Gain Ratio!?

Gain ratio is a standard for measuring how high or low a gearing is. Sheldon "Quixote" Brown developed this measuring system to account for all the different possible chain ring, wheel, gear, and crank sizes.

"This ratio would be calculated as follows: divide the wheel radius by the crank length; this will yield a single radius ratio applicable to all of the gears of a given bike. The individual gear ratios are calculated as with gear inches, using this radius ratio instead of the wheel size." from http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gain.html

There is also a calculator for gain rations here: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gears/

Pluggin in the sizes of our bikes yeilds:
- Pattt
700 x 28 (wheel size)
165 mm cranks
48 tooth chain ring
16 tooth cog
yields a gain ratio of 6.2.

- Jesse
700 x 28 (wheel size)
165 mm cranks
48 tooth chain ring
16 tooth cog
yields a gain ratio of 6.2.

- Adam
700 x 28 (wheel size)
165 mm cranks
48 tooth chain ring
17 tooth cog
yields a gain ratio of 5.9.

One of our goals in this trip is to never change our gearing. We brought some spare 17 and 18 tooth cogs but we won't be using them unless it is absolutely necessary! We made it up Santiam Pass with no problem... Hopefully we will be able to do the same with the remaining mountains :)

-Pattt

Give Me A Real Mountain!!!!

Date: 6/09/06 Friday

We left Eugene Oregon this morning. Kristin Carter made us an amazing all organic breakfast! We said good bye and we were off to biking! We left early because we knew we had a long day ahead of us.

(AFC saying goodbye to Kristin in Eugene!)

Today was our first true mountain climb!! We went up through Santiam Pass. The first 75 or so miles were flat and rolling hills but after that we climbed all the way to the top of the pass which was 4817 Ft above sea level! It was not bad at all. It was not a steep climb and everyone was feeling really good since we had a rest day yesterday. Adam's sugar levels were in check all day. The only problem was that his left knee was hurting him a bit. Ever since his ACL surgery he has had problems with that knee. The good news is that after he took a few motrin the pain went away for the remainder of the ride! We totaled 120 miles today!

(volcano rock on the way to Santiam Pass)

(At the top of Santiam Pass!)

While we were huffing and puffing up the mountain PhillyK and AndyK were visiting the nearby hot springs for a relaxing afternoon. No... That is only half true. Both of these guys work their butts off everyday driving the car around, making the documentary, collecting stickers of all the towns we stop in to decorate our car, and making our trip more enjoyable in every way!

(PhillyK upset by some of the sights)

(AndyK taking a well deserved rest)

Our final destination was at the Shermon Camp grounds which were about 15 miles past Santiam Pass. Our friend Martin Gould was sooo nice to pay for a place for us to stay so that we didn't have to camp out :) We really really appreciated it especially after such a long day!

(A pic of Martin Gould hanging out in Europe!)

Tomorrow we only have like 50 or 60 miles! That will be a piece of cake :)

-Pattt

Eugene Fixies! - Video Included -

Date: 6/08/06 Thursday

Last night was amazing! We met up with the Eugene Fixie bike group. Every Wednesday night they meet up and ride their fixies to many of the local bars and pubs. It was a blast!! Everyone was so friendly and they were all excited to hear about us riding across the country for 6,000 miles on our fixies :) Because AndyK and PhillyK (the AFC drivers) didn't have bikes the guys in the group who work at the Collins Bike Shop lent us 2 extra fixies! We picked up a few donations and had the best night of our trip yet.. That's for sure!

(PhillyK dancing with the Eugene Fixie Bike Group)

(Locking up our bikes on the awning before entering the bar)

We were racing through the streets of Eugene from bar to bar, we did karaoke, we played foot-down (a game played on fixies where you have to knock everyone else off their bikes... The last person standing wins!)... It was so fun!

