i haven’t biked in almost two weeks, all my scabs have fallen off, and my quads are still huge and quite bulbous (ppl insist on testing their firmness). It’s odd to be done, and like most, i’m suffering from bike and build withdrawal. No worries though, there are plenty of pictures on facebook to immerse myself in the memories and now we even have some vids up from our trip. check out Alex Nguyen’s video:
So I left off in California…I’ll start back again with my evening in Twenty-nine Palms
- you’re a good man, Charlie Brown – in Twenty-nine Palms, we stayed at the Little Church of the Desert, which was a wonderful host. The pastor’s name was Charlie Brown, and he was ever so nice. He shuttled us to a parishioner’s house so we could enjoy their pool on that hot, hot day. Then, we had a great dinner back at the church with a huge turnout from the community.
- slumber party – after dinner, we were all auctioned off to be taken home with the parishioners. Families would put in requests (such as two females, or three males) and we were split up and sent off for the night. It reminded me of meeting my host family when i studied abroad…Brad and I stayed with a woman named Cynthia up in the mountains at the edge of the city. Her house was fairly isolated, so it had a phenomenal view of the stars…we got to see the milky way again that night!
- rough ridin – everyone had looked forward to/feared the 120 mile day, but in fact the real challenge was the 90 mile day that followed it. Riding into Victorville, CA we faced brutal head winds, draining heat, and bumpy roads that did not help our serious chafing issues.
- gas station domination – so at mile 81 on that rough day, we found refuge at a Chevron gas station. Megan and Cali initiated it, then we all followed, but they just plopped down in front of the tasty cakes, pretty much in front of the front door blocking an entire aisle of goodies. I’m surprised we didnt get yelled at…we were such a mess. Megan and Cali were taking pics of each other and laughing deliriously, then Sadie, Tati, and I joined them on the floor as we chatted loudly and sipped on our cold beverages.
- slumber party part deux – in Victorville, we stayed at this empty house…it was weird, and ever so crowded. Since there were way too many people and bags inside, i initiated the movement to sleep outside. It was a beautiful night and we enjoyed several games of “catchphrase” before catching some z’s under the stars.
- Palmdale build day – we worked with the Antelope Valley Youth Build School and fixed up foreclosed properties. We ripped up a roof and removed all the shingles, cleared three front yards of overgrown grass and bushes, and did some grading for a pathway.
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