It’s been almost 2 years since I have last posted on Sunflower Cyclist. A few quick updates – I did not follow through with my plans to bike the length of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan due to the unknown of the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020. The Ore to Shore and Iceman Cometh mountain bike races were canceled in 2020 (also due to the panini) – my race registrations were deferred to 2021, of which I chose to be refunded due to not being in Michigan. In December of 2020, I quietly completed my undergraduate degree on a random Thursday while sitting at the kitchen table in my childhood home after being sent home due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. A month before graduating from college, I had been accepted as a Corps Member in AmeriCorps NCCC FEMA Corps. That left 3.5 months between the end of my undergraduate career and flying to AmeriCorps NCCC Southern Region Campus in Mississippi. Winter in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is no joke, and as other states are gearing up for spring, we continually get bombarded with snow and easily accumulate 4+ feet of snow per season. My mountain bike, however studded the tires are, is no match for fresh or compact powder. My solution was to cross country ski into the next dimension. I skied over 40 miles in January/February/March of 2021. Throughout my term of service with FEMA Corps in 2021-2022, my team and I were easily working 40hr work weeks of manual labor in North Carolina helping at a food bank, driving forklifts at a distribution center in Texas, providing Disaster Survivor Assistance to individuals affected by Hurricane Ida in Louisiana, and assisting the External Affairs office in Washington DC. The nature of the AmeriCorps program divides the service year into four projects and four locations, thus making it difficult to stick to any prolonged or specialized workout regime (such as biking 1,000+ miles) – and teams aren’t allowed to modify the provided 15-passenger van to include a bike rack. With this in mind, I opted for a year of reading, listening to podcasts, and watching documentaries about bikes, bike touring, endurance sports, nutrition, stealth camping, cooking on the trail, and gear. I have been talking about biking across the United States since I first read Juliana Buhring’s book about circumnavigating the globe by bike. I would tell my friends in college that one day I was going to bike coast to coast. Thus, in true Eryn fashion, I made the decision to bike across the United States directly after my service year with FEMA Corps and started telling people my goal to keep myself accountable. I know that I am young and have my whole life in front of me, but I feel like if I don’t do it now, I never will. No better time than the present! On Saturday, April 23, 2022, I will be flying to Virginia to start my bike ride across the United States to loosely follow the Adventure Cycling TransAmerica Route through Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon. I am estimating that it will take me 70 days to bike across the country, and I plan to camp and use a cookstove. During my ride, I plan to write in this blog. I will not say that I’ll write twice a week or anything, because I don’t know how my body or mind will react to typing after a long day in the saddle. To decrease any potential disappointments for not keeping my promises, my blog posting will be sporadic and keeping y’all on your toes. However, one promise that I can make is that I have blog posts in the works such as packing for a bike tour, what I plan to cook/eat on the trail, cross-training, goals, and testing gear before the real-deal to publish on this site before I even reach Virginia.
0 Comments
4.25: 50 miles; 4 hours. I biked from Newberry to High Bridge State Forest Campground on M123/CO RD 407. The weather was nice, and there was little traffic on the roads. I started riding at 8:30am, as the weather was warmer than usual, and I was already up due to the cat waking me up at 4:30am. I was tired from the get-go, and I was hoping to fall asleep on my bike. However, that did not happen, and my nap waited until after lunch.