We stayed out late and we got up late this morning since we had a day off to enjoy the town of Eugene. We said good bye to Luke, who works at the bike shop and who was the one who invited us to join the Eugene Fixies in their adventures the night before.

(Jesse, Pattt, Luke, PhillyK, Adam at the Collins Cycle Shop in Eugene)

Today we road our fixies around town, found Pre's Rock which is at the site where he died, and we did some shopping ... ugggg.... I really don't like shopping! :) After shopping we got a free massage Jim at Natural Arts, where he teaches martial arts and does physical therapy. He was very helpful and taught us a lot of different stretches and massages for helping us to recover from a hard days bike ride.

(Pre's memorial)


(Jim from Natural Arts... After teaching us some awesome Physical Therapy Techniques)

(AFC Mobile VS. Anti-AFC Mobil)

For our dinner we hung out with Kristin Carter, who we are staying with. She got us some pizza and I ate a ton. I need to be full for our hard 100 mile day all up the mountains tomorrow!! I can't wait to bike hard tomorrow!

-Pattt

Eugene Oregon, Home of Steve Prefontaine

Date: 6/07/06 Wednesday

Last night we arrived in Corvallis, Oregon. We were scheduled to stay with Enrique and Kay. We met up with Enrique at the bike shop that he owns, Corvallis Cyclery. It was one of the nicest bike shops I have ever seen! We hung out in the town and ate dinner at a really good deli. When we returned to Enrique and Kay's house they were having House Church (Bible Study) in the living room. We were invited to join!! It was awesome because it was just like our House Church that we have with our friends at home, that we had been missing so much. We talked about our trip and we got to meet all of their cool friends.

After a good nights sleep we had a faboulous breakfast with Enrique and Kay before packing up to leave. Before we left Corvallis we stopped by Enrique's shop and he wrote a check to donate to Kupenda!!! It was very very generous of him and we really appreciated it :)

(Saying good bye to Kay at her pretty house in Corvallis)


(Saying good bye to Enrique at his bike shop: Corvallis Cyclery)

We only biked 45miles today from Corvallis to Eugene. It was totally flat the entire time. Jesse's achilles was doing much better today. I had some awful allergies from the pollen but not a big deal.

Midway to Eugene we stopped at Harrisburg, OR for lunch. We ate some bagels given to us by Enrique and his wife Kay along with some leftovers given to us by Annie Rees from the day before. We alos got some coffee at X-Press Lane Coffee. We met two awesome girls who worked there!! We made friends with them and gave them some AFC T-Shirts. They also made a sticker for our car (we are collecting stickers of every town/city we stay at or visit to put on the AFC Mobile).

(Harrisburg coffee shop girls and AFC)

When we arrived in Eugene we were greeted by Kristen Carter at her house. She gave me some medicine for my allergies and we all took showers. She told us that she setup a bike ride for us with some of the local bikers in Eugene!! They might also help us raise some funds for Kupenda and ADA!! We will meet them tonight and I will write more about that in the blog tomorrow :)

For dinner we went to another amazing deli and we biked to the famous Hayward Track on the campus of University of Oregon, where Prefontaine used to race!! It was a beautiful track and a fun campus!

(PhillyK at Hayward Track on University of Oregon)

-Pattt

Healthy Jesse and No More Rain!

Date: 6/06/06 Tuesday

It doesn't get any better! We had a great day today. After resting and icing his Achilles yesterday and then adjusting his bike seat he easily completed the 90 miles of riding with us today.

In the morning we slept in a bit to get some extra rest. Before we got on the road Annie Rees, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Rees whom we stayed with the night before, came by our place and offered to go to the local market to pick up some supplies for our trip today! How could we refuse? She brought back 4 bags of groceries and a whole case of water!! It is so amazing how many super nice people we have met so far on our trip :)

(Pacific City house that we rented for only $79.00)

(Eating the lunch that Annie bought for us!!)

