Mailboxes across the country are now receiving the exciting new Adventure Cycling 2014 tours catalog. Just in time, too, as the 2014 tours season starts in January.

I have been riding on Terry saddles since they first came out in 1997. These saddles are lightweight, sleek, and work for us, as you can see in the photo from our garage!

Not just for physical therapists anymore, Rocktape brings kinesiotape to the masses.

There is nothing quite as enjoyable on a bike tour as a breakfast break. You've put on a few miles or kilometers, your body and mind are alert, and your taste buds are tingling. You park your bike outside a diner and go in, look at a menu, order coffee or tea, and wait. It generally doesn't take long, ten to fifteen minutes. But when you are bike trip hungry, minutes feel like hours.

October 2013 was a very busy month including map reprint deadlines and travel across the country (with all the preparation that entails). My travel destination of Greenville, South Carolina, was determined by my planned attendance of my 10th North American Cartographic Information Society (NACIS) meeting.

Please help us meet a challenge grant of $100,000 by December 31 so that we may inspire and empower even more people to travel by bicycle. Learn how your gift will be matched either 1:1 or 2:1 on the Holiday Campaign donation page.

Rails-To-Trails Conservancy recently released a new report that studies rails-with-trails and provides helpful data and resources to help advocates and trail managers develop these kinds of trails. Rails-with-trails are public paths that run alongside active train corridors, and the growth of these trails over the last 20 years has helped expand the trail network across the country.

In June 2014, the first TransAm Bike Race will take competitors across 10 states from Astoria, Oregon, to Yorktown, Virginia. They will traverse the 4233-mile TransAmerica Trail as mapped by Adventure Cycling Association.

In the past week, I was blessed with the opportunity to spend some days sunning on my Bike Friday in the warmth of the Florida sun, away from my office in Missoula, Montana. Although large group rides are not a style of touring I am interested in, I took a risk and joined Bubba Fest with my partner, Shawn. I was pleasantly surprised by the experience.

As winter approaches, the days get shorter and daylight diminishes, especially during our commuting hours. This seasonal shift is a great opportunity for you to evaluate your personal visibility factor, and perhaps take a more active role in becoming more visible to both drivers and other cyclists. At Adventure Cycling we offer a few different products that can help you be seen on the roadways after dark.

Recently I've been playing around with the Quick Cage from Twofish. This bottle cage is available in a standard size for your basic 24-ounce water bottle, a mid-range 40oz size that will handle Nalgene bottles and 40-ounce Kleen Kanteen bottles, and a 64-ounce model that will take care of 64-ounce reusable stainless steel bottles. Since I've got a lot of Nalgene bottles hanging around, I went after the 40oz version of this cage.

Only a few more weeks to enter our 5th Annual Photo Contest! We're so excited about seeing all of your adventures. Let us ride vicariously through you!

Jenn recently sat down with Adventure Cycling Cartographer Casey Greene to chat with him about the project that has been occupying his time for much of the last year, the exciting new Idaho Hot Springs Mountain Bike Route.

Did you ride Bikecentennial '76? Have you ridden the TransAm? Do you love bike travel? How would you like to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Adventure Cycling and the TransAm in 2016? 

Winter is coming, and that means adjusting our cycling wardrobes to include some slightly warmer apparel. But just because it's winter, doesn't mean you can't keep touring! Chillier temperatures at night require fluffier sleeping bags and warmer fires. Here are equipment tips for staying warm and toasty on your next overnight ride.

If you had three, possibly four, days of bike-touring experience, would you agree to take 10 kids on a six-week cross country trip? No matter how you would choose to answer this, Mike Lessard, Adventure Cycling’s newest tours specialist, answered, "yes!"

The Efficient Velo Tools (EVT) Safe Zone mirror has been a valued accessory of mine for the past five years. Starting with the handlebar-mounted variety, I’ve used mirrors from at least three other manufacturers. EVT is head and shoulders above any of those in terms of quality, durability, and overall performance.

As if daylight savings didn't mess with my post work riding schedule enough, a week of mixed snow and rain topped it all off. While I was sitting around feeling sorry for myself, I came across the book Endure: Ballet in the Mud. The book features over 300 photos of the 2013 USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championships held in Verona, Wisconsin, last January. 

One of the delights of pedaling along the dusty back roads of Cambodia, was coming upon a roadside wedding party. There were days when we encountered a half dozen of them.

On Tuesday, October 15, Amtrak’s Capitol Limited ran a test run for roll-on bicycle service. Three Virginia Bicycle Federation board members along with Linda Boxx of the Allegheny Trail Alliance participated in the run. The test run was a great success and there are high hopes this will lead to more Amtrak services for traveling cyclists.

Start your planning now for some guided bike touring to get you through those dark, short days of winter. Our tours in January, February, and March still have some available spaces, but they are going fast. Here are a few highlights that will warm your winter in 2014.