Lon's PACTOUR Blog

Peru Adventures 2011

2012-01-01T09:05:00.000-08:00

Peru Adventures 2011
by Lon Haldeman

The police gave us a warning at the roadside checkpoint. A group of bandits had stopped and robbed a bus 100 kilometers ahead on our route. The good thing is that we only had to ride 60 kilometers more today.

Our cycling route from Tarapoto to Yurimaguas, Peru was 160 kilometers of newly paved roadway across the jungle. I had ridden this stretch almost ten years ago and the road was filled with mud and melon size rocks. It took me almost 12 hours to ride 100 miles on my mountain bike. During the past eight years the road had been improved from each end until both cities were now connected by a smooth path of twisty black pavement suitable for filming a sports car commercial. This would be the first time we could ride the entire distance without sections of road construction.

This road has always been a strategic location for hijackings and political protests. The road bends and climbs through many miles of mountainous jungles, making it a perfect location for hiding bandits who ambush buses and taxies. Since this road is the only way to reach the river port of Yurimaguas, there was always a steady supply of trucks and supplies being transported from the jungle to the coastal cities. Whenever there was political unrest this section of road would be blocked with burning tires and fallen trees by protesters to disrupt the transport of goods across Peru.

This year during our bike tour we would divide our ride from Tarapoto to Yurimaguas into two cycling days. The first day was 36 miles up and over the mountains to the truck stop town of Caynarachi. We would sleep at a basic hotel that had a bathroom down the hall and a restaurant across the street that served local jungle food. The next day would cover the final 64 miles to the river port at Yurimaguas where we would find our boat to travel down the Amazon River.

Our tour group included Greg Lester and his wife Drue Banister. This would be their first trip to Peru. They had wanted a tour “that went where tourists don't go”. We were trying to balance adventure with a safe tour so we were taking precautions in this part of the country. We were also joined by Susan Rosenblatt who was returning for her fifth tour in Peru. Her easygoing spirit is always welcome when things get stressful. Lynette Chiang was along to document all of our Peru Projects and make a DVD about our tour. She would have a challenge producing a program that covered eight major projects in a 22-minute show. (More Peru DVD updates later). Peru National Cycling Champions Alessandra Divila and her sister Samantha also joined us. They rode their racing bikes and didn't have any trouble dropping us whenever they wanted. Rounding out our tour group was our 12-year-old friend Aracely and her mother Nayda. We met Aracely six years ago at a roadside restaurant in the jungle. Since then she has traveled with us every year to all corners of Peru. Her friend Yeni from the Chosica Girl's home also joined us. Yeni won a competition to go on the tour for being the top English-speaking student at the Girl's Home.

All together we had a varied group of eleven people ages 12 to 65. We traveled and worked together to complete a busy schedule of projects across Peru. We had all arrived in the busy city of Lima and spent our first two days visiting the Chosica Girl's Home and buying books to deliver to Amazon River schools. The next day we flew 250 miles into the jungle to the remote town of Tarapoto. Here we assembled our bikes and began our tour, while transporting 220 pounds of school books in our support vehicle.

Our first cycling day leaving Tarapoto included a break to tour a waterfall in the roadside canyon. The recent rains were making the 100-foot high waterfall expand to over 20 feet wide. After an hour of hiking to the falls and wading in the pool we continued riding up the mountain. A steady cool rain began as we climbed higher over the summit. The new road was built on a series of pillars and braces extending out from the cliffs. The cliffs on one side and the drop off into the canyon on the other made a picturesque landscape as we meandered up the green jungle grade in the misty drizzle.

After our night's rest in Caynarachi we were planning our next day to Yurimaguas. We knew we would need to ride through the location where there had been a roadblock and robbery the day before. We made a plan to hire taxies from Tarapoto to travel with some of our non-cycling crew. One taxi would drive two kilometers ahead of our bike group and the other taxi and crew members would stay two kilometers behind us. If the taxies saw any suspicious roadside activity they would drive up and warn us. We would have the choice to wait or turn around before riding into an ambush.

It rained throughout the night and the drizzle continued until 9:00 AM. We waited at our hotel for our taxies to arrive from Tarapoto. The taxies were delayed 45 minutes and we began to wonder if we should find different taxi drivers. Finally they arrived and the drivers were agitated and talking fast in Spanish. I knew something was going on. They had just been stopped in a ten-vehicle ambush a few miles before Caynarachi. We were familiar with the twisty road from the day before. The gunmen made the drivers get out of their cars. Then they were robbed and the gunmen threw the driver's car keys into the jungle. The drivers were further delayed when they needed to hunt for their keys.

The incident added to the anticipation of proceeding to Yurimaguas. Now there were recent ambush locations in front and behind us. The police were out patrolling the road but the heavy jungle coverage along the road gave the advantage to anyone hiding in the bushes. We packed our escort taxies and started riding our bikes with our eyes scanning the ditches for hints of trouble. The feeling was similar to riding past a familiar farm where you are chased by dogs. We were on the lookout while playing hide and seek.

We passed the location of the ambush the day before and didn't see any signs of activity. The rain had stopped and the jungle humidity was making us wetter than the rain. As we approached Yurimaguas we could see three riverboats docked at the port. We had made it through the most dangerous section of road. (Next year we have an eight-day bike ride planned through a very safe region). Now we would need to find a riverboat to take us down river for the next two days covering over 400 miles to the city of Iquitos.

End

Delivering Books to Amazon School

2012-01-01T09:02:00.000-08:00

Delivering Books to Amazon Schools
At the port in Yurimaguas we made arrangements for one of the big riverboats to transport us down the Amazon. These boats are mainly for cargo and they are notorious for being delayed and not departing on time. That is why it is best to visit the docks and then choose a boat that is getting ready to leave. We were able to find a boat that was leaving tomorrow morning. We reserved cabin space on the upper deck to store our gear. We would spend most of our time in chairs or hammocks on the deck during the day and then retire to small sheet metal cabins when the nighttime temperatures cooled down. The views of the jungle and trees are fascinating as the sun reflected off rain clouds in the distance. We would spend hours watching the world pass before us as we glided down the river.

Our main project on the riverboat was to deliver schoolbooks to six rural jungle schools as part of the Anne Marie McSweeney Book Delivery Project. We had bundled our assortment of books and school supplies we bought in Lima into neat tight packages. Our mission was to take a small shuttle boat to villages along the shore. Our delivery time was limited because the big boat was continuing down the river. We would have about 15 minutes to locate the school in the village and make the delivery and then hurry back to catch the big boat. Our deliveries would need to be quick and efficient.

We have organized this book delivery project four times in past years. Our delivery schedule would need to be during school hours if possible. Since we started this voyage almost eight hours previous to past years we calculated we would be stopping at new villages during this tour. With the recommendations from the captain, he suggested which villages hidden along the riverbank would have schools that needed books. A crewman from the cargo ship drove our small motorboat to shore. He would take six members from our group to the riverbank. Usually we were met by some local villagers wondering why non-native people were stopping at their village. This is why it was important to be traveling with our young friends Aracely, Yeni, Alessandra and Samantha who acted as the ambassadors for our group. After a few minutes we were led to the school where a class was in session. The teachers were happy with the surprise visit and books and the class was happy for the distraction. We repeated this delivery routine to six schools in eight hours.

The chance to get real books and classroom supplies was a real necessity for these rural schools. Some of the schools wanted us to stay and visit longer. They had never been visited by non-native people (gringos) before. Some of the villages insisted on giving us handmade gifts of carvings, beadwork and other elaborate souvenirs. This was an exciting and worthwhile project that is always a highlight of our travels across Peru. That night we continued down the Amazon River on the boat. When we were 100 kilometers from Iquitos in the town of Nauta the paved road began again. From there we rode our bikes the final 65 miles into the city. We had completed the book delivery project and now we had four days of other projects planned in Iquitos.

End

Peru DVD and Street Kid Parties

2012-01-01T09:00:00.000-08:00

Get Your New DVD of Peru Projects
Lynette Chiang has produced a new 22-minute documentary about all these adventures and projects across Peru. This DVD is being sent to all the people who have supported these projects with a $100 donation this year. It is not too late to make a $100 donation and receive your DVD. Your donation will go toward continuing to support these projects in Peru. Checks should be made payable to:

“F.P.C. Global Outreach”

Send to: PAC Tour
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

Street Kid Parties
Iquitos is a sprawling jungle city of 400,000 people. It is isolated by 300 miles of jungle in all directions. Iquitos has gone through several boom and bust periods in the past 150 years. The markets for rubber, wood and oil have contributed to extreme wealth for an elite few and poverty for the majority.

During our stay in Iquitos we organized several group dinners for the kids who live on the street. Many of them haven't ever eaten in a restaurant so this party is a special event for them. We usually invite 15 to 20 kids to a prearranged restaurant that serves a meal of chicken, salad, fried bananas and birthday cake. The kids also receive a new t-shirt. We organized two parties in different neighborhoods this year. These parties are always a special night for the kids and for the members of our tour.

End

Peru School Building

2012-01-01T08:59:00.000-08:00

School Building Projects
While we were in Iquitos we needed to inspect the two schools we built in the jungle near there. The first school (Jack Wolff School) was built in 2004 and is located 9 kilometers outside of the city. The second school (Joseph Pulley School) was built in 2008 and is located 50 kilometers in the jungle. Visiting the schools is always a special day and the schools always have a warm welcome for us. The Jack Wolff School continues to grow and now has over 600 students. The teachers and parents are working together to keep the school running smoothly. We had a meeting with the directors to discuss some plans to improve the school. Last year we replaced the metal roof. Unfortunately during the roof construction the builder did not overlap the new metal panels the required amount. The roof has some leaking seams so more metal sections need to be added. We estimated it would cost about $1,500 in additional materials to reinstall more roof sections. The work needs to be done soon before the rainy season in February and March.
The Jack Wolff School also requested support for more computers. They want to have a room where more students can work and use the Internet. They have some computers we bought them three years ago. We are reviewing how much we can spend on three more computers. The school also wants to have a traveling Soccer Team for boys and Volleyball Team for girls that will compete against other villages. The coach says they have some good high school age players to recruit for their team. They requested $500 to buy 30 uniforms with their school name and colors for the teams. We are going to be able to help them get a team organized for the next school year, which begins in March.

The second school we built in 2008 was the Joseph Pulley School. It is much more remotely located, almost 35 miles from downtown Iquitos. The brick school is in the jungle three miles off the main road. Most of the children walk several kilometers on a network of trails through the trees to arrive at school. Currently there are about 25 kids who walk to school each day. They recently painted the school inside and out. The most pressing problem is to protect the school from the termites that live around the cement foundation. The termites are climbing into the wooden roof beams. The teachers are spraying for termites several times per week. The school is closed for vacation January and February so we hope the school is ready for classes again in March. Overall both schools are in good shape and doing a good job with the students.

End

Girls Home and Aracely

2012-01-01T08:58:00.001-08:00

Chosica Girls Home
We began helping support the Chosica Girls Home six years ago when our little friend Aracely moved there from the jungle. The Home was founded by a group from the Netherlands who wanted to start a safe house for abused or neglected girls. Since that time several other groups from Canada and Germany have continued to help with special projects. The Home has expanded to a rebuilt private residence that includes a remodeled kitchen, shower room and large dining area. The Home is located on two acres of land with a nice yard and a secure fence around the property.

The Home usually takes care of 15 to 18 girls from the ages of 3 to 17 years old. Our support has been to take the girls on shopping trips to the market where they can pick and choose new clothes. Most of the girls never have personal money to spend, so buying their own clothes is a special occasion for them. During the year we help supplement their food budget with better meat and chicken. We have also provided an English teacher to meet with the girls one day per week. This year the top two English students (Aracely and Yeni) were chosen to travel with us on our tour across Peru. In the future we will continue to help them with their food budget and English classes.

Aracely Update
We met Aracely when she was six years old. Her mother could not take care of her and Aracely had the chance to live at the Chosica Girls Home. For the past six years (Aracely is now 12 years old) we have watched her grow into a young woman. Aracely is now attending additional English classes that are part of the University. She can receive a teaching certificate in three years. She is a top student at her school and her favorite classes are History and English.

Someday she wants to live with her mother again. We visited her mother's house but it needs many repairs like a bathroom, running water and security. It would be a good project to go there and do a Total Home Make Over. I expect with four people working on the project her six-room house could be cleaned and repainted in three days. We would need to make the house secure from rats and other critters. To complete the electric and plumbing we would need some professional help to install a water pump and toilet.

Aracely understands that living at the Chosica Girl's Home in a better opportunity for her now. She realized that someday with a better education she can live with her mother and make a better life for both of them.

End

Puerto Ocopa Orphange

2012-01-01T08:56:00.000-08:00

Puerto Ocopa Orphanage
The village of Puerto Ocopa is located over the Andes Mountain about 300 miles from Lima. We discovered this remote village in 2004 during a bicycle tour to the end of the eastern most road in central Peru. At the end of the road is the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage. It is a home and boarding school for 45 to 85 kids who live in the wild jungle between Peru and Brazil. During our first tour we saw that the conditions in Puerto Ocopa were very basic. In the following years we have organized many tours to bring supplies to the orphanage.

This year we hired a mini van to make the two-day drive over the mountains to the town of Satipo. There one of the nuns from the orphanage and three of the kids met us. They would help us do the bulk of the shopping for food and clothing before making the final 50-mile drive to Puerto Ocopa. We were able to buy about 2,000 pounds of rice, sugar, beans and cooking supplies. The nuns estimated we bought enough food to feed the kids for 2 months.

Traveling the final 50 miles to Puerto Ocopa is always an adventure. Fortunately the terrible mud road from past years is now half paved and road crews are constantly grading the rough gravel sections. The driving time has been reduced from three hours to less than two hours.

We made the deliveries to Puerto Ocopa by early afternoon. All the kids lined up and received their new set of clothes and sandals. We stayed and ate lunch with the kids and had a tour of the buildings. The conditions are improving thanks to several organizations from Germany, Spain and France. It is nice more organizations are helping in this remote part of the world. In past years we donated 15 bunk beds that are now being used in a new building. The people in Puerto Ocopa always appreciate the support we give.

End

Peru Bike Racing

2012-01-01T08:52:00.000-08:00

Bike Races and Training
Two years ago our friend Alessandra became the Women's National Cycling Champion of Peru. Her younger sister Samantha is the Junior Women's Champion. They were both chosen by the Peru Sports Foundation to represent Peru at the Pan-American Games next year. Last September Alessandra had the opportunity to travel to Monterey, Mexico and train with the Mexican National Team. Alessandra was surprised at the amount of drug related violence in the region. Their training rides needed to be escorted by a follow car and they were not allowed to travel near certain areas. Dead bodies in the roadside ditch were a routine sight. A classic sign on the bridge tells how the area has accepted the violence. It read: (in Spanish) “Please do not dispose of bodies in the river because they pollute the water”. Alessandra said she was glad to return to Peru after seeing how bad things were in Mexico.

Alessandra has helped organize many bike races in Peru. We took over 300 prizes of donated parts and clothing to the race in Lima this year. Cycling is still an elitist sport in Peru compared to soccer or running. We are hoping to help more riders receive better equipment and be able to participate in cycling. We are continuing to collect a large assortment of clothing and parts from donations. We have been using these donations as race prizes and to rebuild bikes and frames that have been donated. We are always amazed at the good quality of the equipment riders are contributing for these projects.

Bike equipment can be sent to:

PAC Tour
202 Prairie Pedal Lane
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

If you would like a DVD from this year's adventures, you can send a $100 check
payable to:

“F.P.C. Global Outreach”

Send to:
PAC Tour
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

For more information contact:
Lon Haldeman

262-736-2453

Future Project Plans
We will continue to support all of our current projects in Peru. Our short range goals are to repair the roofs at both schools we have built. We will also provide help for the Chosica Girls Home with better food and more English classes.

Cycling Plans
Next year we will fly with our bikes to Cusco located at 11,000 foot elevation. . We will have two days to visit the ruins at Machu Picchu and get used to the altitude. We then start riding our bikes back to the desert coastal towns of Nazca and Pisco. We have a downhill ride to the ocean covering 900 kilometers in about eight days. The road is safe and smooth for road bikes. We will climb several mountain passes over 10,000 feet and stay in towns with hotels. The region is safe and the people are friendly. There are lots of historic sites along the way. This total tour is about 13 days including flying to Peru and back. Look for more details on the PAC Tour web site in June.

End

Alessandra to Mexico

2011-07-01T12:57:00.000-07:00

Here is an update about one of our friends in Peru.

Alessandra Davila is the Women's National Cycling Champion of Peru. She lives in the city of Iquitos along the Amazon River located 600 miles in the jungle. She received a notice this week she was invited to Mexico City to participate at their Olympic Cycling Training Camp. She will ride several races in Mexico and then go to Costa Rica for more events. Her coach is a tough former pro rider from Columbia with Tour de France experience. He was impressed enough with Alessandra to donate his time to help her train. She is now 25 years old but the Peruvian Sports Council would prefer to support younger 18 year old riders. Her coach was able to convince the Council that Alessandra was the best woman rider in Peru and she was chosen to represent
Peru at the training camp.

Her success in bike racing has continued to beat the odds for a Peruvian women from the jungle. First of all, bike racing is an expensive sport in Peru. Few riders can afford a decent bike. We have helped Alessandra get equipment and clothing during the past four years to continue racing. She now has a Calfee Dragonfly Carbon Bike. Her bike is a 16 pound beauty with the best components. Alessandra saves it for special races. We didn't tell her how much it costs but it is worth more than most Peruvians make in a year.

Since Alessandra is from the jungle region she needs to travel to the city of Lima to attend national quality races. Her transportation and travel logistics are other obstacles she has had overcome. Her story reminds me of a Navajo women basketball player who was the point guard for the University of Arizona in Tucson. Her friends and family would travel 300 miles from the reservation to see her games each week. Being a Navajo college basketball player is as unique as Alessandra being a cyclist from the jungle.

Alessandra is proud of her jungle heritage when other racers from the city call her "Jungle Girl". She is a good sport and refers to her family as her tribe. She says she gets her strength from a special diet of bananas and monkey meat (not true). She went to the University to study the environment and worked as a tour guide for jungle expeditions. Sometimes her Malaria flares up and she needs to rest a few weeks. She wants to be a lawyer working to save the jungle from oil and lumber exploitation. For fun she likes to sing Karaoke tunes in night clubs. She was the city Karaoke Champion and her specialty is singing difficult bilingual Shakira pop tunes.

During the past five years we have helped sponsor many bike races in Peru. Many of the riders are actually good athletes. It has been exciting to watch them develop and get stronger. For Alessandra to finally get a chance to leave Peru and ride with the best women in South America is a big opportunity for her. She understands how fortunate she is to have our support from the United States and she is the lucky 1% who has has a chance to go to the Olympic Training Camp. She needs to raise the money for her round trip airfare from the jungle to Lima and then to Mexico City and Costa Rica. Her flights will cost about $1,600. The sports council is paying for
her living and racing expenses during the month. We have raised about $1,200
so far for her airfare and travel. She begins the training camp on July 15th so we are trying to raise another $400 by then.

If you know anyone interested in helping sponsor Alessandra please forward this update to them.

Donations can be made to:..........
F.P.C Global Outreach Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

Alessandra is good about sending her progress reports. I will keep you updated about her racing accomplishments.

Route 66 Cafes and Motels

2011-04-28T19:22:00.000-07:00

Our bicycle tour of Route 66 begins May 21st. We are going to be eating and staying at many Rt. 66 cafes and motels during our tour. Figuring out how many of these places stay in business is part of the charm of Rt. 66.

I recently stopped at a diner to eat and asked the waitress how late their restaurant was open. She said "We are open everyday from 6:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Except for Friday nights when we are open until 8:00 PM for dinner". Then I said "We are looking for a place to eat dinner on Wednesday". She said "We serve the same food for lunch and dinner. If you want dinner on Wednesday you can still eat here. You just need to eat before 3:00 PM".

Then I stopped at a motel and asked the owner how many non smoking rooms they had. The owner said to me: "How many nonsmoking rooms do you need?" I said: "We need 13 no smoking rooms". Owner: "No problem. We can make them all no smoking. All we need to do is take the ashtrays out of the rooms before you arrive".

Travelin' Route 66 is always an adventure.

New Peru Amazon Tour

2011-04-22T19:31:00.000-07:00

New Adventures Across Peru

“The silhouette of the black jungle lined the river banks in the moonlight. Fallen tree trunks bobbed in the murky water ahead of our boat. The reflection of distant lightning flickered silently on the horizon. This was a typical night on the Amazon River. Relaxing and fascinating at the same time.”

Lon Haldeman- Amazon River Tour 1999

During te past twelve years we have traveled to a variety of Peruvian destinations. We have combined many of our favorite adventures from past tours. We will participate in a wide variety of experiences not usually seen by tourists. This tour will offer plenty of opportunities for cyclists and non riders to see Peru as the local people really live.

This tour is appropriate for cyclists and non cyclists. We will travel to all the same locations along the same roads. Non cyclists will travel with 2-3 Peruvian guides in rented vehicles. The cyclists will ride with two Peruvian guides who are elite cyclists. We will ride about 320 miles during seven cycling days of 35 to 65 miles. Five of the days are on all paved roads. Two of the days have 10 miles of rough gravel and rocks and are not recommended for road bikes. Riders with road bikes can travel in the support van during those sections. A mountain bike could easily be ridden on all the gravel or paved roads.

This year will include:

*Visit to the Chosica Girl’s Home

*Tours to several jungle villages

*Riverboat tour down the Amazon

*Delivering school books to Amazon schools

*Visiting schools we have build in Peru

*Dinner party for homeless kids

*Bicycle race in the city of Iquitos

Day 1
Saturday, October 22
Airline flights from the United States typically take most of the day with connections to Lima, Peru. Most flights arrive in Lima about midnight. If your flight arrives after 2:00 AM Sunday morning it would be better for you to travel to Lima the previous evening. When you arrive we will meet you at the airport and take you to our hotel in the nicer section of Lima. You will have time to sleep in the next morning before we start our adventures across Peru.

Day 2
Sunday, October 23
If you have not been to Peru before we recommend taking the 9:00 AM Lima City Tour by bus. This tour visits the old colonial areas of the city and is a good introduction to the history of Peru. The morning tour is three hours and costs about $30 (additional). At noon we will have lunch with a typical family who live in the back street neighborhoods of Lima. (At our friend Sara’s house). In the late afternoon we will travel 50 miles to the Chosica Girl’s Home and take 15 girls on their annual shopping trip to buy new clothes. We will share an evening dinner together. That evening we will return to Lima and we will be joined by little Aracely (age 12) and her mother Nayda who will travel with us across Peru.

Day 3
Monday, October 24
This morning we will go shopping for school books in the Lima market. These are the books we will deliver to rural jungle schools during our boat tour on the Amazon River in a few days. In the afternoon we begin our travel into the jungle. We will go to the airport to fly over the Andes mountains to the remote jungle city of Tarapoto. This city of 50,000 people is located on the eastern foothills of the mountains and has a good variety of terrain with a moderate climate. We will assemble bikes for the next day. There are several nice restaurants within walking distance of our hotel. Our base hotel for three days is modern with a nice swimming pool.

Day 4
Tuesday, October 25
The next day we travel 20 miles from Tarapoto to the colonial mountain town of Lamas and back (40 miles round trip). There are paved and gravel road options to Lamas. Non cyclists will travel in our support van or taxi and and have time to stop and visit the sights along the way.

Day 5
Wednesday, October 26
Today we will make an overnight tour to the village of Sauce (Sow-see). This secluded mountain village is located 35 miles from Tarapoto on a high jungle lake. The road is gravel the final 10 miles up the mountain to Sauce. Riders with road bikes can travel in the support van during those sections. A mountain bike could easily be ridden on all the gravel or paved roads. In the afternoon we will travel on a boat across the lake and visit a village where they are making paper by hand. The thatch roof restaurant and motel are clean but basic. This is a quaint jungle hide-way town.

Day 6
Thursday, October 27
We return 35 miles to Tarapoto on a slightly different route by crossing the river on a small ferry boat that is big enough for only one car at a time.

Day 7
Friday, October 28
We depart Tarapoto and begin traveling over the mountains toward the Amazon River. The new highway is paved and we will travel 40 miles to the village of Caymarachi. The bicycle and taxi tours will all rejoin in the afternoon. This is where the low jungle begins. Our hotel is simple but clean without hot water. The jungle will be warm and a cool shower is refreshing.

Day 8-9
Saturday, Sunday, October 29-30
The cyclists will depart early to beat the heat during the remaining 50 miles to Yurimaguas. The highway is paved so we should all arrive in Yurimaguas by noon. We will then evaluate if we should take an afternoon boat down the Amazon. If a boat is not available we will allow time in our schedule to sleep in Yurimaguas until the next day when a boat is ready to go to Iquitos. The boat is 100 feet long with three decks and carries 80% freight. The passenger schedule is not always predictable until the freight loading is done. If we stay in Yurimaguas an extra day we will go hiking in the jungle forest preserve. The Yurimaguas fish market is also a fun place to see many unique items for sale.

Day 10-11
Monday, October 31
and Tuesday, November 1
This boat trip down the Amazon is a unique experience. You will be traveling along one of the most peaceful and enchanting areas of the world. We will have some cabins to store our gear but most of us will prefer to sleep in hammocks or on foam mats on the deck. “It is like camping on a boat”. We will bring our own food and cooks to prepare the meals we prefer (like spaghetti and French Toast). We will be on the boat during two nights for about 40 hours on the river. One of our main goals of this boat ride is to deliver school books to remote Amazon Schools. During our tour we will stop at six remote schools to deliver books. Most of these villages are rarely visited by tourists. Receiving new books at their school is very exciting for them. Our travel on the riverboat will be interesting with spectacular sunrises and sunsets. The boat typically stops at twenty villages to load banana and off load bags of rice. The activity on the river bank is always entertaining. Even with all the people on the boat you will have time to relax on hammocks and deck chairs for most of the trip. Most travelers like to bring a good book or sit and talk while watching the scenery pass by.

Day 12
Wednesday, November 2
After two nights on the boat we will be near our first opportunity to depart on a paved road again. The highway begins in the town of Nauta located 60 miles from Iquitos. Depending on the time of day or night our boat arrives in town we may ride or drive this remaining 60 miles to Iquitos. We have several options for going overland or staying on the boat to Iquitos. We might sleep in Nauta and continue on the road in the morning. We will need to finalizes these plans during our final night hours on the boat. If we arrive in the morning we may visit one of the rural schools we build 30 miles from Iquitos.

Day 13
Thursday, November 3
This is our day to be tourists in Iquitos or just sleep and relax in a real hotel room with a hot shower. We will have time to visit several traditional jungle villages and go shopping for jungle handicrafts. In the evening we will have a birthday party for 30 homeless kids who live on the streets of Iquitos. This is always a memorable night for our group.

Day 13
Friday, November 4
Today we will visit the schools we built in past years. This will be a busy day of ceremonies with the teachers and students. We will also evaluate future projects that the schools will need. Cyclists will have the opportunity to ride their bikes to the schools if they choose.

Day 14
Saturday, November 5
(option: non cyclists may want to return home today to arrive in the United States on Sunday)

Today is the Bike Race from Iquitos to Nauta. This 60 mile race has become a popular event for riders from Lima, Columbia and Brazil. Cyclists in our group can join the race or ride a leisurely shorter route. Non cyclists can view the race from the support motorcycles or from our support van. In the evening we will have dinner with many of the racers at a local restaurant.

Day 15
Sunday, November 6
We will fly back to Lima. Most flights back to the United States depart in the evening. You will have time to go shopping for Peru blankets and woolen sweaters in the Inca Markets.

Day 16
Monday, November 7
Most flights arrive back in the United States by noon concluding your busy tour across Peru.

END

History of RAAM Sleep

2011-01-23T20:10:00.000-08:00

Here is a brief history of our sleep patterns during our first cross county rides.

John Marino set his coast to coast records in 1978 (13 days) and 1980 (12 days, 3 hours). He eventually slept less and less during his 1980 record and was sleeping only 4 hours per night.

In 1981 I started my Double Transcontinental Record Attempt from New York City. My goal was to ride 3,000 miles in 12 days or 250 miles per day. Many days I was able to start at sunrise and be finished by dark. Many nights I slept a full 6-8 hours. As I headed west across Kansas the headwinds were bad and I started riding more at night to miss the wind and heat. I finally reached California and I was usually sleeping from 1:00 AM to sunrise. Sometimes I was taking an afternoon nap. My East to West Record was 12 days 18 hours so I didn’t break Marino’s West to East Record of 12 days 3 hours. (my East to West Record still stands....somebody should be able to do it in under 10 days).

I slept 4 hours in California and started back at 3:00 AM.

On the return trip I started riding 275 miles most days during daylight hours. The first two nights I didn’t ride in the dark and got a full eight hours of sleep. The last couple nights I rode more at night to be sure I arrived in New York City before morning rush hour traffic. I finished in 10 days, 23 hours breaking Marino’s Coast to Coast Record.

Susan started her Transcontinental Record the next year in June 1982. She was making good time the first 4 days and she was on pace with my 1981 record. She had some slower days in the middle so she started riding more at night. She basically rode nonstop the final 600 miles from the middle of Ohio to New York City the final 2 days finishing in 11 days, 16 hours.

The Great American Bike Race (the first RAAM) started in August that year. After watching Susan ride the final 600 miles nonstop at the end of her transcontinental I calculated I could ride 600 miles nonstop at the beginning of my race. I rode the first 500 miles in 32 hours to Flagstaff, AZ and then 125 miles that evening to complete 625 miles in about 40 hours. I went to bed at about 1:00 AM because of thunderstorms and headwinds brewing in the area.

When I woke up at sunrise the next morning I still had about a 6 hour lead on John Howard. Those were the days of limited communication between racers and we only receive one vague update about rider positions per day. We had no idea if a 6 hour lead was good or not. Gradually I increased my lead by about 1-2 hours per day. I was sleeping about 3 hours per night. That GABR was my toughest race and I was totally wasted by the time I reached Kansas on the 4th night. I had a few total collapses the 7th and 8th nights and I slept about 6 hours those nights. I still finished with about a 15 hour lead but I was trashed.

Over the next 2-3 years the RAAM riders learned how to sleep less and pace themselves better. The diets and equipment made staying on the bike easier. Eventually Pete Penseyres and I cross the country in 7 days, 14 hours with only 9 hours of total sleep....(6 sleep breaks of 1.5 hours each).

Racing RAAM is always a balance of pushing to the limit and still having enough energy to race again the next day.

Breaking In a Leather Saddle

2011-01-21T12:28:00.000-08:00

Breaking in a Brooks Leather Saddle
by Lon Haldeman

Most Brooks leather saddles are very firm when they are new (similar to knocking on wood). The leather will eventually get softer to the touch but this could take several thousands of miles of riding in dry conditions. The following break in procedure is a way to speed up the process and still have 40,000 miles life expectancy from the saddle. During the past 30 years I have broken in at least 10 saddles every year. During a cross country PAC Tour event I recently broke in 20 saddles in 20 days for riders who wanted to ride a leather saddle the next day. I can break in my own saddles in less than one hour and 10 miles of riding. The following steps will take slightly longer, but they will break in the saddle in less than one week or 100 miles. The key is not to overly break in the saddle. You want to make the saddle comfortable enough to disappear beneath you.

Different models of Brooks Saddles are cut from different locations of the animal’s hide. The best and thickest parts of the hide are saved for only a few of the Professional model saddles. Personally I like the leather that is used on the B-17 model saddles. The leather is slightly thinner and it breaks in faster. All saddles of the same model are not the same and you can feel the difference with your fingers. The point is, thinner leather breaks in faster, and you need to be careful when using the following steps to break in your saddle. This break in procedures needs to be a balance of making the saddle comfortable but not ruining the saddle and making it too limp to offer good support.

What you need to get started.

2 gallon bucket, extra seat post that fits your bike, tin container of Mink Oil (it is a paste wax type of water proofing sold in the shoe department at Walmart)

1. Fill a sink or bucket with 2 gallons of hot tap water. The water should be quite warm but not too hot to soak your hands in the water.

2. Put the saddle in the water and make sure the saddle is totally under water.

3. Let the saddle soak for 5 minutes. Take the saddle out and flex the sides of the saddle with your fingers. The saddle should feel pliable but not limp.

4. If the saddle still feels stiff then soak it another 5 minutes. Do not over soak it because you only want to break in the saddle about 50% during this first process.

5. When the saddle feels pliable, remove it from the bucket then dry the saddle with an old towel. Rub the top and bottom for several minutes to remove as much moisture as possible. The saddle should still feel warm from the water at this time.

6. Before the saddle cools... immediately start rubbing Mink Oil on the top and bottom of the saddle. The warm leather will help melt the Mink Oil. The evaporating water will help draw the Mink Oil into the leather.

7. Rub and massage the Mink Oil with your thumbs into the “sit bone” areas of the saddle. Use lots of Mink Oil. Massage the saddle for at least 10 minutes. It is okay to leave some extra Mink Oil on the surface of the saddle and on the underside of the saddle.

8. Mount the saddle on a seat post and test the saddle for tilt and height on your bike. Put on some old bike shorts and go for a short 10 minute ride (shorter is better at this time). You should not ride very far on a damp saddle because you can distort the leather.

9. Your old bike shorts will have rubbed off the extra Mink Oil from the top of the saddles. When you know the tilt is correct, then park your bike and wait until tomorrow. Apply one more thin coat of Mink Oil and allow it to sink in overnight.

10. The Next Day test the saddle to see how pliable it is. If the saddle is quite stiff you can remove the seat post from your bike and soak the saddle in hot water again for 5 minutes then repeat the first process from yesterday.

11. If the saddle is feeling better then only apply more Mink Oil today. Put on your old shorts again and go for a longer one hour ride.

12. It is important to keep the saddle well oiled the first month. DO NOT let the saddle dry out. Apply at least 5 coats of Mink Oil during the first week of riding or before and after each ride.

13. After one week or 100 miles the saddle should feel quiet a bit softer and starting to fit you better.

Brooks Saddles have a tensioning bolt at the nose of the saddle. During the break in process you might need to tighten the bolt and stretch the saddle 1/2 turn for every 500 miles of riding. Usually after 3 turns (3 threads showing) and 3,000 miles the saddle tension is pretty stable for a while. For our old RAAM bikes we used to like using saddles that had been stretched about 10 turns (10 threads) after 20,000 miles. Those saddles were long enough to allow the rider to side fore and aft and have several different saddle pressure positions.

I hope this helps you enjoy your new leather saddle sooner.

