How and Why?

First, check out our 'One Good Reason...' page. The below is more a Prequel!

A few years ago, we had a map of the world on our wall. Matt once said 'I'd love to cycle across the States', to which I responded 'You can cycle. I'll be in New York... Ok then, how about we drive it?' Matt proceeded to appeal to my petty nature, along the lines of 'Fine, you pussy out and stay in New York, I'll have an epic time.'

So I started to research it. I discovered the Adventure Cycling Association, and dug up a book on Amazon; 'Hey Mom, can I ride my bike across America?' This prove inspirational, and spurred further investigation. We spent Sunday evenings trawling 'www.crazyguyonabike.com' -which is full of adventurous Trans-America cycle journals. Suffice to say, my curiosity was piqued, and Matts' pipe-dream became our pipe-dream! We both want to see Utah, which the 'Western Express' cycle route crosses (while the traditional Trans America route heads north from Colorado, ending in Oregon.)

But when do you have 3 months spare to spend in the saddle? Matt was preparing for his Chartership exam in April, and we were both busy with work. We relegated our US cycle plot to the 'bucket list'; safe from imminent reality.

Then as bad luck would have it, in February I injured my knee on a sadistic Austrian waterslide (while on skiing holiday; the irony). I spent the following 6 weeks hobbling in and out of Colchester hospital, in a series of leg-brace fashions. I divided my time feeling sorry for myself; icing my torn meniscus and resenting London Underground. Yet for the first time I was genuinely struck by how lucky I am to have fully functional legs in the first place. Life is full of surprises, not all of them good - and by all accounts, 'everything gets harder with age'.

So we addressed our pipe-dream with more urgency. Matts' exam was fast approaching, and my knee coaxed back to mobility by Erin: Super-Physio. We valiantly vowed to ride the US 'if Matt passes'. Emerging from his exam in April, Matt estimated a '50-50' chance of success.

On the 7th of June, we were delighted to find out that Matt had indeed passed. Driven by seasonal deadlines (the Rockies become unpassable after October)-we activated 'Operation Cycle USA immediately'. Things have come together so swiftly, it still feels surreal...

Stay tuned for stories from the Road!

REFERENCES

Crazy Guy on a Bike, Trans America