California!!!

Today was the hardest day we have had so far. Since we hit New Mexico, we have been fighting incredible winds. They are unmerciful and unrelenting. I have come to the point (as has Jose) that we now hate I 40. We are tired of being run over by 18 wheelers and having to ride at very high rates of speed just to keep up. It is even harder, when the wind is blowing cross ways strong to blow across the lanes. There were have been several occasions where we have been litterally leaning into the wind just to keep the bikes up. Today, a truck blew his tire just as he was passing Jose. I looked behind and saw her suddenly slow down. At the same time, part of the tire were being thrown into my lane, it barely missed my head and remarkably, did not hurt the bikes or us. However, it was a sobering reminder of how dangerous what we are doing is.

The way in which the landscape changes is amazing. New Mexico was yellow, not like a crayon, but more like mustard. Then, when we hit Arizona, it was like she welcomed us with these amazing red mountains that served as gateways into the state. Then, when we left Arizona and entered the Mojove desert, we went from being relatively cool to instantly. Jose is actually drinking water rather than her standard Dr. Pepper. But just as it was hot, it was also very, very windy, we are blowing sand out of our noses and snorting saline like it was a drug. Our arms are tired due wrestling the bikes and our legs are tired just because we had to hold on so hard. Jose even lost her tank bag due to the wind, but fortunately was able to retrieve it without any big issues. We have decided that since we have reached California, we have done something remarkable. We have ridden 2400 miles in about 5 days (when you factor in the flat and the fact that we stayed an extra day in the Grand Canyon).

Now, it is time to play. We are not sure if we are going get to the ocean. There is so much more to see. Already we have seen wild horses running in New Mexico, more rain and storms than we thought, and some of the most unbelievable landscape that we could have ever envisioned. Our only lament is that we were always running too fast to fully enjoy it. This was necessary to stay up with traffic. Now we are looking at what to do next. Do we ride through the middle of the state and see all the parks, the Sequoias, the forests, and perhaps Yellowstone, or do we go all the way to the ocean. Neither of us have a taste for dealing with traffic and speed any more. We want to be able to ride and relax, yet know that we are going to be safe and find decent places to stay at night. Such is the issue of women traveling alone on motorcycles.

Tomorrow we will let you know.