WomanTours

Happy New Year!

2011-12-30T13:32:00.000-05:00

Happy new year from all of us at WomanTours. Thank you for a wonderful 2011!
Watch the video below to help get your 2012 started off right!

The Holstee Manifesto from Lucaci Eduard on Vimeo.

New Video about our Moab Utah Tour

2011-12-04T18:00:00.001-05:00

A flight carrying 5 of our guests was delayed leaving the Denver airport for Moab last October, causing a chance encounter with filmmaker Larry McLaughlin. He was on his way to Moab to create a video for REI, the outdoor clothing and gear store.

The women told him they were headed to Moab to take part in a WomanTours week-long bike tour. He thought we'd make a better story than the group he was supposed to shoot so he tagged along on our tour for a couple days and created this beautifully inspirational video.

Let us know what you think!

Who's Guiding What in 2012

2011-11-10T18:42:00.000-05:00

If you want to know which trips your favorite leaders are guiding next year, look no further. Remember that the first 6 women to sign up for any tour receive 5% discounts, so it pays to sign up early!

Carol Wilder
Meandering Mississippi
Tour de Tetons
Around Lake Ontario #2
Vermont Champlain Valley

Denise Purdue
Bhutan #2
Moab Arches and Canyonlands
New Mexico Land of Enchantment
Blue Ridge Rambler
Maryland Eastern Shore-Northern (October)
Death Valley National Park (November)

Kimberly Masters
Bhutan #1
Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard (spring)
NY Finger Lakes
Tour de Tetons
Alaska & the Yukon Golden Circle
Blue Ridge Rambler

Laurie Collins
Hawaii: Circling the Big Island
Hawaii: Big Island for Beginners
Maryland Eastern Shore-Northern
Maryland Eastern Shore-Southern
Washington DC Bikeways
Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard
NY Finger Lakes
Jersey Shore: Cape May
Glacier National Park
Idaho Greenways
Outer Banks of North Carolina

Linda Baldwin
Hawaii: Circling the Big Island
Death Valley National Park
Louisiana Biking the Bayou
Mississippi Natchez Trace
Pacific Coast

Linda Gryzan

Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
Teton Valley
Glacier National Park
Idaho Greenways

Lynne Brach
Meandering Mississippi
Michigan Grand Traverse
Outer Banks of North Carolina
Amalfi Coast of Italy

Michelle Slusher
Arizona Spring Training
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley
Louisiana Biking the Bayou
Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
Teton Valley
Around Lake Ontario #1
Colorado: Our Ride the Rockies
Pacific Coast

Patty Jackson
Death Valley National Park
Moab Arches and Canyonlands
Around Lake Ontario #1
Colorado: Our Ride the Rockies
New Mexico Land of Enchantment

Sid Moffat
Hawaii: Big Island for Beginners
Mississippi Natchez Trace
Maryland Eastern Shore-Northern
Maryland Eastern Shore-Southern
Washington DC Bikeways
Alaska Inside Passage
Alaska & the Yukon Golden Circle
Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard (fall)
Jersey Shore: Cape May

New 2012 Catalog

2011-10-03T11:05:00.000-04:00

Our new tour catalog with our 2012 schedule is at the printer. It should be mailed Friday, so it should arrive in your mailbox in another week or so. Look for it!

If you can name the mountain our two cyclists are biking toward, you'll get a free pair of cycling socks. Just email us at info at womantours.com with your answer.

And if you can't wait two weeks, you can also download a digital version by Requesting a Catalog Here.

Follow the blogs of our Second Northern Tier Tour

2011-07-08T09:24:00.000-04:00

Our second Northern Tier tour began this week. You can follow their journey through their blogs here:
Judie Davidson
Carolyn Froeberg
Kit Fruscione
Peggy Kehew
Ellen Martyn
Clark Taylor
Elisabeth Tully
Susan Rosenthal

Cross-Country Northern Tier Blogs

2011-05-23T17:00:00.008-04:00

Our Northern Tier cross-country tour got off to a stormy start as thunderstorms and rain raged around them. Nothing seemed to dampen their spirits as they left Fargo heading to Bar Harbor, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean. You can follow their trip by reading the blogs below.

Wish them the best of luck with us!

Sue Hersman
Sara Hopper
Donna Quartaro & Bev Junginger
Rhonda Rose
Rita Rowe

Blogs about our Southern Tier cross-country bike tour

2011-02-22T17:56:00.008-05:00

Our Southern Tier cross-country bike tour starts next week. Eighteen women will dip their tires in the Pacific Ocean by San Diego next Friday and start their 3000 mile trek across the southern United States by bicycle.

Several of the women will keep blogs of their journey. Follow them here:
Ruth Dudgeon
Marge Galloway
Katherine Jeter
Eva Laevastu
Fiona McTavish
Lisa Meerts-Brandsma
Liz Siaba
Linda Tilley

New Beginner Tour added to 2011 Schedule

2011-02-04T17:02:00.000-05:00

Sandra rides on our Washington DC Bikeways tour last spring.

We recently revised our Washington DC tour to make it on all bike paths. It's our newest beginner tour. If you like flat bicycling on traffic-free rail trails, then this is the tour for you. Join us:

May 23 - 28, 2011

September 18 - 23, 2011

Tour the national monuments and bike through rural Virginia with us. If you're still undecided, then watch our video about last year's tour, and you'll surely come!

Women's Cycling Survey Report Now Ready

2011-01-27T13:51:00.000-05:00

Last year, the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycling Professionals conducted a survey for female cyclists. We helped promote it here on our blog and a whopping 13,000 women responded!

The report is now ready for your reading pleasure. Click here and scroll down to the bottom of the page for a link to the full report. If you're time-crunched like me, you'll skip to the last section and read,

The operation of motorized vehicles, (especially distracted driving) dominate women’s safety concerns about cycling. Furthermore, infrastructure change, particularly the addition of more bike lanes, appears to be a primary factor for increasing women’s cycling.

In other words, if we construct more ways to separate cars from bikes, more women will ride their bicycles more often. My guess is this may be just as true for men and children. At the risk of plagiarizing Kevin Costner, "If we build it, they will come."

So find out what your local area is doing to create more bike lanes and bicycle paths, and offer your help. To find the groups working in your area, go to the Alliance for Biking & Walking. The more people who get out of their cars and onto their bicycles, the safer it will be for all of us!

Staying in Shape through the Winter

2011-01-18T11:36:00.000-05:00

I’d vowed to bicycle once a week through this winter to help stay in shape and to fight off those winter blues. With the record snowfall and the intermittent cold spells this season, it’s been a tough resolution to keep. Fortunately, I also thought a monthly trip might help get me through to spring and true cycling season.

When I led our Yellowstone National Park bike tour for the first time last June, I knew I wanted to return this winter. I wanted to see the park without all the people and to see the hot springs and geysers amidst all the snow. So I planned a cross-country ski trip to Yellowstone to help keep my legs in shape and the winter blues at bay this January.


Bison use the roads for easier walking.

What I hadn’t realized is the haven that is Yellowstone for wildlife in the winter. The thermal areas keep the rivers from freezing and make food easier to find. I saw trumpeter swans, snow geese and bald eagles everywhere. In addition, the snow makes for easy tracking. It made me realize that foxes, elk, snowshoe hares and bison were all around us even when we didn’t see them.

But we saw plenty. We watched two coyotes test the ice with their front paws, trying to close in on four swans in a small patch of moving water on the Yellowstone River. After much squawking and wing flapping, the swans called their bluff and the coyotes sauntered away.

We also watched a pack of wolves circle a herd of bison. We counted 13 wolves as they maneuvered to separate a weak animal. They eventually gave up and disappeared into the forested hillside. Then we listened as they howled and as another pack miles away answered their call. It was one of those moments most of us only watch in nature shows on TV.

Petrified lodgepole pines.

The wildlife was a bonus I hadn’t planned on. And so was the weight I lost during the trip, despite three huge meals a day. We XC skied through fresh powder down Dunraven Pass, across regenerated forests from the great wildfires of 1988, and to mud pots and fumaroles and geysers. We broke trails for miles through the backcountry, using compass readings to find hot springs not noted on most maps. I skied until I couldn’t move anymore.

If you’re looking to fight off your winter blues, get in shape for bicycling, or see wildlife as you never have before, consider visiting Yellowstone this winter. There’s no place like it. And if you do go, stay in the yurts with Yellowstone Expeditions. I had a blast, and I’m not being paid to say this.

I think I love Nordic skiing as much as bicycling. I may just have to keep up my cycling to stay in shape for next ski season….

Give an Adventure Cycling Membership

2010-12-09T20:59:00.000-05:00

We are a proud Gold Sponsor of the nonprofit organization Adventure Cycling. These folks out in Missoula, Montana work to inspire people to bicycle by researching the best cycling routes, producing the incredibly detailed bike maps, and publishing the fascinating Adventure Cyclist magazine.

In return for our donation, they gave us 10 annual memberships to give away. We'd like to give them to you to give to someone else. That seems only appropriate given the holiday season. We'll gift them to you so you can pass them onto someone who could use a little inspiration to get on their bike.

Let us know who could use a free membership. Leave a comment to this blog here, write on our wall or comment on Facebook. If you'd like more privacy, send me an email to jackie at womantours.com. We'll send memberships out to the most compelling messages. Thanks and happy holidays!

