"She's closing up the library!!!"
On the bike ride over from the Super 8 (2.3 miles), it was spitting rain AND the sun was casting shadows as the clouds thinned above me. All of this just reflecting my uncertainty about not riding today.
But, dammit, I'm not riding so get used to it, John!
I stopped at the Great Divide bike shop and bought some toe covers; hopefully, they will keep my toes a smidge warmer in the morning. The good news is they aren't very heavy ...
And that's it for today's journal entry!
In lieu of not having much to report in the way of activity, I thought I'd address some themes that have surfaced during the ride.
Southbounders
I have encountered many riders cruising south as I've struggled against the wind, going north. Uniformly (a couple exceptions noted below ...) they are happy to talk for a few minutes about their trip and share any information that I might ask about. I feel like I've encountered more foreigners than US citizens ...
Many, many people from the Netherlands. I asked the self-identified "Richard from the Netherlands" why that might be the case and he said that there had been an article about the route in some adventure magazine. When I brought this up to other Dutch riders, they pooh-poohed this hypothesis, generally saying that they had been thinking about doing the ride for years.
Richard from the Netherlands was very concerned about bear encounters. When I assured him that it would be unlikely he would actually encounter a bear, he practically yelled at me in a sort of Nazi-like command voice:
"I HAVE SEEN THREE OF THEM!!!!"
Oh, sorry ...
Other nationalities include France, Australia, New Zealand, England, Belgium. No Germans? No Asians? No Africans?
I've encountered only two women riding solo. As a matter of fact, Amber was the first southbounder I had met. She was from Philly and had started riding with another woman but that woman couldn't continue. The other solo woman was the only person who did not stop and talk to me. Recall from a previous update that I had a hellacious tailwind (really? Does that happen?), meaning that as a southbounder, she had a hellacious headwind. As she rode by, she yelled out (facetiously?), "Lucky you!" and did not stop. So I didn't get her life story ...
Many men riding solo. Tom from Alaska had been riding with two fellow Alaskans, but when I ran into him just west of the wildlife refuge in Idaho, he had ditched his buddies. Later that day I went to dinner with those very same buddies, but it wasn't exactly clear to me why Tom from Alaska had split. Ostensibly, I felt like the others were going too slow, but I think there was something else going on under the surface.
Yesterday I ran into Sanjay from SoCal. He had hiked the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) south to north then had turned around and started to ride the mountain bike route north to south back to New Mexico! Really???? He's a former downhill mountain bike racer and hopes to do 100 miles a day.
Speaking of which, when I encountered Chris from SoCal he had completed a 120 mile run the previous day and had slept in the Moran Junction post office because it was so cold the previous night.
My record daily distance on this trip has been 77 miles. I could not even imagine adding another 50% to that distance. Got to hand it to these kids for pushing so far.
I met Stephan from France yesterday and he was clearly shaken by the difficult, mountain bike trail he had just ... ridden(?) (unlikely, given his complaints). He was so discouraged by the experience that he was going to ride on I-15 to bypass the route I had taken the previous day, but I assured him that the roads weren't all that bad. Based on my assurances he decided to not do the bypass. I hope he's not mad at me ...
I have encountered a few married couples and, in spite of all of the hardship and worry associated with doing this trip, they seem to be getting along. Just one exception to that, Frank and Bridget(?)- from the Netherlands; seemed like there was something bubbling below the surface that just didn't feel right.
Many men riding as a duos. I particularly liked meeting James and Dave from Australia a couple days ago who were riding with ear buds and wearing Hawaii shirts. Dave said he was listening to Spanish language tapes because they intended on riding all the way to Mexico City.
I've only run into two sets of duo women: a pair from (you guessed it) the Netherlands and Belgium and a couple Americans, Sabrina and Kayla, who I just met yesterday afternoon. Their bikes were laying on the side of the road and Sabrina was stretched out on the road. I thought at first she had had an accident, but turns out she was just stretching ... out ... on the road. They said they've had a great time meeting lots of people and really weren't making much daily progress.
The Great Divide Mountain Bike Party Route!
Some trios. Sam, Andy and Claire from England stopped by when I was fixing my broken derailleur cable. They were in a very happy mood and Sam and Claire were going to ride through Central and South America. Andy had other obligations, I guess?
I think Shane and Rachel from Australia were "saddled" with Chris from Missoula who somehow glommed on to the couple. I felt a bit of "this wanker really isn't with us" when I visited with Shane and Rachel.
Yesterday I ran into Max, Reiner and Tina from Switzerland. The men were more than happy to talk about anything I wanted to know, but I got this sense that Tina didn't want to stop. Maybe she was hoping to get to a hotel somewhere later that day?
My favorite trio were Seth, Matt and Wes whom I camped with on Wildlife Night at the wildlife refuge. They ate A TON of food (including a pizza slice from me): ramen noodles, cookies, some surplus food they got from Seth's grandparents the night before, pizza slice. They were very easy going and we traded stories back and forth until it was clear that it was time to turn the camp over to the moose and deer and ????.
