Ride 4 Alz

Phoenix rises again.

Here, on the GAP.

On May 22, I’ll be heading out on Phoenix to pedal from Virginia to San Francisco to raise money and awareness for Alzheimer's. My destination is Belmont, CA, to the care facility that my mother is in.

Here’s a link to the description for the Alz.org site.

Alz.org Spokes Ride

I’ll be reporting back on this site, in 'latest' order for ease of reading.

~*~* ~*~* ~*~* ~*~* ~*~* ~*~*

** Sun May 15

I took Phoenix to a local expert, Ronnie Irvine, for one more “pair of eyes”. He works at Spokes, Etc, in Vienna; the Trek store that sold me Phoenix.

He pedaled around the world in ‘95. Look him up…WorldRide 95! And, he also used to live in the house I bought! He rented it before I bought it!

Between he and my friend Jeff, I can’t get a more experienced couple of people helping me!

Final testing and tweaking and loaded ride.

Here’s Phoenix.. ready to fly!

 ** Sat May 14

I’m about tired of the rain. I would like to send it to my friends in California.

And today is The Quail Motorcycle Gathering in Carmel Valley. I typically attend/work those shows, but I’m told I can’t do everything.

Penultimate Final Inventory time: (Jeff, am I doing this right?)

The bike, unloaded weighs about 32 lbs. All loaded, as pictured here: 83 lbs. (+50 lbs) I know, many others do it with less, and I’ve read that some carry more! Of course, add my 185 dressed weight and Phoenix has some work to do! 

Spares: 2 tubes, patch kit, chain, chain links and chain lube, cool Park multi-tool, 2 sets brake pads, 2 sets cables, other oil, multi-knife tool, regular knife, small screwdrivers for small adjustments, a couple rag things and sealable plastic bags, small bungee cords, zip ties and some other cord

Toiletries: usual stuff including a bar of Trader Joe’s shampoo/ wash soap.

Clothes:  Official Alz.org jersey,  2 T-shirts, 2 pr socks, 2 biking shorts, riding knickers, solar sleeves, long sleeve T, rain jacket, rain pants, long thermal pants, thermal gloves, wool cap (in case) small down jacket (in case), Teva Velcro shoe things that I can pedal in or walk IN water.

Camp gear: Big Agnes UL 2 tent, Marmot 3 season sleeping bag, awesome UL sleep pad, tiny pillow.

Cook gear: (subject to final purge) JetBoil and a small multi-cook pot and cup, cool Ti spork, small propane canister and a Sawyer Squeeze water purifier as well as some iodine tablets.

Riding clothes: shorts, T, open fingered gloves, solar sleeves, trail running shoes. (Merrill Trail Gloves), a helmet and a whistle. (I read that it might help defend against dogs)

The bike: from front to rear: newly purchased Trek 520 (Dec 21), front Ortleibs, front rack bag for pepper spray, quick access tools like air pump, lock, snacks, etc…,  I added fenders,a pair of  Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires, mirror, headlight, a Sigma computer AND a Garmin for mapping/ NAV security, paper maps from ACA, map pocket, 3 water bottles, an other set of Ortleibs, tail light, giant ACA safety triangle thing and a fluorescent pool noodle (not mounted yet) for ‘visual width gauging’ for passing cars. That was Lisa’s suggestion from NextDoor. 

Other stuff: usual phone with cables and I added an AirTag so my sister can know where I am. I don’t want to leave location tracking on my phone full time. It eats battery. I’m still considering a solar charger.

** Mon May 9

… ahh. The sun is shining again. Today I gave Phoenix another spa treatment. Checking all fasteners, cleaning chain and everything again. Also making sure I have the right sized tool for each fastener! I’ll be replacing the chain right before I roll out though and still carrying a fresh one. Also reviewing my maps, checking mileage. It looks like 3600 miles to the facility in Belmont, CA.