Our 2011 Guide Schedule

2010-11-29T15:38:00.000-05:00

Every year we receive emails wondering which tours your favorite leaders are working. Here's our 2011 schedule by guide:

Jennifer Thompson

NY: Finger Lakes Wine Country


Linda Gryczan

California: Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley-Spring
Idaho Greenways
Idaho Greenways Private Reunion Tour
Idaho: Teton Tune-Up
Glacier National Park

Patty Jackson

Hawaii: Circling the Big Island
Mississippi: The Natchez Trace Parkway
Utah: Moab Arches and Canyonlands
Cross-Country Northern Tier Eastern Segment (5/19-6/11)
Idaho: Teton Tune-Up
Glacier National Park
New Mexico: Land of Enchantment
Amalfi Coast of Italy
California: Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley-Fall

Kimberly Masters

Death Valley National Park (2/13-2/18)
Arizona Spring Training
Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
Idaho: Teton Valley
Alaska and the Yukon: The Golden Circle

Michelle Slusher

Death Valley National Park (2/13-2/18)
Arizona Spring Training
Texas Hill Country
Louisiana: Biking the Bayou
Utah: Moab Arches and Canyonlands
California: Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley
Cross-Country Northern Tier Eastern Segment (7/6-8/17)


Laurie Collins

Bicycling in Bhutan (4/7-4/16)
Maryland Eastern Shore-Northern
Maryland Eastern Shore-Southern
Washington DC Bikeways
Shenandoah National Park
Massachusetts: Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard
NY: Finger Lakes Wine Country
Michigan Grand Traverse
Michigan Harbor Country
Maine: Downeast and Acadia National Park
Pennsylvania Dutch Country
Outer Banks of North Carolina

Linda Baldwin

Cross-Country Southern Tier
Idaho Greenways
Idaho Greenways Private Reunion Tour
Cross-Country Northern Tier Eastern Segment
Death Valley National Park Private Reunion Tour

Lynne Brach

Death Valley National Park (2/7-2/12)
Texas Hill Country
Louisiana: Biking the Bayou
Michigan Grand Traverse
New Mexico: Land of Enchantment
Pennsylvania Dutch Country
Outer Banks of North Carolina


Denise Purdue

Hawaii: Circling the Big Island
Cross-Country Northern Tier (5/19-6/11)
Massachusetts: Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard-Fall
Washington DC Bikeways-Fall

Sid Moffatt

Mississippi: The Natchez Trace Parkway
Maryland Eastern Shore-Northern
Maryland Eastern Shore-Southern
W ashington DC Bikeways
Alaska: The Inside Passage

Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
Idaho: Teton Valley
Alaska and the Yukon: The Golden Circle

Carol Wilder

Cross-Country Southern Tier
Shenandoah National Park
Maine: Downeast and Acadia National Park
Death Valley National Park Private Reunion Tour

Gloria Smith

Bicycling in Bhutan

Jackie Marchand

Michigan Harbor Country

Yvonne Jackson: Cross-Country Northern Tier (6/10-6/30 and 7/6-7/29)
Cheryl Heffernan: Death Valley National Park (2/7-2/12) and Massachusetts: Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard-Spring

New Radio Podcast about WomanTours

2010-10-23T21:54:00.001-04:00

WomanTours was the focus of the bicycling radio show The Outspoken Cyclist this week. You can hear my interview along with Cheryl Teare who did our Finger Lakes Wine Country bike tour last year. It was fun remembering how I got into cycling, how I came to WomanTours, how hot it was on Cheryl's tour last year. It was my 15 minutes of fame. A big thank you to Diane Lees, the host of the show.

You can listen to the podcast on the WJCU radio station website here.

Or on iTunes here.

Washington DC Bikeways tour in video

2010-10-15T16:07:00.000-04:00

Washington, D.C. Bikeways from WomanTours on Vimeo.

Annette has done it again. She's produced a wonderful video about our Washington DC Bikeways tour. It shows you what it's like to be on one of our tours. Watch our video here and be sure to let us know what you think. And then tell all your friends - thanks!

Name our cover girls for free cycling socks

2010-10-12T10:02:00.000-04:00

Our 2011 tour catalog is out! If you can name our cover girls, we'll send you a free pair of cycling socks.

Hint: one of them is a guide and the other has been on 14 tours with us.

You can guess as often as you like until November 15, 2010, but you can only win 1 pair of socks per person. Surely, someone out there was on their Moab tour last year where this photo was taken.

Click here to get your own copy of our tour catalog.

Adirondacks in Autumn multi-sport tour

2010-10-04T15:04:00.001-04:00

“Ode to the Adirondacks”
by Lisa Szymanski, September 2010

Day 1

We all got on the van in Albany,

Excited for the adventure that was about to be.

Sid and Jackie dropped us off at the side of the road,

Saying, “So long, ladies! The van will carry your load!”

The first long hill nearly did us all in;

“What?” we call cried, “we have to climb more again?”

We finally rolled in to The Hedges before dark,

A charming little camp in Adirondack Park.

We stuffed ourselves at dinner and we talked biking lingo,

Then WomanTours kicked butt during Sunday night bingo!

Day 2

The rain started falling but it didn’t get us down;

Ann showed us how to kayak (and hopefully not drown).

Our destination: a picnic spot “just beyond that next pine;”

“Are we there yet?”, “My arms hurt!” We were not doing fine!

A little lunch, a warm fire, and we were back on our way,

But the wind had picked up – felt like the Chesapeake Bay!

Hours later, paddling as hard as we could,

We finally docked – land never looked so good!

Day 3

Next came “The Hike” – straight up a rock!

We followed Sid and Jackie, the unsuspecting flock.

We slipped and we tripped, we grabbed roots and huffed and puffed;

“How much farther?”, “My legs hurt!”, “I think I’ve had enough!”

But oh, the peak! The vista! The view!

We wolfed down our lunch and hit the “green room!”

Day 4

On to more cycling; by now we all knew the drill:

Get into your lowest gear if you wanna make it up that hill!

Barely crawling up them at 3 miles per hour,

“Damn! I’m out of lower gears and my legs are out of power!”

But oh, those downhills – I tell ya, it was scary!

(Kind of like the feeling when we almost lost Mary!)

Day 5

Our first day in Keene Valley and it’s rained and rained some more;

Some of us went hiking – we are so hard core!

We scampered over puddles while others relaxed back at “home,”

But we had our own treats – “Would anyone like a scone?”

Now it’s Thursday and we’re toasty, fed, and (mostly) dry;

“Only 2 days left?!” in disbelief we all cry.

One more day to cycle and one more day to hike,

To lace up our boots and to hop on the bike.

Each day we started low and we climbed together high,

Even with the raindrops falling from the sky.

Sid and Jackie kept us well-fed and watered every day,

Encouraged us and cheered us every step of the way,

Believed we could do it, no matter what our skills –

I think we’ll miss them dearly, but not these frikkin’ hills!

Day 6

The weather looked iffy, so we split up the group;

A few drove to Lake Placid while others cycled the loop.

The drizzle splattered our glasses ‘til we couldn’t see nothin’

Yet we had to work off those banana nut muffins!

The mountains were hidden in cold clouds of mist;

The road was slick with wet pine needles – well, you get the gist.

We thought about sagging at the 11.2 turn

But Jackie missed the stop – yeah, we got burned.

Made us climb up the grade – thank god for that granny!

(My toes were going numb, not to mention my fanny!)

Oh the joys of cycling – the fresh air, give me a dose!

And what better way to see road kill up close?

We finally re-grouped in the Olympic Village;

Twelve women with credit cards, the stores we did pillage!

Day 7

Now the last day is dawning – it is cold, crisp, but clear;

One last walk in the woods as the end draws near.

An easy trek over bridges through sun-dappled trees;

We’re all feeling good – no achy knees!

One last picnic together, some last M&Ms;

A lot of us planning to do this again.

So goodbye to our saddles and paddles and wool socks;

I think we all agree: WomanTours rocks!

Miles for Mariann is top Bike MS Fund Raising Team

2010-08-26T11:53:00.000-04:00

Michelle (front, left); Cele (back, 3rd from left) Carolyn (back, 4th from left)

One of the great things about our bike tours is the friendships we make while on them. Michelle, from our office, met Carolyn on our Pennsylvania Dutch Country tour last year. This year, she joined Carolyn and another WomanTours fan, Cele, on their Bike MS team MS Miles for Mariann. Together they were the top find raising team for the Finger Lakes Challenge. They raised $20,848.13 for the National MS Society - Congratulations!

Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Bike Guides

2010-08-18T17:35:00.000-04:00

If you're lucky enough to travel with Michelle as your guide, then you've probably heard her pick her guitar and sing a song or two. But if you dream about becoming a bike tour guide yourself, you may want to think again. Michelle graciously shared these lyrics wish us from one of her latest songs.

If you want to see and hear Michelle sing another one of her songs, watch our Moab bike tour video here.

Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be bike guides
Don't let em pick guitars and drive them old trucks
Their bikes are worth more than their retirement funds.
Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be bike guides
Cause they'll never stay home and they're always alone
Doing the work that they love.

Bike guides ain't easy to find, they don't answer their phones
Facebook's the only way you know where they're at on the globe
The college degrees we've all gotten have just turned to dust
Cause the thought of the blue cube and living inside
Just turns our minds to mush.

Beat up sunglasses and old Pearl Izumi
Cut off t-shirts and tanned feet
They drink too much coffee and beer
Cause they never sleep.
Them that don't know em think their life's like a rock star's
Working is really all play
But they get up at dawn and they're always on
Until the last light of day.

Bike guides get the smoky motel rooms and roll away beds
They have to be cook, mechanic, counselor and friend
Backing the trailer's a skill that they do to no end
And they can dance on the roof in high winds with a bike in each hand.

Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be bike guides
Don't let em pick guitars and drive them old trucks
Their bikes are worth more than their retirement funds.
Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be bike guides
Cause they'll never stay home and they're always alone
Doing the work that they love.

Barbara Minnick

2010-08-12T09:41:00.006-04:00

It’s taken me a long time to be able to write about this. We lost a WomanTours bicyclist last month. Barbara Minnick was hit from behind while she was biking on our Northern Tier Western Segment Tour near Minot, North Dakota.

The driver was a 48-year-old man in a pick-up truck. He was on the way to his son’s wedding. It was a 4-lane divided road, straight, with little traffic. It was a warm sunny afternoon with a nice tailwind, and you could see for miles, but he didn't see her until it was too late. She flew off her bike and landed in soft, tall grass.

That's the part I’d like to remember. It was a beautiful resting place, with farmland all around. I want to believe she died instantly and painlessly.

The Meandering Mississippi was Barbara's first tour with us in 2007. She did a tour every year after that, and I saw her on each of them.

I’ll never forget the first time I met her. She told me that we needed to proof our printed material better. It was as if she’d stabbed me, but she was right. I’ve tried to do better ever since, but I always knew I could count on her to point out our itinerary inaccuracies. Every year, she’d go over them at home before the tour and email me so I could fix our mistakes.

I was cycling with her once when her bike got caught on a lip in the pavement and she fell over. She hurt an arm that had been healing from a previous injury. After a little first aid, she got up and back on her bike. She may have been 70, but she was tough. And she loved that bike and bicycling.

I could also tell that she loved WomanTours as a community more with each year. We all watched her blossom into the confident, kind, funny, caring and loving person she was on this year’s tour. My heart goes out to the women who have biked with her and known her through the years with WomanTours. And my heart goes out to her friends and family at home.

She died doing what she loved, so I try to remember that to make the loss easier.

I received an email yesterday from Marissa who is about to do her first tour with us. She’s new to biking and is madly training to get in shape for the tour. I emailed her, “Isn’t the biking fun?” And she replied, “Its more than fun, it's a whole new sense of freedom!”

Sometimes that freedom can be all too fleeting. Be careful out there. Wear bright colors, bike defensively and cherish every moment. I am honored to have known Barbara and to have biked with her. I will miss her.

