By John Springfield, CRW member since 1973
“Hey, John, let's ride our ten-speeds to see my aunt in Owendale.”
“Gee, Larry, that's a long way...How far do you figure?”
“About a hundred miles or so...”
It was the summer of 1964. Larry and I were teenagers. We didn't know it then, but our ignorance and great stamina were our best assets. I got my 10-speed in 1963, and he in 1964. Before we bought lightweight bikes we rode clunky single speeds all over the place. One ride was 40 miles. So, 100 miles seemed to be doable.
“Okay, let's do it.”
We rode north from Detroit, mostly on M-53. We left early in the morning (6:00), hoping to make it by nightfall. It turns out we made it by 2:45 pm.
We spent two overnights in the tiny town of Owendale (population 200). The highlights were visiting a local swimming hole and playing pool in the bar. Larry assured me nobody would hassle us in the bar. He was right.
We returned home the same way we came. But now we were seasoned bike tourists.
I was hooked.
In 1965 and 1966 I went to northern Michigan with the American Youth Hostelers.
These week-long tours exposed me to the inexpensive Michigan state parks. For 50 cents you got a campsite, access to a shower, and often free food from the RV campers!
In the late 1960's, I toured solo throughout Michigan and Wisconsin. I had a cheap army-surplus sleeping bag and a "tube tent". The tent was just a plastic sleeve that you ran a rope through and secured to two trees.
Later in the mid 1970's I had enough money to start staying in cheap motels.
Hot shower, no mosquitos, a TV, and a bed. What's not to like?
In 1964, I could not have imagined that I would still be touring by bike 60 years later...
----------------------------
My first ten-speed was a red Frejus "Tour de France" model. These bikes were simple, and the lugged steel frame made them rugged. The gears were shifted with levers that allowed you to micro adjust if there was any chain chatter. None of that fancy index shifting. If your derailleur and brakes were made by Campy, then you had the best. The saddle was usually a Brooks, made of leather. But I never could break mine in, so I experimented with other seats until I found a fit.
My bike was technically a racing bike, but it came with aluminum fenders.
I appreciated the fenders when it rained on my tours. It also came with tubular ("sew up") tires that had to be glued to the rims. I was constantly getting flats with these tires, so in the early 1970's I replaced the rims and tires with conventional ones.
In my teens I had no money to buy special riding shorts and jerseys, so cut-off jeans and T-shirts sufficed. No special shoes, just "gym shoes".
Equipment could be bulky. Pannier bags where often made of leather. No helmets until the early 1970's. Instead we wore little caps like the racers.
Communication on a tour depended on your ability to find a pay phone in a small town. If you were really in trouble you could always flag down a passing motorist. And you could also flag down a Greyhound bus. They would put your bike in the baggage compartment. Once my freewheel gave out, so I flagged the bus to get to a bike shop. And speaking of bike shops in northern Michigan in the 1960's, there was only one (Traverse City) that had parts for a ten-speed.
There was little understanding of electrolytes, so "the bonk" was a common occurrence after a long day. In the 1970's there was a powdered drink called "Body Punch" that you mixed with water. I used that until liquid sports drinks became common in the 1980's.
But what about adventure? Well if riding on main roads with big trucks and unknown facilities is your thing, then you had plenty of it. No bike lanes, bike paths, or rail trails. You used state highway maps, maybe AAA maps. Adventure Cycling didn't print maps until 1975.
Motels were "iffy." You showed up, and hoped they had room. I remember biking 100 miles through the Pocono Mountains, arriving at motel, exhausted. No rooms. A wedding party had rented all the rooms. I had to ride another 25 miles to find rest.
But years ago, people were genuinely curious about a lone biker with pannier bags.
In many small towns they had never seen a touring bicyclist. Now, of course, most people are not that curious. On the popular Adventure Cycling routes, bikers are an everyday occurrence.
After 40 years and 32 states, I bought my second touring bike in 2004. Still a lugged steel frame, but slightly wider and higher handlebars. Oh, and index shifters. But no special pedals. I ride with normal walking shoes.
Around 2013, I finished my goal of riding in all 48 states (That's all the states there were when I was born). And in 2019 I rode solo across the US for a second time (The first was 1976).
There are so many memories of small towns and the cafes.
--------------------------------------------------------
So in September 2024 I set off for a two-week bike tour of northern Michigan where most of my early touring took place. Starting at the northern point of Sault Ste. Marie, I biked south, mainly hugging the coast of Lake Michigan. I ended up in northern Indiana.
Some of the towns were unchanged, but much of Lake Michigan have been developed into upscale homes. There are still a few small cottages left, but not many.
The industrial wharf area around Muskegon is rapidly being changed to high rise condos. But the little town of Empire is still the same.
At my age the hills on the northern part of the trip slowed me down. But southern Michigan is pretty flat, and much welcomed to my old frame.
So this was a nostalgia trip, but also a gratitude trip. Gone are the 100-mile days, but 50 miles is just fine.
For a daily journal and pictures, click this link: https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/OldMan2024
