Day Two: Anacortes to Arlington; Tires, Umbrellas, and of course Beer

After catching a few winks at the hotel, it was morning again way too soon and time to resume our journey and my longest distance effort ever: forty miles. We got started only a few minutes behind schedule on the beautiful and well-used Tommy Thompson Trail in Anacortes, where within less then a quarter-mile one of my cycling companion's (Josh Blaustein) tire tube popped! I and my other cyclist (Josh Sutcliffe) continued on, leaving Blaustein behind to change out his tube and catch up. The Tommy Thompson Trail was beautiful! Nice and flat, with great views of the water and a flock of Great Blue Herons. Dodging the occasional broken shell dropped by gulls, we reached the end of the trail and were ready to start using the umbrella since I got a little more sun than I wanted yesterday. That lasted for about half a mile before a giant gust of wind turned the umbrella inside out while crossing a busy intersection, because episodes like that require an audience. The road ahead was in the shade, fortunately, so we put the umbrella away and rolled on.

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This stretch of road-rolling lasted twenty-eight miles. I must say the conditions were less than ideal: many miles on highways with little to no shoulder and steep drop-offs. I'm very happy to report that the drivers were polite and passed us with plenty of room.

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As the day wore on and got warmer, we thought we'd give the umbrella another try. Thanks to Blaustein's ingenuity, we managed to make it work which really increased my level of comfort. We pulled over in someone's driveway for adjustments (and a few mouthfuls of chips and salsa, as one does), and the person who lived there came out to check out what was going on. We chatted for a while before continuing, finding out later that she's now following our journey!

We found a great place for lunch, recommended by a few local cyclists and our new driveway salsa friend, called The Rexville Grocery. The sandwich (and beer) was very tasty, but I was really impressed with how accommodating the owner was. I continue to be blown away by how friendly those we meet are; perhaps it's the wonky umbrella?

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After miles through farmland and winding forested roads, crossing the green Skagit River twice, it was time to swap chairs before I used up my battery. The transition takes a little getting used to, but like a NASCAR pit crew my team got me back on the road in no time.

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Not too far past my previous distance record (thirty miles), we found The Centennial Trail for the last nine miles of the day. What a treat, especially after so much time in car traffic! We cruised along, tired but happy to be in such a lovely environment. It was so much quieter than the road, which was very convenient for my 6:30 call-in to KSQM FM, when I give listeners my daily live updates. Just as we were wrapping up the conversation, I looked up and saw what could only be interpreted as an omen: a big flag with the words "Craft Beer" written on it. Not one to argue with fate, we rolled into the Whiskey Ridge Brewing pub for some delicious libations. Bonus: new shirts for the crew to wear tomorrow!

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Tonight I'm staying at my good friend's house (also named Ian) and am really looking forward to getting some rest. So would my mom, who put a little over two-hundred miles on the odometer of the van (with one minor run-in with The Law) taxiing our stuff to-and-fro. So with that, good night and see you on the trail!

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Day 1: Port Angeles to Anacortes; Boats, Pigs and Beers

  Day 1 began with family giving us (myself, Adam, Josh S., and Josh B.) an energetic send off as we boarded the Coho to Victoria, Canada.  Thank you Blackball Ferries for comping our rides.  Once we arrived, we were moved to the front of the line which got us through customs quickly, and we were able to start putting miles on the chair/bikes.

Navigating through downtown Victoria presented our biggest challenge of the day trying to find the start of the Galloping Goose trail.  Once on the trail, it was smooth sailing all the way to Sidney.   Some highlights along the road included multiple honor-system produce stands, very large and  happy (rolling in mud) pigs, a very impressive remote control airplane show, and a tasty lunch at Harvest Road Farm to Table Grill.

Along the trail we met many friendly people interested in our journey and also eager to share knowledge about the trail and specific points along the way to keep an eye out for.  Once in Sidney we met a local woman, Mary Lynn and her dog Gracie and spent time talking about the ride and why we are here.  She was very sweet and wished us luck on our journey as we said goodbye.  A few minutes later she returned with a generous cash donation.

