The Day of a Thousand Hellos


Just how many times did I say "hello" today? I asked myself that question recently in Cambodia (where we are currently cycling). We have been greeting warmly everywhere in this country, but while cycling the tiny roads and paths along The Mekong, the greeting got intense.

Everyone said hello--parents, grandparents, students walking to school, workers out harvesting rice, the men serving coffee on the side of the road, woman making sugar cane juice, builders working on new houses, fishermen mending their nets, old women with mouths stained red from betal, little kids waving from trees they'd climbed, people on scooters, and bikes, and even farmers driving ox carts.

And they did use the word "hello". In Myanmar they say "mingalaba", in Laos it is "sabaidee". But in Cambodia, everyone called, yelled, shouted and even sang "hello".

I believe everyone who greets me should receive a hearty hello in return, not just a little wave of the hand or nod of the head. But after hours of responding, my voice was getting tired. 

I starting counting. In the first thirty minute period, I said hello 91 times. I only counted the times I responded to someone's greeting. The second count came in at 107. I was saying hello around 200 times an hour.

We spent at least six hours on the bikes that day. So I can conservatively estimate that I had a day of a thousand hellos.

And I loved it.

Photo: By Kat Marriner

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SIGHTS AND SOUNDS is posted every other Friday. Willie Weir is a columnist for Adventure Cyclist magazine. His latest book Travels with Willie: Adventure Cyclist will inspire you to hit the road and just might change the way you approach bicycle travel. He lives in Seattle with his wife Kat. You can read about their adventures at http://yellowtentadventures.com/.

Source: http://blog.adventurecycling.org/2012/12/the-day-of-thousand-hellos.html

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TdF Stage 11 ? Wet, Cold, Dry, Downpour

In the last flat 167.5-km sprinter?s stage before the Tour de France climbs into the Pyrénées tomorrow, the cyclists raced mostly southwest from Blaye-les-Mines to Lavaur, France on a chilly wet day that saw some welcomed caution on slick roads. No serious crashes, no one hurt, just good racing. After only a few minutes on [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/tdf-stage-11-%e2%80%93-wet-cold-dry-downpour/

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Level 2 Retul Bike Fit ? Group Rates ? Fits from £100

Are you a member of a club or team or just ride with a group of friends? Our group rates mean you can get even better value from our Level 2 bike fit process. Book as a group and make significant savings over our standard rates. Our Retul bike fit process is the most accurate [...]

Source: http://blog.bike-science.com/2012/11/05/level-2-retul-bike-fit-group-rates-fits-from-100

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Levi Comments: Radioshack?s Leader in Tour de France

There has been plenty of speculation in the media and among fans regarding which Team Radioshack rider will lead the team in it’s efforts in the upcoming Tour de France. Even though Lance Armstrong is no longer riding professionally, the team still have several profiles who would fit the bill. In an recent poll on [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/levi-comments-radioshacks-leader-in-tour-de-france/

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Top 10 Most Popular Blog Posts Ever, 2012 Edition

The Adventure Cycling blog has been going strong for over 3 years now. Thank you to all of our readers, members, and other supporters for your online engagement! For fun, we thought we'd round out the year with a listing of our top 10 most popular blog posts ever (according to web visits) since we kicked things off in July 2009. Enjoy!

10. Interbike Roundup Part 1: New 2012 Touring Bikes -- In this post, Josh Tack reviewed four 2012 touring bikes (for different touring styles), which he previewed at the 2011 Interbike trade show in Los Vegas, NV.

 9. Touring Cyclists Always Welcome Camping -- This GeoPoints Bulletin post heralded news of the Virginia State Park System's new policy that ensures long-distance touring cyclists will always have a spot to pitch a tent in their parks, even when designated spots are filled. We'd love to see more of these kind of announcements in 2013!

 8. Our Trail Angel Flies Away -- Executive Director Jim Sayer commemorates our friend, and long-time supporter of traveling cyclists, June Curry. She was known to many as the "the Cookie Lady," and  from 1976 nearly up until her death, she provided hospitality to many of the thousands of cyclists who traveled the TransAmerica Trail. Our annual June Curry Trail Angel Award is named in her honor.

