I shared that I had built a new bicycle mobile station about three weeks ago. I recently returned from its shakedown tour. A close friend, named Sharon, formed a bicycle touring company called Magical Mystery Bike Tours in 2023. She swiftly selected me as her bicycle mechanic due to years of seeing my high level of mechanical preparation during long rides. Our October 2024 tour was originally slated to run on the New River Trail. This trail has limited access for support vehicles; so, Sharon wanted me to ride as a “sweep” so that at least some of my tools and skills were on the trail with the riders instead of in a truck on a distant road. However, Hurricane Helene decimated New River Trail and some of our planned destinations.
Sharon is a “Queen of Plan B” and quickly researched alternate routes, hotels, and dining options, all just two weeks before the tours were to begin. She quickly settled on the Greenbrier Trail in West Virginia. The Greenbrier Trail has slightly better access for support vehicles, but it introduced a new technical challenge: NO CELLULAR COVERAGE. Approximately half of the trail sits within the National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ), which was established in part to preserve silent airwaves in the vicinity of the radio telescopes at Green Bank Observatory. It’s almost impossible to support a group of riders without effective communications. So, we made two plans:
One was to keep the 15 riders mostly together. That way, should something happen at the front of the group, the rear would catch up and we’d all be together again. Should something happen at the rear, then the leader (Sharon) could ride back to check on us. Sharon and I also wore helmets with Mesh communications, by Sena. The next plan was for me to bring a more capable ham radio setup than just a handheld transceiver (HT). That’s when I jumped on the opportunity to swiftly build a capable bicycle mobile setup, shared here. Sharon also added satellite capability to her cellular plan. But I think my ability to call local hams to report any emergent needs and our location would get specific help to us faster than a satellite phone.
This tour proved to be quite a challenge for me. First, I hadn’t ridden more than 13 miles since 2017. So, I started the ride with ZERO training or physical preparation. I was going to ride a borrowed electric bike on the New River Trail to ease my journey. Once I knew that I wanted a bicycle mobile ham setup for the Greenbrier Trail, I insisted on riding one of my own bikes, which are 100% human powered. My 2014 Trek Crossrip tipped the scales at ~65 lbs with its radio equipment, tools, first aid supplies, clothing options for the changing weather, and other materials that a prepared rider may opt to carry. This photo shows my load. I call it “Overweight and Undertrained.” 😉 Although the elevation profile of the trail shows it as “mostly downhill,” there were plenty of uphill grades, including one surprisingly steep grade that was caused by a landslide years ago. Also, riding on the lumpy gravel trail is not nearly as fast as riding on the road. So, the miles passed much more slowly than I was accustomed.
I was BEAT after the first day, a day which included only 25 miles of riding. Knowing that we had cleared most of the NRQZ and having a lot of confidence in the radio repeater coverage in the area, I decided to lighten my load for the remainder of the tour by removing the ID-5100 (note the absence of the larger display). I also moved a few things to Sharon’s bike since she was on an electric bike. I removed 10 lbs from my bike! While I was rearranging things, I also changed the configuration of my handlebar displays. Google Maps and Ride w/GPS are far more functional with a “portrait” display. So, I swapped locations between my phone and HT, shown in this photo. My ride was a bit easier on Day 2. Sure, there’s the obvious weight reduction, but I was also beginning to gain back some of my leg strength! We rode 34 uneventful miles on Day 2.
Day 3 was our “short day” of just 20 miles. I wish I could say that it was easy, but my neck was feeling the burn from my lack of training. I need to make a few saddle adjustments and it may be time for me to elevate my handlebars. I’m no longer a young man; I need to get my head and shoulders UP. I’m also making some changes to my “daily bicycle ham setup.” I had mentioned in my previous article that I would probably run my ID-5100 at 15 watts of output power. That decision was made based on the fact that I had a 30W amplifier in the 1990s, a time when RF safety calculators were not readily available. Now that ARRL has an easy to use calculator, I’ve determined that 8 watts is about the limit for safe RF exposure for my bicycle on both the VHF and UHF bands when operating in FM modes. Sure, I survived my 30W days, but it’s better to play it safe, now that I have a better understanding of RF safety. I plan to carry only the HT, along with a smaller 4.5-Ah, 1-lb LiFePo4 battery during my routine rides. I’ll consider packing the ID-5100 for emergency use on tours in remote areas, hopefully with stronger legs in the future!
Minor change to antenna and lighting mounts.
The rides went smoothly and without incident. Thankfully, the benefits of me carrying a ham radio were imagined instead of realized. 😉 This entry is targeted mostly to my ham radio audience. So, I omitted details about the food and hotel accommodations that we enjoyed during the tour. MMBT tours always feature great food and hotels! I also left out the second tour of ~50 miles, about a third of which was in Amish country. By then, I was carrying less weight for our smaller group of five riders. My legs were okay, but my neck was still killing me! I hope to get that sorted in the future. I have some parts on order.
Until Next Time,
Scott
