300 miles, Two Bikes, Storm Clouds and no Camera…

Yesterday (Sunday 9/23) my brother-in law and I got on our bikes and had a great day riding in beautiful Colorado. My prior riding experience has mostly been in California and while route 1 along the Pacific coast is spectacular I have to say Colorado in a bike riding paradise. We loosely planned the trip around family with a 1:00pm departure and a general route south from Denver to the Garden of the Gods then west towards the mountains, north to Fairplay and east towards home at or around dark.

The first big decision came the morning for the ride… The weatherman was not on our side as a cold front and thunderstorm had rolled into the area the night before and we were faced with a Go or No Go moment. The combination of not riding for 26 years and the fact that winter will come all too soon mixed with the sense of adventure that requires risk above the assurance of comfort made the decision an easy one… We Ride!

Armed with layers of clothing and a willingness to get wet we topped off our tanks and hit the road starting south on Interstate 25. Our trip had three relatively short stints on the Interstate Highway system, now I am very thankful for the elaborate highway system in the US but I’m a firm believer that it should be left to 18 wheel trucks and cars. It is the perfect method of traveling long distances is the shortest possible time with a gas station and fast food restaurant at almost every exit, what could be more convenient and completely contrary to adventure. I don’t ride to get somewhere (I have a car for that) I ride to feed my soul. Riding is not about the destination it is about the ride, it is about the heart. A few miles later we were into the good stuff, the back roads without guardrails, median dividers or clearly marked exits, where wildlife can run across the road at any time. Remember the point is not to be a danger seeking adrenalin junkie, but it is to get out of you comfort zone and risk living a life that you can’t “manage” that is what it means to live an adventure. Before long we were riding through the Garden of the Gods which is easily one of the most beautiful places I have ever ridden and that is when it hit me… I didn’t bring a camera. I guess I have to do the ride again. Then through Manitou Springs which is a cute little “tourist trap” filled with great shops, no parking and the obligatory pedestrians who walk out in front of on coming motorists expecting them to stop, we stopped often and no one was injured in the process.

We then had a coffee stop in Woodland Park and added a layer of clothes as we encountered more altitude and cloud cover but no rain so far. It was a great “curvy” road that was more fun than the view. We then found a “somewhat” maintained county road to Cripple Creek where I discovered that the Yamaha Venture is much more a “sport” bike it touring clothing than the Goldwing that I almost bought, I think the Official term is Wahoo. It was on this road that we had our first of three close encounters of the Deer kind. Too close means the abrupt and painful end to an otherwise great day, thankfully our buffer zone was measured in feet so no harm no foul. Another county road to Guffey which is a ghost town in the making from what I could see before joining the road north to Fairplay. This is where our good luck with the weather ended and the “getting wet” part of the ride began, fortunately I was distracted by a nearly empty gas tanks and the unsettling absence of any towns or gas stations, I did say I wanted an adventure rather than comfort so trusting God we pushed on through South Park, what a spectacular view that served as a great distraction from the flashing red light on my dash reminding me that I was running on fumes. It was on this road that Phil came up along side and pointed to his gas tank, so much for the idea of siphoning some from him if I ran dry, at least we were both distracted from the rain drops. After what seemed an eternity of the flashing red light, in reality just twenty miles or so the tiny town of Hartsel appeared as we crested a hill, it is a one gas station town but that is all we needed. Topping off and having a good laugh about wanting an adventure the skies stopped sprinkling and started to rain. Being the only gas for miles we encountered lots of motorists who expressed concern for us a wished us well, undaunted we pressed on and after a few miles of rain the skies cleared and we were in dry weather again. When we reached Fairplay and the turn east to get home we encountered a lot of end of weekend heading back to town traffic so the pace was slowed but the views were spectacular including a drop into a valley with and unobstructed view of a rainbow end to end. Again I wish I had a camera with me so I could share the ride. Before long as the light of day waned we dropped into the city and our last stint on the Interstate to get to the warmth of home and the comfort of our own beds. I am blessed to have a loving wife and a comfortable home to return to at the end of a ride and I am so thankful to have the opportunity to leave them on occasion so my heart can be fed by adventure for without it the comfort and safety of my predictable life can and will kill that part of me that must have the risk of adventure to be fully alive.

Riding my not be your thing and that is OK, A friend responded to my riding with an e-mail that said he didn’t ride because it was too dangerous and that he knew too many people who were hurt riding. I understand a respect anyone who makes that decision, but please for the sake of your heart find some type of adventure. The discomfort and occasional surprise will feed your soul, I know it did mine.