Saturday, November 10, 2012

Last Post

Ah... it's good to be home.

It was 66 degrees today. Seems like the weatherperson has a cruel sense of irony. All the same, I am glad to be home.

General Thoughts

I'm really glad I did the trip. I have no regrets whatsoever. And -- best of all -- I only had to wait a year from the time I started planning. I met boatloads of people, most of whom I had no idea I would meet, most of whom were incredibly kind to me. I came out with lots of stories (more than could even fit on this blog), have two new friends from Bosnia, have leads on a few jobs, can say I've taken a bath outdoors in the back yard of someone I met less than an hour beforehand, and the list goes on. I'm really happy I did this, and I can't wait to do it again. I mean, I kind of have to wait, unless money starts growing on trees or coming out of the hot water pipe. Not to mention there are other things I want to do first.

Stats

Both for fun, for my own curiosity, and to appease your inquisitiveness, here are the stats of the trip -- those I can remember, anyways.

Date departed: August 20th, 2012
Date arrived: November 2nd, 2012
Total number of days: 74
Total number of break days: 12 (9 of which were spent in Jeff City, CO, while waiting for Lisa to arrive from CT)
Nights with Warmshowers hosts: 14
Nights invited on the property of a complete stranger: ~6
Nights in a motel: ~3
Nights in a church: 1
Nights stealth camped: ~50

Total miles: 4,032
Average miles/day (excluding 12 break days): 65
Longest day: 144 miles -- Pueblo, CO to Sheridan Lake, CO; 6 AM departure, 8 PM arrival
Estimated revolutions per wheel: 3,268,164
Estimated pedal strokes: 2,513,972
Continental Touring Pluses (Tires) replaced: 1
8-speed chains used: 2

Total amount spent on room and board: $1460
90 day budget: $1800
Proportional budget for 74 actual days: $1480
Average amount spent per day (including break days): $19.72
Daily budget: $20

Next Up

After I spend the holidays at home enjoying my last "real break" before entering real life, I plan to visit India, Guatemala, and Zambia, to volunteer as a bike mechanic. I'm keeping a blog for this one too -- be sure to follow it at 90bikes90days.org/blog. This month starts more fundraising, trying to get airlines to sponsor me, and applying for an Indian visa! Don't miss out.

As far as careers go, I have an interview lined up with Epic, a healthcare technology company in Madison, WI. The position is a perfect fit, so I'm hopeful. I could end up there for a while, or I could get into bicycle advocacy and education. As far as I know right now, I would be happy doing either. Bottom line, I want to make a positive impact on the world. Maybe that makes me naive... I'm okay with that. If there is one thing this trip has done, it has shown me that kindness can never go too far. I already wanted to make the world a better place, but now I kind of have to -- all those people who gave me food, company, a place to sleep, they all said one thing:

Pass it on.



Tell me... what is it you plan to do with your one wild, precious life...?
Mary Oliver

1 comment:

  1. Congrats on your trip! Sounds wonderful!

    Good luck with your interview for Epic! I've met a couple people that work there and I've heard great things about them. If you have to travel to Madison for the interview, let me know! I'm living in the Dells but also work in Madison a day or two each week.

    -Patti

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