Post-1-The early stages of preparations
My name is Jeremiah Watt and the full time KEEPER of this blog, age 57 at the time of this writing. I am a saddle maker and silversmith when I am not pedaling my bike. Let me take a moment to introduce my son Pine,age 21, a 4th year student at San Jose State University here in California.
The aim of the ride, to circumnavigate the world in the safest manner possible by pedal power.
We ride Surly Long Haul Truckers- LHT’s as they will be called in other places on this blog. we will camp more often than stay in Hotels, I affectionately call this a “Hairy Legged Man Tour”- Townies need not apply. I have estimated 10 months to complete the trip. More to come about all the gear and what not that we used on this adventure- for another day as they say.
Pine will be traveling with me for those first 90 plus days of the cycling trip, as we circumnavigate God’s Creation. The intention is to start in Qingdao China, as coastal resort community and begin heading west from that point till we arrive in Lisbon Portugal. And from Lisbon we fly to USA and cross the USA in winter, so it shall be along the southern route that we ride.
This is not meant to be a true equatorial mileage ride, but rather a ride planned to keep us in a reasonably safe area of the hectic world we find ourselves living in, and still travel around the world. The route takes us north thru China, then into Mongolia mostly north by west to Russia. We will ride threw the barren rough Altai Krai region and on into the Ukraine. It is roughly planned that Pine will then pack his gear and fly from Kiev home so he can conclude his 4th year of study at San Jose State where he is a majoring in International Business.
This post simply introduces the idea and plans that have been made so far. We are busy getting used to our bikes and all the gear such as panniers that attach to them. It’s all pretty new to us, we are both pretty fit…………..I think? Ready for this new adventure to start. I began over 2 years ago getting serious about lifting weights every day in prep for the amount of upper body mass that is lost on a extended tour such as this. I will be leaving with a little extra “CYCLING PUDGE” as a cushion to start, I currently tip the scale at 215 pounds.
I am an amateur photographer at best, but will do my best to post images that give you the reader/follower a sense of what it was like to be in our sweaty shoes or nearly frozen sleeping bags. I am a terrible writer as my grade 12 English teacher told me, but I do promise to write something about each day. If it happens that there is the chance smelling mistake, maybe bad punturation or grammer………….get used to it- after all it my blog.
You know when I first conceived this ride I thought about doing something along with it to fix the world we are told is falling apart. After a little research I realized that everyone doing anything like this or milder is out to gather money and save the world. It’s so bad out there now that we have to invent problems to solve in order to seem remotely viable as a charity blog. I have come to the conclusion that anytime you strike on a blog pertaining too ADVENTURE……………….it follows by a tug on yer purse strings. NOT MINE . Its not because I don’t care about this planet nor the people/flora/fauna ( did I miss anyone/anything in my disclaimer, if I did then mentally add them in would’ya) that tread upon it. Because I do, but I think society is hit on every front with a plea for MONEY to change things that can only truly change with the condition of the heart and not the pocket book. So this is just a bout a father and son, pedaling bikes around the world, enjoying that which God created, meeting the people of different regions and cultures to share in theirs and to in turn share ours with them should they want to know. Nothing more, nothing less.
12 Responses to “Post-1-The early stages of preparations”
Hi Stacy, we are back to a little civilization and have wifi, so a quick thanks for reposting. Glad you are enjoying and following along. Have to say, that Mongolia is one of, if not these oldest existing horse culture in the world…..and it has not moved 1 inch forward in those thousands of years.pretty sad what you see. Anyways, we remian optimistic and in Prayer each day so far it has treated us just fine. Thanks again, say hello to all from Pine and I.
[…] then back to USA and across the USA in winter. For more detail tour info check out his first blog post which goes into more […]
Jeremiah,
We enjoyed seeing Colleen in Sheridan; however, we missed you! Hope you are enjoying your trek and are staying safe. Marcia and I will keep you in our prayers. It was such a shock to hear of Don’s passing–so sorry for the loss of your dear friend. The memorial service at the fairgrounds was such a fitting tribute to a him, with many great saddle makers & leather artists in attendance.
May the Lord give you grace, strength, and endurance over the many miles!
John Kelley
Hi Jeremiah,just want to wish you and Pine the best of luck for the trip,if you make a detour to South Africa you are welcome to come visit us,may the LORD keep you safe and healthy through your journey,enjoy it!
regards
Jaco Burger
South Africa
Well Deahl, when I met you I didn’t want to know who Christ was, and I know I had no plans on riding my bike around the world. Happy to say that I have met Christ and have accepted him as my Savior…………I just hope the bike trip works out as well. Look forward to the aid of your Prayers, and reading your comments.
Hello Bill, we will be glad to have you along for the tour as many days as you can stand my complaining about how sore my butt is or how bad my cooking is. I will most likly starve to death, since I have no place to make my award winning biscuits. I have not bought the One Spot item you suggested, but that will happen soon. Thanks again for your friendship and suggestions.
When we talked about your excursion in Emporia I dont know if you’d chosen the LHT’s as your steeds of choice but they should be good ones. Surly’s are known to be pretty tough and utilitarian and you’ll sure be needing that. One of my compadres here in Amarillo has one. There’s no telling what kind of mechanical challenges you’re gonna face but that’s all part of the adventure. I also wasn’t aware that Pine was going to be along for part of the journey. That’s great! I’m glad there’ll be two of you starting out at least, you know “two heads are better than one!”
So, I too will be pedalling along with you in spirit and really look forward to the tales you have to tell. You’re being way to modest about your writing and photographic skills. There’s probably an opportunity for a book or movie (The Long Way Around,) out there somewhere in the future.
Vay ya con Dios amigo!
I am so proud of you and Pine for actually finalizing and doing this trip. Can’t wait to hear all your tales and adventures! Love you so much.
Go for it! Sending well wishes and blessings from Clovis, CA via Round Rock, Texas!
Hey, Jeremiah. I bookmarked your page. I’ll be following!
Can’t wait to ride along with you on the blog!
Around the world. Hmmmmm. Well good luck on your adventure. Not something I would’ve thought of you when we first met. Course didn’t think of myself where I ended up either back then. I look forward to your posts and pictures.