Pedal-Across

UPDATE!

2009-08-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to making a video summary of our trip. The total time of these two videos is 19 minutes and takes a few minutes to load.

ENJOY!

Mission Complete

2009-06-13T18:49:00.000-07:00

Glad to say we made it safely to the Beach and down to the water. We were surprised to see a much larger crowd than expected. Cameras and cheering greeted us at the boardwalk, it was almost overwhelming. After dropping off our gear and dipping our bikes in the Atlantic ocean, we did a brief interview with the local news.

Our command in the Navy (USS Kearsarge) did some fundraising of their own and managed to raise over $1300. Thank you to everyone involved.

We're glad to be back and we'd like to thank everyone for coming out to see us. We'll be posting more pictures along with our closing comments about our trip shortly.

Almost.

2009-06-11T18:28:00.000-07:00

There.

We're in Norfolk, VA. After a rough day of riding on broken wheels we were saved by Freddie James. He owns a bunch of local bike shops in the Hampton Roads area. He supported our trip with a spare wheel and some quick alignment. We slept in his shop in Franklin, VA.

We're on time, so we'll see you all down on the beach tomorrow. 1pm.

The pain is setting in...

2009-06-10T06:16:00.000-07:00

With less than 200 miles to go, everything hurts. We've been putting down 80+ and even 90+ miles per day to close in on our destination in a timely manner. Unfortunately we don't get a lot of down time so our muscles don't really ever heal. Every time we start riding we feel sore until about 5 miles and then we're good until we stop again.

We finally made it out of the highest peaks in Virginia. We were surprised to see the amazing views we did from the road as we enjoyed the best downhill of the trip. Only because it was the last mountain we had to climb.

We've stayed on 58 East pretty much all of this state and camp in the yards of families that live along it. We stayed in Whitney and Chad's yard just outside Galax, VA. Their dogs didn't know what to think of us. We also stayed in Anthony's yard in Axton, VA. Anthony contacted a Danville radio station and told them to look out for us coming down 58. Not surprisingly, a state trooper pulled up beside me and offered water and said we had every one's full support. After running into Anthony again later that day, we did a phone interview with that same radio station.

Thanks again to everyone for supporting us. We'll be finished soon, but we couldn't have made it this far without you.

Finally...Virginia

2009-06-06T20:06:00.000-07:00

We're in VA!

So much nonsense has occurred in the last few days, I don't think I could fit it in this blog.

We took a day off to rest before the mountains in Russell Springs, KY. The last time we took any days off was when I was really sick in New Mexico. On our first day back in the game we made it about 20 miles before a crazy dog decided to run straight into Andrew's bike and break his rear wheel. While trying to figure out what to do we were approached by a man named Richard. He used to race bicycles and took Andrew and his bike to the closest bike shop. Cumberland Cycles in Somerset, KY was very helpful in getting us (we're a team) back on the road.

Then came the mountains. We camped in the Daniel Boone National Forest through a night of light rain. We biked through Corbin, KY and Middlesboro, KY before reaching the Cumberland Gap. This tunnel takes you into Tennessee and then you have the option of going into Virginia. We spent a good 45 minutes trying to convince the state troopers and Transit authority to let us ride our bikes through the tunnel. Unfortunately it was deemed "unsafe" and we were forced to ride in their truck for the half mile tunnel. Lame.

Virginia at last! We've only been in VA for 1.5 days and we've already put down over 120 miles in this state.

Working to make it back on time. I can see all of our mileage miscalculations biting us back when we get to the last day of riding. We'll close the gap!

Oh yeah, I was attacked by a bird while I was riding yesterday. We're not sure what caused it, but I'm fine.

Homecoming Info.

2009-06-01T07:47:00.000-07:00

We appear to be right on schedule so we can now post our homecoming date/time/location.

We well be arriving in Virginia Beach, Virginia on Friday the 12th of June at 1:00 PM. We're going to be coming down Shore drive and Atlantic Ave. We will complete our journey by the Poseidon Statue located on the boardwalk (Intersection of Laskin Rd and Atlantic Ave). We'll let you know if any of this changes.

We hope to see you there.

Second to last.

2009-05-31T08:17:00.000-07:00

State, not post.

