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Pacific Coast Solo Tour - 1996

Most of my life, I had dreamed about riding my bike around the world - Unfortunately the aspect of reality becomes a prevalent factor in one's life, and dreams sometimes remain just that....

As late as 1995, even though I rode every chance I got, I had never toured before. Come 1996, I would turn 45 - I told myself I was going to at least do 1 actual tour before I got any older.

I had an ongoing subscription to Adventure Cycling and was able to go over all of my back issues for ideas - My wife wanted me to go on one of Adventure Cycling's many supported tours - Being that I had never done anything like this before, I had ideas of my own! I wanted this to be an experience between a man and his machine, and I didn't want to share it with anyone else........aside from that, I thought it would be quite embarrassing if it turned out I couldn't make it all the way, and that experience would also be one that I would want to share alone.

I mustered up all of my macho male ego and decided to do this solo, unsupported, carry everything a man needed to fulfill his dream on his trusty machine. I selected a route - The Pacific Coast, from Seattle Washington to San Francisco California. The summer of 1995, my wife and I drove the entire route just to see what I was in for for my planned 1996 1st cycling tour.

Never being on the Pacific Coast before (I originally hale from Michigan) I found the views awesome, the sights fantastic! I saw cyclist going north, I saw cyclist going south! I could feel waves of excitement flow through me as I envisioned myself being 1 of those cyclist. I marveled at those riding along side the car we had rented. My wife looked at them, and then looked at me, like we were all crazy with nothing better to do in our lives. I didn't let her feelings sway me one bit - My macho self told me that this was something I had to do, experience and render, before my aging body acquired to many more pains (listen - ya gotta do what ya gotta do!). I had many opportunities to talk to cyclists along the route at various stops and verbally share their pains with them - Hey, it made them feel better to talk about it!

Having talked to others, I was then able to convince my wife that I couldn't be any surer than I was about doing this ride by myself come September of 1996. I was mentally hyped, physically prepared (or so I thought) and I had my wife's grand exalted permission to buy the perfect steed to carry me on this marvelous journey. I diligently went back over all my old Bicycle, Bicyclist, Adventure Cycling magazines scouring them for any and all bits of information I would need to do this ride. I subscribed to several Newsgroups in hopes of information.

I talked to everyone I could about bikes - I wanted the ultimate machine for this journey!

I put my personal program on paper - route, stops, stay-overs , etc. As the excitement swelled within me, I could see the whole thing come together. I 1st thought I would rough it by camping along the way, and after a little thought, I decided to be a CC (Credit Card) tourer instead and do the motel thing.

I was going to allow my self 3 full weeks to do the trip, 1 week in Washington, 1 week in Oregon, and 1 week in California. September 5th would be the start date being that the Pacific Coast route would supposedly have the least amount of vehicular traffic at that time. Having finally decided on my steed (Waterford), I then developed a training program to get myself in shape. I had a beater 21 spd road bike which was what I was riding here in the VI's on at least a once a week basis, to which now I would have to step up my riding program to once

a day. Over the years, due to my own foolishness, I had several major injuries (broken bones), along with knee (both) damage. I have little or no cartilage left in either knee, and have used cycling as the exercise of choice to keep my knees fluid. I had torn 2 ligaments in my right knee from over doing it in my riding here in the VI's (Charging up the mountains like a young pup in the wrong gear) and I had question in my own mind whether I would even be able to hold

through the entire 1300 mile planned trip. I was confident that the mountains and switchbacks here in the VI's would more than prepare me for the rugged part of the Pacific Coast, along with the needed endurance for the balance of the trip. I established a 2hr. training period starting at 5am each morning, in which I would ride a prescribed distance each day, increasing it each week. When my steed (Waterford) arrived in May of 96, I was then able to take the same daily training and now incorporate Panniers and weight! I now had almost 4 months to get myself totally conditioned for this ride. I started out with 5 pounds in each pannier (4, 2 front, 2 back), increasing the weight of each pannier every week by an additional 5 pounds until I was able to

ride comfortably climbing the mountains here in the VI's with a total of 60 pounds of balanced weight.

Come the middle of July 1996, my 22 year old son called me from Michigan to alert me to the fact that he had decided to get married October 5th of that year, which became in direct conflict with my trip plans. I originally allowed myself 3 weeks to do the actual cycling trip and 2 weeks to recover, or vacation

as my wife called it, in San Francisco, the end of the journey. With my son's pending marriage throwing a wringer in my actual ride plans, I then decided to clip 1 week off of the trip as not to short change my wife's and my time to vacation together at the end of my ride. My new trip plan would start me in Astoria Oregon rather than Seattle Washington as originally planned, thus reducing the trip by 400 some miles and 1 week. My new trip from Astoria Oregon to

San Francisco would be 887 miles and 2 weeks, with 2 weeks to recover, and then 1 week for my son's wedding. The plan was set in stone, there would be no further changes.

