words won't do it justice

bike trip. miles. fun.

those were the three things that i set out to do on my bike trip this week. everything else (schedule, time, plans) were all secondary. i didn't want to meet a time goal or a certain schedule and forego having fun.

i set out on tuesday at 7:42. my bike was a bit heavier than i am used to with all of my stuff. the first 20 miles went by smoothly as the weather was perfect. it was cool, and it was pleasant. i saw the morning crowd going to work or run errands. the haze in the air added a pleasant view of the cornfields and the workers there.

about 10 miles into the ride, a fawn was running next to me for about 100 yards. i couldn't get my camera out in time, but i couldn't believe it. i almost got as excited as my friend david at seeing the animal.

a quick stop in ault allowed me to take my jacket off and set off for the next leg of the journey. 5 miles outside of ault is all it took for the corn fields to vanish. after the corn fields left, the scenery for the next 80 miles is just desolate. the wide open range allows for small winds to affect you. you get excited when you see a tree. the area is flat out boring and draining when you're by yourself. i entered into the pawnee national grasslands. desolation was still present. i made it to briggsdale ahead of schedule and was on my way to new raymer. some road construction was about the most exciting thing on that stretch. i saw a weird house with a wall around the outside. i couldn't figure it out.

exactly 70 miles into my trip and 5 hours time, i made it to new raymer. i stopped at a little park to make two peanut butter and honey sandwiches. i drank some water and gatorade and decided to take an hour break. it was a good break. i thought maybe there was a water pump nearby and was right. i filled up with water and was off. the next 30 miles to sterling took a long time. it was the most draining part of the trip as the wind was blowing and it was in the afternoon - temperatures in the high 90's. as i came to sterling, i have never felt more relieved.

the two things i forgot on my trip were nutella and a book. i figured i could find a used book store in sterling so i was on a mission. after riding around for 45 minutes, i spotted one. apparently at 4:15 in the afternoon places close in sterling. so the book store was closed, but i looked across the street and saw a café. i decided to take a rest at the café. i slipped off my bike shoes and went in. i was drained from the previous 30 miles. i couldn't decide if i wanted coffee, juice, food. i settled for a 3.75 bagel sandwich. it hit the spot. the workers were really nice as they filled me with water - not sterling water, but filtered water. i had a nice time relaxing and watching the locals come and go. a mom and her son were having a talk. an older couple came to chill. a businessman was on his laptop. two men were having a bible study. a guy and his daughter were playing cards. it was a nice diverse group. i decided to order some coffee. the girl told me that since the café closed at 6, coffee after 5 is free. so i got a free cup of coffee. i had to go so i could find my campsite for the night.

i headed out of sterling and stopped at the first town i came to - fleming, colorado. i saw the high school baseball field and decided i would head that way. i came to it and found a field adjacent that would be perfect. i pitched the tent and right when i got it up, it got dark. so i crawled inside and tried to fall asleep - at 8pm. that obviously didn't happen. dogs were barking, cars were driving by.

at one point, a truck was driving through some dirt fields and parking lots. i didn't know if he was drunk or what, but he was yelling and just being obnoxious. he then headed towards the tent and stopped. "i'm just camping for the night, and i'll be out first thing in the morning," i was thinking i would tell him if he came over. he turned on his brights. apparently nothing new caught his eye so he drove off and didn't come back.

i woke up in the middle of the night. had it rained? no, it was sweat. yes it was gross, but what do you expect after riding 130 miles and sleeping in a sleeping bag without a shower. at 1:07 a train went by. that was the last of annoyances and i woke again at dawn. it took me a bit to get up, but finally i did. i packed up and was about to be on my way when a truck drove up.

"did you sleep well last night," a guy asked me.
"yeah, it wasn't bad," i replied.
"did anyone bother you last night?"
"no, i wasn't bothered at all."
"well, that's good. the stores open if you want something to eat."
"alright, where's it at?'
"it's just around the corner"

apparently it was common for people to be bothersome in that small town.

so i went to the store and realized there was a little café attached to it. i saw biscuits and gravy for 1.75. i couldn't pass it up. of course the locals were all looking at me like i was an alien, but i didn't mind. it came with the territory. i paid for my meal and noticed the weather. it was dark gray skies all around.

i had to quickly leave as i didn't want to get rained on too bad. i altered my route and was headed back to sterling then was going to head south to fort morgan. the first 2o miles to sterling was not too bad, although the wind was just right that when a semi would come towards me, the wind would almost knock me over. at that point, i decided i would get off highway 6 and onto i-76. right before i got onto the interstate, i stopped at a gas station to fill up with water. when i got out, there was a mom and daughter presumably on their way to college. i noticed the girl keep looking at me. finally she spoke up.

"where are you going?"
"back to fort collins after fort morgan."
"how far do you normally ride per day?"
"regularly or on this trip?
"this trip."
"well yesterday i went 130 miles."

before i could ask her story, her mom came out and they were getting in the car when i heard,

"where is he going?"
"fort collins...he went 130 miles yesterday."

i was off. i got onto the interstate. some people would put bicycles and interstates in the same sentence, but in colorado it's perfectly legal. signs just say, "biycyles, stay far right." the first part of i-76 was fine, but then the road got bad. there was bad erosion in the road that made for a rough ride. every time i went over the cracks my palms hurt, and my pinky tingled. finally, after 20 miles on the interstate, i saw a sign for a town with no services. i thought that there must be a highway somewhere. i was right and found highway 6 (the one i was on earlier). this was the beginning of the most fun part of the ride. it was a more intimate part of the ride as there were locals driving by and waiving and corn fields that welcomed me again. i needed to get to brush, colorado to get some water. i got there and found a 7-11 and got water.

i needed to take a break for lunch and stopped at a grocery store to get some shade. i was eating when a pepsi worker walked by.

"is that bike light?"
"well not with all of this stuff," i said jokingly.
"well right, but is it normally."
"yeah, it's pretty light. light enough."

we proceeded to talk about bikes and races and rides. it was a nice break, but i had to leave. i was headed towards fort morgan. the stretch from fort morgan to highway 34 was the best part of the ride. the road was flat and i could see forever. corn fields on both sides of me moderated the wind and temperature. the shoulders were very wide. the people were nice. i enjoyed it. i was riding parallel to i-76 but finally crossed it to go to 34. i had to take the frontage road for 14 miles then got to wiggins, colorado. i passed through and took a right on 34.

i noticed at that time that the clouds were getting really dark. lightning was appearing, then the lightning was within a mile. the rain started to come then pour. i had to stop and put on my poncho. the heavy rain left in 2o minutes, but some packing mistake on my part got some stuff wet. i knew i couldn't sleep in those conditions.

yes, some people would have done what they needed to sleep. i might have to, but i wouldn't have had fun doing it. and since having fun was one of the primary conditions of my ride, i had to end it early. this ride was a "trial" ride to see what i could handle, what i should take, how i should pack, etc. i'm not disappointed in any way with my trip.

total trip:235 miles

i did the trip. i had fun. i rode miles. words won't do justice to how much fun i had.