Join Us:

Bicycling 2,500 miles down the Continental Divide from the Montana border with Canada all the way to Mexico provides the most exhilarating, stunning and spiritual journey in all of North America.   

You will discover our glacial past in Glacier National Park (if it’s open), astounding wildflowers, Lewis and Clark Trail, Yellowstone National Park, Grand Tetons (mindblowingly awesome), Jackson Hole with the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, and the Great Plains of Wyoming. You will cross the Cross the Continental Divide at least nine times. Berthoud Pass will carry you to 12,300 feet. The last pass in New Mexico will be an easy 2,000 feet. You will ride by majestic Shadow Mountain Lake and climb up the highest paved road in America to the top of Mt. Evans at 14,100 feet. You will cross the Yellowstone and Colorado Rivers, enjoy bear sightings, elk, moose, fox, eagles, hawks, coyotes and road runners. You will ride on famous Route 66 and pedal over 80 miles of the El Paisa volcanic badlands and finally, reach the border of Mexico. 

Having ridden eight times across America, border to border and coast to coast, I can say unequivocally, that the Continental Divide Bicycle Ride exceeds any other bicycle tour in North America in beauty, spiritual connection, ruggedness, stunning mountains, pristine rivers, awesome climbs, amazing descents, wild flowers, wildlife, varied terrain, incredible history, historical towns, and outrageous people along the way.

I will lead a select group of 10 baby boomers age 40 and over who want to create a lifetime memory, fill up their bucket list and expand their bicycle horizons.  In order to go on this journey:

1. You will need to be in bicycle shape because the mountains will test you.

2. You must be less than 20 pounds overweight for your height and body type. Please avoid fooling yourself on this matter. If you are really overweight, your rear end will be so painful within three days that you won’t be able to ride the bike. Pressure pain on your butt from being heavy can be the most painful you ever experienced.

3. A very positive and easy going person, not given to anger or outbursts. Treat all people of all races, creeds and colors with equal respect.

4. No zealots of any persuasion because we want to enjoy each other instead of avoiding each other.

5. You love to camp in the wilds or in regular campgrounds. You can also grab a motel whenever one is available. You will learn how to cook out on a one burner stove.  Or, you can eat at every restaurant along the way when available.  Of course, you may choose trail mix, jerky, fruits, energy bars, veggies and breads for nourishment and energy.

6. You will experience hot, cold, dry and even rainy conditions.  While these dates provide 95 percent sunny and warm days for the entire ride, we could see rains along the way.  Preparation is nine-tenths of success.

7. Thank you for leaving politics, religion, negative topics and other “stuff” back home. This is a ride of freedom, positive life flow, break from the work-a-day world and a ride for spiritual appreciation of the wilderness and wildlife.

8. We travel at the “pleasure pace” which means, you get to enjoy stopping, chatting and taking pictures as you wish. You can always catch up by pedaling more at the end of the day.

9. We start out each morning in a group. Quickly, we will fall into groups of one or two or four or five persons depending on riding ability. You may enjoy your cadence as you wish and catch up at noon or at the afternoon hour.

10. We will average per day anywhere from 50 miles in the mountains to 75-85 miles on the flats.

11. Typical day: up at 7:00 a.m., loaded and ready to go by 8:15, group meeting, hit the road by 8:30 a.m. You make your own breakfast via hot oatmeal and bananas, or cold cereal and fruits, breads, energy bars, as you wish. Break for one hour at lunch as you like with your own food or a restaurant.

12. We start looking for a campsite 1.5 to 2.0 hours before sunset. That gives you time to pitch your tent, take a shower, fix your food. You may eat freeze dried foods, canned foods, whatever you like. These days, you may purchase ready-made salads, sandwiches and all sorts of other prepared foods. It’s your responsibility to feed yourself. After dinner, we enjoy campfire, talking, and writing in your journal. Get plenty of sleep so you will be refreshed and strong for the next day.

