The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

It's magical episode 444 of The Pedalshift Project, and we're marking the occasion with a proper Oregon Coast adventure! In part one of two, longtime friend of the show Brock Dittus joins on a hobgoblin of a ride. On this episode: northbound coastal riding, alternate routes off 101, questionable mileage math, damp gear, coffee stops, headwinds, the Five-Timers Club, and the operating phrase of the...

After a restful night at Huckleberry Hill, it was time to ride back to DC. But a beautiful Sunday on the C&O usually means a crowded trail… would that slow down my ability to get home?

We are SO back. On this edition, the preview episode for the first Oregon Coast trip that doesn't require me to fly thousands of miles. Added bonus: Brock frieking Dittus is going to be returning to the podcasting airwaves for this one as we ride a portion of the Oregon coast. As usual… there are question marks for any ride I ride, so we'll cover them here.

Another micro Seattle adventure before summer really kicks off (more on that next episode)... this week, we go on another ferry-fueled adventure to nearby Vashon Island to explore the cycling, the town and... pinball? Yes. Pinball.

A little more space to explore Seattle before we kick off the first true summer cycling adventure - this week I head out the front door of my place on the Safari (finally!) to put it through the paces around Lake Union and the UW campus!

After a nice night at the cabin, the second day looked to be a wet one… with forecasts of dangerous winds whipping the trail. Calling an audible seems to be the plan, but would there be another more mechanical issue that might be an impediment to making the final camp of the trip? Originally podcast May 25, 2023 .

Seattle is starting to feel less like a move and more like home base. With the long stretch of travel beginning to slow down, this week's episode looks ahead to what summer adventure might look like from the Pacific Northwest. That includes rediscovering hiking and backpacking, exploring Seattle neighborhoods, and starting to sketch out bike camping possibilities in Oregon and Washington. The Peda...

On this edition, we go to the Windy City, and it was windy , and we ride around a little bit and walk around a little bit and do a little bit of discovery. A cool neighborhood, Wicker Park, and just discovery of things that are cool in the midst of my May adventures.

On this edition, we hop off the bike for a bit to chat about some non-cycling adventures I'm in the middle of this month! As you all know I'm a huge music fan, and as my big move and other transitions have pretty much crossed the finish line, I circled this month as a way to celebrate with some music and travel. Will a bike make an appearance? Maybe, but the journey is the fun part so let's show o...

Having said adieu to the C&O, let's revisit the spring 2023 ride of the C&O towpath for the next few months? Back then we had stellar conditions for riding. But with the Paw Paw tunnel closed, the trail posed a hefty challenge for someone with a fully loaded bike to push. But the Park Service said there's a shuttle, right? Originally podcast May 18, 2023 .

The C&O has been a recurring spine of the show for years, from early episodes with zeroes in front of the numbers through bigger runs like DC to Cincinnati , and C&O But Slow . The show is now pointing toward Seattle, rightsizing bikes, and the new basecamp but I have one more ride on the C&O and one more ride on a special bike that I've pedaled all over the country.

Continuing more discovery of the Seattle area by bike and transit… this time it's a completely new to me place in Bainbridge Island! The real feature of course is the ferry, since we all know I love me a ferry. Some aquatic guest stars followed by Brompton riding in the town by the ferry terminal was a nice introduction, all shared here on the pod!

The weather is getting better, and I have bikes on hand... it's time to explore more of Seattle by bike! On this edition we start kind of big - crossing Lake Washington via the floating bridge by bike. Plus bonus Lunar New Year festivals! Lake Washington Crossing Mercer Island to Pioneer Square Floating bridge and testing light rail Bonus lunar new year soundscapes!

The bike is in Seattle safe and sound, but the adventure getting it here? We have things to talk about! On this episode the takeaways from Minimal California! Takeaways I really really like going with less Panniers have their place Riding in the rain can be fun, but not if it weren't planning for it Try the random cantina every time Bike bags are great but they have an expiration date

Hey we have some production delays on the latest episode, so look for that within the next few days... but to ensure your earballs get a regular Thursday listen, here's a special best of that goes ALL the way back to the leading 0 era! 

Look, we all know there's some inherent risk in bikepacking, bike touring and even bike commuting. Between bad infrastructure and inattentive drivers, we assume some degree of risk every time we're in the saddle. But as with anything, there are things we can do to make our bicycle adventures safer than by doing nothing. On this episode, some thoughts on all the things you can do to have a safer ri...

A fun night adjacent to the Happiest Place on Earth, but work to do on the final day of the adventure. A scouted ride to Orange County airport seemed easy, then challenging, then maybe easy again. But there's been a peculiar lack of drama on this podcast that tends to have unnecessary drama in the trips. I wonder… could we find some?   Statistics   Miles biked 27 Zippers broken 2 Yards of tape use...

A flight to San Diego and operation get my bike to Seattle begins! Sunny Southern California lures me in with perfect… wait, what's that? Rain all day? In San Diego? That tracks. Day 1 of the experiment that is Minimal California has a soggy start and a magical finish, because all winter bike trips lead to Disney parks right?   Statistics   Miles biked 25+2=27 Busses 1 Trains 1 Water bottles neede...

Welcome back from Winter Break! I was busy while we revisited some classic adventures, and went off and had a brand new one. On this edition, we preview Minimal California, a pared down adventure with a purpose, a destination, and... would you believe things that went awry? I should have shownotes but I'm still on winter break mode... it's a good episode and you should listen to it!

Enough of my tour journals, let's shake it up and bring in special guest star and longtime friend of the show, Pedalshift Society member Brock Dittus in on a tour of not the Oregon coast! Brock travels solo through some of the steepest riding in the state, fueled by fried spicy goodness. Would that be enough to handle the climbs and our old nemesis, wildfire smoke? Originally podcast July 13, 2023...

With my proper trail bike in the shop but a real need to get out for an overnight, I turned to a C&O newbie… my trusty 12″ wheeled, very orange Brompton as my chariot to an urban(ish) stealth camping overnight. Would the trail chew up the Brompton? Would my orange gear prove too, well, orange for stealth camping? If you can't get your adventure by the liter these days, may as well do it in sips… O...

In the second of a two-parter, it's Pedalshift Tour Journals: Vol. 9: Olympic Peninsula! Join me and my trusty Brompton for 4 days of transit-aided bicycle touring from Washington, DC to Seattle to the Olympic Peninsula and wrapping things up in Astoria, Oregon. This week features a more-challenging-than-expected short mileage day, a visit to Kurt Cobain's riverfront hangout, and a long bridge ser...

In the first of a two-parter during winter break, it's Pedalshift Tour Journals: Vol. 9: Olympic Peninsula! Join me and my trusty Brompton for 4 days of transit-aided bicycle touring from Washington, DC to Seattle to the Olympic Peninsula and wrapping things up in Astoria, Oregon. This week features the machinations of getting from DC to a tent in the shadows of the Olympic Mountains (if there wer...

Every once in a while it's nice to look back on where it all came from – on this edition, we explore the evolution of bike touring gear from the beginning of the modern era in the 1970s through today's high tech enhancements to bikepacking and more. Plus, a nod to what the future might hold with new materials and tech to make bicycle adventuring more fun and accessible! Originally podcast June 22,...

One more episode before we take a little winter break (with some great best of's!) we do our annual setting of goals. This year we mix in one non-cycling goal on top of the others. Hey if I hit all of these it's going to be a great year! Adventure Goals for 2026 Continued fitness upgrades Oh Canada! New bike(s) Ultralight gear and ultralight tours A Brompton adventure Seattle S24Os Big toe dip: ba...