As if you need another reason to take a trip into the heart of wine country, where sunshine meets vineyards and incredible cuisine, our California Wine Country 4-Day Weekend vacation is a foray into the state that produces 90% of America’s wine inventory annually. But this experience is about so much more than just wine.
This trip is about cycling through a mecca of culture. It’s dusty fields, majestic forests, and farm-to-fork food. Not convinced? Here are our top reasons why the California Wine Country is about so much more than just full-bodied reds and crisp whites.
Ogle the Armstrong Redwoods
Our guides’ first piece of advice? Watch where you’re riding. Because all you will want to do is stare upward at the tree canopy shading the pavement from hundreds of feet above your head. These remarkable trees can live to be 1,000 years old and grow to a diameter of 16 feet! The towering redwoods stand in stark contrast to the low-laying vineyards in the valleys, and it’s impossible not to marvel at the majestic, natural beauty of the landscape around you.
Enjoy the charm of Healdsburg
In a town known for its world class shopping, art museums, locally grown produce, and endless number of wine tasting rooms, it is impossible to run out of things to do here. The luxurious shopping boutiques mix with a delightful town square (complete with an adorable gazebo) and seemingly year-round gorgeous weather to create irresistible charm.
Extend your stay in the City by the Bay
A city with global appeal, San Francisco offers a little bit of everything–from the Fisherman’s Wharf and Coit Tower to cable cars and the Painted Ladies. Also named “The Best Food City in the Country Right Now” by Bon Appétit magazine, it’s no wonder 18 million visitors flooded the city in 2014. That’s why we pick you up and drop you off at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in downtown San Francisco before and after our California Wine Country 4-Day Weekend vacation, so you can easily explore the city on everyone’s “must-see” list.
See the Golden Gate Bridge
This three-mile long landmark that crosses from San Francisco to the Marin headlands is heralded as one of the top ten construction achievements of the 20th Century. Often seen in movies, postcards and advertisements since it opened in 1937, this architectural marvel is nothing to sniff at. A place you have got to visit at some point in your lifetime, we make it a point to drive across this iconic structure and park in the visitor areas so you may take in the spectacle on our way out of town.
Since returning from wine country, my sunburn has faded but the pictures–and the distinct feeling of having discovered an incredibly unique and distinct culture–remains intact.
“I thought, ‘Well, I’ll give this a shot for a year or two, then I’ll get a real job.’ I’m coming into my 14th year, having guided in amazing places all over the world, and couldn’t be happier.”
Tell us your story. How did you end up at Trek Travel?
At a dinner party one night, a friend mentioned this new company—a new branch of Trek Bicycle that was taking people on super nice bikes to super nice places. I thought, “That’s way too good to be true.” As I was job hunting in the post 9/11 mayhem, I wasn’t having much luck. I had guided a few friends up Mount Rainier, and it felt life changing to show someone a new place, to see them achieve something they didn’t know they could: I was hooked. Somehow, Tania saw something in me through the reality-TV-style hiring process and gave me and 13 other lucky guides a job. I thought, “Well, I’ll give this a shot for a year or two, then I’ll get a real job.” I’m coming into my 14th year, having guided in amazing places all over the world, and I couldn’t be happier.
How did you get into cycling?
Fifteen bucks at a yard sale in New Hampshire scored the 12-year-old version of me a grey Peugeot and my first taste of freedom. Granted, I was riding in cut off jean shorts at the time, and mountain biking quickly became my passion, but that was my humble beginning. I had never worn a chamois until two weeks before my interview with Trek Travel! Track & Field and Cross Country are the sports that put me through university, and it was there that a passion for endurance sports was born. Trek Travel was really the transition from running to cycling for me.
How has your guiding experience impacted your life?
Beyond meeting incredible people, and the travel, I’ve become really good at eating out. This skill only becomes apparent when I eat out with my non-guiding friends (and could be its own future blog post). Also, being able to read people is one of the finest skills a guide can hone, and I like to think that my temperature gauge of people is finely tuned.
How do you spend your off-season?
I am fortunate enough to wear a few different hats. I currently toggle between working as Transportation Director for some of the biggest bicycle races in North America, as well as helping lead yoga trips in sunny, tropical destinations. Through the years, I’ve bartended, worked retail, edited manuscripts, taught yoga, coached high school track, tutored English, lived in Italy, became a Carmichael Training Systems coach, landscaped, and briefly held the title of Global Logistics Manager for a hand-warmer company.
Do you have a favorite vacation spot?
