Re-Entry

When you come back from a "big one" like riding France, adjusting to life back home is a strange experience. For the first few days of jet lag, you wake up in the middle of the night, find yourself staring at the bedroom ceiling, and asking yourself: "where am I?" For the first few times I somehow convinced myself I was still in France, in a hotel whose name I'd forgotten, and that I needed to remember next morning when I loaded up to make sure I had enough fruit and baguettes to make it to the next town.

You come home, you drop back into the life of family and friends. It's nice, but unsettling. While I was away Seattle apparently skipped summer. It's raining and dreary. The Blue Angels did their fancy air tricks over the lake this past weekend for Sea Fair, to an audience clad in fleece and raincoats. Huh?

The other big surprise is getting back on any other bike you happen to own. I took my road bike for a quick spin around Magnolia and I almost crashed. I can't seem to clip into the pedals and the seat feels too high. Still, once I got through the wobbles, I found I could ride straight up the biggest hill in town with barely a sweat. That was nice. Somewhere during my time away, I got fit.

So, while I'm figuring out where to find a new job in my old profession, I'm working through my notebooks, editing my photos, and writing a few query letters to various media outlets.

And, planning another ride. This September, I'm setting up a solo ride from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to Phoenix. More elevation this time, more mileage, replace those medieval villages with big open spaces, and very few places to grab a croissant and cafe creme, but riding in France taught me that I can ride anywhere I feel like. It's all about attitude and grabbing the opportunities out there as they float by.

It's also about editing the load I plan to carry, based on my experience of just what is truly essential on a bike tour. Here's a photo from early in my learning experience. Sort of says it all about how I first set out.