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).
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.
