Some wrap-up thoughts

I've been home for two days, I've put away most of my things, mowed the lawn and am getting back into the home routine (though it will be different because I'm not going to work).  I've been reading everyone else's blog and reliving lots of great memories.  I've got lots of thoughts about the trip running through my head.  I thought I'd share some of these random thoughts here.

In no particular order:

In the end I rode about 2/3 of the TransAm route - about 2,800 of the total 4,200 miles.  I missed four weeks of the ride, from western Virginia to central Kansas.  I think I hit most of the highlights, particularly all of the western U.S.  The others generally agreed the parts I missed were some of the less interesting and least favorite.  I'm very proud that I didn't let my broken collarbone stop me, but pushed myself a bit to get back out sooner rather than later and complete most of the ride.

The question has come up to me repeatedly - will you go back and do the section you missed?
My answer is - I'm not sure, it depends.  When I first crashed out I thought I'd just sign up to do the whole thing next year.  After I was able to come back in only four weeks doing it all end-to-end doesn't seem so important.  I've got lots of other things I'd like to do over the next few years.  I'll give some thought to riding the other 1/3, maybe even next year, but if I've got something else going on completing the route may not be priority #1.

Riding cross country on the TransAm is not a herculean athletic accomplishment.  Almost anyone with the right equipment, reasonable fitness and willingness to ride for hours on end could do it.  Most of us on this ride were not great athletes, just recreational cyclists with a lot of determination.

Having said that, riding the TransAm is HARD.  There were some long days, some hot days, some very long uphill stretches capped off by steep climbs over mountain passes.  It's no walk (or ride) in the park. 

I think the challenge is more mental than physical.  The biggest requirement is the determination to keep going at those times when you wonder why you're doing this.  If you just keep pedaling you'll get over all of the passes and complete all the miles.

The rewards for doing the ride are great.  Beautiful scenery.  Getting in touch with rural America.  Good times shared with people who become close friends.  A deep sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.

I'd highly recommend this ride to anyone who thinks they might want to do it.  I'd also recommend bicycle touring in general - there are lots of routes, lots of ways to do it and plenty of great places to see.  I'd be thrilled if my blog inspired a few of my readers to take on something like this - no matter how small or large.

Our group had no right to expect the great fortune we had with the weather on this trip.  There was only one day when they rode all day in the rain (in Kentucky - I wasn't there).  I rode a total of about 1 hour in the rain.  No way could we have expected that when we started.  We had thunderstorms and rain showers a few evenings or overnight, but we never once set up or took down our tents in the rain.
Although we had extraordinary heat in Kansas and some hot days in eastern Oregon, we avoided the worst of that by starting early in the morning.  We had some truly gorgeous days in the last few weeks.
(Having said this, this summer's weather has been disastrous for many farmers suffering through drought and scorching heat.  We should keep them in mind as we make note of our good fortune.)

I think riding the TransAm route east-to-west is easier than the reverse.  Many of the passes we climbed looked much harder from our downhill side - lots of steep, switchback descents for us which would have been grueling climbs going east.  There may have been a couple that were harder going west, but in general the eastbound side of the passes seemed steeper.

There's a large portion of the American land mass which is not well served by cell phone service and internet access.  It doesn't encompass a large percentage of the population, but there are still many people living in areas that aren't that "connected" to the rest of us.  Somehow these people go about their lives and seem to manage just fine.

I came home at the same weight I was when I started the ride.  I ate a LOT!  To me that was one of the luxuries of the ride.  You almost can't eat or drink enough every day.

It's surprising how facilities which you might not go near in "everyday life" get rated as adequate, good or even great.  This is particularly true of restrooms and showers.  We encountered some pretty bad ones at times, but others which were a bit "rough" served us just fine and were welcomed.

There should be a federal standard minimum dimension for what constitutes a shower stall.  It's amazing how small some of them are.  Barely enough room for a full sized adult to turn around, let alone bend over and wash your toes.

Food prepared at the end of a day of riding is pretty much guaranteed to be good.  I don't recall one "bad" meal on the whole trip.  Some were exceptional and some just adequate, but everyone ate well every night.

Although the pace of bicycle touring affords much more opportunity to actually see the country, there were many places where I would have liked to have an extra day or two to explore the area.  Unfortunately, part of riding the TransAm is about putting in the miles every day to make it from coast to coast.  If you don't keep making progress you'll get caught by the winter snows before you reach the other end.

In general, the people of this country are great!  We met lots of friendly people all along the way.  Many take an interest and have lots of questions when they learn what you're doing.  They offer lots of support, encouragement and well wishes.

The drivers throughout the country are generally courteous, too.  Most make a point of giving you room as they pass on the roads.  Commercial truck drivers are probably better than the general public.  Having said that, there are a minority of jerks out there too.  Some are probably just not paying attention.  Others go out of their way to let you know you're not welcome on THEIR highway.  (It's their world and we only live in it!)

As you ride this TransAm route you meet lots of other riders making their own way across all or part of the country.  Sometimes you spend several days staying at the same stops - in many cases there aren't a lot of alternate stopover points.  It's a neat part of the experience to share stories with the riders you meet.

Our group has nothing but respect and admiration for the many unsupported riders who carry all their own gear and fend for themselves everyday.  We recognized how good we had it with our van support.  Not only did it lighten our bikes, but we could meet the van for drinks and food in the middle of nowhere, when service stops were miles apart.  We also could buy groceries in the larger towns and keep things for several days, instead of relying on the meager choices in many of the tiniest towns.

Clearly it takes a different personality and mindset to tackle this trip unsupported.  We were all attracted to the van-supported mode because of some similarity of mindset.  Hats off to those who carry all their own gear.

Still, even the unsupported riders take advantage of the vast resources available throughout these United States.  Without that a trip like this would be an even more challenging undertaking.

Blogging about the ride took much more time than I initially imagined.  I also imagined that I'd have lots of witty and imaginative things to say everyday.  I think I ended up more in a reporting facts mode just to get the updates out semi-regularly.  I appreciate all of the readers out there and hope you've been able to live vicariously through my reports. 
(If you want witty and imaginative I'd suggest you read Gina's blog which was "ghost-written" by her partner Dena or Simon's blog.)

And once more I will offer to anyone - if you have questions about any aspect of the ride or would like more information, just post a comment here or send an e-mail to mikesbikeride2012@gmail.com.

Thank you for reading!