Archive for the ‘St. Louis to Boulder’ Category

A Mile High

Saturday, January 16th, 2010


This is a blog I wrote when I rode a bicycle across the country… I am moving it here from cycling4acause.org to preserve it in a single location! Enjoy! xxop

pete eich and scott hunthausen in the flat lands awaiting the rockies
i swear there are mountains out there.
eric broberg and scott hunthausen in the city centre of denver
heart of city centre

October 15, 2008

The Rockies were a tremendous sight to see for the team today as they ascended the last of the 5000 foot high foothills before reaching the city of Denver. Morale was great as the riders never thought they would ever want to ride up mountains so bad after so many days in the flat lands and prairies. They look forward to the town of Denver and Boulder, the Coors Brewery and possibly doing a little hiking in the area.

Nighttime Centurion Denver Dash Extravaganza!

Saturday, January 16th, 2010


This is a blog I wrote when I rode a bicycle across the country… I am moving it here from cycling4acause.org to preserve it in a single location! Enjoy! xxop

scott hunthausen and pete eich and their rain gear
seamsters pete eich and scott hunthausen prepare for the dickens
Olin Patterson and his expensive new rain gear
Olin’s expensive new rain gear

October 14, 2008

In an effort to make up for lost time due to the torrential weather that put the team behind schedule, the team decided on an endurance ride of 100 miles that would take place through the night. The team was off to a great start, but fatigue and exhaustion set in heavy as they were battling temperatures in the mid 20′s before deciding to call it a night. They aptly stopped at a town called Last Chance on mile 68 of the 100 mile ride at 2 am in the morning. Maybe a town called Last Chance was a sign they needed to stop, needless to say, they took it as an omen and pulled off the road through the desolation of eastern Colorado.

Unamimous Decision for the Winner: Pete Eich

Saturday, January 16th, 2010


This is a blog I wrote when I rode a bicycle across the country… I am moving it here from cycling4acause.org to preserve it in a single location! Enjoy! xxop

winner pete eich fixes a wheel spoke
pete eich uses ingenuity to overcome in the face of adversity

October 14, 2008

Finding spare bicycle parts in Kansas and eastern Colorado is basically impossible. Their is not an adequate bicycle shop between Kansas City and Denver, and the team knew this fact fully before embarking on that 700 mile passage. However, what the team did not plan on was the terrible head winds and weather that put a huge damper on the estimated time it would take to cross an area where no supplies could be accessible if something were to go wrong. And it is the way that the world works that if there is going to be a place where things fall apart quickly why not have it smack in the middle of a ten day voyage to the next bicycle shop? That is exactly what happened when Scott Hunthausen’s back wheel decided it didn’t want to work anymore by snapping three spokes at once. Having exhausted their supply of spokes, Peter was able to find spokes that were an inch longer and tie overhand knots in them to get Scott’s wheel back to working. Even though the judges have not decided on the awards completely, there was a unanimous vote for Most Valuable Rider being Peter Eich. The team can agree, without him they’d be freezing on the side of a road some where in middle Kansas.

Prairie Fever

Saturday, January 16th, 2010


This is a blog I wrote when I rode a bicycle across the country… I am moving it here from cycling4acause.org to preserve it in a single location! Enjoy! xxop

water tower
climbing rickety old water towers after midnight in the freezing middle west
scott hunthausen, prairie fever climbs a water tower
scott hunthausen at 200 feet in the air

October 12, 2008

Strange things can happen to someone who rides the same road and sees the same sea of corn for eight days in a row. Maybe it is like the story of Sisyphus who was forced in Greek mythology to forever push up a stone that would just roll back down for eternity, but the team was beginning to feel like they were trapped in a sick and demented time warp that would forever keep them riding through an endless flatland. As time went on, the guys began to take somewhat unnecessary risks like free climbing 200 foot ladders to board 100 year old water towers in the middle of the night when the temperature was nearing freezing, and calling home to their friends yelling “Wow, I just did the most amazing thing ever and climbed a water tower!” The only reply they seemed to get was in concern of their over-ambition, Colorado Rockies had to come fast.

Salvation Colorado

Saturday, January 16th, 2010


This is a blog I wrote when I rode a bicycle across the country… I am moving it here from cycling4acause.org to preserve it in a single location! Enjoy! xxop

salvation colorado
sweet sight of Colorado!

October 10, 2008

A huge detour to go as far north as Boulder mixed with a record storm in the area has delayed the team considerably. However, this afternoon they did manage to make it out of Kansas, a place they thought they were destined to be stuck to, and work at getting back lost time as morale peaked in the new state they were in.

Lets Blow Something Up

Saturday, January 16th, 2010


This is a blog I wrote when I rode a bicycle across the country… I am moving it here from cycling4acause.org to preserve it in a single location! Enjoy! xxop

olin patterson and a shot gun in kansas
Olin Patterson shot himself a chair
eric broberg shoots his first gun
eric broberg first gun and he goes for the magnum
pete eich has those crazy eyes
pete had that crazy look in his eyes
scott hunthausen and his shot gun
scott hunthausen in proper hunting attire
olin patterson, eric broberg, scott hunthausen, pete eich, virgil in goodland kansas
prepared to shoot the abandoned barn behind them

October 10, 2008

What Kansas lacks in colorful scenery it makes up for in colorful people. While stranded on the side of the road yesterday in a terrible rainstorm they were stopped by a man driving by who said he would offer them a place to dry off until the rain had subsided. Needless to say, the rain did not subside and the team spent a wonderful day and night at a gentleman named Virgil’s house learning all about the Kansan way of life. They had some wonderful refreshments, shot many a hand gun, rifle, elephant gun, missile launcher, etc. and enjoyed touring the town in a nice 50 foot RV to their own private boogie dance party. The guys learned that even though the Kansas landscape may be a bit blase, Kansans sure make the best of what they have. The boys left recharged the next morning with full bellies, warm clothes, and experts at just about 50 different types of fire arms.