We're doing our best to stay on course and keep our mileage maxed out. We biked over 80 miles into Kentucky and camped not too far from the Ohio river in Wicliffe, KY. Crossing the Mississippi River and the Ohio River was incredible. They meet at the southern tip of Illinois which we rode across briefly to catch the next bridge. As we crossed the bridge, a man was yelling at us from the information post, but we waved him off and kept biking. Moments later a truck caught up with us and the lady driving told us that the guy was just trying to get our help. It turns out he is also biking across the country and had some mechanical problems. Andrew went back over and helped fix his bike!

Another 80 mile day landed us just past Barkley Lake. A large recreation area and popular tourist attraction. While looking for a campsite we met Beth, who offered us a place to camp on her property in Canton, KY. It was a tough ride, but we made it to her house and set up camp. We stayed up with her and her husband, Jim, in their lovely home discussing her time on the Appalachian Trail. Between pictures and stories I'm pretty certain that will be the next big adventure. After a quick shower and some pizza, we retired to our tent in their yard. Thank you Beth and Jim!!! road magic.

My seat broke while I was lifting my bike, so Andrew and Jim used some JB weld to fix it. If this doesnt hold up, I'll have to settle for a Wal-Mart seat since there aren't any bike shops around.

We're moving fast, so we might be in VA next time you hear from us!

Sick of the rain...

2009-05-28T20:56:00.000-07:00

We've been rained on every day since we entered Missouri. However, it has been the most beautiful ride we've had yet. Maybe we were just sick of the arid environment we were used to.

The past 3 days have been a work out on highway 160 East along the southern border of Missouri. The hills roll consistently with rough pavement and intermittent rain storms to make it more difficult. We camped at the home of Dennis and Mary just outside of Theodosia, MO. We shared stories over lemonade and fruit while the frogs in the yard drowned out our voices with their calls.

I blew out both of my Kevlar tires after the roads took their toll on them. I was able to reach (via phone) Chris, of West Plains Bicycle, who staged some new tires for our arrival. The swap out went well. Riding is smooth now.

It was strange to look back and see the rain follow us like a curtain of discomfort just waiting to catch up and ruin our socks again. At a few points during the ride we found ourselves out riding the speed of the storm. Even road crewmen were yelling out "that storm has your name on it". A few days of being damp caused us to do some laundry here in Poplar Bluff, MO.

Dogs: We see our fair share of dogs along these country roads. Many of these dogs have never seen bikers and are not tied up. This, along with the lack of an owner, causes them to chase us. While we do carry pepper spray, we learned that a little display of ALPHA MALE is all it takes to cause a tucked tail. They return home, shameful. Human on a quiet contraption moving down the street (ONE), Dog that has nothing else to do (ZERO). Our score is pretty high.

We should hit the Mississippi River tomorrow as well as KENTUCKY.
wish us luck.

Ozarks.

2009-05-26T07:20:00.000-07:00

We were rained on for the first time. I'm not talking a little drizzle; I'm talking about serious amounts of water.

If you've ever seen the movie "Deep Impact" when the meteor hits the ocean and causes a wave to tower over the coast and crash down on everyone...That's about how severe this downpour was. We couldn't see, and we were certain that cars couldn't see us.

As the rain cleared we made our way through the gorgeous mountains lightly coated with fog. We climbed a fire-lookout tower and enjoyed seeing everything that we couldn't from our bicycles. Many large black snakes ignored us as we traveled along the white line of the road just inches from their coil.

Forecast says rain for the next few days. We're shooting for a bike shop in Poplar Bluff, MO to get a new tire.

take care.

Missouri Greets us with...

2009-05-24T18:55:00.001-07:00

BAD WEATHER. We had our first dose of cold rain this trip.

However the high winds are what pushed us into a hotel in Neosho, Missouri.

Our last day in Oklahoma was interesting. We rode from Pawhuska, OK to Vinita, OK and laughed at how easy the ride was. We were warned of the "huge" climbs but we've known worse. Vinita was a larger town and we were forced to look for a place to stay. With zero farmers to rely on we checked the hotels. NO VACANCY. Apparently the local classic car club came to town and booked every room.

