ta DAH!

ladies.
and.
gentlemen.

We have arrived in Montreal.

It was totally worth the 3 flats (all mine, all rear), 1 lost towel (also mine), 1 lost lock (mine again), 1 lost pair of gloves (yup, mine), and the 7million pounds of trader joe's spaghetti with flax we had to eat (again, my doing. the food will get its own designated post forthwith, I promise. There's something called Meat Stick Syndrome that I must explain.) The city is gorgeous and the rain can't dampen our spirits a bit.

I was making a mental list of the amazing things I saw today and my brain (though it's well-conditioned by grad school) became overful, so here's just a sampling.

The bike paths in Quebec are astounding. Wide. Paved. Well-tended. Totally distinguished from regular car lanes. Some are part of a network of paths called "routes vert," numbered like highways, that run through forests and along the shore of Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence river. Too beautiful- it makes urban biking feel like being in a fairy tale.

We encountered some completely entrancing cottages and houses today next to the Lachine canal (do a google image search. Seriously.)- it was a sort of gray and overcast sky, and we passed a little stone home with a glossy tin roof that was so red it made my heart jump a little... Then there were the houses that butted up next to the canal with canoes and kayaks docked-- charming, sure, but rendered unforgettable by the giant blue heron that was roosting on one of the boats-- the 30-k ride in along that canal was the very definition of serenity.

Within minutes of arriving we stumbled onto a lovely little organic/local slowfood place in Old Montreal- I had a phenomenal gazpacho and some chipotle hummus and Melissa got a sunflower loaf panini (chris brunn- we must make this)- and now that I'm showered and nearly human again we're getting ready to go out on the town.

I wish you all were here in person- but you're definitely here in our hearts. Merci, darlings.
xoxoxoxoxox,
meg

If you wanna

know the cool and interesting and provocative things about canadian political economy, ask an old farmer. While waiting for Melissa outside the library in South Lancaster, Ontario, I had a 30min chat with a guy named Gordon and learned more from him than all the official plaques and museums and whatnot I've passed in 2.5 weeks. So awesome, you guys.

Also I heart the metric system. Kilos and kilos I heart the metric system.
Onward and quebecward!
xoxoxoxox,
m

Goodbye, Ontario

This is the last posting from Ontario. We have been following Brian Hedley's Toronto to Montreal route (see sidebar), and we really can't say enough great things about it. Canada's definition of a bike path is much different than mine - sometimes it means 2 inches wide dirt path through overgrown shrubs or 2 inches deep gravel. Brian's step-by-step guide leads you around the mountain bike stuff for your touring pleasure, while still saving some pleasant surprises. So, thanks, Doug at Boulevard Bikes for passing it on. When I log off, we will go straight to the Ontario/Quebec border, then it's Montreal tomorrow. Sorry we haven't been posting, but we've been having some trouble locating public libraries for free internet and there was a holiday. We have much to report. Gene, got your comment and I'm working on a list of "how-to bike tour" for ya! Thanks for subscribing! See you all soon, melissa & meg

Toronto!

So Canada is lovely, toronto is a very cool and environmentally aware city, and there are an astounding number of cyclists here. We have much to report, including Blackie, Cedars (the most amazing gay campground *ever*), and an adventure at the toronto bicycle network workshop/co-operative, but we're on a hostel computer and must dash. Suffice to say we're tan and tired and enjoying our adventure, and we'll tell you more very soon.
xoxoxoxoxo,
meg & melissa

Day 13: Put Another Dime in the Jukebox Baby

We have stumbled into the quirky little town of London, Ontario along the Thames River. A daily farmer's market, historical monuments and used book stores. Satisfactory, but is there anything fun to do? By some gross oversight, minor-leaguer Sammy Hagar (the Who? Eagles?) was billed as the headliner of a festival sponsored by a classic rock station. Luckily, I opened a paper that gave us the real news. Joan Jett, people. THE Joan Jett, as in my favorite version of Crimson and Clover, ba bum bum bum ba ba. Our mullets weren't long enough to get in, so we sat in the adjacent park and waited patiently through the opening bands, Megan with her Booker Award book and I with my Proust. Finally, the time came to climb a tree to see the crown of her head bopping over the tops of outhouses. Ms. Jett really gives you something to look forward to turning 50. We tried stalking her at her hotel later that night, but only ran into members of the band and the long hair guy from Skid Row.

