Day 71 - Van Horn, Texas
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This was the day my body gave up…
I had been doing great, pushing through this mission feeling strong and capable… But conditions got tough when day 69 came around, and the adventure became a lot more brutal on my body. I had a wheel fall off my skateboard and took a mean slam, skated and hiked 45 miles tiptoeing around rattlesnakes, with thorns stuck inside my shoe, and was up til 7 am, only to sleep on a bench for a couple hours. Day 70 had me hike another 20 miles through the Texas Desert, often on dead end dirt paths by the railroad, with overgrown brush making navigation difficult. Finished that day sleeping on the pavement of a gas station for 2 hours, and getting up feeling absolutely destroyed.
I planned on skateboarding this entire trip, but when my “winging it” navigation plans led me to a rough patch, I had to adjust. My route will be over 3,500 miles by the time I reach San Diego, so doing part of this trip on foot doesn’t upset me- my body just wasn’t ready for it. on the way towards town, the interstate was smooth, but I was choosing the service road that was bumpy as hell. I was stressed about getting rolled by the police if I skated too much directly on Interstate roads, and looking back- I should have just done it more! I had an awesome thing happen today- I was scraping by the final 10 miles and a woman stopped on the highway and left me a huge plate of food! It was a heart Mexican chicken dinner with hot corn and potatoes and stuffing- it was incredible, and I really needed it!
Deprived of sleep, and my legs wrecked from a 3-day 92 mile trek, I barely made it into Van Horn, Texas. I checked into my hotel and almost fell asleep immediately. I knew I had to paint, so I got up and hobbled towards the distant mountains. I found a lovely platform by the railroad and created one of my favorite paintings…
Throughout my travels I’ve seen 6 shooting stars, and have wanted to paint the night sky, but it’s tough in the dark. I took this opportunity to turn day into night, and paint this scene as though the sky was lit up with stars.
I ended this painting with some breathwork and stretches, and found it to be my most therapeutic session yet!
I had been doing great, pushing through this mission feeling strong and capable… But conditions got tough when day 69 came around, and the adventure became a lot more brutal on my body. I had a wheel fall off my skateboard and took a mean slam, skated and hiked 45 miles tiptoeing around rattlesnakes, with thorns stuck inside my shoe, and was up til 7 am, only to sleep on a bench for a couple hours. Day 70 had me hike another 20 miles through the Texas Desert, often on dead end dirt paths by the railroad, with overgrown brush making navigation difficult. Finished that day sleeping on the pavement of a gas station for 2 hours, and getting up feeling absolutely destroyed.
I planned on skateboarding this entire trip, but when my “winging it” navigation plans led me to a rough patch, I had to adjust. My route will be over 3,500 miles by the time I reach San Diego, so doing part of this trip on foot doesn’t upset me- my body just wasn’t ready for it. on the way towards town, the interstate was smooth, but I was choosing the service road that was bumpy as hell. I was stressed about getting rolled by the police if I skated too much directly on Interstate roads, and looking back- I should have just done it more! I had an awesome thing happen today- I was scraping by the final 10 miles and a woman stopped on the highway and left me a huge plate of food! It was a heart Mexican chicken dinner with hot corn and potatoes and stuffing- it was incredible, and I really needed it!
Deprived of sleep, and my legs wrecked from a 3-day 92 mile trek, I barely made it into Van Horn, Texas. I checked into my hotel and almost fell asleep immediately. I knew I had to paint, so I got up and hobbled towards the distant mountains. I found a lovely platform by the railroad and created one of my favorite paintings…
Throughout my travels I’ve seen 6 shooting stars, and have wanted to paint the night sky, but it’s tough in the dark. I took this opportunity to turn day into night, and paint this scene as though the sky was lit up with stars.
I ended this painting with some breathwork and stretches, and found it to be my most therapeutic session yet!
