Finally! The US/Canadian Border!

Not to overshadow Jamie's post earlier today but we made it to the border today and it only took a century ride through Grizzly country in the heat to finish it off. I looked at this as a chance to play Great Divide Racer and get a feel for what those guys are doing. Being that I was going to be on my own all day, I would have to take the water filter and all the food/equipment I would need to get myself back out.

In order to beat the heat, I left Whitefish, MT at 5:40am which is right at dusk. I rolled out and finished the first pass (mile 32) before a ray of sunlight even touched me. Cresting the top, you got to see a hazy but incredible view of Glacier National Park as well as a pretty little pond that would look like the perfect place for a bear to live.

Riding without a trailer means you can really rip it downhill and slice through the switchbacks. I was doing this all in the big ring topped out when I came around a corner and saw...


A BEAR!!

WAIT A BABY BEAR!!

BABY BEAR MEANS OVER PROTECTIVE MAMA BEAR!

AM I BETWEEN MAMA AND BABY?!?!?

WHERE'S MAMA BEAR?!?!

CAN'T SEE MAMA BEAR

Baby bear turned and ran off at this point but I'm not hanging around.

I BETTER RUN!!!

SKID BIKE TO STOP, TURN 180 AND SPRINT UP HILL (at this point the adrenaline has kicked in and I don't know nor care that I am in the hardest gear possible to climb back up the hill I was decending)

I mash the pedal with some kind of super force and....

SNAP!!

SNAP?!? SNAP NOT GOOD.

WHERE'S MAMA BEAR?

WHY NO MOVING BIKE??

BETTER RUN!!

RUN NOW!

DROP BIKE, RUN!

LESS THINKING MORE RUNNING!!

I drop the bike and run, run as hard as I can back up the hill just waiting to hear some big Mama bear come crashing through the woods to rip me apart for coming within 30 yards of her child.

No crashing, no Mama bear, Lee's limbs may stay intact.

Regardless, after my heart exploded and my legs are pumping battery acid I stopped, heaving and gasping for air. I am carrying bear spray (a necessity in this part of Montana) yet I doubt it would have much effect on an enraged mother bear. Fortuneately Mother never came. I waited there for about 20 minutes before walking back down (while shouting and making as much noise as possible) to see what's left of my bike.

I broke the chain.

Not really wanting to take any more chances, I push my bike back up the hill where I was before and repair the chain. With no spare chain parts, I had to remove 4 links thereby shortening the chain and cutting my 27 gear options to only 18. Back ready to go, I make the decent again, shouting and singing whatever comes to mind all the way down. About 10 miles later, I ride by a big smelly pile of bear poo, once again, I'm on alert. Now I smell the distinct rancid BO/ musky smell described to me by locals. Second shot of adrenaline and I shifted, stood and sprinted up to 28 mph and held it until my legs once again pumped battery acid and I could not stand the pain anymore. Fortuneately again, no bear materialized.

After all that, I cut up a road by a river, through an area destroyed by a massive fire in 1988 and then back up and over another pass. This pass led me through a maze of mountains up on an exposed ridgeline through more heavily populated bear forest. Evidence of this was everywhere so I kept singing and shouting before every corner and I apparently scared everything away because I did not see any more wildlife for the rest of the trip. Once cresting the second pass, I flew down the pass and came out on pavement that led me the final 23 miles to the border.

There really isn't anything at the border except for the crossing itself. Jamie met me and we got our picture taken and that was that. All in all I really proud of our accomplishment and how we've been able to overcome all of the obstacles thrown at us. I would rather finish with Jamie riding beside me but we did what we could given what we had.

Now all that's left is for me to go back and ride the section we skipped between Lincoln and Wise River, MT.

The stats for the century itself leave me feeling pretty good about my fitness. The bear thing cost a little time but otherwise I did alright. For 105.92 miles, the front wheel turned for 8 hours and 46 minutes which gives an average speed of 12.07 mph.

Well, once again I'm out of time here at the library. Y'all have fun and if you see a cub, run before Mama finds out.

Lee