Sunshine State to the Golden State 2018

This tour is dedicated to my brother, Mike, and everyone else out there who is fighting cancer. I've been dreaming about riding across the country since the early 2000s.  But it kept getting put on the back burner for some reason.   But I'm finally doing it, or at least attempting to do it.  When I first thought of this I never dreamed I wouldn't get around to it until I was 65 years old, but here we are. I will start riding in St. Augustine, Florida, on September 12th, 2018, and finish in San Diego.  The route is about 3,000 miles long.  It starts at sea level, tops out at 8,828 feet elevation at Emory Pass in New Mexico, and ends back at sea level.  My goal is to make it back to Sacramento in time to spend Thanksgiving with my family.  June 2011, Near Tulelake, California This tour was supposed to begin on February 15th.  But a few weeks before departure my big brother, Mike, was diagnosed with cancer and needed imme...

Chromoly Wally, a Specialized Hard Rock mountain bike converted for road touring.  It was a gift from my brother for Christmas, 1997 I've been getting ready for this trip since the first of the year.  So, much of the planning was done earlier, but as the time draws near I keep finding more things to do. Wally was tuned up in January.  It got new shifters, cables, brake pads, chain, pedals and tires.  All adjustments have been made.  Wally is 20 years old now and has probably around 40,000 miles on it but is in great shape.  The only original parts left are the frame, stem, seat post and front derailleur. I seam sealed my tent, got a packing list together, ordered some new gear and generally have been poring over the route, studying the blogs of others who have done this and am trying not to forget any details. Wally will be shipped FedEx (via shipbikes.com, a low-cost way of shipping bikes).  I will drive to Sacramento and stay with ...