Sunny, Sunny and Sunny

I checked the forecast for south Arizona.... and it was 7 days of sun. Can't remember the last time I saw that. Now I have nothing to complain about. Well I guess I could complain about the heat and wind. But I guess that's old hat now.





I can't believe how long it has been since I have updated this. I guess it's been pretty remote where I have been. I guess in my mind I'm still mentally blogging. By that I mean I'm thinking of blog titles and things to write about as I ride. It's been great I have met alot more really cool people on the road. I met an cool guy named Nickel from Arkansas, we shared a couple days of hard weather and tough climbs. We got snowed on a ton where we couldn't see a few feet in front of us. The road down to our destination was a very steep descend... we made a choice to hitchhike down the mountain. I know this is cheating for the ride. But don't worry I made up the miles by riding out of my way to make up for the miles to different National Parks.


I met some Canadian girls just outside the Grand Canyon. Tiffany and Charlene were extra nice and outfitted me with almost everything they had. They were more than helpful. I also, met an elder couple hiking around the Grand Canyon and they gave me some money for dinner and a night of accommodation. I am so impressed with the charity of individuals trying to help me finish this trek, I will never forget it and remember to help others in the same situation for the rest of my life. It's great when these things happen because sometimes you can be pretty lonely and the task at hand seems unattainable. But then you meet such a cool person and its so rejuvenating to push you to the next destination.


Coming through Utah and the west part of Colorado was some of the hardest riding I have ever done in my life. I had to make sometimes 20 mile climbs.... basically riding uphill for 4 or 5 hours. With no end in sight. But I have learned to love the climbs because how fun it is when you go down. Goes to that classic line. What goes up must come down....really fast.


Speaking of really fast, it's amazing that it has been two months. I can't believe it. I have travelled at total of 5300km's. The trip in my mind has been broken into 3 parts. First part making it to San Diego... the longest section. The second part is the coastal route to Vancouver. The third and most important ;) Is riding home to Ontario.

It's pretty wild to fathom the distances and I try to remember all the farms, towns, and... cows I have seen. At some points when your riding and there is no town for 100's of km's. I feel like Tom Hanks, not in "Forest Gump" because I'm not growing a beard but in "Cast Away." For example, I have named my bike Betsy (In honour of my good friend Eoin). But some days Besty and I have a love/hate relationship (bike malfunctions). Then there is Zoot the trip mascot who has been strapped to the handlebars for the duration of the trip. I wouldn't go as far to say I am as close with them as Tom Hanks character was to Wilson the volleyball. But still they are my best friends on the road :) (The picture to the above and to the right is when i got snowed in at one of the canyons. I look happy but I think it was more a state of delerium)

I want to try and explain the amazing sites I have seen thus far. But most of the time I am left speechless. So, I will post some pics and hopefully they can do it justice. (Bottom left; that is actually the moon rising at night one night when I was camped in the desert somewhere. Bottom Right; that is ontop of a mountain called Lizard Head pass near Telluride.... beautiful and cold)













Well till next time!
Matthew.

Hot and Cold

Alot to recap here but I'm just about to head out on the road so I'm going to make this quick. It's been a little over a week since I reported last and It's been tough. The most difficult yet... I've been fighting extreme weather and difficult terrain. Lately it's been hard mentally to overcome some obstacles and challenges that stand in my way. Usually at the end of the day when your body is numb and your legs are sleepy. You just want to set up camp and stop for the day, especially if there is a big climb you have to make. I wake up everyday earlier and earlier to try and beat the heat but last week I was waking up later and later to avoid the cold..


I would like to share May 12th with you to get an idea of my last week. I was leaving from a town called Salida, CO where I had met some nice people, and was kinda procrastinating my day. I started off good getting some good minor climbs and riding strong. Meeting some other cyclists riding with a support vehicle. Secretly I was kinda jealous, but then thought about it and knew that wouldn't be my style. ANYWAYS, the day went on and I was having a hard time of motivating my self to push to the next destination. I stopped in a diner and talked to the woman there. We talked, talked and talked and then next thing I knew it was about 4:30ish. I had one more climb to do Cerro Summit and then make it to the black canyon (this was optional) So, I was debating on staying in this town with this lady (easiest) or pushing to Montrose (semi-easiest) or going to black canyon (nearly impossible) The wind was not in my favour all day and it seemed relentless in slowing me down. My only defence against the wind was trash talk. All the years of trash talking my friends in basketball seemed to have helped. Which actually didn't do anything but bring peace of my mind.

