Cycling India

Our flight arrived in New Delhi, things went smoothly. No problems with our bikes getting here. The driver from the hotel meet us at the airport and soon took us away to the hotel. Upon arriving at the hotel, the car we were in passes through the security and they look under the hood. Arriving at the hotel entrance all our bags are taken from us and put through an x-ray machine. We pass through an x-ray machine to enter the hotel too. Everyone is very helpful asking us how our travels went. There is constant checking with us to see if everything is OK and that we have everything we need. It was about 4:00 am, Jan 25, when we got to our hotel room. We jumped in bed to rest for a few hours. Later in the day we went out with a friend of a friend on the hunt for raw silk and fabric to have an outfit made at the tailor. Not a traditional outfit, but a basic pair of pants, top and over jacket to wear to a special occasion in August. There are 1000’...

Departing from the remolded Portland airport. Wow what an improvement. The whole area where you check in for your flights has been greatly improved. High ceilings and wide open spaces, lots of light streaming in, plants and artwork everywhere. I could not really take any photos that would do it justice. You can read about it here and see photos. https://www.zgf.com/work/5683-port-of-portland-pdx-airport-main-terminal-expansion We, my friend Jackie and I, arrived 4 hours before our flight because I was a bit nervous about checking my bicycle in. I had heard horror stories from other people coming on the tour that at certain airports they had to open their bike box and unpack it and repack it right there at check in. Not so at the Portland International Airport. Easy breezy it was quick simple and painless. Flight on to Seattle, up in the air and down before we knew it. Now on the flight that will take us towards our destination. Fourteen hours to Doh and then another three hour flight f...

Now that the big day is soon approaching, I thought I'd give a brief look into my preparation I took to get ready for this tour. I'm a relatively new cycler.  I started road cycling in May of 2022, when I started riding with my local group here in town called GEARS .  I purchased my first used road bike, a Specialized Roubaix from my friend Karen and the rest is history.  I was hooked and began riding on a regular basis.  GEARS is a super supportive group of riders and they have really made a difference in my motivation to get out and ride on a regular basis, good weather and bad weather.  One evening, GEARS offered a presentation from another member, by the name of Cindy, who had gone on a tour to Patagonia with TDA Global Cycling.  I went to Cindy's presentation and was inspired by her and transfixed by the idea of going on one of these long adventure tours.  Cindy has been on several tours with this same company and had great experiences with them ...

Greetings friends and family, Many of you have asked me to send pictures and updates from my upcoming trip to India.  This is my attempt to make that happen.  I plan to post and upload photos as often as I can, maybe daily, maybe every few days.  We'll see how tired I am at the end of the cycling day! 😓 I will be flying out on Jan 23, 2025 on my very first BIG adventure cycling tour.  Everyone around me knows how nervous and anxious I am about this.  Many of you have helped me get ready, given me technical support, ( DeSalvo Custom Bicycles - custom frame)  ( Hutch's Bicycles  - bike components and fitting), helped my physical conditioning ( Profound Strength ), ( Robyn Pester - physical therapy) given me encouragement and told me everything will be OK!   Thanks everyone, I needed all of that. To see information on the tour you can find it here on TDA Global Cycling - Hippie Trail 2025 .  There you will find more information and a descript...