The Touring Series: The First Hundy Part 1

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

We pick things up where the ride had just started from Dewar Tap and left north on a quiet county blacktop.....

___________________________________________________________________________

By the time we had gotten to the Wapsi Valley High School, about 10 to 15 miles in, I had an intense feeling come over me. Hunger! I was famished! So, I called for a stop and I ate most of Troy's dried fruit mix. Next trip I will have to remember to bring some "road food". As we quenched our hunger pangs, we looked around and noticed that it was very peaceful and quiet on this morning. There was nary a car on the roads, and the birds and animals must have still been sleeping. A dreary mist hung in the hollows of the fields. It promised to be a humid summer day, with a good stiff southerly wind. This was good! We were going north with the wind and the road was our own.

As we made our way across Highways 3 and 93, I thought about the hills to come. The gently rolling countryside had proven to be an easy challenge. I knew that greater hills lie before us and I wondered if I would be up to the task. Then my thoughts would be broken by a comment or a joyous whoop made by one of my companions. We could all ride side by side and converse. This made the miles slip away under our wheels.

We reached Lawler Iowa at mid-morning. There we stopped at a convenience store and had some refreshments and filled our water bottles. We would make many stops like this during the week. Generally we might find a bite to eat at one of these stops. Most often though we just had soda pop and Gatorade. We would hang out in the front of these stores, just sitting right on the ground in the parking lot.

This, of course, attracted a lot of attention. People generally would look askance and not give us so much as a "hello". Only children, as a rule, would be curious enough to talk to us. We obliged them and were amused by their curiosity. Sometimes they would even be enthusiastically supportive of what we were doing. There were no children at Lawler this morning; however, just disdainful looks and a bathroom to use. Steve bought some fake chewing tobacco that he cursed for its nasty taste, but he chewed it for the rest of the trip!

We got a little turned around here since we couldn't find the northward black top we were looking for. We finally figured out we had to go east out of town to find that road. Once we were on our way again, it became like before, quiet, an occasional car, but only now it was bright and sunny. It was getting hotter. I had ridden 40 miles now and I felt the miles coming harder. By the time we reached Protovin Corner, I was starving again. More munchies; Pop Tarts and water. We had gone over 50 miles and it was approaching the noon hour.

The next stretch between Protivin and Cresco is a county blacktop that receives as much or more traffic as a State Highway. This was my first experience with "true" highway riding. It also was more hilly. I did not know about drafting techniques. My climbing abilities were not developed yet either. So, I fell off the back often. I would grit it out and catch back up though. This ended up really draining me. After another convenience store stop in Cresco, we had another 12 miles to go to get to Lime Springs. Then another two miles downhill to the park. It was hot, very windy, and 12 o'clock noon when we left. Most of the last leg was in a crosswind, as we were obliged to go west. It was here that Troy broke the wind for me and began to teach me how to draft.

Those twelve miles took forever! I wasn't sure I could make it. Add in some major hills and I thought I was done for. I was in pain and I was cursing myself for being so dumb to think I could go on with this for a week! I thought these hills would be nothing compared to what lie ahead, so therefore I was toast. I was going to have to die because I was stupid enough to think I could do this. Perhaps it is hard to understand, but sometimes, well.........you just have to do what you have to do. I did, and somehow I made it. 
___________________________________________________________________________

So, it might be good to remind you all that by the time I had reached Protovin Corner, I had ridden the longest ride I had ever ridden before in my life. My Mongoose All Mountain Pro had front and rear panniers, a sleeping bag, tent, and many heavy tools and replacement parts loaded on it. I'm pretty sure the entire bicycle and load weighed near 100lbs. I couldn't pick it up off the road!

Obviously I was burning calories at an unprecedented rate, thus the stops to abate my raging appetite. I probably ate more food that day than I had since being an adolescent. But more on that later.....

Next- The First Hundy Part 2

The Touring Series: The First Hundy Part 1

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

We pick things up where the ride had just started from Dewar Tap and left north on a quiet county blacktop.....

___________________________________________________________________________

By the time we had gotten to the Wapsi Valley High School, about 10 to 15 miles in, I had an intense feeling come over me. Hunger! I was famished! So, I called for a stop and I ate most of Troy's dried fruit mix. Next trip I will have to remember to bring some "road food". As we quenched our hunger pangs, we looked around and noticed that it was very peaceful and quiet on this morning. There was nary a car on the roads, and the birds and animals must have still been sleeping. A dreary mist hung in the hollows of the fields. It promised to be a humid summer day, with a good stiff southerly wind. This was good! We were going north with the wind and the road was our own.

