That Kenny Chesney is full of crap.

Contrary to what his song says...everything does not get hotter when the sun goes down. In fact, it gets really, really, really cold when the sun goes down. But I'm getting ahead of myself. First off, we couldn't get the last computer we used to upload our pictures. So, here are some of the things Kevin talked about in the last blog.


This first picture is from the morning in Deming, NM when I wasn't feeling so good. Thankfully it was just a 24 hour bug and the next day I was good to go. I think the agony in my face tells the story quite well.

This was taken just after an incredible dinner that Rick Sharp treated us to at the St. Claire Winery & Bistro in Las Cruces that he just opened. It was a great meal with great wine. It was also wonderful to sit and talk with an SAE alum. Thanks Rick.

This is part of crew at Crazy Cat Cyclery that really helped us out. Our bikes are running great and we have all the gear and tools we need for the next leg of our journey. Thanks guys.









So now we're in the small town of Van Horn, TX, about 110 miles southeast of El Paso. Yesterday was one of our best days yet. We covered just over 80 miles and made it to Sierra Blanca, TX. It was a really small town and even though it had a motel we opted to camp for the first time in about a week. This morning we woke to frigid temperatures and a thin sheet of frost and ice over most of our stuff. Combined with the chilly weather we fought a steady headwind most of the day and climbed over 1000 feet. Near the top of our climb we officially left the Mountain Time Zone and crossed into Central Time. After this morning's frigid awakening we decided it wasn't quite warm enough to camp again so we are staying in a motel for the night (thus our access to a computer). We just had a good meal at Chuy's Mexican Restaurant which is an official John Madden Haul of Fame. It was delicious food and we were surrounded by photos of everyones' favorite football personality. It was pretty cool. The only other mention worthy thing that has happened lately was our first sighting of a border patrol hummer. It was such a mean looking rig, we had to stop for a photo op with it.
That's pretty much it for now. We'll update y'all as soon as we get another opportunity. Thanks for all the post and prayers.

Alex

The Lone Star State...

Greetings,

After a couple of days with some ugly weather, things are looking up. The weather pattern seems to be returning back to normal, with prevailing winds heading eastward and temperatures reaching the mid 60's. Although we have not yet experienced this weather, we could not be any more excited.

After getting snowed in at Lordsburg, we made the ride to Deming. Unfortunately, this was the coldest and most miserable day of riding yet. The temperature was 26 degrees, with a chilling head wind, all the while surrounded by a blanket of moisture known as fog... It became difficult to move fingers and toes, and I began to ask myself how cold my fingers could get before they would have frostbite. After stopping momentarily at a rest stop, and drinking 5 cups of coffee, I regained feeling throughout my body long enough to make it to the next town.

It makes perfect sense that after a day of such cold and humid weather, that one of us would get sick. The very next morning, as we gathered together for breakfast, Alex couldn't stomach the thought of it. The flu had hit him so quickly and so hard that you could see the pain in his face (will put a picture of it asap). Needless to say, we remained in Deming for yet another night.

The very next day we made the ride to Las Cruces and had a wonderful dinner at the St. Claire Winery & Bistro, courtesy of an SAE alumni named Rick. We sat and talked for nearly 4 hours over a wonderful dinner and an excellent bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon that was produced in the hills of New Mexico. After riding all day, we couldn't have been any happier or any fuller.

We then rode down the street to the local SAE chapter at New Mexico State University, where we met some of the members, toured the house, hung out for a short amount of time, and retired to the couches. I've personally started to notice some amusing differences as we progress further and further east. For example, the number of cowboys are increasing, and the length of hair (for boys) is decreasing. We have also observed some interesting accents, which will continue as we start to experience a slight southern accent. Nevertheless, the hospitality throughout the southern United States has been great.

Today we made it to El Paso, a enormous city located alongside the Rio Grande. We quickly found that we were largely unprepared for the size (2,000,000 people), and traffic associated with this huge city. Among all of the help that we have received thus far on the trip, none can surpass the assistance that Margaret Perez has provided to us. She arranged a bike shop, Crazy Cat Cyclery, to assist us in rebuilding and reinforcing our back rims. This bike shop provided us with excellent gear, assistance, and provided all of the work for free. We cannot thank this bike shop enough for their help. In addition to the bike shop, Margaret arranged a place to stay at the Hampton Suites, as well as a wonderful traditional Mexican meal at Carnitas Queretaro. Furthermore, Margaret got us contact with both the local subsidiaries for CBS and Fox in El Paso. Although we have not yet seen the news broadcast, I am confident that we could use a little work on our "camera skills."

