What does Shakespeare have to do with a headwind?

Day 27 Red Cloud, NE to Fairbury, NE

Distance 122 km
Saddle time 5:59
Avg speed 20.3
Max speed 44.0
Total ascent 584m
Total descent 743

Well, today was a tough day.  I’m not sure if it was because it was a tough day in itself or because we were all just a bit spent from yesterday.  I woke up just feeling a bit cranky to start things out.  Once we got on the road, I felt like just about everything was sore.  My wrists hurt on the handlebars, my quads and IT bands were tight and making my knees hurt, my bottom was aching on the seat, and I just was not feeling it.  In addition, we had a rolling hill day, which is fun for about a minute.  You climb up a rolling hill, crest, and then lose all the elevation you just worked for in about five seconds, before heading up the next roller (which is usually steeper and longer than the previous).  AND we had a headwind (my least favourite thing in the world).  It just added up to a tough slog.  I was riding along, feeling sorry for myself, when the clouds started to gather ominously behind us.  No worries, I thought, we are riding into a headwind.  If the clouds are gathering BEHIND us, then we should be fine, right?  WRONG.  About 25 km from the end, we got caught in our third rainstorm of the week.  So, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself when we arrived in camp, only to find that we got to use the worst showers of the tour (outdoor, freezing, have to hold the tap on), and we had showered in a horse barn previously…

 All that complaining done, I was reminded of a quotation that I’ve written on this blog before from Sam Nutt’s book, “Damned Nations”:  "To say I am lucky to be alive doesn't fully capture the extent to which I recognize this to be true, for as long as I can claim it to be. And hopefully, I'm not nearly done yet. Most of us come into this world amidst a frenzy of pain and emotion and unpredictability, and too many of us leave in the same way. If between the two certititudes of birth and death lies a generous period of love, family and friendships, free from the shackles of violence and poverty, it is a life to be coveted."



Smiling despite gathering clouds!

I am so fortunate and grateful.  My health is good.  The people I love are safe.  The country in which I live is safe and stable.  I’m on an amazing adventure across the continent, and I get to do it with not only some amazing people who I’ve met here, but I get to see my mom and dad EVERY DAY and I get to ride my bike with my dad several times a week.  Once I arrived in camp and got my head out of my proverbial saddle region, I couldn’t get the Shakespeare quote, “A pack of blessings light upon your back” out of my head.  That is what I have: A pack of blessings light upon my back! 

There, art thou happy?