Well on Thursday I'm taking the (probably) last major preparatory trip before leaving next April. Here's what I've been up to since the last update:
1. Learning about bicycle maintenance. I'm not at all a mechanical guy so when I first got my Trek 2.1 (now named Fledge) I had no idea what an investment I was getting into. Especially considering I'd bought it for a measly $150. Modest estimates would bring the value of this bike up to around $2000. So for a long time I was treating it like a $150 bike. Read that "treating a Lamborghini like a Plymouth Sundance." It gradually came more and more to my attention that doing this was recklessly irresponsible and foolish. So I started taking much better care of the bike learning how and how not to treat it and what and what not to use for maintenance and cleaning.
2. A lot of short distance trips. On my ride to Baltimore, my host told me not to underestimate the preparatory value of short rides. Longer, of course, than to work and back but not so long as Baltimore. So I've been riding to Littlestown, Taneytown, Manchester, York, Abbottstown, and a few others within a 25 mile radius of my base of operations. Manchester has become one of my most common rides. I love it because of the hills on the PA side of the border but hate it because of the monotony. I have to keep reminding myself that such rides are indeed preparing me for longer and more interesting ones.
3. Winning a YouTube contest for a $423 Visa gift card! On October 8, I was on YouTube and a banner at the top had an ad from Liberty Mutual Insurance asking how I would spend $423. I typed in a brief blurb about next year's ALS awareness trip and thought nothing more of it. When I first received the email telling me I was selected as one of the winners of the contest I was incredulous. "What contest? I never entered a contest! Oh wait... I'm remembering something." So I'm now perusing tents, cooking gear, sleeping bags and the like. Still can hardly believe I won a contest!
So that's about it! I'll post a new blog entry next weekend after my 70 mile trip to Leesburg, VA where I grew up!
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