Well beginning tomorrow, we are hoping for sunshiny days. However, just to give you a heads up, we will be in the desolate hills of SW Texas and it is likely that we will not be near a computer for some time. We will post again as soon as possible, hopefully before Del Rio.

We wish you the best, and can't wait to hear from you. Please leave notes to our blogs, and we will gladly read and respond.

Thanks again,

Kevin

On the road again

After our unplanned day off yesterday due to snow storm we got back on the road today and made it just over 60 miles east to the town of Deming, NM. This was by far our coldest day of riding yet. After about an hour and a half on the road we were all frozen and stopped on the Continental Divide Trading Post to thaw out. It was there that the shop owner informed us that it was about 26 degrees Fahrenheit outside and we must be out of our minds to be riding our bikes. After we explained our reason for riding coast to coast in the middle of winter he warmed up to us and offered us coffee and let us hang around the store until we were warm enough to continue on our way. Luckily, about 10 more miles down the road the sun broke through the clouds and it became a really nice day. Once we reached Deming we found our way to Push and Pedal Shop where Bill and Santos helped us fix some broken spokes and true our wheels (thanks guys). We then made our to the Holiday Inn where we are currently being treated to a complimentary room (thanks Holiday Inn). Overall, it has been a good day and we hope the next couple of days will be just as good. We plan to make it to Las Cruces, NM tomorrow and then El Paso, TX the next day.





I would like to take this chance to once again thank all the people in Wilcox, AZ for the wonderful hospitality and generosity we were shown. Bob Coder, Doug Thompson, Kenny and Sally Cunningham, John, and everyone else (especially our friends at the Elks Lodge) were some of the best people we have met on our trip. Thanks to Bob and Doug we were able to get back on the road and thanks to Kenny and Sally we ate the best meal we've had in ages. Sally even let me help make the salad (see picture at left). Sally, you are awesome and we love you. Thanks for everything.

The team is doing well and we are in high spirits. If all goes as planned (and again...it never does) we will finish the first third of our trip (the pre-Texas third) by Thursday. Thanks again to everyone for your help, thoughts, and prayers. We appreciate you all.

Alex and Wes

New Mexico!

Greetings,

Well, besides crossing the Arizona/New Mexico border, things have not been quite as exciting lately. We made it 70 miles to the small town of Lordsberg, New Mexico. Unfortunately, the next morning we woke up to a snow blizzard and all of the roads leading out of town being closed. Consequently, we stayed in our motel room for one more day, with hopes of hitting the road again tomorrow morning.

Now that we are getting in better shape, long days on a bike are becoming more enjoyable and less exhausting. As long as the terrain isn't too mountainous and the wind isn't slowing us down, 70 mile days can be accomplished without a problem. We are happy that things are getting easier, and can only hope that the weather allows us to continue making progress across the southern half of the United States.

Tomorrow we hope to be in Deming, day after is Las Cruces, and the day after that, El Paso. We have begun looking at Texas, and as a result of the weather, may choose a different route. We have also realized that Texas is a country in itself, and may consume up to 1/3rd of our total trip mileage!

We look forward to riding again, and enjoy hearing from you. We would like to once again thank all of you who are following our progress, and who at one point or another, were involved in our trip.

Kevin

Favorite Quotes From the Trip...

"I will outdrink you young guys tonight, and then get up tomorrow, and cook you breakfast..." - 79 year old Sally Cunningham at the Elks Lodge in Willcox, AZ.

"You guys must be crazy..." - Multiple people, multiple times.

May We Suggest Global Warming?

Grettings from Willcox, AZ.

We have not made quite as good of time recently, but we have our reasons, and stories as a result of our reasons...

Yesterday we faced a heavy wind coming from the east to the west. Normally, weather patterns go from the west to the east, however recently this has not been the case. In addition to the gruelling head wind, we have been forced to face the coldest and wettest conditions that this area has seen in the past decade. I have given it some thought, and like many other things, I will blame it on global warming. Arizona is supposed to be hot and dry, not cold and wet. Anyhow, last night we stayed in Benson, AZ and as a result of the Morinaka's family friend, Ron and Joyce Walp, we ate and slept well... Our thanks go out to these great people, as well as the Super 8, especially K.D., for giving us a nice room, great service, at a good price.