 7. The Cycling Eight -- It gives us immense joy to see this post in the top ten. Written by Heather Andrews, a summer intern and friend of Adventure Cycling, this post presents her first short documentary video, which captured the lovely story of a group of young women who embarked on a bike tour in August 1940 with no experience and heavy bikes, but fully loaded with the spirit of adventure!

 6. 10 Things You Absolutely Need for a Long Distance Bike Tour -- A contribution from our friends Ryan McAfee and Michelle Cassel of America ByCycle, the title really says it all. This is a fun post that is even better when read back to back with their second top ten story (see #4)!

 5. A Fat Year: Touring on a Surley Pugsley -- This has been a very popular guest post by Nicholas Carman. Watch for most posts by him in 2013!

 4. 10 Things You Might Think You Need for a Long Distance Tour, but Don't -- America ByCycle's excellent companion post to #6.

3. 2nd Annual Adventure Cycling Photo Contest Winners -- Our annual Bicycle Travel Photo Contest attracts hundreds of photographers and submissions each year. (Some submissions end up in our annual Bicycle Travel Calendar.)  For fun, check out the 1st annual winners, and last year's winners in the 3rd annual winners post.

 2. Surly Long Haul Trucker -- Posted by Joshua Tack on July 18, 2009, we're always amazed that this post continues to show up in our monthly web stats as one of our most popular. But, it's really no surprise, given the popularity of this bike amongst touring cyclists and Josh's special knack for very readable, informative, and entertaining bike reviews. If you've ever considered a Long Haul Trucker, this is a good place to start for more information. Special note: Josh recently re-joined the Adventure Cycling staff after a 6-month respite to tour from Alaska to Mexico. He is one of our longtime bloggers, contributing to Touring Gear and Tips, and a columnist for Adventure Cyclist magazine (see "Fine Tuned").

 1. U.S. Bicycle Route System 101 -- The most popular blog post of all time lays out the basics of one of our most important programs, the creation of an official U.S. Bicycle Route System. This project has blossomed over the last 5 years with 40 states now working to establish U.S. Bike Routes (USBR), relying on hundreds of volunteers and supporters across the country. In the last two years, 8 new routes have been established: USBR 20 and USBR 35 in Michigan, USBR 45 in Minnesota, USBR 1 in Maine and New Hampshire, and USBR 8, 95, 97, and 87 in Alaska. These are the first new U.S. Bike Routes to be established since 1982! Read the 101 post for how this important project was reignited in 2003, and stay tuned for more great news on this front.

Again, thank you for your support and engagement with our blog and all our social-media communities: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Learn about other great ways to connect with Adventure Cycling online at www.adventurecycling.org/connect.

Wishing you and yours the very best in 2013!

Illustration by Luke McDonnell.

--

NEWS, NETWORKING, AND NEW MEDIA is posted by Winona Bateman, Adventure Cycling's media director, and highlights cool media (articles, videos, photos, etc.) and meet-ups related to Adventure Cycling and bicycle travel. Writing a story about bicycle travel or Adventure Cycling Association? You can contact Winona via email: pressATadventurecyclingDOTorg. Visit our media room, view our news releases, or follow us on Twitter.

Source: http://blog.adventurecycling.org/2012/12/top-10-most-popular-blog-posts-ever.html

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Top 10 Most Popular Blog Posts Ever, 2012 Edition

The Adventure Cycling blog has been going strong for over 3 years now. Thank you to all of our readers, members, and other supporters for your online engagement! For fun, we thought we'd round out the year with a listing of our top 10 most popular blog posts ever (according to web visits) since we kicked things off in July 2009. Enjoy!

10. Interbike Roundup Part 1: New 2012 Touring Bikes -- In this post, Josh Tack reviewed four 2012 touring bikes (for different touring styles), which he previewed at the 2011 Interbike trade show in Los Vegas, NV.

