leaving May 20 from Willliamsburg

[ozroller]

Is May 20 too late to leave going East to West??  Will the road be empty of other bikers?  Because i'm riding by myself, i would like to run into other bikers with the same passion / goal.
  I would like to leave from Williamsburg.   Is Richmond the nearest airport?  is there a preferred way to get from airport to Williamsburg?  Is there a good motel/ hotel that i can stay at in Williamsburg that will accept shipment of my bicycle?   I guess i will start my TransAm tour from my motel doorstep....lol     Mark

[John Nelson]

No, May 20 is not too late. You should see many other cyclists.

Richmond is the nearest major airport, although there are many other smaller airports in the area. I flew into Newport News. If you do that, you can even start in Yorktown if you want.

The ACA guided TransAm typically starts in Williamsburg. Get their handout and it will give you suggestions for motels and transportation. Sorry, I don't really know how to get a copy of the handout. I saw one years ago.

[indyfabz]

On the MT section of the TransAm I have met several people who started in the east in mid to late May.

You can use Google Maps to find hotels/motels in Williamsburg. Go there and search for "motels near Williamburg, VA". There are also at least three bike shops in Williamsburg. You could ship your bike to one of them for assembly and tuning.

[mbattisti]

my wife and I left May 24th. Averaging 50 miles/day, I believe we intercepted our first west- to-east TransAm-er in Missouri. The frequency of these meetings on the road increased and remained steady all the way to the west coast.  Definitely one of the highlights of our trip.  You will meet fewer people headed in your same direction, most likely bumping into them at a diner or when stopping for the night.

[John Nelson]

You will meet fewer people headed in your same direction

Yes, fewer, but much more meaningful. I might spend perhaps 10-15 minutes with cyclists on the road going in the opposite direction, but perhaps weeks with cyclists going in my direction.

[staehpj1]

You will meet fewer people headed in your same direction

Yes, fewer, but much more meaningful. I might spend perhaps 10-15 minutes with cyclists on the road going in the opposite direction, but perhaps weeks with cyclists going in my direction.

Agreed, but I do also recommend stopping and comparing notes with folks going the other way when you get the chance.  It is worth it for the chance to meet other cyclists, but also for info sharing.  It is a good way to learn about great places to stay, things to avoid, and things not to be missed.

[John Nelson]

Agreed, but I do also recommend stopping and comparing notes with folks going the other way when you get the chance.  It is worth it for the chance to meet other cyclists, but also for info sharing.  It is a good way to learn about great places to stay, things to avoid, and things not to be missed.

Absolutely! It's an unwritten rule of the TransAm that you must stop and talk with every touring cyclist you see going the other way. To not stop would be violating the code. The only exceptions I would make is if you are on opposite sides of a divided highway, or if you are currently going 50 MPH down a mountain pass.

There's a message system running up and down the TransAm. A lot of cyclists you meet, especially the unusual ones such as the very heavily loaded, the ones riding unicycles, the walkers, the family all dressed alike, the guy with the 100-pound dog, etc., you will already know about from other cyclists.

[BikeFreak]

When I did the combined Transam and Western Express I was shocked how few cyclists I met. I thought it was the cross country cyclist highway. I left around 1st June going E to W and met a total of 20 i would guess. I rode for several days without meeting anybody. I guess that almost 20% of those were not riding the Transam and have never heard of it before.

Lucas

[John Nelson]

I left around 1st June going E to W and met a total of 20 i would guess.

So maybe the date you leave is more important than I thought. I did the TransAm E to W, leaving Yorktown on May 7, 2010. I just went back and looked at my notes. I have pictures of 61 TransAm cyclists I met along the way, and those are just the ones I remembered to take pictures of. There may be as many as another 61 that I didn't get pictures of. I do think that your decision to take the Western Express, however, reduced your encounters. I'm not sure if you camped or not, but camping every night (or staying in cyclist-only accommodations) significantly increases the encounters.

[rondickinson]

In 2014 my son and I left Yorktown on May 18 with a goal of 65 miles a day / 6 days a week.
We ran into a fair number of cyclist going our direction and connected on and off with them throughout our 10 weeks.  On coming cyclist were limited for the first month.  It was also fun to meet both the RAAM race and the TransAmerica Race somewhere in  KS.  The Adventure Cyclist self supported group was 10 days in front of us and we eventually caught them in WY.  We meet and made friends with a dozen or so folks.

I would say you should be comfortable riding alone or with your own group as there are long periods of time when you are not with anyone, or riding styles differ enough that you don't stay in contact long.

One goal I had was to get across KS before it got too hot.  We actually made it into WY by July.

[rondickinson]

I remember there was a Comfort Inn 10 or so miles from York Town, the official starting point.  There is a church (Episical) in Yorktown that owns a house that they allow cyclist to stay at for free.  A member lives right across the street and we shipped our bikes to him.  We flew into DC for a quick tour and had a friend meet us, but I would think a cab ride / shuttle from Newport News Airport would be affordable.

[indyfabz]

I would say you should be comfortable riding alone or with your own group as there are long periods of time when you are not with anyone, or riding styles differ enough that you don't stay in contact long.

Good point. In addition to timing affecting how many people you run into, things like differing paces, daily schedules and lodging choices can, too. I have had several encounters--both on the road and in camp-- with people heading the same direction on both the Northern Tier and Trans Am routes and I can only think of three instances when I actually rode with someone for any length of time, and those three instances involved the same tandem couple.

Also keep in mind that some people may prefer limited interaction with others. I think it's important to recognize that preference and respect it.