Looks great from the photo's

Wednesday 26 October 2011

Ride info

The group I'm going with:


TOUR ITINERARY

WEEK 1
The group will congregate in Virginia's Historic Triangle, the "birthplace of America." From there, we'll ride through the forgiving terrain of the Tidewater region, a rolling plain that rises gradually to meet the Virginia Piedmont and its moderate hills. A rest day in Charlottesville will permit us to tour the pretty campus of the University of Virginia and, outside of town, Thomas Jefferson's memorable Monticello, with its resplendent gardens and hilltop location providing expansive views of the surrounding countryside.
 
WEEK 2
In Afton, we'll visit to June Curry, the world-famous "Cookie Lady" who has hosted more than 14,000 cross-country cyclists since 1976. From there, we'll inch our way up to the Blue Ridge Parkway and pedal along that legendary roadway until commencing the four-mile “dive” into the town of Vesuvius. From here to outside of Christiansburg, the route closely parallels the Indian Trace, an ancient Native American trail at the base of the Blue Ridge that Stonewall Jackson marched troops along during the Civil War.
 
WEEK 3
Before entering Kentucky at Breaks Interstate Park, we'll swing in and sign the "Across State Ride" book, which Virginia officials are keeping to compile statistics that one day, they hope, will result in improvements to U.S. Bike Route 76 (established in 1982 and now part of the growing official U.S. Bicycle Route System). The roads in the Appalachians of eastern Kentucky are extremely hilly and, in some places, winding, with dense vegetation. We'll come close to the McCoy-Hatfield Feud territory on the Kentucky-West Virginia border before laying over for a day in Berea, where we can learn about mountain culture at the Appalachian Museum and at Berea College, which specializes in the teaching of mountain youth.
 
WEEK 4
The Bluegrass region of central Kentucky will greet us like a breath of fresh air, with its lush pastures, white-fenced farms, and tidy equestrian operations. After continuing through western Kentucky and towns like Bardstown, Utica, and Marion, we'll cross the Ohio River into southern Illinois, where we'll camp at Dixon Springs State Park. The ridges and valleys of the small mountain range knows as the Little Ozarks will show us the way to Carbondale, home to Southern Illinois University and a perfect place for a layover day.
 
WEEK 5
In Chester, Illinois, we'll cross the mighty Mississippi on the Chester Bridge, a truss bridge that appeared in the opening scene of the 1967 movie In the Heat of the Night. We'll then begin tackling the notoriously steep and seemingly never-ending hills of the Missouri Ozarks. Camping for a night at Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park, we'll explore the narrow gorges carved by the down-cutting action of streams through 1.5-billion-year-old igneous rhyolite. In Eminence, we might set our bicycles aside for a morning in order to enjoy a mellow canoe float down the crystal waters of the spring-fed Current River, a component of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways.
 
WEEK 6
Our first overnight in the Jayhawk State (aka Kansas) will be spent in Pittsburg, a town that in 1876 was named — minus the "h" — after the far better known Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. Depending on which direction the wind is blowing — at our backs or in our faces, that is — we'll either praise it or curse it as we ride on past endless fields of wheat and sunflowers. When we're still miles from Eureka, Newton, and a host of smaller towns, we'll spot the communities’ tall grain elevators standing like sentinels above the endless plains.
 
WEEK 7
As we navigate our way through central and western Kansas, we’ll sense that we’re slowly leaving the humid Midwest behind and entering the arid West, symbolized by the famous 100th Meridian. We'll cross paths with history in Larned, with its many streets of hand-laid brick and its museum dedicated to the Santa Fe Trail. You may be surprised that the mountains don't jut into the sky immediately after we cross into Colorado — in fact, there's quite a long piece of Kansas-like terrain separating the interstate border and the Rockies.
 
WEEK 8
The fun city of Pueblo marks both the approximate halfway point in our adventure and the jumping off (climbing up?) point for the Rocky Mountains. From the Royal Gorge, which is spanned by the world’s highest suspension bridge over water, we'll ride through the immense wide open of South Park. After climbing Hoosier Pass — at 11,542 feet above sea level, the highest point on the TransAm Trail — we'll descend into Summit County, a hotbed of Colorado recreation in both summer and winter. Just north of Walden, we'll ride into wild and often windy Wyoming. In the little mountain town of Saratoga we'll soak our tired muscles in the free, community-owned Hobo Hot Pool. From there, we'll commence the high and dry ride through the sagebrush- and pronghorn-filled Great Divide Basin.
 
WEEK 9
From Lander to Dubois, Wyoming, home to the National Bighorn Sheep Interpretive Center, we'll alternate between mountains and broad valleys. After climbing up and over Togwotee Pass, we'll free-fall into Jackson Hole and spectacular Grand Teton National Park. We'll spend some time in downtown Jackson, with its Town Square and elk-antler arches, where it's almost required that visitors down a beer or soda while sitting aboard a leather saddle stool in the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar. From there, we’ll ride to Wilson and begin the climb over the exceedingly steep Teton Pass, before descending into Idaho. After enjoying the eight-mile-long rail-trail between Victor and Driggs, we'll head north through undulating potato and barley country to Ashton, "Seed Potato Capital of the World."
 
