How many new and interesting people have you met and spoken with in the past week? We went alone into the woods on our Great Divide Adventure and the backcountry has proven to be one of the most social places on earth. On Friday, as I flew down a mountain pass, I road next to … Continue reading Friends with Strangers →

Canadians - I tease my Canadian wife - do things just slightly different from the US so no one mistakes them for Americans: like colour, cheque, and zed (for z). They also hold thanksgiving in October, which is far better than 3 weeks before Christmas, but don't tell my wife I think it's better. Obviously … Continue reading Canadian Thanksgiving – Ridiculous! →

The tickle in my throat isn't bad, but it could soon be strep or even a peritonsillar abscess requiring emergent surgery. My knee has a twinge which is no doubt my right ACL waiting until I'm deep in the Canadian woods before it tears from my tibia. And if that doesn't leave me stranded, then … Continue reading Hypochondriac Horror →

"Preparing for a bike tour is way more fun than actually pedaling a loaded bike." Over the past several months, the Fedex and UPS drivers have become my close friends. I've been buying stuff on-line like it was Christmas. None of it has been very expensive and often it's just experimental. What is the best … Continue reading The Best Things in Life Don’t Fit on a Bike →

Purchased first aid kits are generally laughable. If you could take care of the problem with what little the kit provides, you likely wouldn't really need to care of it at all. As an ER doctor, it is difficult for me to think about first aid kits. After 23 years of seeing every possible way … Continue reading Trail or Trial Medicine →

My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She's ninety-seven now, and we don't know where the hell she is! (Ellen DeGeneres) Our grandchildren are all under thirteen years old. Their young minds likely don't fully grasp the concept of grandma and grumpy riding the GDMBR. Similarly, our aging minds don't … Continue reading Grandma, Grumpy AND Gumby →

"Was that a hill"? my wife remarks in response to my comment, between gasps, about the steep grade we just climbed. Her ebike continues to emasculate me as she glides ahead and up hills almost effortlessly, even without a throttle. In fact, she is in the lowest pedal assist mode! Perhaps she is far more … Continue reading Watts, Volts and Manliness →

"No matter what anyone says, it's much worse to be unloved than it is to be lost in the woods." Charles M. Schulz My friends and family have been grateful over the years, that most of my adventures have been solo. My wife, on the other hand, has been stuck, not on my adventures, but … Continue reading True Love →