"What Next?"

Quite possibly the first two words out of mouth after finishing my 2015 cross-country cycling trip from Los Angeles to Boston  were "never again".   That certainly was what I was thinking after finishing my fifty day, 3,400 mile adventure.  The effort, time, expense  (did I mention effort?) of training and then completing the ride taxed my physical (and to a lesser degree) mental capabilities to the maximum.

Apparently that mindset lasted all of a month.  Funny how all my memories quickly turned only to the beautiful, unique and diverse sights, the great camaraderie among my fellow cyclists, and that euphoric feeling when the conditions and scenery were at their optimum.  "Never again" quickly changed to "What Next?".

"What Next? " has turned out to be a 22 day (20 cycling days with 2 rest days) cycling trip from Astoria, Oregon to Rapid City, South Dakota.  The trip, which begins on Sunday June 19th,  will cover 1,632 miles or about half the distance and number of days of my 2015 trip.   The ride is administered by America By Bicycle and it is actually part of their Across America North trip that ultimately ends in New Hampshire http://americabybicycle.com/aan-short .   Because of work commitments, expense, and fairness to my family, it makes sense to bail out in South Dakota. Even then I am asking (again) a lot of Kari.

Although a different touring company, the format is quite similar to last year's ride with Crossroads Cycling Adventures.  Motel to motel, about 80-85 miles of riding a day.  My job again will be to ride, eat, sleep, repeat.

I have been training for some time but the spring has been unusually wet here in Maryland.  Seeing sunshine has been a kind of sad joke around these parts of late- quickly disappearing only to be replaced by four or five days of more rain and clouds.  So although I'm finally starting to get some good road work in, there have been far too many hours on the dreadful indoor trainer in the basement (essentially hooking the bicycle to a  resistance machine and pedaling in place until I can't stand it anymore) . Nevertheless I feel my fitness level is close to where I need to be and in about  two weeks will be flying west (regardless).

At Sandy Point State Park near Annapolis, my longest training ride , 86 miles.