We left around 9:30am and we had some good biking through the hills/mountains. It was easy because the grade of the incline was pretty low. We easily kept 11mph up the hills. After the hills we really picked up the pace for an average of 17.7mph for the day. I can't even describe how beautiful the weather was today. It was so nice to not be soaking wet and to see the sun.

(Adam entering Corvallis)

(Pattt entering Corvallis)

-Pattt

Achilles Troubles!

Date: 06/05/2006 Monday

After the best breakfast ever at the Rees's house in Beaver, Oregon we said good bye. A newspaper reporter from Tillamook who interviewed us the night before took a few pictures of us on our bikes and we were off for another day of biking!

(Saying goodbye to the Mr. and Mrs. Rees)

We had scheduled to do about 100miles. After the first 10 miles we reached Pacific City. When we arrived Jesse told me that his achilles in both his feet were hurting very bad, with a stinging pain. We then decided that it would be best if we stopped in this town for the day so that Stump could rest and be ready for the mountains tomorrow.

We found a house for rent and we got it for only $79.00 for the night!!! We also got some great fottage and pictures of us on the beach of the Pacific Ocean with our bikes. PhillyK is shooting a documentary of our trip and us touching the Ocean will be an important part of that.

(Jesse, Pattt, and Adam on the beach of the Pacific Ocean in Pacific City, Oregon)

(PhillyK making 'The Doc')

For the rest of the day we are going to clean our bikes, eat, and rest and pray that Jesse's achilles will be better for tomorrow morning! We cannot afford to stay here too long or we might fall off our schedule.

-Pattt

Leaving Washington State

Date: 6/4/06 Sunday

After eating a huge breakfast with Kim and Steve Sharp in Puget Island, WA, we took a ferry across the Columbia River to Oregon. We were sad to say good bye to our awesome hosts but we had to move on.

(Pattt, Adam, Jesse, Kim and Steve Sharp)

(Jesse on the Columbia River Ferry)

It was another rainy day but it was a nice easy 100 miles. We passed through Astoria, Oregon and we ended up in Tillamook. Tillamook is know for their amazing ice cream and cheese! We went to the Tillamook cheese factory and we got tons of free samples :)

We met Clayton Rees and we went back to his farm in Beaver, Oregon for a great dinner, conversation, showers, and a dry place to sleep. They had the coolest dog in the world!! We love Spike :)

(PhillyK, Adam, and Spike)

We camped out in the Rees's barn. It was a great night for sleeping out side and seeing all the horses was fun!

(Adam with the barn horses)

-Pattt

The Best Day Yet?

Date: 6/2/06 Friday

We got a late start and didnt leave Toledo until 9:30, since we only had 60 or so miles to bike we could afford to take our time :) The weather started out with a bit of rain but it cleared up and was a beautiful day after lunch time!!

Right now I am sitting a gorgeous house that is right on the Columbia River, that seperates Washington and Oregon, in a place called Puget Island. We are staying at Kim Sharp's house and it is AMAZING. The frig is full of beer! Our stomaches are full of grilled hamburgers and I am looking out of a window that overlooks the river with huge mountains/hills in the background!!

(PhillyK and the beer frig)

We will be staying here for 2 days since we have a rest day tomorrow. I plan on getting some running in tomorrow since I need to be in Ironman shape for my November 4th Ironman in Florida! Although I wont be swimming again until September.

-Pattt

Warm Rain!

Date: 6/01/06, Thursday

After we cleaned up the website we began what turned out to be a 125 mile day. We had scheduled our route so that we would stay in Shelton, WA and then bike to Toledo, WA but we ended up staying about 15 miles away from Shelton at a camp site. We felt great the whole day! The rain never let up, it would only go from a light sprinkle to total down pour :) It was nice and warm outside so the rain was not too bad, we just got really really dirty.

(Jesse and Pattt out in the rain)

When we finally got to Toledo we met with Steve, a local pastor. He was nice enough to let us stay in the basement of his Church and he let us use his washer and dryer to get all cleaned up!! I felt great! Steve was a really nice guy and he helped us out a ton!

