Biting Off more than I Can Chew (Brookings to Eugene)

The beach at Brookings Or.

In the tree hole I couldn't make the flash work well enough to show its proper depth but it was probably two feet above my head
I finally made it
The tree hole I jumped into

When I said going to get through the southern part of Oregon pretty quickly I was kind of joking, but upon realized how close I was to Eugene, there was no way I was going to mess around and wait for the ensuing storm to come and hit me. This part of the country is beautiful, but the idea of a nice bed to sleep in, the ability to feel safe, and seeing some old friends was so close I couldn't handle the thought of camping through more nights of rain, and the cold front that was beginning to press down upon me. My drive to get up the coast line was so great it forced me to do the two longest days yet, one 85 from Gold beach to Coos Bay and the next day of 95-100 going from Coos Bay all the way into Eugene. I was supposed to meet my friends in Florance Oregon today (Friday the 8th), but there was no way that I was willing to wait in some terrible storm felling like a pussy when I could just (what I thought) easily ride it in myself. In the morning at Coos Bay I thought that I would be able to (if I didn't camp) make it the full 100 miles and ride it into Eugene. This was, flat out, a total over estimation on my own riding ability. It is (I promise) extremely hard to ride 100 miles over the coastal range after riding 85 miles the day before. After getting up at 6 am so I could get up and out as early as possible (to avoid the camp ranger that I didn't pay) I rode the first 25 miles from Coos Bay to Reedsport, I felt good and it was still about 10 am. I figured that turning up the Smith river road and riding the last 75 miles to Eugene would be a breeze. I stopped at the Chamber of Commerce in Reedsport before taking this side rode, to just to make sure it would be safe for me to go up it, and if it was even possible to make it over it in one day. The only response that was given was how desolate the road was, and that it was 75 miles long. In my gusto to get to Eugene I decided that this was totally worth it. I mean I would have forgotten about later that night when I was sitting around. I figured prolonged pain for one day was worth all of the prolonged happiness I would get from the unlimited sitting around I had the opportunity to finally do. I started to ride, after 30 miles down this fire road (it was paved but not very well kept with no people anywhere.) I started to think to myself that this was maybe going to be a little bit harder than saying "fuck it I'm going to do this." It had rained, hailed, and sleeted on me all day, and after feeling damp and cold for such a long time I started to realize that I was get drained. Another ten miles down the road I began to hit the wall. I could barley turn my crank, barley had enough energy to keep my steady momentum going forward. As I started to bonk, very, very, hard I hit the real mountains! I had to climb the the coastal range to make it to Eugene, and in the state that I was in this seemed impossible. I stopped to eat, that was the only possible way I could even consider the idea of making it. In stopping I became extremely cold, I was soaking wet all day, and it was only 9 degrees C, so stopping my body was not only a waste of very limited daylight, but it also broke the endorphin train that I was on breaking much of the will power that I had left. In stopping I began to shake uncontrollably, I was hitting the wall so hard that I didn't know what to do. I started panic very badly, this is the first time I have really lost all of my inner drive and the hope that help would come. The idea of camping kept flashing through my head and that was worst case scenario from the beginning. The ground was so mucky that it would have been really unsuitable to pitch my tent on anything except for the blacktop road, and the temperature was starting to fall fast. This was shaping but to be the worst night of my entire life, and I could not shake that thought, it consumed me, forcing me going deeper and deeper into my panic state. The idea of getting defeated by this road and suffering the consequences for it was a very daunting way to end my day, it would have shaken me for the entire rest of the trip. In all honesty I would have road into Eugene the next day, (having no other choice) but it would have been in very bad shape. As I sat at the bottom of the hill so panic stricken I thought I was going to puke (I was very very shaken and tired and cold.) One out of the five cars I saw on the entire stretch drove by me. It happened to be a truck, and I knew that was the only way I was going to make it to anywhere that help would be available. I flagged him, forced him to stop, this is the first time I have ever stood in the road, showing that I was in extreme distress. Upon explaining my situation he didn't really want to give him a ride at all. He was an old logger named Brian, and thought that I was like all the other dumb ass kids he worked with. He kept telling me that I really deserved to suffer my consequences, to make sure that the lesson became ingrained. No one in the entire world is that heartless though. He in the end, of course, he gave me a ride telling about how I should tell all of the girls that I meet about how far I rode, and how no one helped me. He was very into the idea of me picking up chicks with that type of tactic, supposedly it was what he would always do to his wife. I was given a fifteen mile ride to the top of the coastal range, being dropped off in Crow Oregon. From there it was another 30 miles to Eugene but it was all down hill and flat. By that time, I was so ready to make it that it was pretty easy to muster enough strength to ride it all the way in. This was the heaviest experience i have had on this trip. It has really shaken me. The fact that when I needed to keep myself together the most, I lost it. This can not happen to me again, it is really just too dangerous. Keeping a calm collective mental attitude is really important for me to do at all times. It is really scary to know that I still have a lot of capability of reverting back to my old notorious self of constantly making massive mistakes induced because of being too panicky self. I cant let this happen again!
Over all I have been doing well. I have hit new bike riding abilities, and now I'm in Eugene where I can laugh on what I have done, and prepare myself for the future. I so incredibly excited to spend some time with Stroob, Unger, Cooper, Nick, Joe, and Kerry I can't even relate the feelings into words. So I hope that I can make some money and heal my body for a little bit before I take off on the the second half of the trip.
Tim
P.s. I don't have much to say about southern Oregon I rode straight through it without looking around... IT was stormy and shitty and I wanted to go, I think that the Sand Dunes are pretty awesome but I didn't spend anytime in them.