Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Pilgrims Ain't Shit!: Biking Adventure Pt. 1

"Now I ride everywhere, except during the winter (those people are psycho-lists)."



 *Warning this post has nothing to do with Pilgrims*

Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, and Virginia. What do they all have in common? They're old, and we are biking through 4 out of 5 of these original 13 colonies, that is about it. So fuck pilgrims and follow our biking journey from Somerville, MA to Manhattan, NY. What I am hoping is that anyone who may be interested in doing a journey similar to this can use this post as a blueprint of sorts.
        If you haven't noticed my use of pronouns like "we" and "our", I do not plan on doing this trip alone. I have a very special guest joining me and her name is Lilly (she says that's all you need to know about her). Our game plan is to spend about two or three days riding from Boston to New York making stops in Providence, RI and New London, Ct. We will then take the Cross Sound Ferry from Connecticut to Long Island and spend the rest of the day riding into Manhattan. While we are in the "Big Apple" we will spend two days exploring the boroughs, seeing friends, family and just hanging out (this will be Lilly's first "real" time going to NY).
        Now that I have you hooked this is where I hit you with the, "But wait... there is more!" After spending two days in New York we will rent a car and see some friends who I used to train Jiu Jitsu  with in boston, at their new home in Virginia. The total trip will be about a week, but the highlight is the riding. The main thing I want you to keep in mind is this is our first time trying something like this. I expect there to be much trial and error and with that being said, let's jump right in.

The Itinerary


I never been much of a planner. Luckily I have someone going with me who is slightly better at organizing then I am myself. So below is a basic summary of our trip. It includes every city we plan on stopping in, the mileage between each location, the places where we plan on staying,  and how much each place costs. On top of that we put the amount of time we believe it should take to get from each location. There are few expenses that have been left out.  New London, for example, we plan on just sleeping outside or in a park by setting up a tent and sleeping bags. I also didn't include the cost of the ferry from CT to NY, the cost of renting a car, how much we plan on spending in NY, and the cost of the train ride back. I may do a more in depth cost break down at the bottom of this post.

The Bikes


My Bike: 56cm Jamis T6 6061 Aluminum Racing Bike, Year: Unknown

Picture from this website
I got it for pretty much for nothing and if you click on the link for the website it is being sold for $350. What I like about is that it's light, feels about 20 pounds. The bike itself is very fast and going up hill is so smooth it's like "buttah kehd". I don't know to much about bikes, but I would say this bike is everything I was looking for in a bike. The few concerns that I have include how much grip the tires have on the road.

Probably about a month ago I was riding on a slick surface in less than favorable weather and a car cut me off. It was either slam on the breaks or hit the car and flip over it. I chose to hit the breaks and try to swerve to my left. What happened was I lost control and I slid completely sideways. It was like in the those movies where the protagonist on a motorcycle slides under a moving truck just in the nick of time to be able to make his get away. Well me sliding was something like that... just not as cool, or heroic. I sled and rear ended the car that was right in front of me. Luckily I sled underneath the car and caused no damage to their vehicle or myself. The guy who cut me off just looked dumbfounded as me and the car I hit cursed him out. At the time I was furious, but in hindsight the slide was actually kind of cool. If only it would have been under a truck or something like that and I had a cool one liner.

 Another concern about this bike is I am not to sure how well the tires will hold up on rocky terrain. It makes me very scared that something sharp or jagged will pop or break them. It's a kind of irrational fear but I would rather be safe than sorry.

Her Bike: 47 cm Specialized Vita


"My bike does not feel like buttah, unfortunately. It feels like swimming through cement. It's a hybrid road/mountain bike- which makes it useful for brief city errands and off-road jaunts. However, despite its reliability- there are some drawbacks. I got my bike roughly two years ago after the company I was doing my internship at switched buildings. There was only one 40 minute bus route I could take to get to work which included an additional 30 minute walk. With no car, and limited T money/patience, I had to suck it up and figure out how to get to work. So I bought this bike. And thus began my unwitting transformation into a cyclist. 

It was weird how fast the change hit me. I would wake up at 4am every morning to get on the bike trail in Somerville to get to work (a miserable way to start the day if you are not a morning person like me), and by the time I reached Waltham, the birds were singing the sun was rising- everything looked and felt alive, myself included. No more massholes stuck in traffic, taking out their aggression on those around them, no more miserable train rides, no more late useless buses, no more shitty commutes. While my colleagues arrived to work frazzled and stressed out from their commutes, I arrived rejuvenated and relaxed. I was hooked. And after a few months of riding up and down the many hills and roads, 24 miles round trip, I was in the best shape of my life. Now I ride everywhere, except during the winter (those people are psycho-lists).

