We’ll be leaving Zhoukou in a week, so I’ve been trying to ride to the places I want most to visit before we go. Student friend “Taggy”, who visited us in Lincoln last summer just returned from a semester in England, so I rode to his small hometown to say hello, an 84 mile round-trip. His uncle of course wanted to drive me back to Zhoukou. Non-cyclists don’t really understand why we do it. […]

After a few weeks of biggish rides, or maybe it was the yoga, my muscles were telling me they wanted another low mileage day rather than a big Sunday ride. That, and I’d gotten a little heat rash on last Thursday’s ride to Nandun’s “ghost city” and Shenqiu, so I decided to keep my Sunday ride local. Steve had been wanting to see my new discovery anyway; the Qing dynasty manor house, only four miles […]

Last Thursday we finally worked the return ride to the pagoda at Beichangshediancun into our schedules. Our student “Blake” and colleague “Justin” joined us for an early start.  We needed to be back for a library dedication ceremony. Steve was to be honored for being instrumental in getting 20,000 books donated to the University. I need to get my helmet cam working again because the early trip out of town was otherworldly. If I thought […]

Last week started out started with the prospect of a long-planned ride back to the pagoda at Beichangshediancun with Steve and a student. Those plans were derailed because of work obligations, then the make-up date, Sunday, the student couldn’t go. So what does one do when your one day to ride is up for grabs? Well, go on the longest ride yet, to a new destination, to make up for an inactive week. I couldn’t […]

It would seem that I must have explored about every county road around Zhoukou, but this week I managed to find a few more. When I’m riding down a road I know well, sometimes the urge to veer off and see where another road goes takes over. If I’m lucky, I’m rewarded with a quiet, shady road in good condition with beautiful views and farmers working in their fields. If I’m not, I get open […]

Last week found Steve and I in Luoyang for International Labor Day, May 1st, where we celebrated the holiday by visiting a long-lost friend of Steve’s. Internet access was then, and still is, even spottier than usual for me, making posting this blog not a sure thing at all. One thing I noticed this time in Luoyang (my first time there was four years ago) was the number and variety of bike shares. Luoyang’s population […]

Last week it warmed up for a few days before turning cold and rainy again, so I took advantage by revisiting the small city of Shangcai. I’d last ridden there when snow was still packed in the alleys, so it was a different scene with temperatures in the 80s. My mission was to see if I could get into the beautiful walled garden with the pagoda I saw last time, and of course find the […]

When I hear about people considering coming to China to visit or work, but are too worried to do so, the reasons usually involve the air and general pollution here. (Though some also cite the drivers) Like all countries who have passed through the process of industrialization, China has had to learn the hard way, and perhaps harder than the rest, that there is a price to be paid for it. In the name of […]

There are not many of the historic early post-revolutionary buildings around anymore. This past Thursday was Qing Ming, aka “Tomb Sweeping Day.” Our plans were to take advantage of a few days off to ride up to the hot springs near Yanling, about 60 miles away. Our days off are Thursday and Sunday, so we have no weekend overnight opportunities apart from holidays. Unfortunately, Thursday dawned cold and rainy, so we decided to leave on […]

When you go out on a ride, how do you decide where to go? Some like to take the same few routes, maybe because they’re a known quantity and past rides can be compared. Or we have favorite stops with views along the way. Some of us like to pore over maps to find places we haven’t been or that look interesting. Whether in Zhoukou or Lincoln, I’m always on the prowl for fresh rides, […]