As we made our way across Highways 3 and 93, I thought about the hills to come. The gently rolling countryside had proven to be an easy challenge. I knew that greater hills lie before us and I wondered if I would be up to the task. Then my thoughts would be broken by a comment or a joyous whoop made by one of my companions. We could all ride side by side and converse. This made the miles slip away under our wheels.

We reached Lawler Iowa at mid-morning. There we stopped at a convenience store and had some refreshments and filled our water bottles. We would make many stops like this during the week. Generally we might find a bite to eat at one of these stops. Most often though we just had soda pop and Gatorade. We would hang out in the front of these stores, just sitting right on the ground in the parking lot.

This, of course, attracted a lot of attention. People generally would look askance and not give us so much as a "hello". Only children, as a rule, would be curious enough to talk to us. We obliged them and were amused by their curiosity. Sometimes they would even be enthusiastically supportive of what we were doing. There were no children at Lawler this morning; however, just disdainful looks and a bathroom to use. Steve bought some fake chewing tobacco that he cursed for its nasty taste, but he chewed it for the rest of the trip!

We got a little turned around here since we couldn't find the northward black top we were looking for. We finally figured out we had to go east out of town to find that road. Once we were on our way again, it became like before, quiet, an occasional car, but only now it was bright and sunny. It was getting hotter. I had ridden 40 miles now and I felt the miles coming harder. By the time we reached Protovin Corner, I was starving again. More munchies; Pop Tarts and water. We had gone over 50 miles and it was approaching the noon hour.

The next stretch between Protivin and Cresco is a county blacktop that receives as much or more traffic as a State Highway. This was my first experience with "true" highway riding. It also was more hilly. I did not know about drafting techniques. My climbing abilities were not developed yet either. So, I fell off the back often. I would grit it out and catch back up though. This ended up really draining me. After another convenience store stop in Cresco, we had another 12 miles to go to get to Lime Springs. Then another two miles downhill to the park. It was hot, very windy, and 12 o'clock noon when we left. Most of the last leg was in a crosswind, as we were obliged to go west. It was here that Troy broke the wind for me and began to teach me how to draft.

Those twelve miles took forever! I wasn't sure I could make it. Add in some major hills and I thought I was done for. I was in pain and I was cursing myself for being so dumb to think I could go on with this for a week! I thought these hills would be nothing compared to what lie ahead, so therefore I was toast. I was going to have to die because I was stupid enough to think I could do this. Perhaps it is hard to understand, but sometimes, well.........you just have to do what you have to do. I did, and somehow I made it. 
___________________________________________________________________________

So, it might be good to remind you all that by the time I had reached Protovin Corner, I had ridden the longest ride I had ever ridden before in my life. My Mongoose All Mountain Pro had front and rear panniers, a sleeping bag, tent, and many heavy tools and replacement parts loaded on it. I'm pretty sure the entire bicycle and load weighed near 100lbs. I couldn't pick it up off the road!

Obviously I was burning calories at an unprecedented rate, thus the stops to abate my raging appetite. I probably ate more food that day than I had since being an adolescent. But more on that later.....

Next- The First Hundy Part 2

The Touring Series: The Tour Gets A Name

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

 Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned last week, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

In this entry we get the backstory on the naming of the Tour and the beginning of the ride from the morning of the day we left. 
___________________________________________________________________

There is still the explanation of the name of this tour. A little of this can be guessed at, on my part, it is obvious. However; Troy and Steve had some panhandling to do as well. Troy, whose brother's bike he was originally going to use, had to abandon that plan a week before the tour. The bags on the rear struck his heels and there was no way to make it work. So, Troy had to beg and borrow a friends deceased father's bike. Then Steve, he borrowed money for the food for all of us on his girl friend's credit card. (Admittedly, that was a beg and borrow for all of us.) Troy and I also had to borrow sleeping mats and tents.

Another look at those 26 X 1.5" Avocet Kross tires I used. This image is a current one.

 All of this lead to a name for our little trip that hadn't even begun yet. Since my co-worker and the customer that were going along were around for all of this, we jokingly called it the "Beg Borrow and Bastard Tour". I had my bike cobbled together and it worked fairly well. I had my gear lined up. It was decided that we would leave right after RAGBRAI on the first week of August.

In a hurried frenzy to ready our bikes, Troy and I spent two nights late at the shop working on them. I had a check at the point where the stem for my drop bars wouldn't work on the bike's original fork. This required a fork change. After three forks we found that the headset needed to be changed as well. Then we discovered after two hours and three headsets that I needed a BMX specific headset! Then it was the tires. I couldn't get any tires to fit on my new wheels! I made my thumbs into burning blister pods trying to force tires too small onto my rims. Not even the efforts of a very drunk and funny Steve could avail me. I was led to cursing and I called out, "This bastard bike!" Well, "bastard" became a pet word of the tour and the title of our tour had been fulfilled.

