Wheels North Alum Ride

Five WN alums worked off some Thanksgiving calories the day after with a ride from Davis, CA, to San Francisco. Photos here.

Next Stops for the Wheels North Crew

Wheels North has joined the original 1909 adventure as part of history, but we WN riders are still doing what we do: Ride. Here are two upcoming adventures, of varying scale:

November 8--Several WN riders will don tweed and take part in the Sacramento Tweed Ride. It looks like jolly good fun, and Nigel (our English bike) in particular is looking forward to it. Click on the flyer to see a larger version.

November 27--The day after Thanksgiving, several WN alums will be working off our turkey (or veggie) dinners with a day of riding. Route is somewhat vague at this point (we need some chalk marks to follow!), but it will involve heading west from Davis toward the coast. Maybe to Point Reyes, maybe to San Francisco, maybe to ... ?? Photos from a similar (but two-day-long) ride are here and here.

Certificate of Appreciation

This Certificate of Appreciation, signed by Mayor Greg Nickels, arrived in today's mail. It reads,

"In recognition of outstanding work and dedication to the success of the Centennial Celebration of the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition Wheels North is presented this certificate of appreciation.
The work enriched our community and, like the A-Y-P itself, proved the economic potential, creative spirit and progressive thinking of our region and city.
Congratulations on this extraordinary achievement.
Presented this Tuesday, October 13, 2009
[Signed] Greg Nickels, Mayor of Seattle"

Congratulations indeed to everyone who was part of Wheels North: riders, support crew, donors, friends, and family. Well done!

Two Wheels North--Live on Stage

The Book-It Repertory Theater is staging a series of dramatic readings of Two Wheels North in the Seattle area! Check out their web site for info--there are three more performances planned as of today.

Here's a sample from the 75-minute show:

Two Wheels North - Book-It Repertory Theatre from 4Culture on Vimeo.

Wheels North on KOMO Radio

On the last day of the ride, we were featured on Seattle's KOMO radio in a morning drive-time interview. Click here to listen to the interview with Wheels North's Eric Norris.

Wheels North Memorabilia For Sale

Want to have a keepsake of Wheels North? We have a limited number of the following official Wheels North items:

• Wheels North Jerseys! The official WN jersey, as worn by the riders. Several Mediums, one Small, one Large, and one XLarge available. $75 each
• Wheels North Water Bottles! White bottles with the Wheels North logo in black. $10 each
• Wheels North T-Shirts! Grey short-sleeve with the Wheels North logo on the back and front. Limited sizes (email me about availability) $25 each

All prices include shipping. Proceeds will go to the Wheels North fundraising site for the HAA.

If you are interested in purchasing any of these items, email campyonlyguy [at] me dot com.

Merce Cunningham

Just a note that famed choreographer/dancer Merce Cunningham, who died yesterday, was born in 1919 in Centralia, Washington, the location of the last overnight stop on Wheels North. Several riders enjoyed a beverage in the historic downtown district of Centralia, a place the Cunningham would have known.

Remembering the Start

Here's a great photo of all the Wheels North riders just before the start on July 4. Seems like a long time ago now, but it was less than less than three weeks ago that we rolled out and headed for Seattle ...

Thanks to photographer Marita for coming to Santa Rosa to see us off.

Sacramento!

13 days to ride to Seattle--2 hours to fly back. Vic and Ray couldn't have dreamed of that in 1909! Laurie and I are proud of what all the Wheels North riders and crew accomplished, but also glad to be home again.

-- Post From My iPhone

Our Big Seattle Finish

The finish of Wheels North in Seattle was ... spectacular. The fountains at the U of W were shooting into the air, Mt Rainier was out in all her glory, and family and friends were on hand to cheer us in as we completed our 1,120-mile journey from Santa Rosa. Representatives from the Governor's office and the City of Seattle greeted us, champagne was poured, and we thrilled to the feeling of having completed a truly epic adventure.

A few brief stats:

• We rode 1,120 miles (some riders who got lost along the way rode a little more)
• We climbed 53,110 feet
• We rode on 11 days
• We rested on 2 days
• 12 riders made it all the way to Seattle
• We departed Santa Rosa, CA, at 9:30 am on July 4, and arrived at Drumheller Fountain at 6 pm on July 16 (exactly on schedule!)
• As of the ride's finish, we raised more than $57,000 for Histiocytosis research

Kevin Lynch, videographer for the Big Fix, was on hand and made this fantastic film of the finish. Direct link is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9lyDgdnrfA

Crossing the Mighty Columbia!

Yesterday we crossed the Columbia River on the Lewis and Clark Bridge. Here's a video of that part of the ride: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR51k6kvnJ4

We are DONE!!!

