July/August 2010.
Cycling adventurist, bikepacker, travel writer, photographer, speaker, professor of philosophy. Route designer of the VTXL, the Green Mountain Gravel Growler beer tour, the Silk Road Mountain Race course 1st edition, and many more.
Category: North America
Alaska postcard
Just about every stretch of highway here has a dirt track parallel to it worn by ATV’s or snowmobiles. When I’m not in a hurry, that’s where I elect to ride. Over a month in […]
Alaska postcard
Roads, chatter gritcrunch, washboard record of where drivers aimed, hills that in perception are steeper as you descend the pitch toward them and then in reality are steeper again near the top, lazy steering to […]
Alaska postcard
Inevitable purple lead fog over Thompson Pass and the river like liquid concrete rebounding across the canyon walls. And then another side, conical leaning peaks, glacier spark into clear water.
Alaska postcard
Childs glacier, blue groaning snapping roaring incandescence and a secluded campsite on the opposite side of a river churning with floating ice and deadfall.
Alaska postcard
Live recording from the Hope Cafe.
Alaska postcard
Already more chats with strangers than one ordinarily has in a week in New England unless you go insisting, easily preluded outside an Anchorage downtown diner, “those are some massive tires, like a monster truck!” […]
Fat bike to AK
I’ve decided to take the Pugsley fat bike. A nothing exotic build on a 2010 Surly Pugsley; Grip king pedals; Old Man Mountain Cold Springs rear rack; Rivendell (Nitto) Mark’s front rack with 350mm mounting […]
Gear for Alaska summer touring
(1) Tent (2) Tent poles (3) Riding/hiking shoes (4) Patagonia Nano puff pullover (5) Patagonia shell (6) Gore-tex shorts (7) OR rain hat (8) Rain booties (9) Sleeping bag (10) Utility cord (11) Stainless steel bottle (12) Howie’s merino ss shirt (13) Icebreaker merino ls shirt (14) Smartwool cycling shorts (15) Nzo Dobies cycling shorts (16) Two pairs merino underwear (17) Prana travel pants (18) Sandals (19) Pump/duct tape/spare spokes (20) Pot (21) MSR Superfly stove (22) Coffee filter (23) Soap (24) Plastic mug (25) Knife (26) Mosquito head net (27) Headlamp (28) Camera battery charger (29) Panasonic Lumix camera (30) Earbuds/recharge cord (31) iPhone (32) Leg warmers (33) Wool cycling cap (34) Gloves (35) Sunglasses (36) Watch (37) First aid kit (38) Mini deck of cards (39) Spare tube (40) Compass (41) Water purification tabs (42) Spork (43) Steripen (44) Big Agnes Clear View air pad (45) Waterproof matches (46) Pen and paper (47) Book (48) Photocopied maps (49) Garmin 705 GPS (50) Two pairs Smartwool socks (51) Travel towel (52) Toiletries (53) Blinkie (54) Cable lock (55) Tools.
In Anchorage add: bear spray, DEET, fuel cartridge, food.
24lbs./10.9kg, including rear panniers.
Alaska route
A bit later in the summer I’ll be heading out on a seven week cycle tour of Alaska (route in red).
Moab itinerary
Somehow, and in spite of the many extraordinary things he’s done on bicycles and HPV’s, Rob had never been to Moab. This October we remedied that. I’ve ridden in Southern Utah more times than I can remember, but I knew that seeing the old classics through new eyes would be a treat.
Rob used this vacation as a chance to test out his new folding 29er design in rigid singlespeed configuration; naturally, I brought my rigid singlespeed race rig (with the small concession of gearing down to 34×19). What else would you use in Moab?
I felt pressure to arrange the proven standards into a compact trip: