Wow what a few days we've had! Between hauling ass to meet our friends, hitching rides (promise I won't do that again mommy), relaxing by the camp site and having a couple beers. It's sure been an insane few days!
For now I'm just going to write a short summary due to the fact that Kevin is cooking some chicken for dinner and I'm sucking down a few drinks!
Tuesday was a pretty long day, we rode into the night to Cannonville, Utah. The ride wasn't insane, boulder ledges, uphill downhills and some crazy foreigners. I think there must have been a flight special from France to Utah because the amount of French people we encountered was beyond ridiculous. We even saw the stereotypical French girl, long as cigarette hanging from her 16 year old hand, while her father took a picture of lil foot and I with his kids. I was baffled to see such a young girl smoking in front of her father, gross.
We finally rolled into Cannonville at about 10:30, I do not recommend riding a fully loaded bike in the pitch black. Needless to say we made it in one piece and set up camp at a nice KOA, which we once again bailed out before having to pay! I had some weird dreams that night, usually little foot has the crazy dreams but looks like we're switching roles. I liked it a lot better when I had good dreams but weird dreams are sometimes interesting as well. I won't get into the dream details so back to biking.
After a couple 100+ milers and a couple just under we needed the half day that lil foot posted on. We had a big day Wednesday and made it over the border into Arizona! During the day we were hit with an intense thunderstorm and had to find dome shelter. Luckily enough there was a campground about 2 miles down the road which we hustled to. Once there it was hiding out at the bathroom time. Storms in Utah generally come in the afternoons and last anywhere from 30 min to 2 hours, and the rainfall can be about 2 or 3 inches. INSANE. We took a bit of a detour and thank god for that, our ride was mostly flat with a slight incline then we had an amazing downhill just about for the rest of our ride over the border. We went to the first gas station open and began asking about a place to camp out for the night. After the second gas.station we were directed to the local motel which allowed us to camp out on a patch of "grass". I say "grass" because it was more like patchy dry tall grass that was cat territory. Lil foot and I looked at each other and knew we would be having a rough night of sleep. We set up our tent and crawled in, we agreed that Thursday would be a day of hitch hiking to somewhere in or around the south rim... About 175-200 miles away.
After listening to cat fights all night I woke up at about 2am having to pee bad, so out of the tent I went. Since we were not at.a campground I had no choice but to POP a squat. As a began to pee (i had toilet paper) I noticed a creepy white cat staring at me, damn I hate that cats are evil. Haha. Maybe not all cats but think about it, they poop in a box then hide it for you to have to find it later, Evil. Though it may seem like I'm an animal water on this trip, I'm not, I just hate assholes who don't keep their pets under control.
I will save our hitch hiking day a couple days with friend until tomorrow so be on the look out for that!
Beer time bitches! Enjoy the weekend people!
Sasq
Ps. BIG THANKS TO KATIE AND KEVIN!!!! just as a little sneak peek of our weekend, they got up at about 6 6:30 and made pancakes this morning, on top of that we're about to make smores so look out tomorrow for our last two days.
Also Congrats to Jenna and Jordan for their engagement! Jenna you're very lucky, Jordan can cook! Haha
Friday, August 5, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Back by popular demand!
Well, okay... not exactly popular demand, but there was a request or two! It's hard to come between an addict & their addiction, but after some bartering, sasq and I came to an arrangement--I'll write a post & she'll add in all the bits I forget. I think she's struggling a wee bit, but the beers are helping!
So to fill you in on the deets...
Last sasq mentioned we were resting after an ugh, big night out in to-hell-u-ride. Needless to say, her tent stealing leaves us even with my feigning sleep at Dennis "yeah, I have expensive things" creeper. We bummed around telluride for the day, which as DC put it, is a bit like Disneyland--beautiful, wicked expensive, and kinda too perfect to be real. Our second night in telly, we managed to camp out in a proper site, but after dropping 3$ each for 5 mins of hot water, we decided to skip out on the camping fee's; doesn't seem like they're hurting anyway.
