Spent all day at the Hitch’n Post Campground editing videos from the ride, with “Dizzy” Dean Burns stopping by from time to time in his cart to lighten things up.
Diz recruited his buddy Bill to give me a lift into town this afternoon to resupply on food, so I’m set for the next few days as I start rolling through Kansas. Got a reaffirmation tonight that its time to keep flying. Looking forward to packing away the laptop and getting back on the road tomorrow morning. Am starting to get inquiries about where I am, so I’m really hoping the site goes live soon. Sounds like we’re getting closer.
Sipping some Coco Mate tea from ride sponsor Café Mate at my campsite at the Hitchin’ Post Campground in Wray, CO this morning. Another beautiful fall day, but glad to be out of the blazing sun for a change. Going to spend a down day here to resupply and catch up with blogging and video editing (they’re starting to pile up). Perfect set-up here for doing a little work. My site has a picnic table with a roof for shade, internet access, electricity, drinking water and hot showers.
Started the day with Cheryl and her husband Jerry treating me to breakfast in downtown Otis (I’m constantly amazed at how incredibly generous Americans are). After breakfast, Jerry rode with me for the first mile out of town on his bike, then after a quick goodbye, I’m solo again east on Hwy. 34 headed to Yuma. Had a strong crosswind most of the day, which showed my progress. Rode down Main Street of the small town of Eckley, but no newspaper to be found. Did try to race a guy on his lawnmower, though.
Rolled into Wray, CO late afternoon and saw the first wind turbine of the trip (built for the Wray School District), which I had heard about years ago and was very eager to see. Had to pedal up some seriously steep hills and gravel roads outside of town to get to the tower base, but finally made it. Then took these two videos:
Pedaling away, had some final thoughts on how more schools across America might get their own wind turbines installed.
As luck would have it, the campground I was looking for was practically next door, so I set up camp there, heated up a freeze dried dinner, checked some emails and called it a night. Pedaled a total of 54 miles today.
Kicked the day off with a mocha at Peppy’s Drive-Thru Coffee. The staff were all smiles, having never seen anything quite like the rocket trike roll up to their window.
Big media push today. Started the day by swinging back by The Fort Morgan Times for a quick interview:
Pedaled a few miles out of my way to get some shots of Xcel’s coal-fired power plant in Brush.
Was then fortunate to catch Washington County Commissioner and geothermal expert Bruce Johnson at home (he’s someone I had met years ago assisting enXco with a proposed a wind project for Washington County), so I stopped by to talk to him. Have always liked Bruce, so it was really good to see him again. Then made a stop at the Akron News-Reporter.
Bruce called ahead to the next town to alert Cheryl Patterson (co-owner of the Otis Telegraph) about me. She was kind enough to drive out to meet me to get a photo of the trike before the sun went down. In response to my question about camping options in town, she generously offered her own backyard. The Patterson “campground” came complete with a laundromat, hot shower and a cat named “Snickers” (you might be able to find an amazing story about how their cat survived 16 days trapped under their porch by googling it in the Telegraph). Cheryl then treated me to dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, joined by her bubbly 4-year old granddaughter and teenage son. Another big ride day (87 miles).
Finally got some miles (97) under my belt, including a few side trips. Started the day by swinging by Ted’s shop for a spare specialized bolt to take with me (just in case), then pedaled the 6 miles back to where I originally broke down. No one ever said this – or greening our electricity grid in ten years – was going to be easy.
But I am picking up a genuine desire in this country for a green energy “moon shot” for America. Almost everyone I’ve talked to thus far about the “100% by 2020” goal enthusiastically supports it and wants to see it happen, but have lost their faith in Washington, DC to deliver for the American people. Listen to Jerry Martinez from Fort Morgan, CO.
Today consisted mostly of rolling hills (don’t believe anyone who tells you it’s all downhill to the Mississippi River), but had the wind to my back all day, so still haven’t engaged the electric-assist motor. Rolled into Fort Morgan around dinnertime, after having to circumvent a coal train blocking my way.
