Pictures!

This past weekend I went on a short bike tour from Hortonville, WI to Columbus, WI. I spent a night at the Green Lake Campground (WAY overpriced, by the way, don't stay there - I paid almost $40 for a patch of dirt, picnic table, and a fire ring. The showers didn't even work) at mile 56, and at mile 104 the next day, about a mile or two outside Columbus, I flatted. This wouldn't normally be a problem, but I was still waiting for a part for my Road Morph and so it wasn't working at the time. Hence, I had to call in my support team (aka the parents) for help. My tour was supposed to go all the way to Cambridge, WI. Oh well... next time. The good news is that I now know how to find the puncture in a bike tube and fix it, as well as replace the tires without getting a pinch flat. Woot.

I am SO SO CLOSE to hitting the $4000 mark, I can almost taste victory. If you're reading this and haven't donated yet, you totally should. Clicking the big blue button to your right will get you started - come on, you know you want to be my favorite person today. Thanks again to all of my amazing donors - I never could have gotten this far without you guys!

Halfway there!

This is it - I'm officially more than halfway finished with the required $4000 in fundraising - but there's still another $2000 to go, so please keep the donations coming. Thank you, thank you, thank you, and a million times thank you to everyone who has donated so far!

AMAZING Weather!

Today's weather was INCREDIBLE! It was 70 and sunny with a light breeze - just PERFECT. Thus, it was very important that on this first BEAUTIFUL day of the year, I go on a nice ride! Having been off the bike for about 2 weeks, I was expecting my typical 15 mile ride to be a bit tough, but I did it like it was nothing - I think the awesome weather really helped.

In other news, as soon as all pending donations clear, I will have $1900 raised! This is AWESOME, and I appreciate every single dollar donated - it also means I'll be getting my bike very soon! I'm going to need another $100 by April 17th, so if you have a few bucks to spare, hit up http://www.bikeandbuild.org/donate and select "Katch, Allyson" from the list.

Again, thank you all so much for all of your support. Pictures of the bike will be up the second I get it out of the box.

Total mileage: 181.5

Happy New Year!

Hello valiant readers!

I know it's been awhile since my last update, and I do apologize. I swear by my Girl Scout honor that updates will be much more frequent come May or so. Having said that... updates!

Fundraising is well underway - thank you so much to everyone who has donated so far! I appreciate donations in ANY amount - every dollar puts me that much closer to being able to ride next summer and I get very excited every time I see the little number on my Bike and Build account page change, so if you can spare it, I do appreciate it.

If you live in Wisconsin (or any of the northern states), you know the weather gets pretty nasty around here, and as such, it's been tough to get on the bike outside - but that has not stopped me from training! I recently picked up an indoor bike trainer (a device that lets you use your bike as a stationary bike) and I've been spinning like mad ever since I got it. I plan to have legs of steel by the time the snow melts.

Over spring break I'll be going on a short tour to Devils Lake State Park and back to help prepare for the Epic Bike Trip(TM) next summer. In addition, a fellow Bike and Builder from Appleton and I will be going on a slightly longer tour around Door County, Wisconsin at the end of May as a final "dress rehearsal" for Bike and Build. If you're in either of those areas and you spot me chugging along, please don't hesitate to stop me and say hi!

I was on TV!

Last Friday, Madison's WKOW TV covered me in their "Someone You Should Know" segment. You can check it out here or by clicking the "Ally on WKOW TV" link in my Links sidebar. Special thanks to Joe LaBarbera for taking time out of his day to interview me and give me a tour of Channel 27's studio!

Also, special thanks to my first three donors! Your contributions were all very much appreciated!

Another 15 miles and donation link is live!

So I rode another 15 miles last weekend, bringing my total mileage so far to 119.3. Big thanks to Stephanie for riding with me and being excellent company (and keeping me on my toes!)

Additionally, the donation links are live for this year's riders. If you're interested in donating, you can go to http://www.bikeandbuild.org, click the Donate link at the bottom of the page, and select my name (Katch, Allyson) from the list. Your online donation will go through Google checkout and is completely secure. I'll also set up the link in my Relevant Links sidebar.

Bolt your bottle brackets or bear the burden of bumps, bruises, and broken bicycles

Rode through the Arboretum yesterday - never knew how pretty it was down there. Definitely didn't ride as far yesterday as I did on Tuesday, but it was still a good ride, and I do love my lean mean purple machine. Note: strap on bottle brackets... don't work. Don't use them. They will spitefully get in the way of your pedals no matter how often you kick them back into place. Sooner or later, very bad things will happen... the point is, if you can't bolt it down, don't use it.

If anyone is interested in donating, please email me. Bike and Build applications are not open yet, and as a result I don't have an "official" donate link, but rest assured that all donations will be held in reserve until I've got one.

Total mileage (yesterday): 7 miles

The adventure begins...

And it begins... the ride of a lifetime.

My name is Ally, and my goal is to bicycle across the United States with Bike and Build during the summer of 2009. This blog will document the next 365 days, from my training and fundraising efforts to preparing for the trip to the actual ride. It will also serve as an accountability record - did I train today? If not, did I train yesterday?

So here I am, at the beginning. I will be biking at least four times a week, increasing my mileage a little each time.

Yesterday I rode approximately 3 miles - all the way down Lakeshore Bike Path and to the end of Picnic Point, then all the way back. Today I will be riding to the mall on the west side, a trip of approximately 5 miles each way.