WEEK 10
After a layover day in West Yellowstone, Montana, and an optional van tour of wildlife-abundant Yellowstone National Park, we'll ride alongside the trout-abundant waters of the Madison River to Ennis. From there, we'll climb up and over the big hill to Virginia City, a well-preserved/renovated Victorian frontier town that was the site of a major 1860s gold strike and, for a short time, the capital of the Montana Territory. From there it's on to the high lonesome of the Big Hole Valley, over Chief Joseph and Lost Trail passes, and into the substantially busier — but no less beautiful — Bitterroot Valley. We'll take a well-deserved break in Adventure Cycling's hometown of Missoula, an oasis of culture and fun.
 
WEEK 11
Tracing the tracks of Lewis and Clark, we'll cross Lolo Pass and re-enter Idaho, pedaling beside the sparkling waters of the Lochsa River as it cuts through an immense wilderness expanse. At Riggins we might take a half-day commercial rafting trip through the whitewater rapids of the Salmon River's main fork. After crossing the Snake River into Oregon near the Hell's Canyon of the Snake, the deepest river gorge in North America, we'll climb all the way to the charming burg of Halfway. We'll enjoy a layover day in Baker City, rich with gold-mining lore. The classic 1969 musical-comedy Paint Your Wagon was filmed in this area.
 
WEEK 12
After crossing a series of relatively minor mountain ranges and passing through towns like Prairie City, Prineville, and Sisters, we'll bag the thrill of crossing the Cascade Range amid the volcanic surroundings of McKenzie Pass, knowing that the Pacific Ocean, and the end of our adventure, is only a couple of days away. After pedaling from Coburg to Florence, we'll repeat the act we began our journey with nearly three months ago — only in this case we'll dip our wheels in the Pacific Ocean, at Beachside State Park. We’ll subsequently partake in a bittersweet celebration dinner in Florence — and say our farewells on the following day, formally wrapping up our crossing of the North American continent by bicycle.


Tuesday 25 October 2011


Want to find original of this pic as it really shows the terrain I will be facing

Friday 21 October 2011

The Man from Delmonte says YES!

OMG I so can't belive it, they have said yes!!!  3months off work next year to cycle across America.  Good god, what have I done, what have I signed up for.  It was ok when I was just thinking about it, now it is a reality.  I have to do it.  *feels a bit sick*  It was a unofficial announcement while I made a cup of tea at work.  Boss said that life doesnt revolve around work, and you should enjoy it while you can!  Eff me!  can you belive it, I must have made a real good case in the meeting then.  I should post below the links and text which he said had convinced him!!  WOW!




Apart from the benefit in terms of PR and good employee relations, it can make good financial sense: much better for a company to have someone - in whose training they have probably made a significant investment - take a break when they start to get restless, and come back to the company afterwards.

Of course, taking time out doesn’t mean you’re thinking about a complete change. It can simply be a great way of re-charging your batteries, expanding your skills and making sure you come back to your role fresh and rejuvenated. That’s why it’s also in employers’ interests to give proper consideration to introducing a policy of supporting career breaks.

If they’re not given the opportunity for a career break, the chances are they will leave anyway, and end up going to work for a competitor after taking the break.

If you are planning a career break (and ideally would like to return to your present job) it's well worth checking to see if the company you work for does offer a sabbatical - as the fact that it's possible to take a sabbatical isn't always well publicised by some companies. The best people to speak to in order to find out if your company offers a sabbatical are the personnel department (who will also be able to let you know all of the qualifying criteria).
The concept of offering a sabbatical has become increasingly popular amongst companies and employers because of the fact that such a high percentage of people these days opt for a
career break at some point. By allowing their staff to take a sabbatical for their career break companies benefit because they are not losing valuable employees in the long term. To provide a couple of examples of organisations that have embraced the sabbatical system- Civil servants are permitted to take two sabbaticals during the course of their career whilst Guardian Media permits its staff to take a month long sabbatical on full pay every four years.

More and more people are now taking a career break for up to two years to recharge their batteries, secure in the knowledge that their jobs will be there for them on their return and all with the blessing of their boss.
'Employers are keen to earn the loyalty of their staff,' explains Jonathan Swan from the charity New Ways to Work.
'Staff who take time off come back to work refreshed with a renewed commitment and energy to their job,' says Jonathan, adding that, 'career breaks are becoming an established part of modern-day flexible working practices and an effective way of avoiding burn-out.'

 If you’ve been at the same organisation for a long time, a sabbatical  can give you a certain freshness,” says executive coach Ros Taylor. “It’s great to get a view from somewhere else and take time out to think.”
Ms Hurst adds: “Work often can’t meet all people’s psychological needs which can leave you feeling a bit empty. Taking time out to address these can really get you up and running again.”


If you want a sabbatical, first find out what the company's policy is. If there is a formal career break policy, your HR department should be able to advise you. Usually you have to have worked there for 2 years’ minimum and your sabbatical will probably be unpaid.

Monday 10 October 2011

Time to ask!

Back from a week in Devon, very relaxed. As the Adventure Cycling tour sign-up closes shortly, I need to ask if I can take the time off for this. So this week I should know if I have works blessing for my 3month sabbatical.

If they say yes I will need to look more closely at the organised trip to see if it's for me. If they say NO, then I need to sit back and think long and hard about leaving my job. At these hard financial times, it makes the decision much much harder. Stay tuned!


- Posted from my iPhone