Ep. 78 - Jessica Alexander, Bikepacking from Arkansas to Austin during a Pandemic

I've been familiar with Jessica peripherally as a member of the Austin cycling scene and also from her published work in Bikepacking.com. She's penned two works for them, Discovering Aloneness on the Arkansas High Country can be found online. Her other piece, River Road Rendezvous, is featured the in the 2021 edition of the Bikepacking Journal. So when I received my July '22 issue of TPWD Magazine I was surprised, but not shocked, to see an article she wrote for them about bikepacking during the pandemic.

It's about a 700 mile trip that her and a riding companion created and road during the later stages of the pandemic. The began their journey in Little Rock, AR and used a train to get them to their starting point. From there it was 700 miles of mixed terrain riding back to their hometown of Austin, TX. Like any trip they have their highs and lows, but they are always jam packed with lessons and knowledge you didn't have before. Jessica is an accomplished bikepacker and photojournalist and her two passions intersect to inspire people to get out and ride their damn bike, and that's something we can dig over here at BoD. On this episode we learn a little about Jessica and then we learn from her about bikepacking, route planning, and how to share them to inspire others!

After we parted ways she was off to teach a women's clinic on crit racing. Jessica's desire to grow the bike community is seemingly endless and I appreciate her coming on the show to share some of that with us.

There is a special message to the listeners at the beginning of this episode. I hope you will take the time to listen. These episodes aren't possible without your support, literally. To find out how you can help keep the lights on please visit Patreon.

A big thanks to this week's newest Patrons!! Jeremy Gleason Michael Gerwig Tom Boss Dave Lewis Valerie Ruiz Dave Easley Bill Gercken Matthew Wells David Criswell Stephen Outten Neal Sivula Jesse Orman Charley Lingerfelt Katy Cummings Ashley Nicole Ferris