Author Topic: 1,000 km - Toronto to Coney Island by bike with a 10 yr old.  (Read 38230 times)

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #50 on: January 11, 2018, 04:56:45 PM »
Loads of great news today...

Our charity on this end has reached out to the bike shop locally that builds kids bikes for therapy and special needs kids. They are working with the bike shop to outfit this bike to match James' needs on the ride. I hope they can transform it into a "gravel bike" or touring bike.

Also exciting, a recently retired NHL player has picked up our twitter feed and asked if he can have a chat with us since he has some ideas about athletes working cross-border and doing charity work as a Canadian in the USA. I am excited about this. adding such a high-profile name to our feed is a great step. We now have a retired CFL football player and a retired NHL player. If these guys start promoting us through the major league sports networks, things could get pretty darned big. The potential here is pretty amazing!

Fingers crossed that we can get him promoting us... Or at least that we can crash at his condo in NY.

TreeTired

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #51 on: January 12, 2018, 11:23:53 AM »
Wow!  Your post reminded me of my own son's bicycle exploits, but then I got to the "9 years old" part !!  When my son was 19 he wanted to ride across the country.  His mother (my wife) freaked out, and I negotiated it down to a 1 week father/son bike trip along the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was awesome, and I thought it got the whole XC thing out of his system. 2 years later he was 21 and road solo from Boston to Seattle. His bike was my 35 year old 12 speed.  His northerly route took him through Canada from Niagara Falls to the Bluewater Bridge, where customs took him over in a van (no bicycles allowed on the bridge). 

I am surprised you need a visa at all to come in as a tourist from Canada to the U.S,  but of course things are tighter now than they used to be.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #52 on: January 12, 2018, 12:45:04 PM »
Wow!  Your post reminded me of my own son's bicycle exploits, but then I got to the "9 years old" part !!  When my son was 19 he wanted to ride across the country.  His mother (my wife) freaked out, and I negotiated it down to a 1 week father/son bike trip along the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was awesome, and I thought it got the whole XC thing out of his system. 2 years later he was 21 and road solo from Boston to Seattle. His bike was my 35 year old 12 speed.  His northerly route took him through Canada from Niagara Falls to the Bluewater Bridge, where customs took him over in a van (no bicycles allowed on the bridge). 

I am surprised you need a visa at all to come in as a tourist from Canada to the U.S,  but of course things are tighter now than they used to be.

Thanks for your post! We don't need a visa to visit as tourists. its coming across representing an organization and fundraising that is the fly in the ointment.

honeybbq

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #53 on: January 12, 2018, 02:21:52 PM »
Just posting to say you restored my faith in humans today and are a wonderful father.

From,

a shithole American.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #54 on: January 19, 2018, 12:03:12 PM »
Isn't it funny how things on the internet pop up every now and then. I just found this radio interview I'd forgotten all about from day 3 of our ride last year...

Wow I talk fast!


force majeure

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #55 on: January 19, 2018, 12:34:06 PM »
I cycle 3600KM each year commuting into work. People think I am nuts.
When I get in, I have porridge, costing 5c a portion.
Its a good routine to have - I am probably more ERE than MMM.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #56 on: January 25, 2018, 03:31:14 PM »
I've been waiting a few weeks to hear from our beneficiary. They have a local bike shop that they work with to outfit disabled kids, and they thought that they could work a deal with the shop to outfit James' bike for our ride. So I took our "new" used bike into the shop recommended by our beneficiary today to see what they had to say.

The feedback was less than positive when I described what I wanted for teh bike. I thought it was all doable, but apparently not.
  • Gravel tires
  • Pannier Rack on the rear
  • secondary brakes on the handlebars
  • replace brake lever/shifter that's broken
  • lights and bell, safety stuff

The bike mechanic who has been custom building therapy bikes for special needs kids just shook his head. Apparently the tires are a non-starter. Not enough frame clearance for a more rugged tread. And the frame has braze-ons for a rack at the top of the seatstays, but nothing down at the dropouts - they'd have to weld in brazeons and custom build a rack to fit the frame since the geometry is wrong for a standard rack (its a small frame with a 28" standover height). For the secondary brakes - they could be done, but we'd end up having to buy a whole new set of brake levers/shifters to replace what we've got. He could outfit it with lights and a bell though.

By the time he was done with his list, he was shaking his head and saying we'd probably come out further ahead selling this bike and just buying a new one. He walked me over to a wall rack and showed what he thought would be perfect... $1200.