I decided to make a push towards Cerro Summit and then take it from there. As soon as I left, Cerro Summit was really beating me up. It was 5 mile climb and zig-zagged it's way around the mountain so I could never know when or where it was finishing. Also, the clouds were started to form into nasty looking things. I pondered to myself if this was the right decision. Anyway, I got to the top of Cerro and felt good about time and progress to make it to the Canyon.

All of sudden though the weather changed very quickly and it dropped to what it felt like way below freezing. I was wearing shorts and a long sleeve shirt. I quickly dismounted and pulled out all layers and warmer clothes on the side of the road and started putting my armour on for the upcoming weather. Cars drove by and looked on in amusement as they saw a crazy cyclist throwing on all these clothes.

Again the weather changed again and started getting alot warmer. But by this time I was at the base of the road to the top of the Black Canyon of Gunnison. I sat there for a minute and looked at the skies... they didn't look too bad. The road up to the canyon didn't look so bad either. I decided to go for it because I may regret not seeing this natural beauty if I just ride by it. The road at first impression that didn't look so bad, turned into a six mile intense climb. It was a another zig-zagging road so I couldn't have made a good assessment and I didn't study my maps carefully enough to know the topography of the this climb. I had to start walking my bike up the road because I was soooooooooooo tired. As I walked my bike up the road it would switchback around each steep section. Now these 3 deer popped out and watched me as I walked past them. They did not run but just stared and looked puzzled as I walked my bike up this hill. When I walked by them the distance between us was only about 4 or 5ft. They did not run but just stood and looked dumbfounded. At every single corner that I would walk up, they were their staring at me. They would rush up to the next corner and wait for me. It was almost as if they were their as encouragement.

When I finally got to the top I realized I was now walking within the clouds I was over 8000ft a sign said as I entered the park. The clouds were cold and thick, I was kinda upset by this because I couldn't see the canyon! But it was getting late and I had to set up camp and cook dinner. I hurried to a spot and cooked dinner and set up my tent. As soon as I started cooking the snow started to fall, I hurried and got settled for the night. At about 3am I heard a loud crashing at the sides of my tent. It was the snow.... I opened up the sides and realized that about half a foot had accumulated outside by now. When I woke in the morning over a foot had fallen covering everything. When I left my tent who was sleeping outside of my tent with more friends. It was those 3 deer. I'm obviously not sure if they were the same ones but three were sleeping really close to my tent while the others were all safe distance from me. I got to see the canyon and it was magnificent... I felt I had made the right decision. ;)

The next days I encountered more snow and big climbs but spectacular views were always surrounding me. As for the last two days I have been in the desert and there has been spans of over 100 km's with no running or drinking water available. It's been great though because I have the most gorgeous beach on both sides of me.... just lacking the ocean. I have also rode some pretty rough land that looks like it was in some westerns and is so interesting the way the rock formations are. If you know Butch Cassidy this is where he did all his outlawing.

Thanks again to the amazing generosity of people along the trip. Especially in Telluride :)

Godspeed
Matthew

Surrounded.

The last blogs have been getting a little lengthy so I'm going to try and keep this one short and sweet. Well relatively short. So I'm completely surrounded by mountains and am writing this entry from a nice town nestled between them. I got held up in Peublo, CO but got more acquainted with some great people that really showed me the town and made me feel at home.

So I was pretty restless hanging out in Pueblo and I wanted to get back on my bike to get into the beautiful mountains. But I needed to wait for some important maps. I wasn't impressed with the United States Postal Service they had me running around all over town. Well the rest of the details are not important the important thing is I got my maps.

I would love to show you all pictures of where I am but I feel that the picture wouldn't do the mountains justice. For example I had to do my first substantial mountain climb the other day. At the mountain pass the max height was about 9300 ft. To fathom that number in my head I imagined 930 basketball nets stacked on top of eachother. I camped at the base of one of the big mountains here and the wind flying down them was incredible. It sounded as if I was on a freeway but even louder. However, when I went to the washroom in the middle of the night and the stars were incredible I felt so close to them. But didn't stay too long enjoying them because it was -3 degrees outside and the wind was even colder so I jumped back in my tent in a hurry.

