Day 26 - Pueblo, CO to Ordway, CO

56 Miles / Day 26 of 54 / Pueblo, CO to Ordway, CO

We woke up in Denver with a weird mix of being spiritually fulfilled from the Avett Brothers concert coupled with physical and mental exhaustion from two "rest days" of exploring Denver.

Luckily for Jack and I, Andrew (Jack's friend) was the driver so we got to sleep for the two hours from Denver to Pueblo.

Glad we got a couple extra hours of sleep on the drive down because today marked the start of the second half of our trip.

So far through the mountainous first half we'd averaged around 65 miles a day. For Jack to make it to the wedding he is a best man in on time we need to average 85 miles a day. Here's hoping our thought of trading mountains for miles pays off.

We picked up our bikes from Sunshine Bikes (thanks for letting us store our bikes with you over the 4th!) and got a late start on the road a little before 1 pm.

It felt great to be back on the bikes. If felt even better, for the first time since day three of the trip, to return to the flat lands. Oh, how we've missed you dear plains.

We cruised through the heat (100 degrees) of the afternoon and even were blessed with a little cloud cover for our last stretch before stopping for early dinner of cereal, milk, and Gatorade at grocery store around 5 pm.

Lesson #62: Mother nature rules all.

We were ready to hop on our bikes and keep grinding out miles but there were 30 mph winds building and dark grey sky's above.

We waited out the rain for an hour or two and decided it would be best to go to bed early and make up our miles tomorrow.

The locals (and our trusty Adventure Cycling maps) told us of a local named Gillian who housed cyclists. Sometimes you can feel the stars aligning.

Side note - for those of you I haven't been lucky enough to share my dream with here goes: Friends are the family you choose. My dream is to go in with the homies and build shipping container homes on a cheap (foreclosed) plot of land deep in the woods and far away from people. (For the haters, click here. If you're still feeling like a negative Nancy know that you are always welcome to become part of this dream).

Lesson #63: Dreamville is closer than you think.

Gillian has created my dream but instead of shipping containers she has build permanent bunk houses / living spaces out of old RV's. It's an incredible place. A greenhouse to grow barley for the chickens, goats, and horses. A pool and hot tub in back. Her house in the center with showers, lounge area, books aplenty. Beautiful gardens and walkways connecting it all.

Gillian uses everything. Her property is filled with reused items.

She welcomes cyclists, gives them a bed, shower, and relaxation in trade for 15 minutes of labor. Jack and my task was to take apart the old bed frame she found in her field the other day. She was going to use the metal frame for caging her tomatoes, the wood slats to reinforce her greenhouses roof, and the used staples to a fix chicken wire in her chicken coop.

Worktime.

We showered, and learned from Gillian about how she rebuilt her current house and living community after a wildfire destroyed her house and everything she owned five years ago.

We hit the hay, well actually the comfy mattresses on the bunk bed in the blue RV, early as we're setting our sights high on a century ride tomorrow to make up for the short mileage day today.

Thank you to Gillian for building this incredible place. Thank you for letting us stay with you.

Day 25 - Red Rocks, CO

Rest Day - Avett Brothers Concert / Day 25 of 54 / Red Rocks, CO

*To donate to our cause and support our high school band program please Click Here*

And commence the day I was looking forward to most of all on this trip... for a few reasons.

1. It was a much needed day off the bike
2. I got to see my favorite band play.
3. I got to see said band with a dear friend from Elon who really got me into this band (and has been to two other of their shows with me)
4. I got to introduce Seth to my favorite band.
5. I got to see this band play at Red Rocks, arguably the best outdoor venue to see a concert in the US.

So, needless to say, I was excited.

After a great fourth, we spent the morning of the fifth hanging out at the city park and went to the original Chipotle (!) for lunch. As a huge Chipotle fiend, it was awesome to see the original store. Was surprised how small it was.

We spent the afternoon in one of the largest record stores that I had ever seen, and then made our way north of Denver to Morrison for the concert.

