linus

I guess people here are not used to seeing wealthier people that ride.

I know many couples travel to different countries rides a lot more 120miles a day. Also, the same people are fine with spending $5000 per night on Cayman Island.

Don't judge because you can't afford what others can afford.

DropBarFan

Also I think Portland OR is much more well known than Portland ME so when one casually announces that one has rode "Portland to Portland" there will be a priceless moment when the bragee (?) realizes it was cross-USA.

The trip is expensive but I can see the appeal for wealthy middle-aged types who keep fit & do some biking but aren't hard-core enthusiasts. Route & logistics are taken care of, saving much research time/hassle/uncertainty but ride is still challenging. I like the northern route plus with all the climbing the light bike w/no luggage would be fun.

Some things aren't clear: allowed to use one's own bike? Cut-off time for stragglers? Do they send one home if one uses the sag wagon too much? Trek wants to promote the Domane but I think the carbon Trek Checkpoint SL 6 would be more appropriate: very light but permits fenders & rack if desired.

ironwood

As F. Scott Fitzgerald is reported to have said: "The rich are very different from you and me."

To which Hemingway is supposed to have replied: "Yes, they have more money."

travelinhobo

On a Trek Domane, you say? Wow. That'll really impress them in heaven.

"And how was the scenery?"
"What scenery?"

skookum

I think a $17 000 tour on the Katy would be the ultimate.

PedalingWalrus

ironwood

It's interesting to see how bicycle touring has become , for a few, an upscale thing. Before and after WWII, in Europe cycle touring was a way for people with modest incomes to travel and take advantage of their newly acquired right to a vacation . Later, in the US there were AYH tours, then the guided self supported Bikecentennial rides. Of course a lot of individuals managed to find their way across the US without a guide. Now we have the 17,000 dollar tour. But then there are worse ways to dispose of your money.

raria

I think they'll have many drop outs. 100+ miles a day 40+ days will kill most on a non fitted bike (even if it is a domane.

Do they pedal for you?

raria

I have the money (as do most people here at 55+) and I love the US.

But 47 days in the US is going to get boring quick.

17k will get you a great tour of Europe airfares included for routes designed for bicyling tourism.

SHBR

This is perfect for trekmogul.

What a fabulous way to burn money!

saddlesores

from their site: "your shortest day will be 37 miles and the longest, 126 miles. You'll have 16 days at 100 miles or more and four rest days."

but wait! there's more! you can "Upgrade your bike to include carbon wheels (+$200)"

drop outs? you're assuming they ever actually run this tour. next one coming up in august still has slots available. but really, if they get just one sucker with a rich brother-in-law willing to write a check they'll make a profit.

Tourist in MSN

I suspect no dropouts unless injury related.

Anyone that has that much money to spend on a trip like that and the available time for it is going to be fit and excited to do it. I would be quite surprised if anyone that has never ridden 100 miles in a day signs up. I bet every body shows up with their favorite shorts and shoes, 4 or 5 bike jerseys from exotic trips or events, maybe even brings their favorite pedals and saddle along.

I have done mostly loaded touring with a friend or solo. But I have done two van supported trips, the van hauled our luggage, food, etc. And I have done two week long guided bike trips in Europe where the bikes were provided. None of those trips had a 100 mile day, but of all of those trips, only one person dropped out on one trip. The one that dropped out surprised us all because we thought she was doing fine, but on the first day she finished the day and decided it was tougher than she wanted to do.

One of my Europe trips, someone blew out her knee. She was a Nurse Practitioner, she could describe in correct anatomical terms exactly what was wrong. But she keep riding, but switched to a high cadence low torque and low speed mode.

ironwood

What might be fun would be to ride along with them on an old bike, dressed like a homeless person.

axolotl

Last year, my friends & I had just finished our self-organized tour in the Dordogne & Lot valleys in SW France. We were walking our bikes into the Bordeaux train station, and we passed a group of about 10 cyclists who had just arrived. We overheard they were going on a deluxe 5 day tour with a high-end American outfitter. They were all impeccably dressed and had an insane amount of luggage for their mini-tour. All of them completely ignored us as we walked right past them with our bikes & panniers. I looked up the price later. I think they were paying about $800/day.
= = = = = = = = = =
The son of a friend of mine was a Trek tour guide, and was a guide on at least 2 of their cross-country rides. His parents told me that he said it was a lot of work for the 40+ day trip, having to constantly cater to every whim of the participants, with no time off. He received about $10,000 in tips after each cross-country trip.

saddlesores

if you wanna do it right, ya gotta rent a limo. for 47 days you wanna be pacing alongside the riders....

skookum

I had a friend who worked as a "guide" for a high end Canadian bicycle tour company, operating in France. She got the job because she could speak French fluently and could ride a bike. She didnt have to know how to fix bikes or anything about navigation. There were other people for that. She ended up developing a taste for expensive French wines.
Overall it was a great summer job for a student.