We found a bar down the street with a field behind it. It turns out the bar was an American Legion. With our ID cards in hand, we marched in there and asked if we could camp behind the bar. The owner granted us permission and we told her we'd be back for a beer. So we camped behind a bar and went to sleep around midnight. The next morning we were visited by an older ex military country guy. He was just checking on us and reminded us that the "kids in this town don't got nothin else ta do but ride 'round and act stupid"... referring to the dangers of cycling along route 60 east.

We thanked Clint Eastwood's brother and headed out for Missouri. : )

3 states to go!

OK...Seriously...

2009-05-22T09:37:00.000-07:00

We are making our way across Oklahoma, stimulating the economy in small towns one at a time. We buy all of their food throughout our days riding and burning calories.

We entered this flatter state(there are hills, just not 3,000 ft "hills") via the "pan handle" by Boise City. We've consistently put down 70 plus miles for the past four days without too much effort. Unfortunately, the wind hasn't always been on our side. The wind is coming from the south, so as we head east it does its best to push us over. If you can imagine endless and even grass on both sides of a straight road then you've got Oklahoma pictured. Throw in a few cows every mile and huge snakes along the road, and you've pretty much lived my life for this past week (not including the biking).

We've been camping on farms with the permission of the owner. Since the land here is owned by the farmers and not the Bureau of Land Management, we ask to be safe. They never seem to mind, and the nature of our farmer-to-camper encounter is very brief. Food has been provided by truck stops like "Four Corners". We were told they weren't even there and thought it would be another day before hitting our next town. The regulars there claimed that the towns nearby spread rumors about the (non)existence of Four Corners.

We restocked at a Wal-Mart in Guymon, OK. Our hand sanitizer, protein bars, wipes, and sun-block were in need of a refresh. Past Guymon and through some windy days we made it to Buffalo, OK. We decided to stay a the "Wooly Bison Inn"...mostly because it was the only vacant room in town. We were pleasantly surprised to see our "room" with Darla, the owner. This was like a town house for the price of a shady motel room of far less quality. Full Living room, loft, and bedroom.

In Tonkawa, we stayed in Gina's yard. It was very nice of her to offer us a shower and somewhere to safely pitch our tent. Her son, Dylan (10 yrs old), was very interested in our trip and hung out with us most of the even before being summoned by his mother!

We are now in Ponca City, OK. We're going to be mailing home most of our dead weight. His laptop, and most of our winter gear. The weather is MUCH warmer and we're going to replace that weight with more water.

Bugs. This state has a bug problem. They get caught in my beard and hair while we're riding, and if you stand still for a minute, you're covered.

Enjoy your weekend. We'll be riding.

"New" Mexico is getting Old. Time for OK!

2009-05-16T21:12:00.000-07:00

We stayed in Taos, NM for a night. Getting there was probably the most painful ride we've both suffered through. The climb caused both of us to wonder if our knees would even last another day on this trip. When we reached the top, the view was absolutely breathtaking (pictures to come).

Leaving Taos for Eagle Nest, NM we didn't really know what to expect. Just the name "Eagle Nest", sounded high up. On our way there we traveled gradually uphill by fields full of paranoid gophers and small streams. Usually when we spend hours climbing, we just hope that the summit elevation sign is just around the corner. This time, we were both shocked to reach "Palo Flechado Pass" towering at 9,101 feet above sea level. While celebrating with cliff bars and snacks, a van from a local tourist company was dropping off cyclists so that they can enjoy the downhill. We earned our downhill, and enjoyed it at high speeds.

On our way across the valley, Andrew had an unfortunate accident. He fell off of his bike and was out of commision briefly with some cuts and bruises. He is alright now, but we stayed the night in Eagle Nest instead of continuing on for the day so he could rest. We found out shortly there after that our laptop did not survive the accident. We are going to have a harder time posting as often, but as always we will do our best.

Out of Eagle Nest, we were pampered with almost 20 miles of downhill and windless flat land. The terrain was starting to flatten and look a lot more appealing to us. We were certain our 65 mile goal for the day would come easy. WRONG. Right after a water stop in Springer, NM we were hit with the hardest headwind yet (it took almost 3 hours to ride 17 miles). We camped in high winds and slept like champions.

...We're now in Clayton, NM. This is our last town in this state and we're ready to move on. We've met a lot of great people here, just tonight while getting dinner and getting a hotel room. We appreciate everyone's support both out here and back home.

