Most of us bicycling on the rail-trail through Iron Horse State Park in Washington limit ourselves to the 20-some miles between Cedar Falls and the 2.3-mile Snoqualmie Tunnel at Hyak.
The John Wayne Pioneer Trail doesn't stop at Hyak, however. It continues eastward through Washington to the Idaho border.
Recently I rode the 20-mile section from Hyak to beyond Easton to learn more about the trail east of the Snoqualmie Tunnel.
This is the high and dry side of the Cascades. …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/09/16/hyak-to-easton-bicycling-the-high-dry-side-of-the-john-wayne-pioneer-trail/
A cyclist from Idaho hasn't been idle this year as he finished three endurance challenges to call attention to pollution caused by idling car engines.
On Monday, Jay Petervary completed the Tour Divide ITT (individual time trial) in the record time of 17 days, 9 hours and 1 minute.
That's Petervary at left with his 32-pound Tour Divide rig at his Facebook page.
The 2,745-mile bike ride from Banff, Alberta, to Antelope Wells, New Mexico, was his third endurance challenge this year. …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/09/13/no-idle-cyclist-jay-petervary-finishes-3rd-challenge-in-record-time/
Fall is here, and it's time to tie up some loose ends from your summer bicycle tours.
The Adventure Cycling Association is seeking nominations to give recognition to people or groups who contribute to the success of bicycle travel in its annual Bicycle Travel Awards. Can you think of a person or group that made your bike tour better?
The non-profit also is asking bicycle travelers to submit amazing photos, above, from their tours for the 3rd annual Bicycle Travel Photo Contest. What award-winning photos did you take on your trek this past year?
The annual Bicycle Travel Awards cover four categories …..
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/09/12/now-that-your-summer-bicycle-travels-are-over/
At least three long-distance bicycle rides — one solo — are nearing Ground Zero in New York City for Sunday's 9-11 commemorations.
One of the most amazing efforts is that of Max McManus, a Reno triathlete who is blasting through the mid-Atlantic states on his way to riding through 50 states in 50 days in tribute to 9-11 victims. (That's him at left cycling through the rain and over hills that greeted him earlier this week on Day 44 of his record-breaking ride.)
Meanwhile, two groups of firefighters — one from San Francisco and another from Los Angeles — are nearing their destination to honor fellow firefighters who died at the World Trade Center terrorist attack 10 years ago.
All are arriving on the East Coast during heavy rains that are sweeping the region. They're not letting the rain dampen their collective resolve to reach New York City for the memorial services ….
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/09/08/memorial-bicycle-rides-close-in-on-ground-zero-for-9-11/
One of the first multi-day bicycle tours of the season — Cycle Zydeco in Louisiana — has been canceled for 2012.
The Lafayette Convention and Visitors Commission announced at the website that the four-day bike ride across the bayou country has been put on “hiatus” so organizers can “re-evaluate the structure of the tour.”
Hiatus means an interruption, not an outright cancellation, giving many fans of the bike tour hope that it will return in 2013 …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/09/07/organizers-pull-plug-on-cycle-zydeco-in-2012/
One of the unforgettable characters we met during Biking Across Kansas this year was Andrew Dickson.
He was the Scottish cross-country cyclist who learned about goatheads the hard way — by suffering numerous flats in two tires perforated with the pesky thorns.
B.A.K. essentially adopted him, and he tagged along with us through much of the state until our routes parted.
My son and I had the opportunity to talk with him in Ness City. While he described some experiences of his bicycle tour, he also told us a moving story about why he was making the journey.
He repeated the story to the 800 B.A.K. cyclists …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/09/05/scotsman-rescued-by-biking-across-kansas-completes-bike-trek/
Crossing mountain passes by bicycle always gives me a lot of satisfaction, but I get the most thrill from bicycling on rolling rural roads.
I enjoy using my big gear to power downhill and gain enough momentum to help me up the next rise. At the top a view of the landscape unfolds in front of me before I dive into the next tight valley.
Some of the best rolling terrain I've ever ridden is in the Palouse region of southeastern Washington, above.
This is a wheat and legume-growing area encompassing hundreds of square miles of silt dunes created during the last Ice Age. Farm roads wind around these humps and hallows …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/08/14/the-joy-of-bicycling-washingtons-palouse-region/
Some 350 bicyclists are rolling across the Potato State this week as Ride Idaho 2011 explores the scenic byways in the central part of the state.
The cyclists who come from 31 states and Canada departed for Stanley on Friday morning after spending two nights in Hailey and the Wood River Valley.
The Idaho bike tour offered Hailey a lesson in bicycle tourism economics. The Times-News reported that tour organizers bought $12,000 worth of “chamber bucks,” enabling each rider to spend the equivalent of $25 in local stores. Ride Idaho also donated bicycle racks to the rodeo and ice arena and some playground equipment.
And, as it was a layover day on a week of 70-mile rides, some participants took advantage of a local whitewater rafting trip ….
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/08/12/ride-idaho-bike-tour-boosts-small-town-economies-ride-around-washington-is-coming-up/
In a month, many Americans will be converging on Ground Zero to remember the thousands who died in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center 10 years ago on Sept. 11, 2001.
Some of them will be on bicycles. Several groups are riding their bikes to raise money for first responders on 9-11 or the veterans and their families of the ensuing wars. [The two firefighters at left are members of the Bay to Brooklyn Ride.]
In fact, at least three cross-country bicycle tours are already making their way to New York City. Others will either arrive or depart from Ground Zero.
Why ride bicycles to commemorate the tragedy? Long-distance bicycle tours get people's attention, and it's easy to start conversations with folks along the way. These rides also draw attention to a cause from the media.
Jorge Ostrovsky, 54, a firefighter from the Los Angeles area on the Ride for 9-11 …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/08/10/cyclists-rolling-out-on-bike-rides-to-commemorate-9-11/
On an overnight bike trip to the John Wayne Pioneer Trail last weekend, my biking buddy and I discovered that the newly reopened Snoqualmie Tunnel is drawing a lot of visitors.
Mostly they're day-trippers on bicycles, but some come by foot and at least a couple packed in with their llamas carrying their burdens.
The cyclists we talked with were taking advantage of the 18-mile downhill slope that greets them after they pass through the tunnel heading west.
They either came in groups and dropped off cars in Hyak and the Iron Horse Trail State Park lot in Cedar Falls, or contacted the shuttle service that carries passengers and bicycles to the Hyak trailhead …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/08/04/an-overnight-bike-trip-to-the-snoqualmie-tunnel-finds-a-popular-destination/
Adventure Cycling Association Trail biking Rails to Trails Conservancy League of American Bicyclists
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