But he said to hold tight. He's going to reach back to his corporate head office and see what is sitting in corners of warehouses, and whether the chain would be interested in sponsoring the ride. If that happens, I'll be as happy as a mouse in a cheese factory. At the very least he's going to look into a deal to bring the cost of a bike in line with repairing with this one. Fingers crossed.

I'd still prefer to go with a common "everyday" bike to bring home the message that this is do-able, but if its more expensive to fix up this old bike, well, I guess I'll  settle for something fancy. ;)

Luckily we haven't shown James this bike, so whatever the outcome is will be just fine. Everyone cross your fingers that it's positive!!

Dicey

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #57 on: January 25, 2018, 11:40:54 PM »
Fingers (and more) crossed!

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #58 on: January 31, 2018, 10:35:21 AM »
Great news!! Arkel Bags - a really well respected Canadian Manufacturer of cycle-touring bags and gear has reached back to me with an offer to outfit James with a set of bags. This is amazing stuff and makes me super happy.

Other news - the bike shop has looked at fixing up our used bike and determined that it wouldn't be worth it. Their best suggestion for an alternate comes with a $600 price tag before outfitting. Woe is me.

Other-Other news - I reached out to the CBS for visa information and got caught in phone tree hell. I believe this is intentional. As far as I can tell at this point we are likely OK, but likely is a whole lot different from definitely. My MP has turned out to be not as helpful as I had hoped. I was expecting them to get me a contact at the US embassy or consulate. That did not happen. They got me phone tree hell.

We've narrowed our date range and it looks like ours will be a late-summer event.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #59 on: February 05, 2018, 07:17:12 AM »
Wow what a weekend...

Friday I sent out an email to alll of "Team Quirky" as Momma says. It was a bit of an update on where things stand and a bunch of messaging on what we need to accomplish moving forward. In the message I mentioned that Phone and Data were a missing piece in our puzzle and that we still don't have a bike for James. Got a reply from the folks at Arkel Bags (who are kitting James with a Pannier set) saying they had reached out through their network to see if they could help with a bike, and from our beneficiaries saying they had a phone for us. This made me happy.

On Saturday I went to the "Coldest Day of the year ride" in Toronto and spent a lot of time chatting with the president of "Ontario by Bike" and a bunch of reps of other advocacy and gov't departments, including the City of Toronto's manager of Active Transportation. A great time.

Sunday I got an email from a cycling advocate in with a bunch of route info and a suggestion I give him a call. So I called him up and an hour later had clarification on a bunch of really good looking trails to tie up the last couple days of our trip. Looks like we can make a lot of off-road miles. This makes me happy. We also talked bikes and expectations and he suggested some brands and shops that I could reach out to. I mentioned to him that I had already contacted FROG bikes via email and he said that he had a direct link to the president of US sales and would put a word in for us. We only hung up because my phone's battery was dying, but it was a really good chat.

This morning at 06h00, I got an email from FROG saying they would have a youth touring bike sent to us. I am thrilled by this. I'm hoping we can kit it out with with a rack and bags, but if not, I have ideas to reach out to a company that manufactures bike trailers and to kit it that way. We'll see what things look like once we have a ride.

Excited to see things progressing so much, so early!!

snacky

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #60 on: February 05, 2018, 07:23:10 AM »
THAT IS AWESOME.

Prospy makes shit happen.

Dicey

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #61 on: February 05, 2018, 07:25:17 AM »
THAT IS AWESOME.

Prospy makes shit happen.
Indeed!

LifeHappens

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #62 on: February 05, 2018, 09:02:54 AM »
That is a great update. I'm excited to see the bike setup you build for James.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #63 on: February 05, 2018, 09:31:38 AM »
Oh - and forgot to mention - we got a phone with a US data plan pre-loaded with all the normal social media stuff through one of the orgs we will be representing. So that's another huge box checked off.




GuitarStv

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #64 on: February 05, 2018, 09:39:58 AM »
This morning at 06h00, I got an email from FROG saying they would have a youth touring bike sent to us. I am thrilled by this. I'm hoping we can kit it out with with a rack and bags, but if not, I have ideas to reach out to a company that manufactures bike trailers and to kit it that way. We'll see what things look like once we have a ride.

