getting ready for bed...ExOfficio Protected...thank goodness for BUZZ OFF!!

It has been a wild ride the last couple of days…I guess I’ll start with two days ago we started out skipping breakfast and getting on the road close to 8am, with the plan of stopping for breakfast later into the ride.  The ride out of Simatai was up a mountain..beautiful scenery, with the Great Wall to our left or in front of us the entire morning.  About 8 miles into the morning we decided to stop for breakfast in a small town. Doven was looking around the street trying to figure out the good place for us to eat?  He chose a dicey looking place that did not look inviting.  I was apprehensive to eat at this restaurant, I voiced my opinion..but we decided to eat there anyway.  To no surprise the food was less then acceptable?  We were introduced to Jason’s new found gag reflex and Kevin once again muscled through whatever was put in front of him.  Ian and I only ate the humbow buns which we jokingly said were filled with dog meat?  With that joke Jason gagged again and didn’t eat anything else.  Needless to say it was another awesome experience here in China.

Jason is still being brave at this point...

Back on the road…  more hills, beautiful scenery, great riding! The roads got a little hairy, really bumpy, which is not good for our seemingly fragile bikes?

Kevin is taking in the view on top of the mountain we just climbed. There was a really cool Buddhist temple at the top.

About 35 miles into the ride my wheel blew out.  I broke two spokes which resulted in me not being able to ride any further.  Ian tried his hardest to get the trusty kevlar rope spoke tool thingy to work, but it was not successful.

Doven Lu in action

We still had 40 miles to ride to our destination and we are out in the middle of nowhere.  This is where Doven went to work trying to find me a ride to our destination.  At this point the entire village was out to see what was happening on the road.  Curiosity risen. Doven was able to find someone who would be able to drive me to Chengde.  The bargaining ensued.  45 minutes of conversation resulted in a price of 260 yuan ( ~$38).  We loaded up the bike and all of the extra luggage into the van.  Everyone seemed a little nervous to let me go off by myself in some stranger’s van in the middle of nowhere in China.  Unable to communicate…I went anyway.  No other option.  Seemed safe enough to me?  Gave our American hugs, and said goodbye.  Doven gave the instructions to the driver and we were off to Chengde.  I wasn’t nervous at all, the guys seemed nice enough.  And as it turned out they were really cool.  They took me through a shortcut with more amazing views. Breathtaking!  We arrived in Chengde in about 45mins, found the hotel, and went to check-in with no success.  To our surprise foreigners were not allowed to stay in that hotel.  Due to the Olympics, foreigners are only allowed to stay in certified hotels…the LoLo hotel was not certified?  Back on the phone with Doven he was able to arrange another hotel and off I went with the driver to the next hotel.  Checked in with no problem.  Made it!  Now lets get the bike fixed.

Rest day in Chengde…. I woke up early again about 5am with a welcomed call from my lovely Danielle.  It was great to talk with her.  I Love you D!  After our conversation I went back to bed…then woke back up around 7am for breakfast.  Went to breakfast alone..the other guys were still asleep.  Once again..Breakfast was an experience in its self.  Being the only foreigner at breakfast everyone is interested in what I am eating, what I am reading…just more curiosity.  I love it!

Our mission of the day was to get the wheels fixed, explore, relax, and get some footage.  We found the bike shop with no problem got the wheels fixed for $10.

After only 5 days of riding we have had 4 flat tires, 3 broken spokes, and lots of wobbly wheels. Needless to say..we are getting really good at fixing our bikes?

We found a great place to get a cappuccino.  We also found a great place to get a massage.  We were introduced to ‘cupping’, Chinese traditional treatment for rejuvenation of the body.  Heated glass ‘cups’ suctioned to our backs.

Kevin enjoying a beer after his massage and cupping. Probably not the best combination? but it looks like it hurt...

China is great!  Back on the road bright and early!

