Changing Gears: A Different Kind of Adventure

Changing gears is not only done on a bicycle, in fact, to us life seems like a constant process of trying to match our efforts or effectively oppose them to what is happening around us. This past month has been no different and we have  appreciated the time to coast some while preparing for the next leg of our sabbatical adventures.

In June of 2012 we departed Carbondale, Colorado for a year of adventure and discovery in our newly acquired Bengal Tiger Motor Home.  Our primary objective was to seek out and explore great cycling around the country.  Additionally, we visited with colleagues at independent schools with outdoor/ experiential education programs to learn about their programs and share about the program we run at Colorado Rocky Mountain School.  Along the way we were lucky to visit many good friends and family members, see lots of new places, and immerse ourselves into the experience of traveling and riding 1000's of miles of singletrack, roadways, and trails.

We found ourselves with mixed emotions pulling into Colorado Springs (where Darryl's parents live and where the memorial service for Darryl's grandmother (his mothers mom) was being held).  Sad as it was, the service reminded us of the importance of acknowledging and celebrating life and the influence we have to positively impact those around us.  While we looked forward to being in one place for a while, we also felt some sadness over the end of our road trip.  We are still sorting through what it has meant to us, but suffice it to say that it was amazing, and we feel so very, very lucky.

Now the easy spinning feels like a distant memory as the false flats begin to steepen.  We are beginning to feel our legs, and sense the promise of a grand, glorious challenge just around the next bend, up and over the distant pass, screaming down and through the coastal cliffs.  Time to mix things up again and get back on the road, this time with a much lightened load, and by means of our own energy and effort.  We have traded in our awesome Tiger motor Home for our even more awesome loaded touring bikes, and in a few days we will be on our way across the pond for a 10-week trip.

We encourage you to follow our adventure as we bicycle tour through Italy, Croatia, and Slovenia (at least that's the plan as it stands right now). Sign up as a follower by adding your email address in the box on the right of the screen to receive updates regarding our posts.  We pledge to update regularly (but not overly often), and will strive to share the more interesting and noteworthy aspects of our trip, we will also do our best to respond to your comments, so let us know what you think.

The Tiger early on in our road trip with the Sawtooth Mountains in Montana in the background.  When we started the road trip we were decidedly not "RV People", now we get it, and while traveling this way is pretty easy, and very comfortable, we look forward to slowing down a bit and really experiencing the land we travel through.

Are the bikes Ready? Off for a test ride through Garden of the Gods.

This photo was taken on our first shake down ride to make sure everything was running properly.  Turned out Susan's bike was running great, but mine needed a lot of puzzling over to get it to function properly.  John at Bicycle Experience helped me figure out that I needed to replace my tried and true mountain bike XT front derailleur with a road bike triple front derailleur, and now both bikes seem ready to role.