Popped into The Fort Morgan Times, whose photographer took a shot of the trike [and was kind enough to tell me about free (how cool) public camping in the town park]. Carb-loaded up at a local Italian restaurant down the street, then pedaled a few blocks down to the town park. Being a weeknight, I have the whole place almost to myself. Good day today.
By mid morning, it looked like we had the problem fixed until I took the trike out for a test spin. It was then that we discovered that the chain as originally installed was a few links too short. When I shifted into high gear, the strain that the short chain put on the derailleur stripped out the threads (again!). This begged the question of how long it might take to get a new carbon fiber fork shipped from the company in Germany, an option I was not willing to contemplate. Undeterred, my Dacono “pit crew” shifted gears.
Angel called his local engineer friend, Ted Altshuler, who just happened to be available. He told us to bring the trike by and he would see what he could do. “Pit crew leader” Roland drove home to get his trailer and we hauled the trike down the road to Dacono to Ted’s specialty engineering shop. Ted (a hard-core time-trial bike rider who knows Lance Armstrong) takes a quick look and has his staff fabricate a special screw insert and washer (at no charge), which we took back to Angel’s shop and successfully installed.
We’re then struggling with a stubborn washer, and Angel wants to help fix that, too, but he’s about to miss his flight, so we have to shoo him out of his own store. We finally get everything back in working order, but by now, it’s getting dark, so I’ve been sidelined for another day. I’ll crash at Roland’s again tonight, watch a couple more episodes of “Wallace & Grommit,” and hit the road tomorrow.
I can’t say enough about Angel (aptly named) and his can-do circle of friends in Firestone/Frederick/Dacono for all they did to help me. Angel made me a personal priority and donated hours of his precious time to repair my trike. Also want to give a big shout out to Ted, Ross and Don at Old School Industries, Inc. for their creative genius and generous help. My biggest take-away from this experience is just how amazingly generous Americans are, and how truly creative we are at solving problems. It was a poignant reminder that we can do pretty much anything we set our minds to. Anyone who doubts that needs to visit Firestone, Frederick and Dacono, Colorado.
Picked up breakfast at Vic’s and Moe’s Bagels, then rode the first 3 miles east with Marti. Sweet. Then made a pit stop at the Valmont coal-fired power plant to bid adieu to the coal burning there.
The ride east started well. Hit some nice little hills coming out of town, which got the blood pumping. Good to be away from a computer and back outside on a bike pushing my body. Lots of thumbs up and compliments on the trike from fellow bikers and motorcyclists. Made it 26 miles on Hwy. 52, near Fort Lupton, when cruising down a hill the steering got dangerously loose, so I pulled off the road. My first thought was the joystick steering mechanism might be compromised. Fortunately it was just a flat tire, and a very fortuitous one at that.
The bad news is the flat was in the rear and my wrench (should have checked that before I left) was not quite big enough for me to loosen the bolt. The good news is I bought roadside bike insurance for the trip, so I was able to get a tow to the nearest bike shop in Frederick, which lucky for me was open today. Breaking down this early in trip, where I was still close enough to get the kind of repairs I needed, ended up being a huge blessing, as the flat tire unearthed a much more serious problem that could have derailed the ride for a week or longer.
Angel Berdiales, owner of Shalom (meaning “peace”) Bikes, pulled off the back tire and immediately spotted trouble. Where the derailleur screws into the rear carbon fiber fork, the threads were badly stripped, likely due to a sloppy original installation, so it was only a matter of time before the derailleur would shake loose, leaving me stranded in the middle of nowhere. No more biking for today.
Angel consulted with his friend, Armando Caban, and came up with a creative solution. They inserted weld bond to set overnight and will drill a new hole and try rethreading it in the morning. Will it solve the problem long-term? No way to know, but I’m hoping for the best. Despite my little emergency backing up his other jobs, and having to leave tomorrow for the Interbike Expo in Las Vegas, Angel is determined to get me fixed up and back on the road, which I hope will be tomorrow morning.
While we’re figuring all this out, another friend of Angel’s, Roland Voss, stops into the bike shop, hears I’m stranded, and offers to let me crash at his place in Firestone. So here I am, having a great conversation with a like-minded green energy advocate, being generously treated to dinner and my second cold beer. Roland has a creative idea about reforming our political system.
