381: NoDak Northern Tier Adventure Preview
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
Release Date: 10/24/2024
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
The Florida adventure is in the rear view mirror but I have so many lessons learned from this trip… and I’ll share a bunch of them with you here on the takeaways edition to close out the trip. Hold the date… Pedalshift 400 Live will be Friday April 11th at 8pm ET - 5pm PT. Check out Pedlashift on YouTube or for more. Ask Me Anything for sure, the rest is a surprise maybe to me as well? Takeaways from the Jacksonville-to-Orlando Bike Tour Day 1 (Jacksonville to St. Augustine) 1. A Ferry Ride to Kick Things Off – The journey began with a ferry ride across the St. Johns River, adding a...
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
The previous day’s winds having ebbed, it was time to ride a full day again. And with grayer skies and the winds more at my back than my face, day 3 got things back on track. Would last year’s free campsite be as welcoming on this trip? Pedalshift 400 Live Hold the date… Pedalshift 400 Live will be Friday April 11th at 8pm ET - 5pm PT. Check out Pedlashift on YouTube or for more. Ask Me Anything for sure, the rest is a surprise maybe to me as well? Florida Coast Part 4 Statistics Prę dawn cycling sections 1 Miles biked part 1 - 10 Miles biked part 2 - 20.1 Ubers 1 Towns with beach in...
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
The previous day’s winds having ebbed, it was time to ride a full day again. And with grayer skies and the winds more at my back than my face, day 3 got things back on track. Would last year’s free campsite be as welcoming on this trip? Pedalshift 400 Live Hold the date… Pedalshift 400 Live will be Friday April 11th at 8pm ET - 5pm PT. Check out Pedlashift on YouTube or for more. Ask Me Anything for sure, the rest is a surprise maybe to me as well? Florida Coast Part 3 Statistics Miles biked - 37.8 Ubers 0 Towns with beach in the name 0 Free camps 1 Flats 0
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
I used to do a beginners series on the show (and hope to do another again) but never did a whole show on “don’t make the same mistake I did.” So, on this episode… mistakes to avoid as a beginner!
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
There are few rules in bicycle adventures, but I am a firm believer in the one that says you do not taunt the bike touring gods. Day 1 was a breeze, I said! The bike gods respond with a breeze of their own. Would their wrath of headwinds push me to screeching halt on my way to Daytona? Pedalshift 400 Live Hold the date… Pedalshift 400 Live will be Friday April 11th at 8pm ET - 5pm PT. Check out Pedlashift on YouTube or for more. Ask Me Anything for sure, the rest is a surprise maybe to me as well? Florida Coast Part 2 Statistics Miles bikes 30.4 Miles not biked 27.4 Ubers 1 Towns with beach...
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
The first day of the Florida Coast adventure starts from the cooler air of Jacksonville, carrying me south through a series of beach towns on the way to a state park outside of St. Augustine with two entrances… the short way has a locked gate… would I be able to get through or have to go all the way back around (complete with extra miles) to get to camp? Pedalshift 400 Live Hold the date… Pedalshift 400 Live will be Friday April 11th at 8pm ET - 5pm PT. Check out Pedlashift on YouTube or for more. Ask Me Anything for sure, the rest is a surprise maybe to me as well? Florida Coast Part 1...
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
My annual tradition of a winter ride in the sunshine state continues! Unlike past years, I’m shaking things up with the start and focusing on a coastal ride along the East Coast Greenway before turning inland. But the Florida Coast is the name of the game for this adventure, and on this episode we preview the ride! Florida Coast Preview The ride Jacksonville to WDW over 4 days! East Coast Greenway! A ferry! Mostly coastal riding with the ocean over my left shoulder (who knew?) Revisting the Florida Coast to Coast Trail Riding all the way to my finish line resort at WDW (no Lyfts at the end...
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
I ride three different bikes for touring, and each one has plusses and minuses depending on what kind of ride I’m looking for. But if you’re new to bike touring or looking for another bike, what should you be thinking about? On this episode, the things I look for in a touring bike! .
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
So I successfully rode 75 miles on a single charge of my eBike battery (with a little bit of a top off!). What did I learn from the adventure and what does it mean for future trips with my ebike? eBike Range Test Takeaways 75ish miles is pretty great with a little top off… that’s amazing for the C&O and other reasonably flat terrain! 1.Battery Management is Key •The ride underscored the importance of efficient battery use. Keeping the e-bike battery between 20% and 80% for everyday use is recommended, but for extended trips, charging to 100% proved essential. However, overuse...
info_outlineThe Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
On this episode we ride from my cabin to Cumberland, MD on the C&O towpath to see if we can squeeze 75 miles out of my eBike battery! With only one real opportunity to top off, this is a real test with fairly unfun consequences if I run out… did I make it or did I have to pedal the last bit without that little extra boost? Quick programming note… this episode is a beast, so I’m going to do takeaways next episode… feel free to listen to this one in chunks as it’s over an hour!
info_outlineI’m going to North Dakota and I am unreasonably excited about it! For years I have been stuck at 48 states visited (and for real, not just airport states) BUT the final two were ND and Alaska, and no disrespect to North Dakota but Alaska needs to be my 50th. But the opportunity to get there was shattered ten years ago when my original ride on the Northern Tier route was scuttled by a heat wave I wasn’t interested in riding through. But now… I’m doing it. With a bike. And buffaloes.
The Adventure
Heavily car aided. Very heavily. Like, mostly.
Starting and ending in MSP (there for a work thing)
All camping
Brompton riding daily
Crossing the state TWICE
Urban camping in Fargo!
Theodore Roosevelt NP! Buffalo! Camping! Riding!
Finally getting wheels down on the Northern Tier bicycle route!
Rest stop car camping in the very friendly sleep-in rest stops of ND!
Did I mention the 49th state visit?
Itinerary
Day 1
Car rental
Camping in Fargo and Lindenwood Campground
Biking into town for dinner and all the Fargo nightlife I can handle
Day 2
Pre dawn departure
Gain an hour driving across the state into MT
Camping at TR NP at Cottonwood Campground
Buffalo herds nearby and sometimes they saunter into camp?
Day 3
Half day at TR NP to cycle a bit
Drive back across the state
Lose an hour coming back into CT
Rest area about halfway to MSP
Day 4
Pre dawn departure
Get back to MSP and fly home
Gear
Rental car
Brompton
Camping gear that fits in a checked suitcase - going with basics and adding "luxuries" if I can since this is car camping
Stove a must - likely buying fuel in MN or ND
Weather
Not as cold as you’d think for fall
Hoping for dry, preparing for not
How much biking?
It really depends. The idea here is to get a sample, not make miles.
Seeing TR NP at the speed of bike
Experiencing Fargo and its… bike infrastructure?