Things I have learned, Meg's vol. 1

Oh, bike road trip = learning experience.

Notes others may profit from:
*don't pack dry lentils. Waste of weight and labor. (I over-estimated my willingness to cook.)
*do pack Trader Joe's boil-in-bag indian meals. yum. fast. win/win.
*do bring your leftover Chicago Blue Bag recycling bags- they make excellent cheapo rain gear. If the city won't recycle, at least you can.
*bring twice as many big and medium ziplock bags as you think you'll want. You'll use them.
*make a point of getting the bike maps of the states/provinces you'll be in ahead of time- verrry helpful.
*keep pens in handy places for directions/contact info.
*it is better to bring 1 bikini top and a couple of random shirts to ride in than to mess with jerseys/sportsbras/etc. Trust me and my new tan on this one.
*bring more than academic reading. After 100 K today, the last damn thing I feel like reading is Hannah Arendt. An Us Weekly would be more like it. (though I did think a bit about swiping the newest Economist from the farmhouse where we stopped to use the bathroom...)
*three resounding cheers for the Brooks saddle. Worth every penny, breaks in even better than the doc martens I wore in high school, it attracts fellow cyclists who will buy you italian sodas (thanks Pete and Judy!), and it is So. Totally. Comfortable.

These are today's lessons-- There are definitely more but I'm a little fuzzy-headed and I'm positive Melissa will have some excellent insights to add...

Time to lube the chain and ice the knees. Gnight.
xo,
meg

Evidence

As my dear Dan often tells me, you can know a thing to be true and still appreciate supporting evidence. He's right. I've always maintained that people are fundamentally good and our time riding through Michigan has provided ample evidence to support my perspective. Christy the bartender in Walkerville who called the Bitely Boys Motorcycle Gang to get us a free camping spot, Rusty and Jack and Don of said gang who chatted, Sandy the Bitely bartender who gave us coffee and pancakes and wouldn't take payment, Donnie and Kim who let us sleep in their award-winning pole barn and swim in their pool, Pete and Judy who bought us coffee and joined me in geeking out over gear stuff and gave us Tour de France updates and a beautiful route out of Midland, and now Gerry and Sara who opened their jaw-droppingly gorgeous historic (1872! Survived a wildfire!) home and their homemade wine and vegetarian pizza and stayed up laughing with us til faaar too late at night--- all kind and lively souls who reached out to us, each one the source of stories we'll be telling for years. Amazing.

And that's just over the last 10 days. I'd be remiss if I failed to also mention the enthusiastic support we've gotten from the homefront. There was a great deal of collaborative work in the lead-up to this adventure: before the sendoff brunch and the Zion camping, there were months of speculation and planning and chatter. My mom and Dad and Dan and Arline and Ruth and Max and Rachel and Dave and Toby and Stacey and Nick and the crews at Uptown Bikes and Boulevard Bikes and Johnny Sprockets-- good lord, you guys. Words fail. Big hugs.

I continue to be overwhelmed by the graciousness and generosity and good humor of the people I encounter, both in regular life and in epic undertakings like this one. You all make it easy for me to be happy and hopeful. Hooray for evidence.

xoxoxo,
meg

Day 11 - Canada

Hey folks! The time has arrived to cross into Canada. We will be turning off our phones to avoid international fees, so please email and/or post comments to this blog to stay in touch! We love hearing from you, so leave a message!!

hearts,
melissa

Day 10 - the thumb of michigan

It seems as though we have stumbled into some sort of contest where the people of Michigan compete to be the nicest to us. It all started in Bitely when the motorcycle gang let us camp for free on their schoolhouse-turned-HQ lawn. We woke up to Sandy's pancakes and coffee the next day and thanked 70 year old Rusty for the campgrounds.

