San Diego or Bust: “We Couldn’t Go if it Weren’t for this Service”

Welcome everyone! The San Diego or Bust drive across America has officially begun.

Here’s what has happened thus far:

53 Washington D.C. area triathletes have checked-in, entrusting us with their race machines
53 bicycles have been loaded, packed, and secured in our 53’ foot Prime Inc. trailer pulled by a beautiful Peterbilt Prime Inc. truck
The San Diego or Bust truck departed D.C. shortly after 8pm. Next stop Denver, CO!
Mike took the night shift while Siphiwe and I slept
Awoke on the Ohio / Indiana border
Now we’re driving along! 50 miles from St. Louis

Packing 53 bikes
It’s like a puzzle. While Siphiwe (Fitness Trucking / Prime Inc.) and Mike (driver for Prime Inc.) were meeting everyone as they checked in, I was swimming in cardboard and bubble wrap in the trailer. For those I was not able to meet, I am Zane Schweer, the Brand Marketing Manager for Jack Kane Custom Racing Bicycles. My hands are packing and unpacking your bike.

It’s more than wrapping your bike in bubble wrap and cardboard and placing it in the truck. You have to thrive with puzzles. The bikes are puzzle pieces that must fit together within strict spacing requirements. Different bike sizes, aero bars, saddle heights, saddle cages (the bane of my packing existence!), do not easily offer themselves to be packed – 11-12 across. I had to find bikes that complimented each other to fit into a snug, safe, and secure position. Once each row of bikes was packed and secured with a load lock, I looked for bike that could potentially move and fastened them down with bungee cords.

A Couple Things I heard:

Like the title of this post states, riders said they would not be participating in this event if it wasn’t for this service. The athletes are very thankful. The logistics of traveling with a bike alone can be a hassle. Tack on airline fees, bicycle assembly upon arrival, the overall cost of a trip, and it can be overwhelming. That is why this first ever project from USA Triathlon and its COO, Tim Yount, is fantastic.

“That’s a ton of bubble wrap” – Yes it is. Apex Packaging knocked it out of the park for supplying us with the necessary materials for this trip. We might have rolled around on one of them at the end of the day.