Thumbs Up

Last night, at the end of day 3, my body was ready to give up. I was in so much pain, mostly from sitting for so many miles in the saddle. The chaffing had got so bad that it hurt to do anything except to lie still and not have anything touch anything. The night passed with restless brief bouts of sleep. I was thinking too much about whether or not my body had reached its physical capacity with this ride - at least for now - and would fail to go any further. At some point I awoke in the early morning hours before the sun came up. I stumbled into the bathroom to pee feeling that all-too-familiar burning, irritating, sharp pain like someone was grinding sandpaper across my crotch. My heart sank further (if that was even possible) as I was sure I would not be able to ride in a few short hours when my alarm would go off. I got back in bed and tried to reason with myself and to comfort myself if I had to sacrifice today's miles in order to heal my hurting body.

When my alarm finally went off, I was late to rise. I think I had given up hope and was in no hurry to try and get back on my bike. I eventually decided I would go for as long as I could go and stop if I needed to. I slathered on the 40% zinc oxide (I'll just be referring to it as such. The specification of it has a special place in my heart) and the A + D ointment to add an additional layer of protection (thank you Cassie!), globbed some tiger balm on to my quads, my neck, and my shoulders, as well as my sit bones. I downed 800 mg of Ibuprophen with the rest of my barrage of vitamins and other muscle and joint aids that come in the form of pills. I racked my bike and had to catch a lift 13 miles out of Thunder Bay because bicycles were not permitted on the highway through town. I was glad for this ride. It mean more time out of the saddle and less miles overall. This was a sacrifice in miles I was more than willing to make.

We got to a pull off place and I loaded up my bike with the panniers, rack bag, and handlebar bag. I strapped into my CamelBak backpack. As the cooling burn of the tiger balm penetrated deep into my body, I was eager to get on my bike and get going before its effects wore off. I mounted my bike, said goodbye to my sag team, and was off into the hills of Canada. It took a few minutes of adjusting and reacquainting myself with the bike saddle. I felt those sharp stings of pain as my crotch hollered out for the abuse to end. Soon enough though, I managed to find a tolerable position and not long after that, I settled into a good pace. Once again I was given a beautiful morning to start out my ride. The sun was warm as it enveloped my skin and the slight breeze cooled me as it evaporated the perspiration on my body.

I knew today's route would be challenging. I was warned about the lack of shoulder on the TransCanada Highway. They weren't kidding! This was a very treacherous ride in some places. Most of the time I had maybe a foot and a half shoulder to ride on. Sometimes it was wider, and unfortunately, sometimes it didn't exist at all. The semi trucks and large RVs pulling trailers and cars behind them were the most relentless passing me. While some were courteous enough to move over a bit, most did not. With only a few inches between me and certain death, they sped on by. The sudden burst of wind from the air current in their wake about knocked me off what little road I had to be on. I grew very fond of my foot and a half wide shoulders. I found myself speeding as best I could to the next segment of the highway that would have them when I found myself without. The adrenaline was coursing through my body. I think I spent most of the ride looking in my rear view mirrors so that I could prepare myself for whatever kind of vehicle was approaching from behind. As they barreled closer, I gripped the handlebars tightly and locked my body up so as to hold the bike as steady as possible until they passed, each time breathing a huge sigh of relief that I was still pedaling on the road.