My current favorite place to travel is the Veneto region of Italy, known as the foothills of the Dolomites. The food and wine are amazing, the terrain is varied, and the tourists are few.
Tell us about a highlight during your time guiding.
Some years back, I was guiding in New Zealand with my good friend Jon Vick (currently rocking as the Event Manager for Trek Bicycles). We had some guests who wanted to go skydiving. Near Lake Wanaka, I made a couple calls and learned that the local establishment would not only give us guides a commission if guests signed up to skydive, they would also comp our skydive. JV and I “jumped” at this opportunity, and the fist bump at 15,000 feet before the adrenaline rush confirmed that this would remain a highlight for the rest of my life.
What advice would your give our readers when planning a vacation?
Prepare to make new friends. Also, spend multiple days in a row on your saddle. (Speaking of saddles, they are very personal things, so I recommend you bring one that works for you.) Most importantly, come with an open mind. “Trip of a lifetime” is quite the moniker to live up to. I feel lucky when guests tell me we have exceeded their expectations, and can’t wait for the next time to do it again.
Trek Travel doesn’t mess around when it comes to weeding out less-than-ideal candidates. Here’s an inside look at the process.
This article was written by Jeff Haden and originally published on Inc.com
Ultimately the success of your company depends on the quality of your employees. That means how you hire makes all the difference.
Here’s another in my series where I pick a topic and connect with someone a lot smarter than me.
This time I talked to Tania Burke, President of Trek Travel, a full-service cycling vacation company that offers trips in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Latin America, about hiring remote employees who can deliver outstanding customer service in complex and diverse environments.
You put prospective trip guides through one of the toughest hiring processes I’ve seen.
It has to be. Think of the skills a guide needs: They need to be bike mechanics, strong riders, speak foreign languages, have travel experience–and first and foremost have outstanding customer service skills. The combination is a pretty rare package.
Our guides are 24/7 during trips. Meeting requirements is fine, but the candidates who rise to the top are people who can take customer service to the next level, the people who find ways to wow customers.
Forty percent of our business is repeat customers and another 30 percent is referral based, and that’s a testament to customer service. Our guides are the face of our company.
Conventional wisdom says employers should make it really easy for people to apply in order not to lose some great candidates who bail because the process is too much work. You take the opposite approach.
A lot of people want to be trip guides simply because they want to spend time cycling in Europe. So we have the application tool on our website, but we create a lot of hoops for applicants to jump through in order to weed out the casual applicants. We make people work just to submit an application.
Then what happens?
Then we do two or three Skype video interviews with different people at our company. That lets us narrow the list to a certain number who come to our headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin, for a full-day hiring event.
We’re looking for an all-around blend of skills, so that day each candidate takes part in language testing, role-playing exercises, public speaking, language testing, food preparation, bike mechanic testing. We have one staff member to every two applicants engaged in evaluating them.
Finally we have cocktails and dinner, which sometimes is the most telling part of the day. Seeing how candidates interact with small and larger groups is really important, especially since our guides spend a lot of time with customers off the bike.
And your candidates are still not done.
After the one-day event we select a few people to be guides. They then go through a 10-day training program. They’re still being evaluated, because they aren’t officially hired until they make it through that program.
For 10 days they drive a van and trailer, do more public speaking, conduct a mock trip, and manage that group. One thing you can’t see in the hiring process is how people will deal with an intense experience for a long period of time. So they’re up until 11.30 p.m. at night, back up at 6 a.m. to prep the bikes for that day… in the field some of our guides do that for three weeks in a row with no days off. We try to mimic that experience in our training, both to help guides develop skills and to ensure we’re making the right decision.
Some people make it through training successfully yet still decide not to take the job. There’s no way to know if you’ll love a job until you do that job for a while, so we try to give candidates that experience so they can also make the right decision.
You really have to want the job. Some people will go through the whole process and think, “Um, I’m not sure this is really what I want.” Some of them say it’s like being on “Survivor.”
I would think that would pay dividends in terms of retention. Sure, you’re spending more on the process up front but that pays off on the back end.
Our guides stay with us for a long time. Over a decade later, five of our original guides are still with us. Another crop is about to hit the 10-year mark. Our average guide has been with us more than five years; the industry average is probably around three years.
It’s a challenging lifestyle. You don’t travel home a lot, you could be gone for six months at a time or longer, because often guides will go someplace else in Europe between trips.
Aside from what they do during the trip, are there ways guides can extend the customer service ethos after the trip?
Because so much of our business is repeat, we can build comprehensive customer profiles. Guides send us information on each customer; maybe one thinks he’s a Level 3 but he’s actually a Level 4 and would really enjoy a fast, challenging trip. They also send back bike measurements so we can pre-set bikes next time.