END

History of little Aracely in Peru

2011-01-13T20:30:00.000-08:00

History of Meeting Aracely in Peru

We met Aracely when she was six years old. She lived with her mother and grandfather at a roadside restaurant with a thatched roof. Our bicycle tour had stopped there for lunch while riding on a tour over the mountains deep into the jungle. There were eight riders in our group and the grandfather asked us what we wanted for lunch. We will have “chicken” was the common request. The grandfather then took a section of steel pipe and started chasing and swatting at the chickens under the porch. We could hear the commotion as the chickens ran and squawked for about ten minutes as the grandfather chased them. The grandfather came upstairs empty handed and announced “No chicken today, would you like fish?”. We said “Okay we will have fish.” The grandfather then went and got his fishing pole and went down to the river to start catching fish.

During this long wait for lunch we were entertained by a charming little girl named Aracely. She brought us oranges from the tree, then she sat on our bikes and had her photos taken with the group. When our assortment of fish were finally cooked, we finished our lunch. As we were getting ready to leave the mother and grandfather asked if we could take Aracely with us because they couldn’t afford to take care of her. We couldn’t just take Aracely home but we said we would keep in touch with them. A few months later the mother wrote me a letter that she had moved to Lima to clean houses and Aracely was living at the Chosica Girl’s Home. For the past five years we have stayed in touch with Aracely and her mother. They have traveled with us each year on tours across Peru. Aracely has continued to learn more English and she is a helpful guide for our tours. Aracely is now one of the top students in her school and her favorite subjects are math and science. During her school’s recent talent contest she was voted “Miss Chosica”.

In Lima we visited her mother’s “house” located on the flat cement roof of a store front building. Her house was constructed of six pieces of plywood to make a box big enough to hold a bed, table and propane stove. One of her few possessions on the table was a thick photo album from our tours together. Aracely would like to live with her mother again someday but for now the Chosica Girl’s Home is a safer and better environment for her to live. That is why we continue to support the Chosica Girl’s Home.

This is her story from her diary....

My Infancy in Yurinaki
a dairy by Aracely

Hello friends, my name is Aracely and I was born in Yurinaki the 27 April, 1999 in Peru. At the present I am 11 years old, and live in the house “Home of Gina”. (In the town of Chosica 40 miles from Lima.)

My first seven years I lived in Yurinaki (located 200 miles over the Andes Mountains in the jungle). What I remember of that place is that was very green and with plenty of animals, like the zamaño that is a type of wild hog, also there were wild animals but they were far from my house.

In Yurinaki my house was made of wood and brick next to the river. I there lived with my grandfather, my uncle, my mom, my brother. Of my father I never knew nothing. My mom spoke me of him, but I do not remember him.

In Yurinaki my mother would awake me at 6 o'clock AM for breakfast. It was a very simple breakfast of only bread and oats. To be able to feed us my mom sold food in a restaurant and I helped her after school. I walked to school because it was very close across the river bridge.

My Godfather
I first met my Godfather Mr. Lon when his friends rode their bicycles to Yurinaki from Lima. They stopped for lunch at our restaurant where my mom sold food. My memory is that I gave him three oranges. I noted that he was a good person. He asked my name and my address. We wrote letters and I was surprised since from time to time he sent me things like knives for our restaurant. I never imagined that that man to who I only had offered oranges in the future would support me so much. I thought that my Godfather was a good person, but never I imagined that he was going to take me to so many places.

How I Arrived in Lima
When I lived in Yurinaki I had heard of Lima. This is the city of the capital and the people were going there to make a better future. I did not intend to go there and I never imagined that we would be able to move to Lima.

When I was 6 years old, my mom found some work in Lima at the house of a family. She went to Lima with my brother in January. I remained with my grandfather and my uncle, but I missed a lot my mom and my brother. Then my mom returned in April and she asked me if he wanted to go to Lima with them. I told her yes because I wanted to be with them.

My Arrival to the Home of Gina
I arrived at Lima at the age of 7. My mom had to work and she could not leave my brother and me alone. She was in search of a home for girls so that they take care of me. That was how I arrived at the Home of Christ, today called Home of Gina. I remember that the first day I felt fear because I was not going to be with my mom. I thought that I was never was going to see see her again. Then I calmed down upon knowing that my mom was going to be able to visit me.

My Days in Home of Gina
The Home of Gina is as my house. That place where they received me with the open arms and that up to now they worry about my welfare.

In the Home of Gina I like to be with my other companions. When a new girl arrives I try to play with them so that they do not they sit down sad.

In my spare time I like to play and to read. A book that I liked a lot was "Blood of Champions". I felt quite sure to know that my friends in the United States would help me and that they had not forgot me.

My Trips
Knowing my friends in the United States it has been marvelous because never I thought I would be able to travel to so many places.

First we returned back to the jungle to the places of Yurinaki, Pichanaki, Satipo and Iquitos. These are all places of the forest which is a quite large place. I remember that when I travel I am very happy to know that my country is large and marvelous. It is incredible the quantity of beautiful places that Peru has and that many people of the world come to visit.

In my last trip I went to Nasca the see the Nasca lines! We wanted to rent the small airplane but we could not rent the light aircraft because the only two airplanes that day were busy. We were able to view the lines from a tower and they are incredible. Then we went to see the museum of María Reiche, a German woman that dedicated their life to the study of these lines.

In the afternoon we started our long taxi drive to Cusco (two days, 400 miles). We slept in the town of Puquio where their streams fell in waterfalls. This was a very pretty place also.

The next day passes to the town of Abancay, where we saw several estates and trees. We stopped there to have some lunch. I would have liked to visited longer but we needed to keep traveling to our destination of Cusco.

Upon arriving at Cusco at first I felt a little fear because we could not locate our friend Clara. We needed to ask the friends of Clara in the streets. There were many tourists and finally we locate Clara and I calmed down. Cusco is a marvelous place, but is different when you see it in person. In school I had learned much data on Cusco, but nothing of compares to the fact of being there to enjoy it.

The next day we went on the train to Machu Picchu. Upon being there I could not believe the contrast to my home in Yurinaki. My jungle home is a simple place. Now to see this marvelous place I never believed that I would go to a place like this. It was very surprising there when I saw the houses of stone where the Incas did the great work. I feel happiness and pride that Machu Picchu is chosen as a world wonder.

My Dreams
In the future I would like to be tour guide, since I like the languages, the history and the trips. I dream that with the first money that I would make is to help the Home of Gina, because that was the first place where they received me. It would hope that the other girls that enter should reach their dreams as I.

I would like to travel to other Peru cities like Arequipa and Lambayeque, etc. It is important to know other places because thus I can learn more about each place and be able to be the best guide of tourists!! My gratitude's.

I want to thank all the people that made possible my trips. I tell them thank you for everything that they do for me. It is a little difficult for me to understand why the people of another country have so much appreciation for me. I thank the day that my friends first found me in Yurinaki.

Thus also I give thanks to the Home of Gina by receiving me. They are my family and never I will forget them.

Many Thanks.

Aracely.

Job Opportunity

2011-01-13T18:50:00.000-08:00

Travel Story by Lon

I was driving through Mississippi scouting Southern PAC Tour routes for next September.

I stopped at a Waffle House for breakfast. The restaurant was empty except for two waitresses and the cook behind the counter waiting for customers. I took a seat at the booth near the grill and looked at the menu which doubled as a placemat.

After a minute the waitress asked me what I wanted. I always get the All American Combo which includes a waffle, 2 eggs, 2 sausage patties, hash browns and 2 pieces of toast with jelly for $6.39. Coffee is $1.30 extra. I calculated with tax the total was a little over $8.00 and that still left a nice tip for the waitress out of a $10 bill.

I wasn't real hungry so I told the waitress I only wanted the waffle and 2 eggs and 2 sausage and coffee. She could hold the hash browns and the 2 pieces of toast. I asked if I wasn't getting the hash browns and toast if I could add a teaspoon of pecans on the waffle. The waitress said "No problem. I will recalculate your order without the extra items"

While I was waiting I noticed an employment application in a dispenser near the counter. I took a copy and checked out the four simple questions.

1. Are you over 16 years old?...yes...no

2. Do you have reliable transportation?...yes...no

3. Have you worked at Waffle House before?...yes...no

4. List all criminal convictions on the lines below.

I was wondering what kind of people apply to work at Waffle House. I was about to find out.

My breakfast came and I ate everything. The eggs and waffle and sausage were perfect. Even the coffee was good. When I was done the waitress brought my ticket. The total was $10.41 including tax. I double checked the placemat menu for the All American Combo price and it should have been about $8.00.

So I asked the waitress why my breakfast increased over $2.00 when I ordered less food. She said what I ordered individually added up to $10.41. If I had ordered the All American Combo the total of all the items together cost less. This is what happen next.....

LON: Did you ever see the movie "Five Easy Pieces" when Jack Nickolson tried to order wheat toast at a restaurant?

Waitress: Who is Jack Nickolson?

LON: Never mind. Just charge me for the complete All American Combo and I will pay for the items I didn't get.

Waitress: You can't do that because I can only charge you for the items you received....and you ordered pecans in your waffle. Pecans are 45 cents more. If I add up all the items you received the total is $10.41.

(Visions of Jack Nickelson flashed in my mind again as I scratched my head at her logic. Maybe I was missing something so I tried to talk slow and reconsider what I was asking)

LON: Are the Combos pre made? Did I mess up the cook buy NOT having him make something?

Waitress: No. All the orders are cooked fresh.

LON: So I actually saved the cook work and saved food by not ordering hash browns and toast?

Waitress: That's right

LON: Okay. Can I pay $6.39 for the All American Combo, plus $1.30 for coffee, plus 45 cents extra for pecans? That's about $8.60 with tax and you will still have a some extra left over for a tip. (As I held up my $10 bill.)

Waitress: I am sorry. I have to charge you for the food you received.

LON: You mean I should have ordered the Combo and left the hash browns and toast on my plate?

Waitress: Yes. That's right. On the menu 2 eggs are $2.99 and the pecan waffle and sausage are $5.59 and the coffee is $1.30. Your total is $9.88 and with tax is $10.41. I have to charge you for what you ordered. Do you want to talk to the manager?

(The manager is the cook who was still standing next to the grill in the empty restaurant waiting for something to do)

He had heard most of our discussion that had happened up to that point. The manager looked at me like I was a jerk asking for a deal.

Manager: So this is what you want to do. You only want to pay for the Combo even though you didn't get the hash browns and toast?

LON: Yes. Is that okay?

Manager: You didn't get the COMBO then. You got eggs, a waffle, sausage and coffee and that cost more than a COMBO.

(I could see this discussion was going in circles and my logic wasn't making any sense to the manager or the waitress.

Manager: Okay then. If that is what you want. (He said with a glare)

I gave him the $10 bill and said "keep the change".

I don't think I would ever pass the employment application test for Waffle House.

Lon

Peru Project Oct. 2010

2010-11-23T13:55:00.000-08:00

In October I traveled to Peru with three friends to work on an assortment of projects across the country. Our group would have an efficient mix of talents. Veronica Beagan was a retired Air Force Captain. Susan Rosenblatt was a university administrator. Suzanne Wheeler was a retired prison guard and director. They all had organizational skills to get things done. This was my twelfth trip to Peru to work on projects. I have traveled with Veronica and Susan during three other tours in Peru so they knew what to expect. We had a busy schedule that would take us places tourist don’t usually go.

Our first project was visiting the Chosica Girl’s Home. The “Home” is an orphanage located on the outskirts of Lima in the foothills of the Andes mountains. We have been supporting this Girl’s Home since our friend Aracely Jumpa moved there from the jungle in 2006. The home provides support for 15 girls ages five to fifteen years old.

We met Aracely when she was six years old. She lived with her mother and grandfather at a roadside restaurant with a thatched roof. Our bicycle tour had stopped there for lunch while riding on a tour over the mountains deep into the jungle. There were eight riders in our group and the grandfather asked us what we wanted for lunch. We will have “chicken” was the common request. The grandfather then took a section of steel pipe and started chasing and swatting at the chickens under the porch. We could hear the commotion as the chickens ran and squawked for about ten minutes as the grandfather chased them. The grandfather came upstairs empty handed and announced “No chicken today, would you like fish?”. We said “Okay we will have fish.” The grandfather then went and got his fishing pole and went down to the river to start catching fish.

During this long wait for lunch we were entertained by a charming little girl named Aracely. She brought us oranges from the tree, then she sat on our bikes and had her photos taken with the group. When our assortment of fish were finally cooked, we finished our lunch. As we were getting ready to leave the mother and grandfather asked if we could take Aracely with us because they couldn’t afford to take care of her. We couldn’t just take Aracely home but we said we would keep in touch with them. A few months later the mother wrote me a letter that she had moved to Lima to clean houses and Aracely was living at the Chosica Girl’s Home. For the past five years we have stayed in touch with Aracely and her mother. They have traveled with us each year on tours across Peru. Aracely has continued to learn more English and she is a helpful guide for our tours. Aracely is now one of the top students in her school and her favorite subjects are math and science. During her school’s recent talent contest she was voted “Miss Chosica”.

In Lima we visited her mother’s “house” located on the flat cement roof of a store front building. Her house was constructed of six pieces of plywood to make a box big enough to hold a bed, table and propane stove. One of her few possessions on the table was a thick photo album from our tours together. Aracely would like to live with her mother again someday but for now the Chosica Girl’s Home is a safer and better environment for her to live. That is why we continue to support the Chosica Girl’s Home.

During our visit to Chosica we took the 15 girls on a shopping trip to the market where they each bought a new set of clothes and shoes. Later that evening we had a nice chicken dinner together at a local restaurant. We were fortunate our visit coincided with meeting Adrian De Rijke from Holland. Adrian and his wife are the directors of the Girl’s Home and were overseeing the building of a new facility for the girls.

It was beneficial for us all to meet and spend some time talking about working together in the future. I said we would like to stay involved helping the Girl’s Home with tangible improvements such as beds and equipment. Our support of the Chosica Girl’s Home has helped the girls have a more comfortable life. Aracely’s mother said our caring for Aracely has given her a reason to do well in school because she feels responsible to succeed. The chance that Aracely can break out of the cycle of poverty in Peru is slim but she is beating the odds against her so far.

School Painting in Peru

2010-11-23T13:54:00.002-08:00

School Painting
After spending four days in Lima and Chosica we flew over the Andes Mountains into the Amazon rain forest. Our most labor intensive Peru Project was painting the Jack Wolff School school at KM #9. The school was built in 2003 and the enrollment has continued to expand. Originally 350 kids attended the school. That number increased to 500 kids last year. This year 600 kids are attending the school with three split shifts throughout the day. The school has been well used and is starting to show the signs of wear. With the help of the local families we decided to paint the school during a four day work party.

Originally we had hoped to receive the help of ten good local workers each day along with our crew of four people from the United States. Painting the school is hot and messy work. The afternoon temperature is near 100 degrees in Iquitos. We planned to work from 7:30 AM until 12:30 PM each day before it got too hot. A lunch meal would be provided for all the workers that would be prepared by four local cooks. For the local families the offer of a hot lunch was too good to pass up. Our work force grew to 30-40 workers each day. That was great because we had lots of helping hands. We then needed to buy more paint scrapers, brushes, rollers, ladders and paint pans to keep everyone busy. Our first day working included several trips back to the hardware stores in the city to buy more supplies.

I was impressed with how hard everyone was working scraping paint and getting everything ready for painting. Like I said, this was a hot messy job and scraping paint in the dusty classrooms wasn’t a pleasant chore. We needed to go back to the store again and buy dust masks for all the workers. Eventually we started painting the inside of the classrooms a fresh cream color with brown trim. The outside was painted a golden yellow with brown trim. It would take 176 gallons of paint to cover eleven classrooms and the exterior including a building for the bathrooms.

Near the end of each workday we needed to clean twenty paint brushes and fifteen rollers and all the paint pans. The water source at the school comes from a small well and a simple pump. We had to be careful to stockpile enough water in buckets before the well ran out of water. Buy this time the noon sun was intense and everyone was ready for break. At 12:30 lunch would be served. The cooks did a great job of making rice and pasta over an open wood fire. We ran over budget buying all the extra painting supplies and feeding 30 more people each day. However we felt is was worth while to have the extra help and get the painting done as quickly as possible. The 40 workers were not as efficient as ten experienced painters but the community pride of have everyone involved was worth the extra cost.

New School Roof Needed

2010-11-23T13:54:00.001-08:00

Roof Repairs
While we were painting the classrooms we noticed the ceiling wood was water damaged in several areas. The problem is water leaking under the sheet metal roof panels when the wind blows the rain horizontal. We looked at several ways to fix the problem which have varying degrees of cost and effectiveness. One way to patch the roof is with a roofing tar that will seal the metal joints (cost $700). Another fix is to replace the roof panels with new interlocking sheets of fish scale type metal panels (cost $3,500). The best and most expensive fix is to change the roof pitch to a steep grade and then replace the roof panels ($10,000). If any of these outside roof repairs are made we will probably need to replace the inside ceiling plywood panels in the future for an extra cost of $2,000. The school said they would like to start the repairs in January when the school is closed for two months for vacation. Depending on how much money we can raise before January will determine the type of repair we can provide.

Peru School Number 2

2010-11-23T13:53:00.000-08:00

Joesph Pulley School
Three years ago we built another school further in the jungle at kilometer #46. This school is in a very rural area and we had to walk the final three miles on a slippery muddy trail to get there. It is located in a jungle setting with only a few huts within one mile. Most of the kids need to walk several kilometers from all directions through the jungle to reach the clearing where the school is located.

We went to the school to see the status of the construction and school supplies. The building is in fine shape and the local residents use the building as a common meeting point. We bought a supplies of notebooks and books for the classrooms. One of the more inspirational moments of our visit came when a twelve year old girl stood up in from of the class and read a one page story. Last year she didn’t know how to read. She was a good example that the school is making a difference in the lives of kids who would not have the chance to get an education.

Race Across the Jungle

2010-11-23T13:52:00.001-08:00

Bike Race
This is the third year we have supported the “Race Across the Jungle”. The race travels 100 kilometers on the only paved road within 300 miles. We began supporting the race when we met some serious riders in the city of Iquitos located on the banks of the Amazon River. Iquitos is almost 2,000 miles up river from the Atlantic Ocean and was a bustling river port during the rubber boom before World War I. Now Iquitos is over populated with 350,000 people and an oil drilling economy that only benefits 10% of the people. That leaves a majority of 200,000 people living at a near poverty level. To own a basic one speed bicycle is a luxury. To own a racing bike that actually shifts is as rare as owning a Rolls Royce in the United States.

There is a serious core group of about 25 road racers in Iquitos who are as enthusiastic as any Velo News readers in the United States. They are fanatics about cycling and physically talented. These are the riders we have been trying to help with equipment and race prizes during the past three years.

This year there were two stages in the race. The road race was on Saturday and on Sunday a circuit route went around a one kilometer course down town. The 100 kilometer road race was held on an out and back course. The police provided escorts to the pelaton of racers and support motorcycles. The parade of bikes and vehicles racing on the quiet jungle road must have been a unique sight for the families in grass huts along the route.

The best female rider is Alessandra Divila from Iquitos. She is 24 years old and she is the main organizer and promoter of road cycling in the jungle. Alessandra walks with the tough swagger of a high school football player. Her attitude on the bike is similar by always attacking and pushing the pace. Cycling is not considered a sport for women in Peru so Alessandra’s aggressive riding style is not always popular with the men. When she goes to the city of Lima for races they call her “Jungle Girl”. It is a nick name she is proud of now and she is always trying to get more girls involved in the unique sport of bicycle racing.

During the “Race Across the Jungle” Alessandra and her 16 year old sister Samantha were the only women entrants. They finished in the chase pack in 10th and 11th place overall. Alessandra probably could have stayed with the lead breakaway but she stayed back to make sure her sister didn’t get dropped. The men’s winner was a pencil thin rider from Lima. He was a “ringer” from out of town and a top racer in Peru. It was good the “Race Across the Jungle” attracted some more nationally recognized riders.

We brought an assortment of prizes for the riders. The prizes had been donated by dozens of riders across the United States during the past year. We were limited by how much weight we were able to bring on the airlines with our group of four people coming to Iquitos. We were overloaded with about 100 pounds per person. We brought five bicycles, 120 jerseys and shorts, 30 saddles, 20 derailleurs, 10 pairs of shoes with matching pedals, 20 pumps and a whole bunch of other parts. All together we brought over 330 items for prizes valued at $7,000 (for used equipment). PAC Tour also gave $1,000 in cash to the top riders. The prizes for most races in Iquitos are usually points to be applied toward a trophy at the end of the year. The prize list for the “Race Across the Jungle” was very special for the riders. We had enough prizes so everyone who entered in the race received a goody bag full of useful equipment and clothing.

The racers were very thankful for the prizes and support they received this year. They want to say thank you to everyone who donated equipment. They are in need of so many basic cycling items we take for granted. One thing I would like to organize is a bike repair station with good bike tools for working a Shimano and Campagnolo type bike parts. The bike shops in Iquitos are basically blacksmith shops who hammer everything together. The riders with better equipment need specific tools to adjust and repair their bottom brackets, cassettes, headsets and cranks. I am working with Alessandra to make a repair shop at her house where riders with good bikes can make repairs.

We will continue to collect clothing and bike parts for next year. We still have five more bicycles that were donated last summer to be used as prizes in Peru. Our goal is to overhaul these bikes this winter. Some of the bikes need new shifting systems. Next October we will have riders from the United States take the bikes to Iquitos to use on the tour and then donate them to the prize list.

Equipment Donations can be sent to:

PAC Tour - Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
202 Prairie Pedal Lane
Sharon, WI 53585

The plan for next year is to make the “Race Across the Jungle” bigger with more good riders from Columbia and Brazil. I met with the Director of the Sports Council in Iquitos who is the most politically influential person in Iquitos for promoting sporting events. He was very happy for the support the “Race Across the Jungle” received this year. He wants to be personally involved next year to make the race popular with riders from all of South America. Wouldn’t it be great to have a bunch of riders from the United States go to the Amazon to race and make a one week tour of the sights in the rain forest?

Peru Cycling Championship

2010-11-23T13:51:00.000-08:00

Update: Peru National Cycling Championship
Two weeks after the “Race Across the Jungle” Peru held its National Championships in Lima. Alessandra and Samantha went to compete. Alessandra won the 80 kilometer road race and beat the reigning Peru champion who has won the past 10 years. Samantha won the Junior Women’s title. The fact that riders came from the jungle and won the races made national news. “The Jungle Girls” would like to thank all the people who helped them this year with equipment and encouragement.

Peru Dinners for Street Kids

2010-11-23T13:50:00.000-08:00

Street Kid Dinners
One of the first things you notice about Iquitos is the large number of kids begging on the street. Some of the kids are sent into town to panhandle for their parents. Most of the kids are very poor and are looking for food. During the evening we were able to walk the streets in Iquitos. Our hotel was located in the center of downtown and close to the local action. During our stay in Iquitos we organized several dinners for the kids who live on the streets. We would make arrangements with a local restaurant that served plates of chicken and french fries. We then walked the streets and gave special kids an invitation to the secret restaurant at a specific time. We usually invited 12-15 kids so the food was prepared and ready at the arranged time. For some of the kids it was their first time eating in a restaurant. Sometimes we bought new t-shirts and clothes for the kids. We usually had a birthday cake for desert. These dinner parties were easy to organize when we had free time in the evenings. They are always the best way to meet local kids and some of the most memorable evenings of the tour.

Peru Projects Business Report

2010-11-23T13:47:00.000-08:00

Business Report
During these past Projects in Peru we spent $6,000. We still have $4,000 in the bank for the “Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund”. We want to maintain some cash for projects in the next few months. The next expense will be a graduation ceremony at the Jack Wolff School for the oldest high school students and the students graduating from junior high to high school. The village has requested $500 for awards, diplomas and a graduation lunch for about 200 students.

We spent $1,500 on a generator for the Joesph Pulley school to pump a water well. We still need to complete the water tower storage tank that will hold 500 gallons up on the roof. I expect the water tower will cost about $1,500 more.
The Chosica Girls Home is moving to a new building. They could use some better kitchen appliances. We are waiting for specific needs. They need better food besides powdered milk and rice. The Girls Home will need about $2,000 in improvements for the coming year. The roof for the Jack Wolff School should be repaired soon. This project will cost a minimum of $700 for a quick fix to $10,000 to replace the roof.

Altogether our goal is to raise $8,000 to $10,000 for these projects during the next year.

Tax deductible checks should be payable to:
Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund

Thank you for all your help this past year.

Lon and Susan History DVD

2010-07-03T15:12:00.000-07:00

We have been compiling all our old videos and television programs on to DVDs. We almost lost this collection in our house fire last year. We decided we need to to make copies of this history.

We have a 3 DVD set with about 5 hours of programs, slide shows and documentaries.

Here is an index of the DVDs

Disc 1

1980
John Marino's solo Transcontinental Record.
"Psyching" is a 30 minute professionally filmed documentary about John's 12 day, 3 hour coast to coast record which started the sport of long distance cycling.

1982
Susan's Transcontinental Record
8 minute professionally compiled documentary about Susan's 11 day, 16 hour record that was shown on the PM Magazine television series.

1983
Lon and Susan's Transcontinental Tandem Record
17 minute professional documentary about their 10 day, 23 hour tandem record across the country

1986
"Two for the Road"
During this 25 minute documentary Lon and Susan break their old tandem record. Filmed by Tucson ABC KGUN Sports

1986
5 minutes. Diana Nyad from ABC Wide World of Sports recaps Susan Notorangelo's life saving efforts of an ABC camera man.

Disc 2

1987
30 minute professional documentary of Lon and Pete Penseyres Men's Tandem Transcontinental Record of 7 days, 14 hours. This is still the fastest nonstop crossing record of America.

1987
A 90 minute version of Lon and Pete's Tandem Record with more interviews and technical features about the bike and crew.

Disc 3
1987
A 5 minute television special about Lon and Pete's Tandem Record that was shown on the Guinness World Book of Records Show

1989
A 30 minute edited recap of home video and interviews from Susan's 9 day, 9 hour Women's Transcontinental and Race Across America Win.

1990
A 16 minute slide show of "The History of Marathon Cycling" with music and photos from the Race Across America during the 1980s.

2010
A 16 minute slide show with music and captions showing Lon and Susan's cycling history from 1978 to the present.

P.S. A full set of Lon and Susan's History during the 1982 to 1986 Race Across America are available from the Race Across America office . These Emmy winning programs were filmed by ABC Wide World of Sports and are collector items for the history of cycling.

We have a few sets in stock. They can be ordered from the PAC Tour website.

Cost is $29 per set plus $4.00 shipping per order

END

Peru National Road Race Champ

2010-04-22T09:57:00.000-07:00

Alessandra wins the National Road Race in Peru

Pass this message around to all the PAC Tour riders who have contributed to the Peru Parts Fund or supported the Projects in Peru.

Alessandra from Iquitos won the Peru National Road Race in Lima last weekend. She has been racing in Lima the past month to prepare for the race. Her bike was donated to her after one of the PAC Tour events in Peru in 2008.

Each year during our tours to Peru we bring about 200 items that have been donated during the year by PAC Tour members. Jerseys, shorts, helmets, shoes, and assorted bike parts are always useful.

The following is a rough English translation from the press release of the race organizer.

Alessandra Dávila Rodriguez, of 23 years, from the jungle region of Iquitos snatched the first place from the current national champion from Lima. Alessandra won the road race by 2 kilometers. What a thrill it was for the people who understand this sport to see this cycling prodigy pedal her way to this win.

Last week the Sports Panel reported that Alessandra had earned the number one national women’s cycling ranking organized by the Sports Confederacy Peruvian of Cycling when she won the Cycling Opening Cup.

"I am going to be the best of Latin America and a pride of the Amazon Region and Peru" Alessandra said after the race.

Alessandra’s 15 year old sister Samantha and Doctor Dustin Dinis also from the Amazon Region won their races in Lima. The Sports Panel commended the riders from the jungle for their accomplishments despite coming from the land of continual rain and only 55 miles of roads within 300 miles of their city of Iquitos. The riders from the Amazon do not have the available equipment and many of them are racing on scavenged bikes and parts.

(Alessandra and Samantha are using bikes donated by PAC Tour riders two years ago).

Their arduous daily training daily in the seasonal rain, and with a lot of discipline, are giving their fruits.

Alessandra and Samantha are being coached by Efrain Abdallah who has coached the Columbians at the Pan American Games and the Olympics. Mr. Abdallah says of his Amazon pupils "At present Alessandra the best in the Women’s Elite Category and therefore I assure that she will give a medal to Peru. It surprises me the discipline and sacrifice of Alessandra. She does not have a rival in Peru. Her sister Samantha does not have rival in the category Junior”.

The next competition organized by the Federation of Cycling is the return to Huacama during the 23 and 24 of April. Coach Abdallah says "One must defeat them to all to be considered the best. Alessandra can surpass all the South American competition. The pride of the Amazon now only lacks the support of the authorities and of the private enterprises so that she can compete during all the year without objection”.

END

Peru Part....14

2010-01-11T14:16:00.001-08:00

PART 14

Business Report
We are evaluating our existing projects and deciding how much support we can give each project during the upcoming months. We still have about $10,000 in the bank we can divide between the jungle schools, the Puerto Occopa Orphanage and the new water project near Cusco. The water well project could cost about $12,000 depending on the support from the local government. We will probably specify our money is used for materials so we can document how our money was spent. The schools in the jungle both need more school supplies. The new Joe Pulley School would like to build a rain water collection system on the roof which will cost about $1,500. The Jack Wolff School has electricity and they would like to get a copy machine and more updated office equipment for about $2,000. Their school also needs a coat of paint which will cost $500. We will continue to support rural schools with books from the Anne Marie McSweeney Book Delivery Project.

The Puerto Occopa Orphanage needs about $2,000 per month for food and supplies. We can’t afford to support them year around but we should be able to send them some food money during the next few months. Based on our current fund raising goals of $15,000 per year we should be able to continue to support all these projects with equal amounts. I don’t think we can afford to begin a new school at this time because that would mean cutting back on support to existing projects.

We have managers for each project in Peru who I trust to spend the money as intended. Some donations are given for specific projects and we will use those donations as required. We thank everyone for your continued support of these Peru Projects. Even though these people are far away they want you to know they appreciate your help and they remember you as friends.

TAX Deductible Donation:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

END

Peru Part...13

2010-01-11T14:15:00.000-08:00

PART 13

Returning to Lima
The next day we headed back to Satipo. Aileen was the only member of our group who had a full suspension mountain bike who wanted to ride back to Satipo. The local official would give her a private escort and drive his motorcycle behind Aileen to be sure she was safe. The rest of us loaded into five taxies and departed at 15 minute intervals. We would offer Aileen support at various intervals on the way back. I was in the last taxi to leave. When we passed the village of Gloriabamba I saw some of the young men who stopped me the day before. I couldn’t help but sing the tune “I Only Have Eyes for You”.

The remaining five days back to Lima would be a reverse of the route we had ridden to Satipo. The long gradual down hills would now be a steady five percent climb out of the jungle. Our relief would be climbing to the higher elevations and cooler temperatures. We got out of the jungle heat and into the drier air of the mountains. After two days we arrived in Tarma at 10,000 foot elevation. Tarma was voted the best town of the tour with a nice hotel and comfortable temperatures. Tonight would be a special evening because Aracely was going to be baptized in the cathedral built in 1743. This was a PAC Tour first and we all attended the ceremony. The whole experience was perfect for Aracely and a memorable night for all of us.

The final two days were through the town of La Oroya and then over the summit again at 16,000 feet. We got to the summit earlier this time and the sky was bright and sunny. We had a thrilling 55 mile coasting downhill to Chosica. We had finished the tour safe and with many new stories about Peru. We had met a wide variety of people and learned a lot of the food, geography and culture. Everyone on the tour probably looks at Peru differently now. We all left behind new friends who want us to visit them again.

Peru Part....12

2010-01-11T14:14:00.000-08:00

PART 12

Conditions at the Orphanage
The conditions at the orphanage seem to be improving from the first time we visited there in 2004. There are sixty kids at the orphanage now which is twenty less than past years. This is allowing for more food and supplies per child. There are new lights in many of the rooms. The beds we bought two years ago are helping solve the crowded sleeping space. The living conditions are still very basic and the children take a bath in the river each afternoon. The food we supplied will support the orphanage for about 30 days. The clothes and materials should last the kids about six months. The orphanage is so secluded it is difficult to contact them by telephone or postal mail. The only contact they have with the outside world is when one of the nuns travels to Satipo every two weeks and she can check her e-mail or use her cell phone. It would be good if we can continue to support the Puerto Occopa Orphanage because they are forgotten by most other organizations. In the future when we travel there the nuns said they will provide a personal escort in each taxi for our group to be sure no one thinks we are collecting body parts.

Peru Part....11

2010-01-11T14:13:00.000-08:00

PART 11

The cyclists had a final rest stop twelve miles from the orphanage. I waited for all the riders to pass and then sent the support taxi ahead to the orphanage. The cycling group was now spread out over one hour. The delivery truck had already arrived ahead of us and was being unloaded. It had been a long, hot, muddy day and everyone was ready for a shower.

I was riding in the back of the remaining riders and I could see them a hundred yards ahead. We were going up a shallow grade and our pace had slowed to a jogging pace. When the riders ahead of me passed the village of Gloriabamba I noticed some young men yelling something and running out toward the road. By the time I arrived at the village the men were near the road. My first reaction was to go faster past them like they were a pesky dog. Going up the grade on the rough road I knew I couldn’t outrun them. They yelled something and I stopped to see what they wanted. One of the men came up to me and immediately started opening my large saddlebag. My wallet and camera were in there to keep safe from the rain. The situation was very similar to my confrontation with the thugs in Lima. Now I was on a seclude jungle road and the nearest policeman was 40 miles away in Satipo. I knew getting my camera and wallet back would be hopeless again.

When he opened the saddlebag he exposed the handle of a kitchen knife I was carrying to cut fruit and maybe even use for self defense. I withdrew the knife and I yelled “No”. I waved the knife and he stepped back. I got off my bike and continued walking away from the village. By this time five other guys had arrived and were walking toward me. Some were picking up rocks and one guy had a rifle aiming at me. The situation wasn’t good and my little knife wasn’t much help against a rifle. I kept walking and yelling in my broken Spanish that I was going to Puerto Occopa to help the orphan kids. The six guy were getting closer and I was expecting the worst. I was hoping to stall long enough until a taxi would drive by. Ahead a silver pick up truck was coming toward me. I stood in the middle of the road and blocked the truck. I was yelling and pointing to the six guys about fifteen feet away. At least I was going to have a witness in case they shot me.