It's hard to describe Red Rocks, so I hope the pictures do it some justice. Built into large red rock formations (hence the name) it's a mecca for outdoor music venues. The acoustics are just incredible and there couldn't be a prettier backdrop - the Rocky Mountains and Denver in the background.

The way the amphitheater is built is unique as well. Very natural. There are only a few pieces that are man-made, other than that it's a natural amphitheater.

Home to some legends such as The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, the Eagles, etc. Red Rocks has seen it all and remains a legendary venue that should be on any music lover's bucket list.

The Avett Brothers were so good. Hailing from North Carolina, this four-piece folk rock band can really bring it. Their live concerts are so entertaining with a mix of banjo, piano, harmonica, guitars. fiddle, cello and bass.

What was so unique about the concert (other than the otherworldly venue) is that they were slated to play two nights in a row at Red Rocks, meaning that they were able to play some of their lesser known songs and B-sides. Being a die hard, I loved this, as it meant that I was able to hear some songs not normally played live.

Lesson #61: If you're going to see your favorite band, make sure they're playing twice. You get to hear more great music that way!

After an unforgettable evening, and successfully introducing Seth to my favorite band, we were back on our way to Pueblo to jump back on the bikes and continue with our reality. (How cool is it that riding a bike across the country is our day-to-day job right now?!?)

Day 24 - Denver, CO

Rest Day - 4th of July / Day 24 of 54 / Denver, CO

Today we celebrated America's birthday by taking our second rest day of the trip.

We spent the morning exploring downtown Denver and the afternoon tooling around the South Platte River which runs through the city from north to south.

The river had a series of man made rapids that were friendly enough for kids to inter tube down. It's been almost three weeks since we biked through California and have been in a city this big. Community is a beautiful thing.

As dusk began to set we headed towards Coor's Field to see the Colorado Rockies take on the Los Angeles Dodgers. Baseball stadiums have so much more character that other sports' venues.

We sat in the upper deck, over 5,280 feet in the air, to see the Rockies win 9 to 5. Lucky for us there were fireworks after the game.

Jack and his friends Baden and Andrew ventured into downtown Denver after the fireworks and I hopped on the light rail to head to South Denver to meet up with my childhood friends David, Sean and Nick who I've known since I was a young blood in elementary. All four of us grew up together in Iowa City and David and Sean are living in Denver pursuing their dreams to be professional musicians.

Lesson #60: It's not about if you can or cannot make it, it's about if you are willing to stick with it long enough.

"Final"

My outlook was all wrong when we left Iowa City post-high school. David moved to California to focus on music and I doubted his ability to make it as a musician. From the outside looking in there is such a large amount of quality music out there, and there is also a huge amount of not quality music that is wildly popular. I viewed Dave's chances in pursuing music and "making it" as a numbers game where the odds are severely not in his favor.

It's not that the odds have changed now, but my mindset has. Dave and Sean will be able to "make it" and support themselves off of their music if they continues on the path they are on. Dave and Sean have spent the past three years pouring into their craft. And they're just getting started. Stick with it brothers. You guys are onto something.

Day 23 - Westcliffe, CO to Pueblo, CO

58 Miles / Day 23 of 54 / Westcliffe, CO to Pueblo, CO

We woke up sore in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Last nights ho' down really shot our legs. 80+ miles of biking, no problem. Dancing, that's a whole other story.

Looming mountains set the mood up at Rainbow Trail Camp.

Today was our last day on Western Express route from San Francisco, CA to Pueblo, CO. We are set to start riding the Trans-America Bike Trail post 4th of July to the Atlantic Ocean.

Thank you to Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp for showing us so much love. We got to each with the counselors and family camp members before Mari dropped us off in Westcliffe.

After loading up the bikes and saying bye to Mari (thank you for making us welcome at camp!) we started in our last big mountain climb. Goodbye mountains.

It was a clear and sunny day and Jack I quickly starting feeling the great plains approaching as we biked down the side of our last mountain pass. We could feel the lack of elevation as we rode into thicker air and higher temperatures.

Goodbye mountains, hello plains.

Lesson #58: Don't think about how nice it is to not have problems. Somehow this seems to attract problems.