Everyone arrived safe and sound in Seattle after 1,120 miles of riding, 50,000+ feet of climbing, and 13 days on the road. Photos from the last day are here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621585223380/

More photos from the grand finish coming soon!

Portland to Centralia Photos

Photos from yesterday's penultimate ride: http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621585077712/

Almost There!

The riders are gathered for the last few miles to the finish of Wheels North! See you at the fountain at 6!


-- Post From My iPhone

Centralia!

At the Calvary church. Time for a shower ...


-- Post From My iPhone

We're in Washington!

Just crossed over the Columnia River!


-- Post From My iPhone

Video: Ashland to Roseburg

A little delayed, but here's the video of the ride from Ashland to Roseburg:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKYJOwpYbKs

Video: Eugene to Salem

Video from the ride to Salem:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN4gKbjUNmU

Video: Buena Vista Ferry

Following the route of Vic and Ray, we crossed the Willamette River by ferry:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8ad_1-1Sus

Eugene to Salem Photos

Photos from Eugene to Salem, 102 miles with 3,600 feet of climbing. We got rained on a little today ... and got a little lost. Still, the last 40 miles of the ride were mostly downhill with a tailwind, and we got to cross the Willamette River on the historic Buena Vista ferry just as Vic and Ray did 100 years ago.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621443987630/

Roseburg to Eugene Photos

Sorry for the delay--didn't have internet until now. Here are photos from Roseburg to Eugene, a ride of 95 miles with 4,200 feet of climbing (including several miles of unpaved ascent):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621444115064/

Portland!

Just arrived.


-- Post From My iPhone

Lunch!

... At the Momokawa sake distillery.


-- Post From My iPhone

After the ride: Dinner

-- Post From My iPhone

Salem!

Just arrived in Salem. Beautiful day of ridi g that included a ride on the Buena Vista ferry over the Willamette River ... and some rain


-- Post From My iPhone

Eugene!

Finish at Sigma Pi frat house.


-- Post From My iPhone

Top of Today's Ride

Halfway from Roseburg to Eugene.


-- Post From My iPhone

Ashland to Roseburg

Today's photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621258517734/

Enjoy!

Dessert

Ice cream after a long day on the bike. Yum!


-- Post From My iPhone

Roseburg!

Just finished 149 tough miles from Ashland to Riseburg. Waiting for pizza, then shower and bed.

-- Post From My iPhone

Good Night, Ashland!

We roll out for Roseburg at 7:30 tomorrow morning. 144 miles, a few clbs, and lots of downhill!

-- Post From My iPhone

Rest Day Cleaning

Clothing, bikes, and gear get washed on our rest day.
-- Post From My iPhone

Warren's Videos

Check out Warren's videos here. Lots of interviews with WN riders and crew.

Video: Corning to Weaverville

Video: Winters to Corning

Eat to Ride, Ride to Eat

Walter (aka Big Dawg) shows what happens when you put a plate of strawberry waffles in front of a hungry Wheels North rider:

The Oregon State Line

Here is the Wheels North team that arrived at the Oregon state line: Walter, Kevin, Eric, Ken, Willie, Jim, Warren, Peter, Greg, Shawn, and Randy. Like Vic and Ray, they stuck together.

Great work, riders! and thanks to our support crew for helping us get here: Alyson, Eric, Kim, Laurie, Natalie, and Steve.

But wait, there's more to come! We're not even halfway to Seattle. Ahead of us are four days of riding across Oregon, and they two days from Portland to Seattle. Keep watching this blog for news and photos!

New Sponsor!

We have a new sponsor--California Bicycle Accident Attorneys. See their banner and visit their web site from www.wheelsnorth.org

Ashland!

We've all arrived in Ashland for a well-deserved rest day. Today's ride was 54 miles with more than 4,000 feet of climbing, including cresting out at more than 4500' on I-5 (the highest point on I-5). We had some wonderful views of Mt Shasta early today, but we were glad to head north to our rest day location here.

Photos from today's ride: http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621147988022/

Corning to Weaverville Photos

Photos from yesterday's ride to Weaverville, a 120-mile uphill grind:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157620988348109/

Weaverville to Yreka

A long, tough day today--104 miles with more than 9,000 feet of climbing that left everyone wheezing. Here are photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157620987721799/

We've done more than 400 miles so far, and aboue 20,000 feet of climbing. We're sleeping in late tomorrow and having breakfast in Yreka before the short (50-mile) ride to Ashland.

Etna!

-- Post From My iPhone

Trinity High School

Thanks to the high school for hosting us!


