Selfless Strangers

Currently chillin’ in Augusta, Maine, with only 6 more days til we reach the coast & dip our bikes in the ocean! Aaaahhh!!! But first…back to the Rockies.

Day 51: Up early after a poor night of sleep. On top of the sprinkler business, a few delivery trucks came around 1am & 4:30am. They were very loud & stayed for quite a while, making it very difficult to catch some shut-eye. Being up early, I chose productivity as a solution to sleepiness so I rolled our bikes back by us (previously hidden behind the buildings), tidied up & packed what I could while Ben slept, but finally woke him up around 6am. We packed up the tent & rolled over to McDonald’s for charging, breakfast, planning, blogging & to clean up a little.

Finally on the road by 9am, the day started out a little rainy & cold but turned into a beautiful, sunny day. Today’s destination: Frisco,CO, via Vail Pass. There were some pretty steep moments & the climb lasted 9 or so miles but slowly & surely we made our way to the top. They turned an old frontage road into a giant bike lane so there was no vehicle traffic – awesome. The views were amazing, as to be expected. We saw so many other bikers on the route which gave us extra encouragement every time we passed & would get a hoot or holler of encouragement. There were no other tourers, just training & leisure riders on very light bikes with no extra gear…ya know, what normal semi-sane people do 😉 We stopped to talk to several of them, especially at the top where there’s a rest stop.

After a bit of a break we bombed it all the way to Frisco: 12 miles of sweet, traffic-free, scenic bliss. Aaaah, it was wonderful. When we rolled into town we asked a local for restaurant recommendations & took her up on 5th Ave Grille. While eating on the patio, the couple at the table next to us were very curious about our trip so we talked for a few minutes, swapping stories, a nice bit of chit-chat & eventually went back to our meals. Mid meal a different couple walking by stopped to let us know Ben’s taillight was still on. Surpise, surprise – he always forgets to shut it off. I even have a song for him reminding him to shut it off 🙂 We talked with them a little, then off they went. They were really cool, Eddie & Sharon. The table next to us had finished, said goodbye & parted ways. Immediately after they left, the waitress informed us they’d paid for our lunch. What? Wow, we were speechless. How thoughtful! I couldn’t believe it. What a nice gesture.

As we were packing up to leave, Eddie & Sharon came back & asked what our plans were for the night: camping. They told us about a campground up the road, which didn’t have showers, so they offered us a free shower at their place in town. Wow, very generous! We couldn’t pass it up. We met them at their place expecting to be in & out in 30 minutes but as soon as we arrived they had an even better offer for us to consider: shower, laundry, dinner, pool, hot tub, private room & bath for the night. Again, what? I was blown away. We were complete strangers but they treated us like family. Of course we said yes! They showed us around (wow, really nice, cool space) then let us get settled in. As we went into the garage to retrieve our bags off the bikes I started crying. I was so overwhelmed (in a good way) with such selfless generosity towards complete strangers that I was literally overflowing with emotions – happiness, gratitude & awe. I kept shaking my head in disbelief at the situation.

Up to our room, shower, laundry, then dinner. We had pasta, salad, bread & wine & sat around talking for a long time. They are so cool, I want to be them! Such interesting lives, VERY active, down to earth, generous, sweet, easy to talk to, healthy, smart, hard working…I could go on. Eddie told a really moving story about a family road trip of theirs (they have 2 daughters, in their 20s now) that was inspired by the animated film, Cars. Eddie was a bit of a workaholic & realized he needed to slow down & spend more time with his family – like in the movie – hence the road trip. On the first day, the RV broke down & they had to get hauled by a tow truck – like in the movie – to a small town, in the middle of nowhere, & not part of their plans – like in the movie. The guy that hauled them…became a tow-truck driver…because of the movie Cars! WHAT?? These 2 guys, strangers, met because they both realized the importance of slowing down, being flexible & appreciating the present all because of the same movie. That story could be its own movie! I think that’s so awesome, it gave me chills & once again…I found myself teary-eyed. Goodness, I’m just full of all the feels today!

Sharon told us about some of the intense races & physical feats her & Eddie have done & I aspire to be like that. It sounds like so much fun – a lot of work but a great sense of accomplishment. Eddie is more of a biker now & Sharon more into hiking. She was currently getting ready to hike the Camino de Santiago trail in Spain…the one we’d just heard about from the hotel owner in Glenwood Springs! It sounded amazing & I found myself wanting to tag along 🙂

After dinner, Ben & I went for a dip in the pool, soaked in the hot tub, watched a little TV in our room & hit the hay. What a day! Such a turn of events! Waking up damp & tired from sprinklers & delivery trucks to having lunch paid for by strangers, being welcomed into a another stranger’s home, & being treated like family by amazing people – a pleasant turn of events, to say the least. It’s reassuring to know there are still good people out there – it’s easy to lose sight of that these days. Today was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. I fell asleep with a happy heart & a smile on my face.

Reflections

1. Colorado is a very proud state. Nowhere else in the country have I ever seen so many state flags: houses, clothing, dishes, hats…anywhere & everywhere.

2. The green mountains look like they’re covered in a thick, fluffy, fleece blanket – so cozy & warm.

3. Elevation is a powerful force. Despite all this biking, we felt out of shape & breath very quickly. Talking while riding was harder than usual & taking a single sip of water would leave us gasping when we were done…apparently a 3 second break was too much 🙂

4. As a way to stay hydrated we take every opportunity to refill our water bottles even if were not running low. We call it the slam & fill…pretty self explanatory 😉

5. It’s been almost 3 months since we were in Frisco & Sharon is now currently hiking the Camino de Santiago trail & it is so much fun following her journey! Way to go, Sharon!

We’re taking a day off in Augusta today so hopefully there’ll be another entry by tonight, but the cafe we’re at is about to close so I’ll have to stick a fork in it for now. Until next time!

Whitney

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