"Don't be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality. If you can dream it, you can make it so." Belva Davis
The Background
Two years ago, the biking community lost Doug Torosian, one of its long-time advocates. That resulted in the conclusion of operations of America by Bicycle. ABB was known for its domestic long-distance bicycle tours.
Fast forward to January 2023. The dream for America Bicycle Journeys started moving into reality, leaving the start house, not like a time trial more like a cross country tour with many SAG stops along the way.
Top Ten Experiences on this "Journey" so far --
It has taken many hours to launch Katy Trail and Rock Island Trail shuttle services for 2023, and to begin preparations for a limited touring schedule for 2024. But, even the bad days have been good. Along the way we learned --
Family is everything. We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the Torosian family and our family. It has truly been a team effort to acquire and transport the assets, then organize and launch ABJ.
The America by Bicycle community was vast, and it continues to be passionate about long distance touring. This community engaged when asked and helped with input as to what’s important. We are grateful for and humbled by the encouragement from so many.
Do what you do best and let someone else do the rest. Website, booking system, social media campaigns, photography, and accounting system all fell into place thanks to talents and skills of others that we’ve had the opportunity to cross paths with -- friends, family, former colleagues and new partnerships.
More about DOT requirements and process than we would have EVER imagined.
Everyone has a story; we need to stop and listen.
Our guests are amazing and take our breath away. When things seemed insurmountable for us, guests have inspired with their stories of tenacity and perseverance.
That person having a bad day, probably has a reason. What can we do to make it better?
Who do we want to be? Whatever it is we do, we want to be better than good. We want to provide each guest with an exceptional experience that adds to their book of memories. The plan is to specialize in long distance touring, based on routes previously scouted by the ABB team and add tours that make sense (already in process).
Technology will be our friend. Yes, we believe in “old school” too, but our operation is small, as in microscopic. We wear ALL the hats. So, we want to leverage available technology and deliver a great experience for you even before you book.
There aren’t enough hours in the day (Ok, that one we might have already known).
What to Expect from the Blog
This blog will be about this journey that we’re on, what we’re up to and what you will have to look forward to from America Bicycle Journeys. We’ll also intersperse with other relevant news you can use around cycling, nutrition, touring and related topics. We’ll call on some of our experts to contribute to the Blog (because we are not experts on most things and fortunately, we "know people" that are willing to share their special skills and interests). Posts will be as frequent as can be put together so check back often and feel free to follow us on social media for little snippets along the way.