Cycling and Adventure Travel Writing on Three Continents
I have been actively involved in cycling journalism since I became manager of the monthly Oregon Cycling newspaper in 1989. In the 1990’s I made many bike-and-hike ascents from sea level on the west coast volcanoes of the USA. In 2000-2016 I made a half dozen bike and hike trips across Mexico, Guatemala, and Patagonia. Most were on a Bike Friday– the folding bike still built in Eugene, Oregon that I began riding in 1997. In 2011-13 I took three winter tours across France and Spain. When Oregon Cycling closed in 2006, I began writing for the Bike Paper in Seattle, until it too closed at the end of 2015. To see my best bike stories, click on “Cycling” on the list at the right or type “Sea to Summit.”
Mule Packer–the “Do-it-Yourself” travel bike built with a hacksaw and a file!
Since 2014, I have built, tested and proved a simple D.I.Y. method to build a demountable travel bike using two durable 26″ wheel mountain bike frames from the 1980’s. The result was the “Mule Packer,” a two-part frame that packs into a plywood box and measures 62″ overall to comply with the standard airline suitcase size rule. There’s no catch……you just have to find a good source of these these standard 1980’s frames that have fallen completely out of favor. What you need to find is two frames, one large and one small with constructed with different size tubing but having the same angle between the down tube and the seat tube–this is the hard part!
The two halves are connected by two simple sleeve joints that are as strong as the original frames. (Read more) My prototype worked perfectly on the local 600′ hill in both directions, so I took the risk of packing it up in its plywood box and flying with it to Santiago, Chile. (Yes–it flew free!) and carried me down the wet and windy Careterra Austral in southern Chile, to the far south of Patagonia. (Over 2000 views)
Converting Vintage Mountain Bikes for Touring
Looking for a new project, I began continued experimenting with standard 26″-wheel mountain bikes for commuting and gravel riding around Astoria. Then I decided to ship one to a friend’s house in Virginia, before I flew to Washington DC, then took a long-haul commuter bus to Blacksburg. I was hoping I could manage a short tour along the Atlantic coast, but instead, I was persuaded to head west on the Trans America Trail that ends in my home in Astoria! It took me three Septembers in 2017/18/19 following my own unplanned route via the Katy Trail to Kansas City, Pony Express route to Fort Collins, and Mormon Route to Salt Lake City. The third leg went via Boise, ending at Hood River in the Columbia Gorge.