Troy and I finished our bikes in the nick of time. Saturday came and went, and then I packed my bags and made ready to depart from Dewar Tap at 5:30am Sunday morning. I was a little nervous, very excited, and anxious to go.

On Sunday, August 7th, 1994, I awoke to my alarm clock at 4:30am, walked out into the kitchen and.....AARRRRGH! Glass in my heel! After a little first aid treatment, I got my wife up and we picked up Troy at 5:05am. The sun was just coming up. It was cool, but it looked like it could be a great day. Steve and Brenda, (his girlfriend) were waiting at the Dewar Tap when we got there at about 5:35am.

After fooling around nervously for about 15 to 20 minutes we said our goodbyes. We left northward from Dewar on a county blacktop on our trip. I waved goodbye to my wife and turned away. Goodbyes suck, so I didn't look back.

I really didn't know what to expect. The longest single bike ride I'd ever done was maybe when I rode about 30 miles on the Raccoon River Trail. I don't know what these guys decided to do for mileage when the day started. Although; the plan was to go to my family's reunion in Lime Springs, Iowa some 75 miles away. Maybe it was the motivation of having my relatives see us on our way. Maybe it was the tail wind we had all the way up there. I don't know, but I felt sure I could do it. 
___________________________________________________________________________

Troy's borrowed bike was a dark green Schwinn Voyager with 27" wheels and these ultra-plush Michelin touring tires. Ironically, Steve's bike was also a Schwinn, but it was a red Cross Cut model which originally had flat bars. Steve had converted it to drop bars. Of course, Cross Cuts were 700c based bikes. My, new-to-me 1984-ish Mongoose, all chrome, by the way,  had 26" wheels. Three different wheel sizes......hmm....not very good planning there! By the way, the bike Troy meant to take did have 26" wheels, An American brand mountain bike. A classic vintage bike nowadays! But as mentioned, the stays were too short and he couldn't get the panniers back far enough to clear his heels while pedaling. 

Next Week:The First Hundy- Part 1

The Touring Series: The Tour Gets A Name

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

 Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned last week, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

In this entry we get the backstory on the naming of the Tour and the beginning of the ride from the morning of the day we left. 
___________________________________________________________________

There is still the explanation of the name of this tour. A little of this can be guessed at, on my part, it is obvious. However; Troy and Steve had some panhandling to do as well. Troy, whose brother's bike he was originally going to use, had to abandon that plan a week before the tour. The bags on the rear struck his heels and there was no way to make it work. So, Troy had to beg and borrow a friends deceased father's bike. Then Steve, he borrowed money for the food for all of us on his girl friend's credit card. (Admittedly, that was a beg and borrow for all of us.) Troy and I also had to borrow sleeping mats and tents.

Another look at those 26 X 1.5" Avocet Kross tires I used. This image is a current one.

 All of this lead to a name for our little trip that hadn't even begun yet. Since my co-worker and the customer that were going along were around for all of this, we jokingly called it the "Beg Borrow and Bastard Tour". I had my bike cobbled together and it worked fairly well. I had my gear lined up. It was decided that we would leave right after RAGBRAI on the first week of August.

In a hurried frenzy to ready our bikes, Troy and I spent two nights late at the shop working on them. I had a check at the point where the stem for my drop bars wouldn't work on the bike's original fork. This required a fork change. After three forks we found that the headset needed to be changed as well. Then we discovered after two hours and three headsets that I needed a BMX specific headset! Then it was the tires. I couldn't get any tires to fit on my new wheels! I made my thumbs into burning blister pods trying to force tires too small onto my rims. Not even the efforts of a very drunk and funny Steve could avail me. I was led to cursing and I called out, "This bastard bike!" Well, "bastard" became a pet word of the tour and the title of our tour had been fulfilled.

Troy and I finished our bikes in the nick of time. Saturday came and went, and then I packed my bags and made ready to depart from Dewar Tap at 5:30am Sunday morning. I was a little nervous, very excited, and anxious to go.

On Sunday, August 7th, 1994, I awoke to my alarm clock at 4:30am, walked out into the kitchen and.....AARRRRGH! Glass in my heel! After a little first aid treatment, I got my wife up and we picked up Troy at 5:05am. The sun was just coming up. It was cool, but it looked like it could be a great day. Steve and Brenda, (his girlfriend) were waiting at the Dewar Tap when we got there at about 5:35am.

