A recap of this trip

I think of this trip in sections- all kinds of different sections. Sometimes by day, state, week, terrain, hosts? 

The south. The great plains of Oklahoma and Texas. We were introduced to new riding- weather/terrain, different sites, culture and hosts. It is amazing to see this country so intimately, watch how gradual yet sharp the changes are as we move west.

Oklahoma brought generous, warm host sites. People genuinely interested in the work we are doing, happy to host us, feed us delicious meals, drive us to community pools. The rides became flat, hot, windy- one or two roads the entire day. We spent a fair amount of time on the historic Rt 66 allowing us to visit fun sites- Pop's diner/soda pop store/gas station an amazing small off the road museum.

Texas continued similar to Oklahoma, not my favorite part of the country. I had a hard time with some of the rides- I knew the terrain would be more mentally challenging for me than rolling hills or mountains even. Long, flatish, boring with little to look at, rough roads. Headwinds. Would you rather ride over an We would begin pacelining until we got so bored we had to slow down and chat, distracting ourselves from the monotony of the ride. The visual highlight of Texas rides were passing by cattle feed yards. Incredibly depressing lots where hundreds of cattle were packed together to be fattened up before being delivered to the slaughter houses. A stench like no other that had last years riders vomiting on the side of the road. The B2SB rain cloud broke the southern hot spell and we luckily missed the worst of the heat and cattle fumes.

We had one short day into Hereford, TX with an optional 20 miles detour to see Palo Duro, the 2nd largest canyon in the US. A handful of us went and explored to various degrees. The tailwind we had for the nine miles to the Canyon made the entire trip worth it. What an amazing feeling, flying at an easy 20-24 mph, inspiring- feeling like you can actually bike well. How ridiculous that this trip goes east to west- headwinds are the worst. Palo Duro was the breath of fresh air that I needed to appreciate our time in Texas more.

Into the southwest! What a lovely time. We crossed into New Mexico, riding into Portales where the mayor greeted us with a proclamation that July 29, 2009 would be Bike and Build day! We saw beautiful windmills, slept in dorms (beds!) and had a hilarious police escort out of town the next day. The entire state was gorgeous, the terrain becoming more red and rocky- mountainous as we headed further to the middle of nowhere. We hit Pie Town on the Continental divide, 'town' of 55 people, known for their pie, stayed in a cute toaster house cabin open to hikers year round.

The ride into Carizozo was memorable.

Ali: I feel like today might end up being another one of those epic days we have...

Jodi: Do you know what the characteristics of an epic are? 

The hero leaves home, has adventures, encounters the supernatural, returns victorious

It was 94 miles from Roswell to Carrizozo, New Mexico. The first 80 miles, we would climb 3600 ft, in the last 14 we would descend 1500 ft. Megan drove the van, Jodi and I road sweep, we would leave last and would stay behind the entire team. 

The first ten miles out of Roswell we fought obnoxious headwinds. 10-12 mph pace is incredibly defeating, makes you feel like you will never get anywhere. Shortly enough, we came upon Sadie and friends who were stopped with Sadie's second flat. We helped her change it and rode 50 ft where she got her third flat. I rode ahead to help Larry who broke a spoke. We all averaged 7 mph the 37 miles to first lunch. It was going to be a long day. I hadn't slept well the night before and wasn't feeling great, we left first lunch at 12:30 which is very late. 

Jodi and I had a difficult ride to second lunch though it could have been far worse. The consistent climbs were hard, especially since our new elevation made it more difficult to breathe. I couldn't catch my breath after drinking water and it took away any opportunity to chat. The saving grace was that we had entered the enchanted land of New Mexico which proved to be absolutely gorgeous. I kept thinking about how lovely a ride it would be if circumstances were different. (well rested, hydrated, less pain, shorter ride, not sweep...) These endless mountains of the southwest are very different than those in the northeast and the beauty is captivating. 

Second lunch brought me a second wind. When we arrived, there was a decent group finishing eating, reminding me that we were not hours behind everyone and that we would actually be able to complete the ride (sometimes this is easy to forget or hard to believe). Food, water, coffee and the knowledge that we only had six more miles of climbing before a 14 miles descent.

I couldn't have been happier climbing over the last hill, seeing our downhill street sign and turning the corner to confirm it was true. Rapidly gaining speed while watching the most breathtaking scenery unfold is an ultimate cyclist high. Euphoric, all the pain and misery of the previous 80 miles melting away- this is one of the best parts of biking, the best parts of this trip. The descent is always worth the climb, we soared 14 miles, barely pedaling into tiny Carizozo. I wish I could really explain just how amazing of a ride- changing from one of the most miserable to incredible rides of the trip. What is even more crazy is just how many of these days we have.

Before leaving the southwest we had an excellent stop in Flagstaff. Met B&B alum and explored a quite happening downtown. Art walk event and local brews, train themed bars and coffee shops- I loved it. On our ride out, Sarah had an accident and ended up breaking her elbow. Talk about a scary and horrible fall- heading to the Grand Canyon too. Speaking of which- the Grand Canyon is absolutely incredible. Fun camping, watched the sun rise and set, relaxed, hiked 6 miles- perfect day off. Beautiful beautiful beautiful.

Though not easy to transition from such an amazing time in New Mexico and eastern Arizona to our most difficult desert stretch. It began with a century ride into Salome- climbing into the mountains for the first 40 miles followed by 3500 ft of switchbacks descending into the desert. While it was very, very fun, the second half of the ride was miserable. The second our elevation dropped, we gained 15 degrees. Cacti, sand and heat. It was 110 degrees, long, nauseous, dizzy, pretty unhappy time. Several more days through this hot, windy, not flat desert including our epic 120 mile ride. Fun campsite though 95 degree heat all night prevented everyone from sleeping at all before our 2:30 wake up. Great mental strength lead us through the complete darkness for our first hour, 110 difficult miles, not a single gas station until we reached Twentynine Palms. Tomorrow we will finally leave the Mojave and enter real California. Can't believe this trip is wrapping up. Crazy.