Roadkill

The road we have been traveling on has more road kill than I've every seen. I've seen dead birds, coyotes, skunks, snakes, and even a bloated rottweiler. As we were leaving Superior Charles talked to us about the road to Globe, which goes over a mountain, and how dangerous it is. Turns out the shoulder is there sometimes and there are several bridges and a long tunnel to go through which the shoulder entirely disappears. And also this road is frequented by truckers and trucks towing large loads. Scary though it was we made it with only minor outbreaks of profanity. We got go the top of the hill and started he ride down. Drover suggested I go first since I am by nature a little more cautious and would be more liberal on the break then he would. Going up was tough physically but down was really a test for the nerves. There is the lane with the cars in it that can only be ventured in occasionally and very briefly, the line that has the reflector bumps, an occasional shoulder which varies in width from a foot to four feet wide and then the different varieties a thorned plants, crucifixtion thorn, catclaw etc... So on the down our speeds ranged from fifteen miles an hour to my topspeed of 35.6. Drover got his up to 39.5. There is a balance between the fear and focus that comes into play when doing dangerous things. When you cross the threshold from fear to focus your skill improves greatly. First drop on that hill with catclaw and a cliff on one side and a semi on the other going 28 miles per hour i was in all fear. But as we continued down and speed increased so did my focus until that was all there was and I was hunched over and peddling to get as much speed as I can. When you make the switch into full focus it is one of the coolest feelings there is. I remember one other time skiing at Targhee on a powder day where all there was in the world was my skis and the fluffy snow and I'm sure I did the best skiing of my life. So we made it into Miami, Arizona which is right next to Globe did some shopping. Apparently Wal-mart doesn't like it when you bring your bike in the store. I thought I was being polite by not riding it but they still weren't to happy.
After we cleared Globe our next big stretch was through the Apache Rez. We bad been warned to be real careful during that part of the ride but I was unsure why because every one on the reservation was super nice to us. The next day someone even thanked us for going through at a grocery store. Anyway we got a delicious Apache burger at a gas station and found a place to camp. It was one of the few times we actually set up before dark and since we were a little ways away from the road we built a small fire and sat around and ate and talked like your supposed to do when you go camping. At three o clock that morning I was convinced it was about to rain and had to find a place to set up my tarp. Of course it didn't. After working with the youngwalkers at Anasazi I have come to cherish camping where I don't have to take care of other people.
The next day, Thursday, we got up and saw a brewing storm behind us and decided to make tracks for Safford in hopes of beating the storm. For a great portion of the morning we fought through the wind making only what felt like a little progress and then shortly after we left the Apache reservation the winds changed and started blowing us to our destination. After we had peddled so hard for so little we were rewarded with twenty mile an hour speeds with what felt like no effort. When you bike in the wind you are constantly aware of it, but when you bike with the wind all it just feels really easy. You don't feel anything because you are going the speed of the wind. I'm sure there is some really super deep and insightful analogy I could make with this but I haven't. I do appreciate a good tailwind probably more than the next guy.