Day 11: grasshopper love

Day 11: Wednesday, Oct. 6. Lordsburg, NM to Demming, NM

Did that title get your attention?

Something funny happens to the things you think about during the day when you see it constantly for 8 hours while riding on the shoulder of a highway. Today, New Mexico presented us a special treat. There were literally hundreds of grasshoppers all along the highway shoulder. Jacques and I did our best to avoid them, but our efforts were futile. These grasshoppers are not like the ones we find in Kansas or Colorado. These were gigantic ones; trojan warrior type grasshoppers 4 or 5 times the size of midwest grasshoppers. These were stoic grasshoppers, unwavering in their desire to stay their course despite a large bicycle wheel speeding towards them. They also had a healthy desire to mate, and perhaps even more disturbing, was their equal appetite for those grasshoppers that had already met their maker. Apparently, grasshoppers are carnivores. But really, I'm not sure insects with exoskeletons can be considered meat.

Enough already.

We arrived in Demming at about 4pm. We were very fortunate to stay with Don and Mary Lou, who gave us plenty of chicken and food to eat. Don, a former motorcycle shop owner, has ridden across the US several times, and has an especially keen sense of good roads throughout Texas. Taking Don's advice, we will probably stray away from some parts of I-10 as we cross Texas, and take some less traveled and therefore less busy highways.

Don's friends John and Barb joined us for dinner in Demming. John's cousin is Beth, who was my trip leader at Beautiful Gate, the organization and orphanage we're doing this ride for. John is also an avid bicyclist (with an amazing bike) and will join us on Thursday's ride.

For now, time for some zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz's.

Please keep checking out our vlogs on our website www.irideyougivetheylive.org

Day 10: Oh Lordy

Day 10: Willcox, AZ to Lordsburg, New Mexico

That's right folks! We made it to New Mexico. It's like going to a retail mall as opposed to a garage sale...or something. Brand Spanking New Mexico!

I'm writing this post a couple days after it happened, so this post will probably be brief, as my memory usually only lasts about 5 minutes.

We left Willcox at about 8am and headed towards the border. The previous night we met a guy at the Holiday Inn because we were both looking at room prices. We talked for a little, and it just so happened that we saw him at a contruction site at a truck stop down along the highway. He was a super nice guy and ended up springing for our lunch. Thanks!

The ride to Lordsburg was only about 60 miles, so we got into town early afternoon. We rode around looking for churches, hoping they could set us up with a place to stay, but all we received was a recommendation as to a park on the outskirts of town that "probably would be safe." The other recommendation was for a stellar mexican restaurant on the other side of the train tracks, and that recommendation proved to be accurate. Jacques and I had a cold one and dinner before heading for the park just as the sun went down.

The park ended up being adjacent the high school, where a basketball game was taking place. We nonchalantly walked our bikes into the dugout of the baseball field and set up camp. Unfortunately, in order to save weight, we (stupidly) decided to ditch many (apparently) neccessary items. Example: sleeping bag and sleeping bad. It seemed like such a good idea at the time, but after a night of sleeping on dirty clothes and covering up with the rainfly of my tent, we might purchase a blanket or two.

Next up: Demming, NM!

oh geez

We are currently in a high school dugout setting up camp for the night in lordsburg, new Mexico. We didn't feel like getting a motel and this seemed like a good idea. it's a much better option than the motel with the man with a mustache dressed in a black mini skirt and black wig was hanging out. When I have a computer tomorrow, I will let you know how it went. Good night.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Day 9: Tucson to Willcox, 90ish miles.

Day 9: Monday, Oct. 4

Before I begin, I should admit that I am very very excited right now. We treated ourselves to a hotel tonight and found out that this crazy looking trailer outside our room holds two giraffes (or is the plural for giraffe also giraffe?). It's almost as if we've joined the Barnum and Bailey Circus train, but we actually are just in a cheap hotel in the middle of Arizona. Good times.

Today, we left Tucson at 5am, knowing we had a pretty long day ahead. I can say that I really enjoyed the ride today. It was cool and cloudy today; the rain fell on us throughout the morning. We welcomed the cooler temperatures compared to last week's unbearable heat. The adjustments we made to our seat post height and seats themselves were very helpful.

