TT Thursday : 7 cool bicycle blogs and weight loss week whatever (I’m afraid to count, almost finished)

My Great Cycle Challenge

As you all know I am entering a bicycling challenge starting June 1st (gasps! tomorrow) where I have committed to bicycling for 25 miles in June and raising $50 for cancer.  I have met my fundraising goal! Yippeee! Three people donated.  Thank you, thank you, thank you to Ellen, Diane, and Irene.

So since there is one day left to fundraise, I will change my commitment to 30 miles in June and raising $60.  I’ll bicycle half what I raise.  And just so you know, I am not going to bicycle 500 miles if someone donates $1000.  I’m not crazy.  I’m also not worried about it because I’m not famous.

Go here to see how much I’ve raised and miles I’ve pledge and if you want to donate too : great cycle challenge to fight kid’s cancer.

7 Cool Bicycling Blogs

So since I have bicycling on my mind, I’ve been trying to find this cool blog I saw before about two guys who bicycled across Mongolia.  Now I’m wondering was it Nepal or Tibet or China?  I do have a bad memory. It was a funny blog but I still haven’t found it.  (Note to self: always blog about a cool blog when you find it; otherwise you will never find it again. Like ever!)

So while I have been searching, I did find this cool blog about a man who bicycles and then hops off and does a watercolor off of what he sees: Painter on a Bicycle. Among his recent paintings is the Erie Canal and another in Tennesee so he must bike pretty far. On his latest painting, his car’s transmission died so he had to bike and stopped off to paint the scene.  That’s making lemonade from lemons.

The next blog was started by a team of women who bicycled from Oceanside, California to Annapolis, Maryland in 6 days, 12 hours and 58 minutes.  Now their blog is about empowering girls to ride  with a section on women’s rides and clinics: Bike like a Girl

In 2011, Olivia Round rode from Oregon to Florida, more than 5000 miles. Her blog has changed since then and has become more of a women’s bicycle magazines with articles interviewing other women and on bicycling : Olivia Round

The Long Ride Home follows a couple as the cycle around the world. Currently they are in Colombia.

While Out Riding blogs about his basketpacking in so far the USA, Latin America and Mongolia. He also has a donation page if you want to help fund his adventures : $5 for a basic place to sleep and $15 for a fancier place meaning it has a bathroom.  I’d love to know where he stays for $15 a night because that’s still supercheap. He take ssome pretty awesome photographs too.

Jill Outside started her blog in 2005 in Homer, Alaska and soon it began to document her training for an endurance snow bike riding. She still rides to this day and works as a freelance writer and editor in Boulder, Colorado. She also runs so if you are into running, be sure to click on her “articles” tab as she’s written quite a few on running.

Next one is Fat Guy across America who had made it across America but when people said he lied, tried to do it again.  At 582 pounds, he started bicycling first in the Northwest states, raising money through a t-shirt site and Patreon, posting pics on Instagram and videos on you-tube. He also had a blog but didn’t post anything yet of his most recent attempt. More of his up-to-date posts were on facebook. He cycled Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts first. He landed in Florida on April 24th and rode until May 17th. May 18th 2019, he was hospitalized for heart issues and had to go home two days later.

Some people might chalk that up as a failure and it’s doubly difficult because it was so public.  I’m like, dude, the guy was 582 pounds and bicycled through 3 states and part of the way of a 4 states–and in the fourth state pulling a little bike trailer for his stuff. People gave him a hard time for whining when he was first starting out and biked 4 hours and complained. He biked 4 hours! I can’t do that. Let him whine and complain of his body feeling like a mactruck hitting him because it did. He got up and biked the next day. That’s whats important. And honestly, a Northwesterner in Florida in May? It’s hot! I doubt he knew how hot. March is better.  I know because I live in Arizona and you have to think about what the heat does to you.

Still he did pretty darn good.  If you try something difficult, you might fail. Yes, this is true. However if you try, you might go further than if you didn’t try at all. In my opinion, trying is more important than succeeding because a lot of people don’t try at all.  I can’t even imagine biking across 3 states, much less trying for the whole US of A. Kudos, dude.  Hope you get well soon.

Tries to imagine putting Pinkie and Midnight in my front basket and bicycling across Arizona.  Yeah, all I’m imagining is meow, meow, meow as they keep telling me to go back home. Laughing, my cats would kill me if I tried it.

You can do a search to find something on Amazon like I did with “bicycle trailer”. If you’re going on a long trek, it’s important to get a good one so do your research. The Fat Guy across America had his trailer hitch break several times which costs time and money making any trip a lot longer. I want a much bigger trailer — like RV size, lol, so the cats can sleep on opposite sides. (see Amazon affiliate disclosure at the bottom of the post)

 

Weight Loss Challenge

I am still working the HealthyWage. Started at 252.1 with a goal 187.1. The last time I posted a pic was March 21, 2019, when I weighed 196.8.  My goal is 186.9 by June 4th (because I weigh myself naked and have to put clothes on to weigh out).

When I had the car, I flatlined and actually gained a little to 205. Car is down, I’m walking and losing again. (I really need to figure out a way to keep the weight off while I have my car running.  As it is, I am reluctant to fix it until June. Honestly the problem is not the car so much as if I have a craving at midnight for ice cream, I can go get it!). I am happy to say I can show you a new photo at 192.8  Yay!

I am soooo close.  Wish me luck.

Whatever happens I count myself a winner thanks to you all supporting all the way (even my whining days!) and also to HealthyWage because it pushed me to get started.

Thanks! Crossing my fingers, I make the last 5 pounds.

Weight Loss Challenges with Cash Prizes Starting All the Time

and yep, I’m an affiliate for HealthyWage and Amazon so may earn a commission/fee if you join or buy something through clicking a link. This has no effect on your price. You pay the same price you would normally. Amazon disclosure: “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”