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| Global Trek |
We the Parents
My wife and I unintentionally
raised a wanderer, a risk taker, an adventurous knucklehead.
Not a knucklehead in the boneheaded-nitwit sense. Quite the contrary. But a knucklehead in way of being a nonconformist,
one bold enough to do what most only dream of. That is our son Jace.
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| Pennsylvania Goodbye |
On a May morning we stood in
front of our Pennsylvania home. There was no indication that this was more than
a hope-to-see-you-soon goodbye, no indication except a mountain bike strapped to
the back of Jace’s car and his mother crying like a baby.
This wasn’t a new experience. Three
years earlier, our knucklehead made an east-to-west-coast bicycle crossing of the United States. The year before that it was an attempted cross-country
hitch-hiking trip.
Those adventures stressed us, but nothing compared to our angst over his
upcoming two-continent
international journey.
Prudhoe Bay Alaska lies nearly
300 miles north of the Arctic Circle. Ushuaia,
Argentina might be the most southern tip of civilization. The land route between the two will send
shivers up the spines of any loving parent who hopes to see their offspring
experience a 24th birthday. South of the US border, Mexican poverty
might make a bike-peddling gringo a prime target. Columbia conjures up visions
of gun-toting drug lords. Nicaragua? Honduras?
Yikes!
What if you’re mugged in a Central American jungle? What are
you going to do without a bike, no cash, no bank card and no passport? His flippant response hardly soothed our
nerves. We grasped what comfort we could
from knowing he had studied the routes and read blogs of other cyclists who
made the trip. He understood the risks.
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| In the Beginning, Prudhoe Bay, Alaska |
Two weeks after we said our
Pennsylvania goodbye, Jace flew
to Prudhoe Bay. June 9th might
be associated with the beginning of summer, but the wind and snow of the arctic
circle gave no indication. Anxious to
get underway, he left town almost immediately. A bitter head wind and snails-pace
progress forced him back a few hours later.
The next day he left again. This
began one of many stretches of radio silence. Over the months that followed, when
he had cellphone service, he filled us in on his adventures.
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| Five-Star Outhouse Resort |
A long-distant cyclist
understands the term, roughing it. Stealth
camping is finding an inconspicuous place where one won’t be noticed or
bothered by locals. A change of clothes,
regardless of how dirty and smelly, is a luxury. Light-weight gear for backpacking
offers survival essentials for bike-packers too. A small gas burner can cook a
warm meal that might prompt a gag reflex in one’s kitchen but taste delicious
after an 80-mile day in the saddle.
There was no need to be stealthy
in the uninhabited region north of Fairbanks, Alaska. Stopped for the day, Jace set
up camp. From inside his tent, he took
note of the “pitter patter” of rain, but then realized
it wasn’t rain, but huge blood-sucking Alaskan mosquitoes making kamikaze
attacks on the tent fabric.
Perhaps more than the location
and scenery, a bike packer’s journey is marked by people they meet, strangers
one minute and friends the next. Such
was the case with Shane and Ian, two like-minded bike packers. Jace rode
with them for a day or two and then met them again in Fairbanks. The trio bonded over all-you-can-eat buffets
and tales of the road.
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| Welcome to Canada |
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| Partially-healed Canadian Road Rash |
Canada seemed like a fairly
safe haven. But it was here that a phone
call from an unknown number sent my wife into a worried frenzy. It seems a canyon near Lillooet, Canada
offered the thrill of victory on one down-hill stretch and the agony of defeat on
the next. When the asphalt road turned
to gravel, when wind-in-your-face exhilaration overshadowed braking, life turned
into a bloody mess. A short time later Jace
showed up at Brad and Bobbi’s front door. These two kind-hearted strangers tended to his wounds and
gave him a ride to a medical clinic for stitches. Afterward they fed him and let him stay a couple
of nights to convalesce. Brad was even
kind enough to fix his trusted ukulele, which suffered a broken tuning peg in
the crash. In today’s world, there truly
are good Samaritans!
Warm
Showers is
an awesome program which connects long-distant cyclists with kindhearted hosts. They offer a place to sleep, a warm shower
and sometimes a home-cooked meal. Felicity and Gordan regularly host in Vanderhoof, BC, Canada. Jace
stayed with them for nearly a week, helping out on their farm in exchange for
room and board. Milking a cow might not
have been the high point, but a jazz musical jam session with Gordan on guitar
and Jace on ukulele was.
Eric was a Warm Showers host in Prince George, BC. He had been hosting for years and entertained
Jace with tales of others he’s hosted, including a Spanish couple who have been
cycle-touring for the past ten years.
The Cassiar highway in British
Columbia brought Kathrin, Hally, and Hauna, three young ladies from Bellingham,
WA. They offered Jace a place to stay
when he passed through their neck of the woods.
A few weeks later at their home, one of their friends, a complete
stranger with no medical training, removed stitches from Jace’s arm. Thankfully
they had the wits to disinfectant before pulling them out. (sigh of relief)
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| Andre Kajlich |
A stretch of “rails to trails” in
picturesque Washington state, brought a chance encounter with a celebrity of
sorts. Encountering a fellow cyclist was not uncommon, but one without legs riding
a hand-cranked “trike” was. It was a
double surprise when the gentleman caught up to Jace and engaged in
conversation.
Andre Kajlich lost both
legs in a train accident in 2004. It
didn’t slow him down much. In 2018, only a few months before encountering Jace,
he completed the Race Across America (RAAM).
Many able-bodied cyclists fail to complete this 3000-mile marathon in
the 12-day limit to be recognized as official finishers. Andre became the first
to do it on a hand-cranked bike. The
feat didn’t go to his head. “Dude was super cool. There can be some real attitude
in the cycling world and he was just a really nice, humble guy.”
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| Yosemite |
California brought the Sierra
Nevada mountains. Nico was a memorable individual in Yosemite National Park, “a dude was kind enough to let me pitch my
tent at his campsite.” The alternative was to hide from the Nazi-like rangers who
were quick to fine unauthorized campers.
Beyond Yosemite, Jace crossed the east-west divide four times. The Tioga pass at 9,943 feet was no easy feat,
but it paled in comparison to the Coyote Flat Traverse. This gut-busting ascent up
a jeep trail to 10,200 feet was worth the fantastic views offered of North
Palaside.
On October 17th, Jace pedaled
into San Diego, California and arrived at his brother’s home. Through an act of God, his parents arrived
three days later. Some might call his
dad’s business trip to the area coincidence. Others recognize it as one of God’s
tender mercies. We were blessed to spend
a few days with Jace, his brother, his wonderful sister-in-law and his niece
and nephew. We took note of his months-old beard, his lean physique, and
sculpted iron-man legs. When the visit was over, not knowing when we would see
him again, it was difficult to say goodbye.
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| Farewell to USA and Nephew & Niece. Hello Mexico |
Two weeks later, with more than
5,000 miles under his belt and more than 10,000 to go, Jace crossed into
Tecate, Mexico. We would have felt better
if he was Spanish speaking. With him south of the border, our worries began
in earnest. At the same time, we were proud of our son. Not many dreamed of doing what he dared to do.