The truck driver and the guys started talking and I could tell the truck driver was trying to tell them that I was part of the tourist group he had seen up ahead in Puerto Occopa. The guys wanted to see what was in my pack. The truck driver got out and motioned for me to open my pack. I showed them my raincoat, tools and snacks I was carrying. Everyone was satisfied I wasn’t carrying drugs or body parts. The tension seemed to subside and I extended my hand to say thank you to the driver and the guys in the group. I especially wanted to shake the hand of the guy with the rifle who had been pointing it at my chest five minutes earlier.

With a renewed outlook on life I got back on my bike. My speed had now doubled and I didn’t want to be off the back of the group again. I arrived at the orphanage and some of the girls were waiting for me to show me the way into the driveway. I wasn’t in the best mood and I wanted to talk to the head nun. It turned out the mayor of the village and a local official were also at the orphanage. I told them my story about being stopped by the men on the road. They said the men at Gloriabamba were stopping gringo tourists who might be killing their children and stealing body parts. The nun and mayor and local official said the story was absurd but the village people keep repeating the story. The police had tried to track down the story and went from village to village to find out where the murders had occurred. It turns out the story was a urban legend that had never happened. The story sounded so good it was being repeated throughout Peru. During our travels in the mountains we heard similar stories from locals about the problems they had heard in other mountain towns.

Peru Part ...10

2010-01-11T14:12:00.000-08:00

PART 10

Riding into the Jungle
At 5:00 AM we awoke to the sound of rain on the hotel roof. It was pouring hard and the street curbs were overflowing with drainage water. We were suppose to ride our bikes 46 miles to the Puerto Occopa Orphanage. Some of the riders hadn’t intended to ride because this section of road is only recommended for mountain bikes with fat two inch wide tires. There were six riders who wanted to try riding to the orphanage. We organized the group into riders and non riders. The non riders would share special taxies which were built for the rough road. The cyclists departed first and the taxies and delivery truck would follow about one hour later. As the taxies passed the cyclists they would give out snacks and beverages along the route.

This section of road is famous for drug smuggling and bandits robbing tourists. Our truck load of supplies was being escorted by some of the boys from the orphanage who could convince the bandits the food was for them and not tourists. The nuns also told us another recent problem about a rumor that American tourists who were traveling deep into the jungle to steal the eyes and kidneys from local children. The tourists would then take the organs back to the United States and sell them. I tried to tell the nuns it would be very impractical to travel 300 miles deep into the jungle just to steal organs. There are hundreds of homeless kids living near the Lima airport who could supply much fresher body parts. The nuns agreed, but they didn’t think my logic could stop a good story from spreading through the jungle.

With our group divided between taxies and bikes, the cyclists started riding at 9:00 AM in a mild drizzle. The road turned to grapefruit size rocks shortly outside of town. Some riders called this road “The Road of Skulls” because of the large jagged rocks. Between the rain, mud and slippery rocks this was going to be a tough cycling day. A special taxi with good suspension can average 15 mph. A mountain bike is doing well to average 8 mph.

We were staying on schedule and reached the halfway point by noon. The sun was coming out and the temperature was nearing 95 degrees in the steaming jungle. The road was narrow and the vegetation grew tall and tight against the sides of the road. Cruising down the road was similar to traveling on a muddy lane in a corn field. Passengers in the taxies needed to keep their elbows inside the car to avoid getting whipped by the roadside branches. When two vehicles met on the narrow road one car had to pull halfway off the road and allow the other to squeeze by.

Peru Part...9

2010-01-11T14:11:00.000-08:00

PART 9

Shopping for the Orphanage
We arrived at the town of Satipo by late afternoon. There were eleven children from the Puerto Occopa Orphanage and two nuns waiting for us at our hotel. I recognized some of the kids from our visits during the past five years. They treated me as an old friend with hugs and kisses that is the custom in Peru. After our reunion we began making plans for our shopping trip to buy supplies for the orphanage. We divided our group and children into teams of five people each. Each team would be responsible for one of the following categories; bulk food, clothing, hardware, school supplies, toys and games. Each team had money for their share of the budget. Most of the funds were used for food and clothing. We had a busy two hours of organizing and selecting the various items in each category. Everything went on schedule and we stayed within the budget. After our shopping trip we all met for dinner at a Satipo Oriental restaurant. It was a good way to end a busy day.

Peru Part...8

2010-01-11T14:09:00.000-08:00

PART 8

The summit was still 25 miles away and 6,000 feet above us. The following morning we departed early to beat the bad weather that blows in at Ticlio Pass in the afternoon. The road climbs through the gorge with steep rock walls towering 2,000 feet around us. I expect some sections of road only see the sun a few hours at mid day. At 14,000 foot elevation the jagged ridge of mountains along the summit become visible. These peaks are about 18,000 feet tall and they make you feel very small as you ride toward them. The final miles to Ticlio Pass meander through a gap at 16,000 feet. The snow covered peaks are still towering tall above us. It would take a serious mountain climber with ropes to reach the top of these pinnacle spikes.

We reached the summit around twelve noon. Right on schedule the weather changed from sunshine to a cloudy splattering of rain and hail. Everyone scurried to layer on more clothes before coasting down the other side. In a few minutes everyone was wet and chilled. Our hotel was 25 miles down the grade at La Oroya located at 12,000 foot elevation. We arrived there ready for a hot shower. Of course there is not hot water in these basic hotels except for a couple hours in the evening. Fortunately we had dry clothes waiting for us. It had been another tough cycling day and harder than most riders expected. The grades and elevation almost double the amount of effort needed. The next three days would be easier as we continued to drop an average of 3,000 feet each day into the jungle elevations. We were in the routine of traveling in Peru and seeing the country in a way few travelers have.

On our fifth cycling day we stopped at the jungle town of Yurinaki. This was Aracely’s hometown and her grandfather was working at the family roadside restaurant. Her old house was made of simple wood boards and a grass roof. We ate an assortment of jungle foods such as giant lima beans and fish roasted in banana leaves. Since it was Saturday the local school was closed today. The director came to the restaurant and we gave him four big boxes of books and school supplies as part of the Anne Marie McSweeney School Book Delivery Project. We made plans to visit the school the following Tuesday on our return trip home.

Peru Part....7

2010-01-11T14:08:00.000-08:00

PART 7

Bike Tour Over the 16,000 Foot Ticlio Pass
Our new group of twelve riders all arrived in Lima on schedule. We were joined by five Peruvian guides who would travel with us on the tour. Clara would be joining us from Cusco. Aracely and her mother Nayda would be reunited for a few weeks. Vioricka was from Iquitos and our van driver, Pepe, was from Lima. We were an assorted mix of ages and backgrounds. The ages ranged from ten year old Aracely to 70 year old Bob Kenner who is a retired submarine captain. Of our 17 people, eleven have toured in Peru with us before. Everyone had been warned that these Peru tours offer lots of unplanned adventures. A little adventure is nice but we all wanted to return home safely.

Our first day involved getting organized and driving in our van across Lima to the suburban town of Chosica. Lima is a sprawling city of nine million people similar in size to Los Angeles spreading almost 50 miles from the Pacific Ocean to the Andes foothills. Chosica was the location of our base hotel and the Chosica Girls Home. We discovered the Girls Home four years ago when our little friend Aracely moved there from the jungle. Aracely now lives there with ten other girls.

In the afternoon we visited the Girls Home and took all the girls on a shopping spree in the market. Each girl received $18 to buy new clothes. Members of our group escorted each girl as they window shopped and walked through the stores. After much comparing of styles and colors they would select the perfect item. It was an exciting day for the girls to choose their own clothes. Later that night we all met for dinner at a nice restaurant. This was a good day to introduce our group to the type of projects we would be helping with in Peru.

The next day we began the bicycle ride from Chosica up the slope of the Andes Mountains. At first glance it looked like an easy 35 mile ride. What wasn’t so obvious was that we would ride up a continuous seven percent grade all day and gain about 7,000 feet of elevation. This cycling effort is similar to jogging up a flight of stairs. The first hour was okay but as the altitude and miles went by this turned into a pretty tough day. We slept at a basic hotel in the town of San Meteo located on the mountainside at 10,000 foot elevation. Most of us took six hours to complete the day and we were feeling the grade and lack of oxygen that night.

Peru Part....6

2010-01-11T14:07:00.000-08:00

PART 6

New Bike
I returned to Lima and went to the bike shop to pick up my new bike I had ordered two weeks earlier. I was also picking up a bike for a rider who didn’t want to bring a bike from the United States. The owner greeted me and said he had something for me. I thought he meant a new bike. He then handed me my ball point pen I had dropped in his shop a few weeks ago. I was impressed with his honesty. Then he rolled out my bike which was assembled from parts and pieced together to make an all terrain mountain bike. When I saw the bike my first thought was to give it a test ride and try the new push button type shifters. I tucked my long pants into my socks and headed out on the busy street. I was only going for a three minute test ride. I was still carrying my backpack and not wearing my helmet. At the next side street I turned right to get away from the traffic. I was playing with the shifters and looking at the derailleurs indexing through the gears. A block later I turned right again down a smaller alley type street. There were not any cars on this street and I rode with my head down watching the front derailleur change between the chainrings.

I did notice there was a strong looking young guy standing on the right curb. About fifty feet later there we two guys on the left curb. They met me in the middle of the street and asked me for a one soles coin (35 cents). I stopped and straddled the bike. He held out his hand and then quickly grabbed for my camera in my front shirt pocket. At the same moment the guy behind me on my right started grabbing for my wallet in by rear pants pocket. I was straddling the bike and tried to get myself in a position to defend myself. I grabbed for my camera and the thug dropped it on the street. Before I could get off my bike he picked up my camera. The three guys ran across the street to a building with a metal door they pulled closed behind them. I had my camera and wallet stolen in less than ten seconds.

I was screaming at the women sitting along the building who looked at me with blank expressions. They had probably seen these guys ambush many taxies or pedestrians and these women weren’t going to get involved. I got back on my bike and rode the rest of the way around the block back to the bike shop. They asked me how I liked the bike. I said the bike was fine but I had just been robbed. They asked where it happened. I pointed to the neighborhood behind the shop. They shook their heads and said “Too bad, the police don’t go there. Nobody goes there”. I said I didn’t care about the $70 in my wallet or the camera, but I wanted the digital camera chip that had all my photos from the Iquitos School visit. The bike shop guys gathered up a posse with four other guys and we walked around the block. On the side street the metal door of the hideout was open and the women said the thugs had run down the street. They said there wasn’t any chance to get my camera chip back.

I had seen both extremes of honesty. One was the bike shop owner who had saved my pen for two weeks. He was more concerned with returning my pen than selling me a bike. The thugs had stole by camera and wallet in a few seconds. The robbery could have been worse. The thugs could have easily had knives or hit me over the head. They could have taken my backpack which had over $3,000 cash to buy the bikes and pay for the tour van rental. Had I been walking and not testing the bike I would not have gone down a street with men standing in the street. During the next few weeks I was more aware of my surroundings. If someone bumped me in the grocery store my first reaction was to push them away. Being robbed definitely affected how I reacted to people in Peru.

Peru Part...5

2010-01-11T14:06:00.000-08:00

PART 5

New School Visit
The following day we drove 50 kilometers into the jungle to see the new school we started building three years ago. The completion has taken longer than expected because all the cement and bricks needed to be carried by workers the final four kilometers through the jungle. During our visit we brought supplies for the school and food for the party. Many people from the village arrived to meet us on the road and carry the supplies. When we arrived at the school there were 120 people waiting. The school is the center of the community and there are only four houses visible in the area. Over 30 families live in huts in the jungle out of sight of the path.

Half of us crowded into one shady classroom and everyone else looked through the windows. Peruvians like a ceremony and they sang their National Anthem. Then the director of the school and mayor of the village made speeches to welcome us. In the past the school was called the KM 46 School. It is now called the Joseph Pulley School in honor of Brenda’s father. The ceremony was a nice way to officially thank Brenda and Joe for their contributions to the school.

The school is painted lime green. The cement walls and floors are very smooth and the windows are covered with decorative metal bars. There are four rooms and two full time teachers for 40 students. The school is expected to grow to 60 students next year as the families learn the school can help their future. Most of the parents never attended school so the whole concept of taking time to go to school instead of picking bananas is new for them. We hope the kids can at least learn to read and write before they begin working full time. The village wants us to bring a group back to live in the jungle with them for a few days and see the school classes in progress. That might be a new PAC Tour trip in the future.

The following day we went to see the Jack Wolff School we built five years ago at the Village of the Dolphins. This school is nine kilometers from the city and much easier to travel to. The Jack Wolff School went through similar growing pains when the children there were learning how to go to school. Now the school is more stable and the same director has been there for two years. There are 16 teachers and 500 students with seven class rooms. During our visit we had a meeting with all the teachers to discuss future needs. They gave us a list of a dozen different items. During the next month we will figure out a budget of which projects we can afford to help them with. They started a chess club and wanted ten chess sets for the classroom to play at the same time. I found some nice carved wooden sets for ten dollars each which I was able to deliver before I departed Iquitos.

Peru 2009 ....Part 4

2010-01-11T14:05:00.000-08:00

Peru 2009

PART..... 4

Iquitos Amazon Tour
We returned to Lima to begin the next phase of our Peru Projects. Brenda Pulley and her father Joe came from the United States and we flew to the jungle town of Iquitos in the Amazon rain forest. Brenda and Joe were major contributors to the new school we built 46 kilometers from Iquitos. We were going for the Grand Opening of the school and check the progress of the students and teachers.

We arrived in Iquitos in the evening and checked into the Safari hotel located in the center of town. It is a nice hotel for 30 dollars a night with great air conditioning. The temperature in Iquitos is about 92 degrees in the day with thick humidity. You get used to sweating constantly and your shirt is always wet. The only relief is in a cool hotel room.

Iquitos Bike Races
The next morning was the short criterium bike race on a circuit in the suburbs. I went to the race with Brenda and Joe and we traveled by moto taxi across the city to the starting line. The novice cyclists would race three kilometers and the elite group raced 20 kilometers. There were about 60 riders with all types of bikes. Five riders came from Columbia who traveled up the Amazon on a boat to race. The winner of the race was a bike shop owner from Columbia who had a good sprint at the end.

Later that afternoon we organized the birthday party for the children who live on the street. We invited 25 kids to a secret restaurant that served them a full dinner of chicken, fried bananas, salad and cake. The hardest part of the night is only selecting 25 kids to attend since we only had three people in our group to organize the meal. The good thing is the kids are very well mannered and quiet while eating. Brenda and her father Joe were impressed with meeting the kids. For the next three days many of them would wave to us on the street.

The next day was the big bike race from Nauta to Iquitos. The route was 90 kilometers on the only paved road across the jungle. All the racers loaded up in buses and drove to Nauta in the morning. The race started at 9:00 AM and it was burning hot already. This was a race for the 40 elite riders. The riders were required to stay within ten minutes of the lead pack or they would be picked up by the broom wagon. Most of the riders stayed with the pack that surged and attacked several times. There was a pack sprint and the fellow from Columbia won again. The first three riders won 350, 250 and 150 dollars respectively and the first woman won 100 dollars donated by PAC Tour. All the riders from both days of racing were allowed to choose a jersey or bike shorts donated to the Peru clothing fund from PAC Tour riders. It was good to see all the donated items being cherished by the riders in Peru.

Peru 2009 Part 3

2010-01-11T14:03:00.000-08:00

Peru 2009

PART 3

It was late afternoon and we wanted to see the lake. We rented a pickup truck and started driving up the mountain with eight people standing in the back of the truck holding onto the side railings. I was wearing my fleece jacket and raincoat and I was still freezing in the back of the truck. The metal roll bars on the truck were too cold to hang onto without gloves. We reached the lake just after sundown but we could still see the spring fed pond of water. The water was clean at 12,000 feet elevation. It had taken us 90 minutes to drive 20 kilometers on a gravel path. It looked like a lot of work to make a pipeline five kilometers direct down the mountain to Tucsan.

We drove back down the mountain and arrived in the bigger town of Pisac at 8:00 pm. We all went to a roadside restaurant and had chicken soup and rice. Then we went back to the village of Tucsan which did not have electricity. We sat in a candle lit dark adobe hut and drank coca tea. The room was so full of smoke from the cooking fire in the corner we could barely breath. If you think sleeping in a teepee would be fun just imagine the smoke from a camp fire inside.

Later that night we slept in a vacant building that was cleaner and had glass windows. It was not too bad except we slept on sheep skin rugs piled into mats then covered with wool blankets. We all felt things crawling on us all night. Similar to fleas or lice, but we did not get bit. We just kept waking up with something tickling us on our face and hands. We slept in our clothes but then we were afraid our clothes were full of bugs. I slept ten times that night. A highlight was going outside at three o'clock to use the bathroom and seeing the brilliant Milky Way of stars. I went back in and woke up Rebecca to show her the stars. We stood outside for 15 minutes and were amazed at the clear view of constellations.

The next morning we had more meetings with the Tucsan villagers about making the water pipes reach the village. Nicole and Clara helped translate during the meeting. Many of the village people speak the native Quechuan language. So the discussion went from my English to Clara's Spanish to her mom’s Quechuan. The villagers would respond in Quechuan and then Clara's mom would translate to Spanish and Clara would translate to me in English. Each simple question took five minutes to answer. Nicole was a big help as she added her experience with similar projects she managed in Honduras during the Peace Corps.

The director from the district came to the meeting. He had talked with some civil engineers in the area. He said there is a closer water spring that would handle the village needs. There are four more springs in the area that could be combined into a holding pond. The government has some funds for the project but they are waiting for more funds before they begin. I suggested they make a budget for the engineering and materials. The village said they had 100 men who could work. They would divide the workers into ten teams of ten men each. Each team would work one day and rotate for three months until the pipes were dug underground for three kilometers down the mountain. The plastic pipes needed to be buried because big rocks roll down the mountain during frequent earthquakes. I told them we would be willing to match funds with the government depending on the final budget for the project. I explained the construction needed to be of quality and materials to last 30 years. Since the land is not owned by the “squatters” they need to get proof from the government that the land and water project will be owned by the village of Tucsan. Getting the paperwork in order might take several months. We all left the meeting happy about the possibility of the village getting access to fresh water.

We returned to Cusco for two more days. Rebecca had been learning traditional flute music from a teacher and she was practicing to perform at a local restaurant. She had a few more music lessons before her big recital. We went to a fancy restaurant with four of Clara's sisters and brothers. She played a song using the pan flute and the straight flute. Everyone in the restaurant was impressed that a blond gringo woman was joining the band. The teacher said Rebecca was his best student and fastest learner. It was a fun night for everyone.

Peru 2009 Part 2

2010-01-11T14:02:00.000-08:00

Peru 2009

PART 2

Planning for Drinking Water
Rebecca, Nicole and I flew to Cusco the next day. Our friend Clara met us at the airport and took us on a Cusco city tour for four hours. Her house is 200 meters from many Inca ruins where she played as a kid, so she knows the area well. Our group first met Clara seven years ago when she was fifteen years old and selling candy on the streets. Several members of our group supported her and sent her to English school. She is now a guide for our tours. We ate dinner at her house and had coy (coo-ee) guinea pig. There is not much meat on a whole guinea pig and it seemed like a waste of time to cook it. I think there is more meat on a leg of chicken.

The following morning we drove one hour into the mountains to scout a new school location. The village of Tucsan (not Tucson) was started in a pasture near the highway six kilometers from the bigger town of Pisac. The elevation in Tucsan is about 9,000 feet. It was settled by thirty families who came from 3,000 feet higher up the mountain. In Peru vacant land can be occupied by “squatters” who can take possession of the land if they live there and improve it. The village of Tucsan is a squatter settlement without roads or streets. The houses are adobe mud brick huts built in the pasture. The cows, goats, pigs, dogs and chickens roam between the houses. The grass has been eaten and all that is left are piles of manure. The only token attempt at sanitation is an adobe out-house with four toilet holes for the entire community.

We had a meeting with the village about building a school in Tucsan. There is already a school in the bigger town of Pisac and the kids can take the bus six kilometers into town. After some discussion with the people of Tucsan they decided they needed water for drinking and washing. Currently they need to carry all their drinking water from Pisac in five gallon buckets. The river near their village is full of Cusco sewage and can´t be used except to water the farm fields. They said there was a lake higher in the mountains near their old village where they could splice into with pipes and have water flow down the mountain.

Peru 2009 Part One

2010-01-11T14:00:00.000-08:00

Peru Adventures 2009

Part One

My first trip to Peru was in December 1999. I went on an Amazon Riverboat Tour organized by a Chicago Museum. It was an interesting excursion but we were not allowed to mix with the local people. The next year I returned to Peru to explore new areas. I learned more about the culture and met people who could improve their lives with a little help. In 2002 PAC Tour began organizing tours to Peru that brought material improvements to different specific projects. With the help of the network of PAC Tour riders we have raised over $120,000 to be used on various projects. We return to Peru each year to monitor these projects and visit new areas that could use our help. The following updates are some of our recent adventures across Peru.

In October I arrived in Lima with my daughter Rebecca and her cousin Nicole. We would be traveling together for ten days to Machu Picchu and Cusco. The bike tour over the mountains would begin next month and I needed a bike since I did not bring one from home. We went shopping and I bought my new mountain bike in Lima for $330. The bike shop is in a market in a ten foot booth crammed with spare parts. They assemble the new whole bike from pieces. My bike has a nice aluminum frame and decent parts. Nothing special, but equal to a $500 bike in the United States.

In the afternoon we took a 50 mile taxi ride to the town of Chosica. We were going to visit a little ten year old girl named Aracely at the girl’s orphanage. We met her five years ago when she lived in the jungle. She is a smart kid and the best science student in her school class of 300 students. Aracely has been suffering from some warts on her hands and ankles. We made an appointment with a good dermatologist who was in charge of the Henry Ford hospital in Detroit and now runs a family clinic near Lima. He gave Aracely’s warts a treatment of frozen nitrogen and topical medicine. He said she should be better in two months. During our bike tour in three weeks we will visit the Girls Home again and take all the girls on shopping spree in the market to buy new clothes. Aracely will be traveling with us on the tour and will be in charge of adding up the restaurant bill each day.

End

Going to Peru in 2009

2010-01-11T13:51:00.001-08:00

Cyclists Delivering Supplies Across Peru

On November 8th, twelve cyclists will begin a unique adventure across Peru. During the first two days they will ride 50 miles from the coastal city of Lima up and over the 16,000 foot Ticlio Pass in the Andes mountains. During the next five days they will then descend 250 miles into the low jungle of the Peruvian rain forest. The road ends as a muddy trail over 300 miles from Lima. The cyclists will then return over the mountains to Lima to complete their two week 600 mile tour across Peru.

Although the physical challenges of riding over the Andes are all part of this tour, the real story are the orphans and school children this group of cyclists will help along the way. For example the first day the riders stay in the town of Chosica at the base of the mountains. Chosica is the location of the “House of Gina” Girls Home where 20 abandon or abused girls live. The conditions at the girls home are very basic and the girls live on a diet of chicken soup, rice and beans. When the cyclists come to visit they will take the girls on a shopping spree to the markets where each girls can choose a new set of clothes for about $20. During past tours during this shopping trip, it was interesting to watch the girls select their purchases. Since the girls do not usually have money to spend, some of them will hurry and buy the first dress that catches their attention. Other girls savor holding on to their money for two hours and will compare all the dresses in the market before making a decision.

Later that afternoon the cyclists and girls will gather at a nice restaurant for a real meal the girls choose from the menu. Cake and ice cream are served as dessert. The cyclists will present the director of the Girl’s Home with another $500 to buy more supplies and food for the girls in the future. Overall this is a busy day that has nothing to do with cycling, but it is a memorable day for the girls and our group.

As the tour continues over the mountains there are other schools to visit in small villages along the way. The group will carry prepackaged bundles of library books to leave with the rural schools. Since most of these schools have few supplies the cyclists will also distribute notebooks, pencils and other basic equipment for the classrooms.

At the end of the road in the jungle is the town of Puerto Occopa. Here is the location of the orphanage which is the home and boarding school to over 80 children. Some of the children are orphans and some of the children come to Puerto Occopa from deep in the jungle to live for three months at a time and go to school.

The conditions at the orphanage are more basic than the Chosica Girls Home without drinking water, sanitation or much food. The children bathe in the river each afternoon. The cost to feed 80 kids is $20 per day for rice, beans, potatoes and powdered milk. During the tour the cyclists will hire a truck to bring 3,000 pounds, (1,500 kilos) of supplies the final 50 miles from the major city of Satipo to the orphanage. Some of the children and teachers from Puerto Occopa will meet the cyclists in Satipo for a big shopping trip to fill the dump truck sized vehicle with bags of rice, toilet paper, cooking oil, beans and all kinds of supplies to outfit the children. Each child also receives a new set of clothes which they will wear 100% of the time for the next year.

The cyclists will spend the night at the orphanage and join the kids in a big party that night. Since the orphanage doesn't receive many visitors, it is a special night for them and our group. They next day the cyclists begin the 300 mile journey back over the mountains to Lima. They will see Peru differently now. The challenge of riding over a 16,000 foot mountain won’t seem as difficult as the daily challenges that the children they visited face everyday.

TAX deductible donations for these Peru Projects can be made to:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, Wisconsin 53585

END

Lon's New Blog Update

2010-01-11T13:40:00.000-08:00

It has been almost one year since my last Blog update. A lot has happened and some of it might be interesting. My biggest news has been our work rebuilding our house since our fire on February 11, 2009. This house project has basically doubled our workload this year. Our travels on PAC tour has seemed easy compared to the weekly house building decisions. I will try to write a lot more in the next few weeks to get caught up about the past year.

Lon

Coaches at Wisconsin Camp June 6-13

2009-02-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

Wisconsin Coaching Week June 6-13
All the coaches at Wisconsin Coaching Week have been invited to attend because of their cycling knowledge, but also because they are the type of people you can talk to as friends. They are just a personable talking about bikes at the dinner table as they are when giving an organized seminar. We are fortunate to have their mix of knowledge together for one week to help riders of all abilities at Wisconsin Coaching Camp.

Jim Langley
Jim lives in Santa Cruz, California with his wife, Deb. Jim got hooked on riding when he was 10 years old, and it led to a career in the bike biz. He now works out of his home office as the content director for SmartEtailing.com, a company that helps about 1,000 bicycle shops in the USA and Canada with their websites.

Jim's probably best known for his wrenching and writing. He worked for 17 years as a professional mechanic in shops from New Hampshire to California , and then became the technical editor for Bicycling Magazine, opening a west coast office, where he worked for 11 more years. Jim has also written for Velo News, California Bicyclist, Inside Cycling and Self, and he's published three books including the bestseller Bicycling Magazine's Complete Guide to Bicycle Maintenance and Repair and his new ebook, Your Home Bicycle Workshop.

Jim maintains an extensive cycling website and blog (jimlangley.net and jimlangley.blogspot.com) where he offers a lot of free and expert cycling help, and he's also a contributing writer for roadbikerider.com. He has also worked as a USCF mechanic and coach, and also as a coach for Team In Training. Of course, when Jim's not working for SmartEtailing, writing or updating his website and blog, he's out riding and racing (mostly the road these days). He also has a passion for cycling collectibles, is an accomplished table tennis player and coach, and has ridden his bicycle every day for over 14 years.

Each afternoon at Wisconsin Coaching Camp Jim will be demonstrating bicycle repairs as part of his “Shade Tree Mechanic” seminars. He will covering practical topics such as solving your bike’s click and squeaks, wheel building and repair, index shift adjusting and lots of other repairs every cyclist should be able to do themselves. Jim’s knowledge and humor makes him an interesting teacher everyone can learn from.

Bob Olsen
Bob got involved with long distance cycling in 1983 as a crew member for Lon Haldeman and Susan Notorangelo on their cross cross country record attempts. He worked in bicycle shops since 1985 (23 years experience) and has been fitting bikes for over 15 years (Fit Kit Systems Certified). He has also worked with area Physical Therapist and Orthopedic doctors on medical fits.

In 2005 Bob opened his own high end bicycle store focusing on building custom bikes and specializing in customer bike fitting. He is a member of the Serotta International Cycling Institute. Bob has a practical approach to fitting bikes as a mechanic and cyclist. He knows the compatibility of components that work together for the best fit application.

Bob has been a coach and bike fit specialist at the PAC Tour Arizona Camp. His practical common sense approach to fitting riders to their bikes has been a popular addition to these camps.

At Wisconsin Coaching Week Bob will be giving a seminar about practical bike fitting. He will be offering each rider a free 15 minute fitting session with suggestions and changes to their bike positioning. Bob will be available for further in depth personal positioning appointments for an additional hourly fee.

Fred Matheny
Fred has been a cyclist and cycling journalist since the ‘70s. He was the Fitness and Training Editor for Bicycling Magazine and has written hundreds of articles and a dozen books and ebooks including Fred Matheny’s Complete Book of Road Bike Training. He co-founded www.RoadBikeRider.com (RBR) with Ed Pavelka and continues to contribute to the website and weekly newsletter. He began racing in Colorado in 1976 and has won several Colorado State Championships and been on the podium at Masters Nationals. He was on the 1996 Race Across America team that set a 50+ record of 5 days, 11 hours.

He has worked with hundreds of riders at PAC Tour Training Camps, Carpenter/Phinney Bike Camps, and Dirt Camp and has coached at every Desert Camp since its inception in 1996. He is also a speaker who has given presentations at cycling events around the U.S. including El Tour de Tucson, the Hotter’n Hell Hundred and to business and professional groups.

You can buy Fred Matheny’s Complete Book of Road Bike Training from www.RoadBikeRider.com. It provides detailed instructions on how to analyze your strengths and weaknesses then capitalize on those strengths and overcome any liabilities. It also includes sample programs to help you plan your own training.

At Wisconsin Coaching Camp Fred will be giving nightly entertaining seminars about his practical insight about training and equipment. He has seen many myths and philosophies change in the past 30 years. He has a good perspective about what really works.

Wisconsin Coaching Week is proud to offer these three coaches as a way for all cyclists to improve their cycling knowledge.

End

Interview with David Rowe - author of “The Ride of Your Life”

2009-02-04T07:31:00.000-08:00

Lots of riders dream about what it would be like to “go long.” Most will attempt a century and stop there. Those that want to ride through the 100-mile barrier learn that physical conditioning can only prepare you to a point. The challenge of a multi-day, ultra-endurance event is mostly mental.

A few weeks ago, author and road cyclist David Rowe released a new book called “The Ride of Your Life.” His goal in writing the book, he says, is to help others achieve great things on the bicycle and in life.

His goal-centered approach helped him break the 100-mile-barrier and attempt routes in the Washington Cascades, the Columbia Plateau, and the Oregon Coast Range. As a randonneur, he has completed some of the most challenging road cycling events in the Northwest, including the Cascade 1200, the Portland-to-Glacier 1000, and the Rocky Mountain 1200.

With his son Evan, David created Ready to Ride® in 2005 with the goal of helping cyclists who, like himself, do not have a background in road racing, but want to excel at long distance riding.

Aside from his avocation for road cycling, David's professional life has centered on a career in magazine publishing and Internet marketing. He has held executive roles in product development and marketing for leading companies in the magazine and Internet industries. For the past nine years, he has been an active participant in the emerging online health and wellness industries as a vice president of marketing with WebMD.

David holds a Masters in Business Administration from Portland State University and is a frequent guest lecturer in the Graduate School on topics ranging from Internet marketing to consumer engagement.

We are pleased to welcome David to PAC Tour, the third stop on his “virtual book tour” in support of his new eBook released by RoadBikeRider.com on January 8. We put the following questions to David, and we hope his answers will better prepare those coming to a PAC Tour camp for success.

Lon: Can your program work for something so major as a month-long transcontinental pac tour?

David: I have never ridden a ride as challenging as a coast-to-coast PAC Tour, but I imagine that at some point along the way, every rider will question his or her own motives for being there. When those moments arise, it is vital that you know the answer to that question, and that it as compelling to you then as was the day you sent in your deposit. These are the moments of truth. If your motivations are thin, you may start looking for a way out. If your motivations are rooted deeply within your core values, you will find the inner strength to push through the pain, because it is worth it. You know the pain is temporary, but the memories - the feelings of accomplishment - will last a lifetime.

The importance of a using a values-centered approach, such as the one I've described in my eBook, only increases as the rides get longer and more difficult. So I would say - yes, absolutely yes - riders who take the time to clarify their core values, and link the completion of a transcontinental ride to those values, are the ones who are most likely to finish.

Lon: Pac Tour training is based on building up to 150-mile rides back-to-back on weekends. How can you prevent a spouse from resenting that commitment?

David: You have to get permission from those who are important to you before you sign-up for a challenging event like this. Whether we're talking about a spouse or any person who is in relationship with you, you need to understand that they, too, are going to be making a sacrifice for you to achieve your goal. You need to carefully explain why you want to complete the ride, and you must be absolutely transparent about the requirements in terms of its impact on your time, your finances, and your ability to carry your fair share in the household - especially in the last 8 to 10 weeks or so before the event begins. A lot of people seek the support of their spouse or significant other. I recommend that instead, you seek permission. Permission is a pre-requisite. Support is a bonus.

Lon: What tips can you give for dealing with the fatigue of long, hard training and its effect on your off-bike life?

David: I subscribe to the “periodization” theory of endurance training, where rest periods are designed into the schedule. I try to get completely away from cycling during those respites and reinvest in my relationships. Taking long walks with my wife on the beach or through the neighborhood are great ways to recharge and reconnect.

Occasionally, you may find you need a rest from the riding before you reach a planned rest period. My attitude is, if you don't feel like riding the bike - don't! Let's face it. Most riders have love affairs with their bicycles. If you can walk past your bike and you don't feel like looking at it, you certainly aren't ready to get on it and ride.

Of course, there is a danger in letting this go on too long. Sometimes, just the opposite will work. If I am burned out and I don't feel like riding, I will just grab the bike from the rack, hop on it and pedal in the driveway; no helmet, no gloves, no spandex or cycling shoes. Sometimes just reconnecting with the feeling that riding bicycle gives me will stimulate a desire to resume the hard work of training.

Lon: Pac tours never have a rest day, which may be as challenging mentally as physically. What's the key to confidence?

David: I think the first thing to recognize is that everyone is feeling the pain! Not everybody will show it, or admit to it, but they are feeling it. Even the guys at the front of the ride are suffering. They just have a better grounding in the important of riding in their lives, and have a greater tolerance for pain, as a result.

The best way to build confidence is to gain experience. In my book, Kent Petersen talks about chunking-down long rides into pieces he knows he can do, because he's done them before. That is how he went after all of the long rides in his career - one leg at a time, knowing that leg was no longer than a section of road he'd ridden before. From there on, completing a ride is simply a matter of stringing together a series of shorter rides, which he knows he can do. That approach is like money in the bank.

Never think about the distance to the finish line. Think only about the distance to the next control. If that's too much to handle, think about the distance to the next turn on the cue sheet. If that's more than you can handle, then get your head up and find a landmark - a fence post or a tree in the distance - and promise yourself you will keep the pedals turning until you reach it. Play that game a time or three and you'll probably have forgotten what it was that was bothering you. The rough patches always pass.