Just back from our Finger Lakes bike tour

2010-07-08T17:17:00.001-04:00

We're in the midst of a heat wave here in the northeast, but that didn't deter any of the women on our Finger Lakes Wine Country tour from bicycling. Once again though, the beautiful scenery took a back seat to the amazing women themselves.

There was Sandy, whose daughter Ellen talked her into doing the trip with her. Having recently undergone knee replacement surgery, Sandy experienced a personal best every day. She'd never bicycled as many miles in her life!

And there was Julie, who was recovering from a broken foot and discovering that she really could bike hills again.

And Alison and Juli, who may well become the next Food Network star - watch for her!

And Meri and Kathy, who I met 6 years ago in Sicily, and who continue to remind me what best friends are - thank you.

Northern Tier Tours Take Off!

2010-06-23T13:23:00.000-04:00

Our two Northern Tier tours left the coast of Anacortes, Washington for the plains of Fargo, North Dakota one day apart last week. Wish them fair skies and tailwinds!

Most of Tour #1.

Almost all of Tour #2

To follow some of the women on their bike tour halfway across the country, follow these blogs:
Vicky Chapman
Sherrie Kingsley
Kathy Leonard
Ellen Martyn
Barbara Minnick
Mary Palmberg
Clark Taylor
Linda Tilley

Lessons Learned on Today's Bike Ride

2010-06-19T20:21:00.003-04:00

I carpooled with Marcia today to meet some running buddies for lunch followed by a bike ride. After lunch, I took my bike out of my Marcia's trunk to put the wheels back on. I heard one of my friends say, "Let's watch Jackie put her rear wheel back on so we can learn how to do it. She's the expert."

Well, for the life of me, I couldn't get it on. The chain had gotten all turned around and kinked. I'd never seen anything like it. Feeling the pressure, I undid the master link on the chain, thinking that would make it easier to get the rear wheel on. Then I'd be able to unkink the chain and rehook the master link.

Suddenly, the link slipped off the chain and down between two wooden slats on the deck where I was standing. It was 14'' below us, but it may as well have been a mile. We couldn't see the tiny link among all the debris and there was no way to get beneath the deck anyway.

My friends took off for their bike ride and Marcia offered to drive me to a bike shop to buy a new chain. When I asked the guy behind the counter for a chain, he said, "You don't need a new chain, you need a new rear derailleur!" In all my anxiety, I hadn't realized that the broken derailleur was the reason I couldn't get the wheel on. That explained the strange popping noise I'd heard when I'd put the bike in the trunk of the car!

After a few phone calls to area bike shops, I found a Campagnolo 8-speed rear derailleur - kind of a relic these days, so I'll be spending the evening installing it.

So what were the lessons learned?
1.) Be sure you're on firm ground before attempting a bike repair.
2.) No matter how much you think you know, there's a guy at a bike shop that knows more.
3.) Don't car pool to lunch - ride your bike.

My broken rear derailleur

Back home from the Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park Tour

2010-06-17T12:42:00.000-04:00

It looks like a fake backdrop, doesn't it? It's the actual scenic overlook, Artist Point at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. This is most of our group, minus the "SoCal girls, " who were probably busy tending to their beautiful ti bikes.

The daily weather forecast was for rain all week, but we stayed dry every day except the first. It was an amazing tour - Yellowstone more than lived up to its reputation. For more photos from the bike tour, click here.

Reunion before the Yellowstone tour

2010-06-07T00:42:00.000-04:00

The best part about bike tours is the friends you make who live all over the country.

I arrived in Driggs, ID yesterday in prep for the start of our Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks tour. It's the home of WomanTours founder Gloria Smith. She cooked a lovely dinner for me and co-leader Linda.

We dined with Phyllis and Lynn, who I met 2 years ago on our Italy tour. And I got to see Ellen who does all of our graphic design, like our annual tour catalog. She lives in St. Anthony, ID, so we don't get to see each other very often. The sun shined on us all evening. After Phyllis and Lynn finished telling me about their recent trip to the Galapagos, I talked them into joining us in Bhutan next year!

left to right: Me, Phyllis, Linda, Lynn, Gloria, Ellen

Bicycling in Bhutan

2010-06-03T09:41:00.000-04:00

When I asked Marian Marbury of Adventures in Good Company where I should plan a bike tour, she immediately suggested Bhutan. I’d never heard of it. But her enthusiasm piqued my interest.

At about the same time, I received some unsolicited literature in the mail from a Bhutanese bicycle touring company. Before I knew anything more than Bhutan was nestled between China and India, I was heading to the small Asian country to plan a bike tour. It was providence.

The first thing you learn about Bhutan is how hard it is to get to. Halfway around the world is a long way to fly. There’s only 1 airline – Drukair – that flies into Bhutan and only one city – Bangkok – that offers daily flights. However, I’m thankful for this, as it will help slow down the change that is quickly overtaking Bhutan. If you want to go to Bhutan, then you have to go soon. But I get ahead of myself.

Bhutan is twice the size of Maryland, with a population smaller than the metropolitan area of my hometown of Rochester, NY. Three-fourths of the country is covered in forest. The capital city of Thimphu doesn’t have a stoplight. In fact, there isn’t a stoplight anywhere in the country. They’ve only had paved roads since the 1950s and there’s very little traffic.

The monarchy government declared a democracy, appointed a Minister of Domestic Happiness, and opened the nation’s borders to tourism just a couple years ago. They’re working hard at bringing the positive side of modernization, such as electricity and education, to all Bhutanese.

But I couldn’t help but wonder as I passed the line of hotels under construction by the airport, how long will it be until Bhutan starts to see some of our western problems? There is no talk of pollution, unemployment, crime, corruption or homelessness in Bhutan. They just don’t exist as they do here in the western world.

There’s no separation of church and state in Bhutan either. Buddhism is a way of life. Prayer flags are everywhere. They live their faith. I’ve never been to a place that treasures traditions, honors natural resources, and cherishes life like in Bhutan. I’m not a religious person, but Bhutan felt like a holy place to me.

Maybe a story from my trip can explain it best. As we were driving in Bhutan, we heard a small thump. We stopped and all got out of the car to see a bird lain dead in the middle of the road. I watched as my guide picked it up gently, petted it, and then set the bird softly down in the tall grass on the side of the road. He said hopefully, “The bird’s soul will return to the world as a higher being.” All I could think about is the times back home when I’d hit a bird and never stopped.

You’ll surely come away from Bhutan with your own lessons. I was reminded to stop and care about the little things.

Bicycles in Bhutan are still an anomaly. If you want to see a place in transition before it’s changed forever, before it becomes the next China, India or even Vietnam, then join us for Bicycling in Bhutan. I guarantee that it will be beautiful and fascinating. And you might even learn a lesson or two.

Women's Bike Ride in Freeport Maine

2010-05-24T17:27:00.000-04:00

The only bad thing about working our Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks bike tour this June is I can't join the Women's Ride in Freeport, Maine on June 13th.

Coordinated by the Bicycle Coalition of Maine, this 9th annual event is extremely well-run. There are a variety of bike ride options: 50, 25, 15 and 5. Surely, anyone can find a suitable distance for herself!

So if you're looking for an excuse to bike in Maine, join hundreds of other women in Freeport (home of LL Bean.) If it weren't for Yellowstone, I'd be there. So many places to bike, so little time!

Santa Barbara Tour and Michelle Green Update

2010-05-20T14:48:00.000-04:00

Here are the beautiful women of our Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez Valley bike tour, except for Michelle Slusher who must have been taking the picture. They've obviously cleaned up from the day's bike ride and are waiting for dinner.

As for my sister, Michelle (front, far right,) she rode 56 miles that day. Some of the women she was biking with had a slew of flat tires. After fixing all of them, they just flat ran out of time. They took a short ride in our van so they wouldn't be late for dinner. Can't say as I blame them!

Michelle on our Santa Barbara tour

2010-05-13T09:18:00.000-04:00

When my sister Michelle started working for WomanTours, she didn't even own a bike. Four tours, 2 flat tires and a couple hundred dollars in clothes later, she's now a bona fide cyclist. She's on our Santa Barbara tour now, enjoying the sunshine and dreading today's 69-mile day. She doesn't know it yet, but she's ready for it - she's been biking to work a couple times a week this spring, up a nasty hill. If she bikes all today's miles, it will be her personal best....

Save $283 on our new Washington DC bike tour

2010-05-12T09:46:00.000-04:00

Save $283.50 if you can fill the last space on our Washington DC Bikeways bike tour May 24-29, 2010. We're offering a 15% discount to anyone who can go at this last minute and take the last spot. The money you save can pay for your flight to the tour, or you can drive and leave your car at the start.

We're psyched about our newest tour. It's nearly all on bike paths, quiet, car-free, pastoral. You'll forget you're in a huge urban center. You'll get the chance to bike by the Lincoln Memorial, the Smithsonian and along the Potomac River. Our photographer Annette is going, so you'll be sure to get some beautiful pictures while you're there too.

Call or email us if you're interested!

List of Women's Only Rides

2010-04-17T11:37:00.000-04:00

If you missed the women's only Cinderella Classic bike ride in California last week, then consider joining one of these upcoming women's only cycling events. We're going to try to attend as many as possible.

Girls with Gears in Limerick, PA on 4/18/10
Goldilocks Women Only in Herriman, UT on 5/8/10
Velo de Femme in Paso Robles, CA on 5/29/10
Little Red Riding Hood in Logan, UT on 6/5/10
Annual Women's Ride in Freeport, ME on 6/13/10
Venus de Miles in Longmont, CO on 8/29/10
Hope on Wheels in Leiper's Fork, TN on 9/11/10
Cycle the Wave in Issaquah, WA on 9/19/10
Princess Promenade in Sacramento, CA on 10/3/10
La Tour de Femme in Cary, NC on 10/9/10
Wild Goose Chase in Cambridge, MD on 10/17/10
Cinderella Classic in Pleasanton, CA on 4/2/11

Bicycling the Cinderella Classic

2010-04-12T16:33:00.000-04:00

I joined 2499 other women in bicycling the Cinderella Classic on Saturday. It's an extremely well-organized, women-only, metric century coordinated by the Valley Spokemen Bicycle Touring Club in California every year.

After the ride, we sponsored a drawing at our booth for a free WomanTours trip. Of the 244 women who entered, Nancy Levin of San Francisco was the lucky winner. Many thanks to Roxanne and Meri for staffing the booth and for Kathy for pushing me so hard on the ride.

Get on the mailing list now and plan to join us next year. The ride sells out every year!

Our Tour Schedule by Guide

2010-04-08T11:03:00.000-04:00

While we think all WomanTours guides are excellent, I know that some of you have your favorites. So here's a listing of our 2010 tours by guide. It might help you decide where to bicycle this year - good luck!

