Sep 29, 2016
And this episode we chat with Instagrammer extraordinaire and
cross-country bike touring vet Patience aka @biker_girl_pay on
overcoming obstacles and turning loss into something better... by
bike.
This episode is dedicated to Shelli Snyder. Many of
you have heard she was on a tour from Cleveland to Seattle and was
struck from behind by a person driving a vehicle in Montana. She's
in very bad shape, but we're hearing good news about her recovery.
Pedalshift Society members... your monthly contributions are all
going to her recovery fund at GoFundMe. If you're
listening to this and would like to help more, check out the link
in the show notes.
The story hits close to home in particular because Patience,
as you'll hear, met Shelly on her ride. I'm really happy to be able
to share her experience with you so we know a little more about
Shelli outside of what happened in Montana.
Patience's ride was punctuated with highs and lows, and we'll
touch on all of them in the interview. I really appreciate how open
she was sharing all aspects of her ride... there's a ton to learn
from her experience this summer! Of course, my dogs and my cat
managed to make an appearance audibly, so apologies for the
sub-professional recording environment. Neither Mookie, Belle Starr
nor Jackson give a crap but at least I'm sorry, right?
The Interview
Patience, or "Pay" AKA @biker_girl_pay on Instagram and her
adventures crossing America -- from Seattle to Boston -- by
bicycle.
Your adventure had two main driving forces... a tribute to a
friend you lost last year and doing something big between
graduation and "the real world." What about biking from Seattle to
Boston checked those boxes?
How did the people in your life react to your trip?
Your photos in Instagram were stunning and helped tell
your story so well... what were you using to take the pictures and
was there anything you'd recommend to bike tourers on how to up
their Instagram game?
One of the things that pulled me into your ride was it had
some classic bike touring drama... some pretty low parts revealing
humanity's awfulness and high points showing off real generosity.
What's stuck with you more?
You had someone you were riding with take your wallet... how
does that color trust of fellow riders in the future?
Let's talk about your gear. First of all I saw lots of orange
so Pedalshift stamp of approval. What were you riding and what
guided your bike and gear choices?
What one thing did you think you'd use a lot, but ended up
sending back or otherwise regretting to bring?
What was the thing you think most people don't take on tour,
but you wouldn't leave home without?
People often have trouble adjusting to the end of tours... you
also are transitioning from school to work.... and you have a
connection to the tragedy of Shelli Snyder from Cleveland who was
struck from behind by a person in a vehicle in Montana
which has really impacted a lot of us.
Any one of these things is tough... how has this triple whammy
return to "the real world" gone?
Any future tours on the horizon?
How can listeners check out your adventures?
Connections
Merit Badge?
PS member and FOTS Ethan Georgi
Just listened to ep 58 with Riscica talking about being
homeless while bike touring & it reminded me. Recently on tour
someone asked me if I was homeless. Is there a merit badge for
that?
Congrats, you win the first Pedalshift Merit Badge! This is
the highly coveted, "Dude, really?" badge for those SMH questions
you get on tour.
Collect all 44 badges by making one up and emailing
pedalshift@pedalshift.net.
Rabbit hole.
FOTS Todd Tillinger
More on the rolling resistance of tires. This is for touring
and e-bikes, but they test other categories as well.
It's a nerd's delight... graphs and data on rolling resistance
plotted against inflation PSI, puncture resistance and more.
My head hurts... in a good way!
The Marathon Supremes I roll on get 5/5... I also got some
good data-based advice on what pressure is best to roll on. It also
confirmed that the puncture resistance is great on the tread but
below average on the sides... which we know 😉
Strava + Google Streetview followup
Chatted about Strava heat maps in Ep 056... here's what
PS Society member Cameron Lein on what he does:
What I used to do is look at google maps and try to piece my
route together by looking at the overall map and zooming into
streetview to see if it is a safe/do-able route. This took some
time if I was say headed from western Oregon to eastern Oregon. Now
I start by looking at the Strava map and see what route most people
are taking. If I look at a section of road and there isn't any bike
traffic then there is usually a good reason for that.
Glacier Bandits on the GAP
Shares a pic from outside The Crabby Pig in
Cumberland...
Even moar 5 star reviews!!
Dublavee
Greg Braith
Runner from Evanston
Pedalshift Society
A big thank you to all of the monthly supporters of the show!
If you like what you hear, you can help me keep the show
listener-supported while expanding the offerings. A buck, two bucks
or even 5 helps with the costs of hosting the podcast and the
website, and you can do it for a bit and cancel anytime. One-shot
support is welcome too… annual or “choose your own adventure”
if you’re not into the small monthly thing. Check it out and
join at pedalshift.net/society. On to the
Society!
Ethan Georgi
Matt Buker
Kimberly Wilson
Caleb Jenkinson
Cameron Lien
Andrew MacGregor
Michael Hart
Johnny K
Josiah Matthews
Keith Nagel
Brock Dittus
David Kolb
Thomas Skadow
Michael Riscica
Seth Krieger
Marco Lo
Terrance Manson