We spent our coldest night to date camping at the bottom of the mountains, but still managed to get a decent jump on the day and rolled outta Telly happy, or at minimum, ready, to be back in the saddle. We cruised (shockingly) easily uphill, enjoying the scenery and loving the speedy cruise downhill to Dolores. Finally the weather had cooled down and seems the heat wave that kicked our arses in MO & KS is behind us. Unfort, Telly proved to be an ineffective rest day to sort my tires, so after popping into every bike shop from eastern kansas to western colorado, i resigned to the fact that I would need to order them ahead. We ended up spending a couple hours in Dolores, eating lunch & popping into the lib to order them... which proved to be just enough time for DC & SC to catch up & say goodbye until we meet up again in CA for some end of trip celebrations & DC's bday (won't toss out any numbers here though haha). this would prove to be one of several goodbyes, but we'll get to that later. so because the guys are lazy, and we're pro (wink wink), we rolled on to dove creek and bagged another century. Without many sleeping options, we strolled into the grocery store/gas station/deli to inquire on potential tent pitching sites. As the way small towns go, the locals were more than helpful & interested in hearing bout our travels. Moments later we were introduced to Dave, who chatted us up for a bit, gave us his entire life story, warned us of skunks, and eventually directed us to a cushy patch of grass behind the store/gas/deli combo... which happened to be directly next to a helicopter landing pad and health clinic. Fortunately for us, there was no need for any heli landings, and the evening proved to be a bit warmer. Cruising outta dove creek the next AM, we were hoping for another 100+ day, but didn't quite make it that far. We stopped a few times along the way to stock up on water & supplies. The scenery had changed quite a bit as we passed from western CO into UT, and just as the afternoon desert sun set in, we started in on the hills. With little to no amenities for the better part of 130ish miles, we struggled with the heat & the climbs and stopped short at the natural bridges national monument, which was off route & downhill approx 5 miles, but did offer the prime amenity of clean drinking water. camping was pretty uneventful--we rolled in, threw up our tent, made some quick dins, hid from the rain, & hit the hay. We started in good spirits the following day, given we were cycling back uphill the 5 or so miles we had come to the camp the night before. The riding proved unbelievably fun & fast. complemented by the stunning scenery, we were reminded why we started out on the trip in the first place--riding bicycles is fun! For all the beauty that was in the Rockies and CO, Utah boasts an arguably more stunning back drop. replace the mountains with massive colorful mesas and deep canyons. it's hard to explain the scale and vastness of this landscape, but it does make the passing cyclists feel very, very small. not in a small, vulnerable, I'm getting-hit-by-an-18-wheeler kind of way, but more like a reminder that there are much, much larger things in this world than you and I.
We've easily taken more photos in the past several days than in the whole rest of the trip combined, so sit tight & we'll eventually share/post some. We still haven't managed to find an convenient way to post from the road, so consider this your license to stalk us on the FB for all your viewing pleasure. but in the mean time, here's a little something something to hold you over.
on one of our many photog snapping stops, we were feeling hot and botherd and dying for any sort of cold beverage. considering the options, which is to say, decideding between flat out asking or just trying to look pathetic, sasq opted for somewhere in between; rather loudly, she starts whining about how all she wants is a nice cold gatorade... at which point i had to turn around to keep from blowing her spot and busting a gut laughing. although less than clever, it was very effective. we walked away with a couple cold bottles of water, joice boxes, and sodas. well played sasq.
after filling up on cold liquids, we carried on to hanksville, ut. of course the last 10 or so miles were downhill with a headwind and a serious lightning storm going off in the distance. with the rain starting in just as we rolled into town, we made the decision to cash in on another hotel offer. thanks again to ma and pa brown for the room! sure as hell beats camping in the rain and lightning. to our surprise, just as we were sorting out a room, we see Jo (SC's wife). turns out SC & DC decided that they were gonna try and beat our mileage record of 122. which they did, and are the current mileage record holders with 130.8. apparently they just weren't ready to say goodbye! we celebrated their short-term victory with them over a few beers. you should note however, that their record was without carrying bags... so arguably, not the same! no less, we'll let them have the glory... for now.
leaving DC and SC behind in the AM (once again), we set out for another 80 - 90 mile day. although feeling physically good and ready to cycle, it seems we had hit a wall mentally. we've been on the road now for 63 days, and for whatever reason... just simply did not feeling like riding our bicycles. we spent the better part of the day riding slowly, taking pictures, battling head winds up hill, and simply put, dragging ass. after stopping for lunch for about an hour and a half, we bumped into Jo once again and heard that the guys weren't feeling to frisky for cycling either. turns out they had a bit of a slow morning and didn't even head out until 1030/11. i think their legs must have been tired from the big ride the day before ;)
we kicked around for another hour or so and eventually, after great diliberation, did the inevitable and booked another room haha. there are a million excuses--rain, flood warnings, hills, but ultimately, we just did not feel like riding bikes. so we bought some beers, had a drink with our favorite touring friends, and headed over to the days inn for some more beer drinking and shitty tv watching (we watched quite possibly the worst made for tv movies... thanks life time haha). thanks again to grandma tynion for shouting us the hotel room!
so here we are. just munching down a quick b-fast before we head out for a windy morning ride. we've got a few miles to make up since we had a very short day yesterday... and we need to get to the GC to meet up with the homies! looking forward to seeing katie, kev, joce, & chuba!
godspeed.
little foot.
