My blog has been inactive for a while. When I started CaptainOverpacker.com as a randonneuring-centric site in 2012, I decided to write only about RUSA permanents and populaires. Later, I included other rides that were long enough to have been at least a populaire (100 km or 62 miles)… rides such as BikeMS and the Tour de Cure. That was the format I used for a few years. After an injury during a 600-km brevet attempt, I was relegated to shorter rides that didn’t “qualify” for entry in my blog. Later, I developed health problems that kept me off the bike for the long term. I don’t think I rode even 100 miles in 2016 and 2017. I’ve done a few relatively short rides in 2018, ranging from 20-30 miles. In June, a close friend organized a tour of the New River Trail and the High Bridge Trail, both of which are converted railway corridors (translation: fairly flat). Although no single day had 62 miles of riding, I felt the tour as a whole was interesting enough to feature here. I had not been riding much over the previous years, but I didn’t want to miss the tour. So I decided to just do it “cold turkey.”  😉  

This year’s Bike MS event was renamed and moved to a new location, with Day 1 beginning in Smithfield, VA and riding 75 miles to Williamsburg, including a ferry ride between Surry and Jamestown. Day 2 was in the opposite direction. As usual, 40-mile and 100-mile options were also available. Our event was organized to run concurrently with a sister event that ran between Richmond and Williamsburg. So the Colonial Crossroads Bike MS event was actually two rides that converged in Williamsburg for a combined evening program. Medical setbacks continue to preclude me from lengthy rides. I still wanted to be involved, so I decided to volunteer. I will share my experience of this event from “the other side” (non-rider). Continue reading “Inaugural Colonial Crossroads Bike MS: From “The Other Side”” →

The weekend of May 30-31 marked the final running of the Ocean to Bay Bike MS event, often called the “MS-150.” Bike MS is a fundraising event that benefits the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (MSS). The event began in Cape Charles, VA, rode 75 miles to Camp Silver Beach for an overnighter, and then returned to Cape Charles the following day. I first participated in this ride in 2011 and had a great time. It was a Bike MS weekend that hasn’t been topped yet. Read about it HERE. Once again, I rode with Team Killer Bees, the charity fundraising arm of the Peninsula Bicycling Association. The team has gotten smaller over the years. But its spirit is well-intact. Continue reading “Final Ocean to Bay Bike MS Ride (146 miles)” →

Each spring, Team Killer Bees has a “swarming” to kick-off the season, pull together as a fundraising team for upcoming charity rides (Tour de Cure and Bike MS), and to collect bicycling clothing and equipment for the Wounded Warrior Project. Thirteen riders started from the hosts’ home near Mattaponi, VA and rode through 40 miles of rolling terrain. A few of the hills were fairly challenging. But the most brutal force of the ride was the wind… 41-degree wind! I was wearing new tights and discovered that they aren’t as warm as the ones I’m retiring. I wasn’t cold, but I also wasn’t as warm as I prefer. As in previous years, the host provided three types of chili and the riders brought side dishes or desserts. It was a good time! We may have this ride in May next year in hopes of a slightly warmer ride.  Continue reading “Team Killer Bees’ Swarm to Benefit Wounded Warrior Project (40 miles)” →