By 11am, we had reached our halfway point in Benson, AZ and stopped to eat some lunch. Benson overlooks one of the most scenic valleys I have seen in a while, with the sun lighting up the surrounding mountain peaks.

We headed east, and just as a storm was about to catch us, pulled off the highway on the exit marked "the Thing?" We had seen multiple billboards along the route advertising "the Thing," so we felt fortunate for the chance at discovery. After a quick discussion with a friendly employee who let us forgo the $1 entrance fee, we took the tour of "the Thing." The Thing ended up being a bunch of completely random antiques surrounded by old wooden alien looking figures (the Things) in about 3 different buildings. There was no theme aside from the hundreds of Things in front of old cars, chinese gongs, and covered wagons.

The trek to Willcox seemed short because it was about an eight mile downhill. Perhaps the Thing had something to do with the terrain in these parts. I now have dreams of hills such as theses, where I can use my weight to my advantage and coast for days. We took some time touring around Willcox (read: got lost) and finally ended up at Subway for dinner. As the rain had made the ground rather muddy and because we are sissies, we jumped on the $36 hotel nearby. Did I already tell you there are two giraffes outside my window? Well worth the money.

Tomorrow, we head to Lordsburg. I think God lives there.

Good night.

Days 7 and 8: Tucson and Tucson and Rest and Relaxation

Day 7 and 8: October 2 and 3

Jacques and I have been getting some much needed rest this weekend. Brittany's aunt Shannon and uncle Mike live just outside Tucson in Oro Valley. It's a beautiful area and we have seen many recreational bicyclists enjoying their leisurely rides around town. I can no longer relate to these bikers without their trailers, panniers, and sore bottoms.




Shannon and Mike have been wonderful at providing us some home cooked meals: spaghetti, pancakes, eggs, cheesburgers, and cookies. As luck would have it, they also have a salt water pool full of sharks. I lied again. Sorry. No sharks, but they actually do have an amazing pool.

Shannon has also done some crazy bike trips in the past, and she's provided helpful nutrition and riding tips. Part of her advice was to go get old women seats, a step down from beach cruiser seats, so we did that this morning. We also put thorn resistant tubes in our tires and Shannon donated a bomb proof tire to our cause.

In other news, Jacques has decided to ditch his bob trailer. The bob trailers are like our disobedient children, and Jacques has decided to send his to boarding school. I, apparently a more patient parent, have decided to stick with Bob a little longer.

We're about to take a look see around Tucson, and perhaps ask the college students why they don't pronounce the hard "c" in Tucson. Jacques and I have gotten used to calling this city Tux-son, and will continue to do so for all eternity.

Tomorrow, we're headed to Willcox, AZ. We are hoping to call some hotels to see if they are willing to donate a room to I Ride You Give They Live, and therefore take a business tax deduction. At least I learned a little something in law school. (Unless this is unsound advice, and then I may have learned nothing).

pictures: I searched the internet for "Tucson" and have included images of my results.

Day 6: Gila to Tucson...117 miles...we're getting dumber

Day 6: Oct. 1

Well, we decided to start October off with a bang. A 117 mile bang.

At 5am, we left our comfy Gila Bend palace, ready for the longest day of our adventure yet. We didn't know what we were about to experience- a two hour climb. The funny thing about roads is that lately, it seems that all of them go up. They ascend. They are not fun to pull trailers up. The other funny thing is that people in these things called cars have no idea that a road is slightly ascending or descending because of the benefit of this thing called an engine. I too was one of these people, but can now attest that a one degree incline over the course of two hours makes for a long morning.

Enough complaints.

The ride out of Gila Bend was beautiful. The sun came up through the mountains just as it would in one of those 50s cowboy's movies. Jacques and I gave some hollers out into the desert hoping for a native american reply, but to no avail. Had people heard us, they would have thought we were crazy (and they probably would have been correct).

We also met a group of riders doing a cross country trip. They are from a Phoenix church raising money for Haiti. They were traveling the "right" way, as they had a sag vehicle that carried all their belongings, food, and water. We are all taking a similar route and hopefully will meet up again next week.

The other thing we've noticed the past couple of days is the massive number of Border Patrol vehicles roaming the highway and side streets. These lifted and desert ready Suburbans and Jeeps cruise by at rapid speed, always seeming to have a destination in mind. Apparently the stretch of Highway 8 we took is renowned for being a gateway for illegal immigrants to pass on their way into the US.

