Excited in Omak

I've been on the road for the last 2 weeks, seeing San Diego for a conference, then Vancouver for a weekend, working remotely from a friend's house in Seattle, and now I'll spend the next 5 days reuniting with my fellow Northern Tier cyclists.

Today, I left Seattle via Lyft taxi to the Greyhound bus station downtown. It was my first Greyhound ride and it was definitely what I expected. There was WiFi and power outlets. The seats weren't bad and the people were extremely unique. I was able to work a little bit on the bus, with the exception of a dropped call while passing through Snoqualmie Pass.

Once we reached Ellensburg, I change buses to a small van, similar to airport shuttles. No big deal, until I stepped onboard and found there was no WiFi, no outlets.. and no A/C... in 105°F heat!  I was in jeans, too. This was a 5 hour bus ride. I was 1 of 3 passengers on the bus. I finally changed into shorts in the back of the bus about 60 seconds before we reached Wenatchee, where everyone else offloaded and we picked up a nice Colville Tribesman named Steven from Omak who earns his living fishing in Alaska. He even had a big box of frozen and dehydrated fish onboard that was quickly thawing out.

Steven and I endured the heat and he gave me lots of great information about Omak, the landscrape and the apple orchards we were seeing, fishing in Alaska, living on a reservation, casinos, his family background, the controversial Suicide Race and so much more!  It was fascinating and enlightening conversation. We both happened to be staying at the same motel in Omak, so the driver kindly took us straight there. As we were parting ways, Steven offered me a gift of dehydrated salmon from Alaska, which I took with excitement.

After checking in, I walked down Main Street to find dinner, which was at an Italian restaurant. Omak is a very small town with most of the population inhabiting the Colville Reservation on the other side of the Onakagon River. I started to cross the bridge to look at the Reservation, but I wasn't sure what the sign that said Tribal Laws Apply meant and didn't want to intrude.

Despite the heat on the bus and long ride, I had a very enjoyable journey to Omak thanks to the good company and beautiful landscape along the way. I am so very excited to see my fellow cyclists tomorrow morning right here in Omak, WA!

Snoqualmie Pass 

Colombia River

Dehydrated salmon

Downtown Omak 

Omak mural with reference to the Suicide Race

Omak Sunset, perhaps a fire is nearby?

Preparing for the Home Stretch

I've been watching from my Facebook page for the last 9 weeks as my co-cyclists have worked their way across the northern US, mostly struggling through rain and flooded areas, going miles out of their way to detour the floods.  I've enjoyed seeing every one of their photos and wishing I could be experiencing it all with them.  In 2 days, that wish will come true.  I will be reunited with my fellow cyclists for the last 5 days of the 2015 Bike the US for MS Northern Tier ride.

July 4th Ride

After finishing up in June, I left you - my donors and blog readers - without an update for far too long.  I had a nice ride home with my family, but a physically painful ride.  My left IT band, hamstring, pyriformis muscle and siatic nerve were all inflamed and very angry with me.  I could barely walk on my left leg for a few days and when the pain wasn't so excruciating, I was finally able to see a physical therapist.  Unfortunately, that time was cut short because my company changed insurance carriers.  So, I worked hard with The Physical Therapy Zone up until my last day on the insurance they accepted.  I worked out, stretched and did more strength-training for my hips, hamstrings, glutes, ab- and adductors than I probably ever have.  I also experienced the wonderful healing heat of ultrasound to break-up adhesions and scar tissue, and e-stimulation (mild form of electrocution) while icing down to reduce inflammation.  It was an intense couple of weeks, but I've been pain-free since the end of June.  I was nervous the following weekend to go on a long ride, but I knew I needed to know if I was going to hurt while bike riding.  I didn't have any pain, which made me very happy and restored some of my confidence!  I was, however, exhausted. 

 

I was also able to get in a short, but steep ride out in San Diego, but that's still 10 days before riding with the group.  I hope my legs can keep up, so I'm now more worried than ever about not being able to keep up with the group, who have been riding 70+ miles/day everyday for 9 weeks.  They're going to smoke me up the Cascades Mountains!  Regardless, I'm excited to see everyone and it's surely going to be an emotional experience for everyone as their journey together comes to a close.  

 

San Diego Ride

I head out by Greyhound to what seems like the middle of nowhere to join the group on Thursday. It's going to be a beautiful ride, but we're starting out with 105°F heat and it'll drop to about 50°F at night in the mountains. Hopefully I'll have some cell service to blog, but if not, then I'll update afterwards.