The key to success in long distance cycling is knowing why are you out there in the first place. If you have that squared away, then you're going to be prepared for the mental challenges. You will just keep on searching for a way to get your head and your heart pulling in the same direction, toward that finish line of the ride of your dreams.

Lon: Thanks, David. We appreciate your thoughts about long distance cycling, about PAC Tours, and about the mental preparation that's required to be successful in the longer rides we support.

We would like our readers to know that David will be our guest at Desert Coaching Camp, which begins on February 28. He will be riding with us, and sharing his thoughts about how riders can prepare for the big rides of their 2009 season.

If you would like to learn more about David, or about his new book, The Ride of Your Life, visit his Web site at http://www.rideofyourlife.biz.

New e-book review

2009-01-27T11:17:00.001-08:00

We are happy to announce that PAC Tours will host an interview with author David Rowe about his newly released eBook, The Ride of Your Life. It will be available to readers on February 4 on Lon's Blog.

The Ride of Your Life is a book for sport-recreational cyclists who want to increase their mileage and their enjoyment of events of 100 miles or more.

What should you know about David Rowe?

David Rowe is a road bike rider who lives, works and rides in the Pacific Northwest.

His goal-centered approach helped him break the 100-mile-barrier and attempt routes in the remote Cascade Range and Columbia Plateau with cyclists called randonneurs. What he learned while riding with these highly skilled cyclists helped him complete some of the most challenging road biking events in the Northwest, including the Cascade 1200, the Portland-to-Glacier 1000, and the Rocky Mountain 1200.

With his son Evan, David created Ready to Ride® in 2005 with the goal of helping cyclists who, like himself, do not have a background in road racing, but want to excel at long distance riding. Ready To Ride® is a Web site for sport-recreational cyclists who want to balance the demands of career and family with the physical, mental, and equipment demands of long distance cycling.

How can you participate in the virtual book tour?

David will be discussing the sport of endurance cycling, particularly how riders can prepare mentally for completing rides of 100 or more miles in a single day. He is also happy to discuss his own experiences riding in the Pacific Northwest, particularly in the Oregon and Washington Cascade Range.

So if you have questions for David, simply post a reply here. If you want to explore his book more carefully beforehand, you can visit RoadBikeRider.com to get more information, including a free, 34-page preview edition. The Ride of Your Life page at RoadBikeRider.com is located at http://www.roadbikerider.com/royl_page.htm.

Why not visit the web site now while it's still fresh in your mind, then shoot me your questions so I can include them in my interview on February 4.

How you can win a free copy of The Ride of Your Life

David is collecting stories from readers who overcame physical, mental, or equipment challenges to finish a challenging ride. Readers of Lon's PAC Tour Blog can win a free copy of the Ride of Your Life, simply by telling their story in 200 words or less.

David is going to publish a compilation of the best stories in an eBook, which he will make available free in the Spring of this year. If your story is selected for publication, you’ll win a free eBook. It’s that easy.

You can download an entry form here: http://www.rideofyourlife.biz/my_ride.zip. Be sure to mention that you learned about the eBook giveaway on Lon's PAC Tour Blog.

END

2009-01-27T07:39:00.000-08:00

Peru Bike Race

2008-12-10T20:47:00.000-08:00

Nauta to Iquitos Bike Race
This 60 miles of road was finally paved in 2006. It is the only paved road within 300 miles in the upper Amazon region. We thought it would be a perfect place to promote a bike race since no one drives cars and there are only a few buses and taxies on this road. During the past year PAC Tour riders have donated over 200 old cycling jerseys and shorts to the Peru Parts Fund. We took these items to Peru to give as prizes for the race. PAC Tour donated another $1,000 as a cash prize. The winner would receive $400. Since the average monthly wage is less than $350 per month in Iquitos there was a lot of interest in this race.

There were 85 riders who entered the race. The riders met in Iquitos at 6:00 AM and were transported by bus to Nauta for the start at 8:30 AM. It was already over 90 degrees when the race began. The pace was fast from the start the lead pack quickly was reduced to twelve riders. I was able to stay with the leaders and ride my Bike Friday in the middle of the breakaway. A lot of the racers had never seen a bike with 20 inch wheels and they were surprised I was staying with them. The whole race caravan was like a big stage race with police escort motorcycles and ten other support vehicles behind the
lead group.

There was pack crash during the last 20 miles and I got tangled up in the mess. The first eight riders including Alessandra got away. I chased but couldn’t catch them. I rode mostly alone the last miles. The day was really hot near 100 degrees by now and I was cooked too. The broom wagon came by piled high with bikes from riders who quit the race. I estimate only 30 riders finished. It was a tough race because of the heat and rolling hills. Alessandra won the women’s race and collected $100.

The police gave everyone a neutral escort the final ten miles to the plaza downtown. There was a big stage for the awards presentation. All the riders got to come up on stage and select a jersey or shorts from the display of donated clothing. Overall it was a good event and something worth doing again. Next year we might change the start time to 7:00 AM and race the reverse direction from Iquitos to Nauta in the cool early morning and take the bus back in the afternoon. All the racers want to say thank you to everyone who donated parts and clothing to the PAC Tour Peru Parts Fund. The chance to get real cycling equipment is very much appreciated by them.

What’s Next?
We are continuing to support the projects we started. Your donations have helped a lot of people this past year. We are evaluating new projects we know we can control and finish.
Donations can be sent to:
The Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund.
Questions can be sent to me: haldeman@pactour.com

END

New Peru School part 7

2008-12-08T19:35:00.000-08:00

New School at Kilometer 46
The road between Nauta and downtown Iquitos is 100 kilometers. It is the only paved road within 300 miles in the Amazon region. The new school we built is located three miles off a dirt path at KM 46. The village is in the middle of no where. Even the rural schools along the river see more action going past their door. The final hike to the villages takes about one hour from the road on a red clay trail. It is not a bad walk on sunny days, but in the rain the trail is as slick as a ski slope. There are 15 creeks and bridges that flood the low lands and turn into swamps.

The planning for the school began last November when our group visited the village to ask about their desire to build a school there. We made a plan with the architect and the construction began in January. The new school foundation was cut into the hillside by hand shovels. It was a lot of work to move a basement load of dirt by hand. The real work began when it was time to bring the cement and sand to the village on the trail. A five gallon pail of sand weighs about 60 pounds which is a lot of weight to carry three miles. The school needed about 300 pails of sand to mix with the cement and mortar. All the cement blocks and bricks also needed to be carried into the jungle. One person could make about three trips between the road and school each day. By the end of the day they only moved a small wheel barrow of materials.

It rains a lot in the rain forest. In the rainy season from December to April it rains ten hours per day. In the dry season from June to September it rains only two hours per day. On the days the trail was wet they didn’t move materials. The reality of moving materials through the jungle was becoming a big problem. They tried using a 4 x 4 pick-up truck on the dry days. That helped a lot but the truck cost about $30 per load to move $10 of sand. We were getting desperate to get the materials to the job site and get the school built. The deadline to get the school open by March 2008 had passed. The villagers would rather spend their days picking $2.00 worth of bananas to sell in the market than moving sand and bricks across the jungle. We reorganized a work force and said we would pay them $3.00 per day to move materials. We needed to hire better brick masons from Iquitos and pay for their food and transportation. Gradually by August the village was working again to get the school finished.

When we visited the school this past November it was 90% complete. They still need to add the lattice style block windows that allowed ventilation while being secure. We were impressed with the size of the four classrooms. The brick walls are straight and thick and the cement floor is as smooth polished as in any Walmart. The hundreds of wood planks and boards I saw them cutting in April are now part of the rafters hidden inside the attic space.

The plan for the next four months is...

December: Complete all the building before Christmas
January: The government will inspect the school
February: The government will assign teachers
March: The new school term begins

There will be four teachers and four classrooms. Younger kids go to school in the morning. Older kids go in the afternoon. There will be about 100 kids total with an average class size of 15 kids. When we asked the mayor of the village how many kids will attend when the school opens he said “When a monkey in the jungle finds a tree with good bananas he tells his friends. When the first kids arrive at this school they will tell their friends. The school will grow when more kids learn that it is here”.

We have $3,000 left in the building budget to finish this school. I expect they will need additional classroom supplies like writing paper, pens and chalk We still have an extra $1,000 available to spend on classroom materials. This has been a difficult project, but not any worse than the Jack Wolff School we built five years ago. I expect the KM 46 School will have similar growing pains as the teachers, village and students all learn how to include a new school in their daily routine. The next six months will be interesting as the new school year begins. Thank you to everyone who continued to support this project during the past year. You have now made a school for 100 kids where there wasn’t one before.

End part 7

Peru Part 6

2008-12-06T06:30:00.000-08:00

Street Kid Party in Iquitos
Probably one of the busiest and most meaningful nights we have on the tour is the party for the kids who live on the street. Some of these kids are homeless and live under the cardboard boxes of back alleys. Some are sent downtown to beg for money or food for their families who live in the poor neighborhoods. Either way they have a tough life.

For the street party we invited 40 kids divided between boys and girls, big and small. This year David and Debbie McFadden sponsored the party with money they raised from their business. Before the party David and Debby bought shirts, shorts, hats and sandals for the various size kids. One hour before the party was to begin we all walked the back streets of Iquitos and gave out invitations to the location of the secret party. We tried to match the size of the child to the size of clothing purchased. A restaurant had agreed to make a meal for each kid of 1/4 chicken, salad, fried bananas and drinks. Jordan Butturini donated two huge birthday cakes.

The party began at 7:00 PM and the doors of the secret restaurant were opened. Only kids with an invitation were allowed inside. The restaurant did a good job of having the food ready to serve. Member of our group were the ushers, and servers to keep everything on schedule. Considering most of the kids hadn’t eaten a full meal in weeks, they were very well behaved while sitting at the table. Most of them asked for a doggy bag to take half their food home to their family.

After dinner the kids lined up to receive their new clothes. Based on their size they got a new shirt and pants and some sandals. Some of them changed into their new clothes at the restaurant. They had entered the restaurant looking like rag muffins and the departed wearing shirts from Spider Man and Whiney the Pooh.

End part 6

Peru Part 5

2008-12-03T16:48:00.001-08:00

Part 5

Jack Wolff School in Iquitos
Usually the boats depart Yurimaguas in the evening and arrive 36 hours later in Nauta in the morning. Since our boat departed at 1:00 PM and made good time down the river we arrived in Nauta before midnight. It was too dark and early to ride bikes the final 65 miles to Iquitos. There were ten cyclists plus our guide Clara in our group. The other seven people stayed on the boat the remaining eight hours to Iquitos. We had a decision to make about stalling some time until sunrise. The cyclists decided to stay at a hotel in Nauta until 6:00 AM. Our group of riders got off the boat wearing only our cycling clothes. We rode through the desolate streets of Nauta to the nearest hotel. They had three rooms for six of the people in our group. Since these hotels usually rent buy the hour it wasn’t unusual for us to arrive without any luggage. We only needed to stay for six hours and the cost was about $13 per room. The rest of our group found a similar hotel a mile away. At 6:00 AM we arranged to meet and ride the final miles across the jungle to Iquitos.

We rode 65 miles in about six hours including breakfast at a roadside stand and a lunch at a swimming resort. By the time we arrived at the hotel the boat had arrived and the group had moved all the luggage into the rooms. We had a leisurely afternoon in Iquitos. Since we had hustled to get on the early boat leaving Yurimaguas we now had an extra day and a half to to visit some traditional Indian Villages near Iquitos.
The next day we made the 12 mile trip to the Jack Wolff School at the Village of the Dolphins. This is the school we started building in 2004. It has continued to grow from 200 students to over 500 kids now. They started with nine teachers and now need 23. The school was built on the far edge of Iquitos nine kilometers further out than the next school in town. The Village of the Dolphins is very poor and even the teachers would rather commute an hour by bus to Iquitos than live in the village.

This school had some growing pains in past years as the directors, teachers, parents and kids learned how to make a school where the concept of going to school was new. They had seven directors in the past five years. All of the teachers have been replaced at least twice. There is no tax support for the school and the students do not pay tuition. A teacher is paid $335 per month (the national standard in Peru) and teachers are expected to pay the school phone bill and buy classroom supplies from their wages. The education situation is not good but probably not any worse than the other schools we visited across the country.

The support we give them goes a long way in keeping the school repaired and stocked with supplies. Every year we visit there we see the changes and improvements. This past year we gave them about $3,000 to use for over twenty different projects like roof repairs, a new motor for the water well and repairs for the sound system. We will continue to support them on an item by item basis. This year some of their teachers met with members of our group Dan and Debby Berg. They went on a shopping trip to restock the library with books and buy an assortment of educational DVDs. Dan and Debbie paid for all the products from funds they collected from their school at home. We expect the Jack Wolff School to continue to grow in the years ahead.

END Part 5

Peru Part 4 - School Book Delivery

2008-12-02T09:49:00.000-08:00

Amazon School Book Delivery
Part two of our tour began in Tarapoto. This is where eight more new members would join our tour. We now had 18 people in our group. Tomorrow we would ride the final 50 miles to the boat docks in Yurimaguas.

By the time the new members flew in from Lima and assembled their bikes it was almost midnight. They already had a hectic day with a Lima Bus Tour and flying to Tarapoto. The bad news was the road over the mountain would be closed at 5:00 AM the next morning and we needed to shuttle our bikes 25 miles past the construction zone starting at 4:00 AM. The tradeoff would be to wait in Tarapoto another day, so we decided it was better to leave sooner and get to the boat docks earlier.

We also got word that a good river boat was leaving at 1:00 PM the next day from Yurimaguas. The boat schedule is unreliable and we have learned it is better to get on a boat that is ready to depart instead of waiting for a boat that is loading and might not depart for another one, two or three days. This boat news added to the excitement (or stress) of getting over the mountain in the dark by truck and then cycling the final 50 miles to Yurimaguas in time to shower, shop for supplies and get settled on the boat before it departed.

The non cycling members of our group drove ahead and loaded all the gear on the boat. By the time the cyclists arrived they were able to take a shower in a nearby hotel. We had a hectic two hours to buy books for the riverboat delivery and get everything organized on the boat. We had four cabins for eight people and space to store our gear. We bought more hammocks, mattresses and chairs for lounging on the deck. By the time the boat departed at 1:00 PM we were all comfortable and ready for the next 34 hours on the river.

The boat is about 120 feet long and has a barge type hull. There are three decks above the waterline. The first deck is for storing bags of rice, potatoes and bananas. The second deck if for passengers sleeping only in hammocks. The upper deck has six cabin and space for more hammocks. Our group would be on the upper deck which allowed us more room to spread out. We had a private kitchen and dining table where we could cook our own meals. The cabin accommodations were simple but clean with fans in the rooms. This isn’t Carnival Cruise Lines and it is more like camping on a boat. What this boat has, that no other cruise line offers, is a desolate 300 mile voyage down the Amazon river system. The sunrises and sunsets are amazing.

The boat would stop to deliver supplies to a village every few hours. Delivering books to rural schools is part of the Anne Marie McSweeney
Book Delivery Project that was started three years ago. The captain would tell us if we were stopping for five, ten or fifteen minutes. If we were stopping for at least fifteen minutes our group would take a bundle of prepackaged books and start looking for the school. The school was usually within sight and was the biggest building in the village. Sometimes the classes were in session and our group appeared like aliens with gifts from another planet. We had three translators with our group who introduced us to the teacher and students. We would distribute the assortment of workbooks, writing notebooks and pencils to the class. Their teacher would say a few words of thanks to us. The students would clap. We would then wave goodbye and get back on the boat, all within fifteen minutes. The whole process must have seemed a little strange to the villagers who rarely see visitors get off the boat. We would deliver books to six schools this trip. We wish we could spend more time at each school. Maybe staying in each village could be a goal for a different tour.

End Part 4

Peru Part 3

2008-12-01T13:23:00.000-08:00

Cycling from Piura to Yurimaguas
The city of Piura is located in the northwest corner of Peru near the Pacific Ocean just south of Ecuador. Piura is known as “The land of eternal heat” with an average daily temperature of 95 degrees. The terrain is arid and sandy with scrubby trees. This is where our group of seven cyclists began our tour heading east over the Andes Mountains. We would have a support vehicle with Aracely and her mother plus our driver Falipi from Piura and Vioricka from Iquitos. We were also joined by a young man named Cristhian who lives in Piura and wants to be a bike racer. Another Peruvian who joined us was Alessandra from Iquitos. She is a 23 year old cyclist who is strong enough to ride with PAC Tour Elite riders. We had a good mix of Peruvians and gringos on our tour.

It would take eight cycling days to reach Yurimaguas averaging 100 KM per day. The road is mostly paved with smooth blacktop. There are some sections with avalanche damage that are in constant repair but overall the route can be ridden on road bikes. I used my folding Bike Friday with 28mm tires and didn’t have any flat tires from road damage.

The theme of the tour was “Going to where tourists don’t go”. Members of our group were warned not to expect the good hotels or restaurants that cater to most tourists. This part of the country is for mining and farming and most of the services reflect this industrious simplicity. Except for a van of bird watchers we didn’t see another gringo tourist the whole tour. Even without the tourist frills our hotels were clean and functional. We had fans in the rooms instead of air conditioning. The showers had one knob for cold water but the warm days made a cool shower feel welcome.

The third day we went from Olmos to Pucara and began climbing over the Andes Mountains. The gap at the summit was 7,000 foot elevation. It had taken us six hours to travel 33 miles up the continuous 7% grade. This is one of the lower passes across the Andes. The climb is still impressive as it snakes along the edge of the valley with great views of the mountain peaks around us. The final 45 miles were mostly downhill into a stiff headwind. By the time we reached Pucara we were pretty tired from the climb and the heat. The next several days would be more of the same while crossing the ridges and valleys deeper into the rain forest region of the Amazon basin. Each mountain range we crossed offered a slight change in vegetation by adding more jungle type plants and trees. The arid dryness of Piura had been replaced by steamy humidity. Even the afternoon rain showers were warm and welcome and we never needed long sleeves or rain jackets.

Our daily schedule was pretty full with cycling so we didn’t have time on this part of the tour to participate in any extra supply projects. Our group of cyclists rode six used bikes which we gave away at the end of the tour. We did see some rural schools in the mountains which could use some support. Maybe we can help them during our next tour in this area.

Our final two days of cycling to Tarapoto were about 100 miles each. We were well accumulated to the heat and routine of dealing with cycling in Peru. Alessandra had crashed descending a hairpin turn when a motorcycle cut her off. She slid off the road and mangled the fork on her bike. Her rear derailleur left a ten foot silver trail of aluminum shavings along the retaining wall. She was lucky she walked away from the 35 mph tumble without even tearing her jersey. The racing bike we had brought her from the United States wasn’t so lucky. That night we arrived in Nuevo Cajamarca and starting looking for a new fork. After comparing several mountain bike forks and side pull brake clearances we were able to get a fork to fit her stem and frame. We bought a hacksaw and file to cut and grind the fork to fit. After two hours of fabricating the new fork in the hotel room her bike was ready to ride again.

End

Peru Part 2

2008-12-01T10:23:00.000-08:00

Puerto Ocopa Orphanage
The Puerto Ocopa Orphanage is located 300 miles due east of Lima on the other side of the Andes Mountains. We have ridden our bikes there in the past to deliver supplies to 80 kids in the jungle. We were not scheduled to visit there this year because of our busy schedule with other projects. I was surprised when the head Nun was waiting for me at our hotel in Lima. She had traveled to Lima to ask about helping the orphanage with some expenses this year. They need five more bunk beds and mattresses which cost $125 per bed. They also needed some cooking equipment and basic bags of food like rice and beans. The total price was $1,000. I said we could help with that amount this year.

Their wish list for the future included a bus trip for all the kids to travel to Lima. The costs for bus fare, daily food and lodging would cost about $3,000 for six days. I said that would be a good project in the future but we didn’t have that much in our budget for their travel at this time. We hope to include another tour to the orphanage to deliver supplies next year.

End part 2

New Peru Stories

2008-11-29T20:00:00.000-08:00

Peru Projects

I just returned from Peru. The next series of stories are from our group travels during November 2008.

Chosica Girl’s Home
Our adventure started in Lima, Peru November 1st. Our flights were on time and we had to get organized before our tour began. Since we had an extra day in Lima our group of seven traveled 50 miles to the outskirts of Lima to the Chosica Girls Home. This is where our nine year old friend Aracely calls her home. She lives with fifteen other girls who do not have parents. The purpose of our visit was to review the conditions at the Home and take the girls on a shopping trip to the market. In past years we brought clothes for the girls from Lima and delivered them to the Girls Home. This year we were going to give each girl 50 Peruvian Soles ($16) and let the girls choose their own clothes.

Most of these girls have never had any savings or the opportunity to buy anything with their own money. The shopping spree to the market was an interesting social experiment. Some of the girls knew exactly which clothes they wanted after months of walking the aisles of the market and window shopping. With their new money they went directly to their favorite booth and made their purchase within ten minutes. Other girls were more cautious and wanted to savor holding on to their money as long as possible. They would compare prices for similar garments at every booth. Finally after an hour of looking they chose the best clothes for the price. Overall the shopping trip cost about $250 and it was a memorable day for them and us.

That night our friend Aracely returned to Lima with us to join our tour. She is one of the top students in her school and her teachers gave her permission to travel with us for three weeks. Aracely does have a mother named Nayda but she works in the city and cannot take care of Aracely. Nayda would also join us on the tour to help our support crew. During the tour Aracely would write a daily diary about her travels. Watch for a translated version of Aracely’s diary on the PAC Tour website in the future. She is a bright and friendly kid and she added a lot of personality to our tour.

End Part 1

Peru Tour November 1-20, 2008

2008-10-28T06:31:00.000-07:00

Peru Tour Update
My blog will be on hold a few weeks while I am in Peru. I hope to have time to send a few updates but these Peru tours are pretty busy and I don’t have a lot of time to find a computer and do any serious writing.

The Peru Tours this year are divided into three parts. The First Tour is mainly a road cycling tour beginning near the Pacific Ocean in northern Peru. There seven cyclists in our group plus three Peruvian crew members. We will fly to the city of Piura near Ecuador on the Pacific Ocean and begin pedaling east toward the Andes Mountains. The route is 5 degrees south of the equator and the days are burning hot and dry similar southern Arizona in the summer. After two days we begin climbing the dry slopes of the mountains. There is a low pass that crosses the mountains at only 7,500 feet elevation. This is one of the lowest passes across the Andes. After we get on the eastern side of the mountain we enter the rain forest area. The vegetation become more green and jungle like. There are still a few more 7,000 foot passes as the road hugs the cliffs along miles of twisting mountain slopes.

After eight cycling days we will travel about 500 miles. We then reach the river town of Yurimaguas. This is where Tour Number Two begins. Eight more people from the United States are flying into the jungle to meet us. We will get on a riverboat and head down stream toward the Amazon River. We are on the boat for two nights and sleep in hammocks on the deck. Along the way we are going to deliver books to rural six schools when our boat stops for ten minutes to unload bags of rice and pick up bundles of bananas. The whole riverboat experience is very unique and one of the highlights of traveling in the remotes jungle of Peru.

Our destination is the city of Iquitos. We are going to stay there five nights. Iquitos is our base camp for going into the jungle to the schools we have built the past 4 years. The newest school is 55 kilometers kilometers from the city and should be 95% completed when we arrive November 17th. We are going to have an opening ceremony with the village. The new school season begins in February and we expect the school to have 50 students to attend the first year.

The other school we are going to visit is the Village of the Dolphins. This school was built in 2004. It had 200 kids when it opened four years ago and now has 500 students. We expect the new school which is still being built will have similar growth when parents and kids understand the concept of going to school.

The third part of our tour is a 100 kilometer bicycle race from Nauta back to Iquitos. This is the only paved section of road within 300 miles. The road is well paved with a few rolling hills. The local fire department is promoting the race. We are bringing 100 jerseys and shorts as prizes that have been donated by PAC Tour riders during the past year. As a racer finishes the race they are able to walk past the table of prizes and select a donated item. PAC Tour is also donating $1,000 in cash to be divided between the top five men and women in the race.

These tours to Peru take a lot of planning in order to stay productive. We have learned to be flexible and usually make a plan “B” or plan “C” to anticipate different variables. The surprises along the way are one of the best parts of these trips. We will have a bunch of unplanned adventures. I will post a full report when I return in December.

END

Part 21 Lon's First Cross Country in 1981

2008-10-27T16:48:00.000-07:00

Part 21
The middle 1,000 miles of the United States is beyond the excitement of the start and too far from the anticipation of the finish. Reaching the middle third of the country is always a good time to philosophize about “why am I doin’ this?” I rode the first 1,000 miles in a little under four days. The final 1,000 miles wouldn’t begin until the Mississippi River.

In future years moods of depression would be typical for RAAM racers riding across the middle third. Not only was the middle third located 1,000 miles from the start or finish, there was nothing else to look forward to in the middle 1,000 miles. The short term goals of crossing the desert and climbing the western mountains was over. The goal of the middle third was just another grain mill tower eleven miles straight ahead.

I was having the same thoughts as when I had ridden the opposite direction more than eight days earlier. The only difference now is that I knew what waited ahead in each town. The winds were favorable but not as strong as the headwinds when I was heading west. Last week the winds were rocking the motor home and blowing the hats off crew members. Now the winds barely bending the long grass that lined the road.

I had plenty of time to think about why I was out riding my bike eighteen hours per day. While I was riding down the road at 17-20 miles per hour I bet their were thousands of better cyclists capable of going faster. The only thing that made me unique is that I was here doing it.

As I continued riding I thought about all the training and logistics it took to get this record attempt together. I thought about my parents taking out a loan to get the extra $10,000 we needed to start the trip. I thought about the six crew members who were donating 35 days of their time including travel to the start and finish. I had been training 20,000 miles per year for the past three years. All I had been thinking about for three years was doing this record attempt. Now I was doing it. Now I was out here in the middle of the New Mexico prairie heading toward Texas.

To be here was an unique opportunity. There were thousands of cyclists who could be doing this but they weren’t. As I kept riding I thought about this opportunity and why I better not waste everything that made this ride possible. As I started riding across the middle third of the country I had a new focus to keep going and make the most of a special chance to ride back and forth across America.

END

Part 20 Lon's First Cross Country in 1981

2008-10-26T17:30:00.000-07:00

Part 20
Our crew woke up in the dark at 4:00 AM. We were going to try to ride across Albuquerque before the traffic got busy this morning. We had to ride 35 miles to the outskirts of the city. There are several big rolling climbs of three miles each on the west side of Albuquerque. Most of them I could climb in the big chainring and coast down at 30 mph. Once I got off Interstate 40 the route across Albuquerque was on Old Route 66 which is also called Central Avenue. It is considered the longest main street of any town in America. The final decent into town was down what the locals called Nine Mile Hill. The steepest part is about two miles long and it was possible to coast at 50 mph. (for comparison in 1986 Susan Notorangelo and I reached 62 mph during our tandem transcontinental record).

Central Avenue goes for 17 miles until it merges with I-40 again on the east side of town. My dad had arranged another police escort across the city. It had been my first escort since I had been in Albuquerque on my way west a week earlier. The two police cars leap frogged and closed the intersections as I rode across the city. The escorts are always exciting and I maintained a steady 20 mph pace. When I got back on the interstate I began the steady climb up Tijeras Canyon. The trill of the escort was over and now it was time for the long grade up to Clines Corners.

After the first 15 mile grade out of Albuquerque the terrain opens up to the wide plains near Moriarty. The winds were favorable and the climbs were manageable in the big chainring. The biggest annoyance in New Mexico was the chip seal shoulder on the interstate. I-40 had been converted from two lane Route 66 to Interstate ten years earlier. The new lanes were made to temporary standards without the good pavement that is common on interstates today. The four lane interstate was more like two parallel country roads with rough shoulders.

As I headed east it was encouraging to see familiar landmarks from my trip west the week before. The gift shop at Clines Corners still had billboards every three miles advertising moccasins and rattlesnake tail jewelry. The billboards with the fatman’s face were still promoting the Club Cafe in Santa Rosa. The yellow Stukeys Restaurant signs tempted travels with the nutritious breakfast of one egg, toast and jelly of ninety-nine cents. I just kept riding. Our crew was in auto drive now. Everything was going smooth without any bike of vehicle troubles.

I reached Tucumcari, New Mexico before sundown and turned left on Route 54. It was good to finally get off the interstate. The noise of passing trucks was getting old. I would be on Route 54 now for the next five states until the middle of Illinois. Navigation was easy but this highway still had its share of trucks who liked to drive fast. We learned to anticipate when two trucks were about to meet near us and we would get off the road onto the grass shoulder.

Sundown came a little earlier because we had moved further east. We stopped to sleep near Logan, New Mexico. I had traveled 270 miles today which was a little better than average. I was hoping the same winds that I had battled by riding at 11 mph on my way west would be helping me tomorrow.

END

1981 Update

2008-10-24T14:51:00.000-07:00

I recently found an old folder in my file drawer full of the USCF record forms from the 1981 Double Transcontinetla Record Attempt. These notes from 27 years ago will be very helpful reconstructing the days and mileages from the record ride.

END

Part 19 Lon's First Cross Country 1981

2008-10-24T07:58:00.000-07:00

Part 19

By the time I reached Parks, Arizona on the west side of Flagstaff I had ridden 223 miles for the day mostly uphill and gained 7,000 feet of elevation. It was the 4th of July weekend and my dad was afraid we would not find a campground with any space available. These were before the days when riding all night in RAAM was considered normal. The motor home found a camp group off the interstate and I was able to get to bed before dark. I had another good night’s sleep and woke up at sunrise for another day. During the first 500 miles I had already slept two full nights. For comparison a few years later RAAM racers would typically reach Flagstaff in 30 hours and not stop for their first sleep break until the 600 mile mark.

When I departed Flagstaff the next morning the air was crisp at cold at 7,000 feet. There is a gradual downhill the next 50 miles toward Winslow dropping about 2,000 feet. The downhill and slight tail wind made me feel strong this morning. My only concern was that I had an annoying saddle sore developing in my left side. I remember coasting down the grade and standing up on my pedals. I put my hand down my shorts and pinched the marble size boil. It broke with a squirt of puss on my fingers. That technique would be repeated several times per day for the rest of the record attempt. Things like saddle sores, numb feet and hands were all part of the ride. I was become more efficient at staying on the bike for hours at a time without stopping for any minor breaks. Even bathroom breaks were eliminated and I urinated off the bike every two or three hours.

Except for the bumps on the interstate shoulder the ride was going pretty well today. We had been warned by locals not to stop and camp along the road for the next 200 miles. We were in Indian Territory. I thought the warnings were a little over dramatic and the locals acted like our wagon train was going to be attacked if we didn’t circle the wagons at night. We never did have any problems when we were stopped except for curious passers by who wondered why a van had so many spare wheels.

It was 775 miles from Santa Monica, California to McCartys New Mexico where I stopped for the third night. It was 9:15 PM when we pulled off the interstate ramp toward three dark houses which made up the whole town. I had ridden 280 miles in daylight which was my longest mileage day of the trip. I was averaging 258 miles per day so far which was a little more than I needed to break the record of 12 days, 3 hours. I had to ration my riding speed while feeling the fatigue of the previous fifteen days. I was getting enough sleep to feel alert on the bike but I was definitely tired enough to sleep well at night.

END

Lon's First Cross Country

2008-10-22T18:20:00.000-07:00

Part 18
The 30 miles before Prescott, Arizona is one of my favorite areas of the route. The road climbs through scrubby pine trees with dozens of hairpin curves. Even when you are going slow it feels like you are moving because the scenery changes every 100 meters with new views of the next corner. On my way west I had ridden this section during the cool morning. Now the sun was high overhead in the early afternoon. The lighting change made the route look different. For the rest of the trip I would always be comparing the road and scenery to when I had traveled this route heading west two weeks earlier. I always tried to remember if the flags were blowing the same tailwinds for me now as when they blew headwinds for me before.

I rode through Prescott to a scenic view area on the north side of town. My motor home was waiting there. I stopped to use the toilet and I could not resist laying down on the bed. I told the crew I needed a 15 minute nap. I am sure I was a sleep in thirty seconds and slept more than half an hour. When I woke up there was a 30 mph tailwind blowing north. My route for the return trip would be to take Rt. 89 north to Ashfork instead of Rt. 89-A over Mingus Mountain through the town of Jerome. We estimated the longer flatter route on Rt. 89 was better than going over the mountains again. Our calculation paid off now with the great tailwinds. I got back on my bike recharged from my nap. I was cruising at a respectable 20-25 mph for the next 55 miles to Ashfork.

In Ashfork I needed to get back on I-40 for the next 500 miles. Although I hated the noise on the interstate I liked the shallower grades. The main problem in Arizona were the rumple strips cut across the ten foot shoulder. In 1981 these bumps were spaced about every ten meters apart and went from the white line to the grass edge. They were deep enough to shake a water bottle loose from it’s cage. Every two pedal strokes (bump) I would hit another one (bump) and that rhythm would (bump) continue for (bump) the next 300 miles (bump) across the state (bump).

END

Lon's First Cross Country

2008-10-22T18:18:00.000-07:00

Part 18 Lon's First Cross Country

2008-10-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

Part 17
We continued across Palm Springs and Indio. Yesterday I had ridden from Indio to the Santa Monica City Hall in fifteen hours. Today I covered the same 150 miles in nine hours. Getting out of town and missing Los Angeles traffic was a big help. The tailwinds didn’t hurt either. Behind us was the Pacific Ocean. Ahead was 250 miles of desert. I climbed back up Chiriaco Summit on Interstate 10. The afternoon temperatures were a toasty 115 degrees. The good thing was I was feeling pretty strong. The crew was giving me a cold water bottle every 15 minutes and I was dumping another bottle over my head. I was averaging almost 18 miles per hour for the day. By the time I reached the town of Blythe we had crossed California in 14 hours. The crew took a photo of the bank clock and thermometer at 5:00 PM which read 111 degrees.

The town of Quartzite, Arizona was 25 miles away and that was our goal for the day. The sun was still high in the sky when we arrived at the RV park. We had traveled 265 miles today which was what we needed to do everyday to set the record. My new Specialized Alez bike fit perfectly and I felt like I had been riding it for years.

We had a picnic dinner at the Quartzite RV Park. I went to bed before sundown and got a good night’s sleep. These were the days before the Race Across America and all night rides. The next morning the sun was coming up when I continued east on Interstate 10. I only had to go about 15 more miles before getting off I-10 and getting on Rt. 60 toward Prescott. It was nice to be away from the traffic and heading across the desolate desert. I was feeling okay this morning except for some saddle sores. The long flat roads didn’t allow me much time to stand up and change my position.

