So, you live in Chico......

.....and your wife or girlfriend is coming back into town after a short trip. The thing of it is, she's coming in by train, which stops in Orland, California....which is about 25 miles from your house. The train doesn't stop in Chico. And the next thing is that the train arrives at midnight.....and it's late winter.....so it's freezing cold outside. Being the nice guy that you are, you know you must pick her up to bring her back home. But you don't own a car. So, what do you do??? You take off around 10:30pm by tandem bicycle, ride to the train station, pick her up with her luggage, and you both ride back home to Chico. Sound like fun???

Well, we had a famous cyclist in these parts who did this very thing.....and he didn't think a thing about it.....it was just the way he did things......by bicycle. 400-mile weeks? Yeah, that was no big deal......but no racing, just riding. I was fortunate enough to ride with this guy quite a bit as a young teenager - his name is Chuck "Bodfish" Elliot. And man, talk about a great view towards riding. If you ever have the opportunity to read Bodfish's Butte Country Bicycle Journeys, I would highly recommend it......not so much for just the directions in the booklet, but more for how Chuck has a way of describing the ride itself. It just makes you wanna.....well.....ride!

If you're ever up in Chester, California......be sure to visit Bodfish Bicycles! And say HI to Chuck for me!