I’ve biked across the continent before so know - to some degree – what is in store. However, there are many, many things about my upcoming trip from Oregon to Carolina that my mind is racing to wrap itself around. What will the weather be like? Will the roads have descent shoulders? Will my bike hold up? Will my body hold up? What will it feel like to participate in extreme fundraising for a non-profit? I can only hope that my mental and physical preparations pay off. Yesterday evening I went for a training ride, summiting the only hill in Carteret County, NC 30 times; it was the Atlantic Beach high-rise bridge. Each time I got the top of the bridge, I was provided stunning views of a fast moving thunderstorm that barreled its way down Bogue Sound, past Cape Lookout, and out over the mighty Atlantic Ocean.
While my mind has that tone of anxiety, I also know that a solo journey of this mileage and duration provides some of life’s rarest gift. I will see places I would never see otherwise, and many that I will never see again. I will make friends with folks who are still strangers to me. In getting rescued from a rainstorm or a helping hand to fix a broken bike, I will be constantly reminded that ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are still the most important words in the English vocabulary.
I am riding for a good cause. Yesterday I volunteered a few hours at the Outer Banks Wildlife Shelter. OWLS is getting ready for its seasonal influx of baby birds and animals that it cares for every spring in coastal Carolina. As I write this on a lovely Sunday morning, a baby brown thrush is huddled in a bush outside my back porch. Its mother is dutifully finding insects to feed its insatiable appetite.
While my mind has that tone of anxiety, I also know that a solo journey of this mileage and duration provides some of life’s rarest gift. I will see places I would never see otherwise, and many that I will never see again. I will make friends with folks who are still strangers to me. In getting rescued from a rainstorm or a helping hand to fix a broken bike, I will be constantly reminded that ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are still the most important words in the English vocabulary.
I am riding for a good cause. Yesterday I volunteered a few hours at the Outer Banks Wildlife Shelter. OWLS is getting ready for its seasonal influx of baby birds and animals that it cares for every spring in coastal Carolina. As I write this on a lovely Sunday morning, a baby brown thrush is huddled in a bush outside my back porch. Its mother is dutifully finding insects to feed its insatiable appetite.
Today is Sunday, May 3rd: Perfect temps, a strong sea breeze, and sunny skies, a good day for a ride…..
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Wishing you lots of luck on your journey for a great cause!
ReplyDeletejust found out about your journey today on FB & find this so intriguing. I will be catching up on your post for the next few days but as I start to write this a door slammed outside my office and as I looked out a biker in full gear had pulled over to adjust something on his bike carrier right outside my door, hmmm.
ReplyDeleteAnyway I live in S'boro work on EI so am very excited to hear of your journey.