By late morning the desert was getting hot. The climbing to higher elevations started at about noon in the small town of Congress, Arizona. The grade up Yarnell Hill is deceptively steep at the bottom. The grade looked flat but I was going slower and slower...16 mph...12 mph..10 mph. Was I getting weak of did I have a flat tire? Out of frustration I made a u-turn and started riding back west. My speed immediately went to 20 mph just coasting. The grade was steeper than I thought. Satisfied I was really going uphill, I made another u-turn and continued east. I needed to climb another six miles up and out of the desert. Every mile was several degrees cooler. By the time I receive the town of Yarnell the temperature had dropped from 100 degrees to 85 degrees. It was nice to have the hottest part of the desert behind me.

END

Part 16 Lon's First Cross Counrty

2008-10-15T14:54:00.001-07:00

Part 16
By the time I got to San Bernardino the sun was up and I was cruising toward San Timiteo Canyon. We didn’t get lost on Rt. 66 this time. The morning was still sunny and cool and I felt as fresh as a club cyclist going on a morning breakfast ride. The climb back up the Canyon was a steady 3% grade and I made good time getting to the towns of Banning and Beaumont at the summit. The crew needed to stop for gas and groceries and they said they would catch me in a few minutes. What neither of us realized is that I would pick up a whipping 30 mph tailwind in combination with the 5% downhill to Palm Springs. I was spun out in a 54 x 12 gear as I headed down Interstate 10 into the desert. The new Allez bicycle felt good at 40 mph. After 20 minutes I had traveled over 12 miles.

The cool morning was getting hotter and hotter the lower and lower I dropped into the desert. Where was the support car? I wasn’t worried about getting lost. I knew the route because I had just ridden these roads yesterday. I was getting concerned about my water supply. I had drank both my water bottles. After another 10 miles I was entering Palm Springs. I was getting really hot. My tongue was dry and I was starting to look for somewhere to get some water.

I pedaled past country clubs and noticed their lawn sprinklers and fountains. I saw an imitation waterfall near the front gate of a fancy resort. I rode my bike up to the pool of water and dipped my water bottle in the pond. I poured a bottle over my head and soaked my jersey. It was now over 110 degrees. I filled my water bottles and started riding again. I didn't want to drink the fountain water but I was getting pretty cooked.

It was now over an hour since I had seen my support car. Within a few minutes the crew came up from behind me. They had thought they missed me and they turned around when they couldn’t find me after 20 miles.

We had a few words. I said “From now on, for the rest of the trip, we need to make a plan if we are going to split up and make sure I have a full water bottle”. The incident made everyone realize how much we needed to keeping working together. We could not get sloppy with our focus or our planning. We had crossed the country once and made a few mistakes. Now we were supposed to know what we were doing. There would not be any more time to make mistakes if we wanted to set the record.

END

Part 15 Lon's First Cross Country

2008-10-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

Part 15
Our crew checked into the fancy hotel in downtown Santa Monica. The price in 1981 was about $200 dollars a night. My mom said it was the best hotel she had ever been in. She was upset that we would not even get a full night’s sleep. We only booked one room for six crew members and me. I would be able to take a shower and go to bed while the rest of the crew traded time in the shower. The crew had ordered some pizza to be delivered to the room. By the time I showered and ate it was 10:00 PM. We all needed to be awake by 2:00 AM and get ready to ride by 3:00 AM.

The alarm went off and was a little disoriented about where I was. I had been used to sleeping in the motor home and this was my first night’s sleep in a real bed since leaving New York City. The reality of the situation gradually sunk in. I needed to get back on the bike and ride 3,000 miles back to New York. The trip here took 12 days and 18 hours. The one-way record held by John Marino's was 12 days, 3 hours. If we were going to set the transcontinental record we needed to go faster on the return trip.

I leaned on the wall as I rode the elevator down to the lobby. I was still tired and my thoughts were a mixture of anticipation and dread. Could I go faster across the country? How would I feel after another 12 days of riding? The elevator stopped. I was wearing my cycling shoes and cleats as I stepped out of the elevator and clicked my way across the marble lobby. Outside on the hotel steps the crew was waiting. Our hotel was a couple blocks from the Santa Monica City Hall so we walked down the street. At the city hall the representative from the USCF was waiting for us. He had been sleeping in his car since when we had left him at 9:00 PM. I think he was glad we returned promptly at 2:45 AM like we said we would.

Crew member's Dean Dettman and Jon Royer had assemble the new Specialized Allez Bicycle for me. The frame was bright red with silver Campagnolo Super record parts. The bike had 27 inch wheels which were still common in 1981. It had Turbo clincher tires which Specialized was promoting as the first race able clincher tire. Remember this was 1981 and 99% of all racing tires were sew-ups then. The crew had installed the Cool-Gear saddle off my TREK bike I had ridden most of the way from New York. I got on my new Allez bike and tested the saddle height. Everything felt good. The USCF Rep. gave us a count down. It was 3:00 AM when we started our return trip 3,000 miles back to New York City.

Last night at 6:00 PM the streets that were clogged with traffic. Now at 3:00 AM the same streets were deserted. The traffic lights were flashing yellow. I cruised block after block at 22 mph. It felt good to be over halfway done. Each mile heading east would get me closer to New York City. The Dodge Omni support car followed 30 feet behind me and lighted the way. I needed to get at least 50 miles across Los Angeles before rush hour traffic started heading to work. We knew the roads and turns now. I made good time getting through the potentially busiest parts of the city. By 5:30 AM the sun was making a glow in the eastern sky ahead of me.

END

Lon's First Cross Country 1981

2008-10-11T18:35:00.000-07:00

RECAP 1981

Last year I started writing about my 1981 Double Transcontinental Record from New York City to California and back. When I left off my story I had just reached the west coast. You can go back and read about the first half of the journey which was written in March-April 2007.

The story begins as I recap crossing the desert heading west during the final miles across Los Angeles to end the first half of the record.

Part 14
The crew found a place to park the motor home in Indio at the base of the ten mile downhill. I slept for a few hours and was up again at sunrise. I got back on the interstate and bypassed most of Palm Springs. These were the days when riding the interstate was allowed through here or before any cyclists ever considered riding across the desert. I hadn’t seen any other cyclists since Missouri or since the fellow I rode with the morning leaving Prescott, Arizona.

The west wind was starting to blow as I climbed from sea level up the gradual 30 mile grade to Banning, California. The total climb was only 2,600 feet but I was barely riding at 12 mph against the wind. On the other side of Banning was the downhill of San Timiteo Canyon. This road would become a famous climb for east bound riders during the Race Across America during the next 10 years. For me it was a welcome downhill going west. I was getting closer to Riverside and San Bernardino. My dad was in the motor home talking on the CB radio and told the crew we were looking for a specific route toward Los Angeles. It was probably Old Rt. 66 but in 1981 Rt. 66 had been decertified and no longer was posted with road signs. The follow car behind me told me to pull over and stop. The motor home was on the correct route and asking on the CB where I was. I was lost for the first time of the whole trip. The support car told me to load my bike on the roof and we needed to drive back several traffic lights to the motor home. The detour only cost us about ten minutes but added to the stress of finding our way across the city.

Once I was back on Old Rt. 66, which wasn’t called Rt. 66 in 1981, I proceeded west. Every three blocks I waited at another red traffic light. Ironically several years later I would be leading tours on Old Rt. 66 and would be quite familiar with the neighborhoods. During the Rt. 66 tours one of the riders counted 375 traffic lights in 80 miles between San Bernardino and Santa Monica. As I continued west the traffic was getting heavy. I was barely averaging 10 mph with all the traffic lights. The final 150 miles would take me almost 15 hours to cover.

I finally arrived at the Santa Monica City Hall, which was the official starting or ending points for USCF cross country records. It was just before sundown and the parking lot was fairly deserted of business traffic. I was met by the regional USCF official and Victor Vincente who had set the Double Transcontinental of 36 days several years earlier. I was really surprised he came out to see me. It was really an honor to meet him. There wasn’t any celebration with the crew because we knew we were only half way done. Everyone was hustling around just like it was a normal sleep break. It was really a strange sensation to have ridden across the country and know we had to turn around and do it again in a few hours.

My East to West time was 12 days and 18 hours. I had missed breaking John Marino’s one-way record by several hours. I would have to go faster on the return trip.

END

Blog Working Again

2008-10-11T18:12:00.000-07:00

It has been a long 6 months since my Blog was updated. Sorry for the delay buy the problem was I could not get my password to work. I tried several entries and nothing was working. The Tech Support didn't work either. So today I tried opening my Blog again. To my surprise it worked with the same password I tried a 100 times before.

Well anyway...

I will try to post more updates about PAC Tour and Peru during the next few weeks and get caught up for missing the past 6 months. I am not sure anyone reads this stuff anyway but at least I have a record of it.

Lon

Traveling to Peru

2008-05-05T20:01:00.001-07:00

Peru Projects: April 2008
by Lon Haldeman

I just returned from scouting our various projects in Peru. It was a quick trip with just me and one gear bag. I made the rounds to check on the progress in several areas where we have been helping during the past few years.

I arrived in Lima Monday morning after an all night flight. I found a hotel which had an empty room from the night before. I was able to get a few hours sleep before noon. Then I went to the book store to buy 110 notebooks and classroom supplies to take to Iquitos. The whole load fit into five boxes of 40 pounds each. The prices were much cheaper than buying them in the jungle but transporting the items on the airplane and to the school would be a problem.

That night I went to the town of Chosica located 40 miles from Lima. Chosica is in the foothills of the Andes Mountains and the last major town before heading into the remote 16,000 foot climbs of the mountains. Chosica is also the location of the “Girl’s Foster Home” we have helped support for the past two years. There are typically 16 or 20 girls living at the home between the ages of 7 and 15 years old.

I arrived at the home and was greeted by the Director Ricardo and his wife. They live on the premises in a separate apartment. We went on a tour of the facilities and Ricardo showed me the new layout of bedrooms, kitchen and classroom. I was impressed with how much cleaner the home looked from past years. The bedrooms and closets were more tidy and the library bookshelves were neatly arranged.

Ricardo said the building is now being used for class rooms for a sewing and weaving school. Five of the rooms are now filled with electric sewing machines and looms where the girls and local women come to learn industrial sewing techniques. A church from Germany had donated $5,000 for the sewing machines and a bunch of other equipment. The Girl’s Home had some other needs and I gave them $200 for food and paid some past due electric bills of $375. It looks like the sewing school could be a good business for the Girl’s Home in future years and they will become self sufficient to pay for their daily needs. We will keep in touch with the Girl’s Home about future needs but it was nice to see their conditions have improved.

Traveling to the KM 46 School

2008-05-05T19:59:00.001-07:00

Traveling into the Jungle
The next day I flew to the jungle town of Iquitos located on the Amazon River. Stepping off the airplane onto the open air runway was like walking into a steaming shower room. The temperature was close to 95 degrees and the humidity left a shimmer of sweat on my forehead while walking to the airport terminal. A friend met me to pick up the boxes of books I had bought from Lima. He was going directly to the school in the morning and would take care of getting the books to the village.
My main reason for visiting Iquitos was to see the progress of the new school we are building in the jungle. The school doesn't have a name yet so we call it the rather generic name of Kilometer 46 school since it is located at highway marker 46 KM (30 miles) from the outskirts of Iquitos. The name of the village is called “New Triumph” which is located another 4 KM off the main highway.

The next day I began the long commute from downtown Iquitos to the KM 46 school. To get the full local effect I took the bus (local Combi bus) instead of renting a direct taxi. A Combi bus is similar to an old Volkswagen Bus that were available in the United States 30 years ago. Most of the Combi Buses looked 30 years old with the doors hanging from their hinges and dented fenders which were the result of jousting with other vehicles in city traffic.

I found a place to sit on the bus bench seat. There were nine seats in the bus, but we had 13 people already jammed hip to hip like a bunch of clowns in a circus car. As we drove the rural highway out of Iquitos the bus would stop for someone else waiting on the roadside. Their bundle of bananas went on the roof and the side door of the bus would slide open to squeeze in one more passenger. Just when I thought the person near the door would tumble out, we would find room for another passenger inside. This routine would be repeated over and over until every inch of space was packed with elbows into their neighbor’s armpits. The hot sun warmed the inside of the bus to a roasty 100 degrees. The only fresh air came from when we opened the side door to cram in one more rider. That old deodorant soap commercial played in my head...”Aren’t you glad you use DIAL?...Don’t you wish everybody did?”.

After an hour and a half the bus arrived at KM 46. I stumbled out of the bus and felt the contrasting cool air of the 90 degree jungle. I then started the four kilometer hike along the red clay path. The local people walking this trail had widened it to fit a small all terrain vehicle when the path was dry. Last year many of the bridges were a single telephone pole type log laid over the streams. Now many of these bridges had been replaced with cut wooden beams similar to railroad ties. These bridges were suitable for supporting a small vehicle. I counted fifteen new bridges that were built this year. Some of the areas are still very swampy and there is a need for five or ten more bridges through the marshland.

After 45 minutes of walking I finally arrived at the village of New Triumph. The area is not really a village with a cluster of houses. This region is home to 30 families who live spread out into the dense jungle. Each family settlement is self supporting and might be separated by half a mile. The new school will be a reason for 110 local kids to come together everyday.

Only three grass roof huts are visible from the clearing near the soccer field. One of the buildings is a community center with slat wood walls suitable for social gatherings. This building is where the temporary school is being held today.

I can hear the voices of the children as I walk toward the community center building. Today 56 students would be attending classes. The two teachers had divided the students into four age groups. The teachers alternated their time between the various kids. Their desks were improvised from plank boards set on bricks from the school construction site. Most of the kids and their parents have never been to school. The concept of sitting and listening to a teacher was new to them. The teachers were doing a good job of keeping everyone’s attention. The school day begins at 7:00 AM and is over by 1:00 PM. I stayed until school was dismissed. As the children left school they disappeared back to their houses in the jungle. Within ten minutes the community center was empty and the area was quiet except for the workers at the new school construction site.

Next to the community center the new school was being built into the hillside. I was hoping the new school would have been more finished when I arrived. I had heard reports about how the rains and flooding has made moving materials from the main road impossible. After walking the jungle path and seeing the remote conditions I could understand the obstacles of working in the jungle. All the work was being done by hand. The school foundation had been cut into the hillside which meant moving hundreds of wheelbarrows of dirt from the area. Then the bricks had to be carried from the main road along with many bags of cement and buckets of white sand.

The brick walls of the school were being built layer by layer. The school would have eight rooms of about 20 foot by 20 foot. There would be a perimeter sidewalk and an overhanging roof. I could imagine how the school will look when it is finished after June 1st.

The village is home to many woodcutters who work for a Canadian company selecting exotic hardwood trees from the jungle. They know how to cut wood. For the school they are cutting cedar rafters and making roof trusses. The buzz of chain saws could be heard in the distance. I would follow the men into the jungle to a remote sawmill where a guy was cutting boards freehand with a chain saw. I was really impressed with how flat and straight the boards were being sliced. The path to the sawmill was an obstacle course of stream crossings and ankle grabbing vines. The path had been cleared of saplings with a machete that left many six inch stumpy spikes on the walkway. Stepping on one of the spikes could easily go through the sole of a sturdy hiking boot.

At the sawmill we each picked up a fresh cut board and began walking back to the school. The planks were wet and heavy. I estimate a 12 foot board weighed 75 pounds. I had a hard enough time before walking through the jungle without carrying a board. Now I was trying to balance a board on my shoulder, jump a stream, keep from tripping on vines and not fall on stomach piercing spikes. I was the last one in the convoy of board carriers. I hoped no one saw how I was struggling. Everyone else was walking at a steady trot. I was trying to stay within eyesight and not get left in the jungle. When we returned to the school we needed to stack our board on the vertical drying rack. I could barely lift my board into the rack. My arms and shoulders were aching. Before I had time to recover our convoy of workers was returning to the sawmill. We would make five more trips back and forth moving boards. At home I had moved lots of lumber from Home Depot but carrying boards in the jungle was at least three times as hard. I have to give those workers a lot of credit for moving all those boards everyday by hand.

Peru Finance Report

2008-05-05T19:56:00.000-07:00

Business Report
There are seven full time workers who are professional masons and carpenters. They come from a different village and are living in the New Triumph community house now. The village is providing them with meals and a place to sleep. They also receive $10 per day for their labor. Their agreement is to build the school in 80 days for $70 per day or $5,600 total in labor. At first I didn’t think we could afford the labor costs. After seeing how hard they are working in the jungle conditions I think paying their labor is a bargain.

The school budget is on schedule to complete the school for $55,000. The main variable is the slipping value of the dollar which has dropped 10% since January. After the main classrooms are built, the school budget allows for separate bathrooms and a living hut for the teachers. The bathrooms and teachers hut might have to wait until we get more money in the future. After the school is completed it will have 200 students arriving from rural jungle homes.

New Teachers in Peru

2008-05-05T19:55:00.000-07:00

New Teachers Arriving
Sybil Copp and Joe Murphy are English teachers from Boston. They are finishing college and wanted to teach at the new school in Peru. On May 25th they will be traveling to the KM 46 school to live in the village. This is a great opportunity for the children at the school to learn English from real teachers who speak the language. I have to give Sybil and Joe a lot of credit for wanting to live in the village. There are no bathrooms, showers or drinking water. We have offered them an allotment of $100 per week to buy drinking water, some packaged food and a cheap motel room in Iquitos to take a hot shower one night per week. They will also be writing a weekly Blog they can post on the Internet from Iquitos each week. These reports will be listed on the PAC Tour website starting June 1st. I am sure they will have many unique stories to share.

First Peru School Project

2008-05-05T19:54:00.000-07:00

Jack Wolff School Update
The Jack Wolff School was built in the Village of the Dolphins in 2004. This was our first major building project in Peru. I stopped to see the repairs we made during the past year. We installed electric lights, new doors, new desks and a fresh coat of paint for an overall cost of about $10,000. The school has continued to grow each year. Last November there were 15 teachers and 500 students. In April there are now 22 teachers and 700 students. The government has now recognized the Jack Wolff School as an important part of their community. They are helping fund and organize more improvements for the school. We should be proud this school is being well managed and maintained by the local people and teachers.

Cycling Clothing Donations

2008-05-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

Cycling Clothing Donations Useful
For the past three years PAC Tour riders have donated over 500 jerseys, shorts and pieces of equipment which have been sent to cycling clubs in Africa and Peru. Recently I was able to attend a bike race in Iquitos. There were four races for different age groups. I recognized an assortment of donated jerseys and shorts that we had sent. The riders are very grateful to receive the cycling clothing and parts.

On November 16th, 2008 the local clubs are organizing a 60 mile road race on the only paved road in the area. Over 100 racers are expected to attend. There will be police motorcycle escorts and a big finish line stage in the center of Iquitos. Each racer who finishes the event will have their choice of a donated cycling jersey we will bring to Peru. The national television station in Peru has already aired a story about the Americans coming to race in this event. This will be a fun event for them and the riders on our tour.

All these Peru Project are going well. The people of Peru want to send you a big thank for your donations of money and equipment to make these projects possible.

Lon in Peru April 2008

2008-04-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to give you some quick updates before I go to Peru tomorrow. I will be traveling all night and arriving Monday morning at sunrise in Lima. I have a bunch of things to check out in Lima concerning our tours in November. I will be meeting with our local guides who will help with our stay over in Lima before traveling into the jungle towns.

I will also be going to see the little girl Arasely at the Chosica Foster Home. It is Arasely's 9th birthday this week I we are going to arrange a party for her and 20 other girls at a restaurant with birthday cake and balloons. Arasely has been taking some extra English classes at a private school so I hope she can speak better English when I see her.

On Wednesday I will be flying into the jungle to Iquitos. I will be going to visit the School of the Dolphins we helped build four years ago. Vioricka said the new teachers and directors are working together better. The country of Spain has helped donate more money for school repairs. Since there are 500 kids there now they have expanded to morning, afternoon and night classes for different age groups.

I will also be scouting the progress of the new school at KM 46 which is 30 miles further into the jungle. The rainy season has slowed the work making cement but the construction continues everyday. Classes started April 15th. I will take lots of photos and find out how much working is needed to finish the school.

There are two college age teachers from Boston (Sybil and Joe) who will be going to teach English at the KM 46 school starting May 27. They will stay and live at the village for three months. I want to see the house and living conditions in the village. The village is very friendly and helpful to provide housing and food from the jungle for Sybil and Joe. However the village reminds me of being on the television show SURVIVOR. I am sure Sybil and Joe will have a some good stories from their stay in the jungle.

Concerning the tours for next November, I will have a lot more details ready when I return home in two weeks. I will start sending you updates about the tours and what to start planning for. If you need to reach me in Peru before May 1st you can contact me at... haldemanlon@yahoo.com

More updates later.

Lon

Happy Birthday Dad

2008-04-08T19:49:00.000-07:00

I received the following letter from my daughter Rebecca on my 50th birthday March 27, 2008. It was the best gift she could have sent.

My Dear Father,

I am writing to you to wish you a very happy birthday. On one hand, it
is like so many others that you have celebrated since your birth, but
on the other it has a certain greater significance that is forever
monumented on greeting cards, tee-shirts, bumper stickers. Over the
hill? Or not quite, maybe that is closer to 65. Whatever the case, you
have now reached the age that people seem to view as the halfway
point, a very important landmark on our timelines.

This causes me to pose the question of when this phenomonea came to be; when we began to view this particular number as so imposing and meaningful. It is especially puzzling to view it as the halfway mark between our birth
and death when considering that our average age tends to fall around
the 80-85 mark. Your genes might be the exception that you might have
only lived half of your life by now. Regardless, whether we celebrate
our halfway mark at 30 or 70, you have now another lifetime ahead of
you. Or perhaps just the same amount of lifetime that has laid ahead
of you during the rest of your life that you have previously lived.

Perhaps it is now the time when people begin to assess what is truly
important and what they would like to accomplish before their final
chapter, but I believe that every moment should be considered with
this assessment and we shouldn't have to wait until we are 50 to begin
tackling our goals. Maybe we just have to wait until we are 50 to have
the time for them.

The ratio of our ages, as father and daughter, are approaching every
year; at one point in time I was only one thirtith of your age, now I
am nearly half. We are exponentially approaching zero and will someday
reach that axis, but for now I sincerely wish you a happy birthday and
hope you give yourself a moment to reflect on your most joyful moments
of the past half-century, of the past half-lifetime, and that you
continue to live this joy for the remainder.

With exponential love,
Rebecca

New Peru Jungle School Almost Ready

2008-04-08T19:39:00.000-07:00

Translated letter from Vioricka Rodrigues who is the manager of the Peru school building project at KM 46 located 30 miles from Iquitos Peru.

April 6, 2008

Good morning LON,
Responding to your question of the school of the km. 46. I expect that the school will be ready for classes on the date April 15, that I told you. The climate here rains every day. I think that you are you going to come here to find the work at the school has advanced a lot with the construction of the school. It is possible that the school is not finished because of the rain. We will be prepared for all and adapt to the circumstances. The children go for the classes therefore it is expected that the school have the roof and we begin with the classes even that the school is not finished. The children will continue studying in a space that was arranged for the classes. We be able to continue with the construction and working at the school without interrupting the studies of the children.

For the moment we have 110 children that are going to continue in the school. They are very poor and they do not have school equipment. The children come from very humble families that do not have notebook neither pencils. They write with the leaves of the banana for their pencil. I think that your friends admired themselves a lot for how they help the education in very poor zones. The children do not have anything but the school will begin a new history. Lon it is good if you bring more equipment for the children of the km. 46 school. I think that that will be a good surprise for the children of the school in the forest. They are going to be very happy when they return to its houses. They are going to show their parents all the pretty thing that the school gives them for their classes.

Sincerely,
Vioricka

I (Lon) will be going to Peru next week to check the progress at the KM 46 school. I will be transporting as many school supplies as possible in my luggage. There is a school supply store located in the city of Iquitos located 30 miles from the new school. I hope to buy more supplies there and try to get the school up and running before I return home April 29th. I will post more updates when I return home.

END

Do You Want to Teach School in Peru?

2008-02-10T17:12:00.001-08:00

Do You Want to be a Teacher in Peru?

Note from Lon:
The following letter was written by Vioricka Rodriguez from Peru to two young school teachers from the United States. They want to help teach English at the new school that PAC Tour is buildings in the jungle. These teachers are volunteering three months of their time to travel into the jungle and work at the new school.

February 6th, 2008

Good morning,
I understand your are restlessness to want to know of the conditions that will be in the KM 46 Village. The village is 30 miles from the big city of Iquitos at KM 46 and that is the name of the school. The main highway passes two miles from the village. You must walk one hour in the jungle from the bus to the village. There is no electricity in the village. There is no drinkable water for the people there. The village takes the water from the rain when the water runs in the gorges and collects in the puddles. I think there are three options for you to drink the water. #1 if you bring your tablets that are put in the water to treat water. #2 to boil the water on the fire before you drink it. #3 to buy bottled water to take to the village for your drinking and cooking.

Now I tell you the status of the foods in the village. You do not have to buy all your own foods. You can eat the food which grow at the village in KM 46. There is banana, yucca, and some fruits of the region. For meat there is guinea pig, frogs and lizards. Do you like to eat the GUINEA PIG? The people keep the guinea pigs under their houses as pets and the meat is similar to a small rabbit.

For your house to live there is a big round house. It is the house for the community and is made of wood and rustic materials with a thatched roof. You can live in the hut and have privacy there. It is possible to be comfortable there and make a simple wood bed with materials of the forest. You do not have to worry about the cost for the house because it is part of the aid we give to you.

I tell you about the pay from the government. They do not have a budget to give you a contract to teach in the school. The reason is the diminishing contracts of teachers in Peru without a budget from the government. Maybe something will change in the 2009 season. This year the four teachers for the government receive $200 each month. The village do not have money to pay more teachers. Maybe it is possible to ask Lon for a small amount of money for you to buy bottled water for drinking and some basic groceries from the city for eating.

You must take caution against the mosquitoes and spiders. There are many mosquitoes that carry the Malaria and Yellow Fever disease. The long legged spiders are poisonous and the bites can cause red bumps on your skin. It is important you use the repellant. In the night you can use the kerosene lamps and the smoke will keep the mosquitoes away. The snakes are most active in the afternoon and you should be careful about walking in the jungle during those hours.

I tell you how the people of the village live every day. They depart the village very early in their morning and go to their small farms in the jungle to cultivate the seeds for their bananas and yuccas. Sometimes they hunt animals to sell them for food. Sometimes also they are going to catch the fish. They are dedicated to cut the trees to remove wood and to sell wood. There are about 30 families that live in the village. I estimate there are a total of 50 more families and 400 people who live outside the village in the jungle. Total there will be about 200 children who will attend the school.

The language they speak is not their original Indian language from the jungle. Their historic language is forgotten and now they speak Spanish. The majority do not know how to read or write. The parents of families and children never have gone to school. To have teachers and a school in their village is an amazing opportunity for them. They can learn to read and write their names. The adults and children will have a better future and make something better for their lives.

Sincerely,
Miss Vioricka

Note from Lon: The village worked to clear the land and dig the foundation in December and January. The school building is in progress during February. The plan is to have the building completed in time for the new school season in April.

If you would like to learn more about the new school project please see the PAC Tour website listed as “New 2008 Projects in Peru”.

Tax deductible donations can be made to:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

END

Peru Tours 2008 Description

2008-02-07T17:37:00.000-08:00

See photos from these areas on the PAC Tour
website listed under Peru Tours 2008...after March 1st

Daily Schedule Across Peru

Introduction to Peru Tours 2008

We are excited to offer three unique tours in Peru for 2008. These tours will give the serious PAC Tour cyclist a good challenge while providing enough time to participate in the local culture. Lon began traveling these routes by mountain bike in 2002 and was impressed with the cycling potential of these roads. Since then the roads have been under construction and are now ready for road bikes. Lon and Susan rode the route over the Andes Mountains in 2006 on their Bike Friday Folding Bikes and enjoyed the climbs and towns along the way. It is important to mention that PAC Tour is the only touring company offering tours to these remote regions. You will be traveling to areas not usually visited by tourists. We will be traveling with local guides meeting many new people along the route.

This is our 10th year traveling in Peru. Although traveling in Peru is unique, it is helpful to understand how to be safe and comfortable. To help you prepare, we have 20 pages of hints and suggestions to get you ready that will be sent to you by e-mail during the months before your tour.

There are three tours this year. They are scheduled to be separate tours or joined together to add additional adventures in Peru.

Tour #1
Cycling Over the Andes
November 1-10
$1,350 single room $225 additional

Tour # 2
Amazon River Boat Adventure
November 8-15
$1,150 single room $150 additional...not possible on boat

Tour #3
Road Race Across the Jungle
November 12-18
$950 single room $150 additional

Save $250 for each additional tour your join.

Tour #1 and #2 together cost $2,250...a savings of $250

Tours #2 and #3 together cost $1,850...a savings of $250

All three tours together cost $2,950...a savings of $500

What is included;
Tours include airlines and taxes in Peru, airport shuttles, hotels (some nights are single or double occupancy), breakfast, evening dinners, snacks during three rest stops per day, transportation in Peru by bus, van, boat, and moto taxi, guide fees and commemorative travel shirt or T-shirt.

What Is Not Included
Airlines to and from Peru (Lima). Extra airline baggage fees for bikes on Peru flights ($2.00 per pound over 50 lbs.) Long term luggage storage at the Lima Airport of $5.00 per day per bag. $10 per day for bicycle cases. There is an extra fee for transportation of hard shell bike cases of $100 during the tours. Extra roadside snacks, lunches and souvenirs are on your own.

What Kind of Bicycle to Bring
All three tours are for road style bikes. Tour #1 has some steep mountain climbs similar to the Rocky Mountains with 7% grades. Tires should be 23-25 mm wide and suitable for pavement but short patches of gravel road construction are to be expected. Riders should bring at least one foldable tire that fits in their gear bag and three spare inner tubes, frame fit tire pump, and basic bike tools to assemble their bicycle from the airlines.

Bike Cases and Storage
During Tour #1 and Tour #2 full size bike cases will need to shipped by truck to our final hotel. This cost is an extra $100 per bike case. Riders can avoid this cost with the following solutions: Bring a Co-Motion style take apart bike with S N S Couplers and use the smaller bike case as your gear bag, or bring a Bike Friday folding bike and use the suitcase as your gear bag, or bring a bike in a cardboard box and throw the box away during the tour and then rebox your bike at the final hotel., or bring an old racing bike in a cardboard box and give your bike away at the end of the tour to a local racer. During Tour #3 it is fine to arrive in Iquitos with a hard shell bike case and keep the case in your hotel room until the tour is over.

Non Cycling Option
Tours # 2 and #3 are suitable for noncyclists who want to travel in Peru. Noncyclists can travel in our support van and will have time to stop and visit sites along the way. These tours will also include some visits to villages to deliver supplies that will be available to all tour members. Tour #1 is not well suited to noncyclists because each day will include six to eight hours of cycling and limited space in our support vehicle for sightseeing.

Tour #1

Cycling Across the Andes
Saturday, November 1 to Monday, November 10

Day 1
Travel to Peru and Arrival in Lima
We will spend one night in Lima as the group arrives on various flights during the night. Local guides will meet our group and help transport us to our hotel in Lima. All flights must arrive before midnight Saturday night, November 1. If Saturday flights are not available then participants can arrive on Friday, October 31 and stay in Lima for an additional hotel and transport fee of $75.

Day 2
Sunday morning we will have time for a Lima city tour to the historic area of the city. Our flight to Piura will depart in the afternoon. It is a 90 minute flight north to Piura. When we arrive in Piura we will stay at a resort hotel on the outskirts of town. After we assemble our bicycles we have the choice of several restaurants in downtown Piura for an evening dinner together.

Day 3
Piura to Chulucanas...38.0 miles
Today is when we begin the cycling section of our tour. Piura is located in the coastal desert region of Peru which rarely sees rain from March to December. The local translation of Piura means “The city of eternal heat”. Breakfast will be at the hotel this morning. We will be able to start riding in the cooler morning hours. The route today is a good warm up ride into the rural area east of Piura. The road is well paved with a rideable shoulder. Most of the terrain is dry and sandy and the temperatures will be in the 90’s by noon. The town of Chulucanas is located six miles off the main highway on a dead-end type mining road. There will be time this afternoon to walk through the rustic market area and see the traditional lifestyle of the working people.

Day 4
Chulucanas to Olmas...77.5 miles
The dry terrain continues again today. Scrubby trees line the road and the temperatures will be in the 90’s again. The landscape resembles a dry African movie scene and you expect to see giraffes or zebras on the horizon. However the only animals you will see are horse drawn carts carrying 50 gallon barrels of water. This is the only way the rural farms get their water from a common well. There are a couple rolling climbs but nothing too serious. The town of Olmas has an interesting downtown area where many local people meet after dark.

Day 5
Olmos to Pucara...77.5 miles
The first half of today is uphill gaining almost 5,000 feet during 30 miles. The climb continues through many hillside villages that sell refreshments of bottled water and soda. There are many impressive overlooks above the valleys. The road twists and turns while climbing 7% grades up the side of the mountain. Occasionally you can see a glimpse of the road high above you and you wonder how you are ever going to get up there. This is toughest climb of the tour similar to a long mountain pass in Colorado. The summit is at mile 33.0 and the rest of the day is a steady 3% downhill. There are 20 miles of flooded rice fields built into the terraced valley. The town of Pucara is an small working class village with an okay hotel and restaurants.

Day 6
Pucara to Bagua Grande...70.0 miles
The gradual downhill continues for the first 50 miles by dropping from 2,700’ elevation to 1,300’. The climate becomes drier and hotter the lower we drop into the river valley between the mountains. The irrigated areas still grow rice but the rest of the area is arid and rocky. The road is still in good condition for road bike tires. Bagua Grande is a bigger town with many repair shops and stores without frills.

Day 7
Bagua Grande to Pedro Ruiz...41.5 miles
Today begins a gradual climb along the river. There is more vegetation along the steep cliffs and mountains. Landslides and patches of road damage are common today. This section of road is in constant repair but should still be rideable with a road bike. There are several bridges and small towns to visit and get snacks every 6-10 kilometers. This is a short mileage day but it will still be a five hour bike ride including lunch at a roadside cafe.

Day 8
Pedro Ruiz to Nuevo Cajamarca...97.0 miles
This could be the toughest overall day with several 3,000 foot climbs and descents. There are two passes on this road above 7,400 feet. On the other side the rain forest begins and the dry landscape changes to misty wet clouds. The vegetation is more dense as the jungle is closer to the road. Bring a raincoat and leg warmers because it could be chilly at 7,000’ feet elevation in the rain. Small towns are common again today so it is easy to find snacks, soda or a cup of hot tea.