(Pattt and Pastor Steve)

It is nice to know that our next day wont be as long, mabye only 50 or so miles.

-Pattt

Long day ...

After the Fosser's made the best breakfast ever we were off to start our second day of biking. Our destination was a camp site near Shelton, WA. It was cloudy alll day long. Although there were beautiful sights all around us it didnt look anything like the day before when it was hot and sunny. Luckily we didnt get rained on when we were biking.

After biking for 95miles (and getting lost a couple times) we finally arrived at the camp grounds, just in time for the rain to start. As I type this entry I am sitting in the car and it is raining big time :( Camping would be sooo fun if it was not raining... Oh well! It will just make us tougher! haha. We are going to get to bed early tonight because we have a long 100+ mile day tomorrow but our destination is at Steve's house in Toledo, WA. We are excited to meet someone new and to have a dry place to sleep!!

(AndyK helping to get the tent together)

-Pattt

First day on the road!

Our first day was the best day of biking ever!!! It was 70degrees and sunny. Washington State is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. There are lakes, bays, trees, and snow capped mountains everywhere.

(Beautiful biking out of Bellingham, WA)

Jesse's cousin, Jen, biked with us for the first 50miles and our good friend Dell who helps us get ready for the SkiToSea race that we just finished biked the entire day with us. We finished with about 80miles. We had to take a ferry across a lake to get to Port Townsend. Wow! that was fun.

(Dell, Jen, Pattt, Jesse, Adam)

When we arrived in Port Townsend we went right to the local bike shop. PT Cyclery was great! The owner was all excited about what we were doing and like all other bikers do he warned us that the fixed gear bikes are going to destroy our knees. I hope he is wrong :) We got a sticker for our car, got Jesse's front tire trued up and then we biked to the Fosser's house.

(Adam, PT Cyclery Owner, Pattt, Jesse)

The Fossers were the nicest people ever made!! They gave us a tour of the town, fixed an AMAZING dinner, and let us use their washing machines to wash our dirty clothes. It was sooo nice to have such fun people to hang out with and to be able to relax. It was a perfect day!!

(Adam, Mr. and Mrs. Fosser, Jesse, Pattt)

-Pattt

The Day Before We Leave!

We are starting out trip tomorrow!!!!! We leave from Bellingham, WA! It is going to be incredible. Our first stop will be to visit Howard and Adele Fosser in Ft. Townsend!

We have already met so many amazing people and we havent even started yet. Here in Bellingham we were treated like royalty by Jesse's relatives and we had a blast at the Ski to Sea race. Ski to Sea is a race that starts at the top of Mt. Baker and goes all the way to Bellingham Bay. There are 7 legs in the race: cross country ski, downhill ski, down mountain run, road bike, canoe, mountain bike, kayak. We had to borrow a kayak and cross country skiis from two of the nicest people in the world!

(Jesse, Pattt, Mr. and Mrs. Cook)

Mr. and Mrs. Cook, who don't know us at all, are friends with Jesse's relatives and they let us borrow their kayak and skiis. They were all smiles the entire time and came out to support us in our race! We can only hope that everyone else we meet during our travels will be as awesome as the Cooks and all the other people we have met in Bellingham!

-Pattt

Biking in Bellingham!!

Adam and I have been biking all over beautiful Bellingham, Washington! It is sooo gorgeous here. Even thought it spatter rains every day all day and it is only 55 degrees it is still a great place for biking. Everyone bikes here. There are bike racks on every corner and every bike rack is stock full of bikes. The drivers are also extremely acostume to seeing bikers on the road and they are very polite.

(Adam looking out over a beautiful view)

We found a huge mountain to bike up today here are some pics of us going up it. For those of you who bike in Ellicot City, Maryland it was as steep at the beginning of Ilchester Road (18% grade) and that steepness lasted for about 1.5miles. It was awesome!