Ps. I cannot count the number of times we have been asked where we are cycling from, only to be followed up by some response along the lines of, "no you have not cycled all the way from Maine" at which point we reply, yes we have, answer a series of basic tour questions--when did you start, how many miles do you ride, where do you sleep, when will you finish, etc--and finally, the ultimate question... are you going to cycle back?!?! are you kidding me? seriously, you didn't think we actually cycled from ME in the first place and now you want to know if we're going to bicycle another 5500 miles back?? You've got to be kidding me!
So to fill you in on the deets...
Last sasq mentioned we were resting after an ugh, big night out in to-hell-u-ride. Needless to say, her tent stealing leaves us even with my feigning sleep at Dennis "yeah, I have expensive things" creeper. We bummed around telluride for the day, which as DC put it, is a bit like Disneyland--beautiful, wicked expensive, and kinda too perfect to be real. Our second night in telly, we managed to camp out in a proper site, but after dropping 3$ each for 5 mins of hot water, we decided to skip out on the camping fee's; doesn't seem like they're hurting anyway.
We spent our coldest night to date camping at the bottom of the mountains, but still managed to get a decent jump on the day and rolled outta Telly happy, or at minimum, ready, to be back in the saddle. We cruised (shockingly) easily uphill, enjoying the scenery and loving the speedy cruise downhill to Dolores. Finally the weather had cooled down and seems the heat wave that kicked our arses in MO & KS is behind us. Unfort, Telly proved to be an ineffective rest day to sort my tires, so after popping into every bike shop from eastern kansas to western colorado, i resigned to the fact that I would need to order them ahead. We ended up spending a couple hours in Dolores, eating lunch & popping into the lib to order them... which proved to be just enough time for DC & SC to catch up & say goodbye until we meet up again in CA for some end of trip celebrations & DC's bday (won't toss out any numbers here though haha). this would prove to be one of several goodbyes, but we'll get to that later. so because the guys are lazy, and we're pro (wink wink), we rolled on to dove creek and bagged another century. Without many sleeping options, we strolled into the grocery store/gas station/deli to inquire on potential tent pitching sites. As the way small towns go, the locals were more than helpful & interested in hearing bout our travels. Moments later we were introduced to Dave, who chatted us up for a bit, gave us his entire life story, warned us of skunks, and eventually directed us to a cushy patch of grass behind the store/gas/deli combo... which happened to be directly next to a helicopter landing pad and health clinic. Fortunately for us, there was no need for any heli landings, and the evening proved to be a bit warmer. Cruising outta dove creek the next AM, we were hoping for another 100+ day, but didn't quite make it that far. We stopped a few times along the way to stock up on water & supplies. The scenery had changed quite a bit as we passed from western CO into UT, and just as the afternoon desert sun set in, we started in on the hills. With little to no amenities for the better part of 130ish miles, we struggled with the heat & the climbs and stopped short at the natural bridges national monument, which was off route & downhill approx 5 miles, but did offer the prime amenity of clean drinking water. camping was pretty uneventful--we rolled in, threw up our tent, made some quick dins, hid from the rain, & hit the hay. We started in good spirits the following day, given we were cycling back uphill the 5 or so miles we had come to the camp the night before. The riding proved unbelievably fun & fast. complemented by the stunning scenery, we were reminded why we started out on the trip in the first place--riding bicycles is fun! For all the beauty that was in the Rockies and CO, Utah boasts an arguably more stunning back drop. replace the mountains with massive colorful mesas and deep canyons. it's hard to explain the scale and vastness of this landscape, but it does make the passing cyclists feel very, very small. not in a small, vulnerable, I'm getting-hit-by-an-18-wheeler kind of way, but more like a reminder that there are much, much larger things in this world than you and I.
We've easily taken more photos in the past several days than in the whole rest of the trip combined, so sit tight & we'll eventually share/post some. We still haven't managed to find an convenient way to post from the road, so consider this your license to stalk us on the FB for all your viewing pleasure. but in the mean time, here's a little something something to hold you over.
 |
| earning our keep washing dishes at the mayors house in KA |
on one of our many photog snapping stops, we were feeling hot and botherd and dying for any sort of cold beverage. considering the options, which is to say, decideding between flat out asking or just trying to look pathetic, sasq opted for somewhere in between; rather loudly, she starts whining about how all she wants is a nice cold gatorade... at which point i had to turn around to keep from blowing her spot and busting a gut laughing. although less than clever, it was very effective. we walked away with a couple cold bottles of water, joice boxes, and sodas. well played sasq.