Day 9
Nuevo Cajamarca to Tarapoto...101. miles
We drop down to 2,700’ elevation most of today through a large valley growing sugarcane and other jungle crops. The road pavement continues to be smooth and excellent with many other local cyclists riding one speed bikes between villages. Roadside venders have displays of bananas, pineapples and coconuts. You have arrived in the dense green jungle which is different from any of the mountain terrain so far. Leaving the town of Moyobamba at mile 30 we are following the Rio Mayo (river) but our road climbs up the bluffs and then returns to the river several times. There are a few steep climbs but today is mostly stair step downhill dropping almost 2,000 feet to Tarapoto. The road surface continues to be excellent without much road damage. The city of Tarapoto has a population of 50,000 people and a modern airport. Today is when the new group of riders will join the tour for Part #2.

Day 10
Riders from Tour #1 fly back to Lima in the afternoon and return to the United States on flights in the night.

Begin Tour #2

Amazon Riverboat Tour to the Iquitos School
November 8-15

Day 1
Saturday, November 8
Fly to Lima, Peru from the United States...most flights arrive in the night.

Day 2
Sunday, November 9
A local guide will meet you and and take you on a tour across Lima.You will see landmarks of the historic city by going on a shopping mission to buy school books for the jungle schools. You will box and bundle the books and prepare them for delivery from the riverboat. In the late afternoon we will fly one hour into the jungle to the town of Tarapoto. At the Tarapoto Hotel we will meet the cycling group coming from Piura on Tour #1. We will assemble bicycles for the next day and have a nice group dinner that evening.

Day 3
Monday, November 10
Today we ride 85 miles to Yurimaguas. The first 35 miles are over the mountains to the jungle town of Poco Caynarachi. Along the way we will visit the waterfalls and villages selling fossils. The final 50 miles are through the low jungle on a good paved road to Yurimaguas. In Yurimaguas we will visit the boat we are riding tomorrow and buy the necessary supplies for the boat tour.

Day 4
Tuesday, November 11
Tour the fish markets of Yurimaguas in the morning. Buy supplies for the riverboat trip. The boats usually depart at sundown. The sunsets are beautiful on the river and we will spend much of the first hours fascinated by watching the silhouetted trees along the riverbanks. We will probably have late dinner after the rest of the boat passengers have eaten. Most of the passengers are getting ready for bed at 10:00 PM and we need to decide if we are sleeping in the cabins or outside on the hammocks and mats. The boat is traveling at about 15 mph so there is a strong breeze blowing through the boat. The night air is cool compared to the jungle afternoon. A jacket or sweatshirt is needed when sitting outside on the deck at night. That is why blankets are needed when sleeping in the hammocks.

Day 5
Wednesday, November 12
The boat usually travels nonstop the first twelve hours before stopping to deliver supplies at riverbank villages and pick-up more bananas. During our full day on the boat we will take a small motorboat to visit schools along the riverbank. We will have 20-20 minutes to walk into the villages to deliver school books before catching up to the big boat again. Tonight we sleep on the riverboat again.

Day 6
Thursday, November 13
At sunrise the cyclists get off the boat in Nauta and ride 60 mile on pavement to Iquitos. Non cycling people stay on the riverboat and get off at noon in Iquitos. People joining for Tour #3 will arrive in Iquitos this afternoon. Everyone meets in Iquitos for dinner. We will sleep in a nice Iquitos Hotel downtown and enjoy the comforts of air conditioning, hot showers and television.

Day 7
Friday, November 14
Tour Iquitos and visit the Jack Wolff School . This is the school PAC Tour helped build in 2004. It has grown from 200 to 500 kids in the past five years. We will ride our bikes 15 miles to the school. The school kids want to make a ceremony for our group with dancing and singing. There is an option to add 20-80 more miles on the route we will be racing from Nauta on Sunday. At night we will organize a birthday party for 40 kids who live on the street. We will pass out invitations to a secret restaurant for a dinner of chicken, rice and birthday cake. This has become a tradition during our tours to Iquitos and one of the most memorable nights of the trip.

Day 8
Saturday, November 15
People from Tour #2 and not staying for Tour #3 will fly back to Lima this morning and then to the United States at night.

Tour 3
Race Across the Jungle
November 12-18

Day 1,
Wednesday, November 12
Travel to Peru and Arrival in Lima
We will spend one night in Lima as the group arrives on various flights during the night. Local guides will meet our group and help transport us to our hotel in Lima. All flights must arrive before midnight Wednesday night, November 12. If Wednesday flights are not available then participants can arrive on Tuesday, November 11 and stay in Lima for an additional hotel and transport fee of $75.

Day 2
Thursday, November 13
Thursday morning we will have time for a Lima city tour to the historic area of the city. Our flight to Iquitos will depart in the afternoon. It is a two hour flight northeast to Iquitos. You will meet the riders arriving from Tour #2. After you assemble your bicycles we have the choice of several restaurants downtown for an evening dinner together.

Day 3
Friday, November 14
You will have a chance to road test your bicycle today and visit the Jack Wolff School . This is the school PAC Tour helped build in 2004. It has grown from 200 to 500 kids in the past five years. We will ride our bikes 15 miles to the rural school. The school kids want to make a ceremony for our group with dancing and singing. There is an option to add 20-80 more miles on the route we will be racing from Nauta on Sunday. At night we will organize a birthday party for 40 kids who live on the street. We will pass out invitations to a secret restaurant for a dinner of chicken, rice and birthday cake. This has become a tradition during our tours to Iquitos and one of the most memorable nights of the trip.

Day 4
Saturday, November 15
Everyone will have time to relax before the bike race tomorrow. If you want to go on a bike ride we suggest a 20 mile tour of Iquitos on the city streets along the Nany River north of town. In the afternoon we will go on a jungle boat ride the Bora Indian Village and exotic animal tour. Saturday night in Iquitos is very lively with lots of street performer and worth a walk downtown 2 blocks from our hotel to see the activities.

Day 5
Sunday, November 16
Today is the Bike Race from Nauta to Iquitos. At 7:00 AM we will travel by bus 65 miles to the town on Nauta. The bike race will begin at 10:00 AM. If you would like to ride your bike to Nauta and make a 200 kilometer round trip ride you should depart Iquitos at sunrise about 5:30 AM. The race from Nauta will be on one straight road with a few rolling climbs. Most of the hills are 3% grades and can be ridden on the big chain ring. Several hundred riders are expected to join the race. They will be competing for a $1,000 first place cash prize which is equivalent to three months wages. The finish line will be in downtown Iquitos. A celebration and awards ceremony are planned with local music and dancing.

Day 6
Monday, November 17
We have an optional cycling day to the new school located 55 kilometers from our hotel. You can either ride your bicycle or take the bus. There is a two mile hike into the jungle to reach the village of New Triumph where the school is located. We will take part in the ceremonies and dedication of the new school building that PAC Tour helped build during 2008. These ceremonies are always a lot of fun and a good example of local festivities.

Day 7
Tuesday, November 18
Fly back to Lima in the morning or mid afternoon. Nights Flights back to the United States.

End

Peru Tour Schedule 2008

2008-02-07T17:22:00.000-08:00

Here are the dates for the three different Peru
tours we will have in Novmber 2008.

Daily Tour Schedule Across Peru

Tour #1
Cycling Over the Andes

Entry fee $1,350
Single hotel room $225 additional

Day 1 Sat. Nov. 1 New members fly USA to Lima
...sleep in Lima

Day 2 Sun. Nov. 2 Fly Lima to Piura in the afternoon

Day 3 Mon. Nov. 3 Piura - Chulucanas 38.0 Miles

Day 4 Tue. Nov. 4 Culucanas - Olmas 77.5miles

Day 5 Wed. Nov. 5 Olmos - Pucara 77.5 miles

Day 6 Thur. Nov. 6 Pucara - Bagua Grande 70.0 miles

Day 7 Fri. Nov. 7 Bagura - Pedro Ruiz 41.5 miles

Day 8 Sat. Nov. 8 Pedro - Nuevo Cajamarca 97 miles

Day 9 Sun. Nov. 9 Cajamarca - Tarapoto 101 miles

Day 10 Mon. Nov. 10 Fly on airplane to Lima in morning
...return to USA at night

Tour #2
Amazon Riverboat Adventure

Entry fee $1,150.00
Single hotel room $150 additional
...not possible on the boat

Save $250 discount if combined wth week #1

Day 1 Sat. Nov. 8 New members fly USA to Lima
...sleep in Lima

Day 2 Sun. Nov. 9 New members fly Lima to Tarapoto
and join Tour #1 group

Day 3 Mon. Nov. 10 Bicycle Tarapoto to Yurimaguas...85.0 miles

Day 4 Tues. Nov. 11 Begin Boat tour in afternoon
...sleep on Amazon boat

Day 5 Wed. Nov. 12 Ride Boat...sleep on Amazon boat
...deliver school books to six remote schools along the river

Day 6 Thur. Nov. 13 Get off the boat
...Bicycle 65 miles from Nauta to Iquitos

Day 7 Fri. Nov. 14 Day trips near Iquitos
...Visit Jack Wolff school
....optional 60 mile bike ride...sleep in Iquitos hotel
...organize birthday party of 40 kids who live on the streets

Day 8 Sat. Nov. 15 Fly on airplane to Lima in morning
...return to USA at night

Tour #3
Race Across the Jungle

Entry fee $950
Single hotel room $150 additional
Save $250 if combined with Week #2

Day 1 Wed. Nov. 12 New members fly USA to Lima
...sleep in Lima

Day 2 Thur. Nov. 13 New members fly Lima
to Iquitos in the afternoon...join tour group #2

Day 3 Fri. Nov. 14 Visit Jack Wolff school
....optional 60 mile bike ride

Day 4 Sat. Nov. 15 Visit Iquitos
...Bora Indian Village Tour

Day 5 Sun. Nov. 16 Bike Race Nauta to Iquitos 62 miles

Day 6 Mon. Nov. 17 Visit new KM 46 school ceremonies

Day 7 Tues. Nov 18 Fly on airplane to Lima in morning
...return to USA at night

END

School Building Updates from Peru

2008-01-15T07:44:00.000-08:00

The following are some updates from Vioricka Rodriguez who lives in Iquitos, Peru. Vioricka is managing the the construction of the new school in the jungle 30 miles outside Iquitos. More updates will be posted in the next several months as the school buiding nears completion.

December 20, 2007
Good morning Lon,
I understand that is possible to make the school of the children at KM 46. It is a great blessing to give them hope of a better future. We here to make this a reality and make possible for all those children who never went to the school. They do not know to read nor to write. Now they have the opportunity to learn and to go to the school to give them hope them of a future.

Vioricka Rodriques, Iquitos Peru

January 2, 2008,
Hello Lon,
Good I understand Lon, that we want the same thing in helping the children of the village of “New Triumph” located at KM 46. Thanks to your friends that we can do a pretty school. I am working a lot with the documents for the new school. My dad is also helping me now.

The $10,000 dollars you send in December is for buying the materials. I am seeking and selecting the better prices for the purchases of the materials. The parents of family of the village “New Triumph” are enthusiastic so much. They are thinking they are blessed so their children can go to the school this year.

In the future I will send the photos so that you can show your friends. I am measuring the costs with the money. I will take the photos and I send them to you so that see. I understand that want to come to see the school in April. This is good for that then we will celebrate the inauguration of the school with his visit.

Vioricka Rodriques, Iquitos Peru

January 15, 2008
Hello Lon,
I return from the km. 46 village. I was organizing with my papa the works. I caught a bad cold by the constant rains that are in the jungle now. There is much mud to walk 2 miles to the village. This week my papa work at the school location without me until I recover . We are working busy to finish to level the land. You recall that the land has many tree stumps. Therefore we are trying to prepare the land to be able to begin with the construction. We do not finish fixing the land yet but the work goes very well. If you have some question, I am here to answer you all your questions.

ATT: VIORICKA

END

New School in the Jungle

2008-01-08T07:52:00.000-08:00

History of Past Projects
In 2004 PAC Tour in association with the Christ Lutheran Church of Sharon, Wisconsin began building a school near Iquitos Peru. This school in the Village of the Dolphins was named in honor of PAC Tour rider Jack Wolff. Jack had contributed much to the building of the school and died in a cycling accident a month before the school was completed.

The village of the Dolphins is nine kilometers outside the city limits of Iquitos in a very poor area. The village is thankful to have a school in their region. Jack Wolff School has continued to grow from 200 students to 500 students during the past four years.

The cost for the Jack Wolf School was about $30,000 for a seven room building. We bought desks, tables, chairs and other equipment for the school. The installation of electric was an extra $5,000 to allow the school expand to night classes. In 2006 a building addition with bathrooms, sewer and septic was donated by the country of Spain for a cost of an additional $50,000. The bathrooms cost more than the school but the country of Spain had a bigger budget than we did.

Planning a New School
In November 2007 our PAC Tour group returned to Iquitos. We visited the Jack Wolff School and participated in the dedication of the new lights and electric. The next day we drove by taxi 30 miles out into the jungle region. We went to an obscure roadside path at kilometer #46 from Iquitos. From there we hiked into the jungle another three kilometers to the Village of New Triumph. We were scouting the location for a new school to be build in this remote region.

We met with the village directors about what needed to be organized to build a new school. The directors had already gained approval from the government to have five teachers supplied to the village. The 70 parents at the village would donate the land and build the school. We hired an engineer for the cost of $500 to visit the site and make a plan for the type of building possible. The school would need to accommodate 200 students and have seven classrooms.

The engineer made plans to build a seven room school with bathrooms included. We wanted a total budget to include desks, chair, bookcases and everything the school needed to be operational. The total cost came to $55,000. The cost is higher than our original Jack Wolff School but the price is realistic considering it includes bathrooms plus the increased 20% cost of building materials since 2004 and the 20% decrease in the value of the dollar. We have some friends in Iquitos who would oversee the construction and keep the costs within the budget.

We evaluated the costs to build the new school and if this was a project we could commit to for the 2008 season. We had received some very generous donations toward the Peru Projects in the past three months. PAC Tour rider Brenda Pulley volunteered to contribute matching funding for the school. We had now collected $40,000 toward the New Triumph School at KM #46. We still had $5,000 in the account to continue our support of the Ann Marie Book Delivery Project and helping the orphanage projects we have supported in the past.

Construction Begins
In January 2008 we sent $10,000 to our friends in Iquitos to begin construction. The school is planning to be built in time for the next school season to begin in April. Our plan is to send the $40,000 we have collected for building materials as needed during the next three months. The school will be 75% finished but operational enough to be open for classes.

More Funding Needed
The final $15,000 we need to complete the school at New Triumph Village will be our fund raising goal for the 2008 season. Based on the generosity of PAC Tour riders in the past we hope the school will be totally completed before November 2008. We are planning another cycling group tour to Iquitos in November as part of the “Race Through the Jungle” 60 mile road race. We will stay in Iquitos several days and participate in the grand opening ceremonies of the New Triumph School. Details of this tour to Peru are covered on the PAC Tour web site.

If you would like to contribute to the completion of the New Triumph School you can make a Tax Deductible donation to:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

More updates will be added to this web site each month about the progress at the school. We thank everyone who has contributed to all the Peru Projects during the past five years.

If you would like to see an entertaining 35 minute DVD of these assorted projects across Peru please contact Lon Haldeman at....haldeman@pactour.com.

Peru Adventures 2007

2007-11-27T14:34:00.000-08:00

Peru Adventures 2007
by Lon Haldeman

Tonight at 2:00 AM the Huallaga River was as smooth as a farm pond. Our boat was 100 feet long but didn’t stir a ripple in our wake as we drifted with the current. A thick fog surrounded our boat so densely it was difficult to tell if we were moving. The halo of the full moon could be seen overhead. To either side was gray darkness. The river was over 200 meters wide here. Normally the silhouette of trees or kerosene lights of villages on the river bank would be visible. Tonight because of the fog the shore was black. The two pilots of the boat were keeping their path by following the fastest trail of debris made of floating tree limbs through the channel. Occasionally the pilots would turn on their powerful spotlight but the reflected glare was useless to see more than fifty feet ahead. I stood by the railing and threw an apple core off the left side of the boat and heard it splash in the water. I threw other piece off the right side and heard it ricochet off tree branches on the bank. We were darn close to that side of the river but I couldn’t see a thing.

I had made this boat trip from Yurimaguas to Iquitos, Peru six times before. It would be about 400 miles as the buzzard flies. In nautical miles the distance was over 500 miles as the river turned 180 degrees with huge bends looping back toward itself. The Huallaga River would merge into the Rio Maranon coming from Ecuador. Then merge again with the Ucayali River to form the mighty Amazon. All my other trips down the river were memorable with crystal clear nights and silhouettes of trees along the banks. Tonight was different and the two boat pilots were acting stressed out. There would be no way to stop a 100 foot boat with only fifty feet of visibility. One of the pilots waved a broom into the night as if he could see better by sweeping away the fog.

During past trips this boat would take about 36 hours to reach the village of Nauta and seven hours more to reach Iquitos. Since we were drifting down river with the current and no engine power I was wondering how much time we were adding to our journey. I stood near the front railing hoping to see something...anything. I don’t know how the pilots managed to keep our boat drifting in the deeper channel of the river. At 3:00 AM I went to bed. The usual purr of the engines was quite tonight. I had faith the pilots could keep us away from the bank. At 6:00 AM I woke with the first gloom of daylight. The fog was just as white as the night before. Two new pilots were at the wheel stressing out. As the sun got higher the fog turned into wispy patches that revealed clear sections of river. The pilots throttled up the engines as our propellers churned up the chocolate water of this muddy river. Our speed increased as we began passing the floating debris that had escorted us during the night.

We were now on the fifth day of our tour across Peru. The previous four days had also had their share of adventures. The first day mainly involved traveling to Peru and getting everyone to arrive in Lima before midnight. Our group of ten was made up of six people from the United States. Peggy and Veronica were long distance runners who came from Alaska. Susan was a 60 year old retired librarian from Berkeley, California. Terry was a race promoter from Colorado and Lothar was a genetic scientist from Maryland. One of our group was an eighteen year old young man named Cristhian Correa who came from Piura located in the north of Peru. I had met Christian six years ago during my tours across northern Peru and we stayed in contact over the years. This would be his first time away from home traveling across Peru by bicycle. Our tour director was Vioricka Rodriguez from the jungle city of Iquitos. She had traveled with our tours for the past five years and would arrange all the travel and hotel plans.

The other two members of our group were eight year old Aracely and her mother Nayda. I had met them three years ago and they had traveled with me last year. Aracely is a spunky and bright girl with a personality that radiates across the room. Her mother is unable to take care of her and Aracely lives in the Chosica Foster Home for Girls most of the year. Aracely’s mother and grandfather wanted Aracely to go home with me to the United States. The adoption and immigration laws will not allow her to leave Peru. Her outgoing attitude was infectious among our tour group and I am sure we all now consider Aracely our daughter in Peru.

Why Travel in Peru?
A theme of our tours would be “Not to do what tourists do”. We would see parts of the country not usually visited by tourists. Everyone was paying for their travel expenses as we made our way across the country. We run these tours as net cost and use any extra money for additional projects. We would meet and interact with as many local people as possible. Our mission would be to monitor and evaluate all the projects we started the past five years. So far an average of $10,000 to $15,000 per year has been raised to help these projects in Peru.

We all arrived in Lima and had a morning city tour of the Colonial old town. Lima has over 500 years of recent Spanish history not counting the previous 2,000 years of pre Inca ruins. That is a lot to cover during a three hour bus tour. A highlight of the tour is going through the church catacombs filled with racks of skulls and thigh bones.
Later that afternoon we flew to the jungle city of Tarapoto located 350 miles over the Andes Mountains on the rainy side of Peru. This is where we would start our bicycle ride to the boat docks where we could board an Amazon Riverboat heading to Iquitos. Our first cycling day would be 36 miles over the rough mountain road to the jungle settlement of Caynarachi. The reports about the condition of the road varied greatly during the months before our tour. Some people said the road was now paved and suitable for skinny tire racing bikes. Other reports said there were still patches of dirt. When we arrived in Tarapoto we learned that the road was closed for dynamite blasting during daylight hours and only open for restricted one-way travel at night.

The next day since we couldn’t begin cycling from Tarapoto, so we did a different tour and rode 15 miles uphill to the mountain village of Lamas for lunch. From our restaurant we could look at the city of Tarapoto almost 2,000 feet below. The return trip was a fast ride to our base hotel just in time for us to pack up and get ready to shuttle across the road construction to Caynarachi. We really wanted to cycle this section because the roadside waterfalls and twisty mountain road was very scenic in daylight. I had ridden it several times before on my mountain bike and knew it was a six hour ride on the dirt road.

Since the road was now closed we needed to load our bikes in rented quad cab pickup trucks and sit in line with 100 other vehicles waiting for the road to open at sundown. As the sun set a long line of trucks, buses and cars came toward us through the construction zone. We could tell the vehicles going our way were impatient since some of them had been waiting in line since mid afternoon. A chorus of honking horns blasted across the valley. When the police gave the okay for our line of traffic to proceed all forms of order were forgotten. The smaller vehicles jockeyed to pass slow moving trucks up the grade. Equally matched taxies raced side by side through the dirt hairpin turns. The clouds of dust in our headlights barely hid the brake lights of the vehicle in front of us as we all raced bumper to bumper up the mountain. I sat in the passenger seat well aware that the darkness hid the 500 foot drop-off into the canyon beside me. The road was in worse shape than reported with only 15 miles out of 36 miles being completed. It would have been a tough bike ride and impossible at night with the reckless traffic. We arrived in Caynarachi about 9:00 PM in time for dinner at a restaurant across the street from our cement block hotel with the bathroom down the hall. We slept in cot style beds draped in mosquito netting. Our basic accommodations made us appreciate our other hotels that had air conditioning or at least a fan in the room.

The next day we had about 48 miles remaining to reach the riverboat town of Yurimaguas. The mountains were behind us and the terrain changed to low hot jungle. We knew the remaining road was smooth and perfect black top. Since the road was still closed from Tarapoto during the daytime we had the highway today to ourselves. We had rest stops arranged every ten miles with our support car. Our seven riders drank a bottle each of Gatorade and Inca Cola every ten miles. Even with our leisurely pace we rolled into Yurimaguas at noon as the mid day temperature neared 100 degrees.

Getting on the Boat
The riverboats run on their own schedule depending on how much room for cargo they have remaining to fill below deck. There are usually several riverboats in port at various stages of loading. A big chalkboard is attached to the pilot house railing listing their expected departure time. Our goal today was to find a boat that was leaving tomorrow in late afternoon. I knew from past tours that the expected departure time could vary by 12 to 24 hours. One year we hurried to the docks to catch our boat that was supposed to leave that afternoon. Just as we arrived the boat pulled away from shore. Dejected we started looking for other options. A dock worker quickly explained that the boat that just left was yesterday’s boat. Our boat was still at the next dock getting loaded and would not be ready until tomorrow.

This year the Edwardo III boat was getting loaded and the sign said we would leave tomorrow at 2:00 PM. The boat still had five cabins available which we could share and store our gear. We would also hang our ten hammocks for lounging on deck. Our traveling conditions would be comfortable and we could use the boat’s kitchen for making some special food for our group. We had enough time to spend a day in Yurimaguas and go shopping in the bustling fish market. By the next afternoon we were ready to begin our riverboat trip to Iquitos. As expected the loading of cargo would delay our departure from 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM and then finally to 10:00 PM. In the quiet of the night our boat pulled away from the docks and into the main channel of the river. The expectation of finally getting in motion is only exceeded by the chance to eventually get off the boat in 36 hours.

Delivering School Books
Our schedule on the boat would be to deliver bundles of books to rural schools located along the banks of the Amazon River. This would be part of the Anne Marie McSweeney Book Delivery Project which was established to distribute books to rural schools in Peru. As we stopped to pick up bananas we had about ten minutes to locate the school and school teacher. We would make a gift of twenty books to the surprised teacher and then be back on our boat in a few minutes. Usually the teacher was very grateful to receive the books followed by questions of how we ever found their school. Most teachers acted as if they were condemned to a life of solitude in a jungle school. Receiving the books was a highlight for them but the satisfaction of supporting a jungle school who needed help was fun for us too.

During some of our book deliveries we took a small motorboat to shore so the big boat would not need to stop. Just before sundown the captain said we could take the small boat to shore while he went ahead three miles to the next village. After our delivery we could leapfrog ahead and meet him there. There were six of us with the small boat driver who went to the village of San Francisco to deliver the books. As we neared the river bank the motor of our boat sputtered to a stop and we had enough momentum to coast into the muddy shore. The six of us jumped off the bow of the boat as the driver continued to pull the rope to restart the outboard motor.

We hustled up the high riverbank and located the school next to the village soccer field. What we didn’t realize was our motorboat engine refused to start. With our weight out of the boat the driver began drifting away with the current as he frantically pulled the cord to start the motor. For the next ten minutes we continued to search for the school teacher and deliver the books. When we returned to the riverbank we could see our motorboat and driver floating down the river as a speck in the distance more than a half mile away.

After some fast talking with the local villagers they said we could take the trail through the jungle that would connect to the next village three miles away. We didn’t have any options, so we started off with a brisk jog through the corridor of sugar cane, corn fields and banana trees. Eight year old Aracely was with us and her mother Nayda. Vioricka was dressed in her stylish high heals which were not made for running. The path was separated from the river by 50 meters of dense jungle. Occasionally we would hear the motor of a boat on the river. Was that our little boat looking for us? By the time we hacked our way to the riverbank the motor noise would be far in the distance.

The sun was going down and our dilemma of being left in the jungle was becoming a concern. Nayda’s pace had slowed to a steady walk. We sent the two fastest members of our group ahead to try and catch the Edwardo III. It took us 45 minutes to reach the clearing of the next village. The Edwardo III had departed 20 minutes before. Our little motorboat wasn’t in view. One of the villagers had a dugout canoe with a putt-putt outboard motor he said we could take and chase the big boat. The only chance we had to catch Edwardo III was if they stopped again to pickup bananas at the next village. So we all loaded in the dugout canoe as the sides of the boat sank to a few inches above the waterline. We would be fine if no one leaned side to side. We started chasing down river going slightly faster than the speed of the current.

In the distance we could see the white hull of our big boat docked at another village. Could we catch them before they left again? I took off my lime green shirt and attached it to a pole in the canoe. I began waving it hoping Edwardo would recognize us. After five minutes we could tell they had seen us and were coming back toward us. Just as we met the big boat our small motorboat came from behind us with the engine working again. We were all able to get back on the big boat before darkness. That would be the last time we delivered books using the little boat.

Getting Off the Boat
Just as predicted we arrived at the village of Nauta in 36 hours at 10:00 in the morning. We could get off the boat here and ride our bikes on pavement the final 110 kilometers to Iquitos. Aracely and her mother would stay on the boat to Iquitos and help deliver our luggage to our hotel. It was nice to be back on our bikes again riding this newly paved road through the jungle. In past years this road had been ankle deep in sticky red clay. Riding a bike then was almost impossible after a recent rain. This paved section of road is surrounded by 400 miles of jungle in every direction without any connecting routes. For scale; a map of Peru shows a one inch red line for this 60 mile road without another road within ten inches or 600 miles.

The road is nearly desolate of vehicles except for the final ten miles into Iquitos. The lack of privately owned cars makes travel outside the city only possible by bus. Half way between Nauta and Iquitos is the roadside marker for Kilometer #46. Three miles off the road is the possible location for a new school in the village of Nuevo Triunfo (New Triumph). It looks like the middle of no where. There are dozens of families living here in the jungle without any schools within 25 miles. So far there are 80 children wanting to go to the new school.

Since this road has been paved there is now more interest in road race cycling in Iquitos. There are now three racing clubs in Iquitos organized as part of the local fire departments. Many of their riders do not have access to modern equipment and are using bikes pieced together from available parts. Our group was able to donate some of our extra clothing and equipment their developing riders. The past three years PAC Tour has been collecting used clothing and parts from tour riders to be donated to riders in Africa without equipment. The riders in Iquitos are the type of cyclists we should also help. When we returned home we sent them 30 jerseys, shorts, assorted shoes, saddles and other parts.

In Iquitos we attended a meeting with the club directors to plan a 65 mile bike race from Nauta to Iquitos. This race could be the biggest cycling event ever organized in the jungle of the Amazon. PAC Tour would like to offer a $1,000 first place prize which is equivalent to 3 months wages of most of the racers. This event would also be open to riders from around the world as a way to encourage cyclists to come to one of the most desolate regions on earth. The local bike clubs were excited by the idea of supporting the race. They have the cooperation of the municipalities to put together a first class event with police escorts, rest stops, live music and lots of local festivities. We will offer a choice of package deals for foreign riders which included several days of additional cycling and jungle tours near Iquitos.

Contact Lon at... haldeman@pactour.com

END

November Peru Projects

2007-11-27T14:31:00.000-08:00

Other Projects In Peru
During our three days in Iquitos, Peru we were busy organizing and managing several other projects related to the schools we are supporting there. The following is a recap of these projects.

Jack Wolff School of the Dolphins
We helped build the Jack Wolff School in Iquitos during 2004. This school has grown from 160 students to over 500 kids today. The original seven rooms have expanded to a second building with six more rooms. Our support this year was to provide $5,000 for installing electricity for lights and purchasing 50 more desks and chairs. With the new lights the teaching schedule can be expanded to include night classes. Everything seems to be in order at the school but their need for supplies and make repairs continues to be a problem. We had some good meetings with the directors to prioritize the needs at the school. We will be committed to help them in the future with intervals of $1,000 for projects such as new black boards, building repairs and school supplies.

Possible New School
There is a possibility for a new school located 46 kilometers from Iquitos on the main highway toward Nauta. Since this new highway was paved two years ago it is now possible to travel the 100 kilometers between Nauta and Iquitos in about two hours by bus. The new school location is in the village of Nuevo Triunfo which is 3 miles off the main road. The problem is the village is on a one lane dirt path which is only accessible by foot. For a new school all the building materials would need to be carried on the backs of a caravan of workers. There are about ten stream crossings on tree trunk bridges which would make transporting supplies by horseback difficult.

We met with the village directors and discussed the locations and style of school building they wanted to build. Before the plans progress too far we decided to hire a design engineer from Iquitos to visit the village and determine if the soil and foundation plans were suitable for a school. We paid the engineer $500 for this initial evaluation. If the engineer says a new building is possible the village and designer will make a budget for the construction considering the materials and extra work needed to transport supplies. A new school could cost about $20,000 for the basic building and another $5,000 for equipment and supplies. If everything goes as planned we should have a budget and enough information to decide if the village can begin construction before Christmas.

Party for Homeless Street Kids
A tradition during our last night in Iquitos is to have a birthday party for the kids who live on the streets of Iquitos. Some of the children are orphans and some of them stay in shared group rooms. Most of them live by begging food or offering to shine shoes for tourists near the main plaza. This year we walked the streets and give out 49 invitations to a secret restaurant which is serving a dinner of roast chicken, salad and fried bananas. We also serve birthday cake and have an outfit of new clothes for the kids. What is most amazing is how well behaved the kids are during dinner. Many of them have not had a full meal in days but they will sit and wait until everyone is served. Instead of eating all their dinner they always save half for tomorrow. The dinner party and clothes this year cost about $500. This is always one of the most satisfying projects for our group to be able to meet and share a meal with the kids.

Returning to Lima
When we departed Iquitos we flew back to Lima. New arrivals Patrick Hunt and Klaus Schrieber joined our group to continue for eight more days by bus to deliver supplies to the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage and Chosica Girls Home. Terry, Veronica, Peggy and Lothar returned to the United States. Eighteen year old Cristhian Correa returned to Piura, Peru after seeing his country in a new way.

Chosica Girls Home
Last year we began supporting a girls foster home in the town of Chosica. It is located on the western slopes of the Andes Mountains outside Lima. This is where eight year old Aracely lives. This year we visited the home and learned more about why the girls live there. The home is for girls ages 5 to 17 years old who have been abused or neglected. There are eighteen girls who live there now and are supported in part by the government and Catholic Church. Their living conditions are pretty basic and without frills. We had breakfast there one morning which consisted of powered milk flavored with cinnamon and a piece of hard bread. Most of their other meals are as plain.

We met the new director and his wife who live at the home. Since they took over last year they have cleaned the beds and head lice are no longer a problem for the girls. The director gave us a list of products they needed. They use lots of basic food items like bags of rice, sugar and pasta. They also needed cleaning supplies, laundry soap, shampoo and girls menstrual products. We also bought each of the girls a new change of clothes. All together we spent about $600 at the Chosica Girls Home.

The Puerto Ocopa Orphanage
We discovered this orphanage by accident in 2004 when we did a bicycle tour over the 16,000 foot Andes mountains and then continued another 200 miles into the jungle. The Puerto Ocopa Orphanage was at the end of the road without much contact from the outside world. During our tour we were very impressed with the one hundred kids at the orphanage and their needs for basic necessities. The next year we began to organize delivery trips to bring them food and clothes. This would be the fourth year we visited the orphanage to deliver products. Each year we have been able to bring larger quantities of bulk products such as rice, pasta and other cooking supplies. We brought them 100 more books for their library. This year we transported over 4,000 pounds of food and supplies which filled a small dump truck for a cost of $3,500.

During our visit we toured the sleeping areas for the boys and girls. The earthquake in August had destroyed some distant towns in Peru. The orphanage received minor damage to their 100 year old brick structure. The second floor rooms were unsafe and most of the bedrooms were moved to the first floor. Now the main sleeping rooms were jammed so tightly with beds there was barely enough room to walk between them. Most of the smaller kids were sharing beds. There are now 43 girls in 36 beds in one room. We could see they needed more bunk beds so we went 50 miles back to the town of Satipo to find a carpenter. We were able to order nine more good wooden bunk beds and eighteen mattresses for about $1,500. The members of our group were inspired by the visit to the orphanage. Patrick, Klaus and Susan each contributed several hundred dollars of their own money when they saw the needs of various projects which needed to be supported. One of the best parts of these tours are the personal contacts and connections that are developed between our group and the local people.

In the future we will continue to support the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage as part of the projects were are involved with in Peru. During our travels we were always finding more projects which could use help. We had to keep directing our focus to projects we could start and finish within our budget. It was always hard to say no to someone who needed help. We are reevaluating all the plans and projects in Peru for the upcoming year. We want to thank everyone for their support this past year for making all these projects possible.

TAX deductible donations for future
projects can be made to:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

Contact: Lon Haldeman
haldeman@pactour.com

Favorite Peru Movies

2007-10-16T16:52:00.000-07:00

“Why do you go to Peru?” I am often asked.