The largest group (which I didn't really meet) was a group that had signed up for a supported tour. The previous day my favorite trio had encountered this group and the company gave them each a beer! When I encountered the shag wagon (i.e. the support vehicle), out in front of the others the next day, I asked if it were true that they were handing out beers to unsupported riders. Yes, IF I wanted to turn around and join them for lunch a few miles back down the road on which I had just fought the wind to gain a little mileage.
Sorry, not worth the effort riding backwards. Plus, really, I don't drink all that much ...
As I passed on the order of 20 riders, I would raise my hand in the air and do a sort of "tomahawk chop" gesture, yelling out "To Canada!!!!" Only a few of the riders got the point and yelled back, "On to Mexico!".
The Line
[Editor's note: John senses that he's talked about "The Line" before, but he couldn't find the discussion when he went over previous updates. He wants to apologize in advance if this is ground he has already covered.]
I had mentioned in a previous update that the only thing I can control is "seat time", i.e. the amount of time I spend pedaling. I can't control the weather (clearly not the wind), I can't control the topology, I really can't even increase my power output for any appreciable length of time. Thus, if I want to go further, I have to pedal longer.
Well, I forgot one other important thing that I can control that affects how far I can go:
Riding The Line
At any given instant there is an optimal location to ride your bike on the road. String together a series of these locations and you have "The Line", i.e. the best route to bike to minimize the work you have to do to get from point A to point B. Mountain bikers are very familiar with this concept and choosing the wrong line could be the difference between safely riding down some gnarly trail or ... a broken collarbone.
So, when I'm on a dirt road, I spend a lot of time, looking for The Line. I know when I'm riding The Line because suddenly the pedaling will become easier, there will be less sound of gravel being ground under wheels, less bouncing of the wheels and frame.
But The Line is a very dynamic thing. It might be on the left side, then on the right, then in the center. If I didn't follow The Line wherever it went, I'd be working too hard. So, my job is to A) find the line and B) ride the line.
I've heard a few complaints from southbounders that the roads are in terrible condition, but, with rare exceptions, I did NOT find that to be true. We start with the fact that many roads are unimproved or unmaintained, yes, but inevitably there is A Line through all of it that makes the ride bearable. I suspect that those who were complaining have never ridden a mountain bike and were not seeking out The Line. Why are you on the Great Divide Mountain Bike trail???
As noted above, Stephan didn't like the mountain bike trail nor did a woman from Belgium. Me? I really enjoyed finally doing some mountain biking ...
... and finding The Line through all of the roots and ruts and sand and rocks. It's there, baby. Believe me!
BTW, I believe there is A Line as we go through life: at any given time, there is something that we should be doing to optimize our lives. Some people are living The Line, but others either can't find The Line, won't look for The Line or, seeing the line, refuse to take it. At Colter Bay I met some folks camping out and each of them talked about what they wanted to do (The Line), but then had a bazillion excuses for not doing them (Not riding The Line).
Concrete
Related to looking for the line on dirt roads is looking for concrete on dirt roads.
John, there is no concrete on dirt roads!!!
Yes, I realize that, but sometimes the road surface can be so compressed by the traffic that sections are nearly rock hard, forming a concrete like substance. In areas of high winds (er, almost everywhere on this trip), the sand is blown off these strips of concrete so when I ride, this concrete it is almost like riding on asphalt. The bonus for me on any dirt road is finding concrete.
Food
Shouldn't surprise anyone that I'm not eating healthy so here's what's going on with respect to food.
I decided NOT to bring a stove because of the added weight (stove, fuel, matches, fire extinguisher). Cooking ... out. So, I've hit on bringing deli sandwiches. Depending on the size of the sandwich I'll ask the sandwich creator at the deli to half or quarter the sandwich so that I'll have a portion for lunch then a portion for dinner.
Breakfast consists of a power bar.
During the course of the day, I'll have a "snack" of beef jerky: protein, salts, jerky. Walmart sells these "jerky-ettes" which are quarter ounce strips that are just enough to give me a little energy boost when I need.
Totally psychological, I'm sure ...
Lately I've been adding Mountain Dew to my diet, having Mountain Dew and power bar for breakfast, the remaining portion of the breakfast Mountain Dew and deli sandwich portion for lunch. I think this makes me feel better about pedaling and pedaling and pedaling ... especially when going up steep hills against the wind.
The Zone
Sometimes I'm just looking at the scenery and not even noticing that I'm riding a bike. I'm not thinking about the next turn, I'm not thinking about how long I've been pedaling, I'm not thinking about if I'm tired or hungry or anxious about whatever the next problem is about to occur.
I wish I could be in The Zone more often. I have about a week to sort it out.
I will send an update tomorrow with a proposed itinerary.
I hope all is going well for you and your loved ones.
It's a wonderful life
Tomahawk Chop
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