Make sure you continue to spread the word...The donations never stop and for that we are thankful.

Oklahoma is next, stay tuned.

[This post was made possible by the Best Western in Clayton, NM --Thanks guys]

Truckin...

2009-05-14T07:31:00.000-07:00

Since Monday, we've covered about 220 miles of the great state of New Mexico. Unfortunately, this state is not going to let us go without a fight...uphill. We're about to tackle the tail end of the Rockies before we can be in Oklahoma. We might hit the tip of Texas for a little bit, but we're not sure that counts as bagging a state.

The magic of a hitchhiker: We leave a gas station after refueling on our favorite frozen burritos and using all of their water. We see a man walking with a backpack and a mini guitar, so we pass him with caution not to frighten him. Failure. I've never seen someone jump like that before. By the way, he looked like an old and beat John Lennon, just so you can picture it. We bike on and on like usual. Roughly 12 miles down the road, we're riding and talking as Andrew says "oh, nice, look who it is" as we come across that same guy sitting against a guardrail. Andrew yells out "cheater" as John replies "Dont go pickin up no hitchhikers, haha". We worked for the miles that he enjoyed in someone's vehicle, more power to him. 45 minutes later we saw him riding in the back of a pickup truck. I guess its a way of life we'll never understand.

We've been fortunate to have small towns, trading posts, and gas stations pop up frequently along our route. Sometimes we come across restaurants when there doesn't appear to be much else going on around it (no houses, community, etc). We found Papa Joes restaurant on our way to Coyote,NM. When we met the owner, he was quick to help us and not too surprised we made it there by bicycle. He told us about a guy that walked there with his stroller, I interrupted and said "DANIEL???". The man replied "yes, Daniel, you know him?". If you remember from our Tonopah, Nevada blog, we met Daniel on the side of the highway. It seems we're accidentally following his path down south. Strange, but exciting.

We'll let you all know when we're OK in OK (Okay in Oklahoma).

Bad/Good News!

2009-05-10T15:09:00.000-07:00

As some of you may already know, I (Matt) have been ill for the past 3 days. This also means that we have not been biking or making any progress on our trip. Fortunately for my active military ID card, I was able to take advantage of a free trip to the emergency room. It turns out, despite severe flu like symptoms, that I have a bad stomach virus. I'll spare you the gory details.

The good news is I shall survive to bike another day. Tomorrow sounds good. I'll just need to be extra cautious with hydration. We've been very careful, as well, to not get Andrew caught up in this same mess.

3 days without biking didn't set us back too much, but we'll have to make up the mileage.

wish us luck.

Arizona, check.

2009-05-08T09:29:00.000-07:00

We took a day off in Page, Arizona after our 95 mile ride. You cannot avoid wanting to indulge in all the foods you're thinking about while you're riding. So we ended up with Chinese food, ice cream, and Quiznos. This was much better than power bars and beef jerky.

Well rested, we rode into the Navajo Reservation towards Shonto Junction. Along the road, on rocks and hillsides, there was a fence to keep animals from wandering onto the highway. As the sun was setting, we realized there was not any public land for us to set up our tent. Just our luck, a local came running out to the road to wave us in the direction of his home. Jimmy, his mother Lori, and Rose welcomed us to their property on the reservation. We made a fire and set up our tent in their backyard. We stayed up sharing stories and enjoying the heat from the fire. In true desert fashion, the temperature dropped dramatically after the sun was down. Rose made us some fried bread, and shortly after we retired to our sleeping bags. Thank you Jimmy, Lori, and Rose!

We biked as far as we could so that we'd be closer to New Mexico. We ended up at a junction called "Mexican Water". The owner of the trading post there offered room for our tent, but we decided to head up the road and camp. The next day, our target was Farmington, NM. This was 86 miles away and the heat was nearly overwhelming. Fortunately, there was no shortage of gas stations along the way so that we could replenish our water supply. Although we have conditioned ourselves over the past few weeks, hills still take their toll. We have realized that "what goes down, must come back up". When we see that we're about to go down hill, we know that it just means there is some climbing to do in our future.

