New Personal Record

Me and the girls, Sharon and Barb, rode from Ness City to Dighton before stopping for a real meal. I ordered chicken strips from this half diner/half bowling alley. I ate as much as I could, but the batter was overwhelming; I couldn’t stomach it. We hit the grocery store. I encouraged Barb to try a blood orange, and I got one myself. They were poor blood oranges, kinda dry, oh well. When we showed up in Scott City, we checked out the hostel, but decided to sleep in the park.

I’ve now ridden over 2,000 miles on one wheel. My body is tired, my mind is tired. But I’m having a good time. Early this morning, a storm rolled through. I was cowboy camping, so I moved my gear under this gazebo. The rain, and worse, the wind still battered one side of me. I should have got in my bivy at the moment’s notice of rain. But instead, I just layed there and waited for it to pass. I moved to the entrance way of the men’s room in the city park, and caught a few more minutes of sleep. Would have prefered a few hours. I packed up my gear; everything was soaked. So I went into town to see what was open. I found Daylight Donuts. They are strong competition to my beloved Donut Shack in Severna Park, MD. Yeast rissen donuts always make my day.

Leaving town, I stopped for one of 4 newspaper interviews in that 24 hour period. When I got goin’, I rode 12 miles to a little highway rest stop before catching a breather. I had some poptarts, and moved on. But in that small window of time, the winds had picked up in speed. I fought the winds all the way into the next town.

I grew a little unsettled ——> me loosing concentration ——> me falling 4 times in the middle of town —–> scrapes on my arms and legs ——-> Break time to get a hold of myself.

One of my previous riding partners showed up and made my day with her smile and similar weariness created by the wind. I helped her pump up her tire to something ride able. I’d taken to this riding position where my body is cocked left, acting like a sail, increasing resistance, but making balancing easier.

Not long after, I hit the Colorado Border and set my clock back an hour. Just then I start riding toward this tall, wide cumulo nimbus cloud. Lightning is striking exactly where I need to go. I ride under this dark cloud, the wind getting steadily stronger, and it starts to rain with very large drops. The wind gets so turbulant that attempting to unicycle is risky. I happen to be riding by this church in Chavington, so I run over and the door is open. I call inside to see if anyone is around, but no response. After walking into the main room, I see dime sized hail falling everywhere through the window. I’m glad I took the chance of finding shelter. The storm blew through in about 20 min, and I went on my way with no more than a cool breeze and a slight drizzle.

I stop and grab some pizza in Eads at a bar because the only other restaurant in town had closed for maintenance. Talked to some older men, and got an idea of what I was in for this evening. 110 miles in, I could’ve stopped and slept at the park. They were calling for 80+ mph winds all along the Front Range of eastern Colorado. I pushed on regardless. The sunset was beautiful, and later that night, in the middle of nowhere, the stars were spectacular and plentiful.

I made it through the night. The wind got real cold and at some point I made a windbreaker out of my trash bag pack-liner. At some point early in the morning, I found myself huddled in an alleyway trying to stay warm and out of the wind.

In the morning, I saw my first glimpse of the Sangre de Cristos Mountain Range. It was just a faint line above the horizon. After 220 miles, I slept on a park bench, and rode into downtown to find the post office. I stopped in Great Divide Ski, Bike and Hike, to use the phone and get info on the area. First I stopped at Shammrock’s to try a local brew. To no avail; my NC ID wouldn’t cut it. I hope to consume another micro-brew before I make it to Oregon. We’ll see. I found The Daily Grind Cafe, and consumed a delicious latte. The staff was upbeat and the furnishing and art appealing.

Before I left, I got to meet another street unicyclist, and I got picked up from Pueblo by Lauren Marino, the girl who used to live across the street from me as a kid. The sunset on the ride to Colorado Springs was beautiful. I stayed with her, her husband Steve and their two beautiful children.

After some well deserved sleep, we went for a hike in Cheyenne Cañon in the morning. Its nice to back in the mountains, and the Rockies at that.

Landmarks:

new personal record: 220 miles
new time zone
new state
rocky mountains
Half-way mark

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