In many ways, I'd have thought that a bike trailer is superior to panniers.  I'd have no issues going that route if necessary.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #65 on: February 05, 2018, 10:02:19 AM »
This morning at 06h00, I got an email from FROG saying they would have a youth touring bike sent to us. I am thrilled by this. I'm hoping we can kit it out with with a rack and bags, but if not, I have ideas to reach out to a company that manufactures bike trailers and to kit it that way. We'll see what things look like once we have a ride.

In many ways, I'd have thought that a bike trailer is superior to panniers.  I'd have no issues going that route if necessary.

A trailer is fantastic - but we have a lot of miles to put in on single/doubletrack. A local company (https://www.wicycle.com/) makes a really nice single-wheeled trailer that I think would be great for James.  For now though, its a wait-and-see position while we work out details on the bike.

GuitarStv

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #66 on: February 05, 2018, 10:23:51 AM »
Just an FYI, I've got a wike two seater bike trailer for my son to ride around in.  It was well made, and has stood up well to three years of regular use.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #67 on: February 07, 2018, 10:45:24 AM »
More happy news - our local MPP nominated James for a Junior Citizen award with the Ontario Community Newspaper Association. he was one of 12 kids selected to receive a medal, a $400 cash prize, and a private audience with Her Honour the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. She will take him and the 12 other recipients on a private tour of the legislative block of Queen's Park in Toronto. We need to buy him a suit.

Fallout from this is that we now have media interviews this week to recap the ride and why we're being recognized - plus more media in Early March to cover our award ceremony and him meeting the Lieutenant Governor. Pretty heady stuff for a little kid. Hope he keeps the social issues in check.

Read about the award here (some of the other recipients are really truly amazing!!) http://www.ocna.org/juniorcitizen

shadowmoss

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #68 on: February 07, 2018, 12:50:52 PM »
Posting to Follow.  Amazing story.

Prairie Gal

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #69 on: February 07, 2018, 06:14:39 PM »
So much goodness happening. Love it!

okits

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #70 on: February 07, 2018, 10:25:27 PM »
Huge congratulations to James!  (Can you get a suit at Once Upon a Child or another second hand store?)

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #71 on: February 08, 2018, 06:57:29 AM »
Media interview at  10 this AM. They want to talk about James' award, our progress with therapy, and our future plans. Should be a stick-handling event - we aren't ready to announce our destination yet, the therapy has been good - but none through our charity, and we know nothing about the award except that we will receive it on the 5th. The interview is allotted 1.5 hours and all I have is 3 sentences to say. I wonder if we can stretch it with homey fun stuff. Maybe putting the wheels on James' cub car. Or playing with legos. I dunno.

Right now we aren't in a happy space with the whole therapy/treatment thing. I mean James is doing well, but we are still waitlisted for the treatments we are supposed to be getting and are privately funding all his care. I have made it a point to keep our messaging positive, but I can't see how we turn around the reality that we've had one assessment done since our ride in the fall and nothing else. The reporter has already told us that this is the story she's chasing - how kids are actually getting care. Huh.

snacky

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #72 on: February 08, 2018, 07:15:30 AM »
Tell the truth? There is a systemic problem and it needs attention. Public awareness can turn into political action. You can be a small part of creating change, especially in an election year.

driftwood

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #73 on: February 08, 2018, 07:41:35 AM »
This story is melting my cold, dead heart!

Cedar Point in Ohio?  Because, really, what other roller coaster park is worth going to?

shadowmoss

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #74 on: February 08, 2018, 09:10:39 AM »
Positive part is that the two of you are stepping out and doing something to help the charity have more resources to do more, better with the therapy?

jeninco

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #75 on: February 08, 2018, 09:41:03 AM »
Wow, Prosp, you (and James) are really rocking it!

I'm curious to hear how you ended up handling the interview. An acknowledgement that the charity is overwhelmed and can't (yet) meet the need?

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #76 on: February 08, 2018, 01:01:30 PM »
Wow, Prosp, you (and James) are really rocking it!

I'm curious to hear how you ended up handling the interview. An acknowledgement that the charity is overwhelmed and can't (yet) meet the need?

I tried to go down that road, but it came out sounding more like Snacky's response. I try not to be a negative whiner, but sometimes it shows through.

AO1FireTo

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #77 on: February 08, 2018, 01:19:06 PM »
Great story..  Did James enjoy the ride, is he pumped up to do something like this again?

Nice that you raised some money for a good cause along the way.

Might be interesting to do a group bike ride with other parents/kids in a similar situation to raise money for Autism.