after filling up on cold liquids, we carried on to hanksville, ut. of course the last 10 or so miles were downhill with a headwind and a serious lightning storm going off in the distance. with the rain starting in just as we rolled into town, we made the decision to cash in on another hotel offer. thanks again to ma and pa brown for the room! sure as hell beats camping in the rain and lightning. to our surprise, just as we were sorting out a room, we see Jo (SC's wife). turns out SC & DC decided that they were gonna try and beat our mileage record of 122. which they did, and are the current mileage record holders with 130.8. apparently they just weren't ready to say goodbye! we celebrated their short-term victory with them over a few beers. you should note however, that their record was without carrying bags... so arguably, not the same! no less, we'll let them have the glory... for now.
leaving DC and SC behind in the AM (once again), we set out for another 80 - 90 mile day. although feeling physically good and ready to cycle, it seems we had hit a wall mentally. we've been on the road now for 63 days, and for whatever reason... just simply did not feeling like riding our bicycles. we spent the better part of the day riding slowly, taking pictures, battling head winds up hill, and simply put, dragging ass. after stopping for lunch for about an hour and a half, we bumped into Jo once again and heard that the guys weren't feeling to frisky for cycling either. turns out they had a bit of a slow morning and didn't even head out until 1030/11. i think their legs must have been tired from the big ride the day before ;)
we kicked around for another hour or so and eventually, after great diliberation, did the inevitable and booked another room haha. there are a million excuses--rain, flood warnings, hills, but ultimately, we just did not feel like riding bikes. so we bought some beers, had a drink with our favorite touring friends, and headed over to the days inn for some more beer drinking and shitty tv watching (we watched quite possibly the worst made for tv movies... thanks life time haha). thanks again to grandma tynion for shouting us the hotel room!
so here we are. just munching down a quick b-fast before we head out for a windy morning ride. we've got a few miles to make up since we had a very short day yesterday... and we need to get to the GC to meet up with the homies! looking forward to seeing katie, kev, joce, & chuba!
godspeed.
little foot.
Ps. I cannot count the number of times we have been asked where we are cycling from, only to be followed up by some response along the lines of, "no you have not cycled all the way from Maine" at which point we reply, yes we have, answer a series of basic tour questions--when did you start, how many miles do you ride, where do you sleep, when will you finish, etc--and finally, the ultimate question... are you going to cycle back?!?! are you kidding me? seriously, you didn't think we actually cycled from ME in the first place and now you want to know if we're going to bicycle another 5500 miles back?? You've got to be kidding me!
Issues w/ Fundraising Web Page
Just wanted to post up a quick message regarding the fundraising web page. we've heard from a couple of people that there has been some trouble with the processing of donations. we're still looking into sorting it out, but please leave a comment or give us a shout if you have experienced any trouble. not currently sure if the issue has been resolved yet.
also, there have been loads of strava failures. it doesn't work quite so well without service, making our mileage reported look a bit low if it manages to record at all.
cheers.
b.
also, there have been loads of strava failures. it doesn't work quite so well without service, making our mileage reported look a bit low if it manages to record at all.
cheers.
b.
Monday, August 1, 2011
We're still alive!
Hey all! Just wanted to let you all know we are indeed alive, but have been cursed with terrible service and long riding days so we haven't had the time to post for a few days. Lil foot wants to do the next update so I'm just here to let you know all is well and we've made it to Utah in one piece!
Stay tuned for a post from lil foot with the details of our last few days, which trust me have been crazy/fun/tough/amazing all at the same time!!
Peace out cub scouts.
Sasq
Ps hope the Carita Family Mocation is starting off well and hope you get great weather all week! Love you guys and wish I was laying on the beach with a cold one in my hand next to you all!
Also thanks Den Den (lil foot's mom) for the night in the hotel tonight, you saved us from a bad lightning storm!
Stay tuned for a post from lil foot with the details of our last few days, which trust me have been crazy/fun/tough/amazing all at the same time!!
Peace out cub scouts.
Sasq
Ps hope the Carita Family Mocation is starting off well and hope you get great weather all week! Love you guys and wish I was laying on the beach with a cold one in my hand next to you all!
Also thanks Den Den (lil foot's mom) for the night in the hotel tonight, you saved us from a bad lightning storm!
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Telluride you are beautiful!