I was cruising along at a fast clip as we descended onto the outskirts of Pueblo and thinking about how nice it was to finally have all of my rear wheel issues (spokes, rim, tubes, etc.) behind me.

BANG! It sounded like a shotgun going off. My back tire literally exploded 6 miles outside of Pueblo. It wasn't just the tube. My rear tire had a major gash in it. Jack and I carry plenty of spare tubes but no spare tires.

Time to put the thumb out and play the numbers game. We decided it was best for Jack to ride on into town as I waited for a ride. There were few cars on the road but after about 20 minutes a nice middle aged man in an old blue pickup pulled over.

He was taking a wine delivery to Pueblo. He'd opened the Vino Salido Winery in 2009. Thank you Steve for the lift, stories of your start-up, and the bottle of white wine.

Keep fighting the good fight Dave. Thank you for the new rear wheel and thank you for what you are doing.

Lesson #59: Business & capitalism isn't the problem. Business can be a vehicle for positive change. It's the people that choose to use their businesses in a positive or negative way.

Steve dropped me off at Cycle of Life Bike Shop. Talk about a place where their business spreads positivity. Life Cycle is a non-profit fellowship that works to provide affordable, reliable transportation to people who have recently been released from prison. Dave, the store manager, told us about how challenging it is to obtain a driver's license and vehicle after being released from prison, especially if you have a felony charge on your record.

Twenty dollars later I had a new tire and tube on my rear wheel and was ready to roll. Jack showed up shortly after we had the rear wheel fully fixed.

We left our bikes at the bike shop and headed to the Pueblo County Library to wait for Jack's best friend from college, Baden, to come pick us up in Pueblo.

We're headed to Denver for the 4th for the Avett Brothers concert at Red Rocks and then it's on to Part II of the adventure.

Day 22 - Salida, CO to Hillside, CO

38 Miles / Day 22 of 54 / Salida, CO to Hillside, CO

We were looking forward to this day specifically, as we had a shorter mileage day and were planning to see Seth's friend Mari (the one who went whitewater rafting with us) at the camp she worked out, just 40 miles down the road.

It was a lazy morning, as we finally bit the bullet and Seth had his entire back wheel rebuilt. We figured it was a better option than simply trying to put a band-aid on it for 3800 miles. The spokes were redone, the rim was rebuilt so it would be sturdy for the long haul.

Anthony (who has biked across USA and paddled the Mississippi) and Jack at the Simple Lodge Hostel in Salida, CO.

Lesson #56: Sometime a cheap fix is not the best option. Spend the time, money and energy to do it right.

With the wheel being rebuilt we had a super late start, around 2 or so, but not a worry as we had about a half day to do. Out of Salida, it was just gorgeous. We skirted along the Arkansas River for 30 miles and saw many boaters enjoying the immensely popular river. As great as it was, it made me happy we were able to raft such a private river--the Crystal River, just a few days previous.

In the late afternoon, we made our way to Hillside, CO which was the turnoff for Mari's camp, Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp. This has been a camp that Mari had attended for many years and been a counselor for more, and she was simply visiting for the week. As soon as Mari picked us up and we went up the Sange de Cristo range to RTLC, we were immediately welcomed and felt at home.

We got to camp on a perfect week. It was family camp, which meant that families spent a week at camp together is fellowship, faith and fun. AND we were there for one of the most exciting nights of camp- the hoedown. Had we already biked 1400 miles in three weeks? Yes. But we still showed those campers what a real hoedown looked like- especially Seth. That boy can boogie.

The night finished with parents and children worshiping together. A really awesome scene, and a great thing to be a part of, making me super thankful for three awesome weeks of safety, guidance and joy from Christ.

Thanks, Mari for the invite. Thanks, Dave for the sponsorship and allowing us to get a picture of what sincere family community really looks like.

Sidenote - Lesson #57: Families should spend time apart and away together, especially with other families. There is power in numbers and in the community of believers, from little tykes to grandparents.

Thanks for showing that to us, RTLC.