Spent the bulk of the week doing media outreach and interviews, taping Boulder-based climate and renewable energy experts, and shaking down the trike for the upcoming journey. Had earlier made a quick trip to Aspen with my buddy, Pete Shanta (thanks for all your help, Pete!) to interview other key experts, including Lester Brown, President of Earth Policy Institute; Jim Walker, former president of the American Wind Energy Association; and Harvey Wasserman, one of the nation’s leading nuclear energy experts.
The Boulder Weekly did a really nice cover story announcing the ride:
One afternoon, rode up the famously steep hill to the National Center for Atmospheric Research Center (NCAR) to interview Dr. Kevin Trenberth, one of the world’s leading climate experts.
The hill was a nice dry run for the electric-assist motor, which did its job. Other local renewable and climate experts I interviewed included Mark Serreze, Director of the National Snow and Ice Date Center; Ron Lehr, Western Representative for the American Wind Energy Association; and Sandy Butterfield, former Chief Engineer of NREL’s Wind Technology Center.
Stopped by the University of Colorado campus during the lunch hour one day to show off the trike and up walked Scott Wooley, president of the CU Energy Club (another group I had been hoping to connect with). He invited me to speak at the group’s inaugural meeting the following day, which I did.
Very impressive turnout at the meeting (over 60 students) – proof positive that renewable energy is catching fire with college students alarmed about the state of the climate. The next day, ran into one of my ride sponsors, Dr. Stephen Perry, at a crosswalk in Boulder. The synchronicity just keeps flowing.
Want to give a shout out to “Bear,” Ken and their co-workers at McGuckins (Boulder’s local hardware store) for going out of their way to modify some accessories on my trike. Really appreciate that, guys! Shop local. Also need to give a shout out to Tommy, James, Jason, Justin and Josh at Car Toys for tricking out my trike with a blinker system (powered by a flexible solar panel). Really appreciate that, guys! Thanks to Graham Hill for donating a solar-powered rear light for the trike, and a special thanks to Ellen Hall and ride sponsor Cat Eye for donating my solar-power headlights and other gadgets.
Visited the Boulder Center for Sports Medicine for a check-up on my 48-year old knees and to get properly fitted for the “rocket trike” (thanks, Clint, for the recommendation) Andy Pruitt and his staff got a kick out of the trike and gave this middle-aged recreational bicyclist the kind of attention you might expect for a tour pro. Turns out, he’s spending a day working with Alberto Contador (winner of the Tour de France) in Spain next week. Nice to to be in the hands of the best in the business. Andy suggested I get an adjusted fitting at a bike shop partway through the ride, which I certainly plan to do.
Rode by Casey Middle School to show off their impressive solar array.
Rode by Boulder’s Unity Church for a conversation with Minister Jack Groverland.
Monday night, finished packing up the bike, then joined a group of friends to celebrate Marti’s birthday. Fun last night in Boulder. Still working out the bugs on the website, but the panniers are loaded up, the battery’s charged, the flag’s flying and I’m ready to roll. Tomorrow I start pedaling east.
The “Ride for Renewables” was officially launched today with a small group of friends at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) wind technology center near Boulder, CO.
From there, I rode a whopping 5 miles into town, where I’ll spend the next week interviewing local climate and renewable energy experts and shaking down the “rocket trike.”
On my way into town, rolled into a parking lot to turn on the lights, when a guy walks up to ask me about the trike. Turns out the guy was Seth Masia (deputy editor of Solar Today), someone I had been hoping to meet, so I interviewed him on the spot.
From there, pedaled in the dark to my friends’ house, where I was up until 5:00am finalizing the national press release distribution, then grabbed a few hours sleep. See below for a sampling of blogs the release generated:
Had hoped to have the official RideForRenewables.com website go live tonight, but my web designer (who’s generously designing the site for me pro bono) ran into technical difficulties loading the site, so we’re using my ClimateCrisisSolutions.com website for now.
