Tim Bishop's Blog, page 7
October 28, 2014
Autumn Payback
October 11, Day 101 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
Fall’s Changing Colors
Short sleep accommodated a fast getaway from our unsavory motel room this morning. While we ate breakfast in the familiar confines of a Subway restaurant, a kaleidoscope of fall colors was outside preparing to dazzle us with its richness and its thoroughness in covering area hills. The colder air and shorter nights that have challenged us on the touring front are paying dividends with the visuals. This is the brighter side o...
October 25, 2014
Bear Necessities
When Debbie and I first talked about taking another long-distance bicycle trip through the Pacific Northwest, my internal risk-o-meter kicked back in. Wolves, cougars, and grizzlies popped up on it, soon followed by rattlers, tornados, and wild dogs.
We began researching the tendencies and geographical dispersion of animals that have had a history of posing risk to unsuspecting—and unprepared—humans. With neither of us that familiar with outdoor survival techniques, a crash course courtesy of...
October 24, 2014
Fall Touring
October 10, Day 100 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
Colder Nights and Shorter Days
We’ve altered our strategy of late. Instead of cycling into the middle of the day and finding out where we might land by day’s end, we’re planning our nightly stops earlier in the day. The cold weather has both of us shivering at the thought of camping. And with daylight waning by suppertime, we simply can’t cycle as many hours in the day as we could earlier in the season, which limits our options. We’ve discovered f...
October 22, 2014
The Face of Meth
October 9, Day 99 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
With cold temperatures prevailing and over 4,000 miles on these two sets of 56-year-old legs, a tailwind suited us perfectly. It was very strong today, pushing us from Warren to Smethport on a day characterized by a long gradual ascent and a more rapid decline on the other side. Furthermore, Allegheny National Forest provided some privacy, subduing the oft present truck traffic. We started and ended the day at about the same elevation, yet we were...
October 20, 2014
Leaving the Midwest
October 7-8, Days 97-98 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
We’ve been in the Midwest for roughly two months, thanks in part to our extended stay in Sioux City, Iowa, while recovering from an injury and a bicycle route designed for geographic diversity and to increase fundraising opportunities for TheHopeLine. Well, today, we officially entered the northeast with our entry into our 14th state, Pennsylvania.
Leaving the Midwest did come with a unique geographic feature. How many states can you enter by...
October 17, 2014
An Abrupt End (cont.): Beauty from Ashes
October 12, Day 102 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
Part II (Click here for Part I of an Abrupt End)
At breakfast at McDonalds after church, it hit me. Tim had just explained that we probably had only seven or eight riding days left. This tour would soon be coming to an end. As much as I wanted to be home and as tired as I was, I was sad that the tour would soon be ending. I was so looking forward to the two days of rest just ahead to prepare us for the homestretch. With 4,336 miles to date, we are...
October 13, 2014
An Abrupt End
October 12, 2014, Day 102 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
Part I
It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. A beautiful day, a visit to a church, and a short ride of 25 miles to a waiting motel room would bring us to a couple of rest days. We’d catch up on some loose ends, make some more pitches in support of TheHopeLine, and catapult into the final week or so of our tour and our arrival at the Atlantic Ocean.
However, we don’t get to write the script to our adventures, or to life for that matter. A fe...
October 12, 2014
Rough and Rainy Riding
October 6, Day 96 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
What Happened to Customer Service?
Nothing like getting reprimanded as soon as you come downstairs in the morning! After breakfast, Tim was the first to arrive in the lobby with his bicycle when he was spoken to harshly about having it in the room, even though the night clerk allowed us to do so. Not only was the hotel clerk disgruntled with the bicycle situation, she was defensive when we mentioned that the shower curtain does not stay closed when...
October 9, 2014
Passing a test
October 5, Day 95 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
Icebox
After two consecutive rest days, the weather had turned particularly cold. It almost felt like we skipped fall this year, with morning temps in the low 40s and feel-like readings in the 30s. It was a test. We know we can handle heat, but what about riding in cold weather? Frankly, the prospect had us intimidated, so today’s test was pivotal. With cooler weather ahead as we march deeper into fall, could we handle riding in the cold temperature...
October 8, 2014
My Two Dads
October 2-3, Days 92-93 of TheHopeLine Tour of 2014
Remembering My Dads
Today, October 2, would have been my dad’s 89th birthday. My sister sent me a text message with a picture of the two of them at his nursing home back in February when I was visiting him for what would be the last time. Today, as I rode my bike, I thought about my dad and the lessons I learned from him over the years.
I pictured him running behind me, holding my bike seat, as I first pedaled without training wheels. He was th...