One suggestion would be to use the Guelph to Godrich trial, this way you don't have to worry about cars/traffic etc and it's 127km which would be more managable.

http://www.g2grailtrail.com/

Mike it an annual event, perhaps there is even a camping ground or something about 1/2 way.
« Last Edit: February 08, 2018, 05:41:30 PM by princeradar »

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #78 on: February 08, 2018, 05:24:37 PM »
Great story..  Did James enjoy the ride, is he pumped up to do something like this again?

Nice that you raised some money for a good cause along the way.

Might be interesting to do a group bike ride with other parents/kids in a similar situation to raise money for Autism.

One suggestion would be to use the Guelph to Godrich trial, this way you don't have to worry about cars/traffic etc and it's 160km which would be more managable.

http://www.g2grailtrail.com/

Mike it an annual event, perhaps there is even a camping ground or something about 1/2 way.

I didn't know about that trail - thanks for sharing!

Well - here's how today's news looks. I think its pretty acceptable. Jasmine does a great job and she's really cool to work with.

https://www.facebook.com/globaldurham/videos/2254181484623769/

oldladystache

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #79 on: February 08, 2018, 06:20:01 PM »
nice!

jeninco

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #80 on: February 08, 2018, 08:38:36 PM »
You are both handsome, articulate, and photogenic. Congrats on a job well done!

And I don't think that sounded whiney at all. More appropriately and reasonably frustrated, like a parent who is trying to advocate for his kid while being all Canadian-reasonable.

snacky

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #81 on: February 08, 2018, 08:59:03 PM »
That was so cool. Well done, both of you.

avrex

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #82 on: February 09, 2018, 12:14:42 AM »
I was having dinner and watching my local news tonight, when I recognized a friendly face.

Congratulations to James for the well deserved Junior Citizen award.

Also, great job to both of you with your upcoming ride, to raise further funds for such an important service.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #83 on: February 09, 2018, 05:11:05 AM »
This story is melting my cold, dead heart!

Cedar Point in Ohio?  Because, really, what other roller coaster park is worth going to?

I need to acknowledge your guess. Cedar Point sounds fun! Ohio is nice and close! We are going far...

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #84 on: February 09, 2018, 05:13:25 AM »
I was having dinner and watching my local news tonight, when I recognized a friendly face.

Congratulations to James for the well deserved Junior Citizen award.

Also, great job to both of you with your upcoming ride, to raise further funds for such an important service.

Well - if our story made it all the way to Steeltown, we are getting famous-er!!

Thanks everyone for your kind words. I continue to move toward the mark. I'm thinking we should announce our destination soon. We are riding a high of good news right now and it would be a good way to launch. I have a conference call with FROG bikes on Wednesday and will broach the subject with them then.

LifeHappens

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #85 on: February 09, 2018, 09:14:58 AM »
Well done! I hope the story gives you extra momentum in your fundraising.

P.S. Your pronunciation of "out" is appropriately Canadian and both you and James have strong toque game.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #86 on: February 09, 2018, 10:11:46 AM »
Because it's #WinterRideYourBikeToWorkDay and its Friday and I'm feeling generous - here's what our current (tentative) plan for the 1st two days of riding looks like. You can start guessing where we're headed...


ElleFiji

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #87 on: February 09, 2018, 11:04:24 AM »
Wait...are you riding to THE far theme park? Sleepover at Hellboy and lhamo and meer in the way? Because j2 will probably want to meet you there.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #88 on: February 09, 2018, 11:11:24 AM »
Wait...are you riding to THE far theme park? Sleepover at Hellboy and lhamo and meer in the way? Because j2 will probably want to meet you there.

That's too far. But good guess! Do they still have space mountain there? I can't think of any other roller coasters in that park.

LifeHappens

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #89 on: February 09, 2018, 11:17:03 AM »
Wait...are you riding to THE far theme park? Sleepover at Hellboy and lhamo and meer in the way? Because j2 will probably want to meet you there.
Well, if they're riding that far I'll be part of the welcome committee!

ElleFiji

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #90 on: February 09, 2018, 11:25:04 AM »
It's only 5 solid days riding. You don't need sleep

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #91 on: February 09, 2018, 11:48:30 AM »
It's only 5 solid days riding. You don't need sleep

Yeah... Nope.

Bicycle_B

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #92 on: February 09, 2018, 07:54:35 PM »
Prospector, great interviews!  I've been on TV before re issues.  You did just fine.

