Day 31/15-Phoenix Sun
Written by Jon on 15 April 2010
We spent the morning riding up a large pass and hit our first tunnel of the trip. A guy pulled over and asked if I would like a ride through the tunnel for safety. I could see light at the end of it so knew I could make it through quickly. I politely declined telling him I hadn’t took a car ride yet on the trip that helped me gain distance and would like to leave it that way. That way I can say at the end I completely crossed the country by bicycle even if it would have only helped me a few hundred yards. I waited until no cars were in sight, pedaled fast, and made it out of the tunnel ahead of the traffic to see Samuel waiting at the other side. We pedaled on to the Phoenix suburban area through some rough road. There were lifted cracks every ten feet which made me feel like I was riding on a jackhammer. At mid-day we finally arrived to Mesa and quickly realized how cyclist friendly the Phoenix area is. They had marked bike lanes completely throughout the city. People were very polite to us as we rode by ASU. We got lost for a little while, but multiple people offered to help us find our way when they saw us looking at the maps. We finally got back on track after pedaling through a beautiful city park. A distant family member who lives in the Phoenix area offered to pick us up where we were at dusk and to drop us off at the same location in the morning. We accepted and were treated like kings by Frank Butcher and his family. They have a beautiful home in suburban Phoenix where we were able to wash clothes, use the hot tub, and get a great night’s sleep.