-- Post From My iPhone

Weaverville!

Another long day. First group just arrived after 10+ hours in the saddle. Others an hour out. Photos to come. Shower first.


-- Post From My iPhone

And Now, Photos from July 5

Here you go: http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157621022970588/

Old West Cycling

Quick clip from today's ride. Now it's time for sleep!

Whew!

7 pm--almost everyone is in. Tough day: 154 miles, 4500 feet of climbing, miles of unpaved roads. More later. Gotta shower.


-- Post From My iPhone

Warren's Day Ome Videos

More videos from Day One are online. Go to YouTube and look fur user "wcjbrownhornet"

-- Post From My iPhone

Wheels North Day One

July 4, 2009--After four-plus years of dreaming and two years of planning, Wheels North hit the road today. 13 riders left Santa Rosa on an unexpectedly chilly morning for the first, 60-mile leg to Winters. Riding are:

• Peter Burnett
• Michael "Mojo" Cosgrove
• Walter Dawes
• Willie Myers
• Warren Jones
• Ken McClain
• Greg Ngo
• Jim Pavlichek
• Steve Smead
• Randy Roten
• Eric Norris
• Kevin Ziegler
• Shawn Ziegler

Our amazing rest stop crew:

• Kim Hanlin
• Laurie Norris
• Natalie Pappas
• Eric Myers

Aside from the cold, today's ride was uneventful ... mostly. A minor bike tangle in the Napa Valley ended with two wheels with shredded spokes (Mojo's and Steve's) but fortunately noone crashed and nobody (other than the bikes) was injured. We're looking around for a wheelbuilder to fix the spokes.

We are staying tonight at the community center in Winters. Tomorrow, we head 154 miles north to Corning via route that includes the Capay Valley and the backcountry of Glenn County.

Today's videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TV4HYEaO7MI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnWgfOhUzEM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKfEZ93bu6I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsgBc-jEEXs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgjM10RVUb0

Today's photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/35176895@N03/sets/72157620832752071/

First Lunch!

We're in St Helena having the firs tlinch of Wheels North. Nice hard climb to start the day—now it's time to eat!


-- Post From My iPhone

The Night Before ...

All of the Wheels North riders and crew gathered for a pre-ride dinner, and we looked forward with anticipation to the start of the ride. Photos here.

24 Hours!!!

9:30 am Friday... Wheels North starts in 24 hours!!

-- Post From My iPhone

Meet a Sponsor: Doma Coffee

A friend of Doma Coffee made this video about their roasting operation. We'll be enjoying their coffee in the morning as we ride to Seattle!

$50,000+!!!

We've exceeded $50,000 ... and the donations are still coming in!

Great work, everyone, and thank you to all of our donors!

First Official Vehicle

Randy's truck tonight became the first official Wheels North vehicle.

Donations Keep Adding Up!

We passed $45,000 in fundraising over the weekend ... and kept on going! (Warren Jones' brother put us over $45K)

Great work, everyone!

P.S. For a reminder about why we are raising funds, scroll down to the post about Kim Hanlin's grandson, Tucker.

New Routes Posted

Updates for three days of riding have been posted to the Wheels North web site today:

• July 4, Winters to Santa Rosa, now has a new route for the first few miles to get us safely past the congested parts of downtown Santa Rosa. The big climbs over the Mayacama mountains are still there.
• July 11, Roseburg to Eugene, has been shortened by about 10 miles, and lost a bit of climbing.
• July 12, Eugene to Salem, is now about 10 miles longer and includes a nice, steep climb at mile 90. However, it also now includes a trip on the Buena Vista Ferry over the Willamette River, allowing us to recreate that part of the trip as well.

Links to detailed information on each day's riding is available on the Route page at www.wheelsnorth.org

Memories of Tucker

One of our volunteers, Kim Hanlin, lost a grandchild, Tucker, to Histiocytosis. She has shared a video memory book with us. See it here.

Helping save the lives of children like Tucker is why we ride.

One Week to Go!!

... and here's a brief video report:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuW0VNnm7nQ

Wheels North Jerseys

Our jerseys are starting to appear on the roadways of California. Here's one on the back of Wheels North rider Willie Myers. The design features a photo of the 1909 riders moments before they started their epic journey, and serves as a reminder of the history we are recreating with our ride.

Jerseys are here!

Our shipment of Wheels North jerseys arrived today! Groovy Boy, one of our ride mascots, models it for us (don't worry, the riders' jerseys are full-sized).

72-year-old Rider Reports from the Road

Wheels North is being preceded by about a month by 72-year-old Bill Harris, a cyclist from Windsor, CA, who is also retracing Vic and Ray's route. Here's his latest report from the road.

