{"id":7059,"date":"2006-06-06T10:56:23","date_gmt":"2006-06-06T14:56:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/?p=7059"},"modified":"2016-12-31T10:57:00","modified_gmt":"2016-12-31T15:57:00","slug":"pre-departure-thoughts-2006","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/2006\/06\/pre-departure-thoughts-2006\/","title":{"rendered":"Pre Departure Thoughts 2006"},"content":{"rendered":"
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pre-departure \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

6 June 2006
Location: Obernai, \u00a0France<\/h4>\n

Fundraising efforts are off to a promising start: $1,730 raised so far<\/a>. \u00a0Many thanks to all the generous individuals who have donated to CAMFED through our charity page. <\/p>\n

Bicycles are ready to go, but we're still trying to figure out how to stuff tent, stove, cookware, spare parts, computer, cameras, and clothing into 8 saddle bags. \u00a0 The weatherman predicts sunshine and pleasant temperatures for our departure on Wednesday--let's just hope he's right. <\/p>\n

World Biking Africa was featured in the French regional newspaper the\u00a0Derni\u00e8res Nouvelles d'Alsace: read the article (in French) here.<\/a><\/p>\n

10 May 2006
Location: Darmstadt, Germany
Update by Amaya<\/p>\n

Less than a month till departure and I can already feel the butterflies batting around in my belly (or maybe that's just a minor stomach upset from the raw chocolate chip cookie dough I devoured last evening). <\/p>\n

Eric has recently discovered the joys of e-bay and can be found most evenings glued to the monitor tracking down deals on everything from Canon cameras to Shimano spokes. \u00a0 Needless to say, we're not making much progress towards chalking up\u00a0the\u00a01000 kilometers necessary to break in the Brooks saddles--they're\u00a0 about as comfortable as a 3rd class bench on an Indian train. \u00a0 <\/p>\n

After much consideration, we have chosen CAMFED for our charity fundraising efforts. \u00a0Its focus is on increasing girls' access to education in some of the poorest rural areas of Africa. \u00a0CAMFED currently reached over 70,000 girls per year and is a partner in Tony Blair's \"Make Poverty History\" campaign as well as the chair of the\u00a0 United Nation's\" Initiative for Girls\u2019 Education\". \u00a0If you would like to help eradicate poverty by educating girls, please consider making an online donation to CAMFED.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a>10 April 2006
Location: Darmstadt, Germany
Update by Amaya<\/p>\n

Things seem to be coming together at last. \u00a0We had long debated whether to pursue sponsors in order to defray some of the costs of the trip. \u00a0From other cyclists' reports, we knew that Ortlieb wouldn't be beating down the door begging us to use their 'free' products in exchange for a plug on our web site. \u00a0It seems finding sponsors is hard work and requires countless hours selling your project to disinterested managers of sporting goods companies. \u00a0So imagine our surprise when the friendly Bikemax manager almost immediately agreed to a generous discount after I had asked only half-jokingly if he wouldn't like to support us. \u00a0Thanks to this good fortune,\u00a0we'll be seeing Africa from the saddle of the Koga Miyata World Traveller. \u00a0This is a bike specifically designed for tours such as ours. \u00a0It's made to withstand all the wear and tear of rough roads and it's also the bicycle used by legendary cyclist\u00a0 Tilmann Waldthaler<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The range of outdoor gear available nowadays is mind-boggling! \u00a0Vigilance is a must if you want to make it through the checkout without setting yourself back several hundred (or thousand!) euros. \u00a0The slick salesman at Decathlon in Strasbourg had almost convinced me of the merits of the cool max seamless moisture-wicking cycling socks with the \u20ac16.50 price tag. Fortunately, \u00a0I came to my senses, put things into perspective and realized that the price of those hi-tech socks would be equivalent to a week's wages in some African countries. \u00a0Sweaty feet certainly won't kill me.<\/p>\n

20 March 2006
Location: Darmstadt, Germany
Update by Amaya<\/p>\n

10 weeks to go and something tells me we should be further along in the preparations. \u00a0Felt especially despondent as I checked out Granny on a Bike's site--she's set to depart in 2007 and already has her send off party planned. I try to console myself by remembering that I thrive under pressure. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Some progress on the bicycle selection front. \u00a0Looks like we'll be going with a sturdy German bike from Fahrradmanufaktur--the T400! \u00a0Tough decision as I wanted to go with a model from a competitor with the sweet sounding name \"Montana\". \u00a0 A missed publicity opportunity for my home state. The voice of reason (otherwise known as Eric) seems to have won this battle.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The shopping list is long: tent, spd cycling shoes, panniers, sunglasses, clothing, water purifier, cookware, laptop, camera and a thousand other \"necessities\". \u00a0In any case, I'm not allowing myself to slip into crisis mode yet as I know we'll be able to pick up any forgotten items along the way as we travel through Europe.<\/p>\n

Finances are in order and Eric's brother has kindly offered to make space for our belongings in his garage. \u00a0Thanks, Fabrice! \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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