But enough sentimental bullshit. Back to the details. Frankly, I think I was overcharged for the bike because I didn't know anything about bikes at the time. I walked in blind having done no research whatsoever and simply told them how far I'd be riding everyday. The hipster scumbag who sold it to me suckered me into buying extra items and special installations that in hindsight were totally unnecessary and overpriced. So, heed my warning and learn from my mistakes- do your homework.  To the bike's credit, it has held up pretty well through two long years of abuse. 

Since I purchased it, I've ridden roughly 1500+ miles on it (not including all of the grocery runs, errands, and side trips - like our 30 mile ride to Salem). The rack that came with it fell off after a few months, so now it's patched together with zip ties and a milk crate. I've only had two flats and one bike chain and brake replacement despite the brutal treatment. So, why am I not as please with it as I could be? This bastard is heavy. It's heavy with no load, and I've been riding for two years with it packed up from groceries to backpacks, and tools/supplies. The thing is, I had no idea how heavy this thing was since the last time I rode a bike was back when I was 10 or 11. It wasn't until I took a spin on Lavell's bike that I realized my bike was a hunk of lead. So, despite it being a reliable ride, I'm not sure a long multi-state trip will be as fun with a bike this heavy. So I plan to train using this heavier bike and then switch to a lighter bike for the trip."

 

The Gear

*We have no sponsorship by any of the products talked about in this section*

So if you haven't been able to tell by this post yet. We are completely new to this shit. Honestly it's a good and a bad thing. Good because you get a first hand experience from people who have absolutely no idea what they are doing. So if this is your first time doing it as well you have a pretty solid guideline to follow. Bad... well because this is completely new we have to buy everything (if we can afford to) or borrow it. So below is a list of all the supplies we believe we need buy to make this trip that much better.

Total Cost: $1074

Keep in mind that these are things we would like to purchase to make this trip a little easier on us. Everything that is on this list may not be purchased or it may be substituted for a cheaper alternative.We are pretty broke college students so this list may not be how our final outcome.

 

The Apps

*We have no sponsorship by any of the products talked about in this section*

















A quick list of the various apps we will be using for this trip
  • InRoute: http://www.apppicker.com/reviews/13564/inRoute-app-review-a-trip-planning-tool
  • Google Maps:
  • Sports Tracker: http://www.sports-tracker.com/
  • Speedometer:  https://play.google.com/store/app/details?id=com.valueapps.utilities.speedometer

Cost Break Down


















Here is a total cost break down of what we think this whole trip is going to run us. It includes what I posted earlier about the supplies we are buying, the cost of lodging, the cost of a rental, and spending money. 

1) Lodging: Total: $100

The game plan is to do a lot of camping. Neither of us have a problem with sleeping outside and we plan on using that to help us keep out costs low. In New London, Connecticut where we will be spending our first night we plan on sleeping in a park or somewhere that is out of plain sight. From there once we hit Long Island our second night will be spent in Stony Brook, New York. The cost a night there, for basic camping, is about $20 dollars. The most expensive part of our trip is staying in an Hostel in New York. That alone I averaged to around $60-$100 which should cover the cost of staying there for about two nights. Then after our New York adventure we are going to see a couple of friends in Virginia Beach and will most likely stay with them.

2) Supplies, Rental & Travel: Total: $1074 + $200= $1274

I decided to include the rental into the supplies. When I calculated the total cost of everything we wanted to get I almost threw my calculator across the room. We have about a month and a couple of weeks to start getting supplies together. Some of the essentials from the list I feel like we without a doubt need is racks, tools, tubes, mirrors, lights, sleeping bags, and pumps. So if we can just get those supplies then I believe that may be enough to get us to where we need to go. We also aren't biking bike so the cost of taking a train back form New York to Boston is about $50 per person.
One thing I want to mention is that we also found a bicycle shop within 5-10miles from almost every city that we come in contact with along the route.

3) Spending: Total: $300

We are going to spend two days in NY and one day in VA. Honestly estimating spending is a tricky thing since you really don't know how much you actually will spend. New York is a lot more expensive than Virginia and I am basing this estimate strictly off the amount of time we are staying there.  I would like to go to the Supreme store and purchase some clothes to bring back to home or even eat out. 

One place I am without a doubt looking forward to spending money at is "The Doughnut Project", it's a small, hipster, locally owned doughnut shop. They pretty much sell grass fed, free range doughnuts, not really, but you get the gist. Last time I was in New York I went to go try this place out mostly for the novelty factor of eating an "Everything" doughnut or a "Beet and Ricotta" one. Even with the wow factor of trying something slightly out of the ordinary I do have to say they possess some of the best glazed doughnuts I have ever had the pleasure of sticking in my mouth. And after all of that riding I can't wait to eat as many glazed doughnuts as I can.


Words of Wisdom: "Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things."  —Robert Brault


Thank you for reading
 
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Location: Boston, MA, USA

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