Not to be outdone, Donnie and Kim waved us in from a thunderstorm to sleep on their garage floor while watching the weather channel and drinking Bud Light. The garage turned out to be a pole barn, and an award-winning pole barn at that. What does it take to win a pole barn contest? The entire upstairs was outfitted with a flat screen tv and billiards. We stayed downstairs with the tools, the surveillance cameras, and the police scanner.

But Sara and Gerald are in it to win it. Last night, after we rode 10 miles in the wrong direction to get to a campsite, they packed up our bikes and drove us to the site (for anyone who thinks this is cheating, we had ridden over 50 miles already so bite me). It was getting to closing time at that point and the sun was setting. There was no way we could pitch the tent and get settled before dark. Sara and Gerald offered us their guest bedroom in their house of history. They own an antique shop and their house is filled with antiques. This is roughing it at its finest. Pizza and homemade wine and hours of laughter into the night. Showers! Beds! Eggos! I'm glad I'm with Megan who can express gratitude better than me. She can gush like no other. Sara and Megan gossiped until 1am about the Lincolns, as in Abe and Mary.

Peter and Judy are still in the running. They tried hard to get us to stay at their house, but I had already used my Hilton Honors points for a hotel in Midland. They enticed us with fancy very very fancy bikes which Megan finds hard to resist. They settled for buying us coffees at the Barnes and Noble and poring through atlases to give us the best directions into Canada. We got a voicemail this morning from them making sure we were okay and wishing us the best of luck.

Michigan gets my vote for best overall Midwest state. Not just the hospitable and socially conscious people, which could wins hands down alone, but the excellent well-maintained rails-to-trails, the respectful drivers (most are motorcyclists and know what it's like), and don't think I didn't notice the bioswales to collect stormwater in even the most rural places. MICHIGAN! CHAMPION!

Day 6: Dark Knight

The scariest movie ever! Did you see how he just raced down Lake Street on the Bat-mocycle without looking for cyclists!!?!?!

PS We are in Midland, MI today, but I don't have enough time on the slowest internet in world to write about it.

Day Five: award winning pole barn

This is a funny story. Perhaps we will get a chance to tell it when we're not trying to check out of the fancy hotel.

Day Four: Oh, Country Roads

Megan is still in race mode. Even though we have no more deadlines, no more ferries to catch or friends to meet at picnics, we are plowing through as if we were on stationary bikes at the local Ballys. I became very familiar with the pavement - a light gray mix of tar and white gravel to lower the albedo rating, perhaps. I looked up - hey wait a minute! This is pretty! I stopped Megan. Perhaps we should take some more breaks and meet the locals? We stopped at the Walkerville tavern whose bartender hooked us up with a free campspace in the next town and told us her views on migrants and how if they didn't pick the asparagus, no one else would. Have you ever seen asparagus still in the ground? I thought it was a christmas tree farm.

The bartender's friends were the Bitely Boys, a motocycle club headquartered in an old schoolhouse. I went straight to sleep. Megan can tell you what happened next.

Day Three: Muskegon to Hart

The ferry to Muskegon was smooth and uneventful, and a favorite subject of many Michiganites. The people here love to wax poetic of their exotic excursions across the great lake. Definitely worth the price in my book.

Muskegon first impressed me with their Lake Front Path bike trail, then with the fact that no one stole our stuff while we blogged away in the library. Out of Muskegon, we headed towards the Hart-Montague trail to make our way north towards Luddington. A stop a Red Rooster Tavern introduced us to the local progressives. I had to stop for a bathroom break. The rainbow sherbert caught my eye first. The picture of a chicken wearing pasties with the caption "chicken strips" was what made me wave Megan inside. Chatting with the young bartender who reminded us of Falon from CBF, we regained hope in America. Ahhh, socially conscious people in the Midwest, a sigh of relief. The biracial motorcycling couple at the bar congratulated us on embarking on this trip and we were on a way. A quick dip in Duck Lake (a must for future bike riders) and we were on the Hart-Montague bike trail.

Everyone in Michigan knows about the Rails to Trails program. They might not know where they are, or how well maintained, but they do know that many of their tax dollars have gone to make some of the most impressive bike paths I've ever seen. I highly recommend this trail.

