Leaving Las Vegas

A couple weeks ago I got an email from Robin at Blackburn asking me if I would be interested in joining a quick overnight before Interbike started. He included the words tunnels, Hoover Dam, and Arizona. His plan was brilliant. The ride from Outdoor Demo in Boulder City to Lake Mead would take us on a smooth multi-use path to a converted rail line all the way to Hoover Dam. After a bit of sightseeing, we would make our way to Kingman Wash. Our 14 mile journey was over in about an hour and a half when our road dead ended at the lake.

Everyone was a bit tired from riding or flying all day, but that didn’t stop a few of us from polishing off a bit of whiskey. The night was too warm to sleep inside our bags, and the coyotes were quite active. As I fell asleep I thought about how weird it was to fly from Oregon to sleep out in Arizona before going to a big tradeshow in Nevada.

Early in the morning, the nine of us chatted about everything and anything over countless cups of coffee. A herd of bighorn sheep cruised by our camp. Adam found a rattlesnake just hanging out in a ditch. Down on the lake, a naked man piloted his kayak. Overhead, the grand canyon helicopter tours passed by every few minutes, filling the canyon walls with their loud chop. It was all quite surreal. The wind pushed against us on the four mile ride back to the main road. There, a cooler full of cold beers and a shuttle awaited us. When we arrived back in Boulder City the demo was going at full speed. Our group parted ways; each of us to our obligated work assignments.

As I fell asleep the next night in my hotel room, my mind began wandering. The inevitable cycle of planning next year’s trip had already started.