(Pattt biking up mountain)

The Ski to Sea race is tomorrow! And on Tuesday we will start biking across the country!

-Pattt

Arrival in Bellingham, WA

YES!! We made it! PhillyK, Adam, and I arrived in Bellingham WA at 10:00pm local time last night. Here are some stats of our cross country drive:

Car Mishaps:
- The hood of the car nearly flew off but the bungie cords held strong even in the excessive winds
- The car did not start one time when we were at a gas station but we were able to get it going after calling Stump and getting some of his expert advise!

Total Price of Gas:
- $$ I don't know because I don't keep good records of my monetary expenses :) but it was a ton!

Total Trip Time:
- 2 days, 12.5hrs

Total Miles:
- 3,100

Total Losses:
- 1 SideKick owned by PhillyK - MIA
- 1 wallet owned by Suga (Adam) - recovered
- 1 pair of sunglasses owned by Suga - recovered

Total Sicknesses:
- Adam was sick for 12hrs of straight throwing up
- Pattt caught some form of his sickness and was sick for over 12hrs with a fever and aches
- PhillyK was healthy the entire trip :)

Now it is time to relax, bike, run, party, and race in Ski to Sea before leaving for our cross country trek!

(Adam aka Suga relaxing in Bellingham, WA)

-Pattt

Driving from Baltimore, MD to Bellingham, WA

(driving to the start of the bike ride)

PhillyK, Adam, and I are still driving to Bellingham, WA. We are making good time and we drove through the entire night last night!! We think that we have about 700miles left to go! We have left the plains of South Dakota and we are in the beautiful mountains of Montana.

-Pattt

South Dakota Winds!!

(bungie cords, holding us together)

The wind in South Dakota is RIDICULOUS! It must be the strongest wind ever made! The wind in comming directly at us and our AFCMobile has a bad front hood that is secured by two bungie cords. The bungie cords have been holding strong so far but we are scared to go faster than 45mph for fear that the hood will fly off! We might not make it to Bellingham Washington tomorrow night as we had planned.



-Pattt

Second day of driving

(PhillyK outside the AFCMobile)

Adam, PhillyK, and I are still driving on our way to Washington State. We are doing extremely well now and we are making great time. It was a bit rocky yesterday because Adam got reallyyyy sick. We think it was food posioning or something but whatever it was he was throwing up for at least 12hrs. This was especially bad because he is a diabetic!! Luckily his sugar levels never go low, if they had and he couldnt keep any food down we would have had to take him to the hospital or something!

We are all 100% healthy now. Adam is driving as I write this post and we are almost 1/2 the way there. We should arrive in Bellingham, Washington sometime tomorrow night, if everything goes smoothly from now until then.

Keep us in your prayers, especially the car! It is holding strong so far :)

-Pattt

on the road!!!!!

(Adam, Cindy, Jesse, Pattt - the day before we started driving)

AFC 2006 has officially begun! Adam, PhillyK, and I are driving to Washington State in the AFCMobile. It is going to be a longggg ride, especially since the AFCMobile can only do about 35mph up the mountains, with hazards on! Jesse will be flying out on Wednesday to meet us in Bellingham.

Tour De Cure

This past Saturday we all had a great time riding the Tour De Cure, a bike ride in Columbia, MD to help raise money for diabetes. It was a nice hilly course and tons of friends came out to ride it with us! The Tour De Cure is how we will be donating funds to ADA throughout the summer. When you go to our donation page you will see a link for donating to ADA which is really a link to Adam's Tour De Cure page (. ADA told us they will keep this page up and running all summer, even though the Tour De Cure is over... our trek hasnt even started yet :)

-Pattt

Mt. Washington Tavern - Guest Bartending!

Our guest bartending/dinner night at Mt. Washington Tavern was a complete success last night! We raise a lot of money and everyone had tons of fun! Thank you so much everyone who came out and supported us!!