After fooling around nervously for about 15 to 20 minutes we said our goodbyes. We left northward from Dewar on a county blacktop on our trip. I waved goodbye to my wife and turned away. Goodbyes suck, so I didn't look back.

I really didn't know what to expect. The longest single bike ride I'd ever done was maybe when I rode about 30 miles on the Raccoon River Trail. I don't know what these guys decided to do for mileage when the day started. Although; the plan was to go to my family's reunion in Lime Springs, Iowa some 75 miles away. Maybe it was the motivation of having my relatives see us on our way. Maybe it was the tail wind we had all the way up there. I don't know, but I felt sure I could do it. 
___________________________________________________________________________

Troy's borrowed bike was a dark green Schwinn Voyager with 27" wheels and these ultra-plush Michelin touring tires. Ironically, Steve's bike was also a Schwinn, but it was a red Cross Cut model which originally had flat bars. Steve had converted it to drop bars. Of course, Cross Cuts were 700c based bikes. My, new-to-me 1984-ish Mongoose, all chrome, by the way,  had 26" wheels. Three different wheel sizes......hmm....not very good planning there! By the way, the bike Troy meant to take did have 26" wheels, An American brand mountain bike. A classic vintage bike nowadays! But as mentioned, the stays were too short and he couldn't get the panniers back far enough to clear his heels while pedaling. 

Next Week:The First Hundy- Part 1

The Touring Series: A Look Back At The Horse That Got Me There

 Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

The following post is a remembrance from 2008 concerning the bike I used to get me where I was going to go on this tour. There will be a reference to the pre-tour happenings in the 1994 manuscript I am re-posting, but I found that there wasn't really a good telling of how that bicycle came together, so I wrote up something to flesh out that part of the story:

___________________________________________________________________

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

   I was in the process of putting together my first touring rig from an old mountain bike traded in at the shop I started at in the early 90's. The bicycle was a 1984 Mongoose All Mountain Pro. It was in pretty good shape, all the original parts were there, even the snake belly tires were still on it. Looking back, it probably would have been smarter to keep it as it was, since it was a somewhat collectible machine as it sat, but I didn't see it that way at the time. I saw it as a cheap way to get a tour worthy machine and head out on an adventure with some new friends.

The decision to get it and modify it was largely influenced by my co-worker at the time, Troy. He had been wrenching at the shop for a few years ahead of me while he attended college. His advice was to take the chromed beast and do the following modifications: Change out the wheels, handle bar, stem, shifters, brake levers, and fork. He told me that drop bars were the way to go, and that the bike's "bull moose" stem and bar set up had to go. He also thought the plate crown fork looked too spindly and that I should get a uni-crown fork for it. The wheels looked sketchy, and of course, new tires and tubes would be in order as well.

Sheesh! I suppose I must have gotten the bike for a song, because I was making wholesale changes to the bike. I stayed late after work making changes. It proved to be a frustrating and valuable learning experience.

I found out that the Mongoose had a BMX specific head set, owing to Mongoose's BMX roots. That was a bit of a problem since I had to order in a headset special to fit it. Then the fork needed to be compatible, which severely limited my choices. I ended up finding a chrome fork with a uni-crown in the shop's basement. All good except that it was a high tensile steel fork. Not as strong as a Cro-Moly fork. I don't think I told Troy that it was "hi-ten" since I figured he would disapprove and I'd have to try and find a Cro-Moly one. I doubted that I could do that, in the less than a week's time I had to pull this transformation off, so I kept that to myself.

The Avocet touring tires I used 24 years ago on the tour.

I used a Mongoose branded steel quill stem, seemed the right thing to do there, and a Nitto drop bar with some Campagnolo friction shifters that the shop had. The aero levers were something I think Troy had. I wired those up to the front cantilever brakes and rear SunTour roller cam. I didn't have a clue how to set up that rear brake, and for the most part it really wasn't functional. I pretty much did that fist tour with only a front brake!

I think I stole the wheels from off my Klein for this tour. A hand built set of SunTour Grease Guard hubs on Ritchey Vantage Pro rims. Shod those with Avocet tires. The ones with the inverted tread. Otherwise the bike was stock with the Avocet saddle, SunTour "AR" derailleurs, and serviceable bottom bracket with Sugino cranks sporting a 48-38-28 gearing. I had an eight speed 12-32T SunTour cassette out back. (If indeed I used my Klein wheels, which I think I did)

The bike had a triple strut aluminum rack already on it. I scored a set of rear panniers through the shop, and a front set from another co-worker. A few purchases through Campmor rounded out the set up. Inflatable Therma-rest pad, 40 degree bag, and some other small items. I borrowed a tent and a couple of smaller items from friends.
 ________________________________________________________________

A couple of notes to clarify things: The Klein I had was a '92 Klein Attitude and the wheels were hand built for that bike. Obviously you might remember that I wasn't on this tour in the last post, but obviously I was on it. That story will get filled in with the material from the manuscript I wrote in '94 and is forthcoming here. Finally, I still have most of this bike in pieces in the Lab. Someday I'm going to resurrect it..........