Where to begin.... The start of the day was about 30 miles of decent riding with wide shoulders! Lil foot and I are still riding with the guys, their new names are Sweet Cheeks and DC (double chin/daddy Chris). I think the names don't need any explaining so I'll continue on with the riding. From Montrose to Telluride it was supposed to be an easy 60 miles but instead it was about 70 miles of mostly uphill climbing. On the map elevation profile it didn't look so bad but man oh man what a climb. Being that I have a road bike and not a touring bike like I should, the mountains have been a bitch on my legs. With the combination of my lack of a lower gear and the altitude, I was struggling big time. Lil foot hauled ass and made it about 3 or 4 miles ahead of me into town. Just when I was considering hitching a ride the road turned and opened up to possibly the most amazing view ever. A 3mile downhill into Telluride creates a beautiful view of the mountains surrounding the town, and the river flowing through it. I decided to sit a while and catch my breath while taking in the view.
The guys were already at the bar and planning to hit the bottle hard, so lil foot and I of course joined in without any objections! The Sheridan was the first place in a while that didn't have a drink maximum and we enjoyed every minute of it! After a few rounds Sweet Cheeks went and had some family time while DC stayed back and continued on with us. I think meeting these guys has been the best part of the trip, they're down to earth, funny and looking to enjoy their cycling the same way we are. A couple weeks ago DC joked about hiring lil foot and I to work in France at his ski/boarding lodge. That joke is in the works of becoming a reality, and if all goes well the adventures of Sasq and Lil Foot will continue! Last night DC mentioned he and his wife are looking into work visas for us, so fingers crossed for Sasq & Lil Foot take on France!
Words can't describe how amazing this adventure has been so far and we still have about 2000 miles to go. With the grand canyon as our next big destination then the coast of California to finish, we can't be happier that we chose to go from east to west. Jocelyn, Chuba, Katie and Kevin are joining us at the grand canyon then Eric will be joining us along the coast! Tons to look forward to but for today we are going to enjoy Telluride and check out the mountains, off a bike thank god!
Tata for now.
Sasq
Couple side details I thought you all might enjoy... After 8 weeks of riding, my ass is hating me right now. No matter what people say about getting used to the seat, they're lying. I might have to get one of those inflated donut seats. Thanks to my mom for mailing me new shorts back in Pueblo, it takes a little of the pain away but my tushy is still soar.
Lil foots sun poisoning on her legs has cleared up pretty well, now she just has super dry flakey skin... Gross haha.
Feeling in my fingers comes and goes, the new gloves I have definitely help but these Rockies are super rough on my hands as well as legs.
Positive note... I probably lost about 15 and a ton of inches! Lil foot is toning up as well, but she doesn't think so, so we'll probably start adding some ab work outs here and there... I know we're out of our minds but we can't cycle across the country and finish looking like the same lazy asses we were.
Now that's all folks!
The guys were already at the bar and planning to hit the bottle hard, so lil foot and I of course joined in without any objections! The Sheridan was the first place in a while that didn't have a drink maximum and we enjoyed every minute of it! After a few rounds Sweet Cheeks went and had some family time while DC stayed back and continued on with us. I think meeting these guys has been the best part of the trip, they're down to earth, funny and looking to enjoy their cycling the same way we are. A couple weeks ago DC joked about hiring lil foot and I to work in France at his ski/boarding lodge. That joke is in the works of becoming a reality, and if all goes well the adventures of Sasq and Lil Foot will continue! Last night DC mentioned he and his wife are looking into work visas for us, so fingers crossed for Sasq & Lil Foot take on France!
Words can't describe how amazing this adventure has been so far and we still have about 2000 miles to go. With the grand canyon as our next big destination then the coast of California to finish, we can't be happier that we chose to go from east to west. Jocelyn, Chuba, Katie and Kevin are joining us at the grand canyon then Eric will be joining us along the coast! Tons to look forward to but for today we are going to enjoy Telluride and check out the mountains, off a bike thank god!
Tata for now.
Sasq
Couple side details I thought you all might enjoy... After 8 weeks of riding, my ass is hating me right now. No matter what people say about getting used to the seat, they're lying. I might have to get one of those inflated donut seats. Thanks to my mom for mailing me new shorts back in Pueblo, it takes a little of the pain away but my tushy is still soar.
Lil foots sun poisoning on her legs has cleared up pretty well, now she just has super dry flakey skin... Gross haha.
Feeling in my fingers comes and goes, the new gloves I have definitely help but these Rockies are super rough on my hands as well as legs.
Positive note... I probably lost about 15 and a ton of inches! Lil foot is toning up as well, but she doesn't think so, so we'll probably start adding some ab work outs here and there... I know we're out of our minds but we can't cycle across the country and finish looking like the same lazy asses we were.
Now that's all folks!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
What goes up must come down...
7/25 More climbing and miserable winds...
