It’s about 7 am and we are in the Bucknell van (Frank, Walt, Jay and myself) on the way to breakfast to pick up the route in Prescott, AZ. I’m not exactly sure what the word “craggy” means, but it’s the word that comes to mind when we roll through Arizona.
I got up a bit before 6 this morning and started knocking on doors to wake everyone else up. When I got to Walt’s door he was standing in the doorway in his biking outfit, pacing back and forth, ready to go. He had probably been there since 4:30 AM. I don’t know if you have gotten a sense of Walt’s personality from his blog and profile, but he is completely nuts. 112% crazy. Frank likes to compare Walt to a caged animal, and I think that’s about right. All he wants to do is ride and ride and ride. And take pictures. In fact, a photo op might be the only way to get Walt off his bike. That or a lasso.
I want to describe what is going on inside the van for y’all. Frank is driving and Walt is sitting shotgun in our sleek and stylish white 2007 Dodge Caravan with a gray interior. Jay and I are in captain’s chairs in the second row. Patty is missing, as he has been commandeered to help drive the Penn van (I drew the assignment yesterday and wore every article of Bucknell clothing I had so I wouldn’t feel quite so much like a traitor). In between Frank and Walt is a camera and assorted accessories, the RAAM directions so we only get a little lost, some chain lube, Jay’s computer pouch (his almost dead computer is in my lap), a mostly eaten container of trail mix, a towel, Jay’s iPod and associated electronics, a walkie-talkie that doesn’t work and a five gallon water jug filled up fresh from the shower this morning. In between Jay and me is a blue bag of unknown contents and Walt’s Camelbak. In the back, we’ve got several suitcases and duffel bags, mostly filled with Bucknell paraphenelia and some crates with bike equipment stuffed in them. Our van is actually pretty clean right now.
We pull over pretty frequently to take pictures, especially here in Arizona. Right now Walt is leaning over a guide rail on a big ol’ mountain trying to capture yet another Pulitzer-quality shot.
A roadrunner dashed across the road in front of the van yesterday and I wish we had taken a picture. The Looney Tunes cartoons are very misleading. I had always pictured a roadrunner as something that looked kindof like a smiling ostrich that said “Meep-meep” and vanished, leaving a cloud of dust and a frustrated and injured coyote behind. The other van saw a coyote, they claim Wil E. Coyote was too small in the cartoon. But you knew he had to be strong, think about the Acme rockets he was able to strap to his back and rollerskate after the roadrunner. What a creative and persistent dude the Coyote was!
Anyways, Jay made a nine hour playlist for the trip and researched the songs to be sure that he included music that was popular during Frank’s time in college. But Frank doesn’t seem to notice when the Beatles come on. Instead, he seems to really enjoy Regina Spektor (too bad he wasn’t in Lewisburg this summer) and Tom Petty’s “Free-Fallin’”. Frank breaks out in song frequently and keeps the entire group loose and laughing.
OK, I gotta give Jay his computer back so he can write those wonderful recaps you like to read on the home page of the web site. Sorry I haven’t written anything about the time we spent bouncing around LA or Day 1 or 2 yet. I’ll try to get to it later.