Day 21 - Gunnison, CO to Salida, CO

68 Miles / Day 21 of 54 / Gunnison, CO to Salida, CO

Before leaving Gunnison we stopped at the other bike shop in town to get a third opinion on my back wheel.

Lesson #52: Every doctor gives you a different prescription for the same problem.

Very glad Tyler told us to go see Dave at Rock N' Roll Bike Shop. The bike shop we went to last night basically put a clamp on my faulty rear tire release to hold everything in place. (The quick release is the piece that holds the wheel in place in the wheel well. It had stripped). Dave took off the clamp from yesterday and put and entire new quick release on to hold the rear wheel in place. Seems like a better long term solution. Thank you Dave.

We had about 30 miles of relatively flat biking to get to the base of Monarch Pass.

We rode to Sargeants with the Continental Divide and 14,000 peaks looming ahead of us. Today we would be climbing our biggest climb of the trip and riding on one of the highest altitude roads in America.

We got to Sargeants for a late lunch and started to see a gang of serious mountain bike riders.

Lesson #53: People are crazy and make a routine of doing things the human body isn't meant to do.

We were passing the Great Divide Race going the other way. Every year there is a race from Canada to Mexico where bikers ride (unsupported, carrying everything they need with them) ride the Continental Divide over 30 times! (To put this in perspective our route has us crossing it once, today, and we feel like that is pushing the limit of possibility.)

After a quick lunch we set out to climb Monarch Pass. It was a steady 6% to 7% grade. Time to get that Cleavland city climb on. Four breaks and three hours later we were on top of the Continental Divide!

Lesson #54: The true beauty of mountains is that they have an backside.

We were both really cold at the top and put on long sleeves and pants for the first time on the trip before racing down the other side of the pass.

Lesson: If you see rain. Get cover. Don't get greedy.

We saw dark rain clouds looming as we zipped down the mountain. There was an old abandoned hotel that we stopped at and wondered if we should wait our the weather under the cover of the building.

As per usual, even though the rain was directly in front of us we couldn't let go of the possibility that we could maybe make it the next 6 miles to the next town with the rain holding off.

And as per usual, we were wrong. It started to rain lightly, then get progressively heavier and heavier until finally the hail came and we pulled over and ran into the woods to find the cover of the pine trees

After waiting out the hail and rain we had a quick round of batting practice with a nice stick and the hundreds of pine cones that surrounded us.

The last 25 miles was downhill into Salida. With ourselves and bags soaked we ponied up and stayed in a hostel for the night.

Tomorrow we are heading to Westcliff and staying at the summer camp Mari is volunteering at. Can't wait to be campers. Jack's excited for archery. I'm trying to get my arts and craft game on.

Lesson #55: More life comes from living in less space.

Day 20 - Colona, CO to Montrose, CO

39 Miles / Day 21 of 54 / Colona, CO to Montrose, CO

It was tough to leave Dan's after such an amazing time (thanks for everything, Dan!) but after a slow morning we were on our way again! We left Colona, and were on our way to Gunnison.

Everything started fantastic and we cruised through Montrose. Unfortunately, though, Seth had some of the same rear wheel issues that had been causing him issues the few days previous. He could only got 3-4 miles and his wheel would seize up. We couldn't go any further, so we pulled over to the side of the road and put up the obligatory thumb to hitchhike.

A nice couple from Alaska stopped and gave us a lift to the next town over, Gunnison, where Seth's wheel could be fixed. They were a great retired couple, where the wife had worked in Alaska's public schools for 25 years. It was great to hear about her experiences in public schools, and we were indebted for the lift.

We got into Gunnison in the afternoon and had some time to kill. Went to the bike shop, Seth's wheel was taken care of and we dropped our stuff in Dan's kayaking friend's yard. Tyler is an outdoor enthusiast and let us pitch a tent in his yard (thanks, Tyler!)

Gunnison is a beautiful little town and we were lucky to catch a Sunday evening folk concert in the park. It was so cool. Tons of families and young people from all over biked in to listen to the concert. Great atmosphere, great people.

Went to bed after a great day ready to climb over the Continental Divide the next day.