Got quite a few things done today

Well it's been a busy day and I only rode my bike a couple of miles in the town of Santa Rosa.... I did a bunch of rat killin' today

• washed clothes.
• sent out my blog information to a bunch of folks.
• responded to some job interview inquiries (yeah - I know - go get a real job).
• sorted through all my stuff and took out the final few things that I thought I could do without.
• went to the post office and mailed some of them to Santa Fe and one item back to Lakc Jackson.
• bought the groceries and supplies I needed for the next 4 days.
• stopped at an auto parts store and bought a can of carburetor cleaner - that's what I clean my chains and gears with.
• put the numbers and e-mails of all the people I'd gotten cards from over the past couple of weeks into the Contact List of my cell phone.
• took care of a rental house problem back in Lake Jackson - plugged up sewer - called a guy who's done work for me before and worked out the plan for him to take care of it tomorrow.
• washed my bike (first time on the trip)
• cleaned the chain and gears and oiled the moving parts w/ Rock 'n' Roll.
• copied the pictures and videos for the last week from my cell phone mini SD card to my netbook hard drive.
• repacked all my clothes in Ziploc bags.
• repacked the Action Packer.
• worked out route to Villanueva State Park - my VZW Navigator is giving me a cross country route going through Anton Chico - we'll see how it works out.
• spent about an hour talking to a fellow named Donovan Sparhawk - he is an artist and Administrative Recreation graduate from BYU who is part of a movement to take the next step in the evolution of bicycles... stay tuned on this one - this guy's got something that's gonna rock the bicycling world!

Finally as I mentioned in a post earlier, I did an evaluation of where I am in this little discovery journey and how I'm doing.

One of the main reasons why I began this bicycling trek across America was for my health - as enumerated in my Introduction letter, I had gained weight (216 lbs on the doctor's scale), had a high blood pressure reading (158/95) for the first time in my life and was basically crippled with pain from my left knee.

I really don't have a good "before" picture but here's a couple of pics of what I looked like this morning:

What do I weigh now?  I don't know....haven't weighed but I'd guess around 190 - 195.... so I've lost probably about 15 - 20 lbs.

Am I ripped to shreds?  No - not yet.... can I get there at 47?  I don't know....I'm just riding my bike across America....it's not like I'm on some Weight Loss - Muscle Gain program..... it's just what happens when you do what I'm doing.

I know I was busting out of 34 waist pants and now they're loose on me.... but the important part is I feel better.... I'm not in any pain...my knee doesn't hurt any more.... my mind is clearer.... my memory is better....

So the discovery goes on....each day a new one.... whether it's how far you can go on a bike loaded w/ 60 lbs of gear against a 25 mph headwind.... or what's beyond the next hill or the next bend in the trail.... or that guy in the next campsite over who comes strolling up at daylight with a hot cup of coffee cause he's not sure if you have any...

Discovery is all about not knowing what lies beyond or what lies within....but having the will and the courage to find out!

There's a momentum building.... I can feel it....when I'm attacking a long climb.... when I grit my teeth and lower my head into the wind and stomp on the pedals till my feet hurt ....when I don't stop pedaling on a downhill but instead lower my body and lean over the handlebars to gain more speed... when I leap from rock to rock instead of easing down between them.... when I smile and say "How you doing today?" to the stranger walking by me in the store.... when I talk to a young dreamer and entrepreneur about the future of bicycling in America....

It's out there and it's inside me....

I'm discovering the limits of my body are beyond what I did today... the limits of my mind are beyond what I'll dream tonight... and the limits of the beauty of this land and its people are beyond measure....

Join me tomorrow on a 58 mile cross country ride to Villanueva State Park.... the next step in Discovering America on 2 Wheels.

End of Day Totals:

Leg 2
Day 18
Date Thu, 01/15/10
From stayed in Santa Rosa NM
To NA
This Day's Miles Cycled = 6
This Leg Total Miles Cycled = 599
This Day's Miles Walked = 1
This Leg Total Miles Walked = 59
Discovering America on 2 Wheels Total Miles Cycled = 1109
Discovering America on 2 Wheels Total Miles Walked = 87
Discovering America on 2 Wheels Total Miles Cycled & Walked = 1196