Next Week on "The Touring Series": The Tour Gets A Name

The Touring Series: A Look Back At The Horse That Got Me There

 Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

The following post is a remembrance from 2008 concerning the bike I used to get me where I was going to go on this tour. There will be a reference to the pre-tour happenings in the 1994 manuscript I am re-posting, but I found that there wasn't really a good telling of how that bicycle came together, so I wrote up something to flesh out that part of the story:

___________________________________________________________________

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

   I was in the process of putting together my first touring rig from an old mountain bike traded in at the shop I started at in the early 90's. The bicycle was a 1984 Mongoose All Mountain Pro. It was in pretty good shape, all the original parts were there, even the snake belly tires were still on it. Looking back, it probably would have been smarter to keep it as it was, since it was a somewhat collectible machine as it sat, but I didn't see it that way at the time. I saw it as a cheap way to get a tour worthy machine and head out on an adventure with some new friends.

The decision to get it and modify it was largely influenced by my co-worker at the time, Troy. He had been wrenching at the shop for a few years ahead of me while he attended college. His advice was to take the chromed beast and do the following modifications: Change out the wheels, handle bar, stem, shifters, brake levers, and fork. He told me that drop bars were the way to go, and that the bike's "bull moose" stem and bar set up had to go. He also thought the plate crown fork looked too spindly and that I should get a uni-crown fork for it. The wheels looked sketchy, and of course, new tires and tubes would be in order as well.

Sheesh! I suppose I must have gotten the bike for a song, because I was making wholesale changes to the bike. I stayed late after work making changes. It proved to be a frustrating and valuable learning experience.

I found out that the Mongoose had a BMX specific head set, owing to Mongoose's BMX roots. That was a bit of a problem since I had to order in a headset special to fit it. Then the fork needed to be compatible, which severely limited my choices. I ended up finding a chrome fork with a uni-crown in the shop's basement. All good except that it was a high tensile steel fork. Not as strong as a Cro-Moly fork. I don't think I told Troy that it was "hi-ten" since I figured he would disapprove and I'd have to try and find a Cro-Moly one. I doubted that I could do that, in the less than a week's time I had to pull this transformation off, so I kept that to myself.

The Avocet touring tires I used 24 years ago on the tour.

I used a Mongoose branded steel quill stem, seemed the right thing to do there, and a Nitto drop bar with some Campagnolo friction shifters that the shop had. The aero levers were something I think Troy had. I wired those up to the front cantilever brakes and rear SunTour roller cam. I didn't have a clue how to set up that rear brake, and for the most part it really wasn't functional. I pretty much did that fist tour with only a front brake!

I think I stole the wheels from off my Klein for this tour. A hand built set of SunTour Grease Guard hubs on Ritchey Vantage Pro rims. Shod those with Avocet tires. The ones with the inverted tread. Otherwise the bike was stock with the Avocet saddle, SunTour "AR" derailleurs, and serviceable bottom bracket with Sugino cranks sporting a 48-38-28 gearing. I had an eight speed 12-32T SunTour cassette out back. (If indeed I used my Klein wheels, which I think I did)

The bike had a triple strut aluminum rack already on it. I scored a set of rear panniers through the shop, and a front set from another co-worker. A few purchases through Campmor rounded out the set up. Inflatable Therma-rest pad, 40 degree bag, and some other small items. I borrowed a tent and a couple of smaller items from friends.
 ________________________________________________________________

A couple of notes to clarify things: The Klein I had was a '92 Klein Attitude and the wheels were hand built for that bike. Obviously you might remember that I wasn't on this tour in the last post, but obviously I was on it. That story will get filled in with the material from the manuscript I wrote in '94 and is forthcoming here. Finally, I still have most of this bike in pieces in the Lab. Someday I'm going to resurrect it..........

Next Week on "The Touring Series": The Tour Gets A Name

The Touring Series: I Had No Business Going- But I Did!

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

 Last Sunday we were introduced to Troy and Steve, two of the guys that went on the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This week we will be introduced to Tom, the bike shop owner and a bit of a twist in the plot:

__________________________________________________________________

Tom, the owner of Advantage Cyclery, was another RAGBRAI nut. He really, really liked RAGBRAI alot. When he found out about Troy and Steve's plan to have a little tour from Cedar Falls to Canada, he promptly invited himself along for the ride. He said it sounded like fun. Well, being taken aback by his announcement, all Steve and Troy could say was, "All right then...." And that is how Tom got on the roster.

