Cooking

I just purchased a pressure cooker of the 1.5 liter variety and have tried it out several times now. Food that comes out of this darling little pot has never tasted so good. Cook pasta in two minutes, cook rice in three! Want some beans? Soak them in a spare bottle for a couple of hours and they cook up in 5 minutes!

Why hadn't anyone told me of this before?!? Thanks Ira and Andrea over at BikeTour2K6. Until then I had never heard of anyone taking one of these puppies anywhere but from the shelf to the kitchen.

As it turns out the one from GSI is quite expensive (for me) and it's made in China anyway (not that it's necessarily a bad thing but does Chinese cuisine require a lot of pressure cooking?) and it's pretty big (around three liters). Perfect for a pair but not so perfect for me. I mean a cup of rice and beans will feed me after the longest of days until I'm bursting with nutritious goodness. So I opted for a much smaller (1.5 liter) and I'm assuming, more efficient (in terms of weight and size, cooking capacity and fuel efficiency). The made in India model A00 from Hawkins. It's a bit awkwardly shaped for stuffing into Pannier but I think I can work it out considering it's not that much larger than my original cookware and replaces both pots. I think I may still take the frying pan for things like bacon, eggs and pancakes (mainly breakfast I guess).

Anyway, I haven't taken it on a ride yet but I can definitely recommend it for your kitchen for one and definitely goes on my desert island gear list for it's quick fuel efficient cooking.

Planning: IL CICLO DI CIRCUITO DEL LAGO MICHGAN

Initially I thought that I would probably be able to do 100 miles a day. Very funny. After two lovely days in the saddle to the Indiana National Lakeshore Dunewood campground and back I have decided that no less than 80km per day and no more than 110km per day is about the maximum with fully loaded bike.

The reason for this is simple. I want to enjoy myself. 110km is a pretty sweet distance (around 70 miles) to go and still be a quite enjoyable ride in any weather, wind, rain, hopefully not hail. These distances keep me mellow and allow me to meander now and again, off the beaten path. I am in now hurry. This is definately not a race.

I hope to complete the tour in 21 days and at 2100km these limits fit nicely in with the idea of having a rest day somewhere way up north in the middle of no where.

The calumet fisheries inc.

Delicious fried smelt and a smoked chub for the road. dinner tonight promises to be quite sustaining. 

Test

This is a test of my mobile posting ability.

Test ride.

To the Indiana Dunes and the Indiana National Lakefront.

Around 50 miles. Just testing my existing gear and readiness level.

Back tomorrow, or the next day.

Planning: IL CICLO DI CIRCUITO DEL LAGO MICHGAN Day One

Day One has been planned and a test ride will be conducted on May 6th. You can view the route here.

SUPPORT IL CICLO DI CIRCUITO DEL LAGO MICHGAN

So, I've decided to go for a little bicycle ride. By little I mean 1200 miles of open road with nothing but myself to rely on. The purpose of the tour is to prove that human power is better than oil power. I need to prove it to myself obviously and in turn that will convince others as well.

I tried to fund the entire tour myself but after falling in love with the Surly Cross Check and blowing my entire bank on it. I'm soliciting sponsors for my ride. The official list of possible sponsors includes:

Teko socks makers of the best socks in the world.
IceBreaker makers of fine wool products.
Ortlieb makers of panniers.
Jandd Mountaineering makers of panniers and other wonderful bags.
Surly makers of amazing bicycles and the infamous Nice Rack. Replied and has offered no assistance.
Agu Makers of all things cycling, including really nice panniers.
Arkel Makers of fine cycling bags and accessories. Replied and has offered a generous 33% savings.
Schwalbe Makers of the fine bicycle tires.
Continental Makers of fine bicycle tires.
SmartWool Makers of fine wool products.
Canari Makers of fine cycling clothing.
Pearl Izumi Makers of fine cycling clothing.
Alex Global Technology Makers of fine bicycle wheels.
Planet Bike Makers of fine bicycle accessories.
Chris King Makers of precision bicycle parts.
Cane Creek Makers of precision bicycle parts.
Shimano Makers of precision bicycle parts
SRAM makers of precision bicyle parts.
Brooks England Makers of fine leather saddles and bags.
Mountain Safety Research Makers of fine backpacking gear.
Primus Makers of fine backpacking cooking gear.
Mountain House Makers of fine backpacking cuisine.
W. L. Gore, Inc. Makers of fine outdoor clothing and textiles.
Recreational Equipment Incorporated An outdoor gear cooperative.
Smart Bike Parts My local bike shop.

Hopefully some of these guys can help me out because WOW, cycling just got more cash intensive. Of course, it's nowhere near what a car would cost.