Day 8 of SD to Memphis bikepacking

 Can’t believe I’ve made it to Phoenix, AZ today! I’ve had many doubts along the way. My ass, right knee and both wrists are really feeling it! Stopping at bike shop tomorrow to see what can be done to my bike to alleviate some of these issues. 

Start on Sunday 3/1: probably the most difficult day! Used GoogleMaps in biking mode and took me off course. Had to set up tent in the dark and struggled to sleep.

Monday 3/2. Much better day: roads were wider with bike lane,, less traffic and more scenic. Maxed out around 5,000 feet and then hair raising descent into Salton Lake area. Plus met up with Di and Mik

Tue 3/3: took day off to watch tennis, run w Mik, and have a nice dinner w Sandovals too.

We’d, 3/4: another really tough day. Camped at a ghost town, desert center. Scary! 

Thur 3/5: brutal day: first 100 miler! Included 30 miles on I-10 expressway! That was crazy! Again, got off course! 

Fri, 3/6. Ride to Salome, AZ- difficult

Sat 3/7, ride to Wickenburgh, AZ. Ok

Sun3/8, ride to Phoenix. Best day since LaQuinta! 

Sixty Eight

 HBTM! Getting very excited about my backpacking trip that starts in less than a week!  Nervous too! 

Tonight I'll start packing things up and taking an inventory of what I still need.  It has been a difficult month so far! Awi had a stroke and is making a slow recovery. It's very difficult to see how much he has lost and how far he has to go in rehab. We're all hoping he can find the motivation and will to work super hard and gain more independence. Abi is also now on her own and lonely. Diana is feeling the weight of being the healthcare professional and all-around responsible person in the family. I'm also feeling guilty for going on this solo trip.  But I've been planning it for a year, and I only have this one window of time I can do it. I just hope Gabe is happy at the sub-acute rehab (Elevate) and makes good progress so that he can stay there at least until I can return to help out. 🙏🙏🙏
 

Indoor Tri 2026!

Last Sunday, Mik, Lance, June, and I did the ET Indoor Tri.  It was a blast! So fun to be racing against Lance and Mikaely. I have always loved the concept of triathlon and loved participating in these races, and it was so nice to see that they are finding out about the beauty of this sport, too!  Of course, they're super competitive and were both going at it. They both earned top 10 places in their respective groups, too!  So proud of both of these amazing athletes!   

Fun times! 

Strange Times!

I don't usually go off-topic on this blog and talk politics or current events, but things have gotten very, very strange here. Our precious democracy is truly under threat, and our country has become the bully in the world, threatening other countries rather than being a beacon of hope and freedom!  

Immigration enforcement has been turned into a sort of personal attack squad and is immune to any laws or responsibility. Last week, a US citizen and mother of three young children in MN was brutally shot 3 times while in her car by an ICE agent. Within the hour, officials were on TV, calling the woman a terrorist and saying the incident was fully justified. But the videos of the killing show otherwise: this was an innocent woman trying to leave, and who was killed out of hostility toward protesters and indifference to dissent and human rights! 

Meanwhile, the US captured the Muduros and US leaders say we are trying to "free Venezuela," but actually, we are hijacking Venezuelan oil and making deals to try and exploit the country as fast as possible. Same deal for Greenland. We are "conquering" that country in opposition to it's people, the Danish government, our allies, and the world, just to exploit it for minerals and other natural resources. More insidious is that in nearly all of these decisions, there is an element of self-promotion and self-benefit. Our leaders all have deals that allow them monetary benefits from these moves. It seems clear after speeches at Davos, Switzerland, this week that the official stance of the US is that our long-term and closest allies, like the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Norway, and others, are just annoying critics hung up on human rights and outdated democratic principles. Currently, our leaders are more aligned with MBS, Putin, Xi Jinping, and Orban than with democratic leaders. At its heart, the US is now governed on the principle of using $$$ and power to get more $$$ and power, with complete disregard for democracy, human rights, or morality!