4.26: 16.3 miles; 1 hour 15 minutes. Sort jaunt around town to loosen up my legs from the previous day’s ride. My knees were not screaming for help, and my left knee only hurt when I was at the last 3/4th of an incline. I have been stretching more often, taking arnica, and icing my knees. It was warm out, and I worked on the iconic cyclist shorts tan line. 4.27: 60 miles; I actually only rode 34 miles in 2 hours 55 minutes. Due to riding in April in the Upper Peninsula, it was cold. And I was cold. My toes and fingers were frozen, and it was not fun to bike in. I’m all in for extreme weather, but I like to be a comfortable temperature within the extreme weather. Therefore, I turned around at 17 miles when I couldn’t stand the cold anymore. Even though I was cold, it was still a good ride. 4.28: 17 miles; I actually rode 30 miles, as I added a 13 mile loop to the 17 mile loop to make up some of the previous day’s miles. 30 miles in 2 hours 24 minutes. I felt like I was flying on these routes, cars gave me space on the road, and the sun was out. 4.29: 12 miles; did not ride on this day due to heavy rain 4.30: 12 miles; unknown time. Slow and easy ride to prepare for the long ride!!! 5.1: 87 miles; 7 hours 30 minutes. Started at 8am going north on M123. Listened to a podcast and lots of music! I was biking so FAST! Made it to Paradise (40ish miles) by 11:20ish – fast time! The sun finally came out on M123 south in full force. By the time I had 20 miles left, I was faced with a dehydration headache and an intense feeling of “I am going to puke right NOW” (but I didn’t!). Over my bike ride, I ate one Clif Bar and two peanut butter burritos. (My peanut butter burritos consist of peanut butter lathered on a quesadilla shell, crasisns sprinkled in, and rolled up with a cheese stick.) I drank one whole camel bak with water+electrolyte additive, bike bottle with water+electrolytes, and about half of a Nalgene that I had strapped to my front handlebars. Once I got home, I was exhausted and could barely stand up without feeling woozy. I took a shower, grabbed my pillow and blanket, and took a nap on the couch so I wouldn’t puke. I woke up about an hour later feeling better, without an urge to puke and able to walk around. I ate a hardy vegan meal of a boca burger, two slices of baked cabbage, and four peanut butter cookies. Remember about the sun? I received sunburn on my forehead from helmet holes (yes, you can laugh), my cheeks and nose, and the skin between the cuff of my jacket and bike gloves. ‘twas a nice day. ** Fun fact!!! I essentially biked 555 miles in 1.5 months!! A B S O L U T E L Y A M A Z I N G ! ! 4/26/2020 0 Comments Lower Peninsula bike tourTwo years ago, I biked across the Upper Peninsula, so naturally I am making plans to bike across the Lower Peninsula. I have been thinking about this route for a few months now, and I am excited to ride the length of Michigan in a week. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic happening at the moment, it may have to be postponed a summer due to global health security. Here is my planned route across the eastern side of the state:
Day 1: Mackinaw City to Rogers City (57mi) Day 2: Rogers City to Glennie (70mi) Day 3: Glennie to Au Gres (47mi) Day 4: Au Gres to Saginaw (57mi) Day 5: Saginaw to Fowlerville (59 mi) Day 6: Fowlerville to Adrian (62 mi) Day 7: Adrian to Lyons, Ohio (13 mi) Each night, I would camp or stay with friends/family. Due to the short duration of the tour, I would carry all my food with me. I would rather have my panniers a little heavier than spending money each day on food – but that’s just my personal preference. My tentative packing list includes: Sleeping - tent, sleeping pad, sleeping bag Cooking - stove, cup, utensils, fuel, lighter Food - 6 1/2 dinner meals, 6 breakfast meals, 7 lunches/snackiez Clothing - 2 biking shorts, 3 shirts, 6 socks/underwear, 2 bras, 2 camp t-shirts, 1 camp skirt, pajamas, lightweight sweater, lightweight sweatpants, rain/wind coat, rain/wind pants, clip shoes, chacos, helmet, sunglasses, bike gloves Toiletries - brush, shampoo/conditioner, toothbrush/paste, first aid kit, chamois butter, sunscreen, towel Bike - pedal wrenches, allen wrenches, chain lube, bike pump Miscellaneous - headlamp, charging cords (phone, bike lights), solar charger, journal/pen, fabric bags, money/ID, headphones, fire starter Rear panniers/rear rack/bungee cords Behind the seat pack Stem pack 4.21: 17 miles; 2 hours. (previous blog post)