Carol Wilder
Vermont Champlain Valley
Downeast Maine and Acadia National Park
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard

Denise Purdue
Northern Tier Cross-Country #1
New Mexico Land of Enchantment

Jennifer Thompson
Finger Lakes Wine Country

Kimberly Masters
Shenandoah National Park
Tour de Tetons
Downeast Maine and Acadia National Park

Laurie Collins
Maryland Eastern Shore
Washington DC Bikeways - May & September
Shenandoah National Park
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard - June
Tour de Tetons
Teton Valley
Glacier National Park
Pennsylvania Dutch Country
Outer Banks of North Carolina
Arizona in Autumn
Death Valley National Park

Linda Baldwin
Northern Tier Cross-Country #2
Arizona in Autumn
Death Valley National Park

Linda Gryczan
Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
Teton Valley
Glacier National Park
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley - October

Lynne Brach
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley - May
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard - June & September
Michigan Grand Traverse
Washington DC Bikeways - September
Pennsylvania Dutch Country

Michelle Slusher
Northern Tier Cross-Country #2
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley - May & October
Northern Tier Cross-Country #2
Sun Valley
Idaho Greenways
Grand Canyon, Bryce and Capitol Reef National Parks
Moab: Arches and Canyonlands National Parks

Patty Jackson
Maryland Eastern Shore
Washington DC Bikeways - May
Northern Tier Cross-Country #1
Sun Valley
Idaho Greenways
New Mexico Land of Enchantment
Grand Canyon, Bryce and Capitol Reef National Parks
Moab: Arches and Canyonlands National Parks
Outer Banks of North Carolina

Sid Moffat
Alaska: The Inside Passage
Michigan Grand Traverse
Vermont Champlain Valley

and me...
Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
Finger Lakes Wine Country
Amalfi Coast of Italy #1
Adirondack State Park

Go to a National Park for free!

2010-04-07T17:28:00.001-04:00

In celebration of National Parks Week, entrance fees to all 392 National Parks are being waived during the 9 days of April 17-25, 2010. So grab your bike or your hiking shoes, but leave your cash at home, because admission is free! Read more about National Park Week here.

If you can't make it your favorite park this month, then consider one of the many tours that we do that includes a visit to a national park. We always include admission to the park for free!

Use Google Maps for Bicycling Routes

2010-04-02T13:32:00.000-04:00

I use Google Maps for everything -- not just to get me where I'm going, but to help me design and update routes on our bike tours. I also use it to help me plan our tour schedule by telling me how long it takes to get our vehicles from place to place.

Now, it can also help me to commute by bike. The next time you're looking up driving directions, click on the "By Car" option and change it to "Bicycling". Then click "Get Directions." Google displays a bike-friendly route.

Google's not always correct. Sometimes it misses a bike path that I know about, or puts me on a high-traffic road, but it's also helped me find new routes that I had never tried before.

Use it whether you're looking to commute by bike or not. The more that Google sees that there's a need for it, the more they'll invest in making it accurate. It can only get better with time and use.

Update on International Tour Survey

2010-03-26T10:56:00.000-04:00

It's been a little over a month since we began our international tour survey. If you haven't taken it yet and want to register your preference, click here to take our survey.

So far, 226 people have weighed in and Italy is by far the overall winner. That's a good thing, as we already go to Italy. There's still space on our fall tours to the Amalfi Coast. Here are our results to date:

Argentina - 64
Belize - 53
Bhutan - 32
Italy - 101
Peru - 56
South Africa - 48
Vietnam - 50

The country with the most write-in votes is France with 17 with Ireland running a close second at 15. Thanks for your input. We'll keep counting and we'll keep working on some new international tours for y'all!

Please Take This Cycling Survey

2010-03-23T16:48:00.002-04:00

The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) is coordinating a survey of female bicyclists. Please take the anonymous survey by clicking on the link - I did. It's worth the 15 minutes of your time. I hope it helps get more women and girls on their bikes!

The APBP is also sponsoring a free webinar on March 31, 2010 at 3:00pm eastern time. It's entitled, Writing Women Back into Bicycling: Changing Transportation Culture to Encourage More Women to Cycle More Places More Often. Read more about it and register here.

Feel free to pass this information on to all the female cyclists you know.

NY Bicycling Coalition Seeks Executive Director

2010-03-22T12:38:00.000-04:00

The New York Bicycling Coalition (NYBC) seeks an Executive Director. It is a well established, 20 year-old statewide non-profit organization whose mission is to provide a coherent, credible voice for the interests of all bicyclists in the state, on- or off-road, recreational or racer. NYBC is looking for a highly energetic, innovative
individual willing to make at least a three-year commitment to this challenging position.

The Executive Director has responsibility for all NYBC activities, including:

1) Working with the Board of Directors on legislative matters and meetings with representatives from New York State government Executive and Legislative branches and other priorities that may arise.
2) Communication with members and other related parties via the tri-annual newsletter, website updates, monthly e-news and club outreach letters, and managing an ongoing membership drive.
3) General program administration, operational activities, grants management, and regular correspondence with the Board.
4) Annual budgets for the Board’s review and advice, oversee the allocation of financial and staff resources among the various projects and functions, and devise any needed work plans.
5) Networking with personal contacts, cycling groups, and officials for the purpose of NYBC program and fund development.

The Qualifications needed for the position are:
1) Commitment to the mission: The E/D is a cyclist and committed to creating an improved, safer environment for bicycling throughout New York State. This involves working collaboratively with an equally committed volunteer Board of Directors.
2) Strong communication skills: The E/D is the public "face" of the organization, and needs excellent written, presentation and oral communication skills. Ideally, the candidate will also have some web programming and desktop publishing experience.
3) Leadership skills: The E/D must have the capacity to work with a wide array of interests — government officials, bicycle clubs, civic and business leaders and the news media. The E/D will have thoughts and plans on reaching-out to clubs for mobilizing and activating their membership.
4) Professional expertise: The E/D must have an understanding of bicycling, pedestrian and transportation issues. This includes the ability to manage advocacy and plan projects. A body of published papers and presentations and recognized stature in the field is a plus.
5) Management skills: The E/D must be able to identify strategies for achieving NYBC goals, and raise resources to support those strategies. Key is the ability to plan and budget, evaluate operations and programs, and control spending. E/D must also be able to manage outside consultants as well as full and part-time paid staff.

Salary range: $35K-40K/yr (with benefits)
Start Date: Spring 2010
Resumes accepted until an Executive Director is selected, expected to be early April.
Location: Capital Region of New York, the seat of State Government

To apply, please send the following materials via email to the Coalition or mail to:
NYBC Executive Director Search
PO Box 8868
Albany, NY 12208
1. Cover letter that speaks to your experience in fundraising and campaign management.
2. Résumé
3. Two writing samples of less than one page each for which you were the sole author--one should be a fundraising piece and the other should reflect advocacy or policy work.

The New York Bicycling Coalition is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Subaru Outback Joins Cross-Country Tour Fleet

2010-03-14T11:56:00.000-04:00

Please welcome the newest member of the WomanTours support vehicle fleet. She's a 2007 Subaru Outback, soon to be equipped with WomanTours signage, roof rack, first aid kit, bicycle tool kit, water cooler, snack tray, spare tires and tubes, sunscreen and toilet paper.

We'll use her as a SAG (Support and Gear) vehicle on our Northern Tier tour this June instead of a sweep bicyclist. Four of our riders will switch off driving her along the route, providing everything a fellow bicyclist might need, including a lift. In return for volunteering their time one out of every four days, the SAG drivers receive a discount on the tour price. We still need one more driver for this summer's tour.

We use our Subarus and SAG drivers on all our epic bike tours, such as the cross-country Southern Tier and Northern Tier, the Meandering Mississippi and the Northwest Loop. We couldn't run the tours without them!

12 Years to the Southern Tier

2010-03-11T20:41:00.000-05:00

It took Patti Hall 12 years to finally do our Southern Tier cross-country bike tour. It was 1998 when she read this article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and she's been hanging onto it ever since. She gave it to me at the start of this year's tour in San Diego last week.

It was Barbara Manger who biked across the country and wrote about it 12 years ago. As she explains, "Every journey is about more than the journey."

She used the tour to raise $28,000 in the fight against breast cancer, and as top fund raiser on the tour, she won a Terry bicycle. She gave it to a friend who didn't have a bike and who's since become an avid cyclist. While on the tour, Barbara came up with the idea to create a nonprofit to expose children to art. Twelve years later, her non-profit Artists Working in Education operates mobile truck studios bringing art and art-making materials to Milwaukee youth. Just last year, she got together with friends she met on the tour and they all biked the all-female, metric century Cinderella Classic bike ride together. They still keep in touch.

And finally, 12 years later, she's inspired Patti Hall to do the tour. "I hope she has a great time - I did!"

Southern Tier cross-country bike tour takes off!

2010-03-08T16:17:00.001-05:00

Our 2010 Southern Tier cross-country bike tour left San Diego last Friday on a gorgeous sunny spring day. All 25 of them made it 40 miles down the road to the first stop in Alpine, at an altitude of 1800'. The group consists of a pair of sisters, a couple women in their 70s and a big bunch of bloggers. I think we have them all listed below now. We wish them a wonderful ride!

JoAnn Bary
Linda Beiler
Karen Cooper
Sue Hersman
Suzanne Howze
Kathy Kirby
Katie Lemley
Lois Nafziger
Rita Rowe

Visit to the Handmade Bicycle Show

2010-03-01T10:22:00.000-05:00

The Handmade Bicycle Show in Richmond this past weekend was a feast for snow-weary eyes. Beautiful bikes were everywhere. They ranged from the pristine, titanium beauties from Moots to the down, dirty and funky Banjo Bicycles here.

I couldn't justify a new bike quite yet, but I did plunk down $240 for a new pair of handmade cycling shoes from Dromarti. I figure I saved myself at least $10,000. Now that's a deal!

Creating the Perfect Southern Tier Bike Tour

2010-02-23T09:29:00.001-05:00

Our flagship event is our annual 2-month bike ride across the country from California to Florida - the Southern Tier Tour. I used to think that if we just conducted the trip often enough, we’d finally get it down to perfection. But after years of thinking that next year would be the year, I realized that every year, another challenge is thrown our way.

Roads close for construction and we have to reroute our cyclists. Heavy rain makes the Mississippi River rise; our ferry won’t run, so we suddenly have to commandeer cars to drive our bikers two hours over the nearest bridge. The only hotel in town tells us it’s changed ownership and lost our reservation. We scramble to find another hotel in another town, and hope our cyclists won’t be too tired to bike there. Every year, if it isn’t one thing, it’s another. We’ll never be done creating the perfect tour.