We've reached Farmington, NM. This city happens to be much larger than we expected. Next we'll be heading directly east through some mountains. We'll let you know how that goes.

It wont be long before much our riding is on flat land. Flat, easy, comfortable land.

Video, Finally.

2009-05-04T21:54:00.000-07:00

We'll have more. Motels don't offer the HIGHEST of "high speed" internet. We try.

Utah?

2009-05-04T10:02:00.000-07:00

We were in and out of that state faster than you can say "polygamy".

Our stay in Caliente, NV ended and we found ourselves climbing again. We reached Panaca Summit (6,718 ft) and descended into Utah. The border was clearly marked by the neglected tar/gravel roads we crossed over to. At this point the game was still the same, but the name had changed to Utah. The surrounding land was still somewhat arid and mountainous. We rode through high winds to a Route 66 Gas station in New Castle. Owned and operated by a very friendly couple, this gas station provided our dinner before setting out for a stealth campsite. Roughly 3 miles up the road, we camped in the hillside and slept like champions.

More uphill awaited us towards Cedar City, UT. This was by far the largest well developed city we've seen. After several warnings of how dangerous our next ascent would be (considering the weather, road conditions, and traffic), we were convinced a ride would be necessary for our safety. Frank and Donna insisted on giving us a lift to a safer point on the mountain. From there It was up and down until we reached Buffalo Bistro on Rt 89. Ron, the owner, cooked up some amazing salmon and sold us our first Utah native brew "Polygamy Porter". This ale came with a clever slogan: "Why have just one". Hilarious and fitting.

We camped near Zion national park near a noisy overpass. Earplugs are great. The following day is when the man points were earned. We biked almost 95 miles to Page, Arizona. Red cliffs encased the highway and seemed to never end. So long Utah, We're on McCain's property now.

two weeks down.

Aliens, Area-51, and Bulls...oh my.

2009-04-30T21:57:00.000-07:00

Homework for blog readers: Google "Rachel, Nevada". Just don't go there.

After we left Tonopah, NV we rode with the winds to our back through many mountains and valleys to finish around 73 miles. We sighted our first bear roughly a quarter-mile to our left and decided to keep going for a while before looking for somewhere to camp. We used our water sparingly since we wouldn't get to Rachel, NV until our 40 mile mark the next day.

The land we were on (and the following 75 miles) was marked with "open range" signs with the silhouette of a bull. Pretty straight forward. Now, these bulls turned out to be very curious of the two cyclists riding down the road. They'd form up along the side of the road, or what Andrew called "an ambush". It is pretty intense when multiple Bulls on both sides of you bluff charge and act like they want to impale you with their horns. We survived and pedaled harder than ever while yelling taunting words to the nosy beasts.

We rode through the Military testing zone with loud and ground shaking explosions towards Rachel, NV. This famous small town of 79 people is known for its interest in beings of outer space. They even named their one business the "Ale-inn", even though it's spelled ALIEN. While there, we realized that AREA-51 (the top-secret military sight-- impossible to penetrate) was about 20 miles south of where we were. That might also explain the excess of white SUVs with strange license plates driving by us at 75 mph. Jets were flying everywhere, and there were random patches of land with zero vegetation. Strange.

We left. We found ourselves biking later than usual and ended up pissing off more bulls at night while looking for somewhere to camp. Under the stars and high up, we slept before our trek to Caliente, NV. It was hot and our water supply was running short on the way to Caliente. With an 8 mile downhill we arrived in this small town and decided to stay before leaving Nevada in the morning.

We'll be in Utah sometime tomorrow since we only have 30 miles to the border. After that we have a 10,000 ft summit to achieve. We'll keep you posted.

Be sure to check out the link to our photo-wall on www.pedalacross.com

Nevada never dies...

2009-04-27T21:02:00.000-07:00

...And neither do the winds. More on that later.

We took a day off after the Sierra Nevada Mountains to relax and catch up on things. We stayed at a questionable motel in Minden, NV. However, it served it's purpose. Pizza, Beer, and "Mrs. Doubtfire" and a lot of rest did the trick. We left Minden for Yerington, NV which was about 60 miles south-east. We still had daylight so we shot for the town of Shurz. Located on the Walker River Paiute Tribe Reservation, it was compact but full of caring people. Everyone there referred to us as "brother" and were concerned about our travels. The tribe police gave us permission to camp out down by the river, so we did exactly that.