I am convinced that the adrenaline and a great tail wind - but mostly the adrenaline - got me through this ride. Scary is an understatement biking on this road. I just wanted to be done as quickly as possible. Also, thankfully, with the 13 mile breather to get out of Thunder Bay, my ride was cut down to about 54 miles. I am very thankful it was not 79. I think the distance between Thunder Bay and Nipigon is measured from where Thunder Bay starts and our hotel there was more towards the middle of town. That accounted for the rest of the missing miles from the original 79 I thought I had to ride. As I was riding along, during the moments I had more shoulder to deal with, I would tune out of the fear for my life and into my body - checking and re-checking how everything was feeling. Surprisingly, I felt amazing! This is the best I've felt since starting this trip 4 days ago. Even my sciatic nerve that has been bothering me was fine, which of course meant that my feet (mostly my left foot) didn't really bother me either. As I was sitting outside the motel room in Nipigon with my SAG team, I was mentioning how I hoped that last night was the bottom of the barrel for me and things will be better from now on - continuing to improve as I go. As I cycled along this beautiful stretch of highway, I felt like I was in the mountains of Colorado. With the great mountainous rocky cliffs and the dense pines along the bases - it was beautiful. There were plenty of rivers that the highway crossed over with their meandering paths through the rocks and the forest. The sunlight twinkled on the surface of the flowing water, seeming to dance with delight during this wonderful morning. The railroad tracks ran parallel to the highway for awhile off in the distance. I followed a freight train as it headed east to wherever its destination was. It was like looking at a scene from an intricately laid out model train scape - just beautiful!

Not too far into my ride I passed another cyclist headed the opposite direction. We made eye contact and gave each other the proper biker head nod - a nod that shows acknowledgement and approval. This cyclist also had packs on their bike and I wondered if they were doing the same thing I was doing but headed in the opposite direction. This is the first cyclist I've seen (at least that looked like they were doing some distance riding around the lake) since I pushed off from Duluth 4 days ago. A little while later as I was climbing a decent hill, a car traveling in the opposite direction honked. I looked up and the driver had their hand sticking out the window giving me a thumbs up. A renewed sense of energy and vigor raced through my body. I could feel my heart pound with enthusiasm and every muscle pull and contract as I continued to push up the hill. That small sense of acknowledgement and encouragement felt amazing - especially after dealing with the loneliness aspect of this journey a couple of days ago as I was leaving Grand Marais, Minnesota. Yet a few more miles down the road, a semi truck, also headed in the opposite direction, honked and waved a wave of encouragement. It added to my overall feeling of renewal, energy, and drive that carried me all the way to Nipigon and is still reverberating in my at this moment. I can feel the energy even as I write about it!

I wasn't alone on my ride today. I was flooded with the memories, sights, and sounds of my friends and loved ones in my mind. Y'all kept me company out on the road today. Remembering silly stories, fond memories, the laughter, and all your beautiful faces that I cant wait to see when I return. It was just what I needed. And since my body was feeling tremendously wonderful, I was able to tune out of the pain I had normally been feeling and into that which I am so grateful for. For those of you who have been continuing to send me positive energy, I definitely felt it on this ride! Today was a day of perfection so far. Perfect conditions, near perfect physically, and perfectly happy thoughts. I made it 54 miles in 4 hours - my best time yet considering the terrain and all the weight I am carrying on my bike. I even beat my SAG team here. While they were backtracking looking for my crumpled neon yellow (the color of my shell vest for visibility) body in the ditch somewhere, I was locking in the miles. Thankfully my cell worked to make an outgoing call (at 69 cents a minute internationally) from the motel and I called my mom to let her know where I was. They were still a half hour out of town - the whole time not thinking I could have been as far as I was, especially because they both bore witness to my deflated broken body and spirit yesterday. As I waited for them, I sat at a picnic table in the sun. I ate a late lunch that consisted of an apple, a peanut butter, banana, and honey sandwich, and a few handfuls of trail mix. I journaled and had a brief conversation with a couple of little dogs that came over to check me out - pets of the owners of this small road-side motel.

Today was what I needed. I know it's only one day and I have no idea how I will feel tomorrow. For now, my mind, body, and spirit are all operating from the same level of euphoria. I am excited to get back out on the road tomorrow for once. I hope the weather will still be decent, but if not, I think I'll be ok. While I am still battling some stomach issues, currently, that is my only complaint. Tonight I'll slather on more 40% zinc oxide and hope for some more magical healing so that tomorrow may be a continuation of today.