We are unable to host for the summer as we will be out on our own adventures or have friends using our available rooms.

PLEASE READ OUR ENTIRE PROFILE BEFORE CONTACTING US!
If we feel that you haven't taken the time to write us a unique request, we will decline.

We've decided to ONLY HOST CYCLISTS at our home. But before you stop reading:

- You do not need to be a professional cyclist. Austin is one of the most progressive cities in the country with regard to cycling, and its drivers and streets are more forgiving than most other places in the states, so never fear!
- You don't need to bring your own bike.
- You don't even need to have ridden a bike in the past decade, (we will help you ease into it if it seems uncomfortable at first,) we just need you to be willing to explore the city with us the same way we do!
- We have a couple bikes to lend to surfers, but if you'd prefer a different size or style, Wes works at a bike rental shop with very nice bikes and fair rates.

If you're not interested or able to ride a bike, we suggest requesting a different couch. (Of course, there is an exception to every rule.)

Additionally, for your consideration: We have two cats and a dog, we eat meat, and we drink alcohol. Do with that information what you will!

What's the big idea? We've had many wonderful surfers from all over the world, but we find that sometimes when we have guests, we end up driving around the city, which is expensive and not normal for us at all! We want to get to know you and to show you what we love about Austin, but we'd prefer to do it in the best way we know: on two wheels!

Please send a unique, detailed request if you would like to stay with us. Make sure to mention your cycling experience so we know you've read and understand this part of staying here. We receive dozens of requests living in such a badass city, so you will have much better luck with most hosts if your request stands out. :)

CURRENT MISSION

Get on to the next adventure and love as much as possible in the interim.

ABOUT US:

Chelsea:

A perpetual ball of energy, solar-powered and self-propelled, dropping pins all over this planet. Honest, to a fault.

I love experiencing new things, but I also like the comforts of the familiar.

I try not to be presumptuous. I like to be educated about any subject I speak about. And I talk a lot.

I left everything I knew years ago to begin traveling and have slowed down, but never want to stop. After spending several months on a crazy bike adventure in Europe, I finally move to Austin, TX. in February 2012, where I had always wanted to be.

The last few years have been filled with countless impromptu roadtrips and random flights to places I just had to go to, or just a trip to Milwaukee for a few weeks... er, months. I've had a number of travel companions including friends, family and strangers and I love it!

Now I work at a beer bar in downtown Austin, in tourist central, and I'm constantly meeting other travelers and newcomers.

I'm having a really awesome life so far.

People are people no matter who they are. Be good to one another.

Wes!:

Partially raised in small town Texas, partially in the city of Ft. Worth (not Dallas; never Dallas), I developed an affinity for drawing, playing video games, roaming the neighborhood without adult supervision, and eventually music and finally, cycling. I made the move to Austin in 2006 with the intent of staying maybe a couple years to develop my chops in the live music scene and life, as it does, took its own course. I've worked in warehouses, offices, on a pedicab (rickshaw, if it do ya), in sandwich and pizza shops, and now at the bike tour place, and perhaps someday I'll settle on a trajectory.

I've traveled most of the southern, eastern, and midwestern portions of the country, either on random excursions or with my former band, and I've visited the midwest with Chelsea several times. More recently, I enjoyed my first trip overseas on our honeymoon to Germany (with a little Czech Republic and Turkey sprinkled in).

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

*To meet and host people who are not looking for a free hotel for a night, but want to experience our city as a local.
*To create or preserve the couch-surfing community everywhere we live or visit.
*We love meet-ups and events and want to make our own regular group here in Austin.

Couchsurfing has changed so much since Chelsea started using it in 2007. In spite of this, we have decided to stay on couchsurfing instead of making money using our home as an AirBnB for several reasons (only a few listed here):
*Contrary to popular belief, not all couch-surfers are free-loaders.
*We love opening our homes to others.
*We want travelers to feel like they have a real home and while they are away from their own.
*We love having a cultural exchange, especially from people traveling abroad.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE:
Chelsea surfed all over Europe and parts of the US as well as hosted dozens of couch-surfers in Milwaukee. Mostly all of these experiences were awesome. A few weren't, but you can't win them all.
Together, we have hosted several surfers in our home in Austin, and even invited travelers to join us for our holiday festivities in 2015, which was wonderful and we plan on doing again someday.
We joined up with a few meet-up groups in Europe while we were on our honeymoon, and had a great time hanging out with some of the individuals we met.

Interests

Chelsea:
MY BIKE!
I'm a singer of many songs, no matter how terrible they may be
BEER!!! (I used to just drink it, now I'm obsessed.)
Parlant français avec les françaises
Yoga
Dancing all the time
Taking pictures of pointy churches
Getting lost
Accidentally finding my way back home
Accidentally finding anything
sugar
FOOD
coffee
tea
red wine
oh... I guess food and drink are some of my biggest interests.

Wes:

Armchair politics
Bars that old people go to
e-books
Making food that is beyond my skill level
e-cigarettes and the potential of harm reduction
Reading about scientific discovery
Alternative transportation
Old stuff

• cats
• dogs
• books
• e-books
• dancing
• dining
• wine
• red wine
• beer
• coffee
• vegetarian
• yoga
• drinking
• shopping
• clothing
• politics
• video games
• reading
• traveling
• eating out
• drawing
• music
• live music
• cycling
• surfing
• geography
• history
• tours

Music, Movies, and Books

Moulin Rouge
RoboCop
Cohen brothers
Wes Anderson movies
documentaries
think pieces
Chelsea likes watching Indie movies that make her cry once and then never watching them again
Wes likes all kinds of thriller and super hero movies

We're both musicians, so we have some very flawed and/or vast knowledge/appreciation of all types of music. Chelsea sings mostly folk, jazz and blues, but was also in a cabaret band in Milwaukee. Wes, as mentioned, trends country.

We love books!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

C: Pike's Peak, Iowa. I know it sounds lame, but it so isn't.

Aaaaand, I guess biking around Europe was pretty fuckin' cool.

W: I also did Pike's Peak!

Touring. No experience is quite like playing to a new town every night, eating out of cans and febreezing your show clothes all to hell because you can't wash them and you haven't showered in days. Perhaps I should have used couchsurfing on that trip! It's okay; most of the time, we were able to find places to stay. People are generous everywhere. Favorite places on the tours: Atlanta, New Orleans, Thomas, WV, NYC (which is kind of a gimme), St. Louis. That said, I can't see myself touring all the time. This is why I am not in a band anymore.

Both: Found the love of my life and married them.

Teach, Learn, Share

We know about:
bikes, linguistics and BEER!!!
Chelsea was also a vegetarian for many years and is pretty skilled at making "drunk pasta."
Wes has become quite the chef over the last few years.
All kinds of bizarre and/or trivial facts

Chelsea is currently learning:
French
German
Spanish
Turkish
ukulele
European geography
how to travel
how to pick my battles
how to be a grown-up

Wes is currently learning:
Video editing
Local history
European geography
how to travel
how to make delicious everything
how to keep his new wife happy
how if he doesn't fill out his part of our couch-surfing profile, someone might do it for him

Let's go get lost together.

What I Can Share with Hosts

- Trigger! (if he's traveling with us)
- Music
- Dinner
- Drinks
- Bike tips and tricks
- So many stories!

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

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