The goal is to collect as much customer information, including preferences, interests, etc, so the process is as seamless as possible the next time.
You also put a lot of trust in your employees to develop new destinations, itineraries, etc.
We determine new destinations about two years out. Say we want to set up a trip in Andalucia in southeast Spain. We do some research, find out a little more about the region, talk to our guides to see if they’ve spent time there… just to start gathering input.
Trek (the bike manufacturer and one-time parent company, which spun off the business in 2007) also has resources we can tap.
Then we put someone on the ground and they do a week to 10 days worth of research. They check out hotels, do site visits, drive the routes, and most importantly evaluate safety. Safety trumps everything: We don’t want to put people on busy roads, so we work hard to find the absolute best and safest places to ride, and the best people to evaluate the quality and safety of a ride are experienced guides.
Then we go back again and put the fine details on the trip: Maybe we find a local farmer who will give us a cheese production tour. Maybe it’s a winery, maybe it’s a cool cooking school, maybe it’s an olive farm. Then we focus on the food experience: Where are the best restaurants?
Ratings don’t tell you anything. You have to go. You have to see and feel and taste–and you have to have experience leading awesome trips to put together an awesome trip.
When your job title is “Cycling Guide,” it’s no more descriptive than handing someone a business cared that reads, “Jack of All Trades.” For Jessica Singerman, tour guide is a catchall for a variety of endeavors including mother, artist, yoga instructor, cyclocross racer, and trip designer for Trek Travel.
Tell us your story. How did you end up at Trek Travel?
In 2005, I was teaching art at the University of Delaware and working at a bike shop where I spotted a Trek Travel catalog. I had done some self-supported bike touring, but I didn’t know companies like Trek Travel existed. I found the company website and saw they were looking to hire guides. I grew up abroad, have done a lot of traveling, and love riding–it looked like a dream job! I put my application together and went through the grueling hiring process. Lo and behold, I got the job!
When did you begin cycling?
I got around by bike as a kid–it was the ultimate freedom. I remember riding my bike across town to the local swimming hole every day in the summer. But I didn’t get the bug until the end of college, when my roommate and I went mountain biking on a whim. We were totally unprepared for what we got ourselves into, and I remember the elation after that first ride in the woods. It sparked something in me, and I kept riding my bike all summer and into autumn as I started grad school. I told myself that if I rode that bike all winter, I’d earn myself a new road bike. Sure enough, I walked into a shop toward the end of the winter and found a tiny road bike just my size. I eventually started racing on the road, then mountain, then eventually cyclocross, where I met my husband. I was hooked.
Tell us about your best travel adventure.
When my husband and I lived in Australia, during the second trimester of my pregnancy, we made a trip to New Zealand’s South Island, and spent ten days hiking and boating together. The glacier hiking on Fox Glacier blew my mind. Between the experience of the glacier and the feeling of crampons on ice, I loved it. We also went on an overnight cruise on Doubtful Sound. Even if I got seasick, the lush cliffs and waterfalls of the Sound were gorgeous, and dining and sleeping on the boat was super fun. It was our last vacation before we had our son a few months later. Maybe knowing that made the holiday all the sweeter. Either way, we had a blast.
Tell us about your best day on a bicycle.
There are too many to count! I can honestly say that for me, any ride is a good one. Biking changed my life and I’m grateful that it helped me find my way – while sometimes getting lost too! I love riding with friends as well as on my own. I love super challenging rides with searing lungs and screaming legs. And I also love a day of meandering in the woods, stopping for leisurely snacks and chatting with friends.
How has guiding influenced your role as a trip designer?
As a guide, you see what people genuinely enjoy and what experiences truly impact guests. You notice what it is about hotels that make them special – the passion with which people work, the extra attention, the super luxurious touches, or the renowned restaurant. It’s those experiences in travel–the ones that change you as a person–that I’m most interested in when I design a trip. I work to balance riding with cultural experiences and downtime so guests have time to let it all soak in.
What is your favorite vacation spot and what makes it a unique destination?
My favorite vacation spot is anywhere in the mountains. If I can scramble over rocks or on a dirt path with friends and family, I’m happy. Camping or in a simple mountain house, cooking together, chatting, making things, reading by a fire, and crisp sunny days. That’s bliss.
What advice would your give our readers when planning a vacation?
