May 1-2

High wind warnings . . .  Extremely hilly terrain. . .  Wildfires. . .  A cold. . .  A sore crotch. . . Maybe a urinary tract infection. . .

I tell ya. I feel like everything is being thrown at me.

I'm about to begin a litany of my condition and experiences. Some of it may not be pleasant to read. But at this point I feel it's better to let you know the details of what I'm dealing with.

I'm sitting in my hotel room on the edge of Las Vegas, New Mexico. I've taken another rest day because I've caught a cold and I'm trying my best to fight it off. I just finished a two-hour afternoon nap. But I'm still emptying my nose of gunk every half hour or so. I have a scratchy throat and I'm coughing.

Also, one of the problems I have from multiple sclerosis is urinary tract infections. I don't know exactly why, but I get them periodically. (It's probably because of the drug I take to suppress my immune system.) The other associated concern is that I don't always sense the onset of a UTI until it gets serious.  The last time, in early February, my antibiotics prescription had a refill that I didn't need but that I got anyway in anticipation of this trip. I've been wondering the last couple of days whether I might have one coming on. I'll spare the details on this one, but I've noticed some things that raised my concern. I've also been at high elevations — 6,000 to 7,000 feet —which can dehydrate you without warning — and dehydration can bring on a UTI. Between my cold and the soreness in my crotch from riding, I've got enough discomfort to mask what might be going on down there. I'm probably just paranoid, but I took my first antibiotic pill this morning. Why take a chance? If I use up the pills now and have a UTI somewhere down the road, I'll have to get to an urgent care or call my doctor to send a prescription to a nearby pharmacy. But the present is more important than the future at this point.

I have another issue. Because my right leg is weaker than my left, I tend to put more pressure on my left sit-bone when I'm on my bike seat. When I'm on flat or moderate terrain I don't have much problem leaning into it, but when climbing hills I apparently pound on it pretty hard. Where my thigh meets my hip, near my crotch, it's very sore and swollen. (It's the same spot where I had the saddle sore that healed while I stayed with my friend George.) I've been using some stuff called Aquophor that's supposed to aid the healing of skin, and also a CBD ointment that makes the area feel better for a while. So far, the skin hasn't gotten raw, but it's very sensitive. (When I ride, I keep moving around and stand periodically to give that area a rest.)

Meanwhile, outside my window the smoke from the Calf Canyon and Hermits Peak wildfires has turned the sky a dirty orange. I can smell the smoke in my room — which may be exacerbating the burning in my sinuses. During the ride here from Santa Fe, my motel canceled my reservation so they could put up firemen and evacuees. I immediately called this Holiday Inn Express and begged for a room, telling them I had nowhere else to go. Fortunately, they agreed — and also allowed me to stay another night. This hotel also has a lot of firemen and evacuees staying here. Apparently, more are on the way. (The two trucks in the picture above are from the New Mexico Department of Forestry.) I've been informed that tonight is my last night. I have to move on to make room for those fighting or displaced by the fires.

Despite the fires, I had to stay in Las Vegas. It's at the halfway point between Santa Fe and Santa Rosa, which are about 120 miles apart — way farther than I could ride in a day, especially given the winds and hilly terrain. There are no other places with hotels or motels in between. So, tomorrow I'll be back on the road, headed to Santa Rosa. According to my maps, a good portion of tomorrow's ride is downhill, so maybe that will help me get through it.

The ride here from Santa Fe was dreadful. My friend Stephen Duck lives a short distance from my route, so he joined me when I was about 12 miles down the road. He was going to spend the day with me, and I had been looking forward to his company. But, I'm afraid I was not a very pleasant riding companion. I had another bad night with sleep, and got on the road at 6 a.m., so I was very tired. Add that to all my maladies and I just felt awful. Stephen got a flat tire about 10 miles or so down the road. He told me to keep going and he would catch up. I had gone maybe five miles when I got a text from him saying he didn't have a tool to fix his tire, so his wife was coming to pick him up. It was just as well. He would not have had fun being with me. I was so tired that I pulled off the road, leaned my bike against a bush, and lay down in its shade to take a nap. I fell asleep almost immediately and woke up a half hour later, feeling a bit better. I still had some 30-plus, very hilly and windy miles to go. My legs were weak from being tired. After a while I got so exhausted that I started doing something I never do — I stopped at the top of every long grade to get a drink and give my legs a chance to recover.

There were only a couple places to stop for food and drink on the day's route. When I approached one of them, with about 20 miles to go, I stupidly kept going. I wanted so bad to get to my hotel so I could fall face first onto my bed and sleep that I just kept going. And so, with about 12 miles to go, I drained my last water bottle and my mouth went dry. I was not in good shape. But all I could do was keep going at my snail's pace. As I approached the top of every long uphill grade I begged for a long downhill — often knowing, based on my maps, that one wasn't coming. At about seven miles from Las Vegas I reached a Speedway gas station/convenience store. I bought lemonade, Red Bull and enough water to fill two of my three 24-ounce water bottles. I also bought a bag of salt-and-vinegar potato chips that seemed to revive me. I was craving salt.

I somehow made it to my hotel at about 4 p.m. (It took me 10 hours.) I arrived just in time. Higher winds with nasty gusts, which I was trying to outrun despite my difficulties, started kicking up. When I got into my room, the winds were so strong the windows were whistling. There are no restaurants or stores near this hotel, but Las Vegas has a Domino's. So I ordered a pasta dish and a large pizza to be delivered. I vacuumed up the pasta and I ate half the pizza, saving the rest in my in-room refrigerator. The hotel has a free breakfast that I took advantage of this morning. I finished off the pizza today. The hotel also has a kiosk with various supplies for travelers, including a freezer with some Marie Callender's prepared meals. I'll get one of those this evening and zap it in my microwave for dinner.

I hope to get to bed early and get up early. I may have to wear my N-95 covid mask to protect me from the smoky air until I get down the road a few miles. And high-winds are forecast to hit Santa Rosa by mid-afternoon, so I hope to get there before they come. 

Things can only get better, right?

Contact me: Thoughts or comments? Email me at richardridesusa@gmail.com.

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