What an exciting trip. 

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #93 on: February 18, 2018, 01:02:41 PM »
More of the "Good Stuff" and a question for folks who use Tile.

Good Stuff - FROG Bikes is definitely sending us a bike. I spent an hour on the phone with their Canadian Central rep last week working out details and sizing. it sounds like they are sending a full riding outfit (jersey, shorts, etc.) and a bike. I am told that there is a sponsorship contract in the mail.

More Good Stuff: after working out this stuff with FROG,  I chanced to meet a dad who has three Red Bull athletes for kids - a daughter who is on the Trek Factory Team, a son who is a wilderness photographer/mountaineer/adventurer, and a third child who is a motorcross racer. He gave me some tips about working with sponsors and presentation. Since his kids come across as super high quality people - even when doing insane stuff, I saw the product and the method - and it made good sense. I hope we can pull off what he is suggesting as a first step on a ladder to success. The tips were small but important - like washing the bikes daily, zipping up the jersey whenever there are photographers around, getting important pictures with important people, and being sure logos are plainly visible when needed. And always presenting ourselves in a way that doesn't compromise our values, or our sponsor's. Watching his daughter's videos is like a primer of what to do when we start producing content. Bikes are always clean, jersy always tidy, and conversation always polite and on topic.

I think I can work with that.

Now for Tile - last year we had a pretty good challenge communicating our position to Momma and the people following us back home. Its been suggested that we use Tile for this. If we carry a Tile, maybe we can set up an app to ping it hourly from home and update our position without eating up the phone battery with tracking. The GPS would still need to be on all the time, but the Tile would give our position as we went. Does anyone use one of these? Have you got stories?
« Last Edit: March 22, 2018, 09:10:25 AM by Prospector »

katscratch

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #94 on: February 18, 2018, 03:29:50 PM »
Congrats on the sponsorship!

I've only heard of using Tile to locate items; I guess I'm confused how it would be more useful than your phone for tracking location, since it needs to use an app on your phone.

There are a number of apps that will show your location in real time if you plan on leaving GPS on anyway. My social bike group uses a real time tracker so those of us joining in halfway can find the group.

I've looked into a SPOT tracker for myself since I am almost always doing long rides and weekend camping trips by myself but last year I was close enough to cell service most of the time I didn't jump on the purchase.
« Last Edit: February 18, 2018, 03:31:31 PM by katscratch »

deborah

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #95 on: February 18, 2018, 09:11:06 PM »
Six Flags New England?

LifeHappens

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #96 on: February 19, 2018, 01:19:46 AM »
I've looked into a SPOT tracker for myself since I am almost always doing long rides and weekend camping trips by myself but last year I was close enough to cell service most of the time I didn't jump on the purchase.
I've used a SPOT before during offshore boat trips. If you are going to be out of cell range or in areas of limited coverage, a satellite tracker is about the best option.

Le Poisson

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #97 on: February 19, 2018, 08:23:05 AM »
Six Flags New England?

Keep guessing!

I thought this thread was going to be a reference to this song.
https://youtu.be/tbNlMtqrYS0



Me, too!

Came for the Proclaimers reference, staying for the adventure/the cause....

Glad you're here!!

I've looked into a SPOT tracker for myself since I am almost always doing long rides and weekend camping trips by myself but last year I was close enough to cell service most of the time I didn't jump on the purchase.
I've used a SPOT before during offshore boat trips. If you are going to be out of cell range or in areas of limited coverage, a satellite tracker is about the best option.

@katscratch @LifeHappens - I think you guys are right. We spoke with another adventure athlete who had been using a Tile this way, and apparently it turned out be a total trainwreck. I guess Spot (or similar) is the best option. I balk at the cost though - the initial $200 purchase I can manage, but after that its an annual subscription of another $200 USD. Thats a lot of peanut butter.

LifeHappens

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #98 on: February 19, 2018, 08:39:46 AM »
How about pursuing another sponsorship for the tracker? You would be posting your position daily, so they would get lots of mentions.

RetiredAt63

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Re: I would ride 500 km and I would ride 500 more...
« Reply #99 on: February 20, 2018, 06:48:27 AM »
Great news on all the planning.  Re sponsorships, look at the Olympic skiers - they always have the ski brand free of snow and facing the camera while they wait for their marks.  And they are always smiling no matter how good/bad the run.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!