I’ll post my equipment list soon. Folks like to know what it takes and Jeff provided me with his comprehensive list as a good baseline.

** Wed May 4

Alright, I was asked what, if anything, am I doing to prepare for this solo, self-supported ride.

The Alz site implies that others are riding with me. Anne and Charlie have their own local, equally valuable, supporting activities as 'Teammates" but I'm doing my ride solo. Anne will be tracking my whereabouts with an AirTag so I don't have to have a phone on full time. "Where's Waldo now?"

I'm not the first to pedal a TransAm. In fact, MANY folks make this trek. and a company called AdventureCycling has made good business out of supporting the rides, with organized tours, maps, etc. Its just something I've wanted to do, albeit on a motorcycle, maybe that will be next. But after visiting Mom and meeting Lowell in April, it struck me that I need to do something NOW. Alzheimer's is all too common and it's not just for old people. Lowell is only 57 and he used to pedal, race cars and motorcycles, etc.. He's an engineer. He could be you or I and while certainly affected by this disease, he's 'Still Lowell' and Mom is 'Still Mom' inside.

My friend and local, way more experienced riding partner, Jeff had been telling me to ride hills and carry a load, so I have been carrying between 30-40 pounds of weights on my bike while he and  I pedal our 28 mile trip for coffee..and in general. I have been "attacking hills or grades"..push..push! Yes, I'm passing the roses...I'm aware.

I've been told that the TransAm becomes a mental challenge as much as physical so my mantra will be "1 mile, 1 hour, 1 day, 1 week at a time". I guess I should add "1 month.." to that?

Ok, preparations...eating as well as I can. I rarely eat fatty or prepared/processed foods anyway, and while not skinny, I'm generally not carrying too many extra pounds. I've cut out alcohol...(I do like good wine.)

Last weekend I did a test drive to examine a route out of the DC area. I'm glad I went. The route had me going down miles of rough, gravel farm road. No thank you.

I'm checking my supplies, gear, maps, using the internet for other's experiences and talking with Jeff. He said.."just go. you'll be fine"

Phoenix is up to the task. I bought it last Fall for this reason. It's a Trek 520, designed and purpose-built for touring with racks and I added a new saddle and fenders. Yeah, fenders on my bicycle. (and its called a saddle, not a seat) I guess I'm officially old. but no basket in front!!  I'll carry spare....everything...a chain, tubes, cables, tools for roadside repairs, a loud whistle to fend off the Kentucky dogs I've heard of, tent, sleeping gear, wet weather and cold weather clothes, warm weather clothes...yeah..everything...including a helmet. While there will be supply sources along the ride, that guy Murphy, wrote all those crazy laws...about something negative happening at the worst time. A flat at night next to an angry dog, etc. Here's alot of the gear in my basement. Yes, I ride unicycles also, in fact most of my siblings do, but not on this trip. Our Dad, for some reason, motivated us to learn those darned things. Hey! there's an idea. we have a brother that is a master at Uni, maybe he should do that...a UniTransAm?

I spoke with a guy in Boston that made this trek last year. He said "if you're already pedaling, you will get the rest under control in the first 2 weeks or so". I hope you're right Alan because I've heard there are some hills between DC and San Fran.

And while it may sound lonely and isolating, remember, the route is on regular roadways, through towns, etc and there are others pedaling, as I write this. It's not yet as popular as the Camino de Santiago though.

And right now, in Va, with little more than a week before I roll out, it's still raining...again. While I don't look forward to getting caught in the inevitable rain while riding, I'm not a fan of setting OUT in rain. I ride motorcycles also, and that's just the way I feel. I'm just waiting for my last piece of gear to arrive and my sister, Anne, and staunch supporter and also contributor to the effort, suggested I write a little.

I'm also trying to figure out how to make my old iPod 30GB, 5th gen work for the ride. My sons gave it to me for Christmas a long time ago and I still use it and love them for that gift! I'll miss my music.  I'm stuck back on Savoy Brown, recently.