We had breakfast at the only gas station near town and received well wishes from many of the locals. We rode past walker lake into the Army depot town of Hawthorne. We stopped briefly for some groceries and made our way (another 34 miles) to Mina, NV. A town of maybe 150 people served us well with their local burger joint. We biked 9 miles out of town and camped off the road for the night. The next town (NOTHING in between) is Tonopah, NV (62 miles).

WORSE RIDING CONDITIONS THUS FAR. We had limited water, high temperatures and non-stop head wind. If you're wondering, this means the wind is blowing towards you. It had to be blowing at least 35 mph almost the entire day. OH, and we were climbing 2,000 feet so it was uphill most of the time. The pain aside, It was absolutely gorgeous. Untainted mountains in every direction with bright blue skies. It seems no matter how far we bike we can always look back and see a section of snow capped mountains mentioned many times before.

Just before Tonopah we ran into Daniel. He was walking down the highway with a baby stroller full of food, gear, and water. Unique to say the least. He is 21 years old and left NYC last October to walk across the country. He does his job from the road whenever he has cellphone reception and appears to be doing alright. Its funny because he thought what we were doing was "crazy".

Tonopah is over 6,000 ft above sea level and provides cheap rooms. we're here for the night. more later...

oh. Andrew got a flat tire yesterday. fyi.

Sierra Nev-NADA

2009-04-24T07:52:00.000-07:00

We were told by many that we would not make it through the Sierra Nevada Mountains in less than three days with all of our gear. Hah. Okay, I'm not going to lie...it was rough. Our legs and the state of California are DONE.

We left Pine Grove, CA for the mountains with a loose idea of what we were up against. This was solely based on the input of people living in that area because they DRIVE through there. Cars do not equal bikes, they're very different. We took route 88 east towards Kirkwood and found it to be quite beautiful. We drank all the water we could, not knowing when we'd run out of gas stations and random bars. As we climbed over 5,000 feet the first day and over 32 miles we ended up camping off the highway. We used our filter bags to catch melt water from the rock face nearby. At 7,000 ft, our camp overlooked much of the mountain range to the south. The temperature dropped quickly as the sun went down and our temporary home was waiting. We ate our kashi rice meals quickly and watched the sun set before passing out.

Sunrise, and highway 88 is once again alive with the sounds of truckers breaking through the passes. We knew we had to get to our highest pass (8,600 feet), nearly 30 miles away. BUT, before that, we dropped deep into a valley only to climb right back out. It's hard enough on your body to take that, but knowing you lost all the elevation in minutes...rough. We stopped to snack and make a video of how we filter our water and kept uphill for a few more miles. We arrived in the ski-town of Kirkwood. Do any of these people work? it was 2 pm and there was NO shortage of people skiiing and snowboarding. We ate a HUGE lunch at the Kirkwood Inn...and headed out for our summit. Once we hit our 8,600 ft summit....it was all downhill into Nevada.

45 MPH and loud yelling sums up the 18 miles that followed. The rest was flat land with mountains on both sides and cattle running away as we cycled by.

I think we need to rest here in Minden, NV.

To the foothills and beyond....!

2009-04-21T20:08:00.000-07:00

So last night we were looking for a place to stay in or near Lockeford, CA. We ended up on the outskirts of Clements, California where all the vineyards are. GORGEOUS views of well kept fields that seemed flawless with symmetry on either side of the road. In the distance you could see the snow capped mountains of the Sierra Nevadas... the next challenge. We were very fortunate to find Joe and Anne's Bed and Breakfast here. They allowed us to stay and pitch our tent there for the night. We were very greatful and suprised since we had been turned down about 6 miles back. We were ruitinely patrolled by their new dog, Pepper. If only we had the energy to keep up with her.

Morning broke out quicker than we thought as we packed up and said our goodbyes. We biked up hill for most of the day before we made it to our pre-arranged camp site on Kathleen and Steve's property in Pine Grove, California. Cats and dogs everywhere, as well as a large sanctuary where they raise stray deer. We thank them both very much for their support during this leg of our journey. They also provided showers and a ride to town to pick up a new camera so that we can start showing YOU pictures.