Wheels North wishes well to Bill--tailwinds and smooth roads!

Todays Historical Ride

We were riding today and stopped at the Point Cabrillo lighthouse, where the assistant lighthouse keeper's residence was first occupied in ... 1909.

See the video here.

New Route for Day 3 to Weaverville

The route to Weaverville has been changed slightly to take us up Wildwood Road. Steve S. suggested this route, which is about ten miles shorter and saves 1,000 feet of climbing. Here's the new route info: http://www.bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=57787

Three Weeks to Ride Day!

Just 21 days to go!

Fundraising Update

The Wheels North riders are on track to raise $50,000 for Histiocytosis research! Our fundraising total is approach $38,000, with three weeks left to go before the start of the ride.

If you'd like to sponsor a rider (or just donate to the Histio Association), go HERE.

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! Your generosity is making Wheels North possible and helping find a cure for Histiocytosis.

Santa Rosa Cycling Club

Thank you to everyone at the Santa Rosa Cycling Club for listening to our presentation on Wheels North last night! We look forward to meeting SRCC members in downtown Santa Rosa when we start the ride on July 4. (Corner of 4th and B at 9 am).

Preview of Day One

The first part of Day One will be challenging. Check out our video preview of the course. Got gears?

Another Commemorative Ride

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat ran a story about 72-year-old Bill Harrison, who set out from Santa Rosa on Saturday to follow Vic and Ray's ride to Seattle. (Wheels North is mentioned toward the end of the article.)

We wish Bill well. Perhaps we'll meet him in Washington!

Detailed Routes Now Available

Detailed routes for each day of Wheels North are now available. Use the links below to see where we'll be riding as we journey from Santa Rosa to Seattle.

Day One (July 4) Santa Rosa-Winters 60 miles

Day Two (July 5) 154 miles Winters-Corning

Day Three (July 6) 129 miles Corning-Weaverville

Day Four (July 7) 105 miles Weaverville-Yreka

Day Five (July 8) 51 miles Yreka-Ashland

July 9 is a rest day in Ashland

Day Six (July 10) 144 miles Ashland-Roseburg

Day Seven (July 11) 100 miles Roseburg-Eugene

Day Eight (July 12) 90 miles Eugene-Salem

Day Nine (July 13) 76 miles Salem-Portland

July 14 is a rest day in Portland

Day Ten (July 15) 95 miles Portland-Chehalis

Day Eleven (July 16) 104 miles Chehalis-Seattle

Video Report: Four Weeks to the Start of Wheels North!

Today's video report, which includes a shot of the last 500 yards of Day One!

Welcome in Washington

We confirmed today that a representative of Washington Governor Christine Gregoire will be on hand to welcome the Wheels North riders when we arrive at Drumheller Fountain on July 16th. Laura Lockard, Deputy Communications Director, said the Governor is very supportive of our event.

Wheels North thanks the Governor for her efforts to help make our event a success.

One Month to Go!

We start riding in one month from today!

Fundraising Update

The total for online fundraising went over $35,000 today. Great work, everyone!

"Wheels North TV"

Warren's first Wheels North video! We'll have a bunch of video cameras out on the ride--watch for daily videos as we ride to Seattle.

SOMA Blog

Wheels North is featured on the SOMA blog. Check it out: http://www.somafab.blogspot.com/

SOMA's parent company has donated $1,000 worth of tires for our riders.

Thank You to Merry Sales!

May 28--A box full of tires from the Merry Sales Company arrived today. We'll be using them on the ride when those inevitable tire problems come up (Vic and Ray had to have new tires mailed to them in 1909!).

Wheels North thanks Merry Sales for their generosity.

Remembering Steve Larsen

Wheels North riders Warren Jones and Jim Pavlichek (photo left) were among the many friends of Steve Larsen who gathered in Davis, CA, to mourn Steve's untimely death.

Steve, a world-class athlete and former Davis resident, died suddenly last week at age 39. You can help support his family and learn more about him here.

Knuckling Down

Here's what it would look like if we all got knuckle tattoos ... Guess we need a shorter name, or more fingers.

Training Ride to Glenn and Colusa Counties

Four Wheels North riders set off for the back country of Glenn and Colusa counties to scout out part of Day Two of the ride. Here's a video montage:

And here are photos: Click here

Tomorrow: Day two of our training weekend, in Napa and Lake counties.

Richard Sachs Raffle Drawing!

The winner of the Richard Sachs raffle drawing was chosen today: Nick Zatezalo of Dunwoody, GA, will have a Richard Sachs frameset custom-made for him. Here's a video of the drawing:

Congratulations to Nick!