Over time, I’ve learned that breaking them down into manageable smaller tasks, the obstacles become easier to tackle. I call on my staff, our tour guides, our cadre of consultants (accountant, attorney, etc.) and my colleagues in the industry for help. Sometimes they come up with the wildest ideas that turn out to be the simplest solutions. And every year gets easier as I learn what’s worked from the past.

It’s not unlike what the women who sign up to bicycle the 3000 miles across the country with us must feel. Their tour at first must seem so insurmountable. But with a little training, a daily cue sheet outlining the bike route for the day, and a host of support around them, they find themselves at the Atlantic Ocean two months later.

This year's tour starts in 10 days. To follow some of our riders, read their blogs:
JoAnn Bary
Linda Beiler
Sue Hersman
Lois Nafziger
Rita Rowe

Future Tour Planning

2010-02-16T09:30:00.001-05:00

Just as our current touring season is getting underway, we're busy working on bike tours for future years. For beginners, we're bringing back our Katy Trail tour in Missouri, as well as creating a new Canal Trail and Spa tour in upstate New York.

A new moderate tour will be a shorter, 4-day tour in Michigan, designed by one of our guests - thanks Mel! It includes a winery visit, a climb on a 240' sand dune off Lake Michigan and a ride to the International Friendship Gardens.

Our newest advanced tour will be a 2-week trek around Lake Ontario. We're designing it with our cross-country cyclists in mind, with longer days, dinners out of the trailer, and our trusty Subaru SAG wagon.

We also have a lot of international travel plans in the works, so I'd love your input. Click here to cast your vote for where you'd like to travel interntionally with us.

North American Handmade Bicycle Show

2010-02-10T12:25:00.000-05:00

I plan to check out the North American Handmade Bicycle Show in Richmond, Virginia later this month. It will be a great opportunity to drool over all the beautiful bikes being made out there. If you're going to be anywhere near Richmond on Sunday, February 28, let me know. It would be good to see you. We can talk about how many bikes we own (I have 5) and why we need another one....

More Winter Bicycling Tips

2010-01-11T14:04:00.001-05:00

Here's some great advice from one of our cross-country tour cyclists, Peg from Seattle, for biking through the winter: (Peg's on the right with Pat above during our Northwest Loop last year.)

Leave your sunglasses at home.
Wear layers so you can disrobe as you warm up.
Check that your rims are clean so your brakes will work properly.
Don a waterproof jacket, pants, shoe covers, helmet cover and long-finger gloves.
Attach a couple blinking lights to your front and back so others can see you against those grey skies.
Note the temperature and wind direction and ride into the wind, so you'll have a tailwind on the way home.
Lastly, if you don't enjoy the zen-like experience of biking through rain and snow, say the heck with it all and curl up on the couch with a good book.
Or better yet, join us on our Cycling the Big Island in Hawaii tour January 20 - February 6, 2010. We have 1 spot left!

Bicycling Jerseys that Send a Message

2009-12-31T10:41:00.000-05:00

If you bicycle on the road, then you've probably been nearly run off of it sometime by a discourteous or oblivious driver. Here's your chance to talk back. Wear a jersey with a message.

I can't guarantee the fit. Looks to me as if they're styled for men, but wearing the message may make giving up a little style worth it. There are a bunch of different statements available and they're inexpensive too. Be safe.

Training Plan for the New Year

2009-12-22T09:54:00.000-05:00

I'm often asked about how to train for a bike tour. With the new year soon upon us, I thought it a good time to present the following 6-week bicycling training plan. It can be followed by someone new to cycling.

Week    Mon    Tues     Wed    Thurs    Fri       Sat       Sun       Total
1           off        ½ hr     off     ½ hr    off       1 hr    off        2 hrs
2   off        ½ hr     off    ½ hr      off       ½ hr     1½ hr 3 hrs
3   off        ½ hr     off    1 hr       off       1 hr      2 hr      4½ hrs
4           off        1 hr    off      1 hr       off       1 hr      3 hr      6 hrs
5           off        1 hr      off    1 hr       off       1 hr      4 hr      7 hrs
6           off        1 hr      off      1 hr       off       1½ hr 4½ hr   8 hrs

Plan: Your schedule should be personalized for you. And remember – it should be fun. Feel free to modify your training plan based on your own physical condition, daily schedule and preferences. If your time doesn’t allow you to exercise on the weekends, then plan your long rides during the week. If you’re starting a new fitness plan, be sure to check with your physician first.

Speed: You’ll notice that the training plan is based upon time. I don’t mention speed. Feel free to bike at your own pace. Your “time in the saddle” is more important than the number of miles you cover or how fast you go.

Pace: Strive to keep an even pedaling pace (cadence) as you bike. Spin your feet evenly and smoothly through the pedal stroke. Use your gears effectively, shifting up or down as the terrain changes to keep a constant cadence. It is easier on your knees to pedal quickly and smoothly at an easier gear rather than slowly and firmly on a hard gear.

Stretching: The best routine is to stretch after you have cycled 10 – 15 minutes, and then again at the end of your work-out. Be sure to include stretches for your legs, shoulders and neck muscles.

Hills: The more hills you ride, the stronger you’ll get. They not only strengthen your muscles, but they help you practice shifting and give you confidence. Don’t be afraid of hills. If you learn to downshift to an easier gear at the bottom of the hill, you’ll learn to spin easily at a constant pace and use less energy. Learn to enjoy the slower pace that hills allow. Listen to the sounds around you that you can only hear when you don’t have the wind in your ears.

Intervals: In addition to including some hills in your plan, it’s a good idea to include some interval training too. Intervals are short periods of high exertion followed by periods of recovery. After warming up with easy riding for 15 minutes, try suddenly cycling as hard as you can to the next tree or up a hill. Once at the top, slow down to your normal speed until you’ve recovered. Do this a few times and then continue on with your ride at an easy pace to cool down. Intervals are an excellent way to increase your strength and speed.

Spinning: Gym classes that incorporate spinning bikes are an excellent substitute for bicycling outdoors. Join your local fitness club and take a spinning class instead of forcing yourself to bike in the pouring rain or through a blizzard. Remember – keep training fun.

Cross-training: Feel free to use one of your work-out sessions each week to cross-train. Use the time to hike, run, ski, play tennis or take an aerobics class. If you mix up your training, you’ll be less likely to get injured, bored or tired of it.

Weight-training: In addition to increasing your aerobic capacity, it’s a good idea to strengthen your muscles at the same time. Consider lifting weights twice a week in addition to your biking schedule. If you’re new to weight training, start with very light weights to avoid injury. Be sure that a trained professional shows you proper technique and equipment use.

Advanced Training: If you have signed up to do a more advanced tour, including a cross-country tour, you should double or triple your weeks of training. Steadily increase your weekly mileage to build endurance. Work up to two or three 6-hour cycling days in a row. The more fit you are before the tour, the better you’ll likely enjoy it. If you’re not as in shape as you wish you were, you can always ride part of the day during the tour in the van. By the end of the week, you’ll be in great shape for your next trip!

Resources: If you are new to cycling, a good book is “A Woman’s Guide to Cycling” by Susan Weaver. It covers many topics about bicycling including training. Also, we are always available to help. Please do not hesitate to call or email us for advice or instruction.

Return from Outdoor Adventure Conference

2009-12-15T16:59:00.000-05:00

We just returned from the America Outdoors Association conference in Reno, NV. The record cold temperatures made sure to keep us inside so we'd attend all the sessions and visit all the vendors. Look for new WomanTours hats in 2010 and expect our tour leaders to be thrilled with our new fancy food and drink coolers.

The conference was also the first time that some of our staff met one another. Sandra and Michelle hit it off though. They brought money home from their one night out at the casino.

Jackie, Jen, Marian from the women's adventure travel company, Adventures in Good Company, and Michelle and Sandra say good-bye to the "Biggest Little City in the World."

Happy Holidays from WomanTours

2009-12-12T17:00:00.000-05:00

Photo by Annette Lein

Let us take you away from your hectic schedule this time of year for just 3 minutes. We'll take you to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks on your bike. You'll hear one of our tour guides, Michelle, perform her song. Before the end, you'll probably wish you were on your bike beside her and singing Rain Dance Road along with her. Enjoy! Watch our bike video.

Work on the Arizona Spring Training tour

2009-12-01T11:37:00.005-05:00

Not to be outdone by my sister (see below,) I was recently in Tucson working on the improvements we've made to our Arizona bike tour. We're biking on 2 bike paths through the city now and visiting the awesome Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum again. I was so glad to see that the outside restoration of the San Xavier Del Bac Mission is finished and the scaffolding is gone. We bike there on a Monday now, so we can actually go into the church and not interrupt the Sunday service.

If you've already done this tour, it may be time to come back and do it again. Then you can let us know if the 3 new bike rides, 2 new Tucson restaurants, and changes in the hotels are the improvements we think they are. Arizona is still the best place to bike in the States during the dead of winter!

Work on the Washington DC tour

2009-11-24T10:43:00.006-05:00

We're busy in the off-season getting our 2010 tours ready to go. Jen was recently in Washington DC cycling the bike paths of our new Washington DC Bikeways tour. We try to double and triple check our cues, especially when they involve bike paths.

Jen says, "There's absolutely no better way to see the monuments than by bike. You don't have to deal with the traffic, getting lost on one-way streets, or finding parking. And you don't get so tired as you would if you were walking."

She walked into the National Archives on the spur of the moment and fell into a tour for new White House interns just as the building was closing. She saw the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution. She said, "It was amazing. We had the place to ourselves. I didn't even know we had a National Archives, let alone what was in it!"

Here's Jen across the Tidal Basin from the Jefferson Memorial.

Electric Bicycles...The Future?

2009-11-13T13:49:00.005-05:00

One of our best customers, Peggy, has been on more than a dozen WomanTours trips. At 75, she's not as spry as she once was, but she doesn't let that slow her down.

She's the proud owner of a BionX electric bicycle. She brags that she can easily climb hills with whopping 10% grades. She uses the electric motor only when she needs it, and easily sets it at 25%, 50% or 100% level of assistance on the fly. She brings her bike to our tours and says, "Hilly routes are no longer intimidating."

A retired engineer, she's never been afraid to test the newest in technology. She explains, "I think this BionX motor assist will revolutionize biking for the senior set." And no, neither she nor I works for the company. We're just trying to keep more women bicycling.

Here's Peggy on her old bike on our Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard bike tour - BEFORE she got her BionX.

Recipe for WomanTours Signature Salad

2009-11-08T09:42:00.002-05:00

Here's the most requested recipe from our picnics. Many thanks to my sisters Michelle and Jennifer, from whom this salad was commandeered.