It is difficult to give a short answer. The more times I have been to Peru (12 so far) the more difficult it is to answer why. Each time I go to Peru the experiences change. Even the most routine and planned tours always have life changing situations I couldn’t anticipate.

I am not a big movie watcher. I can sit through two or three per year. I have seen a few that have inspired me and changed the way I look at Peru.

If you get a chance to rent these movies on DVD you will have some idea of my favorite landscapes of Peru. During our next tour we will be traveling through many of these type areas.

“Fritzcarraldo” 1982
Based on the exploitation of the Amazon region rubber plantations in the early 1900s. This film shows the contrast of cultures and values as one man seeks his fortune so he can bring the Italian Opera to the jungle. Most of the film follows the struggle of trying to transport a 100 foot boat up river through the land of head hunting Indian tribes. Filmed on location in Iquitos, Peru there are still many of the landmarks visible in the city. Great scenery and story but this three hour movie could have told the story in two hours. Enjoy the extra hour of footage as way to see some interesting jungle scenes.

“The Emerald Forest” 1985
This movie is ctually based near Brazil but the jungle theme is similar to Peru. The young son of a white construction developer is kidnapped and raised by a remote tribe of Indians. After ten years the father and son are reunited. The son shows his father the ways of the Indians and why their way of life is worth preserving in the jungle. Today these tribes no longer live in Peru but the film is a good documentation of Indian life that was common 50-100 years ago.

“Motorcycle Dairies” 2004
Based on the true dairies of Ernesto “Che” Guevaro in 1952 before he became Fidal Castro’s buddy. This is not a political film but is what changed young Ernesto to lead a revolution to help the poor people of South America. One of the best road trip movies of all time as Ernesto and his friend make an 8,000 mile loop around the tip of South America on a broken motorcycle. The plight of Peruvian miners in the arid Andes and the leper colonies on the Amazon River can still be seen today.

If you need to reach me in Peru be sure to write me at my YAHOO address not at the PAC Tour office.

Use this one....

pactourlon@yahoo.com

If I have time I will try to update this blog with some updates from Peru. If not I will be posting a series of stories when I return.

END

Peru Update #12

2007-10-11T16:57:00.000-07:00

The following are some random updates that have been sent to riders going on the Amazon Cycling Tour next week. I hope they give you some insight into the conditions and people we will meet along the way.

Update #12
Hotels on the Route

Our accommodations in Lima will be similar to a nice American Holiday Inn with bathtubs and plenty of hot water. We are staying in the Mira Flores district of Lima which is the upper class area. The outdoor restaurants are similar to the type you might see in Paris, France. The neighborhood is safe and it is interesting to walk in the big Kennedy Plaza near our hotel.

The hotels at Tarapoto, Yurimaguas and Iquitos will not have bathtubs, but they will have air conditioning and hot water showers. These towns are not as fancy as Mira Flores but they do have several nice churches and interesting sites to see. Iquitos was considered the Paris of the jungle in the year 1890 as the wealth oozed from the pockets of the rubber barons as freely as the rubber sap did from the trees.

At the end of our first cycling day we stay at the hotel at Caymarachi in the middle of the jungle . It is the most basic hotel of our tour with the bathrooms and showers down the hall. Most of the walls are concrete and the accommodations are crude. It will be hot there so cold water showers will feel good. The only thing good about this hotel is that it is the only place to stay for 40 miles in either direction.

When we arrive in Yurimaguas we will go shopping for a boat that is ready to depart. The Edwardo Boat Company has hot showers and fans in the cabins. We will try to travel on an Edwardo Boat if one is departing on our time schedule. We might need to buy electric fans if the cabins do not have fans. You have the option to buy a hammock or foam pad in Yurimaguas for sleeping on the deck. The boat cabins are made of sheet metal and too hot to stay in during the day. Our support crew member Nayda will be our cook on the boat. She can prepare custom meals for our group. We will all go shopping before we get on the boat and plan a menu of what we want to eat for two days.

Our hotel in Iquitos is owned by a cyclist who wants to be a good host for us. The rooms are clean with good air conditioners and we are within two blocks of downtown. We are in Iquitos for four nights so we will have a chance to try many restaurants in the area. A family I know has invited us for dinner at their home located in the dirt streets of a shanty neighborhood. I have eaten at their house often and the mother is a great cook. It will be a memorable dinner with plenty of food.

During our tour we will participate in many activities not usually open to gringo tourists. We will get to meet and hangout with many local people and see their lives outside of the usual tourist areas.

I am working out a schedule of who and where we will visit. Our group is very popular and we have more invitations to visit people than we have time. I think our days will be very full but I don’t want to overbook our time. I want to allow you enough flex time for you to spend more time at the areas that interest you.

More updates later.....

Peru Update #13

2007-10-11T16:56:00.000-07:00

The following are some random updates that have been sent to riders going on the Amazon Cycling Tour next week. I hope they give you some insight into the conditions and people we will meet along the way.

Update #13
Weird Things to Bring to Peru and Why

As you are getting your clothes and supplies packed for our Peru Tour, here are a few more items to consider bringing. Some of these items were suggested on your previous packing list.

_____ Ten feet of lightweight clothes line. Washing and drying clothes in Peru will need to be done whenever you can find a good water supply. Bring clothes that can be washed with shampoo in the shower and will dry quickly.

_____ Two plastic clothes hangers

_____ Six clothes pins

_____ Rubber sandals like TEVAS or flip flops for walking in dirty showers or bathrooms on the boat.

_____ Small flashlight when the electricity goes out in your room.

_____ Small 3 inch scrub brush for muddy shoes...brushes can be bought in the Peru market

_____ Light weight bike cable lock. You might need to lock your bike at roadside restaurants. I made good traveling cable lock from a 5 foot piece of plastic covered brake cable wire. To lock my bike I use a small luggage lock . Let me know if you need a cable lock and I can make you one and bring it to Peru for you. You should bring your own luggage type lock.

_____ Small favorite pillow. The pillows in Peru are similar to bags of flour and very firm and hurt your ears. Pack your pillow in a compression bag in your gearbag.

_____Small umbrella similar to the “Totes” style double folding kind. They cost about $9.00 at Walmart and are good for walking downtown in the rain when it is too hot to wear a rain coat.

_____ Should you bring water bottles, a Camelbak or neither? We will be buying bottles of water as our water source. Ice is scarce but we will buy enough to keep our drinks cool in the ice chests. We will also buy some bottles of soda and Gatorade. These bottles fit well in bicycle water bottle cages so you could carry these plastic bottles on your bike.

_____ Seat bag for your bicycle with enough room to carry a raincoat, inner tubes, simple bike tools and some room for packaged snacks.

Other optional things to buy in Peru. You can get by without them, but they are good souvenirs.

_____ Hammock for on the boat deck. They are nice place to sit during the day. Costs about $12.

_____ Colorful lightweight blanket for your hammock. Costs about $10

_____ Wool or Alpaca sweaters and blankets are available for sale when we return to Lima. It is better to buy these before your return flight home so you don’t need to carry them on the tour.

END

Peru Update #14

2007-10-11T16:53:00.000-07:00

The following are some random updates that have been sent to riders going on the Amazon Cycling Tour next week. I hope they give you some insight into the conditions and people we will meet along the way.

Update #14

We have about two weeks to go before our tour in Peru. There are a few more updates you will receive concerning specific arrival plans in Peru.

I received some bittersweet news from Berny Menendez who lives in Tarapoto. He will be one of our van drivers when we travel from Tarapoto to Yurimaguas through the jungle. Berny said the government has almost completed paving this 90 miles except for 3 miles near the mountain summit. This is good news for us since 87 miles is now fast and smooth pavement suitable for road tires. You should still bring tires suitable for the rough 3 miles of dirt or gravel. The sad news is that this desolate jungle route will now be open to big buses bringing people nonstop 600 miles from the coastal city of Piura. Maybe next year this 600 mile route would be a good road bike tour.

Our main crew will be made of three people. One of them is Vioricka Rodriequez who lives in the jungle city of Iquitos. She is studying to be an air traffic controller at the airport. She had to learn Portuguese to speak to Brazilian pilots. During the tour Vioricka is responsible for making hotel and airline reservations.

Another crew member is Nayda Carhuamarca. I met Nayda 3 years ago when she owned a restaurant in the jungle. Her restaurant is where the following story took place.

In 2005 when our bike tour stopped at Nayda’s restaurant for lunch our group had ordered chicken. The grandfather took a five foot metal spear and tried to catch and kill a chicken below the restaurant. After 20 minutes of not catching a chicken he returned to report they did not have chicken today. He asked if we wanted fish. We said that would be fine. He then went and got his fishing pole and went down to the river. After ten minutes he had caught several twelve inch fish of various types. Nayda cleaned and cooked the fish for us on her open pit wood stove. This was a typical lunch at a roadside restaurant in Peru. The meal was never very quick but it was always entertaining.

While we are waiting and eating at the restaurant we we entertained by a cheerful seven year old girl named Aracely. She was picking us oranges from the nearby trees and showing us all her jungle pets of cats, toads and baby chickens. Even though she didn’t speak English we had a good visit and she had her photo taken standing with our bicycles.

After our group had eaten and was ready to go, the grandfather and Nayda pulled me aside and asked if I could take Aracely with me to the United States. I was a little confused by their request, but they said they wanted a better life for Aracely. I told them I could not take Aracely with me but we should keep in touch and write letters in the future. Later I learned that Nayda needed to move to Lima to clean house for the cost of room and board. Aracely lived in a girls home nearby with 20 other girls who’s mothers worked cleaning houses too. During the next two years we stayed in contact and Nayda and Aracely traveled with me last year across Peru.

During our tour Nayda and Aracely will be traveling with us again. Nayda is a strong durable person who always wants to help. Don’t be surprised if she grabs your handbag or backpack so you don’t have to carry anything. She only wants to help and she wants to feel that she is carrying her weight during the tour.

Aracely is a hoot with a quick sense of humor. She is very outgoing with a spunky personality. Don’t be surprised if she want to hold your hand while you are walking or wants to sit on your lap and read you a story in Spanish. I think she will be very entertaining during our tour.

At times we will have some other helpers joining us along the way. We will usually eat together with the taxi drivers and other people who are with us for each day. I know an assortment of characters who we will meet. For example: Walter works at the boat docks in Yurimaguas. He doesn’t know we are coming but I bet he finds us and wants to be our personal escort for loading our bags and gear bags in our cabins. Then he will want us to come over to his house and see his family. He lives in a shanty house similar to a two car garage with three other families. The conditions are very basic by American standards but he is extremely proud of his house and will want us to visit.

I am sure we will be meeting more charactors and future friends on this tour.

I will be sending more updates next week.

END

#18 Peru Updates

2007-10-11T08:49:00.000-07:00

These are a series of updates sent to riders on the Peru Tours

#18 Peru Updates

Arriving at Lima Airport Customs
On the plane the flight attendant will give you a Declaration of Import Form asking what extra items you are bringing into the country. It is easy to answer the questions on this form. When you leave the airplane you will need to have your passport with you because your first stop is the customs check-in line.

Be sure to keep the little white piece of paper with the inspection form. Clip this white piece of paper inside your passport. You need it for the return trip. It will cost you $4 to get a new one if you lose it.

After you go through the line at customs you will wait for your baggage near the baggage claim carousel. Sometime this wait can be 30 to 45 minutes because they are checking bags coming off the plane with drug dogs. Your bike case will probably come through the back wall doorway and not be on the baggage carousel.

While you are waiting...this is a good time to exchange some money at the Money Exchange Booth near baggage claim. More details later.

Baggage Claim and Search
Get a rolling luggage cart at baggage claim and put our bike case and gear bag on the cart then go toward the crowds of people waiting outside.

Depart through an inspection gate. You will be asked to push a button to activate a random search alert. About 25% of passengers are stopped and asked to step over to the search area. If you are not stopped you will proceed out to the airport lobby area. If you are stopped and searched you will be asked to open your bags and bike case as the officials search your bag.

The officials are looking for drugs and new items not declared at customs. I was stopped and questioned once because I had several boxes of new inner tubes and bike tires. Package your cycling equipment in clear zip-lock bags. Your bicycle should look old with dusty tires, so the officials know you are not importing a new bike.

Meeting at the Airport
When you arrive at the Lima airport terminal lobby area there will be hundreds of local people waiting for their family members getting off the plane. You will feel like a Rock Star at the music awards. There will be a big fenced area and there will be crowds of people behind the fence.

Go toward the glass doors to go outside. Lon and Vioricka will be waiting for you near the glass doors outside on the sidewalk. There will be hundreds of taxi drivers pulling you toward their cars. Don’t go with them! We will find you since you will be hauling a bike case. We will meet you and walk outside the length of the terminal to the LEFT LUGGAGE area. You will leave your bike case there and take your gear bag to your hotel.

EMERGENCY PLAN.....print and carry this page with you

If you cannot find Lon or Vioricka or they can’t find you, we will meet at the INTERNET Cafe upstairs near the food court. The INTERNET area is at the far end of the terminal above the Domestic Flight Arrival area. At the INTERNET Cafe you can write Lon a message that you are at the airport. Lon will be sending you a similar message about where he is.

Use both these e-mail addresses for Lon

pactourlon@hotmail.com and pactourlon@yahoo.om

We have had problems in the past when riders flights were canceled and they changed planes to different airlines. Send Lon an e-mail about your change of plans if you can find a computer at your departing airport. Otherwise go to the INTERNET Cafe in Lima and we will find you.

You can use the Airport INTERNET Cafe for about $1.00 for 20 minutes. If you want to send a message home there will be a free computer to use at the hotel. Lima has lots of public Internet Cafes which cost about $1.00 per hour.

Peru Computer Hint
In Peru the keyboards are different. There in no @ symbol. You need to press

ALT key plus 64 to make the @ sign. Press ALT64

Changing Money
At the airport you can change American dollars for Peruvian Soles. The exchange rate is about 3.20 Soles per dollar. (3.40 is good, 3.10 is worse) There is a money changer booth near baggage claim or at the other end of the terminal near Domestic Departures. You should exchange about $100 to start the tour. There will be other exchange banks in Tarapoto and Yurimaguas and Iquitos. You can use American dollars in Lima if you want to buy large items and get a better exchange rate from the store.

Make sure you get small bills of 10 or 20 Soles. Most taxies and vendors do not have change for 100 soles bills. Also get at least 20 soles in coins for making change from street venders.

How Much Money to Bring
During the day if you want to buy soda or bottled water from street venders the cost is about 75 cents USA or 2.5 Peruvian soles per bottle. Lon normally spends $15 per day while cycling and buying bottled water and snacks in the hot jungle. During a week you could spend $100 on extra snacks. In the bigger towns there are many craft shops selling interesting souvenirs. Be sure to bring some extra money for gifts. You will have time to going shopping in the local markets.

Traveler’s Checks and Extra Cash
You can use Traveler’s Checks in the bigger cities but they are useless in the rural areas. Most rural venders keep a few coins in a cigar box as their personal bank and they have no use for Traveler’s Checks. I usually carry extra cash in a money belt or pill bottles stashed in various places in my luggage, backpack and with my bike tools.

Donations for Special Causes
If you have never traveled in Third World Countries before, be ready for a surprise when you tour Peru. You will see and meet many people that live in basic conditions that will break your heart. Although you might want to help everyone, you need to be careful to pick and choose who you help. During our tours I try to keep focused on the projects we came to Peru to support. We always find some new projects that need help and we try to see what we can do. You will probably find several projects of your own you want to support. Just be careful to pick and choose your special causes because you might give all your money away before you depart Lima.

END

Peru Update #17

2007-10-10T18:45:00.000-07:00

These are a few of the updates that have been sent to PAC Tour riders getting ready for the tour in Peru next week.

Update #17

Our Arrival Schedule
Originally I thought most people were going to arrive Sunday night, October 21. As is worked out everyone was able to arrive Saturday, October 20 or before sunrise Sunday, October 31. We will be able to start the tour earlier and have a chance to spend more time seeing Lima.

Arrival in Lima Hotel
When we arrive in Lima we will be staying at the Carmel Hotel in the Mira Flores District of Lima. It is about a 40-45 minute taxi drive from the airport. The address is:

Hotel Carmel
Atahualpa Street 152 - Miraflores
Lima 18 - Perú
Telephone (51-1) 241-8672
Fax (51-1) 241-8632
reservas@hotelcarmel.com.pe

They have a slide show on the INTERNET at:

http://www.hotelcarmel.com.pe/welcome.htm

The Hotel Carmel is our best hotel of the tour. Don’t be fooled that all Peru hotels are this nice. Our jungle hotels are much more basic.

Here is a rough schedule of our first 48 hours.

Vioricka and Cristhain arrive from Iquitos and Piura, Peru Saturday morning October 20.

Lothar and Terry arrive Saturday night, October 20

Susan, Peggy and Veronica arrive early Sunday, October 21 before sunrise.

Aracely and Nayda will arrive at our hotel at 1:00 PM Sunday, October 21

When you arrive at the airport your bicycle will be stored in “Left Luggage” until we retrieve it Monday before our flight to Tarapoto. Do not put anything in your bike case you will need at the hotel in Lima.

We all stay at the Carmel Hotel and can sleep late after a long night of travel. Breakfast is served at the hotel if you get up early. There are several good restaurants near the hotel if you want to get lunch in downtown Mira Flores.

Our tour will begin at 2:00 PM Sunday afternoon. We will take 2 or 3 taxies and go to the used book market in Lima. This market has several block of venders selling old text books, encyclopedias, novels plus a bunch of new paper back books. There we will buy an assortment of books to deliver to remote schools along the Amazon River during our boat tour. If you have room in your gear bag for a shoe box size stack of books, we can bundle these books for delivery. For example: 20 books the size of Reader’s Digest fit in one shoe box. We will buy as many bundles of books as we have room to carry without going over weight on the airlines. When we arrive in Tarapoto there is an office supply store where we can buy notebooks and pencils for the schools without having to ship them on the airplane.

After our shopping trip we will return to our hotel around 6:00 PM. We can clean up and be ready for dinner at 7:00 PM. There is a nice open air restaurant with great food located about 4 blocks from our hotel. I have several English speaking friends in Lima who will join us for dinner. This will give you a good chance to talk Peruvian politics and customs with the locals.

Lima City Tour
The next morning your Lima City Bus Tour begins from the hotel at 8:00 PM. There will be English and Spanish speaking guides since Nayda, Aracely and Cristhain will be with your group and they do not speak good English. Before you depart you will bring your one gear bag to the hotel lobby. You can take your backpack and camera with on the city tour. While you are on the tour Vioricka and I will transport your gear bag to the airport. Vioricka an I have seen the Lima Tour many times so we will move the luggage to the airport. At about noon your city tour will end and Nayda and Cristhain will arrange for you to take two taxies to the airport.

Lunch at the Airport
After we check our bikes and bags a good place to eat lunch is the food court at the airport. They have an assortment of restaurants that are fast and filling.

Flight to Tarapoto
We will fly to Tarapoto at 2:30 PM. When we arrive our friend Berny will take us to our hotel. We can check into our rooms and begin to assemble our bikes. I suggest we test ride our bikes before it gets dark at 6:30 PM.

Shopping for Snack Food
There is a great grocery store in Tarapoto that sells Gatorade, snacks and other items for our boat dinners. The grocery store in Tarapoto is really bad so we should stock up on items we want for our meals on the boat.

Getting on the Boat
We should get on the boat at sundown Thursday night, October 25. It is a 40 hour trip down river to Nauta so we should be getting off the boat at sunrise on Saturday, October 27. The book could depart earlier and travel faster and arrive at Nauta at 3:00 AM. If we get to Nauta earlier, we will need to wait until sunrise at 6:00 AM to start riding.

Arrival in Iquitos
When we depart the boat in the town of Nauta, we will ride 100 kilometers on pavement to Iquitos. Your gear bag and bike cases will stay on the boat to Iquitos and be delivered to our hotel downtown. The boat takes about 6 hours to reach Iquitos from Nauta. Nayda and Aracely and Vioricka’s brother will unload the gear bags from the boat. It will take us about 8 hours to ride our bikes to Iquitos including a visit to a possible school building project and eating lunch at the zoo. We will arrive at our hotel in late afternoon and have time to take a long shower and wash clothes after the boat trip. I expect we will e ready for dinner by 7:30 PM. The next several days in Iquitos are flexible. We have several different things to consider. We can discuss this schedule when we are on the boat and after we arrive in Iquitos.

Please use both these e-mail for me when I am traveling in Peru starting October 15th.

pactourlon@hotmail.com and pactourlon@yahoo.com

DO NOT use my normal address please.

END

Peru Update #16

2007-10-10T18:41:00.000-07:00

These are a few of the weekly updates that have been sent to PAC Tour riders getting ready for the tours in Peru.

#16 Peru Update

Odometers and Distances
Our laminated route cards will be listed in miles. Peru uses kilometers on their sign posts. On our tour there is usually only one road, so navigation is easy. The route cards are handy to know where our next roadside fruit stands or rest stops are located. If you bike has an odometer it should be set in miles.

Rest Stops and Support
Originally PAC Tour was going to provide breakfast, lunch and dinner and the riders were going to provide their own snacks during during the day. Since our group is fairly small I expect we will be together most of the time. Our support van will be able to provide a place for snacks and beverages. There will still be plenty of locations for riders to buy snacks along the road between rest stops. When we get on the boat we can plan a menu for our meals. If you want more snacks to nibble on in your cabin you can stockpile these supplies before we depart Yurimaguas. Salty food such as potato chips and fried banana chips are good to eat in the heat. On the boat I suggest you bring at east four liters of water for drinking and brushing teeth. There will be villages along the way to buy more snacks and drinks when the boat docks for five minutes to load bananas.

Pack In Only One Gear bag
When we load the trucks and taxies all your stuff has to fit in one gear bag. Make sure your backpacks, cameras and extra snacks all fit in your gear bag. Vioricka and Nayda will be transferring and moving these gear bags at the hotels. It is not fair to them to have to keep track of a ll your odds and ends. If you have a bike case, these cases will be moved in addition to your one gear bag. You may want to bring a small day pack for airline carry-on or when we go hiking in the jungle near Iquitos. You should always carry 2-3 bottles of fluid during your hikes. This day pack must still fit in your big gear bag while you are cycling.

Slow Down the Runs
A good precaution for traveling in Peru is to chew one Pepto-Bismal tablet each morning and evening. This is not an excuse for proper sanitation concerns but the Pepto-Bismal tablets will slow down your digestive problems to a manageable speed. The side effect is constipation, so be sure to drink plenty of fluids each day.
Start chewing your Pepto-Bismal tablets three days before you depart to Peru.

Side Note: We have had some tours where no one has been sick. We ate at restaurants, drank bottled water and washed our hands as often as possible. On a different tour the most sick rider was a strict vegetarian who would only eat raw foods. Eating salad that was washed in river water is not a good idea. You will probably stay healthier if you eat cooked food, packaged food and stay away from raw fresh food that you do not know how it was prepared. Peru has some delightful food made by roadside venders. It would be a shame to eat nothing but packaged Powerbars in Peru. I have never been sick from eating cooked food.

END

History of the Puerto Ocopa Orphange in Peru

2007-10-05T09:07:00.000-07:00

History of the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage

I will be going to Peru in two weeks delivering supplies to several desolate projects we are involved with there. One of these projects is the Orphanage in Puerto Ocopa which is located 300 miles east of over the Andes Mountains. It is a long three day taxi drive to arrive there while moving supplies of food and clothes.

The following article was written last March and gives some more history about this forgotten Orphanage in the jungle.

Franciscan Mission cares for needy Peruvian children
By Barbara J. Fraser
3/13/2007
Catholic News Service (www.catholicnews.com)

PUERTO OCOPA, Peru (CNS) – The morning mist still clings to the trees as more than a dozen girls line up on wooden pews in the chapel of an old Franciscan mission, and under the gaze of a statue of Jesus dressed in a white robe with bands of red, green and purple well-suited to the tropical climate of Peru's central jungle. Five Franciscan sisters care for nearly 100 children at the mission. Children arrive at the mission under different circumstances. Some come when they are newborns, while others are left at the mission because their families don't have enough food.

After prayer, songs, Communion and the kiss of peace, the children file into the cavernous dining room for a breakfast of oatmeal and bananas. They are joined by half a dozen older boys whose plates are heaped with rice in deference to their adolescent appetites. Amid a clatter of benches and a quick song of thanksgiving, the youngsters head downhill to the river to scour their tin plates and cups with fine, dark sand from the riverbank.

For nearly a century, the mission has taken in children from distant communities with exotic names such as Ucayali, Shanky, Jairikishi and Shevoja, who live half-hidden in the dense forest. Most are indigenous – mainly Ashaninka, with some Shipibos and members of other groups.

"They come speaking Ashaninka, and little by little they learn Spanish. And we learn Ashaninka," said Sister Nelida Vicente, superior at the mission. She and four other Franciscan nuns care for nearly 100 children during the school year. In January and February, the South American summer, most of the youngsters return home, but about 30 remain at the mission. "Sometimes we get newborns. The mother dies and they bring us the baby," she said.

The children stay through adolescence, attending grade school and high school in the tiny community of Puerto Ocopa, a river port reminiscent of an old Western movie set, but surrounded by lush jungle vegetation. A new vocational school offers courses in nursing, agriculture and animal husbandry, enabling youths to gain job skills without going to a distant town, a move that is often prohibitively expensive. Sister Nelida reminded the girls to change from skirts to shorts before picking up brooms and mops, then took time out to play a singing game with one of the mission's youngest residents.

By mid-February, she had already received 17 new children, and more were trickling in. This put the mission almost at capacity before the school year started March 1. "Some people bring us them because in their communities they don't have enough to feed them," she said. "A woman came this morning. It took her five days to get here."

Once a jumping-off point for Franciscan missionaries heading deeper into the Amazon, Puerto Ocopa is the end of the road in the rainy season. From there, boats crowded with people and goods head up and down the network of swift-flowing, chocolate-brown rivers that serve as highways in the Amazon.

Walter Mejia, 12, arrived at the home about six months ago after his mother died. "I like working in the garden best. I like being in nature," he said, although he hopes to grow up to be a doctor. The garden helps the mission stretch its meager budget. Sister Nelida said the children "plant it themselves and eat the bananas and cassava that they grow."

But food is a constant worry. Donations from a government nutrition program are insufficient. For 100 children, she calculated, she will need about five cases of evaporated milk per day at $30 a case. And that doesn't count other food, clothing and school supplies. There is barely enough for basics and nothing left over for frills.

For reasons of hygiene, she would like to upgrade the kitchen, a huge, brick room where food is prepared over an open fire. But she needs plywood and tile, and has no money. "If we had the materials, in 15 days the kitchen would be nice," she said. "If we get even tiny donations, we know how to stretch them."

The mission has a long history of welcoming people in need. Franciscans first arrived in the 1600s, but earthquakes destroyed the original buildings. Father Teodorico Castillo Corrales, 81, has worked at the mission for 50 years. He said the convent, which was rebuilt in 1918, is known as the "rescue mission" because the friars took in children "who were being traded or sold (into slavery), or who were condemned to death because they were suspected of witchcraft."

In 1947, another earthquake destroyed the buildings and flooded nearby towns. Ten years later, Father Castillo was sent to rebuild the mission. He also started agricultural programs to help the communities increase their income and improve their diet. But his plans were cut short by the eruption of political violence by the Shining Path, a Maoist insurgent group that had launched an armed uprising against the government in the 1980s.

"When the subversion came, everything came to an end," said Father Castillo, a tall, gray-haired, good-humored man whose vigorous gait belies his age. Members of the Shining Path abducted entire Ashaninka communities, indoctrinating young people into fighters and holding women in virtual slavery. Peru's Truth and Reconciliation Commission estimated that 10 percent of the Ashaninka people were killed during more than a decade of violence – a figure that constitutes genocide under international law. Most fled during those years, but Father Castillo stayed although the Shining Path threatened him and the military urged him to leave.

He took in refugees, and the mission's population swelled to about 1,000. On July 21, 1991, Shining Path members torched the wooden buildings in Puerto Ocopa, then headed toward the mission. Father Castillo watched from the second floor. "I thought my time had come," he said. But the subversives stopped at the foot of the stairs, talked among themselves, then slipped away into the woods, apparently aware that soldiers were pursuing them. Eventually the violence subsided, but that was followed by a cholera epidemic, measles and the problems that come with drug trafficking. Little has changed for the Ashaninka people, who still suffer from malnutrition and lack access to health care and education. But, Father Castillo said, "they know, from times past, that the mission will help them."

- - -
Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

END

Rebecca Cycling in Paris

2007-09-24T17:14:00.001-07:00

As many PAC Tour riders may know, our daughter Rebecca went to Paris, France for her Junior year in college. She has been attending the University of Minnesota the past two years. She was able to be accepted into an honors program that has classes in France. The following update is from Rebecca and details some of her recent cycling adventures in Paris.

Lon

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2007
Biking with Phillipe
by Rebecca Haldeman

Today after class at IES I met Phillipe in the Bois de Vincennes at the same place I had gone riding on Sunday. As I was waiting and looking around for him, I noticed how different the crowd was from Sunday. On Sunday, there had been many people on cruiser bikes, leisurely making a tour around the park. Today, after a pack of 30 cyclists passed me at 25 miles per hour, I knew the spirit would be much different. Phillipe was riding in another group and came by shortly after the big pack passed me and stopped to explain the rules of the route. He warned me many times to always be very aware of what's ahead, behind, and to either side of me, because you can never tell what to expect when riding fast in big groups. He said most of the people riding were good cyclists and wouldn't do anything too spontaneous, but every now and then there's an obstruction in the road or something unexpected happens and people crash. His speech scared me out of my wit's end and I wasn't sure that I wanted to ride any more that day, but shortly after we departed and started accelerating.

We joined a group of 20 or more cyclists and for the first 15 minutes, I was terrified. Every time I went around a corner I thought I was going to crash. Every time I had to pass someone I thought I was going to run into someone else. The speed of the group wasn't too fast, and while we were riding Phillipe tried to explain to me the concepts of drafting, of "warming up", of signaling turns, of cornering, etc. After perhaps 4 or 5 laps with the group, Phillipe said it was time to test my heart. Or something like that. He moved to the left of the group and started accelerating more and signaled for me to follow. We passed the group we were with and kept going. I think I remember seeing 37 or 38 kmh on my speedometer, which I was able to hold for about three laps. After that, I felt my legs started to object and didn't want to pedal any more, and no matter how hard I tried to keep up with Phillipe, he pulled away from me. I gave him a shout and he slowed down and we rode slower for a while. It makes sense that I maxed out at that speed, because I can remember riding with Jeannette on the Hub Women's rides and after a mile or two of 22 or 23 mph, I couldn't stay with her. Hopefully my speeds will improve, because in comparison to race standards, I don't think 23 mph is all that fast...

Phillipe and I rode at a more moderate pace for a while and he explained more things to me, recovery, diet, cross training, proper clothing, all things that I am sure I have heard a lot about in the past but I could only understand about 60% of what he was talking about. I kept saying yes to make him keep talking, but I think that maybe he took that for me actually understanding him because then he would move onto another subject. My head was swimming after a while from all of the French and all of the cycling-specific rules and training tips and on and on and on... I don't have a very good idea of how long we rode and how long he talked but in all, we did about three more cardiac exercises, all ending with me shouting "Phillipe!" as he started to get away from me.

I don't have a good idea of who Phillipe is, but he must be a rather well-known cyclist in the Paris area. He told me that he has been involved with cycling, triathlons, running, and athletics in general for quite some time. He knew many people who were riding today and many people knew him as well, which makes me think that maybe the Paris cycling community isn't as big as I thought, or feared. I was the only woman I saw riding today and one time as a group of faster riders overtook us, I heard a half-dozen voices speaking at once to Phillipe with laughing tones, and when I asked Phillipe what they had said, he just said, "What do you think? They're guys." He talked to me about how in France cycling is definitely a male-dominated sport (what isn't?) but welcomed me wholeheartedly. I asked him if he enjoyed helping debutante cyclists improve and he didn't give me a direct yes or no, but said that he found it good to give back to the sport as he has learned a lot over the years from his mistakes and likes sharing his experience with those who haven't acquired it yet.

After we finished at the Bois de Vincennes, he told me that something special was happening at La Cipale, so we rode down there, perhaps only 4 or 5 kilometers from the loop we had been riding. When we arrived, I saw some super-muscular men with super-fancy track bikes and Phillipe told me, in a rather hushed tone, that the man sitting behind him was the World Champion of track. He couldn't remember his name but it turns out there were several world champions at La Cipale that day. I think Phillipe said that there was a television program being recorded on track racing? I don't really know. While we watched the track racers, Phillipe continue to tell me more about proper training and nutrition and what to take on rides and when to ride and when to rest, but by that time I couldn't absorb any more. I wanted to ask him to write me a list of 5 things I need to do right now and when I've finished those, give me another list of 5 things, but I think he was just excited to talk about all of the things he has learned. It was definitely a great exercise for my French skills! More listening than speaking, but still a good work out.

We rode home from La Cipale together and after arriving at my apartment, we arranged another rendezvous on Saturday morning. A short ride, at what speed I couldn't tell. Tomorrow is rest day, then the short ride of questionable intensity on Saturday, then a longer group ride on Sunday when we'll go out through the suburbs of Paris to the country. Phillipe said it would be about a 60 or 70 kilometer ride, and considering I did 50 today, I think I can handle it, as long as it isn't too fast. Upon saying our goodbyes, Phillipe said that I can use the "tu" - familiar form - of addressing him now, because the "vous" form is for... he made a gesture of a person with a big beard. I think I have made a friend! And also, possibly a physical trainer! He told me to go eat a banana and raisins because raisins have some special nutritious feature that I couldn't make out in French. And yogurt too, because it's also special. Hopefully the words will come to me someday...

I'm exhausted now, and look forward to sleep tonight.

PS: As I was leaving the Bois de Vincennes, I saw an older man who I had seen and briefly talked to at Service Velo a week ago. Again, when I was leaving La Cipale, he rode by me! I'm not sure that he recognized me in uniform, but it makes me very happy to already be able to recognize people in Paris.

END

Earthquake and Projects in Peru

2007-08-23T18:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have been delaying about sending more update to my Blog. I have been on the Northern Transcontitental from Seattle to Virginia and the website the riders have been posting are much better than any updates I could write.

Plans are still progessing for our Peru Tour in October. But first we have a nice PAC Tour to the Grand Canyon planned for September. I am sure there will be some great photos and websites linked to the PAC Tour homepage from that tour.

The following is a recent newspaper article that I had written about our Peru tours coming up.

For the past four years the Christ Lutheran Church of Sharon as has helped organized many relief projects for some of the most rural and desolate regions of Peru. The recent earthquakes in Peru were a concern to many people who know about our Mission Projects there. I have got to know many friends in Peru in various areas. When the earthquake hit August 14th, I contacted one of my friends in the coastal city of Lima which is home to over 10 million people. This is what she responded...

