Monterey Baby!!! (A very delayed post)

Emotions are high as we pedaled the final few days into Monterey California. Not enough hours in the ride to spend with everyone and not enough hours off the bike to embrace our last days together. I cannot believe I have only known these friends for 80 days because this summer has seemed like an eternity. The nerves of riding across the US and the flat land of Florida was so long ago it is hard to remember. By we did it! 4200 miles down, 17 build days, 31 new friends and endless memories. Oh and huge quads and epic tan lines.
Thank you so much for following our trip on this blog. I didn't quite keep up with this as well as I had hoped but if you are curious about anything I didn't cover, Molly B. has a blog from everyday. Her blog is listed to the right called Adventure Awaits.
Our group collectively raised over $160,000 and it was all due to generous donations from folks like you. Thank you so much for making a difference in all the lives of the homes we helped build, the homes our grant money will build and for making this bike ride possible for me. It has been a dream of mine to ride across the country and it still as not sunk in what we just achieved!

In spandex,
Corina

Geology field camp on rewind

After leaving the Grand Canyon, we visited Zion, the Mojave Desert, Yosemite, and the western Sierras. Many of the roads and towns we rode thru, I had been to on field camp 3 years ago. I had no idea I would ever be on most of these roads again, especially by bike.
When we were at the Dumont Dunes in March 2011 I saw someone running on the desert road and wondered who would be crazy enough to be out in the heat. Well now that person was smart cause we were on the same road in July in 112 degree heat. It was so hot,, Maddi and I found shelter under my umbrella on the side of the road. I carried an umbrella everyday not or rain but for shade because there s no other option.
One of the committees our route has is the Free Education Committee. Thus committee formed as a way for riders to share knowledge. Since I have been down here before and know a bit about the geology, I am teaching a class on the geology of the area, specifically the big picture formation of the region. Thanks to Afton and Chase for getting me pictures from my field camp note books. It really helped to jog my memory.

Surviving the Mojave Desert

Previous to this trip, the hottest weather I have done strenuous activity in was in the high 90s. Well, not anymore! There is nothing like riding your bike in 112 degree heat. Each day, we would wake up earlier and earlier to try and beat the heat. The day we rode thru Death Valley, we were on the road by 5 am armed with headlights and blinky butts.

This also happen to be the day we crossed into California!!! Oh the joy and the dancing that happened at the border. We are so excited to be in California but we are also sad because it means our trip is coming to end soon.

Now when we talk to people, we no longer say, we are biking to California. Now, We biked here from Florida!!!!

Build day in St George...

And a visit from my Dad! He drove his motorcycle all the way down here in 2 days from Seattle. It was so much fun for him to meet the group and he even joined us for a build day. We hammered in 1000s of nails. We had to get the ply wood on the side of the house nailed for the inspection. That meant a nail every 6 inches on the perimeter and every 12 along the interior studs. So much hammering!!

4 States, 4 Days, endless shenanigans

Wow the time is seriously starting to fly by!! We have had quite the adventures riding into Colorado for 1 day then to Utah only to leave for Arizona then back to Utah then back to Arizona and finally back to Utah! Did you know that you can ride across the US in just over 2000 miles? But why do that when you can zig zag the states and time travel. Did you know that the Navajo Reservation does follow daylight savings, but Arizona doesn't and Arizona is on Pacific time, but Utah is Mountain time? Did any of that make sense? Don't worry cause I didn't follow it either. Lucky for us our days are pretty planned out and you can have a herd mentality so adjusting to all the time changes goes pretty smooth.

Some highlights from the last week...

In Durango Colorado, we crossed paths with another Bike and Build team!! North Carolina to San Diego. It was a real treat to celebrate the fourth of July with what felt like twins we had never met. Seeing other folks wearing your same clothes and sporting safety triangles on their backs was a bit of a brain bender. We had a blast dancing the night away and the following morning they let us participate in their Fired Up circle. They then left for a ride day and we had a build day. Unfortunately I was on dinner crew for the week so I helped out with team related chores with a few others while the rest of the team built with the local Habitat for Humanity.

Durango was one of my favorite towns on the trip so far. It was really the first time I felt like I was getting west because we were surrounded by so many mountains and there were outdoor enthusiasts everywhere!!! Also I have to give a shout out to 2 cyclists I met 10 miles outside of town. I had already rode 90 miles and some serious elevation and was on a very steep hill struggle busing my way up when I saw 2 non B&Bers behind me. As a joke, I asked if he would pull me up the hill and held out my hand. And he did!!! It was amazing!! We talked the whole way up the hill about this trip and before I knew it the hill was over and I had renewed energy to finish the last 10 miles. I completed our 103 mile ride in 7.5 hrs of ride time. What an amazing day.

Another highlight was our second encounter with NC2SD. We caught up to them and rode thru Monument Valley together and we all stayed at a high school in Arizona together. One group activity for the night was a free education class. Our route has many committees, one of which big education so it was requested that I teach a swing dance lesson. Fortunate for me PJ, on NC2SD is a great swing dancer an helped teach the class and we had great participation from both routes. The next day we did a rando-ride and I rode the first 30 miles with Tyler. He is from one of the Carolina states and also has an avid cyclist for a father.

Before the Grand Canyon picture are ones from Horseshoe Bend, where the Colorado river takes a 270 degree turn and Antelope Canyon. Both of these were near Page Arizona. And also a small brag, riding into Page I rode 20 miles solo, no wind, rolling hills in 56 minutes!! A very fun day in my areobars.

And in the last few days we made our way to the Grand Canyon!!! We had some serious climbs and epic descents and enjoyed an incredible day off in the National Park. I spent my day off taking a mule ride on Shirley Bell into the canyon and it was amazing!!! I love being back on a horse and I really enjoyed seeing the beauty of the canyon without exhausting myself. I had a great ride group and really enjoyed talking with a couple from Vancouver BC. They were also nice enough to share their pictures from the ride with me so it wasn't just a bunch of selfies, like most of my pics seem to be. And shout out to our trail guide Tory for teaching us about the history of the canyon and answering all of our endless questions. And fun tidbit, Tory spends his winters near Seattle. Being around other folks from the Pacific Northwest made me feel a little less homesick.

So here are a bunch of photos from the last week! Enjoy! And sorry for the delay, cell service and wireless has been really spotty.

Beautiful, jaw dropping New Mexico

We zig zagged our way through Texas and Oklahoma and are now on our last day in New Mexico. Days are flying and we passed our half way mileage point one of the first days in New Mexico. Here are a bunch of pictures from the last week (which has felt like 2 or 3).

Also some thoughts while riding:
Oklahoma- flat, huge endless skies, great tail winds, tons of empty roads and passed through our smallest town yet Cookietown home to 7.

Texas- lots of big semis and trucks, lots of busy highways, amazing hosts, endless brisket... Yum :)

New Mexico- my jaw dropped when we crossed the border and it hasn't lifted yet, hills and heat and headwinds. This state has really challenged me physically and mentally but I absolutely love being back in mountains.