Well….Where do I begin? I haven’t made a post since just before we left Beijing, so there’s a lot of catching up to do. Unfortunately I’m very tired after completing a strenuous 70 miles today (and over 200 total for the trip so far), so I’ll have to keep this relatively brief…But the good news is, we have finally reached our first break day in Chengde, so there are definitely more posts to come as everyone has their own individual stories to tell. I’m going to try to give a brief recap of our first 4 days on the road, put up some pics for everyone to check out, and then get a long, much-needed rest. So here we go…

We left Beijing on Monday, which was a National holiday here in China. The weather was beautiful (90+ and sunny) and spirits were high, despite the very little sleep we got the night before. Our fearless guide, Doven Lu, showed up at our hotel at 9am and we got on the road by 10…

The Man Zou Team

At 11:00am, I had my first accident…no joke. We came up to a light on the outskirts of the city and I couldn’t get out of my peddle and down I went. I had just put a mirror on my bike (to be able to see cars approaching from behind), which was destroyed in the accident…Not exactly the best way to start the adventure.

My first, and hopefully last accident.

Within a few hours we were out of town and the landscape quickly transformed from urban to rural. Everything was going great until we hit “the mountain.” It was seriously intense. After a few miles of climbing, I completely ran out of gas and had to stop as the heat, weight on the bicycles, lack of sleep, and the seemingly endless mountain ahead collectively broke me down….I couldn’t believe it: the first day and I was unable to go any further….But after a long rest with Sean and Doven on the side of the road, we walked our bicycles for another 1/2 hour before deciding to stop at a “Holiday Inn” on the side of the mountain.

This was no ordinary Holiday Inn, however…Apparently in China, this is what they call a house with extra rooms and the ability to cook a warm meal. Anyhow, we were treated with care and we all slept well (other than being awoken to the sounds of walnuts being swept up at 5am, just outside of our rooms).

During breakfast, we made the decision to get rid of the front two bags on our biycles and 1/2 of our gear. The weight we were carrying was just too much…I guess the mountain taught us that lesson right off the bat. So we organized all of our gear and Doven told us he would arrange to send everything ahead to Shanghai…The only thing was, we had to finish climbing with everything because we had to ride to the next town that had a post office…So needless to say, Day 2 began with a bang…The great thing about climbing mountains, however, is the incredible downhills that await on the other side…Somehow it all seems worth it when you’re going 30mph down the hill, looking out over the beautiful mountains of Northeastern China.

One small section of "The Mountains" we have been riding through.

When we got to the bottom, we immediately went to the first town and happily sent away all our unnecessary items. The rest of day 2 is kind of a blur…Lots more mountains and grueling terrain, but beautiful the entire way. Check out the pic of us at one of the tallest peaks we climbed:

Riding up mountains on bicycles makes you sweat.

We decided to stop after 46 miles of hard riding, just before dark and a massive thunder/lighting storm that hit that night. The next day we awoke early to try to make up some ground and get to our next destination, Simatai. Here’s a pic of Sean, Kevin, and Doven….about to hit the road for another long day:

Another day...Will there be more mountains?

Day 3 was much more reasonable riding terrain, but just as scenic. We cycled hard to get to our destination of Simatai, with a beautiful view of the Great Wall. We took some time there to relax and enjoy the scenery (and shoot our daily interviews) over a couple of beers.

We turn the cameras on Cinematographer Ian Connors for his first interview ever...Up on the hill, you can see the Great Wall.

Day 4 we pushed it really hard, going over 70 miles (and only a few mountains!). Unfortunately, one of Sean’s spokes broke and we had to negotiate a ride with the locals in a small village as his bike wasn’t rideable (more to come about this experience tomorrow). The good news, however, was that we were able to put all of our bags into the car with Sean and we were able to cycle much faster (which ultimately enabled us to get to our destination tonight). And now, alas…our first rest day.

Anyhow, that’s all I got for now…Time to go to bed…More to come soon.

Thanks again to all our sponsors and Man Zou!

Reidster getting checked out by one of the locals on a break.

Farewell  Beijing.. Hello mountains!

After spending two amazing nights in Beijing we have finally started the bicycle leg of our adventure.  Its been an absolute blast getting out on the road riding but… “did anyone know about these damn mountains!?” Our first two days have consisted of mountain passes that could only be compared to some mountain stages in the Tour de France. These are definitely the most burly mountains that I have ever ridden and the extra hundred pounds strapped to our bikes didn’t make it any easier. Fortunately the most difficult climbs of our trip, so far, have produced the greatest scenery. The mountains and valleys out side Beijing are absolutely incredible and I’m excited for more, more, more!

Scrambling to piece it all together so we can get out of Beijing

Our first taste of the Great Wall!