It's Not THAT Far

Once I started searching for long distance cycling or touring information online, I was met with countless blogs, websites and videos. My Instagram feed is full of touring pictures, and they're some of my favorites to explore. It was so inspiring to learn from others' experiences, and it only fueled my enthusiasm in moving up my timeline. 

The one thing about all these sites, however, is that it puts what I'm doing into perspective. Yes, I'm going to bicycle a long way from Kentucky to Oregon. Yes, it's going to be hard. Yes, I'm going to drink a lot of coffee. But what I'm doing is not anything that hasn't been accomplished before. In fact, many of the blogs and Instagram users I follow are that of solo or paired riders riding coast to coast, touring the lower 48 states or hopping from one country to another. What they're doing makes me feel my goal is so much more attainable, because at least I'm not riding for the next 9 months, cycling through foreign countries where I may not know how to communicate my needs, or racing from coast to coast in 40 days! 

I feel a bit more settled and comforted knowing that I will be fairly close to home (as opposed to across the world!), I'm familiar with navigating my way through the U.S., and I'm going to be giving myself ALL day to ride 50-70 miles. 

So, yes, riding to Oregon is crazy far. I will be really proud of my accomplishments when it's all said and done. I'm psyched to embark on what I anticipate will be the hardest thing I've ever done! 

But I also find it very reassuring to know there are others out there doing bigger rides, and I'm not doing this all on my own. I have so many resources from which to pull, and I'm so looking forward to using this blog to share it all. 

a pic of a loaded bike, 
photo credit: Skyler_WA from a bikeforums.net thread