Tomorrow we head into the Sierra Nevadas. We're thinking we might head south after that to avoid the rockies because of the weather. We'll let you know what we come up with.

until next time... Keep commenting and spreading the word. It'll be a few days!!!

Day one.

2009-04-20T17:12:00.000-07:00

We parted ways with Will, Dave, and Sean. Our bikes were packed and ready to go. We rode for almost an hour across the city to the beach. Once there we dipped our wheels in the pacific ocean to mark the beginning of our journey (pictures soon). Trekking across San Francisco is tricky at best. Narrow streets that happen to be nearly vertical and packed with cars. We made our way through Oakland and up through steep beautiful mountains. At some points we had to dismount and walk up hill; Even cars were struggling. The backside of the mountains were fun to say the least as we arrived in Walnut Creek. We narrowly missed Concord (our goal) and shot straight for Clayton. For dinner, we devoured a Hawaiian pizza that happened to be our last meal for almost a day. During sunset we biked towards Mount Diablo to camp. We came across a small plot of land owned and maintained by a guy named Dave. His beautiful 6 acre property was more than we could have ever asked for as he offered us a place to pitch our tent. 50 Plus miles made it easy to pass out around 9:30 PM.

Today we left camp around 9:30 am. Rolling hills lead to open flat land for MILES. The temperature rose to almost 100 degrees and we did our best to stay hydrated. Looking for a place to stay near Lockeford, CA.

we'll let you know. Also, stay tuned for pictures... we haven't had the time to post them. Thank you to Computer Max in Lockeford for the free wifi to do this post.

take care.

3...2...1...GO!

2009-04-19T07:53:00.000-07:00

Today is the day. This is the morning that we will one day look back at and laugh. We're nervous and a little overwhelmed, but ready. Today we're setting out for Concord, CA. City miles are going to be rough because of all the traffic. Hopefully Sundays around here mean stay home. No? yeah, probably not.

until next time...

matthew and andrew.

The Zephyr. Long ride, Long post...

2009-04-17T08:24:00.000-07:00

Greetings from San Francisco, CA. Here is an overview of our 50 + hour train ride from Chicago to San Fran.

Depart Chicago, seamlessly landing in rural back country Illinois. Imagine a rusted water tower labeled "Mendota" as it overlooks freshly prepped farm land and Midwestern industry. That scenery remained fairly consistent for a while. We Crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa, while many passengers discussed how they learned to spell Mississippi when they were younger (double S/ Crooked letter). Rolling hills, cattle, brush fires and abandoned buildings sums this segment up just fine. We slept most of this state of Nebraska after enjoying Ben playing his fiddle in the lounge car and brief conversations with fellow travelers.

We woke up just outside Denver as the conductor announced our hour long stay there. We were quick to explore the city and grab a delicious breakfast and a few pictures. The feeling of not wanting to leave Denver, CO quickly faded as we ascended into the Rockies. 9,300 feet above sea level and the views we're almost literally breath taking. We followed along the Colorado River through "Gore Canyon"; known to be too remote and inaccessible by anything but a train. After hours of snow capped mountains we crossed into Utah. This state provided a beautiful reddish backdrop to our evening on thursday.

In the last coach class car of train #5 California Zephyr, many of us became close. We shared stories, jokes and opinions like old friends. Everyone knew who was heading where and why. We ended up meeting a few other touring cyclists on our train. Ken, Andy, and Quinn were going to Portland, Oregon to bike back to New York. We all shared our plans in detail hoping to learn something new to take with us. We will do our best to keep up with them as they travel in parrallel across the states. Best of luck to you guys, stay safe!

Every time we stop somewhere for any length of time, the smokers get wired up and dash for the platform. As smoking is not permitted on the train, stops along the way are a fix to their sanity. Our friend Ben however steps off the train to practice his fiddle and possibly earn some tips.

The car is noisy but it was time for sleep, last night on the old Zephyr. Once again surrounded by beautiful mountains, waking up in the "middle of nowhere" Nevada was amazing. Nevada proved to be the most arid landscape yet. A quick stop in Reno lead us right into Cali and the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Snowy, slow moving, and absolutely beautiful. A historian nearly put everyone to sleep with the vast amount of information he put out about this leg of the journey. However, an interested old man next to me was quick to scream at a loud woman on her cell phone when he couldn't hear the latest on the historical references. He then apologized and told her "its a free country lady".

