welcome to reality!

When planning and thinking about this trip the only thing I knew for sure is that getting my body into in shape will only enhance my biking experience and for the most part that has held true. Even though everything else about the trip was theoretical it did not preclude my having some expectations, for instance, I thought I would have time to be introspective and answer some of the big questions we all struggle with.  Such as, what is my life’s purpose, or what do I want to change and as you can imagine there are numerous such questions we all like to explore when we are being contemplative. News flash! That has not been the case thus far.  We have had high highs and low lows and for the most part have been reacting to the whims of the terrain. In theory riding uphill for 5, 9 or 12 miles in the hot dessert heat with cars traffic whizzing by at 70 or 80 miles an hour leaves little time for contemplation yet ratchets up the nervous anxiety.  Put another way I think we may have found one of Dante’s levels of hell, a minor level but hell nonetheless.  Meltdowns and breakdowns are just part of the course, who knew?

People have been AWESOME! I generally subscribe to this belief, yet to see it in action is wonderful and nourishing for our souls especially when our emotions are raw and very close to the surface. Yesterday after a long 4.5 mile hill that took us about an hour and a half to climb we dropped into the town of Morongo, California. Even though the sun baked one horse town would have been a blip on our route had we been in a car, it was truly an oasis for us. We stopped at the Morongo Fruit Market. I was like a kid in a candy shop, stuffing and gorging myself on blueberries and ice cream. And coveting the inexpensive fruit I could not carry with me, for example 4 pounds of oranges for a dollar. I instantly found myself a having the fondest of emotions for the store and its owner who made us feel welcome and at home. In so much that I felt a pang of sadness and trepidation, as I had to get on my bike and leave the refuge of our well stocked sanctuary heading to Yucca Valley and a daunting 9 mile climb.

Strangers have been most generous and gracious bathing us in well wishes and good fortune. This happens without exception and is free of any bias of age, gender, religion, class or any of the classifications we tend to segment people. This kindness which offered without question has led to a stay in Palm Springs with Irwin G., whom was a perfect host providing the perfect sanctuary after a 50 mile day. It was a perfect place to repair or fragile egos and prepare for the next leg.

With Harlan and Julianne at the San Diego Zoo

San Diego was the ideal place to start this journey. We were hosted by Harlan and Julianne. Not only did they open up their home to us but they also took us around the City. It is always a wonderful experience when you are taken around by someone who loves where they live, in our case Harlan loves San Diego.  In addition, we caught up and nurtured familial bonds which incidentally could be nurtured and cultivated to a greater extent because after all is said and done it is the strength of our relationships which endure and sustain us and not the urgency of doing things that get us through our day. There is a time and place for the daily grind but it should not be all consuming.  Each experience builds on itself. The send off we received from Harlan & Julianne makes a great foundation for our experiences so far and the many more to come.

A quirk about what we are doing is being in the public at all times, translated to mean we have little or no privacy to resolve conflict,  address meltdowns, or even celebrate hard earned victories. Everything is public, for me this is a challenge as I am a very private person. Trying to figure out how to behave or address private issues in public is going to be a steep learning curve in that the challenges of riding everyday has a way of generating many demanding situations which puts stress on interpersonal relationships. One moment we could be riding a high of achievement and the next you could have the starring role in a meltdown in a Mexican restaurant where the other patrons become the audience to an impromptu dinner theatre. Other times I am so famished that I would be stuffing food into my mouth acting out a vignette where Miss Manner’s would be handing out demerits, behavior normally saved for gobbling down a quick snack in the kitchen.

Tire change #2 ~ Team Work Baby!

On balance, I am astonished at what we are doing, amazed at the hospitability and kindness of people, and feel supported a sustained by my travel companions (team AWESOME). We are off into the dessert proper and will be out of services range for this period, I am looking forward to adventures on the horizon.

-Shogan