the fire, beef bourginon in the crock pot and a glass of red on the couch.

This isn't so bad. :) Biking can wait.

I am all packed and my mother told me I can't unpack anything in the next 2 days so that I'm still ready to go, she's funny.  This is what it will look like.  I should get a sign that says WIDE LOAD!

Cheers and Spokes,
Esther

Maybe snow tires would be a good idea.

What do you think of when you hear South Carolina, Georgia and Florida?

Palm trees, southern food...warmer weather than the north? Perhaps?

Well we thought that the winter weather down there would be on average 40 degrees at night and 60-65 during the day.  This is PERFECT for biking during the day and snuggling in sleeping bags and building camp fires.

This was what we planned for.

To our surprise, what seems like a conspiracy is brewing.  The week after we booked our tickets it snowed in Atlanta, GA.  The last couple weeks the weather down there has been a brisk 20 degrees at night and about 40-50 during the day.

But we decided, to hell with it, we are still going to go, we're just going to bring warmer things (down vest, long underwear, more wool socks, etc).

And then this.  This.  This freaking Nor'Easter, which was brewing from freaking South Carolina!  What the hell is going on!?  For all you guys who think that Al Gore is a crock of shit, or don't believe that the climate is changing - check this.

The guy on the Weather Channel said the snow right now is breaking records from the 18th century in the south, and last 100 years in the Atlanta area specifically (very west of where we will be, but still).  WHAT?

Equally as important are the 2 feet we might get here starting tomorrow, which means that our train might be cancelled.  We'll know more tomorrow, but not sure when we'll now a final decision if the train will run or not.  Some of the trains between here and the south are already cancelled, so I have to imagine ours will be also.

This is a great opportunity for us to work on our fluidity and relaxation techniques and thinking on our toe clips (haha I'm so funny).

Three things may happen (although really the possibilities are endless):
1.  The train leaves either on time or late, but ends up leaving the area none the less.  We'll make our way down to South Carolina and pray that what looks like rain where we're biking stays rain and isn't snow, and then clears up by the time we get there.
2.  The train is cancelled and we get rescheduled to leave a day or two later, and keep the same route we were planning.
3.  The train is cancelled and we get a refund and then have to buy new tickets all together, and maybe decide to train it down to Savannah/GA and start there and head south and maybe further into Florida.

I'll be okay with any of these actually...so all we can do is pack, get ready to leave, wait and then drive in the snow, or get snowed in.

At this point we are both in agreement we still have to go despite this possible hiccup - and plus, we gotta conquer our fears, because that is what my fortune cookie from Chinese Food said today!

Keep you posted, obviously.

Cheers and spokes,
Esther

Merry Christmas Eve! Packing Round 2!

So you'll be glad to hear (if you're even reading this) that today was very successful in getting all of my last minute bike accutrements and I'm freaking out MUCH less.

I did another trip to REI (such an awesome store, maybe I should work there part time) and I got a sweet mini mess kit with a heating canister, sip top, slide out spork, hot fingers silicone gripper and I also bought a pop up cup/bowl.  I'm ready to eat Chicken Broccoli Alfredo in this thing...haha yummm.

I also found these amazing micro towels that are like thin thin sham wows and I'm totally excited about them....

I actually almost forgot to even bring a towel.  I was looking through all my stuff and suddenly realized I would be freezing and wet for my trip if I didn't bring a towel and then I panicked.  Where would I put a towel?  Have you seen towels? they take up so much room. Anyway, this thing absorbs 8x its weight in liquid and dries quickly.  I'm a little obsessed.  

Thank god for 2.5 gallon ZipLocks, and screw those "as seen on TV" clothes bags.  These ZipLocks are fantastic to take all my clothes and suck the air out and fit into my panniers sooo much easier.  I mean take a look at all the clothes I have to bring, and then imagine they all have to fit into essentially two bags the size of small backpacks...anyway, it's a lot (remember the small child I said I'd be carrying esentially...Yep. I'll take a picture for you all when it's finally all packed up (doing laundry tonight and tomorrow).  

In more festive news mom and I made cookies for Christmas tomorrow at Liz's and for our neighbors!  We made Snow Capped Coffee/Chocolate Mountains and Peppermint Oreo Truffles. Um, yum.

Well the bike is all fixed up, I've bought/gathered everything for the trip, now I just have to pack up and hop on my train.  Crazy!! I'm getting very excited for this adventure!

Keep y'all (getting ready for the south) posted on packing, the excitement of checking our bikes on Sunday (wheels off, in 'bike boxes', which we're not sure what that means exactly...) and our 20+ hour train ride.

Merry Christmas, and thanks for treking along with us!

Cheers and spokes,
Esther

Freak out mode (part 1 of TBD)

Oy.

