Today we passed the 1,000 miles biked milestone! We still have a long way to go, but it feels awesome to hit this marker. We spent today biking an easy 50 miles through the Capitol Reef National Park. It was beautiful, just check out the pictures on the media tab. The conditions could not have been more different than yesterday, which was a total suck fest. Yesterday, was cool,rainy, and very foggy at high altitude. The fog got so thick we were compelled to push our bikes for a couple miles because the visability was so poor. In all, we biked almost 70 miles that day and gained over 7,000 feet of elevation. Compared to that, today was a breeze. It was so scenic, I’m tempted to call it the best day of biking of my life.
Reflecting back on the last 1,000 miles, I would say I had no idea what I was getting myself into. If I had known the cycling would be this challenging back when we were planning the trip in the comfort of our Parisian apartment, I probably would have opted out. That said, I’m so grateful for the experience and proud of everything we’ve accomplished so far. Fingers crossed that we make it at least another 1,000 miles.
Some quick observations on what I would do differently knowing what I know now:
-I would opt for more standard road cycling tires. It is challenging finding 26 inch presta tubes in the middle of nowhere. I would also say our tires are too beefy, and hence too slow.
-I’d ditch the mud guards on the bike. I don’t want the weight and when you’re biking 60-70 miles a day you’re going to get dirty no matter what.
-Pack lighter. I’ve sent home several boxes of stuff I don’t need and don’t want to carry.
-Be more in tune with the weather. We’ve biked in 100 degree temperatures and in the cold and wet. On those extreme days, it’s better to make it a really short ride or not bike at all. We at times have allowed our fear of not finishing in time to push us into riding in pretty unfavorable circumstances.
-Plan on organizing a support car from the get go. We got lucky that Mike took one for the team and opted to be our support driver after crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountains. If he had not, I don’t think we would have been able to cross Nevada and Utah as successfully, if at all.
-Cover myself in sunscreen, rain or shine.