So here's the thing about

Milwaukee. It does NOT have the superfast/easy lake path that I'm used to. I got directions to the ferry from a (very certain-seeming) native and ended up taking in the gorgeous edifice of the milwaukee art museum (http://www.tommcmahon.net/2006/08/the_milwaukee_a.html) The dock for the ferry? Not so much. A pair of extremely sweet middle aged guys out for fitness rides on shiny Giant mountainbikes rode me back to the appropriate location, and I got to see part of indie Milwaukee (in Bay View I passed an anarcho-feminist book shop, a sewing collaborative/boutique, bunches and bunches of coffee spots, and midwestern hipsters galore). Melissa and I ended up crashing in a hotel. Now, after 2 hot showers, 8 pilfered mini-shampoos, half a pineapple pizza, and a lovely two-hour ferry ride during which we subjected Bee Movie to a Marxist critique, we are ready to resume The Ride.

Muskegon has amazing bike trails- kudos to their city planners- and friendly locals with tons of useful information. We're taking a trail to Hart today, and will end up working our way over to Saginaw. I do not yet hate cliff bars. Ask me again in 230-ish miles when we hit Port Huron.

Day Two: Milwaukee Bound (mh)

Saying our final goodbyes to at the campground was bittersweet. Embarking on a the trip of a lifetime but leaving everything behind. The Elite Peloton is now down to three: Megan, Andrea and myself. We headed north towards Milwaukee to make the 7pm ferry.

The Kenosha bike trail is lovely. Trees to the left, trees to the right, nothing but "good mornings" and "oh my you must be going a long way" along the way. Megan even saw an otter! I would prefer pavement to crushed gravel, but what can you do? The trail in Racine is nice as well, but hard to follow. Several times we got on and off Route 32 to try to get back on the trail.

The most hilarious thing happened! We started to wonder whether or not we were going to make it to the ferry in time. The ferry left at 7pm, but that meant we had to check our bikes in at 6:15pm. Andrea was getting tired. We were ALL getting tired. At about 5pm and not having a clue how far away we were, we decided that Megan should go ahead and get the tickets. I would stay back with Andrea. We kept going and going on Route 32, but there was nary a wayfinding sign. Finally, Andrea chatted up a biker on a Specialized racing bike, Will from Oak something, and he escorted us to safety. But Megan had followed the map. The map indicated that we should have turned at Howard instead of going along the lake and wind up in northern Milwaukee, far away from the ferry. Andrea and I got to the ferry and Megan was nowhere to be found. Andrea turned to me and said "It says in the Bible, the last will be first." What a good sport. Megan texted me "You go ahead, I'll take the ferry tomorrow." HA HA HA "You go ahead!" HA HA HA. So I talked to Robyn, the one of very very nice people in Milwaukee, and she said she would change our tickets and waive the fee. So nice! Take that, Chicago! Andrea took the night ferry and I waited for Megan to take the morning one.

Megan felt bad and put me up in a fancy hotel (why aren't there any hostels in Milwaukee???) and bought me pineapple pizza. Mistakes taste good! We had fine showers and loaded up on travel sized mouthwash.

Day One: The Send Off (melissa's version)

Thank you everyone who came out to show support for our ride. The first part of the send off was a beach potluck that turned into BYOP: "Bring Your Own Pie." So much pie! You should see Megan's bag after she tried to shove the leftovers in her back pannier (just kidding!) The Chair of my department at DePaul came, my old roommate Elise and her boyfriend Chris, friends Jenny and Suzanne and Carolee and Tony and Mary and her family in town and Emily from MCA and Chad and his friends from Wisconsin and Arline and Alie and the Elite Peloton and you can see the photos of the excitement. Chris Brunn took some great pictures with his new camera: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cbrunn/page1/.

