Ahora, Voy A Mexico

The day has arrived for me to leave.

No more excuses, procrastination, or delays.

I didn't even realize how much I needed a break off the bike, until I had one.  I'm recharged and excited to get to Latin America.  I feel and think a lot of different things as I leave town for the last time.  As usual, I have to focus South.  I have no idea when I will return to San Diego, but I do know it will not be any time soon.

I'm curious to find out what will happen in the coming months.  Flying to Minneapolis last week for my grandfather's funeral, I could see from the airplane down to Ensenada and beyond - the reality and excitement setting in.

Maybe a lot of the people I talk to about my trip are right; maybe robbery, violence, disease, or worse, are waiting for me.  Maybe this next leg of the trip will change me in ways I never thought possible.  Perhaps nothing interesting, exciting, or bad will happen, and it will be a completely dull experience (kind of doubt it).  Overall, I'm ready to get to it.  Better get busy living, or get busy dying.

In the words of Phil Collins, 'I've been waiting for this moment all my life'.

My two German cycling friends that I rode with in the Yukon, came into town for New Years.  We had a great time around San Diego, before they left about 3 weeks ago.  I've been gathering other items that I realized I needed on the trip so far:  Things like my neoprene scuba diving gloves, which would have invaluable on the trip so far, to keep my hands warm.  I also cut the visor off of a hat, and attached it to my helmet to help keep the sun off of my face.

I've got a laptop, a brand new camera, a good waterproof bag, a trailer to carry my surfboard.  Now I have all the items to keep me happy on the road.

Just as I was going to leave town, my grandfather died.  That same night, I heard of a friend that had been seriously injured snowboarding.  He had internal bleeding and had to have surgery.  He is recovering from what I hear.  A year ago, almost exactly, one of my best friends died.  My grandfather died within four days of Miles' date of death.  Two years in a row, losing mentors, family, and friends - not a good way to start the year off.

The fear of loss is the path to the dark side.  Train yourself to let go of everything you're afraid to lose.
- Yoda

My next post will be from Mexico.  See you on the other side.





Some Thoughts While Riding:

Not much, considering I haven't ridden my touring bike since I've been back, besides testing with new components.

Everyone has heroes.  I wanted to take a moment to share someone whom I consider to be a hero: Rachel Corrie.  Her tragic, and unnecessary, death had a profound impact on me when I first heard of her, just a few weeks ago.  She gave her life in order to help prevent the systematic destruction of Palestinian homes, by Israeli forces in the Gaza strip.  You can read more about her here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Corrie

There will be plenty more again soon...