But on the other hand, it's getting a but old to be called black by the pot, if you know what I mean.
Is it "reasonable" to ride a motor assisted bicycle so far? Is it reasonable to think I can pedal 50-60 miles a day for 6 days out of 7, for 7 weeks, with only a 1 week rest time in between? Is it reasonable to sleep in a tent every night, pitching it where I can find a safe quiet spot?
For a large chunk of the general population, the answer is a clear resounding repeated NOOOOOOOO!!!! Followed by a laugh.
But lets look at the alternatives people have suggested, and for now we will ignore the financial limitations these all present.
1) Fly. Very doable. Really fast. Saves tons of time. But, I can get the same views and better from Google Earth. Heck, I see something from the equivalent of 20k feet, I can stop and take a closer look on Google Earth. Try getting the pilot of the 767 your on to drop down 18k feet so u can see what that pretty valley looks like! So for sight seeing, flying is pointless. And as for time to think, self-reflect, meet new people, etc etc. Well, you have about 10 hours total, round trip, and maybe 5000 people you'll be exposed to. Of them, you'll be lucky to find 10 who even take the time to meet a stranger.
I'll pass thank you.
2) Bus. Very doable. Fast. Saves time. But, I can get the same views and better from Google Earth street view. Heck, I see something from my window (if I actually get a window), I can stop and take a closer look on Google Earth. Try getting the driver of the bus your on to swing around and stop so u can see what that pretty valley looks like! So for sight seeing, buses are almost totally pointless. And as for time to think, self-reflect, meet new people, etc etc. Well, you have about 48 hours total, round trip, and maybe 1000 people you'll be exposed to. Of them, you'll be lucky to find 10 who even take the time to meet a stranger. Oh, and sorry to burst the bus industry's bubble, but I rode from Chattanooga to Detroit last year, and before that from Chicago to Detroit in 1991, and a few times from Alma to Detroit and back in 1988 and '89. It's gotten worse, dirtier, and less organized!
I'll pass thank you.
3) Drive. Very doable. Fast. Saves time. But, stopping for the night will involve a hotel or at best a full service camp ground. A car sitting in a parking lot overnight is no fun to sleep it. I find the cost of full service camping to be very very offensive, considering that a few miles from my house, I can get a hotel for less! Yeah it's a dive, but for the price, I'll take it! And as for time to think, self-reflect, meet new people, etc etc. Well, you have about 40 hours total, round trip, and maybe 500 people you'll be exposed to. Of them, you'll be lucky to find 5 who even take the time to meet a stranger.
I'll pass thank you.
All 3 of these have one thing in common. They do not allow you to focus on the journey, only the destination. They are all very task oriented - the task of getting where you are going. Today we spend so much time rushing everywhere for everything that we have little time for to see anything anywhere.
For this journey, I get to take time. It's about the journey at least as much as the destination, tho the destination is indeed part of the journey.
And when it comes to those 3 methods, people say them for only a few reasons. Either they cant fathom someone doing that at all, or they find the journey to be nothing more that an inconvenience. Both are very sad.
Today we think we have to get there as fast as possible. Well, a bicycle ain't fast. 25mph is about the reasonable max, whether its a meat motor or a gasoline motor. But I am going to burn over 6000 calories a day. How many did you burn today? Better yet, how many did you consume? If you are the average american, your fat, out of shape, and struggle with your weight and body image constantly. You have fat clothes, skinny clothes and clothes you cant ever imagine being small enough to get into again. Your cholesterol and blood pressure is too high, you take prescriptions daily, and usually several. You walk from the house to the car to the job to the car to the restaurant for lunch to the car to the job to the car to the house. Or you run your family all over. In the mini-van.
When was the last time you took a multivitamin? A jog? A bike ride? Lifted weights? Ate fresh spinach? Turned down a scoop of ice cream? Watched the sun rise over some majestic bluff? Drank enough water? Got enough sleep? Did yoga?
You will climb yourself into a 300 horsepower SUV that get 20 MPG, drive it less than 40 miles in a day, eating prepackaged and fast food constantly, gaining more and more weight and getting worse health wise, cause more pollution with your car in a day than I will in 6 months of pedaling my bike, and I am the one who is crazy for my transportation choices? When was the last time you walked that mile to the grocery store? Why do we think that it's reasonable to drive a car 4 blocks to the convenience store because we ran out of milk?
You know, there was a time when people used the mode of transportation that made sense for the job at hand. The average american can chose easily between several types of transportation. Foot, bicycle, scooter, motorcycle, car, SUV or minivan, pickup, and maybe a cube van. Each has its use and purpose. Trouble is, you think speed and comfort are all that matters. In fact, you have allowed your life to develop to the point where speed and comfort have to matter most in transportation. Well, as any racer knows "Speed costs. How fast do you want to go?". The tragedy here is that when you pick speed and comfort over health and wellness and environment and stewardship, you still have a destination. You're racing to a miserable and early death. In the end, I promise you that won't be comfortable. Is that anyplace you want to go fast to?