Today started out similar to yesterday, wet and cold. After a very long and gradual climb into Texas canyon, we reached an ultimate elevation of 5,000 feet only to be greeted by more wind and rain. However, my personal opinion was that this was by far the most beautiful day of riding thus far. This was the location of the famous Cochise stronghold, a historic location in American history. This pristine location was surrounded by beautiful rock formations that seemed to be delicately balanced as well as perched high upon a mountainside. Arizona has proven to be far more beautiful than I had ever imagined.

As we rolled into Willcox to speak with the local newspaper, we realized that my rear rim was staring to look a little bad. By the time I had made it to the newspaper, I had ruined two spokes and the rim was seriously bent. Instead of panic, we remained calm (panic is always plan B). Once again we had ruined the only thing on the bike that we couldn't fix. This repetitive problem is a result of two things: 1. we have heavy packs which weigh probably 60 pounds and 2. we are not your ordinary bikers, weighing nearly 190 pounds each. These two things put a lot of stress on the rear wheel. Once again, the generosity of others saves the day. Luckily, Ron knew a nice lady named Sally who put us in touch with a wonderful guy named Bob who lived in Willcox and was an avid bicyclist. Once connected with him, he connected us with his good cycling buddy Doug. After assessing the situation, we realized that we were going to have to drive 45 minutes north to pick up the right spoke size. Nevertheless, Doug and I drove north, fixed the rim, bought extra spokes, and made it back just in time for the Elk's lodge to take us under their wing, feed us food, buy us drinks, and sing along to some karaoke. We would have never expected the night to end this way, but then again, it couldn't have gone better.


So the points of the story are this:

1. Arizona is gorgeous (especially when it isn't 120 degrees)
2. Benson is a good town, with good people.
3. Willcox is a real good town, with exceptional people.
4. Ron & Joyce Walp are awesome.
5. Bob & Doug are amazing.
6. We are close to New Mexico.
7. The weather is unusually horrible.
8. We now know how to fix broken spokes!
9. We are still very happy to involved in such a wonderful cause with so many wonderful people.

Please continue to read out updates, and feel free to leave comments.

Thanks again to everybody,

Kevin

Desert Skies...

Greetings from Tucson,

We have had quite the couple of days, now that we are back to civilization, we can fill you in... Since Ocotillo, we have been helped out by the Finish Line Pro Bike Shop, stayed the night near El Centro, and made the huge journey across the desert that lies between Brawley and Blythe. While in the desert, we came to the realization that we must be crazy (see picture). All at once, we realized how isolated we are, and how big of a country we are crossing. Almost deliriously, we looked around in wonder and laughed amongst ourselves.

We stayed the night just south of Blythe, and were lucky to find a free campsite. We were awakened by another beautiful sunrise (see picture), and quickly started our most difficult day yet, a day we have referred to as "day struggle 1"... As we left the campsite, we quickly hit a very strong and persistent head wind. 6 Miles into the ride, Wes commented on how the back tire of Alex's bike looked slightly bent, almost immediately the back tire popped. We had lost a spoke, and the rim began to look significantly worse. After reviewing our options, which consisted of riding on and possibly ruining the rim, or hitch hiking in to the next town to try to find a bike shop, we decided to test our thumbs. Within moments, we had our bikes and ourselves in the back of a Department of Homeland Security Border Patrol car (would have a picture, but its against the law). Once in the lovely town of Blythe, CA we realized that there was only one bike shop, and it was closed. Upon further investigation, we found out that they were likely to not even have the part we needed. It looked like the next bike shop was 100 miles down the road, in the growing metropolis of Phoenix, AZ. I personally enjoyed the ride, having sat beside a man out of Southern California who was escaping the California Department of Corrections for the 2nd time, to a small rock house in South Western Texas (a house with no electricity, running water, windows, etc...). This lovely guy, although interesting, had been on parole for over 25 years. Oh the joys of greyhound...