At about 2/3pm, the Elite Peloton (http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?va=peloton) rode 40 miles north to Zion State Park. The pack consisted of Megan and myself, Matthew from CBF, Andrea from Germany and Stacy from Stacyland. Traveling the very nice bike trail along the metra line was a refreshing change of pace from the downtown streets. Watch out for this bike path, though. It did stop suddenly in the middle of nowhere and we had to stop at a gas station to ask a very nice young man with bedazzled and gilded teeth how to get back on. We went through the Ravinia crowd waiting to see Lyle Lovett and stopped at a lovely gazebo that was a memorial for an 11 year old girl who died of leukemia. We arrived at the park exactly at sunset with the sky a beautiful stratification of gold and blue. Dave F. had ridden his motorcycle ahead of us to reserve a space and prepare the campfire for our arrival. Steph L and her boyfriend Dave reserved a campsite nearby and came over to join in the festivities. Later, Nick and Aaron B arrived on their motorcycles, killed a bottle of whiskey and put out the fire long after everyone went to bed. Or should I say, went to Thermarest.

Contest!

Try to guess how many mosquito bites I (melissa) got at Zion State Park. Post your guess here and the person who is closest will get a postcard!

Lessons Learned

Melissa's ongoing list of things we learned along the way.

1. When camping in Zion State Park, forget everything Rachel Carson (Silent Spring) says about saving the environment and bring vats of DEET. Kill! Kill!

2. If you are going to the ferry out of Milwaukee, do not follow the map. Take 32 north, but at Howard, instead of turning left to follow the road, turn right towards the lake and continue north. You will eventually see signs for the ferry.

3. When you make a budget, double it. That will be about how much you need.

4. Don't take alot of food in the beginning of the trip. First of all, if you are buying food in Chicago, you pay over 10% tax, so you will save by buying food out of the area. Secondly, it's heavy and you will build muscle and grace after being on the bike a few days.

5. Always travel with someone younger, preferably with a student ID, so you can get the discounts.

A resource!

I just found this site for searching for campsites in Michigan. This is going to be very helpful!

http://www.michcampgrounds.com/arvcmich/search_campground.php

Last Critical Mass in Chicago

Last night, I did my last Critical Mass in Chicago. For those of you who don't know, critical mass is a big bike ride the last Friday of the month. Hundreds of people come out (more in the summer, less in the winter, the most on Halloween) and start downtown, riding wherever the people at the front take us. Last night we went to the southside and ended up on the beach. The Chicago skyline was amazing. It was a nice finale. http://chicagocriticalmass.org/

The first time I ever heard of Critical Mass, I was eating an early dinner in Amsterdam. All of the sudden everyone left the restaurant. Salmonella? Dine and dash? I decided to follow them to see a giant bike parade and people lining the streets to watch, cheer and videotape. "Vas ist das?" I asked in the worst German anyone has ever heard. "It's Critical Mass," explained the very polite Dutch passerby in perfect English, "it's a bike ride on the last Friday of the month." "Das ist megaguile!" I switched to bad Swiss. "Tot zeins!" (this is all fiction, the only other language I knew how to speak badly at the time was spanish)

Once Jen G. and I started a Critical Mass in Tahoe. We started out with about 20 riders (alot for our first ride, we thought!). We began at Stateline, rode through the Y and ended at Divided Sky, a bar named after a Pink Floyd song. (for anyone who knows South Lake Tahoe, that means no hills). It was fun. It might still be happening, in the summer of course when there are no 8-foot berms of snow in the way.

I'm looking forward to riding the Boston C.M.s.

Congratulations are in order!

Megan is smarter than she was last year, as stated and approved by Northwestern. Congratulations on finishing your finals, Megan! (now we can start training ha ha)

Ferry!

When I first told my dad about the bike ride, he was all about taking a ferry across Lake Michigan. My response, of course, was the usual d-a-a-d with a little roll of the eye leftover from the teenage years. Lo and behold, dad is right (this is your father's day present, dad, admitting that you can be right sometimes!). This is a great idea and solves all of our problems. Biking northwest through Wisconsin to Milwaukee then taking the ferry to Muskegon allows us to skip biking though Gary, IN. AND, that means that anyone who wants to ride with us out of town can find easy transportation to get back home. (July 12th, folks. Pump up your tires.) Plus, how pretty is this going to be?

Upon taking this ferry, I will have ferried across my top five favorite lakes in the world:
1. Fallen Leaf Lake, California
2. Lake Atilan, Guatemala
3. Lake Tahoe, CA/NV
4. Lake Baikal, Siberia
5. LAKE MICHIGAN!