Plans were then laid, and preparations started. The crew would leave one week after RAGBRAI's completion to allow for full recovery from RAGBRAI's drunken breath. Then on August 7th, it was off to Canada!

During RAGBRAI Troy and I toiled away at Advantage Cyclery. Troy was preparing his bike at this time for the upcoming trip and I was wistfully looking on. Troy was almost desperately looking forward to this trip because of all the hours we were putting in at work. I wanted to go along, but what was I thinking of? I had no bike suitable for such a tour, no bags, no tent, nothing. I had no road riding experience, and although I was in better physical condition than I had been in years, I had not spent much time on the bike in recent weeks. No bike, no gear, and no base miles equals no business going on a tour. I knew that, so I quit dreaming and kept working.

It was on Sunday, the day after RAGBRAI, as I was at work that Tom came in. He'd just returned from RAGBRAI and he announced that RAGBRAI '94 was a rousing excess. As an aside, he mentioned that he wouldn't be going on the Canadian trip. "What!", I said, "Not going? Why?" Well, apparently his RAGBRAI tour bus had broken down, the repair costs looked to be steep, and that would keep him off the tour.

A new chance leaped into my brain. A crazy idea. I could take his place on the tour! Insanity! I want to do it.

So, Monday I broke the news about Tom to Troy. He reacted calmly, as if savoring the taste of it before he responded. Tom then came back in an told him as well. Later that day while working alongside of Troy I mentioned the oddness of Tom's decision to drop out. Troy told me of his fear that the Canadian tour would turn into a "quest for the bars". He thought that was less likely now that Tom was not going. Then in what must have been a fit of utter insanity, he calmly added, "Why don't you go along?" My heart flamed with desire to say "Yes!" and loudly. All I said was, "Maybe. I'll have to think about it." Ha! Thinking stages had been passed long before. But only I knew that then.

The Jaand bags I borrowed as seen today.  I eventually purchased them from their respective owners.

In a short time, however, all resistance was washed away. Tom said he could let me off work. Duane and Toby, (co-workers at the shop) lent me their bags. The bike was a used Mongoose mountain bike I had been eyeing in the basement. (The story of the bike will be posted next week) Troy loaned me his brothers tires to put on some wheels I had just laced up. But there was a small matter of money that needed to be dealt with.

I told Troy that by Wednesday I would know if I could come up with the minimum of $150.00 to do the trip. That was the agreed upon figure each of us needed to bring. I managed to cover my obligations and scratch up $200.00! Still, there were two things I wanted to be assured of before I would say yes to this and go.

One thing I definitely did not want was to be a hindrance to the other two guys. I was assured that I could make it with some great pain and effort. "Just come along!", they said. Secondly, I wanted to be assured that I had not "invited myself", as Tom had been perceived as doing. They assured me that wasn't the case, so I said I would come, to which they reacted with enthusiastic "thumbs up".

That is how I got on the roster and how Tom got off. Although I still am baffled as to Tom's sudden reversal. At any rate, I was going. 
__________________________________________________________________________

Notes: I don't think it can be stressed enough that I was under-prepared for this undertaking. I mentioned it before, but 33 miles had been my longest bicycle ride ever before I left for this trip, which called for averaging 100 miles a day! Sometimes you just have to take the leap, I guess. I did, and...... well, keep reading on Sundays and you'll find out. 

Next: We'll learn why the tour ended up being called the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". We'll also get a glimpse of some harried last minute preparations before the send off.

The Touring Series: I Had No Business Going- But I Did!

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

 Last Sunday we were introduced to Troy and Steve, two of the guys that went on the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This week we will be introduced to Tom, the bike shop owner and a bit of a twist in the plot:

__________________________________________________________________

Tom, the owner of Advantage Cyclery, was another RAGBRAI nut. He really, really liked RAGBRAI alot. When he found out about Troy and Steve's plan to have a little tour from Cedar Falls to Canada, he promptly invited himself along for the ride. He said it sounded like fun. Well, being taken aback by his announcement, all Steve and Troy could say was, "All right then...." And that is how Tom got on the roster.

Plans were then laid, and preparations started. The crew would leave one week after RAGBRAI's completion to allow for full recovery from RAGBRAI's drunken breath. Then on August 7th, it was off to Canada!

