Days 61, 62, 63: September 4, 5, 6 - Rest Days

Here’s what I see when I leave my motel room and look west on Main Street.

I had initially planned to have one rest day in Frisco before climbing Hoosier Pass, but then decided to have three rest days in order to acclimate to Frisco’s elevation of 9,000 feet. This also allowed me to do all the following:

Buy another bottle of liquid chlorophyll
Coordinate with Lori to have a resupply package sent to a friend in Chicago
Buy my bus ticket to Denver and train tickets to Chicago and Carbondale
Reserve a bunk in a hostel in downtown Chicago
Arrange dinners in Chicago with grade school and high school classmates and in-laws
Have a massage in Dillon
Make an appointment for a Feldenkrais lesson in Denver
Order heel pads
Reserve a cabin at Giant City Lodge in Carbondale
Complete my blog post for day 46

A new Bluetooth keyboard arrived at my motel to replace the keyboard whose many keys were no longer working. On my ride to the massage in Dillon I first rode to the local recycling center to dispose of the broken keyboard. I also took my bear spray to a bike shop so that it could be given to someone traveling west.

Before I arrived for the massage I rode down and up the switchbacks that I rode the day I arrived from Kremmling. This time I was able to completely ride, rather than walk, the switchbacks, at least partly due to my having removed from my bike my camping gear and everything else not needed for a ride on which I would be returning to my starting location. With the bike unloaded it felt like a sports car rather than a truck. This is the same way I will ride up to and down from Hoosier Pass on Saturday the 7th.

After I had ridden down and up the switchbacks, I had some time to use before my massage appointment. There wasn’t enough time to ride the switchbacks again, so I went around the neighborhood. Near the end of that ride I rode, out of the saddle, a short but very steep climb that had me breathing the heaviest I had ever breathed. I was glad that my breathing is free enough to have allowed the heavy breathing, and that my breathing quickly returned to normal.

Here’s the record of my ride on the 5th: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/218532389

In everything I’ve read about acclimating to high elevation, I’ve never seen a suggestion to learn to improve one’s breathing. People have asked me whether I’ve had trouble breathing at elevation and my answer is always “No, I just find it harder to do work”. I think that’s because of the many Breathing Coordination lessons I’ve had with Lynn Martin and the breathing work I’ve done on my own. Click the link to learn how you can improve your breathing: Breathing Practice

I had dinner at Cafe Sanchez, Greco’s Pastaria, and Colorado BBQ. Every night after dinner I’ve gotten a pint of ice cream at the Loaf ‘N Jug. While carrying my ice cream back to my motel on the 6th I heard music coming from the restaurant Ein Prosit.

As of September 6th it’s been two months since I left Portland.

Follow my progress on this map. Click VIEW ALL and then pinch the map to see my progress from the start in Portland.

Follow me on Facebook here.

If my blog posts provide you with vicarious pleasure, please consider making even a small contribution towards the cost of my trip (which I now expect to be at least $12,000) by clicking the GoFundMe graphic below. Every contribution helps!

Please share my blog with anyone you think might be interested.

If you post a comment, please identify yourself,
preferably by using your Google account.

Subscribe to this blog