The pendulum swings back and forth, back and forth with each second ticking by. The sound of time echos in the tile entry way…click, click, click. Moments fleet. Anticipation builds. We continue to prepare for our launch…for our journey.
A metamorphosis has occurred, from bike rider to cyclist to adventure cyclist. We learned so much during our 2023 tour and are building on this knowledge. We’ve decided to do things a little differently this time now that we better understand what it’s like to live on the bike for 3 months.
Some items are the same and most cyclists use them. For example, we use Garmin bike computers, specifically the 1030 Plus. It allows us to track several bits of data like speed, average speed, distance traveled, gradient and has mapping capabilities. This data can be uploaded to different websites so others can watch our progress. My smart watch is a Lily 2 (by Garmin as well) and synchronizes with the bike computer. Last time, we did not take our heart rate monitor straps and are choosing to do so this time. It has been interesting to watch the training effects on our heart rate, blood pressure and sleep scores. We will be tracking and sharing this with you as we travel across the USA.
Safety items? My favorite battery powered headlight attaches to my handlebars and I put it on a strobe setting. It catches the attention of motorists especially when riding in shadowed areas and has saved me more than once. We also place two taillights (strobe setting too) on the rear panniers as well as a reflective triangle. The Spurcycle bell on my handlebars gives a gentle warning to other cyclists or walkers/runners as we approach from behind. And, one of the best $5 investments is an air horn…the kind used on boats or at parties. It is extremely loud. We found it works well when dogs start to charge towards us, startling them. It tends to stop them in their tracks although they continue to bark. It also works well when you realize your partner, who is off the front, takes a wrong turn while jamming to Supertramp! But is listening to music while on the bike safe? Well consider this: many of the roads we traveled were gravel paths, tow paths and remote highways. Some stretches were through forests where wildlife was present. By using the Sony Walkman and a JBL Clip 4, all the little creatures know I’m coming and most prefer not to interact. Having experienced a deer cross right in front of me one morning while descending Garden Street in Redlands, I like to give notice to all creatures. Music is also an amazing motivator when climbing hills, using the beat to help with maintaining a cadence. I do turn it down or off based on the environment, not wanting to be ‘that guy’. More personal protection? Bear spray-an essential while travelling the Pacific Northwest as well as the Adirondacks. Thankfully, we saw no bear in 2023. And lastly, Apple airtags work well to track our bikes, especially during air travel.
Finally, to capture special moments, we use iPhones, GoPros and a small drone. We are trying to keep it simple…a push of a button kind of experience.
It is our hope to share this experience with you on many levels…from the beauty of the landscape to the data two 64-year old bodies produce over three months of ‘training’.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
Is it time passing?
Is it the sound of gears shifting?
Is it part of a song that gets you up that 10% grade?
Or is it life moving forward, with or without you? Choose wisely.
#RoadrunnerTour2025
If not now, when?
A Garmin 1030 can upload to several sites like Strava, Ride with GPS, Zwift. It also has crash detection feature notifying your designated contacts if you crash. I tested it in February and this feature works! lol!
This tour, we want to see the effects of training, especially on resting heart rate. Seeing changes in VO2 max and fitness age will be fun too!
Thank you Caroline for telling me how the RoadID fits on my watchband!
Although she’s old and uses triple AAA batteries, she’s saved me more than once and I’m quite fond of her!
Our ‘cheap’ Amazon taillights are another favorite! They will flash for about 8 hours a day for 5 days before needing to be recharged. Yay!
Love this $5 party favor air horn bought at WalMart.
IYKYK. Not all bells are created equal.
These are awesome for tracking, especially during air travel or when shipping your bike. It also helps when you are riding RAGBRAI and your bike is parked amongst 1,000s of others.
Amazing sound quality and lasts all day. I love, love, love music and don’t want to spend one day of my life without it!
New this year since the last one…the screen was so dim, I had to hold it inside the ice case outside of gas station stores or bathrooms with lights out in order to see the screen.
Note to self: take the cap off the camera BEFORE taking pictures!