Pedal Across Wisconsin 2011
I almost did this ride by default this year. Because of uncertainty surrounding my dad’s health, the registration deadline passed on everything else I was interested in, and this ride was nearly the only thing left.
Now, mind you, I had been watching this one anyway, but because it was a “hotel tour”, it was saving it in reserve for next year with Pam on the tandem, so I wasn’t disappointed in doing this one, just disappointed that Pam couldn’t join me.
Pedal Across Wisconsin is a series of rides put on and run by “Dr. J”, or Jerry and his family. The guy has been running these rides for 25 or 26 years, and knows that part of Wisconsin like the back of his hand. They limit participation to about 80 riders because of the logistics of hotels and dining, and over 2/3′s of the riders had ridden with them at least once before. Several meals are included, making the $650 price really reasonable considering what you get.
What you don’t get is a lot of support out on the road. There are a couple of roaming sag vehicles, and one food stop every day (usually early in the ride), but you can compensate with c-store stops and you could always call for a sag if necessary.
In particular, the tour I rode was the Wisconsin River Valleys Tour, but strangely, we only rode along one river the entire week, and that was far from the highlight of the trip. What did stand out was the gorgeous, rolling farmland that we rode through several days.