The fee is $70. There might be a small fee for the bike. There's another older, cooler ferry, the SS Badger, but it is much further north and basically the same price. So we're going to take the fancy one...

http://www.lake-express.com/schedule/index.aspx


June 11 - September 1, 2008 - 3 roundtrips daily
Sail Arrive
Milwaukee 6:00 AM Muskegon 9:30 AM
Muskegon 10:15 AM Milwaukee 11:45 AM
Milwaukee 12:30 PM Muskegon 4:00 PM
Muskegon 4:45 PM Milwaukee 6:15 PM
Milwaukee 7:00 PM Muskegon 10:30 PM
Muskegon 11:00 PM Milwaukee 12:30 AM

Photo credit: Jen Dunn

Friday's Tribune

Look for the front page (I don't know if that's THE front page or the front page of the Metro section) of the Chicago Tribune tomorrow (Friday May 23rd). There's going to be a great big feature of our bike trip (well, at least there'll be a mention of us). It's a good thing I just got my hair done. A photographer came out and took pictures of me riding to work (Job 1) this morning. It would have been super, but he came the second after my sister called telling me my grandmother passed away. So if I don't look as happy as I normally do biking around, you know why.

More news: Job 2 has nothing to do with bikes.
As you may know, I'm also putting together the second I-GO Audio Emissions CD. It's a CD of Chicago bands that will go in all the I-GO cars. Wilco and Neko Case have confirmed. Post a comment if you have a favorite song. The themes are "driving" and "Chicago." Do you know what this means? Wilco, Neko, I-GO!?!!? They rhyme. yes. I-GO's website

Job 3
Memorial Day Monday so no class. Tuesday starts final presentations. Ha! Have the students do all the work! I am a genius.

Back to talking about Job 1. Yes, I will still be at Bike the Drive on Sunday. Stop by the Membership Tent so I can persuade you to sign up for the Commuter Challenge. Did you know that over 200 organizations have signed up? It's true and you can too. www.biketraffic.org

UPDATE!
Here it is: Trib article

A Necessary Step

The first question everybody asks when we tell them we're taking this trip is "why?" The second is "just the two of you?" Sometimes the third is "can I come?" Sometimes the third is "how will you guys get home?"

The answer to that last one is a little bittersweet--as you probably know, Melissa won't be returning because she's moving to Boston to start her phd at MIT. This is awesome and thrilling, and it means that I'll be coming back to Chicago on my own.

Given AA's announcement yesterday that it's going to charge for every piece of checked luggage (gah), I started thinking a bit harder about how I'll get myself and my bike back when the trip ends. Shipping the bike is the most complicated part, but I found a useful overview of my options here: http://www.adventurecycling.org/features/shippingbikecases.cfm

I can take a train for just a little more than $100 and the trip takes about a day- so now I have my answer: Amtrak.

2008 Bicycle Commuter Challenge

Have you signed up for the Commuter Challenge yet? It's a contest where businesses compete to get the most employees biking to work during Bike to Work Week June 7th-13th. You compete in your Category (school, non-profit, etc.) and Division (# of employees). It's lots of fun. I know that for a fact because I'm organizing it. What are you waiting for? Go to the website and sign up your company! (brought to you by the letters C, B and F)

We Have a PLAN.

Ladies and gentlemen, the route you've all been waiting for with bated breath:

Chicago: Lansing, MI: Sault Ste Marie: Toronto: Montreal: Quebec City.

~1200 miles of awesomeness, excellent iPod mixes, plus 1 actual, factual military-issued Meal Ready to Eat, vegetarian burger with bbq flavor (megan is more excited about the MRE than melissa is).

If you know excellent roadside attractions or campsites or people along this path who are sweet and might like to feed us or let us borrow their showers, please toss us a note in the comments section.

Cannot. Wait.

Don't Go Alone (Go With a Friend)

Yes, I'm on the Jay Ryan site http://www.thebirdmachine.com/ this morning (see addition below). This one says all.

Bike the Drive 2008!!!