I have a feeling the kind of people who take those kinds of trips wouldn't be that fun to hang out with, but maybe thats just sour grapes on my part. If any of you guys participate, please do a post trip write up.

mev

I'm somewhat amused by some of the reactions some have towards this trip and their assumptions about people on it.

While it is not for me and it seems to be priced on the high end compared to other supported rides (e.g. America by Bike is $13K single and Cycle America is $7.5k) I can also understand why some might take a supported ride like this. It isn't for the cost as many can easily point out, going self-supported is going to cut the costs a lot more than any of these supported rides. I also don't think it is for the snobbery as some of the posts seem to imply.

There is a set of tradeoffs involved and a trip like this is going to handle a lot of the logistics for you. So you need to show up and ride. Someone else will have worked out routes, directions and worried about those logistics of having lodging and food available. I expect most will ride almost all the time, but you also have the security of knowing there is a backup if something happens. I also expect this group might provide some structure for training and packing suggestions.

Now for a lot of folks, the planning, the logistics, the unexpected and the flexibility are all part of the experience - and paying someone a large sum of $$ to do this is the worst of all possible worlds. The fixed schedule also makes it tougher to adapt to weather or similar circumstances (e.g. that rainy day or fierce headwind day that a self-supported rider might make a shorter distance or rest day - is still a riding day where one rides or takes a van part of the way). So I get the reason why this ride is absolutely not the right choice for most in this group. I get that and have done my own self-supported "Portland to Portland" ride.

However, I also expect I'll have more in common with folks doing this ride than some spending a similar amount on an extended ocean cruise vacation.

DropBarFan

I could see the appeal for a wealthy international who wasn't esp fluent in English or familiar with American travel. Trek is well-known internationally as a quality bike, perhaps some folks might trust their tours more than those run by an unfamiliar company. & I also don't get the appeal of ocean cruises/all-inclusive Cancun/Carib resorts etc, seems very passive & boring. I read that some cruises cost over $1,000/day, makes the Trek trip look like a bargain

ironwood

Most "wealthy internationals" are fluent in English. However , based on a few encounters with American guided tours in Europe, the Americans seem to be monolingual and don't interact much with the local people, or even other cycletourists.

The Trek trip is for road riders who want to cross the US unencumbered by racks, baggage etc.

indyfabz

Fo' shizzle!

skookum

I've been on a couple of guided, supported trips outside of North America. Many of the people are experienced, skilled riders who sinply don't want to deal with the logistics
and hassles of organizing their own tour. There is a tendency, as the price goes up and more luxurious extras are added, to attract people who expect to be looked after and coddled and have things provided to them without putting out any effort. They are not always the most pleasant riding companions.

This particular tour has a fairly ambitious goal, so I expect it would attract competent motivated riders.

To each his own, I certainly wouldn't fault anybody for taking this tour, and good luck to them.

spinnaker

Where on earth do you get your information??

1 in 3 Americans Has No Retirement Savings | Money

No "most" people 55+ certainly do not have $17K to blow on a bicycle tour. Most people nearing retirement age have nothing to not more than a few thousand dollars saved for retirement.

At 59 I am one of the exceptions. I am pretty much set but no way could I justify spending that kind of cash on a single trip.

raria

If you read my quote i said "here" meaning on this board.

After all the context of the discussion is a bike tour. My point was that quite a few people here could afford a 17k bike tour but we have better sense and taste!

DropBarFan

I should have written "non-Americans" since I suppose "internationals" suggests folks who have worked overseas where English would be necessary. OTOH there have to be a significant number of folks, business owners for instance, who never had much need for English fluency. I've met French bike tourists in DC that didn't speak much English & weren't interested in chatting because my French is terrible. I read an article once that claimed this was because French schools are very strict in teaching French grammar & thus folks are conditioned to get nervous if they have to speak in a foreign language that they're not fluent in. I agree that Americans are pretty bad about trying to communicate in foreign travel. I've traveled with folks who don't even bother to learn a single word, sheer laziness.

spinnaker

Actually you are still wrong. There are people on this forum that don't own a home.

And what makes you think the financial make up of the forum is any different from the whole of the US?