I like to explore. I always have. I started as a kid by hiking around the hills above my neighborhood. I believe it was doing that, and my curious nature, that got me interested in geology. Now, I say I’ve been interested in it since I was five. Five? Quite young you say? Yet, that far back, I would pick up a rock, and not just think “What a pretty rock!” I’d want to know more about it. How did it get there? why does it look the way it does? The earliest ones I remember were small pieces of rhyolite from the Mint Canyon Formation. They were mostly flow-banded, and sometimes had small quartz crystals within them. In setting out to find their source, I learned much about the local geology. I eventually learned of the Mint Canyon Formation’s age and how it was formed. As it turned out, I would never have found the source, at least locally. The San Andreas Fault had offset the source area for the rhyolite by about 120 miles or so. The rocks came from what are now the Chocolate Mountains east of Indio. So through all that, I got more interested in geology. I look around at rock formations all the time, study them. I go on annual trips to Death Valley just to learn more about geology. As such, it all adds to my want to explore. When I go on bike rides, I always look at the road cuts to see what sort of rock I’m riding through. I look at the overall terrain, and try to piece together how it was formed. The same applies when I go for a drive, go hiking, or even take the train.

There is a line in a song by America – Horse With No Name. I hear it, and am always reminded of Death Valley and the pluvial lakes/rivers that existed in the Basin and Range province. The line “After three days in the desert fun I was looking at a river bed, and the story it told of a river that flowed made me sad to think it was dead” really strikes true with me. I look at the Amargosa River bed or even the Mojave River bed, they do tell their stories of when they flowed, and I do think it is sad to see them dry as they are now. I would like to have seen the western US during the Pleistocene. Think of all the lakes, rivers, waterfalls, glaciers, and countless other features that existed then, that no longer do. Death Valley is one of those places, where Lake Manly once existed. With the exception of portage around waterfalls (Fossil Falls among others), a kayak trip from Mono Lake to Death Valley might have been possible. As you can see, my interest in geology goes deep.

So back to explorations, I used to have a mountain bike. I rode it everywhere. I even went on my first bike tour on it in 2001, knobby tires and all. It wasn’t until 2008 that I even got on a road bike, but wasn’t quite impressed. It was too bumpy a ride, too unnerving. It just didn’t sell me on getting one. I still felt I would find something though, as I wanted an easier ride for a bike tour I had planned for August of 2009. In October 2008, I went shopping. I ended up at the Performance Bike in Sorrento Valley. After looking at the bikes, and telling them what my plans were, they pointed me towards this road bike that had wider, somewhat knobby tires. I wasn’t quite sure about it. I wanted a road bike. I was led to believe this was a more robust road bike, capable of handling touring and anything else I might want to do. It certainly looked nice. It took some convincing to get me to buy it. They never told me what the bike was really capable of. I would find that out, in time.

That decision to buy that bicycle has changed my life in ways I didn’t expect. At first, I found I would go much faster than I used to. I seemed to zip around everywhere I went. I was putting the same energy into the bike as I was with the mountain bike, but getting much more out of it. I would go on longer rides, more road rides, than I had before. Eventually, I found I could take the bike off road. At first, dirt roads were all I took. Later, I would take singletrack trails, such as the upper portion of the Noble Canyon Trail or the Big Laguna Trail. With my abilities and confidence growing, I took my explorations to a whole new level. I would no longer look at road conditions or hills along the way. I would plan a route, and take it. If that meant riding a singletrack trail, then the shoulder of a freeway, so be it. I’ve found many non-standard routes for getting around as a result. It has really expanded my idea of freedom, in relation to travel. I feel like I have more freedom to travel as I can take just about any trail or roadway to get me somewhere. On the singletrack trails, I would get looks from the mountain bikers, wondering what I was doing there on a road bike. Nope, not a road bike, a cyclocross bike. The go anywhere bike. I’ve taken mine to Mammoth Mountain, had lots of fun there. The bike does have its limitations, but so do I. If I have to get off and walk it, no problem – even in cyclocross racing there are sections where you have to get off the bike.

My fitness level has greatly improved since I got the bike. I ride now more than I drive. In the past two years since purchasing the bike, I’ve ridden over 10,000 miles. I never figured that would happen. I’ve ridden to work for the past two and a half years. I’ve lost about 30 lbs, gained more muscle in my legs, and am in much better health. All these benefits because I like to go out and explore. The new bicycle has helped me in that quest. I’ve also set higher goals for myself. I plan to ride a double century in 2011. It won’t be an organized one, but one of my own planning. I’ve found the ride I plan myself to be much more fun. My routes aren’t the usual ones, I might even have some dirt trail to ride. Why ride 200 miles in a day? Is it the bragging rights? Is it to prove something? Nope. For me, it is only to expand my ability to go on the rides I like to. If I am able to ride 200 miles in a day, then I can ride any route that I set up for myself. It opens up possibilities for me that I wouldn’t have considered previously. Did I ever think I’d ride from San Luis Obispo to Ventura in a day? Or Monterey to San Simeon in a day? I didn’t think it was possible, until I went on a 151 mile ride from San Luis Obispo to Ventura in May 2010.

While I don’t suggest everyone go out and do what I’ve done, it is something that more are capable than they think. At one point, going around the block was a big deal, then across town, then across the county. Now, I’ve crossed counties and even a state. It just takes a vision and the ambition to go out there and do it. My ultimate goal is to see more out there exploring as I do, learning more about their local environment. So get out there – it is a big planet and has lots to see!