4.22: 21.5 miles; 1 hour 45 minutes. This ride was refreshingly fast compared to the previous day of strong headwinds and snow. My fingers were frozen the first 5 miles, as I only had biking gloves on, and I was scared that I would have to cut my ride short due to lack of feeling in my fingers. As time went on, I regained feeling in my fingers. The longer Governor Whitmer’s stay-at-home order is in place, the more people are getting stir crazy. There was lots of traffic, most vehicles gave me space on the roads, but not all. Also, with the snow rapidly disappearing, litter and trash line the ditches. If I picked up all the cans on the side of the road, I could probably fund a good portion of fall semester’s tuition – which is not something to be excited about. Happy earth day! 4.23: 31.76 miles; 2 hours 35 minutes. I checked the weather five times. Five times, for “Newberry, Michigan.” Was I riding in Newberry? No. Where was I riding, you ask? Naubinway, and then to Newberry. As my Mom and sister were driving me to Naubinway to start my bike route, there was this haze on the horizon. At first, we thought it was just really cloudy, maybe it was raining, maybe smoke from a large fire. Then we drove into it – snow clouds filled with snow flurries. As I laced my biking shoes, my fingers were going numb, and a strong south east wind was flying across Lake Michigan. I said goodbye to my Mom and sister, put on my winter gloves, and headed east down US-2. The shoulder was wide, three feet of tarmac, then the rumble strip and white line. Turned left onto Borgstrom road with an astounding two inches of shoulder. I didn’t bother with the little shoulder; my bike and I took up the whole right lane. On this ride, I wanted to push myself, but not enough to where my knees start hurting. Guess what, my knees started hurting on this ride, and it was a good reminder to use a lower gear. Overall, it was snowy and cold, but not unbearable. 4.24: 20 miles; 1 hour 40 minutes. Recovery ride day!! After yesterday’s longer ride, my knees definitely hurt. I spread arnica gel on my knees and took arnica capsules for faster muscle recovery. Weirdly enough, my legs hurt more when I was walking around the house than when I was riding. The route I rode was meant to be easy and low intensity with no intention for a new best time. I’m not really good at this type of riding. I get into the groove of riding and just GO. (I guess that’s why my knees always hurt so much each season.) A larger range of gears were used today than on yesterday’s 30-mile route. The weather today was a complete 360 from the day before – the sun was out, wind was almost nonexistent, and kids were playing outside. However, it still was still cold enough for winter thermals on under my cycling clothes. 4/21/2020 0 Comments Pre-SeasonThe 2020 biking season came sooner than expected this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 13th, Alma College made the decision to move all classes online, and for students to move back home to prevent the spread of the virus. I packed up my belongings and moved back home the next day. Although Governor Gretchen Whitmer has put in place a Stay-at-home order, biking and other individual outdoor activities are permitted.
As of today (4/21/2020), I have biked 252.28 miles since March 15th. Right now, I am considering this liminal period “pre-season,” and I am considering the regular biking season in the end of May/start of June. Since being home, I haven’t been biking consistently due to my course load and exams. Surrounding exam week, I took a 10-day hiatus from biking – and it paid off with all A’s! In a sudden surge of urgency and excitement, I created a 10-day biking chart with a goal of biking almost the entirety of M123 and then on M28 back to Newberry – and it just so happens to be 86 miles. I am excited to undertake this goal, especially in pre-season. Today, I rode the allotted 17 miles, with a grueling headwind from the NW. The gusts of wind almost sent me into the ditch multiple times, and I felt like I was crawling. Besides from the wind attempting to topple me, I was decked out in all my cold weather biking gear and the wind had nothin’ on me. 4.21 – 17mi 4.22 – 21.5mi 4.23 – 30mi 4.24 – 20mi 4.25 – 50mi 4.26 – 16.3mi 4.27 – 60mi 4.28 – 17mi 4.29 – 12.3mi 4.30 – 86mi – Newberry/Paradise/M28 Loop My goals for this year includes building my endurance, bike touring from Mackinaw City to the Ohio border, the Hard Rock, and the Iceman Cometh Challenge. |
Author: Eryn corinthCyclist. Feminist. Outdoor enthusiast. Tree hugger. Archives
October 2022
CategoriesAll College Colorado Gear Goals Illinois Iowa Kentucky Missouri Motivation Nebraska Ore To Shore Pandemic Rides TransAmerica Ride UP Cycle Virginia |