life @ 13
Sunday, March 15, 2009
atrophy
apparently, for a brief moment, i was a wanted man. i managed to evade capture and would have gone on blissfully unaware had Lucho not told me that when i was making my second pass at Paijan (the cyclist's black hole) the police were looking for me, as apparently they feared i would wind up robbed, kidnapped, or killed. but at that time i, slippery bug that i am, slipped onto the cheap yellow bus and was dozing off, staring at the scenery for the second time.
i had the casa de ciclistas pretty much all to myself for a few days while Lucho was on his little vuelta with Abuelo, our 68-year old chilean friend. not much happening...just more bulking up (more later) and reading. Went to a fancy Trujillo wedding with Lucho where he was playing drums in an 11-man-1-woman band...good times, but my plans to leave the next day were squandered by free food, cerveza pilsen, and staying up till 5.
i generally try and keep these things to myself, but in all fairness and honesty i should say that i was quite flattered by the women of Trujillo. eventually i figured out that i had done nothing in particular to attract so many stares and so much attention (a nice reversal), and that many peruvians are looking for a ticket out and, so they think, up. i now understand, in part, what it feels like to be a women walking by a construction site.
anyways...after 5 weeks of rest and some spectacular hospitality at the casa, it was time to go. last night i threw a new tire on the back wheel...a schwalbe marathon....something a little wider and more durable, in part for the crappy roads ahead. i also find myself quite a bit heavier...not just in body (good) but in luggage (good and bad).
Lucho escorted me to the edge of the city, where he left me to go pay his water bill. I forgot that the first hour after a long time off is a little, well, scary -- realizing that the comforts and conviences of a city and good home are being left for the uncertainty of the road. i found my legs trembling a little, however i have to chalk this up to the 5 weeks of doing absolutely nothing active, save the vuelta de paijan. for a while i was thinking about our friend Lance A., whose rise to the top was supposedly aided by his little vuelta de cancer, where he was able to rebuild his body in the image of a tour de france champion (and not a whole hell of a lot else, really...although he's put his texan mouth to a good cause). however, my body has been rebuilt in the image of someone of a much greater body fat percentage, as is what happens when you eat for two and excercise for none.
the ride today was dominated by strong coastal headwinds, the heat of the day, and the desire to ride as slowly as possible. 67 flat k in 4 hours. i'm very content. tomorrow i turn off the panamerica and on to 200k of almost entirely dirt tracks up to the cordillera blanca. there's no internet in the middle of nowhere, muchachos.
apparently, for a brief moment, i was a wanted man. i managed to evade capture and would have gone on blissfully unaware had Lucho not told me that when i was making my second pass at Paijan (the cyclist's black hole) the police were looking for me, as apparently they feared i would wind up robbed, kidnapped, or killed. but at that time i, slippery bug that i am, slipped onto the cheap yellow bus and was dozing off, staring at the scenery for the second time.
i had the casa de ciclistas pretty much all to myself for a few days while Lucho was on his little vuelta with Abuelo, our 68-year old chilean friend. not much happening...just more bulking up (more later) and reading. Went to a fancy Trujillo wedding with Lucho where he was playing drums in an 11-man-1-woman band...good times, but my plans to leave the next day were squandered by free food, cerveza pilsen, and staying up till 5.
i generally try and keep these things to myself, but in all fairness and honesty i should say that i was quite flattered by the women of Trujillo. eventually i figured out that i had done nothing in particular to attract so many stares and so much attention (a nice reversal), and that many peruvians are looking for a ticket out and, so they think, up. i now understand, in part, what it feels like to be a women walking by a construction site.
anyways...after 5 weeks of rest and some spectacular hospitality at the casa, it was time to go. last night i threw a new tire on the back wheel...a schwalbe marathon....something a little wider and more durable, in part for the crappy roads ahead. i also find myself quite a bit heavier...not just in body (good) but in luggage (good and bad).
Lucho escorted me to the edge of the city, where he left me to go pay his water bill. I forgot that the first hour after a long time off is a little, well, scary -- realizing that the comforts and conviences of a city and good home are being left for the uncertainty of the road. i found my legs trembling a little, however i have to chalk this up to the 5 weeks of doing absolutely nothing active, save the vuelta de paijan. for a while i was thinking about our friend Lance A., whose rise to the top was supposedly aided by his little vuelta de cancer, where he was able to rebuild his body in the image of a tour de france champion (and not a whole hell of a lot else, really...although he's put his texan mouth to a good cause). however, my body has been rebuilt in the image of someone of a much greater body fat percentage, as is what happens when you eat for two and excercise for none.
the ride today was dominated by strong coastal headwinds, the heat of the day, and the desire to ride as slowly as possible. 67 flat k in 4 hours. i'm very content. tomorrow i turn off the panamerica and on to 200k of almost entirely dirt tracks up to the cordillera blanca. there's no internet in the middle of nowhere, muchachos.
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