Lil foot and I have pretty much been riding with Chris and Gary now for a while and we all planned on doing 87 miles from Cotopaxi to Gunnison which judging by the elevation profile on our maps should be a repeat of the day before. A long ass climb with a huge downhill on the other end. Well the climbing began and again felt never ending. Along the way lil foot and I met a few guys that where hanging out by the side of the road waiting for a few other friends. We got to chatting about cycling and found out two of their friends had a bet going on. One was cycling up to Monarch's summit while the other had to hitch hike up. Clearly not an even bet but the cycling guy actually made extremely good time, though I'm assuming he still lost. This guys were entertaining for the 15 minutes we talked to them, but now it was time to ride on.
After 5 hours on the saddle we still haven't reached the top. My ass was soo numb at this point, on top of that it began to rain and the temperature dropped a bit. Every turn we made the road continued going up as our moods were going down. FINALLY, the top! At over 11000 feet we reached the top of Monarch Summit! We took q little break before cruising downhill.
The next 10 miles were beyond amazing. Lil foot and I cheered and high five all the way down, then the fun was over. With 30 plus miles left, the wind picked up. We were still going downhill but without peddling we would have been at a stand still. This went from a high fiving downhill to a long ass night of riding. As if the wind wasn't bad enough we both needed a restroom desperately but of course there was nowhere to go except for our final destination. By about 9pm we dragged ourselves into Gunnison and were exhausted. After finding a restroom we got in touch with Chris and Gary, Chris offered to let us share a room with him, but refused to take our money... We repaid him in drinking all night. As if we hadn't learned that drinking the night before riding is a bad idea, we continued on to the bars. Once again we closed a couple places, played some pool and then passed out for the night. Chris snores so now I have a video of it on my phone, blackmail!
7/26 Now that's what I'm talking about....
Two days of 40plus mile climbing, it was time for a great riding day. Today was just that, 66 miles into Montrose. Thefirst 20 miles was filled with mountain side views and the Arkansas river along side of us. Then it was a rough 20 miles, a little climbing but the rough part was the down pour and hail. Though the hail wasn't huge it still hurt a lot. There was a gas station/store right in the middle if our only two climbs for the day, and it was perfectly located. We reached there right before the rain got even heavier, so we hid out for a while before doing our last 20 miles.
The rain slowed down so we hustled out, only a 4 mile climb and then downhill 16 miles! The rain picked up again on the way up, but our downhill was perfect even with the rain. I don't think I had to pedal for more than a minute on the entire way down.
By the time we reached Montrose I was soaking wet and freezing. After my aunt Karen found out, she and C Bear (Uncle Craig) booked lil foot and I a room at the econolodge! AMAZING! Love you guys and thanks again! Right now I'm recleaning all my clothes because they were drenched during the rain. Lil foot is doing her thing of post cards, talling up numbers and so on. Tomorrow we will make it to Telluride, Colorado and the next day its Utah time. Not sure we'll see anything as beautiful as the Rockies for the rest of the adventure but we are still looking forward to all that's ahead!
Night all!
Sasq
Ps... We miss our friends and family, so comment away and say hi!
Thanks again Karen and Craig for tonight, I probably would have caught pneumonia if I was still out there tonight.
Lil foot and I have pretty much been riding with Chris and Gary now for a while and we all planned on doing 87 miles from Cotopaxi to Gunnison which judging by the elevation profile on our maps should be a repeat of the day before. A long ass climb with a huge downhill on the other end. Well the climbing began and again felt never ending. Along the way lil foot and I met a few guys that where hanging out by the side of the road waiting for a few other friends. We got to chatting about cycling and found out two of their friends had a bet going on. One was cycling up to Monarch's summit while the other had to hitch hike up. Clearly not an even bet but the cycling guy actually made extremely good time, though I'm assuming he still lost. This guys were entertaining for the 15 minutes we talked to them, but now it was time to ride on.
After 5 hours on the saddle we still haven't reached the top. My ass was soo numb at this point, on top of that it began to rain and the temperature dropped a bit. Every turn we made the road continued going up as our moods were going down. FINALLY, the top! At over 11000 feet we reached the top of Monarch Summit! We took q little break before cruising downhill.
The next 10 miles were beyond amazing. Lil foot and I cheered and high five all the way down, then the fun was over. With 30 plus miles left, the wind picked up. We were still going downhill but without peddling we would have been at a stand still. This went from a high fiving downhill to a long ass night of riding. As if the wind wasn't bad enough we both needed a restroom desperately but of course there was nowhere to go except for our final destination. By about 9pm we dragged ourselves into Gunnison and were exhausted. After finding a restroom we got in touch with Chris and Gary, Chris offered to let us share a room with him, but refused to take our money... We repaid him in drinking all night. As if we hadn't learned that drinking the night before riding is a bad idea, we continued on to the bars. Once again we closed a couple places, played some pool and then passed out for the night. Chris snores so now I have a video of it on my phone, blackmail!