During RAGBRAI Troy and I toiled away at Advantage Cyclery. Troy was preparing his bike at this time for the upcoming trip and I was wistfully looking on. Troy was almost desperately looking forward to this trip because of all the hours we were putting in at work. I wanted to go along, but what was I thinking of? I had no bike suitable for such a tour, no bags, no tent, nothing. I had no road riding experience, and although I was in better physical condition than I had been in years, I had not spent much time on the bike in recent weeks. No bike, no gear, and no base miles equals no business going on a tour. I knew that, so I quit dreaming and kept working.

It was on Sunday, the day after RAGBRAI, as I was at work that Tom came in. He'd just returned from RAGBRAI and he announced that RAGBRAI '94 was a rousing excess. As an aside, he mentioned that he wouldn't be going on the Canadian trip. "What!", I said, "Not going? Why?" Well, apparently his RAGBRAI tour bus had broken down, the repair costs looked to be steep, and that would keep him off the tour.

A new chance leaped into my brain. A crazy idea. I could take his place on the tour! Insanity! I want to do it.

So, Monday I broke the news about Tom to Troy. He reacted calmly, as if savoring the taste of it before he responded. Tom then came back in an told him as well. Later that day while working alongside of Troy I mentioned the oddness of Tom's decision to drop out. Troy told me of his fear that the Canadian tour would turn into a "quest for the bars". He thought that was less likely now that Tom was not going. Then in what must have been a fit of utter insanity, he calmly added, "Why don't you go along?" My heart flamed with desire to say "Yes!" and loudly. All I said was, "Maybe. I'll have to think about it." Ha! Thinking stages had been passed long before. But only I knew that then.

The Jaand bags I borrowed as seen today.  I eventually purchased them from their respective owners.

In a short time, however, all resistance was washed away. Tom said he could let me off work. Duane and Toby, (co-workers at the shop) lent me their bags. The bike was a used Mongoose mountain bike I had been eyeing in the basement. (The story of the bike will be posted next week) Troy loaned me his brothers tires to put on some wheels I had just laced up. But there was a small matter of money that needed to be dealt with.

I told Troy that by Wednesday I would know if I could come up with the minimum of $150.00 to do the trip. That was the agreed upon figure each of us needed to bring. I managed to cover my obligations and scratch up $200.00! Still, there were two things I wanted to be assured of before I would say yes to this and go.

One thing I definitely did not want was to be a hindrance to the other two guys. I was assured that I could make it with some great pain and effort. "Just come along!", they said. Secondly, I wanted to be assured that I had not "invited myself", as Tom had been perceived as doing. They assured me that wasn't the case, so I said I would come, to which they reacted with enthusiastic "thumbs up".

That is how I got on the roster and how Tom got off. Although I still am baffled as to Tom's sudden reversal. At any rate, I was going. 
__________________________________________________________________________

Notes: I don't think it can be stressed enough that I was under-prepared for this undertaking. I mentioned it before, but 33 miles had been my longest bicycle ride ever before I left for this trip, which called for averaging 100 miles a day! Sometimes you just have to take the leap, I guess. I did, and...... well, keep reading on Sundays and you'll find out. 

Next: We'll learn why the tour ended up being called the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". We'll also get a glimpse of some harried last minute preparations before the send off.

Announcing The Touring Series

A Guitar Ted Productions series

I was researching the "Minus Ten" post for this weekend when I rolled across an entry for my "Touring Tuesdays" series which ran from 2008 through 2009 on Tuesdays on this blog. I read a few entries and was prompted by the memories to post on Twitter the following:

"In 1994 I went on a self-supported cycling tour with two other guys for a week on $200.00 and came home with money to spare. #crazyvalueforthedollar So glad I did that then"

That Tweet got more likes than usual, so I thought it might be interesting to bring the series back for 2018. Here are the reasons why:

• The "Touring Tuesdays" posts ran ten years ago. Many of you weren't reading this blog then, so you likely missed that.
• Touring/bikepacking is seeing a rise in popularity. This series is relevant to this new interest.
• I get a chance to revisit this and add any afterthoughts. 

So, my thoughts are now that I will run this on Sundays for the rest of the year to celebrate the "Touring Tuesdays" posts and to add any additional thoughts. Speaking of "additional thoughts", I figured it may make sense to give you a read on where I was at as a cyclist in 1994. Yes......that was a lifetime ago. Things weren't so good for me then as a cyclist and life in general was very alien to what it is like now days. Let me try to paint a picture.

In 1994, I was only about a year into my career as a mechanic/cyclist, at least in earnest. While I had been an off-road cyclist since 1989, and while I had been a fan of cycling, and maybe more serious about cycling than many, I was far from being "good" at anything on two wheels yet. I knew very little about cycling techniques and road riding was absolutely alien to me. I had taken a mechanics class, and my year of wrenching had taught me loads, but I was far from being "accomplished" at the mechanics and definitely far from an accomplished cyclist as I could be.