Dear Lon......

“Yesterday was a horrible day for me, I was at home alone with my baby and great movements come and come. People on the street crying and shouting. My husband Christian was working. The center was in the cities of Ica, Chincha and Pisco (100 miles south of Lima) many people died and the 90 percent of the place go down. They need many help. I thanks a lot to God my house is safe and not fall because materials are not good in my house. I can't sleep in the night. I was very scared.”

Sara

Another friend named Tatiana lives in the city of Ica where the earthquake hit. This is what she said.

Dear Lon:

“I don’t know if you remember that I live alone. Well the place where I live alone is Ica, the center of the earthquake, it was a terrible experience. We lost many things, many houses are destroyed and many people disappear. I am with life, but I lost my work because the school where I am a teacher is totally broke.”

Tatiana

We will be returning to Peru in October to review many of the projects we are continuing to support. We will not be traveling in the earthquake region but we have tours planned about 100 miles from the hardest hit areas. Since 1999 I have been traveling in Peru leading cycling tours. During that time we have found many worthwhile projects to help the poor people of that country. We only support projects we have direct contact and have personally scouted the needs of the project. We purchase the materials in person and we deliver the materials in person. Over 90% of the money raised goes directly to our projects. The other percentage of funds is used for guide fees in Peru, newsletters and videos documenting our work in Peru.

Some of our past, and current projects in Peru include:

In 2004 we started building the Jack Wolff School for 350 children in the Amazon rain forest. This school has now grown to over 500 kids. One of our recent projects there was to have the local prison build 66 more wooden desks and chairs for the school at a cost of $30 each. In September we are helping bring electricity to the school so they can have lights for classes in the evening. Installing the electricity and lights will cost $2,600. The 500 children will have three shifts of classes during the morning, afternoon and evening. Now much of the village has open sewage trenches that are flushed into the river by afternoon rains. Two years ago four children died from the contaminated water and disease in the village. During our next visit we will be evaluating what improvements to the school should be made.

Another project is supporting 100 kids at the remote jungle orphanage in Puerto Ocopa. They are located 300 miles into the rain forest. They do not have telephones, television or computers. They have little contact with the outside world. The orphanage is mostly a self sustaining community where the kids work in the fields and grow much of their own food. They can always use bags of processed foods like flour, sugar and rice. Last year we bought them 3,000 pounds of food and a sewing machine to make repairs on their clothes. Each year we bring the kids a new set of clothes that they wear 100% of the time for the rest of the year. They wash and and bathe in the river during the afternoon and wear the same clothes to bed at night.

Just by chance last year we met twenty girls at the Chosica Boarding School and Orphanage. This orphanage is similar to the one in the jungle at Puerto Occopa except the girls live in the mountains near Lima. We try to support them with basic supplies that they can make and sell for a profit. For example they have a wood burning barbecue stove they set up on the sidewalk each afternoon where they cook and sell hot dogs to passing pedestrians for 25 cents. We try and help them with cooking supplies and hardware for their roadside cafe. All the girls work to make and sell the hot dogs. They use their money to buy more rice and beans. They have subsistence living conditions and we will try to help them with clothes and supplies for their kitchen.

One of the most interesting and emotional evening during our tour is planning an annual birthday party for 40 homeless kids who live on the streets of Iquitos. Our group makes official party invitations describing the location of a secret restaurant where the party will be held. Two hours before the party each member of our group walks the back streets and alleys of Iquitos. They are each looking for five or six children who live in cardboard boxes or share shelter with other kids. When the children arrive at the secret restaurant they are served a dinner of chicken, rice, birthday cake and receive a new set of clothes and a simple toy. When they sit down to eat it is amazing how well mannered they are. Most of them have never eaten in a restaurant. Many of them may not have had anything to eat that day. They all sit and wait until the group has been served before they start eating. When they finish half their meal they ask for a plastic doggy bag to take the remaining food with them. They have learned to ration their food. They might not eat tomorrow.

During our travels we see many rural one room schools in the jungle with one teacher. Most of these schools have little support outside their village. Some have electricity but most of them are just cement block buildings with tin roofs. Our group always tries to bring some extra bundles of library books, writing paper and pencils to deliver to these schools. We buy most of these supplies in Lima and condense them into thirty pound waterproof packages for transport. The schools are always surprised to see us arrive in the middle of no where. We deliver the books and then continue on our journey.

Most of our projects are accomplished very low key and anonymously. There is some risk transporting the supplies through the jungle roads. Bandits are known to stop and rob buses that are carrying tourists. When we move our 3,000 pounds of food and clothing to the orphanage we send local women and children with the truck ahead of our group. The truck is disguised to look like a local vegetable truck going to market. The remaining gringos from our group then share several taxies and follow several minutes apart. We have never had a problem with bandits, but we keep our travel plans secret of when we will be traveling certain roads.

During our tours we stay at hotels with air conditioning when possible and try to eat at respectable restaurants. However travel in Peru is always an adventure and sometimes we need to adapt to some very basic conditions. It is not uncommon to order chicken or fish at a restaurant and the cook will catch and butcher your dinner while you wait. The members of our group pay for their own hotels, meals and airline travel. Most tours average about $1,500 per week with airfares from the United States.

We have raised over $50,000 for these projects the past four years. A lot of the money has come from donations from cyclists attending our bicycling tours. At the end of a cross country tour we typically auction off the large display map of our recent route. These maps are usually bought by some enthusiastic rider for $1,500 to $3,000. We normally raise $10,000 each year from these map sales and other donations. Future projects include building a new school for the cost of $25,000 in a remote area along the Amazon River. We will continue to support and monitor all of our past projects.

Many of these projects are provided anonymously. The children are thankful, and we know we helped them, and that's enough credit. These are nondenominational projects. We support projects for all children of various faiths, without expecting anything in return. If you would like to make a TAX Deductible Donation and receive our Peru Projects Newsletter, you can send a Donation to:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

Donations of $100 or more will receive a copy of our 41 minute DVD about our 300 mile adventure over the Andes Mountains to deliver 3,000 pounds of food to the 100 orphans and the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage. Do you want to travel with Lon and deliver supplies in Peru? There are still opening for the October and November tours. Contact Lon at: haldeman@pactour.com or read more about his Peru Adventures at: pactour.com.

Peru Project for 2007

2007-07-21T17:22:00.001-07:00

I have been traveling in Peru since 1999. During that time we have found many worthwhile projects help the poor people of that country. Read about these travels in my other January 2007 Blog Updates about Peru.

We only support projects we have direct contact and have personally scouted the needs of the project. We purchase the materials in person and we deliver the materials in person.

Over 90% of the money raised goes directly to our projects. The other percentage of funds is used for guide fees in Peru, newsletters and videos documenting our work in Peru.

Some of our past, and current projects in Peru include:

1. Building the Jack Wolff School for 400 children in the Amazon rain forest.

2. Supporting 80 kids in the jungle at the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage with new clothes, books and bulk food items.

3. Helping 20 girls and the Chosica Boarding School and Orphanage with clothes and books.

4. Planning an annual birthday party for 40 homeless kids who live on the streets of Iquitos and providing new clothes and a dinner party.

5. Buying shoes for 50 kids who live in a rural mountain village outside Cuzco at 12,000 feet elevation.

6. Supplying 100 books each for remote schools in the jungles or mountains.

PAC Tour Riders have raised over $50,000 for these projects the past three years. Future projects include building a new school for the cost of $25,000 in a remote area along the Amazon River. We will continue to support and monitor all of our past projects.

Many of these projects are provided anonymously. The children are thankful, and we know we helped them, and that's enough credit. These are nondenominational projects. We support projects for all children of various faiths, without expecting anything in return.

If you would like to make a TAX Deductible Donation and receive our Peru Projects Newsletter, you can send a Donation to:

Christ Lutheran Church Peru Fund
P.O. Box 303
Sharon, WI 53585

If you would like more information about our tours in Peru Peru you can contact me at:......haldeman@pactour.com

Donations of $100 or more will receive a copy of our 41 minute DVD about our 300 mile adventure over the Andes Mountains to deliver 3,000 pounds of food to the 80 orphans and the Puerto Ocopa Orphanage.

END

The Early Years

2007-07-19T17:50:00.000-07:00

The Early Years

Sorry for the long delay since my last blog posting. I have been on the Elite Tour across the country in 17 days in June. Now I am on the Northern Transcontinental crossing America in 26 days during July. Most of my spare time has been used up on the tours each day. I don’t have much time to sit and compose stories for my blog. Occasionally I am inspired to write a few old time stories from the history of long distance cycling. Thinking about the Double Transcontinental got me remembering how I got involved in the sport.

In 1981 I was 23 years old. I had fair speed and okay endurance for USCF type road racing. I wasn’t really that good but I had improved from Category 4 to Category 2 the year before. I still liked riding long point to point events best. Some of the local racers asked me why I was wasting my time riding my self planned events of 200, 300 or even 400 miles in a day. These were the days when the club century in September was the longest organized event of the season. Real racers entered 30 mile criteriums on the weekends. The top 10 riders would win some really good prizes like a new chain, tires or clothing. I didn’t win anything during my weekend tours across the countryside. I still liked planning and riding those self challenging tours. The local racers didn’t like it when said I considered myself more of a tourist than a racer.

RAAM Training Mileage Goals
In recent years there has been a trend toward riding less miles and adding more intensity. There are several advantages to shorter faster workouts at a higher speed. All the factors that are used to gauge fitness are usually higher among riders who train with shorter faster workouts. Better results are measured with higher VO2 Max, watts of power generated and more time off the bike to recover. These are all good laboratory training goals. However a lot of the success of RAAM riders depends on how they can handle the other abusive factors of the race.

The 1980’s were some of the golden years for the Race Across America. Five years of television coverage by ABC Wide World of Sports made RAAM a household name. I your remember...those were the years when household televisions only had five or six usable stations. ABC’s Wide World of Sports was more watched than all the current cable sports programs combined. The 90 minutes of air time RAAM received each February wouldn’t be totally appreciated until the coverage stopped in 1987.

The Race Across America probably would have happened regardless of the television coverage. The riders were not racing for recognition or prize money. Would better riders have been attracted to the Race if the financial rewards had been higher? Would the racers pushed themselves to go faster for more prize money? Interesting question. After I won the 1983 race, I remember one national famous racer saying he would not race RAAM unless he was was paid $50,000. I said, “You could not pay me enough to race RAAM.” It all depends on what motivated people.

I think it is interesting that some of records that were set in the 1980’s still stand. The equipment used then was considered the best available. The most exotic prototypes raced in RAAM could be purchased from a basic bike shop five years later. I remember drilling blank rims to make our own 14 and 16 spoke wheels. How long would they last before my hub flange broke from the stress of an over tight spoke? Pete Penseyres and I experiments with different aerobar designs and spend hours fabricating crude prototypes from frame tubing, fiberglass and felt padding. The designs we built were cumbersome and basic. We needed a design that was comfortable and strong. Our’s worked well enough, but in a few years shiny, lightweight, adjustable aerobars were the standard on almost every RAAM bike.

The evolution of long distance cycling has continued for the past 25 years. Both training and equipment have changed the way riders prepare to race RAAM. I will try to write some more cycling stories later. In the next few months I am preparing for our Adventure Tours Across Peru. We will be delivering supplies to the schools and orphanages we support there. These tours are busy for me because of the logistic hassles but I really enjoy traveling there. I will keep you posted on how the Peru Tours are coming together.

Contact me at ......haldeman@pactour.com.....if you have any comments or questions you would like me to address on future blogs.

more later.............

Part 14 First Cross Country

2007-06-07T20:06:00.000-07:00

Update....
Please excuse the long delay in posting this blog update. I have been busy with Brevet Week in Wisconsin and driving to the start of the Elite Tour in San Diego. I am writing this update in the parking lot of the Best Western at the start of the Elite Tour.

Part 14
The crew found a place to park the motor home in Indio at the base of the ten mile downhill. I slept for a few hours and was up again at sunrise. I got back on the interstate and bypassed most of Palm Springs. These were the days when riding the interstate was allowed through here or before any cyclists ever considered riding across the desert. I hadn’t seen any other cyclists since Missouri or since the fellow I rode with the morning leaving Prescott, Arizona.

The west wind was starting to blow as I climbed from sea level up the gradual 30 mile grade to Banning, California. The total climb was only 2,600 feet but I was barely riding at 12 mph against the wind. On the other side of Banning was the downhill of San Timiteo Canyon. This road would become a famous climb for east bound riders during the Race Across America during the next 10 years. For me it was a welcome downhill going west. I was getting closer to Riverside and San Bernardino. My dad was in the motor home talking on the CB radio and told the crew we were looking for a specific route toward Los Angeles. It was probably Old Rt. 66 but in 1981 Rt. 66 had been decertified and no longer was posted with road signs. The follow car behind me told me to pull over and stop. The motor home was on the correct route and asking on the CB where I was. I was lost for the first time of the whole trip. The support car told me to load my bike on the roof and we needed to drive back several traffic lights to the motor home. The detour only cost us about ten minutes but added to the stress of finding our way across the city.

Once I was back on Old Rt. 66, which wasn’t called Rt. 66 in 1981, I proceeded west. Every three blocks I waited at another red traffic light. Ironically several years later I would be leading tours on Old Rt. 66 and would be quite familiar with the neighborhoods. During the Rt. 66 tours one of the riders counted 375 traffic lights in 80 miles between San Bernardino and Santa Monica. As I continued west the traffic was getting heavy. I was barely averaging 10 mph with all the traffic lights. The final 150 miles would take me almost 15 hours to cover.

I finally arrived at the Santa Monica City Hall, which was the official starting or ending points for USCF cross country records. It was just before sundown and the parking lot was fairly deserted of business traffic. I was met by the regional USCF official and Victor Vincente who had set the Double Transcontinental of 36 days several years earlier. I was really surprised he came out to see me. It was really an honor to meet him. There wasn’t any celebration with the crew because we knew we were only half way done. Everyone was hustling around just like it was a normal sleep break. It was really a strange sensation to have ridden across the country and know we had to turn around and do it again in a few hours.

My East to West time was 12 days and 18 hours. I had missed breaking John Marino’s one-way record by several hours. I would have to go faster on the return trip.

The Specialized Bike Company had given me a new red Allez bicycle to ride on the return trip. It had all Campy Super Record parts. These were the days when I still used 27 inch tires. I took the bike on a test ride around the parking lot. It fit well and I knew I would like the way it rode.

We decided to get a hotel room in Santa Monica, which was a mistake. The only hotel we could find in the area cost $200 and didn’t have parking for the motor home. It was getting dark and I still hadn’t seen the Pacific Ocean. I didn’t want to waste anymore time so I went into the fancy hotel and took a shower. I must have slept a couple hours and was up again at 2:00 AM. We wanted to miss the Los Angeles traffic and get out of the city before 6:00 AM. The crew and I went back to the Santa Monica City Hall. The USCF Official was waiting for us. I have to give him a lot of credit for staying awake most of the night. At 3:00 AM I started riding again. The traffic lights were now flashing yellow and the streets were vacant. I was cruising out of town at 22 mph. I felt fresh and excited to be on the return trip. Our crew had learned a lot about cross country racing.

The first half of the Double Transcontinental had ended. Now it was time to pick up the pace and hope for tailwinds heading east.

Continued......

Part 13 Lon's Cross Country 1981

2007-05-12T20:02:00.000-07:00

Part 13
I reached the summit of Mingus Mountain shortly after sundown. The next 40 miles were mostly downhill to Prescott. I could see the lights of the town across the grassy plains. I rolled into Prescott before midnight. The crew made camp in the parking lot of a supermarket. We all slept about six hours that night. I woke up a sunrise and proceeded through town on mostly vacant streets. I met a local cyclist who was heading out for his morning ride. He knew I wasn’t a local rider and wondered what I was doing riding my bike across town. I told him about trying to set the Double Transcontinental Record. He remembered seeing John Marino come through Prescott the year before during his solo record setting ride. The fellow said he rode with John for a few miles also.

He gave me a water bottle from a Prescott Bike shop. I gave him one of the 50 new Specialized bottles the crew kept for promotional use. We rode together about five miles up the grade leaving town. He warned me about the desert ahead. I told him I had been riding in desert since New Mexico. “No, the desert ahead is hotter” he said. We said goodbye to each other and he coasted back into town. I was alone again except for my leap frogging support car. The terrain and scenery was spectacular with over 50 twisting turns in the next 20 miles. The town of Yarnell sits on the edge of the mountain rim overlooking the expansive flat desert 2,000 feet below. I could look out and see almost 100 miles of sand and scrub brush. I looked for the Pacific Ocean in the distance, but it was still 350 miles way.

As I dropped down Yarnell Grade the heat of the desert increased a few degrees every mile. It was a comfortable 85 degrees at the top. At the bottom it was well over 100 degrees and it was still midmorning. I took the highways of Rt. 71 and Rt. 60 southwest toward Interstate 10. Dust Devil mini tornados danced in the distance for minutes at a time before dissipating and then reforming a half a mile later. It was getting really hot now. The crew had been feeding me peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as I rode one handed. Before I could finish a sandwich the bread had become crunchy like toast. I had to chew with my mouth closed because the hot wind would make my dry lips and tongue stick together like licking a metal flagpole in winter. The smell of the desert was a cross between dried herbs and burnt toast. If hot could have a smell, it smelled like this desert.

It was near the town of Aguila that I motioned for the support car to pull beside me. Susan Notorangelo was sitting in the passenger seat and handed me a ice cold water bottle. I told her “You know a woman had never set a transcontinental record under 15 days”. She said “There’s a good reason for that. It’s hot out there”. That was the first seed that was planted getting Susan to start thinking about riding long distances. One year later, almost to the day, Susan would be racing from Los Angeles back to New York on the same section of road across the desert on her way to setting an 11 day, 16 hour Women’s Transcontinental Record.

I eventually merged onto I-10 near the town of Quartzite. The sun was going down and offered some relief from the 110 degree heat of the afternoon. I rolled through Blythe, California on the perfectly smooth blacktop shoulder of the interstate. The heat still radiated off the shiny surface like a pancake griddle. I was counting down the miles to the Pacific Ocean. At the top of every grade I would stand up on the pedals to get a better view of the ocean ahead. I knew it had to be just over the next hill. I rode into the night and was starting to feel as bad as riding to Albuquerque two nights before. My thoughts were divided between anticipation of finally reaching the ocean and self doubt that I could make it through the night. I rode for almost 100 miles that night across the desert. At about 3:00 AM I reached the top of Chiriaco Summit. I started coasting down the grade. In front of me were a million lights of Los Angeles. I had made across the country. It was all downhill from here. I confirmed my observations with the crew. They said “No not quite. The lights are Palm Springs. You still have 150 miles to go”.

continued.............

Part 12...Lon's First Cross Country 1981

2007-05-01T11:00:00.000-07:00

Part 12
I had never been to Arizona and as soon as I crossed the state line I knew I was someplace unique. The landscape and rocks were as different here as New Mexico was different from Texas. As we approached the towns of Sanders and Chambers we were warned by local gas station owners that we were entering Indian Country. The warning seemed more appropriate 100 years ago. I couldn’t imagine people being any different in Arizona than they were anywhere else. We didn’t have any problems with Indians or other locals during our ride across Arizona.

After riding for about 80 miles on the interstate we came to the town of Holbrook. The Wigwam Motel was an area landmark that had been over grown by weeds. The 15 cement tepees were an icon on Route 66 postcards. It would be another 10 years before this motel would be remodeled and return to it’s glory years of Route 66 fame. The next town west was Winslow. This was another town that had seen better days. The one-way divided main street was lined with closed stores and $14 a night motels. The “Eagles” song of “Stand’in On a Corner In Winslow Arizona” was play’n in my head. The highlight was leaving town and seeing the snow capped peak of Bill Humphrey’s Peak 60 miles away near Flagstaff. At over 12,000 feet this mountain is the highest point in Arizona.

The grade from Winslow to Flagstaff climbed another 2,000 feet. The mountain peak seemed to stay in the distance similar to the grain silos in Kansas. It would take me most of the afternoon to finally reach Flagstaff. A local television station wanted to do an interview there. We met just as I was getting off the interstate and heading south on Rt. 89-A toward Oak Creek Canyon. It was a fast interview and I was glad to be off the interstate for a while. I would ride straight south for the next 150 miles through some of the best scenery of the trip. The red rock cliffs and Ponderosa pine forests were a refreshing change from the interstate.

The corkscrew descent down to Sedona was a thrill as I out coasted my support car through the hairpin turns. The cool temperature was just right to need arm warmers but not tights on my legs. I crossed through Camp Verde at 3,500 feet elevation and started the climb up 7,000 foot Mingus Mountain. The motor home had driven ahead and called back on the CB radio about the town of Jerome just ahead. “You won’t believe the narrow streets” they said, “We can barely fit the motor home downtown”. In 1981 Jerome was a run down mining town hanging on my it’s teeth to the side of the mountain. Most of the stores were closed and remembered better days fifty years earlier. I was feeling good spinning up the grade 7% grade. I was feeling better than I had the entire trip. The routine of the crew was smooth and efficient. Everybody felt good about the progress we made today. Tonight I felt like I was on an after dinner social ride. Even racer crew member Jon Royer commented that I was climbing better now than in West Virginia. In the back of my mind I knew my freshness wouldn’t last. It would be dark soon and the fatigue of riding into the night would visit me again.

continued.....

Part 11 Lon's Cross Country 1981

2007-04-23T17:36:00.000-07:00

Part 11
I was starting to feel better with the daily routine of riding 250 miles per day. My low point had been in Kansas and the previous night near Clines Corners, New Mexico. Reaching Albuquerque, New Mexico was a symbolic landmark in the Double Transcontinental. I felt that I had reached the old west I remembered from cowboy movies. The dramatic landscape and tall sky had a vastness unlike the terrain of the midwest. Albuquerque was 280 years old and it had a feeling of old and new as I rode across town on old Route 66. There was a mixture of tan adobe building scattered between the rows of glass strip malls. Central Avenue is 17 miles from end to end and claims to be the Longest Main Street in America. As I reached the west side of town I climbed up the ridge on Nine Mile Hill. The straight highway grade started at 2 %, then to 5% and then tilted to 7% near the top. From the west side you can look back over 25 miles of sprawling city to Tijeras Canyon on the east side where I had been two hours earlier.

By the time I left Albuquerque it was mid morning. I was back on I-40 again with the chip seal shoulder. The interstate rolled into the distance with shallow grades. Near the white chapel at Old Laguna I stopped at a highway rest area for a snack. There was an outdoor pit toilet there. I went in the toilet and noticed the pit was filled with dried crap all the way to the brim of the toilet. I lost my appetite and my desire to use the bathroom. I remarked to the crew that the New Mexico Highway Department just builds and new rest area when they need one instead of cleaning the toilets.

As I headed toward the town of Grants my support car warned me that a house was catching me. There were no police escorts or warning vehicles. Behind us taking up both lanes of the interstate was a building on a flat bed truck that resembled a classic train depot. It had truck wheels on all corners and was moving about 35 mph and catching us. My support car and I pulled into the ditch as the house passed by. About 50 vehicles and trucks were behind waiting to get past the house. After passing us the house then drove into the median at about 20 mph to allow everyone to pass. I thought the whole structure was going to tip over and fall off the wheels as it coasted to a stop. We proceeded on again and kept a watch behind us. The house never caught us again.

When I rode through Grants I noticed that I-40 bypassed downtown. The road through town was Old Rt. 66 and the green interstate sign was called Bus. 1-40. Just then a Greyhound bus past me. I saw several more buses downtown. I must be on the bus route I thought. The signs for Bus. I-40 must mean that is the way buses should go. It took me several more towns before I understood Bus. I-40 stood for Business Loop I-40. My knowledge of the American road system was growing.

Between Grants and Gallup, New Mexico is the Continental Divide. The grade is a shallow 3% - 4% most of the way. The headwind is more of a factor than the climb. As I reached the summit at about 7,250’ I expected to look out and see the shores of the Pacific Ocean. At the top of each rolling hill I kept waiting to see the distant coastline. I didn’t really have a good perspective on how much further I had to go to reach Los Angeles. In my mind I had forgot about the State of Arizona. I had about 600 miles to go to the ocean. I had been on the road for 10 days. I was counting down the miles before I reached the turn around and had to start do it all again. Only next time it had to be faster.

Continued.............

Part 10..Lon's First Cross Country 1981

2007-04-18T20:10:00.000-07:00

Part 10
The billboards for the Club Cafe in Santa Rosa had coaxed me off the interstate. These bill boards of the famous fat man cartoon would become Route 66 icons when the Club Cafe would close it’s doors ten years later. The Motel-6 was at the first exit ramp entering Santa Rosa. I had slept there for about fours hours and now it was dark. Jon Royer and Dean Dettman would be crewing in the Dodge Omni support car tonight. The air was cool enough I needed a windbreaker jacket. We left the motel and follow Old Route 66 through the main street district of downtown. After about three miles we were on the west edge of town and merging back on to Interstate 40. The shoulder of the road was better here or maybe I couldn’t see the rough pavement in the dark. I seemed to be standing a lot when riding and struggling to maintain 15 mph. I began to listen to the noise of the trucks on the interstate. The trucks coming toward me were coasting while the engines of the trucks going west were working harder. In the distance I could see the outline of rocky peaks against the stars in the sky. I was heading into the mountains tonight and my first real climbing since Missouri.

Each of the interstate grades seemed to get steeper and stair step climb for the next 30 miles. Billboard signs for “Clines Corners 25 Miles...Worth Waiting For” reminded me of the Hillbilly billboards in Missouri. These signs every mile would be my gauge tonight as the road climbed 2,500 feet in the next 50 miles. As the Greyhound Buses passed me I noticed their diesel exhaust smelled sweeter than other trucks. I could always tell a bus was passing by the smell of the exhaust. I asked my crew if they noticed any difference and they said a diesel was a diesel and there wasn’t any difference. I think there is difference and 26 year later I still think the buses have a sweeter smell.

It took me almost five hours to ride the 60 miles to Clines Corners. Most of it was uphill. I was getting sleepy again at 2:00 AM. We had crested the grade and my pace exceeded 25 mph as I began to coast and soft pedal down the hill. The easier terrain made it more difficult to stay awake. The mountain air was brisk and I was getting cold. Finally I motioned to my support car to pull over. I told them I needed a nap. There wasn’t much room in the car but they had a foam pad in the back seat. I took the pad and walked into the desert on the side of the road. Jon and Dean said I couldn’t sleep here and that the motorhome was just five mile ahead. I said I only needed to rest for ten minutes. I laid down and closed my eyes. I probably fell asleep in two minutes. Jon tapped me on the shoulder and said it was time to go again. I got back on the bike cold and shivering and just as tired as before. We continued the next five miles near the town of Moriarty. The motorhome was parked off an exit ramp and everything was dark inside. I was the most tired I had been the whole ride. It was now almost 5:00 AM. I leaned my bike against the motor home and went inside. My mom,dad, brother and Susan woke up when I went inside. “I really need to sleep” I said. “Don’t wake me up until I wake up on my own” . I wasn’t in a good mood and everyone kept their distance from me. I collapsed in the back bunk still wearing with my clothes, jacket and gloves. I am sure I was snoring in less than a minute.

As I slept I had a dream. I was in a movie theater seated next to Susan. I had an aisle seat. During the movie a guy came into the theater with a bicycle and a set of rollers. It was Jim Black, the guy I had seen in Missouri trying to break the cross country record. He put his bike on the rollers in the aisle beside me. He started riding and said “I am still a good rider”...”I am still a good rider”. “ Do you want to buy my bike” he said. “ Do you want to buy my bike”. I looked at the bike he was riding on the rollers. The white frame had bubbled paint and looked burnt. I said, “No thanks, your bike is burned, I’ll keep my own bikes”.

Just then I woke up from my dream. I felt very alert. I looked around the inside of the motorhome. There was enough sun light that I figured I must had slept all day and it was almost sunset. I looked at my watch. It was 6:30 AM and sun was coming up. I had only slept 90 minutes. The rest of the crew was sleeping and figuring I was going to be in bed for at least six hours. I got out of bed and woke up Susan. “I feel great and I am going to start riding” I said. “Catch up with me down the road”. I took and apple and some cookies from the motor home kitchen and put them in my jersey pocket. I went outside and my bike was still leaning against the motor home. The sun was warming up the morning and I was feeling very fresh today. I rolled down the entrance ramp onto the interstate and saw a sign; Albuquerque 25 miles.

I rode solo this morning down the interstate shoulder. I ate my cookies and apple and started wondering what was keeping the support car from catching me. I had reached the downhill of Tijeras Canyon that drops the final 10 miles into Albuquerque. I was feeling good and enjoying my gradual 30 mph descent. Just then the red Dodge Omni support car rolled up beside me. Susan was in the passenger seat and asked how I was doing. I didn’t have a chance to tell her about my dream and my new found enthusiasm. She said she had been on the phones talking to Velo News Magazine and Michael Shermer who was working at a different industry cycling publication. Susan said she had some news about about Jim Black and his cross country record attempt. “Yeah what” I said. Susan said “Jim made it to Indiana but he had to stop when his motor home started on fire”. I did a double take and asked for more details. All Susan knew is what she was told by the magazines. I told Susan, “You won’t believe the dream I had” .

Continued.......

Part 9 First Cross Country 1981

2007-04-13T20:48:00.000-07:00

Part 9
We were looking forward to getting out of Kansas if for no other reason than to prove we were making progress west. The panhandle of Oklahoma would be our next state to cross and we would be in and out in only 60 miles. I remember seeing a sign in Pratt, Kansas as the “Home of the Miss Kansas Pageant”. As we rode through Hooker, Oklahoma I was wondering what type of pageant they were famous for. I didn’t think it would be much of an honor to be crowned “Miss Hooker”.

The southwest wind continued to howl at a steady 30 mph. There was enough of a cross wind from the left to give me a blast from oncoming semi trucks. I would need to put my head down and hang on as the trucks passed and the gusts almost brought me to a stand still. Crew member Jon Royer got out to ride with me. My bikes had toe clips and straps so Jon was able to ride one of my bikes in his gym shoes, t-shirt and jean shorts. In 1981 a baseball cap was as good as a helmet so Jon wore his blue and white mechanics cap. Jon was a pretty good rider in 1981 and a few years later would be a USCF Ranked Category 1 racer making a living on the Pepsi Cycling Team. He was a wiry climber and a strong time trialist. The day he was riding with me in Oklahoma it was too windy to talk but I enjoyed the mutual suffering. As a semi truck approached we braced ourselves for the blast. Jon’s baseball cap blew off and tumbled 50 yards behind us in the wake of the truck. Jon needed to make a U-turn and go find his cap in the ditch. This routine continued at least six more times during the hour Jon rode with me. It was amusing to me and frustrating to Jon. I couldn’t help speeding up a little every time Jon lost his cap and make him work to catch up again since I felt he needed the training.

I was barely averaging 10 mph today. The towns were getting further apart and I had few landmarks to gauge my progress. By dark I was entering Texas and had Oklahoma behind me. The tracks of the Santa Fe railroad followed along the highway. In the night sky I could see the single cycloptic orbiting headlight of an oncoming train in the distance. The powerful beam was sometimes visible for at least ten miles on the flat prairie. I estimated if the train was going 50 mph and I was going 10 mph we should meet in about ten minutes. Every time a new train came toward me I played the game of estimating how far away the train was and when we would meet. Throughout the night we were only plus or minus one minute of my guess.

My daily routine had changed the past three nights to include more and more night riding. Partly to avoid the winds but I was getting used to spending 18-20 hours on the bike and sleeping less. My goal before the ride was to travel at least 200 miles everyday. By sunrise I was entering New Mexico with only few stops during the night. I had only gone 180 miles in the past 24 hours against the stiff headwind. I was getting discouraged and was losing track of how many days I had been on the road. The shoulder of the highway was paved with golf ball sized rocks to act as rumble strips for tired drivers. On a bike the chatter broke water bottle cages and made tender hands and seats feel even worse.

By mid day I had reached Tucumcari, New Mexico. Our route card showed I had a turn coming up to get on Interstate 40. This would be our our first turn in 850 miles since the Mississippi River. I was really tired from skipping a sleep break the night before. The temperature neared 100 degrees. My crew agreed I should ride 60 miles to Santa Rosa and go to sleep in a Motel-6 until sundown. The good thing was the wind had died down to a manageable breeze and I could ride at least 15 mph again. The bad thing was the rough chip seal shoulder continued on the interstate. New Mexico was still making the transition from Old Route 66 to new Interstate 40. There was a lot of road construction with miles of closed lanes and one-way traffic. Fortunately I was able to ride unsupported during the day and weave my way passed hundreds of orange traffic cones and road barriers. By the time I reached Santa Rosa it was late afternoon. I was tired and ready for a nap. I didn’t know how tired I was until I got woke up to ride at 9:00 PM.

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Part 8 Cross Country 1981

2007-04-12T18:47:00.000-07:00

Part 8
The afternoon wind continued to gain force as I pedaled toward Pratt, Kansas. Cattle trucks were more common now. The wind was from the front left and occasionally a passing semi truck full of nervous steers would spray me with a mist of bovine piss. As I rode toward the western sunset the wind seemed to gain strength. I was used to the wind dying down at night. Not tonight. The flags in front of the local post office flutter straight out of the southwest.

Each of the towns were spaced a consistent eleven miles apart. A 200 foot tall grain elevator tower was the most prominent landmark on the horizon. A flashing red light on the top of the tower was my guiding beacon. Each hour I pedaled eleven miles to a new town. Each town was four blocks across. Then I rode out the other side of town and had 59 minutes to concentrate on the next grain tower eleven miles away.

I arrived in Pratt, Kansas at about midnight. Our crew had stopped in the vacant parking lot of the closed Pizza Hut. We all decided to stop and sleep a few hours. We set up the small tent on a patch of vacant lawn. The wind fluttered the nylon tent like it was being pitched on the side of Mt. Everest. I went in the motor home and crawled into the bottom bunk bed. The wind rocked the motor home as I dozed off for a few hours sleep.

We decided to try riding again at 3:00 AM. I got back on the bike while Susan and Dean Dettman followed me in the Dodge Omni support car. We rolled out of town in the pitch black of the night. The rest of the crew would sleep until sunrise and then meet us 50 miles up the road. The wind was still blowing but the road was quiet with only a few trucks per hour passing us in the night. The support car behind me cast eerie shadows on the tufts of grass that grew between the cracks on the road shoulder. I slalomed down the chip seal shoulder dodging the clumps of grass and looking for the best pavement. I was tired now and looking forward to sunrise. I had ridden 250 miles yesterday. It would be difficult to ride that far today if the wind didn’t change.

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