WomanTours Broccoli Cole Slaw Salad
• 2 packages broccoli cole slaw
• slivered almonds
• sunflower seeds
• craisins
• 2 cans drained mandarin oranges
• 2 packages beef or mushroom Ramen Noodles (break up and add just before serving)
• Mix together and pour on above:
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 T sugar
• spice from 1 soup mix

Sunny Santa Barbara bike tour

2009-11-02T16:43:00.003-05:00

You can tell it's a lot warmer and sunnier in southern California this time of year than it is in Virginia (see below.) Here's our group at the end of our new Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez Valley bike tour last week. We don't get blue skies like that very often in the fall here in Rochester. Thanks for sending along the photo Kathy!

Shenandoah Bike Tour

2009-10-27T10:49:00.004-04:00

We had a wonderful group of women on our Shenandoah bike tour a week ago. While another group was enjoying the sunshine in Moab, Utah, we were enjoying the autumn colors - when we could see them through the fog - in Virginia. We had a couple days of cold rain, but there wasn't a whiner in the group. They were wonderful.

We've learned our lesson though. We've scheduled next year's tour for the spring. We'll hope the rhododendrons are blooming.

Moab Bike Tour Slide Show

2009-10-23T10:14:00.006-04:00

Beth and Annette have done it again. They've produced the most amazing slide show of our recent Moab Arches and Canyonlands Bike Tour. Caution - view it at your own risk. You might just want to go yourself. What a place.

Moab Bike Tour Blog

2009-10-11T09:46:00.002-04:00

Our photographers are on assignment on our Moab: Arches and Canyonlands tour this week. Check out their Road Trip blog about their tour.

Discount on our November Death Valley tour

2009-10-08T15:37:00.003-04:00

In celebration of our wonderful touring year and in support of the PBS Ken Burns special about the National Parks: America's Best Idea, we're extending the 5% discount on our last tour of 2009.

There are 7 spaces still available on our Death Valley National Park tour. Come join us and you'll get a 5% discount off the tour. That's a savings of $94.50.

The offer is good until the tour is filled.

New Women's Cycling Magazine

2009-10-02T14:51:00.002-04:00

There's a new Women's Cycling Magazine in print. They're trying to cover all things female cycling, not just racing. They have a nice website too, full of articles about fashion, new products, bike industry trends, eating healthy, etc. Looks as if they're really trying to cover all the bases. Check it out here and let me know what you think.

Eavesdropping on a Bike Forum

2009-10-01T20:09:00.003-04:00

I couldn't help but eavesdrop on a women's bike forum over at Team Estrogen - my ears always perk up when I hear "WomanTours." Feel free to read the unsolicited comments, and add your own. They made my day....

Back Home from the Adirondack Tour

2009-09-29T11:47:00.004-04:00

Sue, Nancy, Maria, Kathy, Risa and Jenny enjoy the view atop Second Brother Mountain in Adirondack State Park. Despite what all my photos may show, we did a lot of biking on this tour too, along with our kayaking and hiking.

It was a beautiful tour. We watched the trees change colors before our eyes, as I've written on our tour itinerary. They all made fun of my marketing hype, but it was true.

I came home to rain, a sick dog, and kitchen cupboards inhabited by mice. But the rain has since stopped, my dog's on antibiotics and I now have fully cleaned cupboards. It's almost time to go on another tour!

New Book about Bicycling the Southern Tier

2009-09-16T15:49:00.003-04:00

Lorraine Veisz biked the Southern Tier with WomanTours a couple years ago and then went on to do what the rest of us only dream of - write a book about it.

Conquering the Borderlands is a beautifully written and wonderfully illustrated tribute to her 3000-mile bicycle trek and the lands she rode through. She weaves historical stories about the roads, towns and geography of the Southern Tier into her personal bike journey across the country.

It's a must-read for everyone considering doing a southern tier bike tour themselves. You can find it for sale through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, AuthorHouse and Adventure Cycling.

I found myself sad when I turned over the final page. I didn't want her journey to end. We'd both been having such a good time.

Bicycling with your Local Bike Club

2009-09-12T14:41:00.004-04:00

I've been spending a lot of time in Lynchburg, Virginia and the weather has been gorgeous lately. This morning I set out to meet the "B Group - no one gets left behind ride" from the local bike shop.

After a couple miles of dying, trying to hold on, I told the group that I was going to do my own ride and they should go on without me. The 15 men were way too fast for me - no surprise. A couple of them valiantly protested, but we all knew they'd be happier without me.

Then another of the two women in the group volunteered to go with me. She admitted that they were too fast for her too. We set off together and chatted some, but she was obviously stronger than me. She waited at the first turns for me, but for no more than 20 seconds, as I was always within sight. And then, during the second half of the ride, she disappeared. She dropped me. I rode back alone to the bike shop's empty parking lot and drove home.

You know I'll never try that again! Unfortunately, people like that do bicycling a disservice. They give the sport a bad name. And they wonder why more people don't bike.

Thank goodness for our tours, where I can bike with women - some faster, some slower - who will wait for each other and always stick around to cheer the last one into the parking lot at the end of the day.

Back from the Northwest Loop

2009-09-10T08:18:00.008-04:00

It's been only 10 days, but it seems so long ago that my week with the Northwest Loop bike tour ended.

They told me I missed some incredible scenery by only being able to ride the last week. I saw the ocean, but they saw rivers: The Columbia, the Snake, the Salmon and the Willamette. They saw mountains: the Coastal Range and the Cascades. And they saw the high desert. Who knew the terrain of Oregon could be so varied?

The women who did the entire 4-week tour raved about it and said we should keep the trip on our schedule. Look for it again in 2013.

Pam takes in the view.

Hille, Nancy and Ramsey first met on our 2007 Southern Tier tour.

Some of the beautiful scenery.

To read personal travelogues of the trip, click below:
Anne Cowan's blog
Carolyn Froeberg's blog
Barbara Minnick's blog
Nancy Norton's blog
Clark Taylor's blog

Win a Free Bike

2009-09-03T16:17:00.005-04:00

Here's a chance to win a free bicycle. Create a link on your own blog or website or twitter account and you'll be entered in a weekly drawing for a free Madsen utility bike. They look pretty cool! Click below for more details.
MADSEN Cargo Bikes

Update from the Northwest Loop tour

2009-08-17T11:24:00.003-04:00

I received this great photo in my email this morning. Looks as if our Northwest Loop volunteer SAG drivers and sous-chef have been a little grumpy!

We couldn't run our cross-country tours without them. They agreed to work part of their time to support the tour in exchange for a discount off the price. I'll get to meet them later this month when I join them for the last week of their 4-week tour. Can't wait!

We still need a SAG driver for our cross-country Southern Tier 2010 tour. You can find more information on the WomanTours website here.

Sun Valley tour highlights

2009-08-10T14:19:00.008-04:00

Back home from an amazing Sun Valley tour. Great group of women. Great scenery. Great weather. Great biking.

But sometimes I felt as if I were the only one out there...

When we weren't biking, we rafted down the Salmon River...

and watched the beautiful sunsets in Stanley....

Next year's tours is scheduled for August 18-25, 2010.

And they're off!

2009-08-05T20:22:00.002-04:00

The Northwest Loop Ladies left Portland, Oregon last weekend for their 4-week bike tour through Oregon, Washington and a tip of Idaho. I'll be lucky enough to join for the last week of their journey. Wish them luck, tailwinds and a break in the heat wave!

And the Winner is....

2009-07-31T11:54:00.002-04:00

Sonia from Baraboo, Wisconsin. She won a free WomanTours trip for guessing closest to Alberto Contador's winning time in the Tour de France. Her guess of 85h:48m:04s was just seconds away from Alberto's time of 85h:48m:35s. Congratulations to Sonia!

In her words:

I'm still shaking!!!!! OMG this is the best news ever. I don't win things and 2009 has not been a good year for me but I feel that my luck is about to change. My husband was home recovering from emergency surgery so we watched the tour everyday. And everyday I would say, "It would be so awesome to be there." The tour, the scenery all of it.

I told him that we should plan a trip for our 25th wedding anniversary (in 6 yrs). We started biking about 7 yrs ago and have followed the tour especially since Lance and all his successes. Words cannot express how excited I am.

P.S. my family was making fun of me because of all the work I put into calculating the winning time!! Who's laughing now?! THANKS SO MUCH!

Northwest Loop Bike Tour About to Begin

2009-07-29T13:19:00.006-04:00

We're getting ready for the start of our Northwest Loop cross-country bicycle tour this week. WomanTours photographers Annette and Beth just arrived in Portland, Oregon with our SAG vehicle, affectionately known as Bo Peep. You can follow their trek across the country on their great blog.

To follow some of our bikers' treks on the tour, you can read these blogs:
Anne Cowan
Carolyn Froeberg
Barbara Minnick
Nancy Norton
Clark Taylor

You can also read about Anne Cowan's prep for the tour in an article that appeared in her local paper, the Bristol Herald Courier.

Wish them luck, tailwinds, and a break in the present heat wave!

Wildflowers on the Sun Valley bike tour

2009-07-22T01:17:00.003-04:00

Past forest fires bring fields of wildflowers. A couple of us arrived early before the start of the Sun Valley tour and hiked the Fox Creek Loop. The flowers were amazing. And almost as tall as Sheryl.

Finger Lakes Wine Country Tour

2009-07-17T16:29:00.006-04:00

For the first time, we ran our Finger Lakes Wine Country tour as a shorter 4-day tour. The women tell me it was a hit. Jen (second from right) wrote us, "I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of the tour. It was wonderful and I can't wait until my next one." Jacki and Lisa (second and third from left front) have already signed up for their next tour. I knew it was a great group from the start when they organized a group photo before they even knew each other's names or biked a mile. Thanks Leisa (9th from the left) for the pics!

Later in the tour, we took a break from the bike to hike through Watkins Glen. We have some beautiful parks right here in upstate New York. I bike all over the country, and I still love to come back to bike the Finger Lakes region. It has a little of everything - except those snowy, jagged peaks. I'll be seeing those next week on our Sun Valley tour.

In a car, scenery is wallpaper....

2009-07-17T11:18:00.003-04:00

I don't often read articles about people's bicycling travels. I get too jealous and beat myself up over being inside reading, rather than out there cycling. But my parents had cut out the NY Times article for me and the headline, "4 Days and 2 Wheels on the Oregon Coast" caught my attention. I'd be joining our Northwest Loop tour next month to bike up the Oregon coast myself.

