Well it appears that the Oxyoke fire was deemed contained last night at 6:00 so it doesn't look like it will present an issue for us.

I'm so anxious to get this thing started. I hadn't been sleeping well at all but, for whatever reason, slept like a rock last night. Sometimes I lay in bed, seeing the trail that I know of already and wondering what the rest will look like. I wonder just how slow going things will be along Sargents Mesa. I've heard there is a stretch in there that is so slow it deserves a reward after just making it halfway through. I sit pouring over maps and calculating distances of water sources. I hope that the ones that are "reliabe" actually are and if not, I try and figure out how far to the next one.

I think I'm fine with most aspects of the ride. I know, as other experienced riders have mentioned, that there are things that I have not even considered that will present problems for me or things that I assumed were no brainers might stump me for hours. What terrifies me the most about this ride is not the distance, climbing, mechanical knowledge, route finding (of course I say all that now when I'm comfortable in my living room and not de-hydrated and 8 hours into a 13 hour day). It's not the loneliness, or the chance encounters with bears or mountain lions. It's something that I think most would shrug off and I'm not proud of. I'll go on the record now as saying that I am absolutely mortified by lightning. When it's present, it causes more of a pucker factor than even the gnarliest spider. When I think of most obstacles along the way, I can sit here (under perfect conditions again) and problem solve it pretty quickly. Overcast skies in the mountains really make me stop and take notice.

Last summer when my good friend Scott and I were deep into Cheesman Canyon chasing trout, we heard thunder close by and then, almost immediately, smelled something burning. We looked but didn't see anything. As much as I adore trout and pursuing them, I had no problem walking away from the 18" rainbow that was feeding in a nice riffle just out from shore. Scott and I hunkered down in rock outcropping and joked and sipped whiskey for an hour. I think I was the one that actually said that lightning/thunder hadn't gone off in about 25 minutes and I felt safe. I waded out, took my position on a large boulder and, with Scott behind me and peeking over my shoulder, went back to work. Not more than 30 seconds later a bolt popped off directly above us and I swear I walked on water and was done until blue skies emerged.

Lightning will really put me to the test. I know that some will ride despite it. I'm sure I'll be the one that stops at the sound of thunder to try and determine how far away it is. I'm positive that lightning will make me seek shelter for a while and lose precious time that I'll no doubt have to make up through out the night.