which cross-america tour is best?

[Scribe2b]

i'm 60, ride road, toured a bit, centuries some. i would prefer 60-80 mile
days and good food and a motel at night.
question is, what companies are most reliable???
which route is best?
any experiences?

TIA!
jpc

[Scott Fairbanks]

>i'm 60, ride road, toured a bit, centuries some. i would prefer 60-80 mile
>days and good food and a motel at night.
> question is, what companies are most reliable???

Five years ago I rode from LA to Boston with http://crossroadscycling.com/
and I have no problem highly recommending them.
Once you show up in LA all you have to do is ride your bike, they arrange
the motels and meals and transport your luggage.
We had a good mix of riders, the oldest and youngest were a 75 year old
grandfather and his 17 year old grandson. We had a father and son, a few
married couples, a diabetic with an insulin pump, and a man who had had one leg
amputated.
The mileage averaged out to about 80 miles a day and there was a rest day
about every seven or eight days.
The main problem I had on the trip was the boredom. After spending six
days pedaling across Kansas you'll find that you start talking to yourself and
wondering if you will ever again see a hill.
If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

Scott

[Ken Pisichko]

Scott Fairbanks wrote:

> The main problem I had on the trip was the boredom. After spending six
> days pedaling across Kansas you'll find that you start talking to yourself and
> wondering if you will ever again see a hill.

I am planning a trip through "outback" Australia 2 summers from now. That will be
their "winter", and for me (as a Canadian who has been winter camping at -35F) it
will be a wonderful experience. I have done the particular route 3 times in '71-'72
by car and "road train" while hitch hiking. Now it is time to do the route by
bicycle and really "see" the sights.

Nevertheless, there will be NO radio coverage for much of that trip. There will be
a 250 km distance between two towns on the "most isolated" stretch on the Adelaide
- Darwin Highway. No big deal as there will be water in holding tanks. Bush camping
is a "given". If you need a "shar" then take a bottle and pour it on yourself, soap
up, and rinse.... Archaic? No way. Go there and try it - totally nude and no one is
anywhere near (50 km perhaps??) you.

So what!! The local scenery will keep me busy. There is no such thing as boredom
when you are watching the scenery, vegetation, fauna, and sky. ACTIVELY that is.

Forget about continuous entertainment! Think like an "aboriginal" person and look
at the LOCAL sites. Forget the entertainment and get deeper into the local "stuff".
You will be amazed how complex it is.

Just my opinion :-)

Ken
Winnipeg, Canada

[Around Australia Recumbent Style]

"Ken Pisichko" > wrote in message
...
> Scott Fairbanks wrote:
>
<SNIP>

> Nevertheless, there will be NO radio coverage for much of that trip. There
will be
> a 250 km distance between two towns on the "most isolated" stretch on the
Adelaide
> - Darwin Highway. No big deal as there will be water in holding tanks.
Bush camping

Ken. Go careful on the reliance on water tanks. Many of the states are
removing them because of the liability factor. Sometimes they are empty,
sometimes they have holes in them and the brides get in and die thereby
polluting the water and sometimes the idiots that frequent the roads smash
the taps - just for fun. We experienced some of this crossing the Nullarbor
and it is similiar around the outback. Be prepared to buy water from
Roadhouses at $3AUD per litre.

<SNIP>

[Ken Pisichko]

Around Australia Recumbent Style wrote:

> "Ken Pisichko" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Scott Fairbanks wrote:
> >
> <SNIP>
>
> > Nevertheless, there will be NO radio coverage for much of that trip. There
> will be
> > a 250 km distance between two towns on the "most isolated" stretch on the
> Adelaide
> > - Darwin Highway. No big deal as there will be water in holding tanks.
> Bush camping
>
> Ken. Go careful on the reliance on water tanks. Many of the states are
> removing them because of the liability factor. Sometimes they are empty,
> sometimes they have holes in them and the brides get in and die thereby
> polluting the water and sometimes the idiots that frequent the roads smash
> the taps - just for fun. We experienced some of this crossing the Nullarbor
> and it is similiar around the outback. Be prepared to buy water from
> Roadhouses at $3AUD per litre.

