[Cross-USA Ride] Participant Email May 2

Dear Rider,

We have just five weeks to go before the ride launches from Seattle! If you are flying into Seattle be sure to book your tickets. Plan on arriving at Bastyr University no later then 12:00 PM on Thursday, June 7th. If you are starting at a later time, please see our new travel page.

We had the exciting opportunity to drive from Seattle to Minneapolis/St. Paul last week. We got a great glimpse of the routes, the accommodations, and got to meet with some phenomenal members of our host communities, both Jewish and non-Jewish. Take a look at our trip on our blog! We will be using this site to blog throughout the summer. Stay tuned for updates from our encore from the Twin Cities to Washington DC.View more photos from our trip!

Prices are rising for registration of all segments this Monday, May 7th! If you have friends who are interested in the trip, encourage them to sign up this weekend.

We have added a lot of additional resources to the website, including route updates for each week, travel information, and daily routine details. If you haven’t been in a while, take a look.

Happy Riding,
Wendy Levine and David Rendsburg

This is the seventh email for Cross-USA Ride participants. If you’ve just registered, previous emails can be viewed here.

Logistics Form (VERY IMPORTANT!)

We are in the process of finalizing many of the details of the ride and need some more information about you to help us craft an event that meets your needs. We are asking for your flight information, your Jewish observance preferences, any food allergies you may have, medication you may be taking, and things that are unique to each rider.

Please take five minutes to fill out the logistics form…

• by Monday, May 7th if you’re starting in Seattle.
• by Tuesday, June 12th if you’re starting in the Twin Cities.
• by Friday, June 29th if you’re starting in Chicago.
• by Monday, July 9th if you’re starting in Pittsburgh.

Fill out your logistics form

Rider Conference Call
for those Starting in Seattle

Feel like you have some unanswered questions? Want to hear about some of the specific overnights and the communities we are riding through? Concerned about the size of your suitcase and what to bring?  We will be addressing these topics amongst some other helping topics to prepare you for the ride!  Join us!

Tuesday May 15th
8:00 PM Eastern time, 5:00 PM Pacific time
Phone: 213-416-6650, Access code:  716549#

If you cannot attend this call, not to worry, we can give you a call after to review what was discussed.

**If you are starting the ride in the Twin Cities or after, we will schedule a conference call in June! ***

Suggested Reading

For more information on the state of our food system and more, we’d like to recommend the following books:

•  Food Fight: The Inside Story of the Food Industry, America’s Obesity Crisis, and What We Can Do About It by Katherine Battle Horgen
• Bar Mitzvah and the Beast by Matt Biers-Ariel
• The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
• The Christmas Menorahs: How a Town Fought Hate (A children’s book) by Janice Cohn and bill Farnsworth

Training Tip: Nutrition

More training tips and some videos can be found on our website.

Cycling long distances requires your body to be properly fueled before, during, and after riding. Proper nutrition can be the difference between an enjoyable ride and a tough day. The key is to experiment during your training to see what works for you.

Before you ride for the day

Eating a good breakfast before cycling is key. You need to store energy for your body to use while cycling. A light high-carb meal is best – toast with peanut butter, bananas and pancakes, etc.

During the ride

In general, your body stores enough sugars for about an hour of hard cycling. If you do not eat while cycling, you will start to feel the energy drain, and eventually “hit the wall” or “bonk” when you suddenly run out of fuel. You should eat a small snack every 45 minutes to an hour – even if it is just a few bites of an energy bar, bananas, or sports gels. While riding you want to eat food that is simple to digest so you can continue cycling. You should also be drinking consistently.

After the riding day

Your body still needs fuel once you stop cycling. Post-ride food should contain a good mix of protein and carbs. If it is a hot day, you should also continue to drink once you stop cycling to prevent dehydration.

More Training Tips