The next morning rain pelted my tent.... I grumpily stayed in my sleeping bag. It let up pretty quickly I went outside and it was pretty cold. Still just above feezing. I started the day off and it started snowing.... I couldn't believe it. An hour later, hail started to pelt me in the face.... I laughed at the variations in weather that was being thrown at me. My mood was in high spirits though because of the amazing views and incredible speeds I can hit when flying up and down the hills/mountains. Sometimes I'm desert and the next minute I'm flying by a lush river, the landscape is ever changing around me.

Tomorrow I have my biggest climb within the United States. It will exceed 11,200 ft. I'm nervous but also really excited to be able to ride my bike to such heights. I have to say that generosity of people is still amazing... people letting me camp in their backyards, free food at diners, random people taking me out for dinner, or even someone putting me up in a Motel for the night. And everyone is always so willing to discuss personal experiences and stories about their experiences with Developmental Disabilities. I hope this doesn't sound redundant but I'm truly blessed to be taking part in such an adventure. Love you all and thanks for all the support

Godspeed
Matthew.

Hello Mr. Weather....

This week has brought alot of great and frustrating times. I'm tired as I stare at this computer and think of the times of last. It's pretty amazing how many places I've been, sometimes I don't even know what town I'm in. I will be talking to some locals and I won't be able to tell them where I'm coming from or where I'm going to. I just know I'm just going.... It's also funny how well I can make myself laugh when on the road. I really think I'm hilarious when nobody is around. I wonder what a truck driver thinks when he drives does he thinks I've lost it? If I told him where I'm going I'm sure that would reaffirm his initial judgements.

Kansas has offered me alot, I have met some other cyclists and rode with them for short distances before taking our different paths. I have been riding through some flat lands where the wheat fields contrast with lush green grass and rolling hills that are sprinkled in jagged rocks. The morning dew glistens and creating colours that look unreal with thousands of differents shades that mix together, that always make me enjoy the morning... even if my body aches. The skies in Kansas have been really amazing since I started to pay more attention to them. The clouds swirl and blue sky extends across the landscape for miles and miles. It is incredible how fast the skies change, you can see the skies swirl creating cone like clouds which come out of bigger darker clouds. Tornadoes have been threatening all around me and sometimes I secretly want to see one. But I am always ahead of the severe weather by a day, and not in the position to see one.

It was nice to have some company this past week, I got to cycle with an older man from England, he is riding across the U.S. His drive, strength and positive outlook on life was inspiring to push me to continue on strong with this trip. He was not your prototypical cyclist and it was cool to be able to meet someone just enjoying the world in it's natural state. We enjoyed each others company and I think he was overwhelmed on how much I had to say on every single topic. I had to ride ahead of him because our daily distances didn't add up and I had to take advantage of the weather while it lasted.

I rode into Hutchinson, KS and I was feeling really tired. The last two days I biked about 290km. So I was happy to pull into this city. There was a Salvation Army there and I met up with the Major Barb and Rick, at their Community Corps. It was a very nice building and they invited me to stay over for the night, they were so helpful and kind. I had a great sleep, the bed was like a hand gripping my body in total comfort which did not want to let go in the morning. That morning I did rip my body from the grips and I got ready and headed to the community centre where there was a man by my bike, a very tall man. He was Corrections officer and looked like he didn't take much guff from anyone. We talked for awhile and he said, "you could go to Larned, KS and I could get a place for you to stay." I told him I was a little tired and might pull up a little short. He said..... "you could go to Larned, KS and I could get a place for you to stay." I didn't want to disagree.... So I went. It was another 125km with a nice headwind. I enjoyed the ride though. It went through wild life refuges and quiet roads, even a farm of zebras, camels and giraffes... I felt like I was in Africa.