We descended quickly into the suburban towns of central California and made it to San Francisco right on time. We carried our large bike boxes over our heads with our duffel bags and back packs strapped to our chest and back. The people of this city looked at us like we were crazy...and if asked, yes we are!

We are currently at our hotel on market street hanging out with some old friends of ours. Oh, and we let Ben the fiddler stay with us as well. Full house.

Thank you Brittany, Sean, Will and Dave for visiting us before we depart.

We're well TRAINed.

2009-04-15T09:30:00.000-07:00

I'd like to start this blog entry by thanking everyone for their support. We've received a lot of praise and attention these past few days that only motivate us more. Thank you. I hope everyone got a chance to view our news story, on You Tube, do a search for pedal across.

So... we woke up just before 4 AM yesterday (Tuesday) to walk two miles in the rain to our train station in Richmond, VA. Nice start! Cold, wet and tired. We caught our delayed train to D.C. with plenty of room and plenty to observe. Fast forward three hours and we're in Pentagon City Mall just south of the actual pentagon. We met up with our old "boss" from the Navy, Master Chief Raymond D. Kemp (shown trying to look big!). He gave us many words of encouragement as we shared old stories and further explained our plans. We briefly Met with an old friend, Amy Baker, on her lunch break to remind her that we were serious about this trip! Apparently she didn't believe we'd ever follow through. Hah.

After 8 hours in D.C. it was time to board our 4PM train to Chicago, IL. 16 Hours of rule free travel. If you have never traveled by train; they do not search any bags or demand too much in the way of passenger behavior. Kids were running free and old ladies were singing over the sound of the tracks. Meanwhile we planned out our map and listened to music while enjoying the Maryland Country side before dark. Around Midnight we found ourselves relaxing in the lounge car with clear glass overhead and comfortable seating. There we met Ben (of northern VA) who was on his way to backpack around California. We also met Audra from Minnesota. She was visiting D.C. for the first time. It was nice to meet both of you!

1 AM bed time... only to wake up at 8 AM looking out at the Chicago cityscape. From there we stopped for coffee, necessities for the next train, and some Wifi to write this blog.

Next train is a California Zephyr... 2.5 days of tracks and maybe some stories.

take care.

waiting game

2009-04-13T15:41:00.000-07:00

The bags and bikes have been dropped off at the train station in richmond after the 1.5 hour car ride. We're thinking that will be the last time we'll be in a car for a while. So now we've got nothing but time until our 5 am train headed towards D.C.

There might not be many blog entries during our 4 day train ride across the country, and we're sure that they wouldnt be very interesting anyways.

take care.

In other news...

2009-04-13T06:25:00.001-07:00

So its 6:30 AM day of departure... We're both awaken by a phone call we had never expected. NEWS 13, of Hampton Roads, VA called us for an interview. Tired and nervous we gathered our bikes and threw on the best set of biking gear we had. It turns out they wanted to do an entire story on our trip and how we came up with it. It was 40 degrees out and we must have done at least 15 different videos on our bicycles, but it was well worth it.

For those of you that live in VA/NC and receive NEWS 13 WVEC we will be on the 14th of April between 5 - 5:30 PM. We hope you catch it.

2009-04-12T20:47:00.000-07:00

So I'm sure that if you're reading this blog you understand that we (Matthew Marshall and Andrew Bryson) are riding bicycles across the U.S. to raise money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

A lot of planning and extensive research has gone into this trip only to find ourselves rebuilding hubs and brakes on our bicycles only hours before we're set to leave for San Francisco. Ridiculous. Monday the 13th of April marks our departure date for San Francisco, CA. We will be staying in Richmond, VA overnight to catch a 4 day train to the west coast. Yes, 4 days. From there we will be mailing back what we've known to be normal attire and strapping on some biking shorts for a long journey east. Can't wait...

For those of you that have already donated, we really appreciate it. Be sure to spread the word as networking is the most important tool we have to gain attention. www.pedalacross.com -- Dont forget.

thanks again and we hope that you look forward to reading about our trip!