13. Each morning, we will discuss the day’s ride and where we expect to end up.

14. The second to the last person will always keep the last person in sight so if they need help with a flat tire or something, they can help that person. I will have a cell phone to keep in contact or be available for everyone.

15. Everyone must know how to fix a flat tire and keep your bike in oil, air pressure and checking of the nuts and bolts to make sure everything is secure.

16. No sag wagon to bail you out. You must be “bicycle ready” on the first day of this ride.

17. That means you will be riding at least three-four hours per day for one month before the ride to get your legs and butt accustomed to long distance riding. If you neglect this “rule”, you will pay severely in pain, exhaustion, sore legs and sore butt.

18. We will have a rest day every 10 days or in appropriate spots of great scenic wonder and potential hiking excursions.

19. You must arrange transportation out of El Paso, TX at the end of the ride. I will rent a car and drive back to Denver, CO. It’s quick and easy.

20. Of course, a custom T-shirt commemorating this ride will be given to each rider. It will feature a picture (front and back) of touring cyclists riding through the mountains with a title: Continental Divide Bicycle Ride, Canada to Mexico, 2013, 2,500 miles, with pictures of elk and bear.

21. A complete brochure will be provided as to packing, gear, bike safety, camping safety, clothes, etc.

During the ride, I will shoot a DVD movie video and I will capture the entire journey on camera. Each participant will receive a DVD of the entire journey as well as CDs of the entire trip on film.  You may, of course, shoot your own movie and take pictures for your own needs. 

You will sign a waiver and take responsibility for your own life for the entire ride.  You will carry health insurance in case of an accident and need for ambulance and hospital care. You will sign an agreement based on my article in Bicycle Times

“Peace and harmony while Bicycle Touring with Friends and Strangers.”  This ride will appeal to those who bring happy hearts, positive mental attitudes, easy to get along with personalities and enjoy physical outlets.  It’s not for anyone trying to prove themselves, find themselves or seek any answers to the great questions of the universe. 

This ride encompasses stupendous bicycle riding, incredible camping, self-reliance, campfires, sightseeing, fellowship and adventure.  It’s the kind of ride where you laugh at the beginning and cry at the end when it’s over.  Along the way, you will learn about yourself, gain new friendships, create an amazing chapter in your life and fulfill a grand yearning for one of the greatest bicycle rides on the planet.

Dates:  June 15, 2013 to August 1, 2013, six weeks on the road

Route: Canadian border north of Kalispell, Montana along the Continental Divide through Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico.

Distance: 2,500 miles

Eligible:  Men and women over 40, couples, singles.

Bikes: Mountain touring bikes or regular road touring bikes, racks, Aero bars, panniers or B.O.B.s recommended.

Pack list: provided. Sleeping bags, air mattresses, tents, rain gear, cook stove, cooking gear, shower bag, etc.

Route map: provided.

Camping:  wild camping mostly, organized camping when available, your expense for motels if you choose.

Expenses:  you are responsible for your food, transport to origin and from destination.  You are responsible for any and all expenses you incur for gear, bike, repairs, motels, camping fees and anything else.

Safety orientation: you will be required to wear a helmet at all times. Additionally, you will be instructed on how to buy a 7 foot fiberglass flag pole with an orange, lime green and white triangle-shaped flags at the top. That flag pole will be secured to your back rack so it can be seen by drivers both front and rear over a quarter of a mile away. You will also be instructed on how to create a 36 inch fiberglass pole that will feature an orange and white nylon flag about 18 inches into traffic from the side of your rear pack. These flags will be flapping and making sure that traffic sees you and does not come too close to you.

Fee:  you will be investing $3,000.00 per person.  I will take you from the Canadian border to the Mexican border.  I will teach you everything I know about bicycle touring from my experiences of 40 years and six continents of travel over 125,000 miles.  No refunds, should you drop out for any reason.

