This is the 489th issue of Bike Bits, Adventure Cycling’s twice-monthly bicycle bulletin. Bike Bits is delivered to you, and 72,216 other readers, because you’ve signed up for it at the Adventure Cycling Association website. We want to inspire you to dream and to live your own bicycle adventures. Note: starting in January 2021, you’ll receive the new Super Bike Bits featuring good stuff from Adventure Cyclist magazine to complement all the best bits about bikes from all over the web. A Zen teacher saw five of his students returning from the market, riding their bicycles. When they arrived at the monastery and had dismounted, the teacher asked the students, “Why are you riding your bicycles?” The first student replied, “The bicycle is carrying this sack of potatoes. I am glad that I do not have to carry them on my back!” The teacher praised the first student. “You are a smart boy! When you grow old, you will not walk hunched over like I do.” The second student replied, “I love to watch the trees and fields pass by as I roll down the path!” The teacher commended the second student, “Your eyes are open, and you see the world.” The third student replied, “When I ride my bicycle, I am content to chant nam myoho renge kyo.” The teacher gave his praise to the third student, “Your mind will roll with the ease of a newly trued wheel.” The fourth student replied, “Riding my bicycle, I live in harmony with all sentient beings.” The teacher was pleased and said to the fourth student, “You are riding on the golden path of non-harming.” The fifth student replied, “I ride my bicycle to ride my bicycle.” The teacher sat at the feet of the fifth student and said, “I am your student.” Zen proverb Reindeer Games Laura Killingbeck embarks on a ride to find the “wild reindeer,” and instead finds herself. (Also, she found the reindeer.) Read more Half-Price Cycling Inspiration Take advantage of Adventure Cycling’s half-price Holiday Gift program: when you join or renew your membership, you can give as many gift memberships as you want for as little as $22.50 each. Join at the Patron level ($65) or higher, and we’ll also send you the gorgeous 2021 Adventure Cycling calendar. Join now Adventures in South America, Part Eighteen Follow Ryan Wilson as he journeys into the Chilean Andes. Read more Donate for Safer Routes When you donate to Adventure Cycling, you help identify high-risk segments of our routes so we can prioritize safety improvements. Please donate today for the best places to ride! Donate now 
Fat in Greenland A bikepacking trip on the world’s largest island, just as COVID was breaking around the world. Read more Penny for Your Thoughts Round the world on … a penny farthing? Read more Riding the ‘Death Road’ No bikepacking trip to Bolivia is complete without a descent on the infamous Yungas Road. Read more Tunneling into the Blue Ridge After 20 years of restoration work, the Claudius Crozet Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail system is open for cyclists and pedestrians. The main attraction, of course, is the nearly mile-long tunnel, which, when it was completed in 1858, was the longest railroad tunnel in North America. Read more Riding High in Nepal Taking only the bare necessities on the Annapurna Circuit. Read more Tilting at Windmills The “Don Quixote of booksellers” in Milan, Italy, delivers books by bike. Read more COVID-19 Update We’ve been publishing Bike Bits for more than 20 years, but recent events make this week’s edition feel different than any other. We hope you enjoy some light reading about this wonderful bike travel community and a little bit of twice-monthly normalcy. Adventure Cycling has made a few changes in response to the situation. Read more Illustrations by Greg Siple
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