7/26 Now that's what I'm talking about....
Two days of 40plus mile climbing, it was time for a great riding day. Today was just that, 66 miles into Montrose. Thefirst 20 miles was filled with mountain side views and the Arkansas river along side of us. Then it was a rough 20 miles, a little climbing but the rough part was the down pour and hail. Though the hail wasn't huge it still hurt a lot. There was a gas station/store right in the middle if our only two climbs for the day, and it was perfectly located. We reached there right before the rain got even heavier, so we hid out for a while before doing our last 20 miles.
The rain slowed down so we hustled out, only a 4 mile climb and then downhill 16 miles! The rain picked up again on the way up, but our downhill was perfect even with the rain. I don't think I had to pedal for more than a minute on the entire way down.
By the time we reached Montrose I was soaking wet and freezing. After my aunt Karen found out, she and C Bear (Uncle Craig) booked lil foot and I a room at the econolodge! AMAZING! Love you guys and thanks again! Right now I'm recleaning all my clothes because they were drenched during the rain. Lil foot is doing her thing of post cards, talling up numbers and so on. Tomorrow we will make it to Telluride, Colorado and the next day its Utah time. Not sure we'll see anything as beautiful as the Rockies for the rest of the adventure but we are still looking forward to all that's ahead!
Night all!
Sasq
Ps... We miss our friends and family, so comment away and say hi!
Thanks again Karen and Craig for tonight, I probably would have caught pneumonia if I was still out there tonight.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Oh Colorado the climbs, downhills, rain and beautiful scenery...
Just to start off, we are alive and kicking. The Rockies have been pretty crazy in so many ways but let's start where I left off.
7/22 Dinner and drinks with Chris...
Lil foot, Chris and I planned on having a fun night out in Pueblo, and what a night it was. First dinner at the Texas Ranch House close to the hotel. Amazing food, but I felt and looked like total shit. I was definitely getting sick, but with the next day being a rest day I pushed through to have a few drinks. We left the restaurant and 20 minutes later walked right back to their bar because nothing else was walking distance, but it would be an early night there. They close at 11 and there was a 4 drink maximum, LAME. the bartender informed us that Applebees is pretty popular on a Friday night and open til 2am but that was a lie. We took a cab over, $6, had maybe 2 or 3 pints each only to find ourselves needing another place to go because it was closing time and only 1am. That's when we went to the Quality Inn's bar/club. Clearly we wanted to keep drinking but once we arrived at our last location we had a fast beer and got the Hell out of there. What a group of weirdos in that place. You could tell we didn't belong at all. At that point it was time to call it a night and get some sleep. ThAnks again to Lindsay and hubby for the night in the hotel!
7/23 Rest Day
As I already mentioned, I hadn't been feeling too good, and it still showed the next day cause lil foot took one look at me and said "wow you look like shit." Thanks buddy! My plan was to stay in bed all day and thanks to my mommy, Eileen Tynion, we had another night at the hotel so we didn't have to pack up anything! I slept through the continental breakfast but food wasn't on my mind. Lil foot had a big day of errAnds, she's been looking to find a 26 inches touring tire but apparently its not a common size tire so she road about 15 around town to a couple shops only to find out that no one had the right tire. Then she ran a couple other errands before returning to the hotel. We wanted to see Harry Potter but lil foot's friend, Leah, drove over for the night to visit so we all went for some Mexican food. I was still feeling like death but needed something in my belly.
Cactus Flower was pretty good, but of course the waitress had a minor default that I couldn't get my attention off of. A little arm, haha. Not to be mean but its very distracting when you notice someone's default, it becomes the only thing I focus on. During dinner Leah mentioned she made us a present, I love presents and surprises! She made us energy cookies which didn't last long the next morning! YUM!
After dinner I went back to the room and slept a ton hoping to get my energy back, lil foot went to Leah's room and got to have a nice night of catching up. Lil foot returned at around midnight and said I still looked like crap, thanks again. The plan was to get breakfast and hit the road for our first day in the Rockies!
7/24 Happy Birthday Chris! (My brother)
We started our day a little later than planned but didn't mind because the weather was amazing and we didn't have to worry about hiding out during 100 degree weather for a few days. 87 miles from Pueblo to Cotopaxi and the halfway point would be roughly 9000 plus feet elevation. What a bitch of a climb. It wasn't too steep, just felt never ending. Along the way lil foot and I found Nina, Norwegian cyclist, in the side of the road and boy was she excited to see us. She hauled ass for two days doing twice as many miles just to catch up to us for some company. We road on and climbed little by little. I thought I was feeling better but the climb was getting to me, I was might headed and exhausted. This was going to be a long rough day.