Once in Phoenix, we were fortunate enough to stay with the Alvarez's, who fed us, housed us, and ushered us around town to buy groceries and get our bikes fixed. We decided after the infamous "day struggle 1," after a week of riding, we were due for a day of relaxation. After some great hospitality and food, we started our journey again. As many of you are aware, the weather has been extremely cold throughout the entire southern tier of the United States. Our original route took us through a section of the Rockies in New Mexico that would reach elevations of 8,000 feet. Our new route, needless to say, did not. We woke up at 6:30 mountain time, force fed ourselves some caffeine, and headed off for Tucson. We were unsure if the ride was going to take us 1 or 2 days, consisting of a 100 mile stretch of desert. We made it just outside of the city limits when it got dark, at which time we were escorted downtown by a friend of a friend of Kalan. It was an intense day, but we had made it to the University of Arizona. Once on campus, we walked our bikes to the local SAE chapter, where we were welcomed, fed, and housed. The day has been long, and we will begin all over tomorrow. Within a day or two, we will post again, this time, from New Mexico.

We would like to once again thank all of those who have supported us in this Memorial Bike Ride in honor of Kalan. We will continue riding our bikes, and we hope that we can continue to raise money in an effort to end ALS.

Thanks again,

Kevin

Good bye San Diego County...Hello Imperial County!

It is day four and we are still going strong. We've met with a touch of adversity, but so far, we've overcome it with with relative ease. Yesterday we had to change three flats. All of which were on the same wheel. It wasn't until last night that Kevin finally located the tiny thorn that was responsible for the flats.

The best part of this trip has been the incredible hospitality that we have encountered. In Pine Valley the Sheriff's Department and Fire Department went way beyond our expectations in setting us up with some shelter. It was a good thing too because that night turned into a nasty storm that we could hear blowing outside the walls of the barn. It was especially cool to hear the Pine Valley Firefighters training just outside the door in the parking lot most of the night. Last night we had a completely different experience but met with the same accommodating spirit. As we searched for the campground in Ocotillo, CA, Kevin became frustrated and decided to just asked a gentleman in his back yard for directions. Soon, Kevin was having a great conversation with Ernie (Pictured at left with Wes) and he eventually suggested that we just set up camp in his yard. He supplied us with more than enough fire wood and hot coffee and chatted with us about our trip, his life, and his family. We got to meet his family and greatly appreciated his hospitality.

Thank you to the Pine Valley Sheriff's Department, Fire Department, and Ernie and his family for your generosity and hospitality. The past few nights have been great.

Now, we are taking a mid day break in El Centro, CA. We just passed by the Naval Air Facility near here where we got to see some fighter jets doing maneuvers. That was pretty awesome to see overhead. We hope to continue on after getting some supplies here and making it about 60-70 miles total today. If all goes as planned (which it never does) we should be in Arizona by this time tomorrow. Lets hope that happens.

Alex

Day 3's Outlook

Good Morning,

Last night we stayed in a barn behind a fire station. This morning, we woke up to snow, one of the problems associated with sleeping at an elevation of 3600 feet. However, we hope to complete the next couple hills and be at or below sea level by this evening. We will keep you posted on our progress, and we wish you the best...

Kevin

We're really doing it!

Yesterday morning, January 10th, we embarked on our journey from Ocean Beach Park in San Diego, CA (pictured at left). We've been advised to ease into this trip, so for our first day we covered about 35 miles. We camped last night at Lake Jennings which is a great county park in the hills above San Diego. We were awakened by a great sunrise which Kevin snapped a picture of (below).Now, we've stopped for a mid day break so that we can get some groceries and update the blog. Already we have met some amazing people. Yesterday a motorist stopped and talked to us for a while about a girl he recently met who had just finished biking from Miami to San Diego. She had over 120 lbs. of gear and it took her 73 days with a head wind! We also met a lady who was out riding to train for the Ironman. She has competed in several qualifying triathlons, but missed qualifying for Kona by only minutes. She was a babe and we all immediately fell in love. Overall, we couldn't have asked for a better first day. We greatly appreciate all the help and support that we have received. Thank you to all of our sponsors and supporters. As Kalan rides along with Wes, Kevin, and me I know that he appreciates all your help as much as we do in our fight against ALS. We will try to post updates as often as possible and eventually we will have pictures, and maybe even video to share with you all.

Bye for now,
Alex