At 49 I just had the best summer ever, biked from Canada to Mexico with my son.

[mntbikedude]

This summer my 13 year old son and I began an unsupported bike trip,(no support vehicle) beginning in Victoria BC. At the time we had no official ending date or location. Just that we would ride untill it stopped being fun. Early on my son started telling people we were riding to Mexico. And as we were then some 1600 plus miles away it seemed well quite impossible.

But mile by mile, challenge by challenge we ended having the summer of our lives.And indeed we ended up in Mexico. For me it was not only a great adventure but hanging out all summer with my son was so incredible. Mark was at the perfect age, where he could physically handle the trip but he is still young enough to think it was cool to hang out with dad.

He rode in the drafting position most of the way, and I loved to hear him just talk, all day. Stuff like hey dad did you know that....... sometimes he would just ride up along side me look over and say I love you dad. For the last 10 days of the trip we stopped putting up the tents. We slept under redwoods, under palm trees, under star filled skys, and we could hear the ocean as we would drift off to sleep.

We had no near misses or accidents, not a day of rain, no illness or injury. What we did have was 45 days of days I wish I could relive again and again. We biked all kinds of conditions, from nice highways with ample shoulders, to much of highway 1 with little or no shoulder, we biked some off road and even was routed onto the Ventura Freeway.

Along the way we met many awesome people and cyclist all the down the coast were willing to go the extra mile literaly to lead us thru some of the more challenging sections of the major cities. Such as San Fransisco and LA. We started to refer to them as our guardian angels.

Anyway I have posted our pictures in some albums at this address http://bikethewestcoast.spaces.live.com/ click on photos and then there are 6 or 7 groups of photos. If you are in a hurry one of my favorites is the folder titled Central California the lost coast. I'm still working on it so check back from time to time as we add things.

[Chi_town]

Man that is awsome. I am soo jealous !
Maybe some day my girls will do something like that with their dad.

Your trip are what dreams are made of. Congrats on having the time and the fortitude to do that ride. I am sure it will not be something to forget.

I enjoyed the pics !

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by Chi_town

Man that is awsome. I am soo jealous !
Maybe some day my girls will do something like that with their dad.

Your trip are what dreams are made of. Congrats on having the time and the fortitude to do that ride. I am sure it will not be something to forget.

I enjoyed the pics !

Thanks man. Yes it did take time, fortitude and a VISA card, Damn how did I spend that much money.

[Chi_town]

Originally Posted by mntbikedude

Thanks man. Yes it did take time, fortitude and a VISA card, Damn how did I spend that much money.

But the memories you have are.........PRICELESS !



You might want to contact Visa and see if you can get the commercial for this. Hmmmmmmmmmm

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by merlot

damn i get bored in a car ride to mexico and i only live like 6-7 hours away, lol...

Hahaha I have the attention span of a nat. I can only ride a stationary bike for about 5 min and then I gotta get off.

On highway 1 up in central and northern california the hiway is challenging and spectacular all the time. There was very little that could be considered boring. And after you get to LA most of the time you have to stay on your toes just to negotiate the traffic and not get lost.

Funny thing is that at the end we had been gone 45 days and we still didn't want it to end.

[Mango7]

Your @ss must have been killing you after all that, no? I'm sure it was a once in a lifetime experience though. Glad it worked out well for you.

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by Mango7

Your @ss must have been killing you after all that, no? I'm sure it was a once in a lifetime experience though. Glad it worked out well for you.

No actually pain wasn't the problem. Numbness was the problem. I had to try 3 different seats. But it was a continual problem. Keep in mind this isn't something that is painfull to do, it's not like running a marathon. Every day was a blast. I don't mean it was easy, but I enjoyed all of it. Picture cruising along on your bike, with near perfect weather, awesome scenery, fun companion. It just doesn't get better than that.

[Capt. America]

That's insane! (In a GOOD way).

[rknotts]

Sounds like you both shared a great summer experience. One that I am sure will last both of your lifetimes!

[Baldsnake]

Thanks for sharing. I have done that trip by car and have seen every nook and crany....but not by bike where to can feel and smell the trees and ocean. And with your son...special. Central California coast and the Amalfi Coast of Italy are my favorite places on Earth.

[empresscat]

How cool!

[thruxton]

Originally Posted by Capt. America

That's insane! (In a GOOD way).

awesome! lucky with the weather and thank goodness with the automobiles. your son is lucky to have such an adventurous and fit dad =)

you must have ridden past me on HWY 1. 'tis beautiful!

