A Week of Solo Riding

It has been about a week since I've started riding all alone and I will say that as lonely as it can be, I like it! That's not to say I haven't enjoyed the company I've had thus far, and I'm still looking forward to riding with many more people. However, solo riding has a few differences such as:

• More people are inclined to talk to you, whether it be for directions or just wanting to know about your trip, as well as feel concerned for your safety. Typically, they ask if I am alone and are a bit taken aback when I tell them I am.
  
• Because of above, I am able to practice more Spanish and think through the conversation more after it happens. I have been more consistent about thinking in Spanish and not resorting to speaking English.

Traveling alone is a different experience than sharing the trip with someone and talking about future plans and options. That is why I am inviting you to join me. As for giving solo riding a shot, I like it enough to keep going and venture into the hills of Ecuador.

Quickly, here are a few things that have happened this past week that the cuatro readers of this blog might find amusing. Here is the route map thus far.

This is kinda the tour I took from Bogota to Popayan. I passed through Sevilla rather than Armenia to avoid the big city. The times by car and plane obviously do not apply.

A nice gentleman named Luis Fernandez rolled up beside me in his car and eventually pulled over to the side of the road to convince me to come see a bike museum his friend has in Calcedonia, where I was planning to spend a night. I agreed to see it (the pictures he showed me looked cool) and he did this common, though very annoying, thing where he drove behind me while I rode. I felt like a Tour de France racer with a pacer car following. Eventually he sped ahead and waited at the top of the hill, where I later found he had filled his car with some locals headed into town. When I rolled over, they all already knew where I had biked from that day and everything else that Luis knew about me. That would also be the case for the next handful of people he introduced me to while in town.

While in town we check out the museum, with its thirty bikes all neatly tuned and interesting in their own ways. Unfortunately, pictures of the bikes were not allowed, except this one:

Some of the riding so far has provided some good leg training when going up the hills, which the locals don't care for (see the towing pic below). However, the way down is nothing short of epic. With the high speed, passing trucks, and ongoing construction, to describe it as "thrilling" would be an understatement. I loved it. I won't say much more on it, but be sure to check out the video of Alejandro flying down the hill (to be edited and uploaded shortly). There have been a few set backs, though, mainly involving me getting back into shape and my bike's derailleur suddenly deciding to snap in half. Luckily, I had a spare part with me for an easy fix.

Bridge in mid-construction, I think Jon-David would have liked to see this!

Snapped derailleur while climbing

Hitch-biker getting a tow up the hill

In addition to that, I've been getting a bunch of jaw-dropping stares and thumbs-up from people passing by. I have been a bit more focused on mileage lately as I want to get some good training for the hills of Ecuador and Peru (if I make it that far).

I will continue to try and keep the blog updated with these type of brief posts, particularly in the "2 Bikes" and "Sleeping Locations" sections. Be sure to check out a new section, "30 Days"!!! I also changed the supporters page to "Shout-outs", so be sure to spot a special picture taken just for you and claim it in the comment section!

-Matt

P.S.