So I packed up what I "need" plus extra to do my final decisions/packing back in Framingham tomorrow/Saturday.  I'm here so that I can get a last minute tune up on the bike by Roy (best bike guy in the area, highly suggest him - http://gracebicycles.com/) and Christmas stuff at Liz's with her family, etc.

Trying to feel festive but it is kind of marred by my anxiety.  We decided not to get a tree this year (like we always did) for a few reasons, but Marc was nice enough to buy my mom this cute Christmakah Charlie Brown tree.  I'm really glad we're going to Liz's like I said, it will make it feel more like Christmas for us Jews (mom and me). haha.

Anyway so this trip is starting to all hit me (finally, you say?), well I've checked the weather and on Sunday the south is expecting snow http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/USSC0051.  Where is the 65 degrees we were sure we were to be getting this time of year?!  That is beyond stressful.  I mean it will be a bit warmer by the time we're down there, but not much.  Makes for chilly camping nights in our cocoon sleeping bags.  Good thing they're rated for 20-30 degrees!

We also have to carry some food, since we'll be starving when biking 5 hours a day, so add that to the bike weight and it's like we're lugging around a small child along with our clothes, sleeping bags, etc).

Okay deep breaths and off to get a glass of red wine....


...I'm back. I'm feeling...a little better.  I'm biking for 2 hours in the morning which will jump start myself and get off this nervous kick I'm on.

We'll be fine, warm, and have fun.  I keep forgetting that part.  Liz - don't let me forget that part!

Don't worry all, the amazingly sexy padded bike shorts, highlighter green wind jackets, and biker chick socks are all making it into the panniers.  I'm sure I'll take a picture of everything laid out once I decided on the yay/nay piles so you can truly appreciate how rock solid my ass and legs will be when I get back.  Bonus.

Any words of wisdom, encouragement, etc would be hugely helpful in the next few days before the trip, and as we go along as I'm sure it will have it's challenges!!  Oh and if you have a good relationship with the weather gods, you can ask them to be kind!

Thank you much!

Cheers and spokes,
Esther

First Gear

Okay so, most of you know, some of you care and few of you understand: we are going on a bike trip, in the winter.

Liz (my cousin) had been very adventuresome in the last few years and I've always had a streak of it myself.  She was planning on going on a bike trip alone, to push herself and explore some of the country on two wheels.  When I saw her at Thanksgiving, she told me what she was doing, and I was clearly jealous of the experience she'd be having.  I jokingly, and not so jokingly, told her I'd go if she waited until I was on winter break to leave.

How Liz and I typically do road trips.

She called me the next day and said "I've thought about it and I want you to come."  I've actually done a bike trip before (when I was 14, with a group), and I've done an assortment of outward bound camps, I enjoy camping, I've hiked a 14er in Colorado (14,000 ft altitude, mountain) a few years ago, I love kayaking, I've done some road trips (one with Liz), etc.  I mean not that I've done as much as some of you, but I figured "I can do this."

I forgot that I'm almost 27, I'm a bit out of shape and bike seats are not comfortable.

So since Black Friday I've been "training" on my bike trainer which is in my room, biking at the gym and also by eating all the holiday goodies at my holiday parties.  You could say I've been taking this training thing very seriously.

I scored some gear from my mom who has done a trip like this in Italy a couple years ago, bought the gear I didn't have and fixed up a used bike so it is practically new (yay recycling!).  Essentially, I'm ready.  If by ready I mean freaking out a little because it's been too cold to do riding outside (as I sit here it's flurrying).  I'm just worried a little due to not having been on the road much for training, it will be the first time in ages I'll be riding with my gear in panniers and that we're using maps as our guide versus an actual guide.

These are no ordinary maps, however.  They are from Adventure Cycling Association  and they plot out routes that are as bike friendly as possible, with hostels, campgrounds, bike shops, gas stations, etc along the route.  So we should be good.   Also, I'll be praying for service along the wooded way, so I can use the navigation app on my droid.  Fingers crossed.

http://www.adventurecycling.org/routes/index.cfm

So with all that being said, we are in good hands (ours), we're two smart 20 something's and we'll figure it out as we go.  We've plotted out our first 5 days of biking, ranging from 35 to 50 miles a day.  We start in Charleston, SC and meander through Georgia and hopefully have the speed, agility, strength and energy to get Jacksonville, FL by the 8th of January. 

There is some fluidity to our timing, locations etc, so we'll keep you posted as we go, pending cell reception. 

Well, that's where we're at now. We leave Sunday night on on a train headed south...

The trip will be successful if most days are sunny and 60 degrees, we don't run into bears/snakes, we aren't accosted by toothless backwoodsmen and if drivers are nice to us and give us the shoulder of the road.  I'll do my best to take many pictures, post our progress, keep track of the southern nuances we're bound to see.  

We appreciate all the support and encouragement and "What the hell are you doing that for?"s that we have gotten so far, and will continue to get!

Cheers and spokes,

Esther