We reached the top finally and found a place to eat, but the service was a bit crappy. Good thing my food was decent otherwise I would have been even more mad. An old woman, I'm guessing the owner, asked if we were having a bad day and I told her "No, your service is shitty." You would think that would get rid of her but no. What a head ache. We had enough of that place, so it was time to finish up our last 30 or so miles to Cotopaxi. After the rough climbing all day we finally caught a break and it was smooth sailing downhill for the remaining ride! Beautiful scenery the whole way and my energy was back up!
We spent the night at the KOA, the guys got a cabin (doesn't count as camping, haha) and the three of us camped out under the stars! Our first night of amazing camping in a long time!
Sasq
Part 2 to follow...
7/22 Dinner and drinks with Chris...
Lil foot, Chris and I planned on having a fun night out in Pueblo, and what a night it was. First dinner at the Texas Ranch House close to the hotel. Amazing food, but I felt and looked like total shit. I was definitely getting sick, but with the next day being a rest day I pushed through to have a few drinks. We left the restaurant and 20 minutes later walked right back to their bar because nothing else was walking distance, but it would be an early night there. They close at 11 and there was a 4 drink maximum, LAME. the bartender informed us that Applebees is pretty popular on a Friday night and open til 2am but that was a lie. We took a cab over, $6, had maybe 2 or 3 pints each only to find ourselves needing another place to go because it was closing time and only 1am. That's when we went to the Quality Inn's bar/club. Clearly we wanted to keep drinking but once we arrived at our last location we had a fast beer and got the Hell out of there. What a group of weirdos in that place. You could tell we didn't belong at all. At that point it was time to call it a night and get some sleep. ThAnks again to Lindsay and hubby for the night in the hotel!
7/23 Rest Day
As I already mentioned, I hadn't been feeling too good, and it still showed the next day cause lil foot took one look at me and said "wow you look like shit." Thanks buddy! My plan was to stay in bed all day and thanks to my mommy, Eileen Tynion, we had another night at the hotel so we didn't have to pack up anything! I slept through the continental breakfast but food wasn't on my mind. Lil foot had a big day of errAnds, she's been looking to find a 26 inches touring tire but apparently its not a common size tire so she road about 15 around town to a couple shops only to find out that no one had the right tire. Then she ran a couple other errands before returning to the hotel. We wanted to see Harry Potter but lil foot's friend, Leah, drove over for the night to visit so we all went for some Mexican food. I was still feeling like death but needed something in my belly.
Cactus Flower was pretty good, but of course the waitress had a minor default that I couldn't get my attention off of. A little arm, haha. Not to be mean but its very distracting when you notice someone's default, it becomes the only thing I focus on. During dinner Leah mentioned she made us a present, I love presents and surprises! She made us energy cookies which didn't last long the next morning! YUM!
After dinner I went back to the room and slept a ton hoping to get my energy back, lil foot went to Leah's room and got to have a nice night of catching up. Lil foot returned at around midnight and said I still looked like crap, thanks again. The plan was to get breakfast and hit the road for our first day in the Rockies!
7/24 Happy Birthday Chris! (My brother)
We started our day a little later than planned but didn't mind because the weather was amazing and we didn't have to worry about hiding out during 100 degree weather for a few days. 87 miles from Pueblo to Cotopaxi and the halfway point would be roughly 9000 plus feet elevation. What a bitch of a climb. It wasn't too steep, just felt never ending. Along the way lil foot and I found Nina, Norwegian cyclist, in the side of the road and boy was she excited to see us. She hauled ass for two days doing twice as many miles just to catch up to us for some company. We road on and climbed little by little. I thought I was feeling better but the climb was getting to me, I was might headed and exhausted. This was going to be a long rough day.
We reached the top finally and found a place to eat, but the service was a bit crappy. Good thing my food was decent otherwise I would have been even more mad. An old woman, I'm guessing the owner, asked if we were having a bad day and I told her "No, your service is shitty." You would think that would get rid of her but no. What a head ache. We had enough of that place, so it was time to finish up our last 30 or so miles to Cotopaxi. After the rough climbing all day we finally caught a break and it was smooth sailing downhill for the remaining ride! Beautiful scenery the whole way and my energy was back up!
We spent the night at the KOA, the guys got a cabin (doesn't count as camping, haha) and the three of us camped out under the stars! Our first night of amazing camping in a long time!
Sasq
Part 2 to follow...
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