I again got involved with the various cycling newsgroups, asking the question - "What should I bring, what should I pack?". I received many responses from seasoned tourers. I took all

the responses in consideration and of course added a few things to the list myself. I decided that even though I was going to do the motel thing, I'd bring a tent and sleeping bag anyway. Of course, I didn't believe the fact that so few tools were required.........I'm into tools! A man has to have his tools when he needs them, right? So I figured in an adequate amount of tools that I thought I would need. If I brought my tent and bag and might have to use them, then I'd need cooking stuff as

as well, right? Well, let me tell ya - The list went on and on until I had some 90 pounds as a total factor of carrying weight. Hell, I was able to pedal around with 60 pounds with no real problem.........what's 30 more pounds? I was as ready as I was going to be, confident of my finish even before I began. I stopped my actual cycle training mid August, and then began leg strengthening exercises at home to help overcome the 

problems with my knees. My wife began making her plans for what she would do the 1st 2 weeks while I would be on my tour. Her Mother and sisters live in Bakersfield California, so she wouldn't have any problem keeping herself busy for the 1st 2 weeks of my now shortened trip. The plan would be for her and her mother to drive up and meet me in San Francisco and bring my ragged body back down to Bakersfield to rest before then heading up to Michigan for my son's wedding. Now, all both of us had to do was wait with baited breath for my tour date to come about!

Tour Report

Let me tell ya - I've read a lot of tour reports from various people - Some pretty bland, some pretty heavy duty, and some................well, ya know what I mean. I'm not going to tell you how I packed my Mafisto Left Handed screw driver in the right rear pannier, in the left rear corner, next to the Alfonso coffee cup purchased in Yugoslavia in the year of 1987, which shifted mid way in the trip from right to left............................, Nor will I tell you about the Sunshine Saltines that I opened and ate precisely in 1/2 inch bites as I cited out the ingredients verbatim from the wrapper, between each breath and swallow -

Instead...........My report is short and sweet! I spent most of my time, pedaling my ass off, smelling the flowers, and in awe of the scenery.

September 4th, 1996

Clare and I arrived in Bakersfield California and was met by her family at the airport - We had a joyous reunion, drank good, ate good, etc! My plan would be to fly out of Bakersfield on Sept. 7th with my bike to Portland Oregon. I had 3 days to complete all the last minute details and go over all my equipment to make sure I was ready <- I sure in hell brought more stuff than I thought!

September 5th, 1996

Had fun

September 6th, 1996

Had more fun!

September 7th, 1996 - D-DAY! (or Da-Day.....whatever!)

I left Bakersfield 5am on a Southwest Commuter to San Francisco. Got to San Francisco at 6:45, Changed to a Delta (Blah!) plane and left for Portland Oregon. Got to Portland at 9:45 and was met by some friends of mine who would take me to the Greyhound Bus Station, the only way to get to Astoria - Surprisingly I arrived with all of my stuff, but was alerted by my friends that the Bus to Astoria left at 10am meaning we had exactly 10 minutes to get from 1 side of Portland to the other! I forgot how fast my friend could drive........I come from an island where the max is 20 miles an hour - He was 4 times that amount! Needless to say I hung on to the door handle and they got me to the Bus Station with 30 seconds to spare. As soon as I was out of their car, I was on the Bus - It wasn't really a Greyhound Bus though, it was one of those mini school buses that are used for Handicapped children.........I was not happy! I arrived in Astoria at 1pm to a very cold and dreary raining day. Checked into a Motel and began the process of unpacking and assembly.

September 8th, 1996 (Sunday)

Having assembled the bike the night before - I was able to do my checkout ride this morning to make sure everything was ok. Felt good to be on the bike again! I rode to the Mariner Museum to kill some time after riding around town in the mist (still raining). Went back to the Motel room mid-afternoon to pack the panniers and balance the load. First thing in the morning I would ship the bike case back to Clare in Bakersfield via UPS. Clare called me on the cell phone to make sure the roaming would work (condition of my being able to do this ride alone). All set to go!

September 9th, 1996 - Destination Tillamook, Oregon

9AM, I took the bike case to the UPS office and sent it away - There would be no turning back now.......I had to do this ride. I went back to the Motel and checked out, with the start time to my first stop, Tillamook, being 10:30am.

