All posts by rhogue

Bike Touring, Cycling, GDMBR

Lightning

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* In case you aren’t sure, it’s OK to laugh at this; pretty sure Chris was either rolling his eyes or laughing inside the entire time

For those who haven’t had the chance to ~really~ get to know me yet, here’s a fun fact: I have some anxiety and fears. Needles definitely top the list, but I’ll save that one for another day. Lightning isn’t far behind, and that’s what this story centers around.

I think it all started with a few bad climbs up Mount Darby in Wyoming involving some late afternoon thunderstorms when I was a child. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever climbed up Mount Darby and had it NOT storm sometime during the hike. My mom calls it the Devil’s Mountain. These experiences inspired a poem/song the summer that I turned 12, and even a paper when I was a senior in high school.

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Bike Touring, Cycling, GDMBR

Day 2 = Dust

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Dust billows upwards as another logging truck careens past us. I pull my handkerchief up over my nose and mouth as I hit the wall of dust it leaves behind. Ahead, I see a glimmer, and I realize that the sun is reflecting off of glass- the windshield of a second logging truck. I wonder if he can see us through the cloud of dust left by the first truck. At the last moment, he must spot us, because he swerves right to give us some room.

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Bike Touring, Cycling, GDMBR

Pro Athletes

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We heard that if you are sponsored, you are an professional athlete. We are choosing to embrace that statement, whether or not it’s true.

A huge thank you to Maine Bike Works for sponsoring our trip!! As if they haven’t done enough already, they are now funding part of our trip. Jason suggested that we use a good portion of their contribution to go towards ice cream; he doesn’t even know how far I’m going to take that suggestion.

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Bike Touring, Cycling, GDMBR

Trip Companions

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Welp, the rumors are true: my parents are officially joining us for a segment of the trip in Montana! Their broken bones from ski and hockey season have healed sufficiently. Chris and I shipped our hardtail mountain bikes out to Bozeman, MT for them to get used to riding, and, although they have both already crashed on them (unfortunately, this is not at all surprising; for some reason, Hogues tend to be reckless AND uncoordinated– best combination ever!), they are both still gung-ho about going. Thanks to my brother, Wesley, and his wife, Meagan, for taking them for a practice ride, although I doubt the GDMBR will be anywhere near as treacherous:

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