There is only one organization that i have ever voluntarily paid to join and i have been a member my entire adult life. The Adventure Cycling organization began the same year I was born with the purpose of creating a nationwide network of bicycling routes and kicked off their drive with a transcontinental "transamerica" ride in 1976. Since then, they have developed an extensive collection of maps that give cyclists a way to get back and forth across the country on backroads and roads noted for their scenery. Tiffanie and I rode across the transam route about 10 years ago and were floored by the generosity of small town folks who had become accustomed to dingy bikers rolling through town looking for a place to put up a tent. (it's hard to limit my commentary about Adventure Cycling so I'm gonna try a new approach) If cycling could be compared to Christianity with all it's denominations then adventure cycling is the only place where I feel comfortable pitching pennies in the plate. When Tiffany and I realized that Missoula Montana, home of adventure cycling's headquarters, was on our route, I had to stop by and say hello. I'm not sure they were quite ready for some unshaven awestruck Kentuckian with a baby strapped to his back to wander in just for the express purpose of "being there", but they were as friendly as I expected and offered us a soda and showed us where they make the maps and their collection of bikes. These bikes weren't there because they were necessarily old or fancy but because of the places they'd been. "this bike's been from alaska to cape horn" "this bike has been 30,000 miles" "this bike has been around the world twice" and so on. Our guide (a monk in the finest abbey) gave us some maps of local bike trails and shared his enthusiasm for the place. Now the unexpected benefit to all of this is the discovery that Missoula is one the hippest towns on the planet. I'm convinced that it's just the magic of adventure cycling drifting out over the town like the smell of apple pie in a scooby-doo cartoon. A river runs through the middle of town with a bike trail along the side of it and the whole place is ringed by mountain even thought the town is pancake flat. The vibe is palpably laid back and the day we were there the entire populace appeared to headed out to go inner tubing. I've never seen such a mix of young, old, hip and sketchy all headed to the same place with the same purpose. The town also raised money for a giant carousel, built it, and runs it with volunteers. Rides are 50 cents and it's worth waking a baby up for. I realize that this is a rambling post, but I'm still in a bit of a semi-religious frenzy about the place. I'll be knocking on your door soon with some literature.