Follow me as I do something potentially really stupid and which will likely turn out to be much harder than I make it out to be.

San Francisco July 24th, 2018 - I have been on a bike tour going up the west coast starting in San Diego on July 5th. I stopped keeping a blog because it didn’t seem like anything people were interested in and it wasn’t doing anything for me either. But I am staying with someone who convinced me to give it another…
Northern Trip – Week 2: Thinking Time July 13th, 2017 - I have a lot of time to think on this trip. That was part of the goal. But thinking doesn’t always lead in the directions that I expect them to. Because while I knew that I would be alone a lot on this trip, I didn’t expect to feel quite so lonely as I do…
Northern Trip: Week 1 – In which Matt contemplates the circumstances of his birth July 6th, 2017 - I started my trip north last Friday.  I’m planning to head up the east coast to Montreal (making a detour to Boston) and then heading west to Toronto and back down south through Pittsburgh. One thing that has stuck with me so far, is how different my life could have been with only a very…
Week 10 – 2000 miles June 7th, 2017 - Miles traveled: Thursday: 60 Friday: 59 Saturday: 53 Sunday: 39 Monday: 60 Trip Total: 2097 It turns out that 2000 miles does eventually take a toll on your body.  Remember, stretching isn’t just for sports, and it only gets more important as you get older. Also, it turns out I’m not immune to poison ivy…
Week 9 – back on the road May 31st, 2017 - Miles traveled: Sunday (a week ago): 32 Wednesday: 55 Trip Total: 1826 Current location: north of Athens Next destination: Charlotte It was (mostly) good to be back on the road. I was definitely feeling a bit cooped up. But it was a nice little break. I got to see a bunch of family members I…
Week 8 – the end (of this half) May 20th, 2017 - Miles travelled: Wednesday: 55 Thursday: 58 Friday: 58 Saturday: 62 Trip total: 1739 Currently between Athens and Lawrenceville. Next stop: Lawrenceville This week I biked through a city festival. And also a yard sale that stretched for several blocks and felt almost like a fair. I feel like the people who make money at these…
Week 7 – surprises May 16th, 2017 - Miles travelled: Wednesday: 47 Monday: 55 Tuesday: 64 Trip total: 1516 As you can see, I didn’t bike much this week because I was staying in Fayetteville in order to go to a frisbee tournament. The high school team that I used to coach was playing. For two of them I coached them in 8th…
Week 6 (2) – heading into the storm May 8th, 2017 - Current location: Sanford Next stop: still Fayetteville Miles biked: Saturday: 13 Sunday: 25 Monday: 52 Trip total: 1360 I’ve been taking it slow and using libraries for their free wifi and ample electrical outlets. Mostly because I don’t really have anywhere to be for awhile. The only thing to report is that it’s been legitimately…
Week 6 – ‘riding’ a horse May 5th, 2017 - Current location: Winston-Salem Next stop: Fayetteville Miles biked: Saturday: 53 Sunday: 31 Monday, Tuesday: 0 Wednesday: 35 Thursday: 12 Friday: 21 Trip total: 1270 So yeah, I got to ride a horse, if by ride you mean sit on for a minute while my aunt takes a picture. My aunt and uncle were kind to…
Day 31 – getting wet and meeting new people April 29th, 2017 - Miles since last update: 360 Saturday: 47 Sunday: 59 Monday: 0 Tuesday: 82 Wednesday: 61 Thursday: 59 Friday: 0 Saturday: 52 Trip total: 1118 I passed 1k miles this week which is cool. I also got rained on for the first time. Luckily I could sit out the worst day because I had enough supplies.…
Day 23 –  the week of no fun April 21st, 2017 - Current location: west of Pollocksville Miles since last update(total): 200(758) Mosquito bites: a billion This has been a pretty dreary start to this week. I left on Tuesday, spent 120 miles looking at almost nothing but swamp b and I’ve had 4 flats and my watch broke. And the azalea blooms are dying Other things…
Day 17 – beach beach beach April 15th, 2017 - It’s all about that beach, bout that beach. The water was super cold, and I didn’t really swim, but I was technically in the ocean for the first time on over a decade. That counts as a win. It was nice just walking barefoot on the sand and finding pretty seashells.