After lunch and a quick tour around Sidney, we headed to the ferry dock to get ready for our ride to Anacortes. While waiting for the ferry we met a woman from France who told us of her brother’s injury and how he has stayed active in his chair.  She also gave us a cash donation and wished us a safe trip.

After the two and half hour ferry ride we arrived in Anacortes.  We were met with a very warm welcome at Rockfish Grill & Anacortes Brewery where we had a nice dinner and some samplers.  You would think we were rockstars.  The owner gave a significant contribution to our dinner bill and gave the riders free shirts which will be on display as we ride tomorrow.  Something else that made dinner and beer taste extra special was a surprise visit from our friends and trivia teammates Terry and Tammy for Port Angeles.

It's late, and tomorrow is going to be twice as long in miles. Southward from here.

Enjoying the ferry ride

Moving to the head of the line in Victoria

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Final Route (for now)

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I was hoping to get this posted a couple days ago but came down with a nasty cold. I'm feeling much better and am looking forward to starting the trip on Saturday. I've had a ton of advice on how best to make my way through Washington and I have incorporated many of the suggestions into the route plan below. One significant change is my ride from Woodinville to Tukwila (previously Renton). I'm thinking about cheating a little bit on this day and riding from Woodinville to Seward Park and then having my support vehicle taxi me due West to the Duwamish trailhead.  It would be a more direct route and would allow me to finish the day on trails rather than roads. If anyone has a good way for me to get from Seward Park to the Duwamish trailhead without my support vehicle I'd love to hear it.

Saturday, August 13: Port Angeles to Anacortes

Sunday, August 14: Anacortes to Arlington

Monday, August 15: Arlington to Woodinville

Tuesday, August 16: Woodinville to Tukwila Part one

Tuesday, August 16: Woodinville to Tukwila Part two

Wednesday, August 17: Tukwila to Puyallup

Thursday, August 18: Puyallup to McKenna

Friday, August 19: McKenna to Bucoda

Saturday, August 20: Bucoda to Napavine

Sunday, August 21: Napavine to Castle Rock

Monday, August 22: Castle Rock to Woodland

Tuesday, August 23: Woodland to Portland

Huge thanks to everyone who has e-mailed me with route suggestions and support. I'm beginning to feel much more confident about each section.

The Proposed Route

Port Angeles to Portland

I wanted to share my route with you all in hopes of getting some feedback on each of these proposed sections of my ride. I am not real familiar with many of these sections so please e-mail me if you have suggestions on ways to better my trek to Portland. If I'm able to follow this proposed schedule I'll reach my destination three days ahead of schedule. So if you have an alternative route that adds a day or two but is safer or more scenic I'd love to hear about it. I have some specific questions I'll address after the day by day breakdown of the ride.

Port Angeles to Anacortes

Anacortes to Arlington

Arlington to Woodinville

Woodinville to Renton

Renton to North Puyallup:

North Puyallup to McKenna:

McKenna to Bucoda:

Bucoda to Napavine:

Napavine to Castle Rock:

Castle Rock to Woodland:

Woodland to Portland:

Okay, onto some questions.

I am concerned about my route through Seattle. I got some valuable advice from Aaron Taht suggesting I take the Fremont bridge, Ship Canal trail to Myrtle Edwards to the downtown waterfront. This brings me a little further west but does look to be the safer option. I'd love some feedback on Aaron's suggestion and the best way to get from the waterfront back to the STP.

I've also heard the STP route through Puyallup is kind of nasty. I'd love to hear thoughts concerning this section. There's probably a much better way through that I'm unaware of.

The STP, and my proposed route, go through Fort Lewis. From what I've heard, I won't be able to go through that way. Is this true? If so, any suggestions on alternatives here?

