tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72528906062185698572024-03-17T20:03:12.363-07:0099 Gallons of GatoradeA Bar Mitzvah Bike Ride Across AmericaMatt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-52640750208290226572012-02-26T14:15:00.000-08:002012-02-26T14:15:01.116-08:00New Book, New Website!Finally, the book is here! It is renamed The Bar Mitzvah and The Beast. For more info, go to my website Matt Biers-Ariel.com. April 22 is the book launch at the US Bicycling Hall of Fame in Davis at 4:00 PM. Hope to see you there!Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-79584162640738318432010-11-30T21:25:00.000-08:002011-08-18T19:58:51.789-07:00Death of a BlogDear Friends,
Thank you so much for faithfully reading 99 GALLONS and for the wonderful feedback and encouragement you have given me. The bad news is that I am stopping the blog. The good news is that The Mountaineers will be publishing the renamed book The Bar Mitzvah and The Beast: One Family's Cross-Country Ride of Passage by Bike. It will be available in Spring of 2012.
CheersMatt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-78741183391815768602010-11-26T10:02:00.001-08:002010-11-26T10:15:27.716-08:00Chapter 22 - An Atheist Covers His BasesA good omen at dawn: the campground flags snapped in a stiff west wind. The map indicated a 2,000-foot descent to look forward to. Because of that same law about life being a zero-sum game, yesterday’s arduous ride needed to be evened out; today we would ride like Lance.
Either the gods didn’t log onto Djina’s blog to learn of our trying day or we had inadvertently upset them, because by the Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-49549163623764040522010-11-22T17:59:00.000-08:002010-11-23T21:42:30.822-08:00Chapter 21 – The Toughest Day Yet, I'm Not KiddingAt the end of every day, I'd say something like, "This was the toughest day yet." The boys knew that after the Baker-Milford fiasco of flats, I was just saying it to say it. But the ride from Escalante to Torrey was the toughest. How tough? It started in the cool dawn air of 5:30 a.m. and ended in the cool twilight of 8:50 p.m. In-between the cameo appearances of cool weather was a whole lot of Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-59278592885744519872010-11-18T22:38:00.000-08:002010-11-18T22:38:05.236-08:00Cover Article American Bicylist MagazineEsteemed Readers,
No chapter today. Instead here is the link to American Bicyclist magazine. Last month I wrote the cover story and now it is available online at:
http://www.bikeleague.org/members/pdfs/american_bicyclist_sepoct10.pdf
Granted, this article is much more tame than the usual chapter, but at least the pictures are good.
MattMatt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-32925254486759856062010-11-15T22:06:00.000-08:002010-11-15T22:06:17.291-08:00Chapter 20 - Words Are Not NecessaryKen doled out one more gift before heading home. He hauled our gear to Panguitch, so we could do the 5,000-foot climb out of Cedar City unencumbered. The climb had the same orange rock of Bryce Canyon. We looked down on long vistas of forests. The Nevada deserts were a memory of the past. It was no longer the Battan Death Ride. Today we were the Von Trapps out for a mountain picnic.
Solomon Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-58066639382851253082010-11-11T17:59:00.000-08:002010-11-11T17:59:11.734-08:00Chapter 19 – A Hot Fudge Sundae for the EyesI woke early to check the tire hoping to find air. Sort of like hoping one day the Chicago Cubs will win the Series. Possible, but we all know it ain’t gonna happen. The tire was—no drum roll necessary—flat. The only hardware store was tubeless. I trudged to the train station to see about catching a train to Cedar City.
“Only freight trains here," the station manager said.
Any buses?"
He Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-37203529164689747532010-11-08T21:54:00.000-08:002010-11-08T21:54:55.634-08:00Chapter 18 – Dad is a JerkSeven miles from the day’s destination, Baker, The Beast had the squishy feel of riding on a flat. Because of Murphy and his accursed law, it was the rear tire. Though fixing it was down from 65 to 55 minutes, there was a larger issue between The Beast and me. The trust we had built over the half-year relationship was teetering. While an occasional chain wedgie was an inconvenience, a bad tire orMatt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-33676134760058713372010-11-04T22:17:00.000-07:002010-11-04T22:17:31.110-07:00Chapter 17 - A Woman of ValorThis particular day was 84 miles sans towns, convenience stores, shade. We had to schlep all our water, so Djina packed an extra 4.5 gallons in her trailer. Bonus question: what does a gallon of water weigh?
In order to avoid as much heat as possible, we arose at 4:00 a.m. and powered down the cereal and bananas we filched from the buffet the night before. Yonah bid a wistful good-bye to the Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-79224185783503672912010-09-16T21:26:00.000-07:002010-09-16T21:26:23.660-07:00Chapter 4 - TrainingI taught at a high school 13 miles away and commuted by bicycle. Many weekends included a 50-mile bike ride. So I was more or less trained. Djina took a spin class a few times a week. Spin? It’s a class where twenty stationary bicycles are crammed into a space the size of a living room. Instead of windows and fresh air, there are industrial fans. Instead of birds tweeting, Green Day, Rolling Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-23299630570874677762010-09-13T22:46:00.000-07:002010-09-13T22:46:40.841-07:00Chapter 3 - EquipmentAt the top of the list: bicycles, those technological marvels that can move a human being four times a walking pace using one-third the energy. A human on a bicycle is more efficient in terms of calories per mile than any other mode of transportation. Though hard to believe for one living in the United States, it is the most ubiquitous form of transportation in the world.
Yonah had a cheap, Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-88817586353874400352010-09-09T21:42:00.000-07:002010-09-09T21:42:16.996-07:00You Can't Bring Your GameboyNow that we decided to bike across America, was it possible? 10 weeks of summer vacation to cover roughly 4,000 miles. Throw in a few rest days, and it’s a 60-mile daily ride. The farthest Yonah had ever biked was 25 miles, an all-day extravaganza with innumerable rest stops. Even if Yonah could manage the mileage, he'd have to do it with camping equipment and food strapped to his bike. Instead Matt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7252890606218569857.post-71521725070885599262010-09-06T20:52:00.000-07:002010-09-06T21:29:13.893-07:00Genesis of an AtheistIt didn’t begin as a sudden inspiration. I didn't leap out of bed, wake Yonah, and holler, "Son, we’re biking across America! Fill your water bottle! Pump up the tires! Grab an extra pair of underwear! What are you waiting for? Let's go!"
No.
It began with a conversation the two of us had when he was in kindergarten. We were finishing dinner when little Yonah asked, "Daddy, what happens afterMatt Biers-Arielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742418108004179750noreply@blogger.com12