Who's doing Bike the Drive this year? I'm working the Membership Tent, so stop by and say hi!

http://www.bikethedrive.org/

Toronto to Montreal

Doug from Boulevard Bikes gave me this website that explains a nice Toronto to Montreal route that he did and liked: http://www.hedney.com. It's all in silly metric though. Who uses kilometers these days? The route is 615km, or 382.143283203 miles.

It even gives rest stops, nearby campsites and cycling clubs!

This is my favorite part of the site:
"Mosquitoes and black flies are their worse in May and June. However, you are not traveling through the bush on this trip so they will only be of concern if you should elect to camp during these months. You will not be in bear country, and there really are no animals that will bother you. We have no poisonous snakes in this part of Canada." YES!

317 lbs

If Megan and I were carbon dioxide emissions, our combined weight would equal one flight from Chicago O'Hare ORD airport to Montreal International Dorval YUL. Wait a second, okay, we don't even weigh that much. The point is, we're each saving 317 lbs of carbon emissions by biking to Canada. Apparently, the flight would generate 855.9 lbs of all total global warming emissions, due to the fact that emissions have a larger impact at higher altitudes. http://www.cheap-parking.net/flight-carbon-emissions.php

What if we TRIED to equal the emissions of a one-way flight during our bike trip? Do you think we can do it?

Food is responsible for 1/3 of greenhouse gases, so maybe we can eat our way to a dirty planet. Unfortunately, Megan is vegan-positive and I only eat up to fish on the food chain, plus we like to eat locally grown organic in-season foods with minimal packaging. I went on www.eatlowcarbon.org and figured out that I only eat 133 lbs of carbon emissions in a month. Suzanne says that I can only count 66 lbs as extra calories that I would not have eaten if I weren't biking. Dang!

Even though we are camping most nights, we are likely to have one or two hotel stays (hopefully free with hilton honors points!!). I entered 2 nights in one room each night into the Double Tree calculator: http://www.doubletreeportlandgreen.com/calc-guests.htm. Only .02 tons (40 lbs) of CO2.

Since we bought our bikes used, we can't count the carbon emissions for them. That belongs to the first owner, so it wouldn't be fair to take credit for them. Maybe if I make a list of all the brand new items I buy for the trip it would make up for my carbon deficit.

new things bought:
Chain
Bottom bracket
handlebar tape
new battery for my camera
new battery charger for my camera
(attempt to recycle old charger and battery TBA)

new things to buy:
biking shorts, one pair
gloves that glo in the dark, one pair
water bottle holder
helmet
women's style handlebars so my shoulders and neck don't hurt!
case of fruit leathers!
case of emergen-c's!


I just don't think we can reach that level. Oh well, when we're done, we'll just have to throw our bikes in the ocean to make up for all of that pollution we saved. (Or recycle it into gifts: http://www.resourcerevival.com!)

I have a huge crush...

...on my bicycle. I know that things are not love. I'm familiar with critiques of consumerism and fetishism and so on. But, I tell you- but.



The object of my affection is a refurbished 1984 Trek 420, courtesy of Working Bikes (1125 S Western Ave): lugged steel frame, pewter with burgundy decals. This is the best thing I've ever bought. Ever.



See above: the saddle that will carry me 1200 miles in 29 days, and the bar tape that matches it. So chic, no?


When I picked up my newly rebuilt bike today from Uptown Bikes (Broadway and Lawrence, one of the all-time great LBSs, big love to Aaron and Nora), I was giddy. Grinned the whole ride home, may have actually giggled out loud a time or two, and had real difficulty focusing on the rhetoric of Abraham Lincoln the way I was supposed to for the rest of the day.

Can't find my camera, sorry for the crummy webcam photos--when you see it in person, you'll see that it's enveloped in a glittery aura of awesomeness and it emits an ethereal hum evoking pure happiness.

xo,
meg

The listmaking, it soothes me...