Day 15 – in which Matt becomes a real boy. April 14th, 2017 - I did my century; 100.5 miles. That means this is officially a real bike trip and I am officially a real biker. Harder in some ways than I thought it would be. Easier in others. I thought I was being really clever and doing my century when it was all flat. Who knew beaches could…
Day 12 April 10th, 2017 - I’m gearing up for a long ride on Thursday so I’m taking it easy. Miles travelled: 33(400) that’s neat. The writing has been going well, and I have posts lined up for the next couple days. Pictures are coming less well. I only have a sign I found funny and another azalea. I might be…
Day 11 April 10th, 2017 - Easy day overall. Thanks to an early start I got through all of Raleigh and found a place to camp before noon. Miles travelled: 38(367) Here’s some pictures of azaleas for mom
Day 10 – lazy saturday April 8th, 2017 - It’s supposed to be in the 30’s tonight so I stayed an extra day at Danny’s. Not much biking done, but I did go to the store for a sleeping pad. I’m not counting those though since I went in a circle. Also, after burning my bag it looks angry, so that feels appropriate. Beard…
Day 9 April 7th, 2017 - I didn’t have service for a couple days there, so here we go, 7-9. Miles travelled: 115(329) Toes lost to frostbite: 0 First, I figured out why I’m cold at night and its all Ian’s fault (as most things are). See sleeping bags work by tapping warm air in air pockets. That means when the…
Days 5/6 April 4th, 2017 - I didn’t have a connection yesterday when I stopped so here’s two posts. First: it’s finally warm. Yay! I also got my first sunburn of the trip because of all the sun. Thankfully it was mild. I should be okay going forward. Miles travelled: 77(214) Bears seen: 0 So I definitely wrote more and then…
Day 4 April 3rd, 2017 - I had a flat but I dealt with it pretty easily, made it to  Scott’s house no problem. Miles travelled: 32(137) Scott was a great host. We fed geese in the park where we landed bread on their backs. Best new sport. There were little geese too. We saw the sunset from the roof of…
Day 3 April 1st, 2017 - I made it to Dan and Mary’s in beautiful bustling Doswell, VA. So that’s good. Got an early start, too. I even saw the sun. Unfortunately due to very little ( or possibly no) sleep, the whole trip was much harder than it should have been. Still, it was nice being on clear roads the…
Day 2 March 31st, 2017 - Today’s weather: not fun. A high of around 55 and raining most of the day. Still glad I’m going south. Miles biked: 31(73) Peanut butter sandwiches eaten: 8(12) Accidents caused: 0 Things on Matt’s wishlist: being dry Lessons learned today: If my shoes are soaking wet then it doesn’t matter if I put on dry…
Day 1 March 31st, 2017 - A summary: After running a few last minute errands I got on the road at 10:30. I arrived at my camp site at 4:30 Miles travelled: 42 Peanut butter sandwiches eaten: 4 Weather: cold and overcast but manageable. I’m happy to be traveling south though. Forest fires started: 0 Overall it was a quiet day…
Getting yelled at March 30th, 2017 - A weird thing happened to me today.  I was biking on a path and this guy going the other direction felt it necessary to roll down his window, swear at me, and call me a favor. Luckily for me, I am so rarely the target of irrational hatred that it was more of a novelty…
It’s On March 30th, 2017 - I’m finally packed and ready to go. This is everything I’m bringing with me (minus clothes).  There’s no tent, only a hammock with a rain fly.  Most of it packs up into the various bags and containers shown.  I didn’t have enough space to take out the sleeping bag and hammock, but I’ll give an action…