And now for a quick related story. Drum roll please. Jacques is faster than I am, and therefore I spend most of my time at least 100 yards trailing him on my bike. All of a sudden in the desert I saw a man with a red shirt or backpack running towards the highway right as Jacques was passing. From my perspective, it looked like the person was going to tackle Jacques. I started yelling at the person, but at the last second he or she jumped into a tunnel underneath the highway. That was a close one. I'm sure they were more scared to hear a white man's yelling than Jacques and I were to see them scurry through the desert.

Some of these immigrants spend 15 days in the desert making their way to safe houses or safe cars. Jacques and I have another story about how we learned this, but I'll save that for a less public forum.

Anyways, We rode about 70 miles before noon, took a two hour lunch break, filled up with water, and then got on Interstate 10 towards Tucson. We found some safer frontage roads, and ended up staying on those until about 7pm as we headed into Tucson.

Brittany, Jacques' wife, and her aunt Shannon and uncle Mike met us on the side of the highway just as the clock stuck 8pm. They gave us a lift to their house where spaghetti and fresh sour dough bread awaited us. We decided to take a long break in Tucson over the weekend, and we will get a ride to the same spot on the highway Monday morning. No cutting corners here.

Thanks for everyone's continued support.

p.s. Thanks Greg and Jason for the picture texts. (Despite Jason's picture, I assure you he is still a reputable home builder).

Day 5: Heading to Gila Bend, AZ

Day 5: September 30

A little R and R

I alluded to today in my earlier post, but I thought I would give some details now. First however, I would just like to thank everyone that has already obeyed the second sentence of this trip: You give. So many people have already given an overwhelming amount. There are many causes one could support nowadays, and I personally thank you for supporting Beautiful Gate South Africa.

On to the nitty gritty. We woke up pretty early today; an easy task seeing as how trains kept us up all night. We planned for a pretty easy day, just 50 miles to Gila Bend, AZ. Starting at 7:30, we rolled onto highway 8. Most of the ride today was desert with a pretty cool (not literally) stretch of lava land. It was as if we were on the surface of Mars. I’ve never been to Mars, but lets just say for the sake of argument, that Mars is full of lava flow and heat.

I have noticed that the days are starting to melt together, which makes me more and more thankful for this blog. Even if no one reads this, I can come back and take a gander when my hair is grey and my craziness has evolved to some greater level.

Around noon, we rolled into our final destination of Gila Bend. Gila Bend has crabs and shrimp. There is no water, but somehow they do it. Let me explain: the sign welcoming you into the city says something to the effect of “Gila Bend: Population of 1700 and 5 old crabs. Desert shrimp festival in November.”

As we rolled to the nearest Subway (Jared if you read this, can you hook us up with some free subs?), I got my first flat. No big deal. I was pretty hungry, so I just walked my bike towards the smell of honey oat bread and changed the tire later.

A couple of weeks ago, I called the mayor of Gila Bend to see if he could recommend places to stay. He called back and personally invited Jacques and I to stay at his house. What a treat! Seriously. He gave me directions to his house. Although I’m usually pretty good with directions, I was a little delirious and made my way to where I thought the mayor said his house was. Jacques and I biked to the front door of a dilapidated trailer, with plastic garbage bag windows, and appliances scattered throughout the yards. I had no clue what the Gila Bend mayor would be inhabiting, so I got off my bike. I looked around, with some helpful hints from Jacques that this didn’t look right, and remembered the mayor saying, “NOT the trailer park. The road after it.” Abort mission.

Jacques and I headed towards the correct mayor’s house, a large adobe style house on 22 acres. Dianne, the mayor’s wife, was home to welcome us. Ron, the mayor, joined shortly after. We were spoiled from that point on. Warm showers. Separate bedrooms. Free refills on water. Carne Esade and Cheese cake. Good conversation. Laundry. The works. Thank you Ron and Dianne for unbelievable hospitality!

Tomorrow: Tucson, not pronounced Tux-son. More like Too s-ON.

p.s. Thanks to Frannie the cat for the photo and Arthur for giving some wicked advice about cross country biking.