PEDALING ALONG HIGHWAY 507 — Lucinda Williams sings that she envies the wind. Riding my bike on a gusty mid-July afternoon, I am beginning to despise it.
Seventy-five miles into the 2003 Seattle-to-Portland Bicycle Classic, feisty headwinds are taunting me relentlessly just outside the town of Yelm, Thurston County. On an otherwise ideal day for cycling, the wind adds an extra burden to uphill climbs and erases the momentary relief of coasting downhill.
February 19, 2004
When inspiration struck last winter to train for the STP, my cycling equipment consisted of a helmet and a bare-bones hybrid bike left over from grad school. Here's a breakdown of what it cost to make my rookie voyage to Portland:
New bike: $326.40 —
This is far below what most new road bikes cost, especially those with automatic gear switches on the handlebars. But I saved hundreds by opting for a 24-speed Fuji League, a model with manual gear-shifts, and found it to be comfortable and reliable.
February 19, 2004
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