So it's been a really long time

I've not been so diligent to keep up this blog, but rest assured I am still moving towards the goal, I've been doing regular 20 mile rides, with some 50 milers thrown in there, the new goal ride date is Summer 2014. As most of you know, I got married this June, which was the original planned ride date-obviously I can't get married and immediately go on a 2 month ride, so it will be pushed back, which gives me more time to save a bit of money, give a bit of money, and hopefully get enough paid time off to cover 2 months. Also so far we've raised $815 out of the minimum $3000. Thanks people!
I have also been switching it up a bit, doing some mountain biking, racing, and fixie riding. I really just love bikes altogether, it's quickly becoming an addiction, one that I've gotten my wife into as well, together we now have 6 bikes, that's 5 purchased this year :)
Next week I plan on riding the Virginia Creeper Trail, a 30+ mile long trail that goes up/down white top mountain, hailed as the most beautiful trail in the States, I'm very excited about this, and I'll let you know how it goes after.

-Asher

Trying to keep motivated in the cold

My family and friends were good to me this Christmas! I'm nearly done with all the big ticket bike accessories. Since last update I got:
-2 insulated water bottles
-Ortlieb bike packer plus rear panniers
-Garmin etrex Vista HCx and bike mount (GPS-shock/water proof)
-Cargo net
-Brooks Flyer Leather Saddle (seat)
-cold weather clothes/bike jersey/shorts/socks/gloves/hat/shoes
 -Casio Ex-G1 Digital Camera and bike mount(shock/dust/water/freeze proof)
                                             Picture below:

I've only made it out for one ride so far this winter (I'm not really a fan of cold) so most of my training has been in spinning classes, and stationary bikes. Looking into a week long bike trip when the weather warms up a bit. I'll keep you updated

I need to get back on the bike. Its been a slow autumn.

Wrong Turns and Road Rash.

Well, this whole "I'm-going-to-bike-to-Lake-Anna-if-it-kills-me" idea is getting serious. This past Wednesday marked my second try on the loop from Ashland and back, and marked my second trip-costing wrong turn. I tried a differnt route this time for some different scenery (see here: http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/va/ashland/623153624 ) I ended up going the wrong way on 117 and wound up in Montpelier, VA so I took 54 back to Ashland. Making a 70 mile trip around 55 miles. Also, to add injury to insult, I ran off the road on 54 while trying to avoid a sizeable pothole (better to ride off the road than into traffic with these sort of evasive maneuvers).  No damage to the bike, thank God, but I got some scrapes on my left leg and ankle and got some pretty decent road rash on my left elbow. No big deal really, I always keep a small medical kit with me on rides like this, so I just did a quick disinfecting job, wrapped my wounds and was on my way in no time. In fact the worst part was that I had torn up a really nice underarmour shirt my lovely girlfriend had given me. O well, live and learn.

About my First Tour.

I pulled onto Park Ave @ Thompson around 9am, loaded up my bike and hit the road at about 9:30am. Most of the first 30 minutes of my ride was spent adjusting my fenders and mounting my bike with gear correctly, (believe it or not, this is an art!)

I passed gillies park at 10 and Dorey Park at 10:30. (Again, a bit slow the first hour) I started to get a decent pace when I turned onto Bike Route 76, which I maintained all the way to Surry country. There really isn't much to Surry County besides the occasional turkey or deer crossing the road.

Map of Route Here: http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Asher-s-first-bike-tour

While on the Ferry I noticed my quads to be in a bit more pain than I would imagine 65 miles into my trip. I adjusted my saddle about 2 inches higher and that seemed to prevent the pain getting any worse. My glutes. . . a different story, I will definitely need to replace the saddle with a Brooks Touring saddle seen  here www.brooksengland.com/en/Shop_ProductPage.aspx?cat=saddles+-+touring+%26+trekking&prod=Flyer  you really started to feel every bump in the road after riding 8 hours.

Williamsburg is more beautiful than I remembered it, but I didn't have much time to enjoy it today since I still had miles to go before I slept. I jumped on the Colonial Parkway and headed to Yorktown. I had wanted to make it to the Newport News Campgrounds, butthe light had faded to fast, and I didn't care much for biking at night, so I did some guerilla camping. I found a nice secluded spot on the York River, and set up camp for the night.