[innermusic]

Impressive. I'd like to do that with my kid(s), but perhaps something a little less adventurous, like Toronto - Montreal .

[Hibiscus09]

That's so exciting! I'm glad you guys had such a fun time together!

[hapkido]

All I can say is wow!
Thats a real life experience.

[StlBarbie]

You are my hero!!!!
THAT, to me, sounds like absolute Nirvana!!!
What incredible memories you will always have from that trip!!!
The pics are amazing as well .. thanks for sharing!

[jcote]

Originally Posted by mntbikedude

....... sometimes he would just ride up along side me look over and say I love you dad.

Boy, I know that feeling....

I have a 2-1/2 yo son and he recently walked over to me, put his hands on my cheeks, looked me square in the eyes and said in a half whisper "I love you Daddy." I almost cried.


.

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by Baldsnake

Thanks for sharing. I have done that trip by car and have seen every nook and crany....but not by bike where to can feel and smell the trees and ocean. And with your son...special. Central California coast and the Amalfi Coast of Italy are my favorite places on Earth.

I thought about that alot on this trip. The part about feeling every change in temperature. In the smells of the forrest, the ocean ect. It really was hard to come back to me life where so much of the time is spent sealed in some kind of compartment.

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by jcote

Boy, I know that feeling....

I have a 2-1/2 yo son and he recently walked over to me, put his hands on my cheeks, looked me square in the eyes and said in a half whisper "I love you Daddy." I almost cried.


.

Being a dad is the best thing that ever happened to me. Before you know it your 2-1/2 year old will be a 21 year old.

I tried loading your picture but couldn't get it to load. May want to try posting it as a Jpeg. They load a lot faster.

[jcote]

Originally Posted by mntbikedude

Being a dad is the best thing that ever happened to me. Before you know it your 2-1/2 year old will be a 21 year old.

You got that right. I am taking lots of pictures and videotape as the years go by.

Here, I'll try again:

[markb3]

Sounds like you had an awesome experience and one you and your son will remember for the rest of your lives.

Jcote, your son is so cute. I know that feeling too. When they tell you they love you it makes everything else seem insignificant

Here's my boy. He's four now....

Jake making his dad dizzy

[jcote]

Originally Posted by markb3

Here's my boy. He's four now....

What a hansome young man, Mark. Proud you must be.


.

[markb3]

Originally Posted by jcote

What a hansome young man, Mark. Proud you must be.


.

Yep, as are all fathers

[aussiefred]

Hi Mtnbikedude

You defiantly had a great summer.
My son is 9 and I would love to do something like this with him one day. How did your son handle the trip mentally. Did 45 days of riding and being away from the rest of his family and friends get to him at all or was did the adventure totally consume him.

I dont know what Im more jealous of, your trip or the AC/DC cycling jersey.

[ClevageGobbler]

I remember as a young kid I loved just spending time with my dad at the Toys R Us store. Sounds like great memories and a trip that neither of you shall forget.

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by aussiefred

Hi Mtnbikedude

You defiantly had a great summer.
My son is 9 and I would love to do something like this with him one day. How did your son handle the trip mentally. Did 45 days of riding and being away from the rest of his family and friends get to him at all or was did the adventure totally consume him.

I dont know what Im more jealous of, your trip or the AC/DC cycling jersey.

Well first off this thread is from 2006. My son handled the trip amazingly in all aspects. Looking back I am so glad we didn't put it off. He was the perfect age to do something like that. He's 16 now and at the time I was kind of a super hero to him. Now well he's at that age where dad just seems to embarress him.

Anyway after this trip my oldest son decided he didn't like being out done by his younger brother and so he and my youngest son raised the stakes and this time started the trip in Anchorage Alaska, I met up with them in Vancouver and together we rode on to Mexico. This was in 2008. It was another amazing summer. These are the kind of trips that are so easy to put off. I'm so glad we didn't put them off. Now there have been several changes in our lives and economic situation that I doubt we could ever consider such a trip again.

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by ClevageGobbler

I remember as a young kid I loved just spending time with my dad at the Toys R Us store. Sounds like great memories and a trip that neither of you shall forget.

It's funny I have done quite a few major adventures with my kids but some of the most memorable have been just simple spending time together.

[ClevageGobbler]

Originally Posted by mntbikedude

It's funny I have done quite a few major adventures with my kids but some of the most memorable have been just simple spending time together.

yeah man the best memories come outta the blue when things are just relaxing and ur havin a good time with your family. One things for sure: When I become a dad I wanna spend as much time with my kids as possible.