5:30pm - Rolled into Tillamook, 7 hours later, checked into a local Motel - It was a beautiful ride! I'm really tired - The hills were rolling with a capital "R". More tough on my fanny than anything else. Won't know how my knees are until till the next am, but I think the knee brace (right knee) did a good job. Big ride (77 miles) for tomorrow - Will take it easier, space it out rather than ride hard like I did today.......Wish this place had a bath tub to soak in!

September 10th, 1996 - Destination Newport, Oregon

Didn't sleep well but feel ok just the same - Knee so far seems good, fanny already has saddle sores. Maybe my Flite saddle wasn't the ride choice for long rides. Take off time will be 8am.

6pm - Made it to Newport (barely), punishing ride - Mostly uphill! Thank God I got to go downhill once in a while! Took me 10 hours to get here, 3 of which were rest stops! I have to evaluate the weight factor - I've way to much weight! Won't need the tent, the sleeping bag, cooking stuff...........I will be in Motels (I hope) every night, eat at McDonald's, Burger King, Subway and the like. Won't need all these tools either! Wonders of wonders......This room has a bath tub! A joy for these bones!

September 11, 1996 - Destination Florence, Oregon

First stop - UPS! To my surprise, the weight factor of the stuff I sent back to Clare was 32 pounds! UPS was kind enough to weigh the balance that I would still carry, and that was 64 pounds! This dummy has been killing himself with trying to ride with a total carrying weight of 96 pounds! That was probably the stupidest thing I've ever done!

Thought I was going to get a break today. The 1st 25 miles towards Florence were great - Couldn't had been any flatter! The next 25 miles along the coast were all up hill! It was foggy and cold all day. Stopped in Yachats and bought a Windbreaker and then continued on with the hard ride to Florence. Rolled into Florence at 5pm and the first store I saw was a bike shop - My fanny hurts so bad it's bleeding! I promptly went in the shop and bought a cheap 14 dollar Gel seat! I've 74 miles to go tomorrow - I hope the seat pays off!

September 12, 1996 - Destination Bandon, Oregon

After a day like today, I'm beginning to think that I need my head examined! 74 miles with a 20 mile per hour headwind! I have been told no less than 20 times today by the locals that the winds coming from the south is unusual - But it would be my luck! The Adventure Cycling maps have you detour around North Bend and Coos Bay because of high traffic, and takes you (supposedly) on a scenic route. I should have related to the name "Seven Devils" and that in itself should have told me what I was in for! 45 miles of an uphill battle, and when it would finally flatten out - There were the headwinds! Had I any idea it would be like this, I would have stayed on 101 and gone through North Bend and Coos Bay with the traffic! Bandon, the sign, was the prettiest thing I had seen all day! 2 more days left in Oregon, Gold Beach tomorrow - Hope it warms up, it's been awful cold!

September 13, 1996 - Destination Gold Beach, Oregon

Started this morning out with a bang, literally - Got my 1st flat in 300 miles! I had hopes that today would be warmer - FAT CHANCE! Today was even colder than yesterday. Someone told me that all of this strange weather was due to a hurricane all the way down south in Baja. Froze my ass from Bandon to Port Orford! This has been the worst stretch yet - Absolutely no scenery from Bandon to Port Orford! This is probably the closest I've coming to quitting yet! My bike was screwing up bad (shifting), because of the cold, and the constant drizzle kept my glasses fogged up - IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN WORSE!

I stopped at a small cafe in Port Orford to warm up and really pondered the question as to how much more of this crap I wanted. I kinda felt like Jobe in the Bible - "Why Lord?!!!" But as soon as I got back on my bike and got just out side of Port Orford - Smack in front of me lay the majestic coast! This was a site which immediately made everything worthwhile! I still froze my ass off and the headwinds were still fierce, but I finally had some stunning views which made the pains go away! The coast from Port Orford to Gold Beach is absolutely stunning! Please let it be warmer tomorrow - It will be my last day in Oregon!

September 14, 1996 - Destination Cresent City, California

And here I thought yesterday was bad - It rained the entire distance from Gold Beach, OR to Cresent City, CA!