Yes, I understand!! I am doing some reconnaissance with folks in Adelaide etc.
Now the information may be fine --- however, IF (note the slight degree of
uncertainty about the future) the trip goes as planned in 2 years from now I
will have to do the reconnaissance again. Old info leads to BIG problems, and I
do not have to point to any current middle east news to remind anyone of that
fact!!

In essence, thanks for the kind (and diplomatic) reminder that Murphy lurks
everywhere - even in OZ! A trailer behind my bike might mitigate such problems.

Ken
Winnipeg, Canada

[Around Australia Recumbent Style]

"Ken Pisichko" > wrote in message
...
> Around Australia Recumbent Style wrote:
>
> > "Ken Pisichko" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > Scott Fairbanks wrote:
> > >
> > <SNIP>
> >
> > > Nevertheless, there will be NO radio coverage for much of that trip.
There
> > will be
> > > a 250 km distance between two towns on the "most isolated" stretch on
the
> > Adelaide
> > > - Darwin Highway. No big deal as there will be water in holding tanks.
> > Bush camping
> >
> > Ken. Go careful on the reliance on water tanks. Many of the states are
> > removing them because of the liability factor. Sometimes they are empty,
> > sometimes they have holes in them and the brides get in and die thereby
> > polluting the water and sometimes the idiots that frequent the roads
smash
> > the taps - just for fun. We experienced some of this crossing the
Nullarbor
> > and it is similiar around the outback. Be prepared to buy water from
> > Roadhouses at $3AUD per litre.
>
> Yes, I understand!! I am doing some reconnaissance with folks in Adelaide
etc.
> Now the information may be fine --- however, IF (note the slight degree
of
> uncertainty about the future) the trip goes as planned in 2 years from now
I
> will have to do the reconnaissance again. Old info leads to BIG problems,
and I
> do not have to point to any current middle east news to remind anyone of
that
> fact!!
>
> In essence, thanks for the kind (and diplomatic) reminder that Murphy
lurks
> everywhere - even in OZ! A trailer behind my bike might mitigate such
problems.
>
> Ken
> Winnipeg, Canada

Yes, that Murphy bloke sure gets around.
A trailer would be handy for carrying that liquid gold :-)

Funny what you say about research and its shelf life, I am planning a cross
Canada then cross USA, then Europe trip with a possible side trip back to
Australia via the rest of the world, and the research I read now sounds
feasible but I sure worry about what it will be like in 2 years time. Almost
seems like a waste of time reading and studying, reading and studying now.

happy planning

PS. If we are still here in Perth when you come through your welcome to park
the bike here for a night or three.

[Mike Vermeulen]

>Nevertheless, there will be NO radio coverage for much of that trip. There will be
>a 250 km distance between two towns on the "most isolated" stretch on the Adelaide
>- Darwin Highway. No big deal as there will be water in holding tanks. Bush camping
>is a "given". If you need a "shar" then take a bottle and pour it on yourself, soap
>up, and rinse.... Archaic? No way. Go there and try it - totally nude and no one is
>anywhere near (50 km perhaps??) you.

I agree with previous cautions about water tanks. I bicycled the
stretch between Adelaide and Alice Springs and from Three Ways to
Darwin in 2001. I actually only had one night of bush camping on that
highway and other nights at roadhouses or towns along the way. [see
http://www.mvermeulen.com/oneyear/australia.htm].

If you haven't found it yet, one site to browse is the Bicycle Fish
site: [http://users.chariot.net.au/~gloria/index.html].

>So what!! The local scenery will keep me busy. There is no such thing as boredom
>when you are watching the scenery, vegetation, fauna, and sky. ACTIVELY that is.

Agreed. Cycling the outback regions of Australia was among my
favorite areas in part because of the longer stretches with minimal
human habitation and lots of small changes in scenery, fauna,
vegetation, etc.

--mev, Mike Vermeulen