I’m sitting in Williams, Arizona after a shorter days ride. Well, comparatively. I realized this morning that I am close to 3,000 miles into this journey.
I felt it this morning. Like the day before, I couldn’t sleep in, and was up at 5:30 making coffee. I was tired, and not motivated to move too quickly.
Doing a journey like this is far different on a bike than in a car. It’s difficult to explain it to non-riders in a way they can understand. It is more demanding, challenging, and tiring on a bike. I wouldn’t trade it for anything, because the upside is pretty good, but it’s still not the same as traveling 3,000 miles in a car.
I woke up feeling pretty down. As I headed out on the bike, I found I couldn’t shake it. Just bummed out. Those who ride know exactly what I was going through. I was mentally fatigued. It’s why I’ve decided to take a day off of riding in a couple of days. As soon as I get far enough West to camp out without getting cold, I’m going to take a break.
By 10 am, I was getting frustrated because of how I was feeling. So, I decided to pull over at a restaurant and have a decent breakfast, something I hadn’t done yet on my trip. It paid off. As soon as the food was in me, I started to get the energy I needed to complete my day. It was just another reminder to myself of the importance of eating during this trip.
Around Noon, I pulled into a gas station and met this guy who was on a bicycle. He looked very weathered. He was my age, but in amazing health. I asked how long he had been on his cycle, and he told me that he had started out in March from Maine. Maine! He had traveled by bicycle to Seattle, and was now on his way back home. He figured he would arrive sometime in December. Incredible. He was on his second bicycle — the first gave up about 1/4 into his journey.
I also met an older gentleman who was just heading East on his new V-Strom. He told me he was headed to Michigan. When I told him where I was from, we ended up chatting for a good fifteen minutes about each other’s plans. It was nice.
Now, I’m debating jumping on the bike to head to the Grand Canyon. I’m told I am about one hour away. It might be nice to be out there tonight to watch the sunset.
So, a good day overall — once I got some food into me. I met some interesting people and enjoyed more beautiful scenery. This really is an incredible part of the county.
Oh, another cool thing. Yesterday, I stopped at a couple of shops to try and find a speedo cable. No one had one. Then, at one shop, a guy gave me a brand new cable he had that was missing the attachment at one end. He said I could have it for free. Well, I kept my old cable, so I took the attachment off of it, but I couldn’t get it to fit on the new cable. I was going to throw it out when I got to the hotel tonight, but before I did, I stopped at a Harley shop just down the road. They didn’t have the right cable, so I told them about the cable and connector. The service guy took it, got it to work right and didn’t charge me anything. So, new cable on the bike at no cost. Now, hopefully I have no more problems with the speedometer.
Alright … that’s it for today. Not sure how I’ll do for wifi the next few days, but will keep you posted.
