Back in America!
After 4,500 miles of pedaling, I finally crossed into Montana
at the Port of Roosville! I was excited to be back in Montana,
by far my favorite state in the Lower 48.
Once in Eureka, the first
town a famished rider comes to, I found the IGA grocery and went in to check
some prices. Everything was on sale half
off from the prices I have been accustomed to paying for the last three months
in Alaska and Canada. Oatmeal Crème Pies were 25 cents and liters
of milk were selling for $1. I went nuts
and bought way too much, filling nearly half my buggy! Over the next week, as I traveled towards
Bozeman, I worked my way through my rations.
Montana also signifies a
big milestone for me on my journey, serving as the half-way point between Prudhoe
Bay and Cullowhee! I am
sure the trip will exceed 10,000 miles, but the thought that I am near half way
brought a surge of confidence and energy to my crank that I had not felt since
before Whitehorse.
The Icefields Parkway
Canadians refer to the Icefields
Parkway as the, “greatest road in the World!” The road is 142 miles in length and follows
the backbone of the Canadian Rockies through Jasper and Banff
National Parks. Pristine lakes, massive glaciers, diverse
wildlife, and jagged mountains are just a few of the rewards that Jasper and Banff
offer to its visitors. Traveling the
entire road by bicycle was by far one of the best roads I have ever had the
opportunity to pedal. The road took
Marie and I four days to pedal since we could only cover 100 meters before
stopping for more pictures and smiles.
Every turn had new and amazing scenery unlike anything I had witnessed
thus far on my trip. We had our first
below freezing night and frozen precipitation at the Columbia Icefields while
camping at just over 6,300 feet!
Fortunately, the snow was light and did not accumulate to anything and
we were able to pedal over the pass the next day.
The Bozeman Reunion
In 2003, I had the opportunity to study at Montana
State University
in Bozeman, MT. Lucky for me, many of the close friends I met
while at MSU still call the Gallatin Valley
home. Shawn McGlynn, the gentleman who
rode from Prudhoe Bay to Stewart,
AK with me still calls Bozeman
home. Ben Bolton, a good friend
originally from Colorado, was nice
enough to allow Marie and I to stay at his place all week. Throughout the week I got to meet up with old
and new friends for calorie consumption, smiles, and good stories! Ben, Nicole, Marie, and I made our way to the
Oasis Club on Thursday night for the best meal I have had since leaving
home. My five course meal consisted of a
vegetable tray to start, soup, salad, bread, a loaded baked potato, a 22-oz
prime rib, a chocolate ice cream sundae, and two cups of coffee! I could hardly walk so I am sure glad Nicole
drove us out there!
A Much Needed Break…
4,844 miles is a long trip in a car, but incredibly long on
a bicycle. Both my bike and my body have
been through a lot of wear and tear in the last 3.5 months and were in need of
some much deserved rest while in Bozeman. For the first time in two months, I was
actually sleeping indoors! It is truly
amazing how a person begins to take a simple roof and the use of a four burner
stove for granted. Believe me; I have
been thanking Ben everyday for allowing me to stay in his apartment! Although the indoors part is nice, I have not
had much down time here in Bozeman. I have been busy repairing broken equipment, archiving
pictures / video to mail home, meeting with media, and seeing a burn specialist
for my arm among other things. The
doctor said, “You are crazy for riding your bike 10,000 miles, but as for your
injury it is healing perfectly and should be closed within a couple
months!” The healing perfectly statement
was great to hear and a huge testament to the excellent job Marie has done to help
me take care of my injury. On Saturday,
Shawn took the day off from his research to help Marie and I overhaul the bikes
since he has the tools, a proper stand, and well lots of know how! Preventative maintenance on the hubs and drive
train will hopefully deliver me in smooth buttery style back to Cullowhee by
Christmas!
Are You Crazy?
The trip progress is actually getting long enough now that
people are starting to question my sanity!
Of course, I got these questions in Alaska
and in the Yukon, but much more
now that I am in the Lower 48 and around population densities over one person
every ten square miles. I have met with
a handful of newspapers in Montana
and yesterday I had my first television appearance. KTVM out of Bozeman
did a story on Why I Ride and my mission to help those in need. I will try and upload the video to the site
in the next week. I walked into the
Daily-Interlake newspaper a couple of weeks ago and told them I was riding from
Prudhoe Bay to NC to raise money for charity. Everyone in the entire administrative area
popped their heads above their cubicles to see the story that just walked
through their front door. Although they
didn’t ask it, I am sure they were thinking to themselves, “is he completely
insane or just missing a few spokes?”
The New Look
Yesterday I got the haircut to help cut down on wind
resistance as I steam through Paradise
Valley for Yellowstone
National Park. The barber had to up the voltage on his trimmer
just to cut through my beard, which was just under four inches long (a new
personal record)! I thought he was going
to charge me a clean-up fee since there was at least two pounds of hair on his
floor after he was all done. I will
upload some pictures soon of my new handlebar mustache! I am currently training it and calling Dad
daily for some advice on which technique suits my blood line best! This picture is before the hair cut!
Back on the Road Tomorrow!
Brandon Newcomer, my friend from Boulder,
CO gets into Bozeman
tonight at three a.m. via the luxury
bus line…Greyhound! I plan to ride out
to the station, help him pack up the bike, and ride to Ben’s home with four
proper walls for some sleep. Tomorrow we
will set sail for Livingston and make a 90 degree turn
down highway 89 for Gardiner and the north entrance of Yellowstone
National Park. If we clear the snow, we will exit the south
entrance and skirt the base of the Teton Range. From there we roll into Idaho
briefly before arriving in Utah. Look for the next newsletter to come from
northern Utah before the end of
the month. The next newsletter should be
better since I will be ageing a year somewhere between Bozeman
and Salt Lake!
RIGHT ON, RIDE ON!