I was quickly taken in by author David Laskin's first paragraph:
In a car, you'd cover the hundred miles of the southern third of the Oregon coast in a couple of hours, and you'd think, How gorgeous! But on a bike, you don't so much view the scenery as absorb it....In a car, scenery is wallpaper. On a bike, it's your mission."

I knew I'd found a true comrade. Feel free to read the article yourself, and then get out there and absorb some scenery!

Win a Free WomanTours trip!

2009-07-16T14:34:00.004-04:00

Sign up on the Terry Bicycles website with your best guesstimate of the Tour de France winner's time, and you could win a WomanTours bike trip! Check the Terry website for details and to guess away. But do it by July 19. Good luck!

Busy Bike Touring Season

2009-06-30T13:45:00.012-04:00

We've all been busy in the office getting our summer tours underway. Meanwhile, we're trying to get on our bikes ourselves. Michelle recently returned from doing our Pennsylvania Dutch Country tour. Here's her leggy group.

Jen just finished biking across Ohio on GOBA. She did it with Lynore whom she met on a WomanTours bike trip in Alaska and she met Debby (from several of our cross-country tours) along the way. She said it was as well-organized as our tours, but she quickly tired of sleeping on the ground in her tent.

Gloria did our Yellowstone and Teton National Park tour last month. Here's some of her group taking a break from their bikes to float down the Snake River. (Thanks to Polly for the photo.)

I just got back from bicycling 130 miles from Boston to Provincetown. I ran into Robin from this year's Southern Tier tour there and a bunch of us finished together - exhausted! When we're not working on tours, we're touring!

New Louisiana Bike Tour Video

2009-06-12T22:04:00.006-04:00

If you've always wondered what it would be like to try a tour with WomanTours, then here's a chance to see for yourself. Annette Lein has produced an amazing short film for us, but, of course, she had some amazing talent to work with. View our first video and let me know what you think!

Biking the Bayou with WomanTours on Vimeo.

Invitation to Bike Ride for Ovarian Cancer in Washington, DC

2009-06-10T12:52:00.005-04:00

Laurey Masterton finished our 3000-mile cross-country Southern Tier tour earlier this year and raised a lot of money in the process for the fight against ovarian cancer. She's been invited to deliver the closing speech at the 12th annual Ovarian Cancer National Alliance’s annual conference in Washington next month.

In conjunction with the conference, Laurey is planning a short bike ride. Everyone is invited to join her for a fun, moderate bicycle ride on July 5th at 10:00am. Meet at Temple Ohr Kodesh at 8300 Meadowbrook Lane in Chevy Chase, MD. It is one block from the intersection of East-West highway and Rock Creek Park.

Bike about 30 miles from Chevy Chase to Lake Needwood and back along the Rock Creek Trail. There won't be SAG support, but the group plans to stay together and help one another if anyone needs assistance. Bring a spare tube, water and snacks.

At the end of the ride, there will be a light lunch and time to hear about Laurey's recent ride across the country. If you’d like to join her, contact her through her blog so she knows she'll have enough food at the end. She'd love the company.

This is primarily a fun ride, but if you are so moved, feel free to make a donation to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance. Make checks out to Jubilee with a note in the memo line "Laurey Bikes." Have a great ride!

Bicycle Gear Auction

2009-06-04T17:06:00.003-04:00

A good friend of mine is looking to help the children of Nepal. She's organized an on-line auction and all the winning bids go straight to the Nepalese Youth Opportunity Foundation.

There are lots of bicycling related items. Bid on a bike tour to Vietnam, a bicycle travel case, or registration for the Heart of Virginia Century Ride. Or go for the round-trip air fare on Southwest Airlines or the Marriott in Chicago or the one-week oceanside villa in Nicaragua.

She's done a lot of work getting all these donations and organizing this auction. She's also an amazing bike rider. I've never been able to keep up with her. Now I know why - she has a ton of energy.

So bid on a couple of her items and have some fun. You'll get a bargain and help some children who really need it. Thank you.

National Trails Day is Saturday, June 6

2009-06-03T10:33:00.005-04:00

Go celebrate National Trails Day this coming Saturday, June 6. Even though the day is coordinated by the American Hiking Society, trails are used by a lot of us bikers as well.

Take your bike on a rail trail and show the country that if they build them, we will come. And consider joining a group in your area to help support our trails. Pick up litter, build a trail, or attend the ribbon cutting ceremony for a new trail opening.

If you like to both bike and hike, consider signing up for our multi-sport Adirondack tour this fall. (Sorry - couldn't resist!)

New Texas Hill Country bike tour

2009-05-30T14:20:00.004-04:00

We finally developed the bike tour our cross-country cyclists have been asking for. Our new Texas Hill Country bicycle tour should show everyone the best territory the Lone Star State has to offer. It's always been the area our Southern Tier tour cyclists tell us they wish could return to. And who better to design it than Michelle Slusher who has led our women across the country on their bicycles half a dozen times. We'll hope to hit it at the peak of wildflower season next April 3-9, 2010.

Second California Bike Tour Added to Fall Schedule

2009-05-24T12:14:00.002-04:00

Our October Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez Valley tour filled so quickly that we've added a second tour to our fall schedule. It will be October 26-31, 2009. You can still be added to the waiting list for the first tour if someone cancels. But we have plenty of space on the second tour.

The Santa Ynez Valley is where the movie Sideways took place. I'm not a big fan of the film, but I do love the area's quiet vineyard roads for biking and the fantastic restaurants for dining. It offers all that Napa Valley does, but without the traffic and high expense. And then there's Santa Barbara, the Silver Bicycle Community Award winner, for all of its bike paths and lanes and bike friendly accommodations. Our tour is a good combination of the two regions.

Because of this addition, we've taken our Arizona in Autumn tour off of the schedule. We've been running it the same way for years now and it's time for a face lift. There are so many wonderful places to ride in and around Tucson. We're exploring some new routes and lodgings and will be changing our tour itinerary for the February tour. Stay tuned.

Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez Valley bike tour

2009-05-14T19:47:00.005-04:00

It's funny that I would write about biking in the rain and then a week later, be in sunny Southern California. Boy, it's beautiful here. We had to switch the days of our Santa Barbara tour itinerary because of the Jesusita Fire last week, but in the end, it all went off splendidly.

We biked all the routes as planned, just on different days. The weather was perfect, the food excellent, and as always, the women have been a blast. For me, it was wonderful working with Michelle who was able to step in at the last minute. She filled in for Patty who had a family emergency. I'm jealous of the two of them who get to do this tour together this fall. They won't have the scent of ripening strawberries in the air. Instead, they'll get to watch the grape harvest.

WomanTours founder Gloria said that this tour beat our old Napa Valley tour hands down. "The roads are so much quieter!" she said. And we still got to do our share of wine tasting!

Riding in the Rain

2009-05-10T00:21:00.001-04:00

One of the most common questions I’m asked by women new to our bicycling tours is, “Do you ride in the rain?” The easy answer is that it’s always a choice to ride. Whether it’s rainy or sunny, it’s always your personal decision. However, peer pressure can take over and before we know it, the whole group will be bicycling in weather that individually none of us would have chosen to do on her own!

So the next time peer pressure gets the best of you, be sure that you’re prepared for it. Don’t let improper clothing or technique ruin your rainy ride.

First, invest in a good rain jacket. It should be a bright color, so it’s highly visible on grey days. Look for a jacket made of a waterproof but breathable fabric and is unlined, so you won’t roast in it. It should have a back vent and zippers beneath the arms to help let your body heat out as you ride. It should have a high neck and a low back, and its hood will either detach or fold up to get out of the way.

According to women on a cross-country tour who got caught in hurricane-like winds and rain, the Showers Pass Elite jacket is the best jacket on the market. Good rain jackets aren’t cheap but they’re worth it.

If there’s a chance of rain, you may also want to start your ride by putting a blinking red light on the back of your helmet or bike seat so you’ll be more visible. Wear wool socks to keep your feet warm even if they get wet, and a helmet with a visor to keep your eyeglasses streak-free. Stuff a hotel’s shower cap into your pocket to throw over your helmet if there’s a downpour. On colder days or in the hardest of rains, consider wearing rain pants and shoe covers to keep your legs and feet dry.

Once you find yourself in the rain, ride cautiously. Roads are especially slick at the first sign of a light shower. The little water can cover oil spots on the road and make them treacherous, so be especially careful. Remember that it takes longer to slow down when you brake on wet rims. Leave more space between you and the rider in front of you. Walk your bike over all railroad tracks, metal bridges and steel grates. They’re slippery when wet and have caused many a cyclist to go down! Avoid riding over wet leaves and through puddles. It’s hard to tell how deep a puddle is and what lies beneath its water’s depths.

If you’re careful and wear the right clothing, riding in the rain can be exhilarating. Colors take on a muted, surreal look. Smells become heightened and sounds louder. It can feel as if your senses have come alive. So the next time it rains this spring, don’t run for cover. Suit up and enjoy it!

Free Bike Clothing Offer

2009-05-06T11:55:00.002-04:00

I recently received this email from one of our riders, Tracy.

I have been working really hard to lose weight and so far, I've lost about 75 pounds. I have lots of plus-sized bike clothing that I would love to get rid of so that I will not have it to fall back on. Do you know someone that would wear about a 2X or 3X that would ride or ride more if they had the proper clothes? I would be happy to give the clothes to someone who would use them to get themselves in better shape.

Anyone out there in need of some larger size bike clothes? Pop me an email and I'll forward it to Tracy. No sense in having perfectly good cycling clothes go to waste!

Cross-Country Southern Tier Tour Finishes in St. Augustine!

2009-05-02T08:34:00.005-04:00

Our group of women successfully bicycled into St. Augustine, Florida on Thursday, completing their cross-country bicycle tour. Congratulations to all of them!

Here are some of them as they wait for the police escort before cycling their last few miles of the 3000-mile trip. And Lois dips her front wheel in the Atlantic Ocean. Her smile says it all!

Kudos from a Bicyclist on our Natchez Trace Tour

2009-04-30T10:29:00.003-04:00

What a wonderful way to start the day: to open my email and see this message from Jackie of Delaware, Ohio. She just finished our Natchez Trace Tour of Mississippi.

If I wanted to do another tour, it would be with you guys. You will get an "excellent" always from me when someone asks about your company. The biggest thing is if I'm tired, I can stop riding. If there's something wrong with my bicycle, it will get fixed. If I'm the last one, someone is with me until I finish and they coach you a little to get you to finish even when I would rather give up! Oh! We are fed like it's the last supper! There's always great food.

Thanks much for a great vacation! Keep doing what you do.
Sincerely,
Jackie

Boston to Provincetown Bike Ride

2009-04-22T16:31:00.002-04:00

If you need a good reason to go out and train this spring, or if you're just looking for a real challenge, consider joining a few of us on the Outriders 130-mile bike ride this June. Bicycle from Boston to Provincetown on June 20, 2009.