I prefer to stay in one place for some time to get a feel for the life there, rather than jamming as much as possible into a holiday. My husband and I have a rule when we travel–to visit no more than one museum or site per day, and to allow ourselves time to stroll, sit in parks and cafés for hours, read, draw, and people watch. Before we go, we make a list of the things we want to do, write down opening days and times, and make a vague plan that includes maybe one site a day with some parks and restaurants we might want to check out in that area. We generally decide what we want to do each day over breakfast, and the plan almost always changes. We play things by ear and stay open to serendipity.
What are your top five must-dos or must-sees when traveling in Europe?
Wow, that’s a tough one. I’d say my three favorite cities are Paris, Venice and Prague. All three cities are beautiful: the architecture, the culture, and the energy. Tuscany is a wonderful place and very friendly for new travelers. The rolling hills and small villages are incredibly picturesque, the people are warm, and the food is easy to love. Last but not least, the Dolomites in the Italian Alps are hands down my favorite place. The landscape is visually stunning, the people are friendly, the riding and hiking are second to none, and the food is super tasty. It’s a bicultural region, having been fought over by Austria and Italy, so there’s a lot of history and multiple languages spoken. The region has something for everyone.
Our Global Logistics Manager, Sean Peotter, maintains a fleet of hundreds of bikes and thousands of spare parts divvied up among support units and warehouses all over the world. On top of that, Sean rebuilds our entire fleet every couple years! He makes it look easy, and this is his story.
Humble Beginnings
I started wrenching in 1992 at Oshkosh Cyclery. It was sort of inevitable as I was the kid who spent summers hanging out in the shop, looking at all the cool bikes. It’s here that I really started to define my love of mechanics. I then moved to the Twin Cities in 1996 for college, and so began my 10-year stint at Penn Cycle. I was able to work under my brother, the store manager, and I moved up through the ranks by attending numerous industry events.
The most impressionable experience was the Shimano SLD Program. Shimano enabled employees to be transferred from the company headquarters in Japan to work in shops around the world. We were lucky enough to get Daisuke Nago. Daisuke was an engineer, directly responsible for creating many of the parts that we use on bikes today. Daisuke was with us through the winter months as he wanted to see the extreme conditions their components had to endure in the winter. There’s no better place to test extreme weather conditions than Minnesota. I was then lucky enough to attend the 2004 Shimano Mechanics SLD Summit in Florida. It was a great experience that provided an environment for mechanics from all over the US to discuss common issues and resolutions. As far as Daisuke goes, I still communicate with him today. I’m looking forward to taking my family there to meet him and his family someday.
Rising in the Ranks
I have lots of pieces of paper after being in the industry for over 20 years. Shimano, SRAM, Mavic, Trek. One of my most important, though, is my USAC Mechanics Certification. For this I spent one week at the Olympic Training Center and attended numerous classes; lots of classroom time, but also good hands on time. It’s here that you learn to understand what it is like to be a race (or ‘neutral’) mechanic. They don’t teach you mechanic skills; you need to have that base before you come. They refine your knowledge to a specific style of mechanics. It’s here that my passion for race mechanics started.
While working for Penn Cycle I was asked to provide Neutral Service for the women’s road races at the Nature Valley Grand Prix. I had never done anything like it before, and my team made it though by the skin of our teeth. We went through over 60 wheel changes in that race, resorting to changing tubes and “recycling” the racers wheels back into the mix. It was mass chaos, but I was hooked. It is from this experience that I saw the need for a proper Neutral Support company in the Twin Cities. I founded OnSupport, and through AMAZING support from Trek Bicycles I was able to provide support for any level pro cycling race in the US. OnSupport was in operation from 2005 – 2011, when I started working for Trek Travel. Actually, it is because of OnSupport that I am working for Trek Travel now.
Fate
It pays to know someone. Years ago I worked with Jon Vick back in the Twin Cities at a local Trek dealer, Penn Cycle. He thought I would be a good fit for tech support at cycling event out in California in 2009. TT was there and I guess I caught their eye because they asked me to help out at the Tour de France in 2010. Eight months later I was hired as the Global Logistics Manager. Nearly five years later and I couldn’t be happier. My favorite part of the job is training: I love teaching new guides and old guides how to work on bikes. Bike mechanics is second nature to me, and I want to share that with as many people as I can.
A Day in the Life
Let’s look back to the 2013 Tour de France in the Alps. During the third week of the race we were running 8 units, 24 guides, and 1 logistics crew (consisting of myself, our president Tania, and my pregnant wife). All together there were about 200 riders on the road at any time. I had the additional task of “Trek Travelizing” our viewing venues and making sure that operations in the US were still running smoothly. Days were 16-20 hours each, spent driving up and down various iconic mountains. I drove up and down Alp d’Huez 13 times in two days. Did I mention there is a lot of driving?