In the morning I stopped at Aroma's Cafe' in Williamsburg and got a breakfast of eggs, bacon, OJ, coffee, hash browns, toast and a fruit bowl. I figgured since I'm burning 500 calories an hour I needed a big breakfast, which is also a great thing about touring, since your burning an EXTRA 4000 calories a day you can eat whatever you want and still lose fat and gain muscle.

I took route 5 the rest of the way home, (a beautiful ride) most of which has a designated bike trail on it. (A full Richmond to Williamsburg bike trail should be completed sometime 2012) I stopped frequently to eat an energy bar and rest. I knew I had already bit off more than I SHOULD chew at this stage in my training when I was halfway through the trip.

What I learned:
-Take care of your quads, palms, and glutes, these spots are where all the pressure is held (suprisingly not so much on your feet)
-I need a better saddle (seat)
-I need better panniers (bags)
-I need better gloves
-Don't buy cheap gear
-Don't wear shoes with laces while on a bike.
-Eat a lot and eat often!
-Carry more water than you think you will need (you don't even realize your sweating that much with the wind in your face. I drank nearly 3 gallons of gatorade/water over a period of 36 hours and pee'd about a liter-I also lost nearly 3 lbs. of body weight)
-Bring SPF infinity (I still got a bit burned with 30)
-People are more friendly to you when you're on a bike.
-Stretch every couple of hours
-The second long ride is guaranteed to be more enjoyable.

Gearing up for my First Overnight Bike Tour.

After about a month of planning, bike modifications and researching gear, I'm ready to set out on my first overnight bike tour. The plan is to ride from Carytown in Richmond, VA to Newport News Campground in Yorktown, VA (which is also the starting point of my "Bike the Nation for Education" bike tour) and bike back the following day. It is possible to do this round trip at around 120 miles, but I've opted for a more scenic and safer route.

I'll start in Carytown biking southeast to Darbytown Rd. until I cross the James River via the Benjamin Harrison Memorial Bridge, and continuing along the southern side of the James River, until I cross in again via the Scotland-Jamestown Ferry, through Jamestown then following the Colonial National Historic Pkwy, turning north through Williamsburg, then East to Yorktown, which will be 180 miles round-trip.

I've been making quite a few changes to my rig and gear too:
-Took off all the reflectors and switched them for lightweight, high-vis, reflective stickers
-Put on some touring fenders
-Put on a protective chain-stay wrap
-Added a water proof map mount
-Added some toe clips
-Got a protective covering for the mounted air pump
-Added a mirror to my sunglasses
-Put some high-vis reflectors on my rear panniers
-Added a gel cover to my saddle
-and I also bought new ultra-light, ultra-compact gear for camping (pillow, tent, bag, tarp, ground pad)

This will be a relatively lightly packed trip, I estimate all my gear is under 25 lbs. Besides maintenance tools and bike accessories, I packed the following:
-1 person Tent
-pillow
-ground pad
-folding camp seat
-sleeping bag
-tarp
-assorted hygiene products
-PB&J items, protein bars, gatorade mix
-towel
-camera
-phone
-Nintendo DS
-book
-First-Aid Kit.
-change of clothes
-dog repelant


In fact, there are very few things that I need for my Coast to Coast.
-Front Pannier Rack
-Charity Jerey
-Front Waterproof Panniers (Ortlieb)
-Replace current rear panniers with Waterproof panniers. (Ortlieb)
-Field GPS (Garmin eTrex Vista HCx)
-Netbook
-Ultralight Camp stove
-Flip style Camcorder
-Other assorted camping accessories

FYI: This trip and all others preceeding the Coast to Coast is coming out my my pocket.

Note: I'll be taking plenty of notes and pictures so I can tell you all about it when I get back in a few days.

So I've Decided on a Charity

I've found a charity to ride for on my Coast to Coast bike trip, Project 3rd World Child (P3WC). P3WC is a 501(c)3 non-profit based out of Richmond, VA. P3WC is dedicated to changing the lives of poverty stricken children worldwide who are not fortunate enough to receive an education. Funds go toward the building of schools and creating unique oportunities, so that young and underpriveliged children will have hope and a brighter future.

I met with some of the people behind the charity tonight and explained my idea. They all seemed very open, receptive, and already had some ideas on how to get the ball rolling on this one. I'm genuinely excited about this charity, and I hope you are to.

All donations are tax deductable, and ANYTHING helps. If it is not within your ability to give monetarily at the moment I hope you can spread the word about our endeavors.