I have met so many great people over this last week it's hard to fit them all into this short blog. I stayed with a Pastor in Larned his name was Brett and he was a really nice guy. His friends (Jasmine, Brett, and Miriam) took me for a really delicious Mexican meal. Brett let me have his house even while he out for the day, he showed the utmost patience with me after I burnt one of his pots while boiling tea! It boiled dry really fast! I stunk up his house but he was really kind and was willing to put me up. (Don't worry the pot was ok but it smelled)

I went to his service in the morning and it was a really interesting service. His denomination was 'The Father's House' and on the National Day of prayer there was representatives from all denominations. It was really a really cool service and interesting to hear all the different styles from the different Pastors. I was raised into a Catholic Church where it was very organized and quiet and the mass was done in unison. But in this service there was people talking back to the Pastors, Ministers and Priests. Yelling out "AMEN" in response to powerful statements. During song some people would lose control of their body and be taken by the moment and rock back and forth with arms extended and shaking. It was a really amazing experience and I was glad I got to meet so many great people. I also got to talk to lots of people after the service about what I'm doing and why. So many people have shown interest and took the information about the cause. One woman had no money or computer to donate she gave me the only thing she had on her...an abundance of cinnamon buns, very delicious.

Finally, yesterday I left Larned, KS leaving to wherever the road would take me. It was beautiful and hot and the sun made me squint. I got ready to leave the church and realized I had a flat tire. ARG! I fixed and patched the tire then got ready to go... then I realized there was brake problems. AHHG! Readjusted and then finally I got on the road and drivers didn't seem friendly at all.... Trucks were like that nightmare that you have when your running away from something and you can't get away or even run fast. No matter how hard you try it's going to catch up to you. So, the trucks were not my favorite yesterday, but I understand truckers have to work on these roads and are in routine. One thing that was especially aggravating was that all the trucks were filled with all sorts of farming smells mostly manure. So, my spirits were not the highest and it was late in the day, I knew it would be a long haul. I took me along time to get 70km done. Especially because all of a sudden at 6 o'clock the weather took full advantage of me and whipped me around with winds from all directions. It felt like I was being slapped from people in all directions with massive overweight hands. However, I made it to the town Jetmore and found out there was no place to sleep but the county park. I went there to set up my tent, there was a bathroom made out of cinder blocks so I decided that would be a good place to protect me from the wind. After, I got all the stuff ready I noticed that there was a woman who drove by in her van and we saw eachother. She then turned around, got out of her van and asked.... "Are you going to be warm enough tonight?" I said shrugged my shoulders, smiled and said. "I hope so!" We then started talking for awhile and she said there was more protection in her backyard. I said that would be great. I got to her house and she said, "do you want to sleep on the couch?" I was so overwhelmed from the generosity that I felt shy and didn't want to impose. But it was an offer I couldn't refuse :) So I got in and I introduced myself to her husband and her formally. Alison and Gus were on older couple in a really nice house. They made me feel like home and made me strawberries and ice cream. I felt like I was in some sort of surreal place! The morning came and they fixed me a good breakfast. I got ready to leave and we said our goodbyes. The weather had plans of it's own. The next town where I was heading was about 100km with nothing inbetween. (Garden City) I started out... if you remember the blog from Chicago the wind was nothing compared to this. I was the winds toy I struggled to keep balance on the narrow road. The tumbleweeds blew around like an old western but not in front of my path but directly at my face! They got caught up in my bike spokes. The trucks drove on the road as if on a tight rope, as the wind blew their heaving loads back and forth. This caused me to have to get off the road for safety every so often. I was on the road for about 40 minutes and had only made it 5km... I COULD RUN FASTER THAN THAT. Some reports later told me that the winds were gusting over 70 mph (112kph) and steady at about 30mph (48kph) I felt defeated and decided to turn around to Alison's and Gus's place where they happily took me back.... I had to say "Hello Weather...you win this round." lol. But thank Alison and Gus so much for their kindness to strangers it really is the most amazing thing I have ever experienced!

Anyway things are going great I'm in good health and can't wait to move to the next stage... Colorado, Utah and Arizona. This is going to be more desolate and the blogs may become more infrequent. But I will try and get them up as often as I can. This next step offers alot of challenges and natural wonders of the world that make me smile but nestled deep down there is intense feelings of excitement brewing. All of this is topped with an awesome feeling of being able to represent such awesome people. I know that what I'm doing in spreading good word about developmental disabilities and the awesome work the Salvation Army does across the world (Especially what I have seen in Southern Ontario, and across the board in the U.S.A)

Till next time'
Godspeed
Matthew.