Long distance bug

I've got the long distance bug. Maybe it is just the lethargy of winter. Or maybe it is being a slow, heavy, aging roadie, so that the only cycling I can hope to do that impresses anyone is to just keep riding and riding when others quit? Maybe it is a memory of the joy of going under my own power to distant places, or of riding at night, with the stars visible, little or no traffic, in a world that seems welcoming and forgiving. Maybe it is the "Assynt" mode -- the drama of riding in inclement weather, pouring rain and gusting winds?

Anyway, whatever it is, I've got the bug. Paris-Brest-Paris awaits, again. Tasmania awaits, the 600 there perhaps as much or more of a challenge than PBP, coming after 200, 300 and 400km warmups, and lots of hills. But I have done PBP before. I checked that box on the bucket list. Yes, I want to go back. But I don't want to just go back. I want to think about the next big ride, for 2020, or even beyond.

Last week the bug had me watching a video about Lael Wilcox of Alaska, winner of many ultra-endurance events including the 4200 mile Trans Am Bike Race (unsupported race across the USA) and the Tour Divide (unsupported from Canada to Mexico in the Rocky Mountains. In the video she gets second place in a ride across Switzerland -- only 1000 kms but 30,000 meters elevation gain, the tough sections on trails where you need to push the mountain bike up. She doesn't look so tough ... but races against, and beats, the toughest guys.

This week it was the report of Michael Broadwith's 2018 record for an end-to-end ride of Great Britain.

Would I ever try one of these? RAAM as a team requires big financial resources, and does not have the challenge of a solo event. And RAAM solo is way too hard for me. I would need to gain a huge amount of speed and endurance to even consider it.

How about the Transcontinental? It is a race across Europe, from the Black Sea to Brest in France, you are free to choose your own route as long as you go through a limited number of controls (generally at the top of high passes). But it is already full up for 2019, and it is run from Friday 26th July 2019. And I'm already doing PBP -- which ALSO ends in Brest.

Maybe the Transpyrenees? This is much shorter, only 950 kms, 24,000 meters of elevation, with an absolutely extraordinary course that includes 30 mountain passes, and will be run for the first time from the 4th of October this year. That does not quite fit my work schedule.

Then again, there is another new race for 2019, Bike Non-stop. Very similar to the Trans Am, it is from Portland, Oregon to Washington D.C. -- two very familiar places for me! Only 3500 miles, it is shorter than Trans Am. The TransAm is a true ocean-to-ocean route, instead of city-to-city, and it takes perhaps more scenic touring roads, more national parks, and takes a bit longer. Bike Non-Stop would probably argue that its route is just as scenic. starts on May 26, 2019 (the same as my college reunion). The beauty about events like TransAm and Bike Non-stop is that unlike RAAM or Transalp, they do not have time cutoffs, so even slower, persistent riders can try them. And they are unsupported.

Okay, none of these events is consistent with my work schedule this year. But some future year ... riding across the USA is definitely on my bucket list, and I best not wait TOO long. Maybe I will do a Pactour ride across the USA ... including the support, the spartan (Motel 6 type) accommodations, and moving at a faster pace? They will do a Southern Transcontinental in September 2020 ... but it does not finish until October, long after my university's start date, and I would strongly prefer to ride a northern tier, because the South is so dangerous for cyclists.

Someday ... and okay, as I was watching a video about the Transcontinental, I noticed they were climbing the Bielerhöhe Pass ... ahh, we did that in Transalp 2009 and 2011, and the descent to the east down the Silvretta Strasse was so, so fast and untechnical and wonderful. Maybe I will do some cycling in Europe before PBP, just to get into the mountains!

*The photo at the top of this post is a screen shot of a portion of a photo from the TransAm bike race website. Lower resolution and only a part of it ... fair use? The closest I could come from my own is this one from Cascade 1200 or maybe some of these from Cycle Oregon (but too many cyclists in that event).