So I've been generating a googledoc based on the list posted here: http://www.adventurecycling.org/features/packing.cfm

We've got some of this stuff already, and we can share a fair bit of it to lighten our collective load- it should be manageable weight (especially since we'll forgo the sewing kit). Here's the thing, though- sometimes I am susceptible to getting caught up in covetous planning. To wit: "oh, right, we'll need coffee!" [spend 10 minutes browsing ebay for a battery-powered coffee grinder, wondering if a hand-cranked grinder is something you can buy in post-pioneer days because it would be kind of awesomely diy] "ohhhhh, right- if one does not take whole bean coffee, one has no need of a damn grinder." [shamefully click ebay window closed].

Not to worry- we already have a french press.

-m

(megan, I added this jay ryan poster to your post cuz it made me think of you -melissa)

April 17th DePaul + bikes

Whenever I say "I teach a class at DePaul and I make the students ride bikes" everyone says "do you know that guy who writes about bikes and politics?" No, I don't, but here's a chance to meet him...

Book Talk and signing by author and DePaul Professor Harry Wray about
his book

Pedal Power: The Quiet Rise of the Bicycle in American Public Life

DePaul Center Loop Campus
Barnes & Noble Bookstore
Jackson and State
Thursday, April 17
5:30PM

Cycling Sisters recommendations for bike shorts

These are the Cycling Sisters recommendations so far for bike shorts:

My all time favorite bike shorts are made by Aero Tech.
http://www.aerotech designs.com/ classicfemale. htm#triathlon

I prefer the triathlon shorts because the pad is not thick and
you don't feel it between your legs. -Kathy (seconded by Kristina)

And...

My favorite biking shorts are the Terry Bella short:
http://www.terrybic ycles.com/ detail.html? item_no=1835&c=Apparel
The chamois is comfortable and the fabric is soft and feels very nice against your skin. It costs more than others, but you get what you pay for. -Sharon

(She ain't kidding. The Terrys are $90!!!)

Melissa's Bike and Accessories

Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of my new bike. I was going to take it from the craigslist posting I got it from, but the guy already took it down. Too quick on the draw! Another strategy would be for me to take my expensive Japanese gadget and snap a picture of it myself. True to Melissa-form, however, the battery is dead and the Japanese battery charger is not working. Ha! Anyone going to Toyko soon? :)

Anyway, the new-to-me 2001 Bianchi Volpe is a sparkling violet with red specks. Envision this 2006 Gang Green Bianchi Volpe as purple, and that's close. It has not yet taken the place in my heart of my red 330 Trek, which I can't bring myself to sell. If you want a coppertone 60s Schwinn cruiser, though, the friend price is $100. Acquiring bikes = fun, selling bikes = sad. The sparkling violet, unphotographed, 2001 Bianchi Volpe is sitting in the basement now with a very untrued wheel. I will have to buy/borrow touring wheels anyway. The seat, an 80s sea-green, will be switched out for a boring yet more comfortable ride. It also squeaks. Other than that, ready to ride!

I am currently negotiating a purchase of 2 yellow Ortlieb Back Roller Classic panniers for $120 (craigslist, of course). My bike came with racks, so now I just need the bags for carrying our camping gear.



Between Megan and I, we have 2 bikes, 2 sleeping bags and 1 tent.

I also have an iPod filled with French lessons.

Feel free to post comments with advice, suggestions and ideas about other things we need!

We begin.

Why are we riding our bikes from Chicago to Montreal?

• Because we each offer unbounded enthusiasm for every scheme that the other one proposes.
  
• Because it will be a hard and satisfying and unspeakably pretty ride.
• Because biking is a sustainable and supercool form of transportation.
• Because Melissa is attending a conference there and it's one of Megan's all-time favorite cities.
• Because it gives us an excuse to play with our bikes and make them better.
  
• Because Melissa will be moving away to start a PhD at MIT while Megan continues her PhD at Northwestern, and we want a big circus of awesomeness and fun before that happens.

But mostly? Because we may.

Before we go, we will be posting about our training, gear, route(s), fundraising efforts, lodging plans, and more. We plan to leave Chicago on July 10, 2008, and arrive in Montreal on August 10, 2008, and we will document the whole ride with posts and photos here. During our months of preparation and training, we welcome your wisdom, warnings, suggestions, and support with regard to any aspect of the trip.

As ever and always, you are invited to join us for any portion of the ride!