Interviews: I will call you for an interview so you get to know a “sense” of my personality and I will answer any questions. I expect to gather a group that will ride in harmony from the first day all the way to the last day of the ride. Additionally, I will forward to you a piece I wrote for Bicycle Times: “Peace and harmony with friends and strangers while on a bicycle tour.” It covers everything about getting along on a bicycle tour. If someone becomes a rather acid kind of personality on the tour, they will be invited to travel alone or dismissed from the group.

Endorsement: "Frosty is an incredible tour guide. He has safety as his top concern. So I always feel safe in Frosty's presence whether there are bears or lightning storms in the vicinity. He also helps provide an amazing experience and a lifetime memory of the best kind."

Long distance touring riders: who would go on such an awe-inspiring bicycle journey? I have found that most people go through their lives without living an “epic moment.” They watched their youth pass with short ventures, maybe raised families that kept them from an epic journey, and now, past 40, they are ready for a “defining moment” that will set their lives apart. This journey will be something you can look forward to with great fantasy and look back on with incredible wonder. Plus bragging rights! Such a journey will be a monumental physical, mental, emotional and spiritual breakthrough. Sure, you are going to bust your tail feathers riding up some big passes. Yes, you will develop exceptional legs and amazing tenacity. Sure, you’re going to camp out like Lewis and Clark, John Muir and Henry David Thoreau. Yes, you’re going to sweat, but you will have your shower bag each night for a refreshed body. You will gain understandings about yourself that you never dreamed possible because you will change “orbits” by pedaling your bike on this ride.

John Muir said, “Camp out among the grass and gentians of glacier meadows, in craggy garden nooks full of Nature’s darlings. Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”

The person you were before the ride will be a more incredible person after the ride. You might write a book about it. You might create a painting, drawing or song. You might write a poem or many poems. You might take photographs that will astound others. You may meet an extraordinary person like when I pedaled across America in 1984 and met Bob Wieland walking across America on his hands. In 2011, I saw a grizzly bear take down a 1,500 pound cow elk alongside the Gibbon River in Yellowstone. I once intersected with a fellow riding his horse across America. I met one couple bicycling for three years around the world. www.foodcyclist.com In the end, you will come away from this bicycle adventure physically fit, mentally refreshed, experience amazing moments, spiritually blessed and above all, you will smile at your tremendous accomplishment.

Love and light,

Frosty Wooldridge

6 continent world bicycle traveler

Trail guide for 2013 Continental Divide Ride

frostyw@juno.com

www.HowToLiveALifeOfAdventure.com

Frosty Wooldridge at the end of the 2012 coast to coast ride across America in front of the nation’s capitol building.

Frosty and Bob bicycling through the “Land of the Sleeping Rainbows” October , 2012.

The Spirit of Adventure

“If the roar of a wave crashes beyond your campsite, you might call that adventure.  When coyotes howl outside your tent--that may be adventure.  When the wind rips at your tent pegs—that too, may be called adventure.  While you’re sweating like a horse in a climb over a 12,000 foot pass, that’s adventure.  When a howling headwind  presses your lips against your teeth, you’re facing a mighty adventure.  If you’re drenched from head to toe in sweat as you pedal across a desert, that’s adventure.  If you’re pressing through a howling rainstorm, you’re soaked in adventure.  But that’s not what makes an adventure. It’s your willingness to struggle through it, to present yourself at the doorstep of Nature.  No more greater joy can come from life than to live inside the ‘moment’ of an adventure.  It may be a momentary ‘high’, a stranger that changes your life, an animal that delights you or frightens you, a struggle where you triumphed, or even failed, yet you braved the challenge.  Those moments present you uncommon experiences that give your life eternal expectation.  That’s adventure!”

© 2012 Frosty Wooldridge      

Frosty and Bob raise their hands in awe at the wondrous sight before them on a fjord in Norway. They pedaled from Nord Cap, Norway, north of the Arctic Circle by 700 km to Athens, Greece.  From the lands of the Vikings to the Oracle of Delphi and Socrates at the Parthenon.

Touring cyclists, fjord, Lofotan Island, Norway © 2012 Frosty Wooldridge