Everest

I’m re-reading Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer. This book is a “personal account of the Mount Everest disaster” that occurred in May 1996. Climbing Everest, or any peak for that matter, feels hard to comprehend. The desire to spend several weeks climbing from Base Camp to the various camps that are set up higher on the mountain is hard to comprehend. And yet, this book tells the story of so many climbers, guides and workers that put themselves in those situations. It’s easy for me to think, I could never do that. But what’s actually the biggest truth is, I don’t want to do that. I don’t desire to climb Mount Everest. If I did, then perhaps I could consider, *could* I climb Mount Everest? 
I consider my bicycle ride to be someone else’s Mount Everest. They could never imagine themselves riding their bicycle hundreds or thousands of miles. That’s fair! When people say, I could never do that, I think what they probably also mean is, I don’t want to ride my bicycle that far. 
I’m weeks away from pedaling away from Goreville, IL. I’m feeling really excited about the first couple weeks, as I’ve got some ideas how it might feel to ride across the Midwest. I’m less sure about the last three weeks. I feel more nervous about how it’ll feel to ride through the Rocky Mountains and up into the northern plains. But I’m feeling up for the challenge and ready to see what’s next. 

View at Red Rock Open Space, Colorado Springs, CO

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