This isn't a WomanTours event. There's no SAG support, but the route is extremely well-organized, very well-marked and there are food breaks every 30 miles. They cap registrations at 300 people and usually donate to worthy causes with any leftover proceeds.

It's one of those rides that makes you feel really good when it's over. We always celebrate by going out to eat and a few of us will have to helped out of our chairs to leave the restaurant. Walking can be hard after bicycling 130 miles!

It's a great event - let me know if you want to join me.

Bike to Work Week and Women's Mountain Bike Rides in Pocatello

2009-04-20T11:16:00.003-04:00

Sandra runs the west coast office of WomanTours in Pocatello, Idaho. When she's not coordinating the logistics of all of our tours, she's volunteering her time on her local Bike to Work Committee. May is Bike to Work month, so it's not too early to help plan your own community's bike to work activities. Check with the League of American Bicyclists for more information.

Sandra is also an excellent mountain biker. She's starting a women's only mountain biking group to introduce women to the joys of bicycling the beautiful trails in and around Pocatello. If you're in the area, join her!

Second Louisiana Bayou bike tour comes to a close

2009-04-18T21:43:00.004-04:00

They biked up and down the Mississippi River, staying at historic antebellum homes along the way. Here's the group just before going out to ride.

For more pictures from the tour, see Annette's and Beth's blogs.

Fund Raising on our Southern Tier

2009-04-16T21:55:00.004-04:00

Some women bike across the country on our Southern Tier tour for the challenge. Others do it to see the country or to get into shape. But then there are a few women who use it to raise money for a cause and who inspire the rest of us.

As a 20-year survivor of ovarian cancer, Laurey Masterton is one of those women. So far she's raised $33,000 for the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance toward her goal of $50,000. She'd like to appear on the Ellen DeGeneres show to help spread the word. She owes her life to early detection. You can read more about Laurey in a recent article from the San Antonio Express-News.

Marci Silverman has raised more than $11,000 for the Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson's. Her grandfather died from the disease and her boyfriend's uncles suffer from it. She recently appeared on KPLC 7 news in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Laurey and Marci and all the women on the Southern Tier are an inspiration to the rest of us. They'll finish their trek from California to Florida in less than 2 weeks. Wish them luck.

Stopping in the Southern Tier

2009-04-14T08:10:00.004-04:00

After I finished our first Louisiana Biking the Bayou tour last week, I drove to meet the group doing our cross-country Southern Tier tour in St. Charles, LA for dinner.

They didn't realize it yet, but having just finished their 3 weeks in Texas, they're now on the downward slope of their tour. The state crossings - Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama will come fast and furious now. They'll be in Florida and worrying about how to get their bikes back home before they know it.

Thanks for a great dinner, Linda and Lois. And a big thank you to our volunteer SAG drivers, Jan, Nancy, Ann and Carol, who are doing a wonderful job.

Louisiana Biking the Bayou bike tour

2009-04-13T18:13:00.004-04:00

Just back from helping lead our first Louisiana bike tour and I have such great memories. The roads were a little rougher and busier than we would have liked but they were FLAT, as promised. The food was delicious, especially if you liked seafood. The swamp tour was memorable, if not for the alligators, then for the airboat driver. For many of the women, it was the furthest and longest they'd ever biked - congratulations to all of them!

Here's kudos to Karen who raised $2000 for her Slippery Rock Community Library by biking her personal best!

Click on my twitters to the right to see more images from the tour.

Bike with your Favorite WomanTours Guide

2009-03-31T13:18:00.004-04:00

Many of the women who travel with us come to bicycle with their favorite guide. If you're having a hard time choosing your annual tour, then find your favorite leader below and join her!

If you'd like to see Laurie again, then you can find her this year on:
Louisiana Biking the Bayou
Natchez Trace of Mississippi
Maryland Eastern Shore
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard
Pennsylvania Dutch Country
Maine & Acadia National Park
Shenandoah National Park
Outer Banks of North Carolina

Michelle will be guiding the following tours:
Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks
Idaho Greenways
Glacier National Park
Sun Valley of Idaho
Moab of Utah
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley in October
Arizona in Autumn
Death Valley National Park in November

Linda B will be guiding and cooking:
Teton Valley
Idaho Greenways in July
Glacier National Park
Northwest Loop
Arizona in Autumn
Death Valley National Park in November

Patty will be guiding and cooking:
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley
Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks
Teton Valley
Utah: Grand Canyon, Bryce and Capitol Reef
Utah: Moab

Sid will be guiding:
Alaska: The Inside Passage
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard in September
Blue Ridge Rambler
Shenandoah National Park
Outer Banks of North Carolina

Linda G will be guiding:
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard in June
Sun Valley of Idaho
Idaho Greenways in September

Lynne will be guiding:
Louisiana Biking the Bayou
Natchez Trace of Mississippi
Maryland Eastern Shore

Kimberly will be guiding:
Blue Ridge Rambler
Maine & Acadia National Park

Denise will be guiding:
Northwest Loop
Utah: Grand Canyon, Bryce and Capitol Reef

Meanwhile, you can find me on:
Louisiana Biking the Bayou
Santa Barbara & Santa Ynez Valley in May
Finger Lakes of NY with my sister Jen
Sun Valley of Idaho
Adirondacks fall foliage

Crossing Texas on the Southern Tier Cross-Country

2009-03-28T15:24:00.003-04:00

They entered Texas on March 20 and won't leave until April 9. Texas is a very looooong state and no one knows it better than the 23 women biking across it with our Southern Tier cross-country bike tour.

The women are experiencing the unseasonably cold air and wind that is making its way across the southern states right now. Lois writes, "How to keep warm on a bike in such weather? You put on every bit of clothing you have with you and pedal as fast as you possibly can."

Their ride yesterday took them, "to the tiny town of Marathon and the unexpectedly wonderful Gage Hotel - quintessentially Texan: stuffed dead animal heads on the walls, ornate saddles displayed as art, hammered copper ceilings, heavy wood furniture about 25% bigger than usual - quite wonderful. It's a very different world, this Texas is."

On her tweets, Marci just describes every day as, "the middle of nowhere...again."

Update on Cross-Country Southern Tier Bike Tour

2009-03-24T15:27:00.010-04:00

This just in from Lois, on our Southern Tier cross-country bike ride:

Out of Silver City, we climbed through the Gila National Forest, which looks almost like Colorado.

After the stark flatness of the California/Arizona/New Mexico deserts, it was a rich visual feast. Then, the cragginess opened up into a big, wide valley - we're talking, stealing from the world of Broadway musicals, Brigadoon - total magical enchantment. I was not the only lady who admitted to riding along mildly teary & choked up at the truly breathtaking beauty and thinking, "What did I do to deserve this?"

This is the view from Emory Pass, the crest of the Black Range, elevation 8,828'. The climb, by the way, wasn't all that bad - long, but not impossibly steep and I didn't have as hard a time with the altitude as I'd thought I was going to. Note to Self: "Things are Never as Bad as Anticipated."

The end of our ride was the Black Range Lodge - dating from the 1880's, off the grid, owned and run by a couple who are into straw bale building, with two wonderful resident dogs, Pepper and Charlie.

The next morning we continued down into the valley. Now, when I think "New Mexico" I think "Taos, Santa Fe, Albuquerque." This wasn't that NM at all - vast farmlands of...

pecan orchards...

...pima cotton fields...

...and miles of red and green chili peppers.

Food in South America

2009-03-20T13:02:00.006-04:00

I’ve always said that the best part about our tours is the fascinating women on them. Our Argentina and Chile tour was no exception.

Meet Maggie. When she’s not laughing at someone’s joke or bicycling across the Andes, she’s cooking and managing the kitchens at her Cesar restaurants in northern California. She's even published a cookbook.

All across South America, Maggie took photos of all of our meals. She reveled in learning how the food was prepared, the spices blended, the meat cooked. She taught me to salt and soak onions to soften their bite before adding them to salsa. She taught us that congria, loosely translated as whitefish, was really eel. She showed us that no matter how full we were, we could always eat dessert.

The next time you find yourself in the Bay Area, be sure to stop by Cesar and tell them WomanTours sent you. And be sure to look for the Argentina and Chile inspired dishes on the menu.

If you’re lucky, Maggie will be on your next tour. If so, beware. All the talk about food will make you eat more!

Argentina and Chile bike tour

2009-03-19T12:58:00.005-04:00

I'm just back from a fabulous WomanTours trip across the Andes from Argentina to Chile. We learned that unlike in the USA, cyclists in Argentina have no rights to the road. That looks to be changing, as this sign in Buena Aires announcing a bike lane will show.

Our group of women kept busy. We all biked every mile over the pass through the Andes.

Some of us went rafting below towering Mount Osorno.

Others hiked the sand dunes along the Pacific Ocean.

While others - namely Jan, Sue, Kathy and JoAnn - decided it was their duty to find the best pisco sour in South America. We all had a wonderful time!

Southern Tier Cross-Country Takes off from San Diego

2009-03-15T18:34:00.007-04:00

Our 23 women are off to a great start on their Southern Tier 2009 tour. Jim Grant from the Peninsula Beacon newspaper in San Diego was on hand to shoot these photos. Many thanks to him for sending them to us.

In just 10 days, the women are almost to New Mexico. Follow their itinerary here. Or see below for a list of their blogs.

Blogs about our Tours

2009-02-26T09:44:00.008-05:00

Follow tour photographers Annette and Beth as they drive the WomanTours Subaru "Bo Peep" support vehicle across the country to get ready for our Southern Tier 2009 cross-country bike tour. They're documenting their journey via photo and video blog here.

Then follow some of the women who will bike the Southern Tier tour on their blogs:
Patty Gadarian
Marni Harang
Peggy Kehew
Nancy Kelley
Laurey Masterton
Carol Moehrke
Susan Rosenthal
Marci Silverman
Elisabeth Tully

I'm about to leave for our Crossing the Andes tour in Argentina and Chile. You can read Sue Rapp's blog about our tour while we're gone.

Hopefully, all this reading will get you hankering to get out there on your bike yourself!

Bo Peep on her way to the start of our Southern Tier Cross-Country Bike Tour

2009-02-23T08:16:00.009-05:00

Follow the trek of Bo Peep (otherwise known as the WomanTours Subaru) as she makes her way from her winter home in Rochester, NY to the start of the Southern Tier tour in San Diego. Our trusty photographers and videographers, Annette and Beth, also double as excellent drivers. Follow their week-long journey at their beautiful and funny blog.