Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sitting here at my desk, working on my home computer with a glass of bourbon for com-
pany, I'm still feeling the residual sparkle, grinning my head off in a way I doubt I did
in 1993. For one thing, I'm thrilled to be wearing something other than a fetid merino
undershirt, rain pants, and snug shorts with a pad between my legs, and after months of
erratic motel showerheads to be reacquainted with my own bathroom.
For the last hour or so I've been thinking with satisfaction about the hair-raising mo-
ments of my journey—riding the dangerously chewed-up truck route into Whitefish,
Montana, for instance; sharing the interstate shoulder with detoured traffic in North
Dakota; cruising into Baraboo, Wisconsin, during rush hour, on a four-lane highway
whose shoulder suddenly stopped short; being marooned on a cement island outside of
Pittsburgh, forced to sprint across the road and leap over a divider with my bike on my
back.
Survivor's pride is powerful; I prevailed.
Okay, I'll say it: Hurray for me! I feel, for the moment at least, extraordinary.
