TransAmerican Bike Training

So I came up with this crazy idea a few months ago that I wanted to do something that took a lot of will and was something that not a lot of people have done before. A friend of mine kayaked 500 miles down the Missouri River and while I am planning on doing that as well (or something similar), I wanted to do something a little bigger and a little more ambitious.

The TransAmerican Trail actually runs through Christiansburg, Virginia (about 5 miles from where I live now) and goes all the way to Astoria, Oregon. It actually starts/ends in Yorktown, Virginia which makes it a coast to coast trail, but when I start it, it’ll be from Christiansburg and I will probably ride until Seattle, Washington.

I’ve started the training already and for the past few months, its going well. I’ve changed my eating habits dramatically, eating a lot more fruits, nuts, vegetables and protein. I cut out fake and processed foods a long time ago, eating only whole foods and organics. I make sure I eat breakfast every day, that I eat several times a day (small snacks including fruit, trail mix, and other delicious/healthy foods), drink about 3 liters of water per day, and that I’m sleeping well.

I also ride my bike of course, but that’s not really the challenge when you think about it. Anyone can ride a bike all day if they’re in decent shape. The challenge is will power, endurance and not getting injured along the way. My first actual training will be coming up in the next month or so as I ride the Allegheny Mountains Loop which starts in Blacksburg, and ends in Blacksburg (not such a surprise considering it’s called a loop). The trail weighs in at just under 400 miles (compared to the TransAmerica trail of 4,200 miles). I predict it will take me about 4-6 days so I’ll be able to do this first adventure with a long weekend. The loop includes some short cuts that cut across the loop to make it shorter if I choose to shorten it.

As part of my training, I bought a Garmin Edge 705 GPS bike computer. It’s amazing and I want to make another blog post about its features. For now, check out my lastest run from my work place in the Corporate Research Center on the south side of the Virginia Tech Campus to my neighborhood on Fairfax Rd. My average speed is around 18MPH with a maximum speed of 30MPH. Granted this is only 2.5 miles, but I’m still only starting out. I didn’t have my GPS unit when I did the Huckleberry Trail, but I’ll be running that again sometime soon, so I’ll post those results as well.

Here’s what my bike run looks like to the NRV mall via the Huckleberry Trail:

 

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If anyone in Blacksburg (or where ever) wants to join me on any of these trips, feel free to. I would love the company, even if you think you wouldn’t be able to keep up! I’m not very fast myself, so I’d worry if I could keep up with you! Also, please leave any good websites or other good resources you know of that you think I’d be interested in. I know like two bike sites, so if you even know one, it’s doubtful I already know it!