 9. Touring Cyclists Always Welcome Camping -- This GeoPoints Bulletin post heralded news of the Virginia State Park System's new policy that ensures long-distance touring cyclists will always have a spot to pitch a tent in their parks, even when designated spots are filled. We'd love to see more of these kind of announcements in 2013!

 8. Our Trail Angel Flies Away -- Executive Director Jim Sayer commemorates our friend, and long-time supporter of traveling cyclists, June Curry. She was known to many as the "the Cookie Lady," and  from 1976 nearly up until her death, she provided hospitality to many of the thousands of cyclists who traveled the TransAmerica Trail. Our annual June Curry Trail Angel Award is named in her honor.

 7. The Cycling Eight -- It gives us immense joy to see this post in the top ten. Written by Heather Andrews, a summer intern and friend of Adventure Cycling, this post presents her first short documentary video, which captured the lovely story of a group of young women who embarked on a bike tour in August 1940 with no experience and heavy bikes, but fully loaded with the spirit of adventure!

 6. 10 Things You Absolutely Need for a Long Distance Bike Tour -- A contribution from our friends Ryan McAfee and Michelle Cassel of America ByCycle, the title really says it all. This is a fun post that is even better when read back to back with their second top ten story (see #4)!

 5. A Fat Year: Touring on a Surley Pugsley -- This has been a very popular guest post by Nicholas Carman. Watch for most posts by him in 2013!

 4. 10 Things You Might Think You Need for a Long Distance Tour, but Don't -- America ByCycle's excellent companion post to #6.

3. 2nd Annual Adventure Cycling Photo Contest Winners -- Our annual Bicycle Travel Photo Contest attracts hundreds of photographers and submissions each year. (Some submissions end up in our annual Bicycle Travel Calendar.)  For fun, check out the 1st annual winners, and last year's winners in the 3rd annual winners post.

 2. Surly Long Haul Trucker -- Posted by Joshua Tack on July 18, 2009, we're always amazed that this post continues to show up in our monthly web stats as one of our most popular. But, it's really no surprise, given the popularity of this bike amongst touring cyclists and Josh's special knack for very readable, informative, and entertaining bike reviews. If you've ever considered a Long Haul Trucker, this is a good place to start for more information. Special note: Josh recently re-joined the Adventure Cycling staff after a 6-month respite to tour from Alaska to Mexico. He is one of our longtime bloggers, contributing to Touring Gear and Tips, and a columnist for Adventure Cyclist magazine (see "Fine Tuned").

 1. U.S. Bicycle Route System 101 -- The most popular blog post of all time lays out the basics of one of our most important programs, the creation of an official U.S. Bicycle Route System. This project has blossomed over the last 5 years with 40 states now working to establish U.S. Bike Routes (USBR), relying on hundreds of volunteers and supporters across the country. In the last two years, 8 new routes have been established: USBR 20 and USBR 35 in Michigan, USBR 45 in Minnesota, USBR 1 in Maine and New Hampshire, and USBR 8, 95, 97, and 87 in Alaska. These are the first new U.S. Bike Routes to be established since 1982! Read the 101 post for how this important project was reignited in 2003, and stay tuned for more great news on this front.

Again, thank you for your support and engagement with our blog and all our social-media communities: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Learn about other great ways to connect with Adventure Cycling online at www.adventurecycling.org/connect.

Wishing you and yours the very best in 2013!

Illustration by Luke McDonnell.

--

NEWS, NETWORKING, AND NEW MEDIA is posted by Winona Bateman, Adventure Cycling's media director, and highlights cool media (articles, videos, photos, etc.) and meet-ups related to Adventure Cycling and bicycle travel. Writing a story about bicycle travel or Adventure Cycling Association? You can contact Winona via email: pressATadventurecyclingDOTorg. Visit our media room, view our news releases, or follow us on Twitter.

Source: http://blog.adventurecycling.org/2012/12/top-10-most-popular-blog-posts-ever.html

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