Jerseys!

We have a final design for the Wheels North jerseys that will be worn by our riders!

The design features Vic and Ray, the original Wheels North riders, in a photo taken moments before starting their 1909 ride. Our Wheels North sponsors are featured on the back.

Training for Wheels North

Several Wheels North riders--Willie, Peter, Mojo, and Eric--used yesterday's Davis Double as an opportunity to train for Wheels North. Everything was there: heat, distance, and terrain.

Here's a video we made of events on the ride:

Davis Double Report

We're 90 miles into the Davis Double. The big climb is next!

-- Post From My iPhone

Sachs Raffle Closes--$10,000 in Tickets Sold

A major fundraiser for Wheels North and the Histiocytosis Association ended just minutes ago with the last of 100 raffle tickets being sold for a custom-made Richard Sachs frameset. The sale of raffle tickets grossed $10,000 for the Histio Association!

Thank you to Richard Sachs for helping make this raffle possible!

Sella Anatomica Saddles

Our shipment of saddles from sponsor Sella Anatomica arrived today. Here's one of them, ready for use in a double century ride next weekend.

Four Wheels North riders will be using Sella Anatomica saddles on the ride. Watch for their reports!


-- Post From My iPhone

Donate with PayPal

We've added PayPal as an option when using our online donation pages. Donate securely without providing your credit card info!

The Wheels North online donation page is HERE. To donate to a rider, use the Search function to find their fundraising page.

Welcome a New WN Rider

We have a new Wheels North rider: Warren Jones will joining us for the ride to Seattle. Check out the Riders page at Wheels North for more info and (coming soon) a link to Warren's online fundraising page.

With Warren, we now have 12 riders signed up for the trip to Seattle. One more rider is seriously considering it ...

Why We Ride

An email arrived today that I wanted to share. This is why we ride.

Good Morning,

My name is L_____ M_____ and I have luckily tripped across your fundraiser as I was doing research late one night. My beautiful 5 yr old daughter, has recently been diagnosed with Eosinophilic Granuloma/Histiocytosis and just finished her first round of radiation after 2 vertebra collapsed. She is multi-focal, with lesions in other parts of her skeletal system, but doing well with the help of an amazing doctor. I am finding out that there is so much that we don’t know about this disease and because of that her future will be full of tests and treatment. And yet we feel like the lucky ones- there are many other children out there fighting this same disease with much tougher situations. What a wonderful thing you and your organization are doing to help them!! Thank you so very much!

I have always wanted to ride the Seattle to Portland ride- but as a mother of 6- I haven’t figured out the training schedule yet. So this ride is not an option for me - but I am wondering if you are looking for volunteers. I have a large family and many friends who would love to help support if there are things we could help with on this end. If nothing else- I would love to bring my family to the UW to welcome you in.

But again, thank you so much for the insight, the planning and the vision! We are so grateful!

Much gratitude,

L.M.

Sella Anatomica Joins Wheels North

Saddle maker Sella Anatomica has joined Wheels North as a sponsor! They'll be providing saddles for some of our riders, who will doing a 1,000-mile road test.

Sella Anatomica makes a unique line of saddles featuring the company's patented flex slot. More info is available here.

Thank you to Sella Anatomica for helping make our ride a success!

Two Months to Go!

The start of Wheels North is just two months away! On July 4, 2009, we'll be standing astride our bicycles in Santa Rosa just as Vic and Ray did 100 years ago. And as it did for them, Seattle will beckon to us with the promise of fun and adventure.

With ride day approaching, the Wheels North riders of 2009 are busy training and raising funds. We're also continuing to work on arrangements for the ride--the lodging, transport, and publicity that will be needed to make the event successful and fun.

One thing we're working on now is our support crew. We'll be fortunate in having several veteran support workers from the Big Fix--they will help make sure that the needs of our riders are met.

We're also ordering the limited-edition Wheels North jerseys--watch this blog to see the official design.

We're on Facebook!

Tell all your friends--Wheels North is now on Facebook. Check us out HERE

Join the Wheels North community and help spread the word to all of your Facebook friends!

See You at the Movies!

The special benefit screening of "The Bicyclists" in Davis, CA, is featured in the Davis Enterprise newspaper today. The Bicyclists will screen at 8:30 p.m. on Monday, March 30th. More info here.

Proceeds from the show benefit the Histiocytosis Association of America.

Because It's Important to Look Good, Too ...

... our friend, Jeff, at the Davis Barber Shop, will give one free haircut to any Wheels North rider who goes to his shop before the ride. (Jeff may also be joining us for Day Two of the ride to Corning).

Thanks to Jeff for his generosity!