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Frequently Asked Questions

Haslips@aol.com asks: How many riders have dropped out?
Officially we are told we have lost 10 riders - just over 1%. Not bad considering how hard the ride is physically and mentally. But everyone trained hard and really wants to finish. Most have left because of knee and other repetitive injuries.

Colonial3@juno.com asks: how does your butt feel? We pledge $ 100 total send bill How much water do yo use a day. to boldly go where no one has gone before....much...the only thing to fear is .......... fear itself - not flat tires and dangerous drivers.
Our butts are finally "in gear". Have learned to avoid gel pants on gel seat on days over 70 miles. Bad combination. The heat is worse than anything else. Thanks Kaneft for the pledge.

ray_kulp@hp.com asks: Now that you've been on the road for 17 days, would you chose a different bike, or bike equipment (seat)?
That's a tough call. The racing bikes are MUCH lighter and faster, but they have many more flats, are more fragile (i.e., when sagged), and can't carry as much gear (extra clothing, etc.). Our bikes are very stable over rough road/gravel/packed dirt, and we aren't good enough bicyclists to justify the weight difference.

markwood@microsoft.com asks: Are you biking with a Walkman and, if so, what are you listening to?
No walkman allowed on the ride. Really, when you are on a highway with trucks passing you at 75mph, you want all your senses - especially your hearing. We did bring a cd-player and reading lights - but mailed them home when we didn't have time to use them. We were going to sleep while the sun was still up. - Kevin

joeb@microsoft.com asks: What kind of computer are you carrying with you to update this web site, and is it worth it??
We are currently using a digital HiNote laptop. Picture editing on anything smaller turned out to be difficult. We have a jazz drive to backup the digital pictures, which are taken with a Kodak DC210. Everything is packed in foam in rubbermaid containers. Despite the difficulties of finding power and a phone line, we would have kept a journal anyway - and keeping a web site lets all our friends and family keep up to date on our progress. So yes - it's worth it. We do get tired of other riders asking us to send pictures for them and such. Hard enough just keeping our site up to date.

Q. How water bottles we have drunk:
We are each average 1 bottle every 10 miles while cycling, and 1 additional at each pit stop (3 a day). Total about 10-15

Q. How many times we have washed our clothes?
Once so far

Q. When do we get up?
4:45am every day

Q. How long are we on our bikes?
9-12 hours depending on mileage, wind, and hills.

Q. When do we go to bed?
9pm

Q. Which smells worse - portable toilets or roadkill?
Toss-up.