Then there were the times. Of course, the internet existed, but no one was on it outside of college professors and government people. (Generally speaking) There were no cell phones one could carry around easily, they were still super rare, and coverage was still in the dark ages. Google maps, Garmin, and anything that could enable easy navigation simply did not exist for the common man. Much less a scruffy cyclist. Paper maps ruled, and you had to do a lot of decision making and hope you were right. You couldn't "google it". There was no real good way to get information on a route through the back roads and byways of America. If you went off the beaten path, you may as well be flying in space or sailing in uncharted waters. There really was no way to know what you'd find "out there". There were still public telephones. People still were decent on the highways as distracted driving wasn't an issue. Your worst fear was getting hit by a drunk driver. Imagine that now days.

Finally, there was no easy way to photograph things. You had a film based camera, and shots were precious. You didn't take shots on a whim, so images from this time are precious and rare commodities. There was no social media. When you were on the road touring you were totally unplugged from society. No Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook sharing with their immediate, comforting, and enabling feedback. Nope! If you had an issue, you were on yer own! If you had a beautiful sunset, only you had that memory. So, I will be adding reminders about how things were very different then, because it may be taken for granted by us now that things were around then that weren't, and when I wrote this in 1994 and 2008, there were a lot of things that needed explaining that I never dreamed would need explaining.

It was a different day and age, and next Sunday we'll get to experience the first slices of those days again. I plan on adding a bit of commentary to each post. Stay tuned.......

Announcing The Touring Series

A Guitar Ted Productions series

I was researching the "Minus Ten" post for this weekend when I rolled across an entry for my "Touring Tuesdays" series which ran from 2008 through 2009 on Tuesdays on this blog. I read a few entries and was prompted by the memories to post on Twitter the following:

"In 1994 I went on a self-supported cycling tour with two other guys for a week on $200.00 and came home with money to spare. #crazyvalueforthedollar So glad I did that then"

That Tweet got more likes than usual, so I thought it might be interesting to bring the series back for 2018. Here are the reasons why:

• The "Touring Tuesdays" posts ran ten years ago. Many of you weren't reading this blog then, so you likely missed that.
• Touring/bikepacking is seeing a rise in popularity. This series is relevant to this new interest.
• I get a chance to revisit this and add any afterthoughts. 

So, my thoughts are now that I will run this on Sundays for the rest of the year to celebrate the "Touring Tuesdays" posts and to add any additional thoughts. Speaking of "additional thoughts", I figured it may make sense to give you a read on where I was at as a cyclist in 1994. Yes......that was a lifetime ago. Things weren't so good for me then as a cyclist and life in general was very alien to what it is like now days. Let me try to paint a picture.

In 1994, I was only about a year into my career as a mechanic/cyclist, at least in earnest. While I had been an off-road cyclist since 1989, and while I had been a fan of cycling, and maybe more serious about cycling than many, I was far from being "good" at anything on two wheels yet. I knew very little about cycling techniques and road riding was absolutely alien to me. I had taken a mechanics class, and my year of wrenching had taught me loads, but I was far from being "accomplished" at the mechanics and definitely far from an accomplished cyclist as I could be.

Then there were the times. Of course, the internet existed, but no one was on it outside of college professors and government people. (Generally speaking) There were no cell phones one could carry around easily, they were still super rare, and coverage was still in the dark ages. Google maps, Garmin, and anything that could enable easy navigation simply did not exist for the common man. Much less a scruffy cyclist. Paper maps ruled, and you had to do a lot of decision making and hope you were right. You couldn't "google it". There was no real good way to get information on a route through the back roads and byways of America. If you went off the beaten path, you may as well be flying in space or sailing in uncharted waters. There really was no way to know what you'd find "out there". There were still public telephones. People still were decent on the highways as distracted driving wasn't an issue. Your worst fear was getting hit by a drunk driver. Imagine that now days.

Finally, there was no easy way to photograph things. You had a film based camera, and shots were precious. You didn't take shots on a whim, so images from this time are precious and rare commodities. There was no social media. When you were on the road touring you were totally unplugged from society. No Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook sharing with their immediate, comforting, and enabling feedback. Nope! If you had an issue, you were on yer own! If you had a beautiful sunset, only you had that memory. So, I will be adding reminders about how things were very different then, because it may be taken for granted by us now that things were around then that weren't, and when I wrote this in 1994 and 2008, there were a lot of things that needed explaining that I never dreamed would need explaining.

It was a different day and age, and next Sunday we'll get to experience the first slices of those days again. I plan on adding a bit of commentary to each post. Stay tuned.......