off-roading in the library

Walla Walla, Washington. 380 ish miles under our belts. 8 days pedaling. Each day we earn more miles, work muscles in places we had never expected and above all learn, learn, learn!

The first day pedaling started out with a beautiful seacoast bang when we found Glen, who graciously offered to haul our 3 bikes and gear with his HUGE red truck to the coast from Portland, OR. Yep, we touched the Pacific! Glen also escorted us all the way to Astoria from Seaside, OR on what seemed like a whimsical, spur of the moment day ride, but in fact, he was much more prepared than we had expected, fueled by a pack of hot dogs, a fruit leather, and two flashlights, he made sure that these inexperienced girls made it safely to their first destination. Thanks, Glen!

We've been through what feels like a lot already--biking through pouring rain in the Cascades, climbing hills, learning to draft in eastern Oregon, which even after fine tuning our drafting styles, led to us stopping mid-hill and lying in the gravel on a truck pull off, absolutely exhausted, but laughing. We've fallen over clipped-in, found those heavenly tail winds people talk about, rode 40 mph down the best downhill of my life, and even carried our bikes down 3 flights of stairs when the bike path following Highway 30 suddenly ended. Go ahead, live bike-arious through us- the Fall air is sweet and cool, the trees are just beginning to change, and the road winds past stunning rivers (Holy Columbia River!), green mountains, and wheat fields that just makes me want to scream, "AMERICA!" It's pretty neat to discover the nooks and crannies of our country.

Already, I can feel my physical and mental strength improve. Not only are we cruising up the uphills with rhythm, but I read road signs and think, "Oh, only 18 miles to the next town?" We've shortened our go-time in the morning to under 1.5 hours, 40 miles is becoming something we do before lunch, and I just learned how to clip out correctly with my right foot.My bike no longer feels like a runaway school bus going border line out of control down steep hills, but instead I am a big-boned bobsledder, while I hoop and holler with the wind in my face. I do my best to make cars on the road jealous.

We have also learned a handful of other things in the last week:
1. Biking is fun!
2. Biking is still fun! (Day 8)
3. Use your brakes when walking your bike downhill.
4. It is impossible to clip-out in granny gear. Make it to the top of the hill or bust!
5. Never refuse free food. Yesterday, while biking through onion country, we scavenged 5 onions that had bounced off trucks. Still good! As I watch the corn and carrot trucks go by, I keep hoping that the truck will hit a bump and drop one right in my bike lane.
6. Eat and drink every hour. My food epiphany came at the end of the day after downing a Chaco Taco, a beer, my peanut butter sandwich, and the rest of my corn nuts, but still found myself salivating with thoughts of dinner.
7. Libraries close early.


Til next time!

-Emily