Finally, the STP crosses the Columbia River using the Lewis and Clark Bridge. It doesn't look like this bridge would be all that wheelchair friendly. With this in mind, I rerouted away from the STP down the 5 so as to cross the Columbia on the 205. Is this a good plan? Perhaps the Lewis and Clark bridge isn't so bad. I just don't know. I could use some advice on the best way to enter Oregon.

I appreciate the help in the route planning. I'd like to thank Matt Hixson for his help getting me from Anacortes to Arlington. I initially had a sketchy plan and he got me on a much safer option. I feel like it's finally coming together but it sure helps having people familiar with the area to offer their expertise. Please e-mail me with any and all suggestions.

Odds and Ends

I'm gearing up for the trek. It's now less than two weeks before the journey begins, and I've been busy fundraising, fine tuning routes, organizing all the moving parts, and training when possible. The logistics have been a bit trying. It's a lot of work to travel when you are a high-level quadriplegic. My "go bag" is more like a "go truckload". I'll have the second wheelchair, a ventilator, two cough assist machines, a large pushcart with all my hotel supplies, and a suitcase full of clothes. And that doesn't even include the road crews gear. It will be a fully loaded van when we leave August 13. Speaking of the van, I just recently was fortunate enough to be given a beautiful 2010 Honda Odyssey fully accessible minivan by my good friend, the man the myth the legend, Kenny Salvini. He upgraded to a newer model, and being the generous guy he is, offered me his old one. Now, for those that don't know me, I have never had anything close to a new vehicle. This minivan is the first car I've ever had that has cupholders. I believe it is 20 years newer than anything I've previously owned. It's a luxury I hadn't dreamed of, and I really can't thank Kenny enough. It's going to make this trip much more doable. Just having air-conditioning makes me feel spoiled rotten and will be invaluable on those hot days when I just need to get out of the sun for a little while.

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This past Monday, while down in Kenny's neck of the woods, he took me and our friend Jesse Collins to scout the Foothills Trail near Sumner. We were quite the sight out there. We are all paralyzed from the neck down and we all use the same model of chair. We affectionately call ourselves "face drivers" yet we all use different methods to operate our chairs. Kenny uses a head array, Jesse uses a chin drive, and I use a sip and puff. The Foothills Trail was lovely; I'd really like to incorporate it into my ride. It goes a little further east than I have planned but I could probably take it to Orting and then cut west from there. If anyone's familiar with that area I would love some suggestions.

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I brought my chair into the shop this past week to ensure that it is road ready. I needed to get a new arm/mount for my sip and puff so that both chairs were operable. They gave it a once over and declared it ready for the ride. I've been trying to switch between chairs throughout the week to confirm that they are both in equally good shape. In my opinion, they're both ready for some serious miles.

Up on Blocks

I was fortunate enough to speak with the Sequim Valley Lions Club this week and received a very warm welcome. They were very generous with their support and had many kind things to say. I can't thank them enough. I won't say much more because I believe this picture says it all.

Lions Club Donation

I've also had a number of inquiries about tax deductibility for donations to Ian's Ride. Ian's Ride is not a 501 (c) nonprofit organization. However, Washington Bikes is! I'm doing this ride to demonstrate that wheelchair users put trails and bike paths to use as much as anyone else. In doing this, I'd also like to help bring more trails and bike paths to our state. Washington Bikes is a perfect advocate for this. They are the recipient for my fundraising, so checks can be made payable to Washington Bikes if it helps.

The support I've received for this ride has been heartwarming. I've started a supporters page to mention those who've helped make this possible. I want to particularly thank the Sequim Valley Lions Club, Nelson Boyd Law, and SCIAW. They have been very supportive and I can't thank them enough for making this ride a reality. This list is in no way complete. So many people have helped with suggestions, advice, and words of wisdom. I'm thrilled to undertake this journey and really appreciate all their help. Thank you, thank you, thank you!