Montana over 9,100 miles: Safety and Risk Management.

Scott is well over 9,100 miles. We just enjoyed a wonderful visit with friends from Minnesota who came out to bike and hike Glacier National Park. We biked up the West side of Glacier Going to the Sun Road with them. In the spring it is a treat to bike the Going to the Sun Road before cars are allowed on to the road.  Tonight we are enjoying time with another friend that moved to Minnesota, and speaking to local press who heard about Scott's story and pleasantly surprised us at the camper.   

We had a perfect weather day for the  Glacier ride up the west side. I was so happy  to bike with Scott as Puck and Sammie visited a local kennel for the day. YAAAA! We were also able to experience the Northern Lights from the beach on Lake McDonald! After our friends left, Scott biked around Glacier and then Scott and I biked up the East side of Glacier.  The weather was not quite as good that day, cooler and a high wind but still no snow so I did not complain.   We saw Rams at the top, and met wonderful people, had another great day!

 Road biking comes with multiple risks including inattentive drivers, narrow shoulders, wildlife, loose dogs, and another big one is weather. Along the way we have tried to manage the risk – though we certainly cannot take it completely away. Bad visibility from down pours of ran, low fog, ice from graupel, poor air quality from forest fires, and high wind warnings have all been conditions where we altered routes or the timing of routes to manage the risk. Yesterday was a recent example of route management – biking into Great Falls Scott was initially going to have a cross wind, and then a tail wind. The tail wind is a gift, the cross wind is not great. Cross winds can push a cycle suddenly off the road or into traffic. With a forecast of gusts up to 55 mph, there was also a warning for dust storms and flying debris. To manage the risk, Scott left super early yesterday morning as the worst of the wind was to occur later in the day.  He safely completed the ride.   

Scott also uses safety equipment for visibility.  If you have seen any of Scott’s videos on Facebook, you know he has a bright blinking red light in the back, and he white light in the front. He also has a mirror on his handlebar (new systems exist for an alert on your bike computer to oncoming traffic that we are getting ready to try out.)  He also has yellow vests, wind breaker, and jacket to make him highly visible.  

Much like life, we can not eliminate the risk but we try to be cognizant of it and  reasonable manage it. Scott and I have different risk tolerances which often leads to a negotiation about what makes sense - and a whole lot of prayers for safety!!!!!   Thank you to all of you that have prayed for his safety along the way, we appreciate it.     

Please remember to share Scott's story, and encourage people to donate to the charities we are supporting by  clicking on the links in the website milesformoney.org.  Thank you! Katy and Scott Freitag