Plenty of late night drives to get bikes to certain trips before they start, needing to get up the mountain before the Gendarme close it to cars, etc. I have had many uncomfortable conversations with the Gendarme trying desperately to get through their barricade because you have day-bags for 150 guests that will be riding up that climb in the morning. I also can’t count the number of times I’ve slept in the van on the top of a mountain, or in some field at the base of Tourmalet. It’s pretty much the norm: uncomfortable sleep, no showers and cold food. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. I work in the most picturesque places of the world, and I get to make a venue look simply amazing for guests that just rode a long way to watch the greatest sporting event race by.
My logistics van is organized chaos: spare bikes, extra parts, pop up tents, water, food, beer, beer, beer, bike stands, locks, banners, flowers. You name it, I have it with me; and if I don’t have it, I’ll find it if you need it. I’m the guy in the background making sure that the chaos is never seen. I do it with a smile on my face not because I have to, but because I genuinely have it there. I love making people happy, I really do. And it isn’t all van camping. I often get to stay in some of the most luxurious hotels and chateaux that I have ever seen. It is those times that surely make up for the others. This job has taken me to places that I would have never gone and for that I am extremely grateful. It was only fitting that in one of those places, on top of Alp d’Huez, we announced my wife was pregnant.
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What is the Difference?
Ultimate Luxury:
Savor some of the most spectacular, 5-star properties in the world. Exuding luxury and elegance, these one-of-a-kind accommodations offer the chance to rejuvenate at award-winning spas, dine at Michelin-starred restaurants, and more.
Luxury:
Enjoy luxurious accommodations handpicked for a refined experience. From signature spa treatments to delicious local cuisine, you’ll be more than provided for; you’ll be pampered.
Explorer:
These handpicked hotels provide relaxation and fun in a casual and comfortable environment. Delicious cuisine and great service mix perfectly for a memorable stay.
Combined:
On select cycling vacations, you’ll stay at a mix of Explorer and Luxury hotels. Rest assured, no matter which hotel level you’re at, our trip designers carefully select every accommodation.
Road: 1-3 hours of riding. Up to 25 mi (40 km). Up to 1,000 ft (300 m).
Gravel: 1-3 hours of riding. Up to 20 mi (35 km). Up to 1,000 ft (300 m).
Hiking: 1-3 hours of hiking. Up to 5 mi (8 km). Up to 1,000 ft (300 m).
Level 2:
Road: 2-4 hours of riding. 20-35 mi (35-60 km). Up to 2,500 ft (750 m).
Gravel: 2-4 hours of riding. 15-30 mi (25-45 km). Up to 2,000 ft (300 m).
Hiking: 2-4 hours of hiking. 4-8 mi (6-12 km). Up to 1,500 ft (450 m).
Level 3:
Road: 3-5 hours of riding. 25-55 mi (40-85 km). Up to 4,500 ft (1,500 m).
Gravel: 3-5 hours of riding. 20-40 mi (35-60 km). Up to 3,000 ft (900 m).
Hiking: 3-5 hours of hiking. 6-10 mi (9-16 km). Up to 2,000 ft (600 m).
Level 4:
Road: 4+ hours of riding. 40-70 mi (60-110 km). Up to 8,000 ft (2,400 m).
Gravel: 4+ hours of riding. 30-50 mi (45-80 km). Up to 4,000 ft (1,200 m).
Hiking: 4+ hours of hiking. 7-15 mi (11-24 km). Up to 4,000 ft (1,200 m).
What are your trip styles?
Classic - Reserve:
Savor the finer things as you relax in luxurious 5-star accommodations and wine, dine, and ride in some of the most unforgettable destinations around the world.
Classic - Signature:
Explore beautiful destinations by bike, enjoy extra inclusions, savor delicious local cuisine, and enjoy the perfect mix of accommodations.
Classic - Discover:
Enjoy a casual cycling vacation with fantastic routes and comfortable accommodations.
Ride Camp:
Train like the pros in some of their favorite riding destinations.
Pro Race:
See the pros in action at the biggest cycling events of the year.
Cross Country:
Tackle an epic adventure that takes you point-to-point across mountains, countryside, and more.
Self-Guided
Enjoy a bike tour on your schedule with just your chosen travel companions.
Sometimes it’s more convenient and comfortable to have your own room while on vacation. We understand and that’s why we offer a Single Occupancy option. The additional price guarantees a private room all to yourself
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