57 miles of rain! I got a flat again , first thing! The rear wheel is cutting into the valve stem for some reason! Used my last tube up, I've got to get more! Made it to Bookings, OR at 1pm soaking wet from head to toe. My Cycle Computer (Sigma 1200) quit mid way from all the rain. I stopped at a bike shop in Bookings and bought another (Avocet 55, with Altimeter), along with 6 tubes in the likely event I get another flat! Rode 3 miles out of Bookings, and the new Cycle Computer quit - Rode back to the bike shop for a replacement - WHAT A DAY! I finally made it to Cresent City! The shame of it is that had the weather been nice, this would have been the prettiest ride yet! If it's still raining in the a.m., I'll probably spend the day here in Cresent City and wash clothes or something - Anything to get out of the rain!

September 15, 1996 - Rest Day (Cresent City)

8am and I can't believe my own eyes! The rain has finally stopped and alas, so must I! Everything I have is soaking wet and today must become a Dry-Out and Wash day. I can use the day of rest as well, clean and adjust the bike, etc.

September 16, 1996 - Destination Eureka, California

Now this is what it's all about! A beautiful day, a little cool, but great just the same! First time in a week that I had to wear Sun Glasses - There was actually sun! Riding through the Redwoods was absolutely fantastic! The smell, the sound, etc - Nothing that could be appreciated from a car! I did a lot of climbing today, 3,840 accumulative feet - It didn't bother me that much though, no head winds to deal with like in Oregon. I cut through it with no problem. After passing through the Prairie Creek Redwood Park, it was clear sailing with an average speed of 20mph! I was making such good time, I rode right through to Eureka, incurring another damn flat 10 miles outside of the city. Getting close and feeling awful confident that I will be able to finish what I had begun!

September 17, 1996 - Destination Garberville, California

Whew! What a hard ride today! I spent the whole day in the mountains with the Redwoods! A lot of climbing which plum wore me out. The weather was somewhat cool until 2pm, then the sun finally brought some warmth. Made it to Garberville at 4:30pm, my feet are numb from all the pressure it took for the climbing. Have to get beyond Leggett before I start getting out of the mountains. After Leggett, I will be on U.S. 1. Some actually stunning views today!

September 18, 1996 - Destination Ft. Bragg, California

8am, today will be the ultimate test of my climbing abilities - Starting with a 1,600 ft climb, a quick decent to sea level, and then an immediate 800 ft climb again before descending to sea level.........Just the thought makes me tired!

8pm - My hands are just now becoming controllable. They have been so numb from today's ride that I am now barely able to hold the pen to write. I gained much respect for Leggett Mountain today, 28 miles long, 1720 ft actual height - Something that could easily make a little boy out of any man! This particular ride is much better left to cars! I didn't think I would make it to Ft. Bragg! 3 days left to go and I've a sneaky feeling that the CA coast is going to be more work than I thought!

September 19, 1996 - Destination - Gualala California

A stunning ride today! A couple of bad switchbacks which were as bad or worse than the switchbacks on St. John. Rode right along the coast with majestic views at every bend - My hands are still numb from yesterdays ride, having trouble holding on to the pen. So many things I was able to see today - Anyone in a car has absolutely no idea as to what they are missing! The views today have brought a total value to this trip! It's on to Bodega Bay tomorrow - 2 more days left to the trip!

September 20, 1996 - Destination Bodega Bay California?

Poor planning on my part finally has shown through! The original plan was for me to stop in Bodega Bay for the night - Bodega Bay is a yuppie resort town! They don't have Motels, just $175.00 per night or better villas! I chose to ride on to Valley Ford (bad choice) only to find that there were no rooms available. I then rode on to Tomales only to find out that it was a cattle town with a 4 room Hotel which was full. At this point I was somewhat concerned being that the map didn't show any further accommodations except just outside of San Francisco, which was still 55 miles out of my reach. Called Clare (my wife) from the cell phone, who was already in SF with her mother and explained the unlikely situation of my finding a place to stay my last night. It was decided that they would come pick me up in Point Reyes. From Tomales, I rode on to Point Reyes and waited in Point Reyes for the girls to come get me - I come to find out later that I was only 20 miles out of SF from where I stopped and waited for the girls. Had I known I was so close I would have just ridden the last 20 miles (put on 98 miles today), but it was already pitch black and I didn't have any light aside from a blinker.............Thus the trip ends here, just 20 miles short of my goal - A good trip none the less! The whole ride was worth the effort, yet I would never do something like this by myself again - You need someone to share the pain with!

And in the end - My wife seemed actually happy to see me! Maybe I will do this again! The attention I got was GRAND! We hung out in SF for a few days, then in Carmel for a few days - Back to Bakersfield for a "Well deserved hand and foot, wait on me" rest, and then up to Michigan for my son's wedding! A busy month I had!

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