In Bend, I stayed with Marcel, a former professional cyclist from Switzerland. Marcel is a really cool guy who lives in a cabin with a great collection of bikes (like the one he rode in the Tour de France). I met him through his daughter, Isabelle, who used to work at my aunt’s horse farm. The night I came in we all went out to the Deschutes Brewery and had a great time. Got a few great bits of cycling wisdom: i.e. dates are an amazing slow burning energy source, a bright-colored flag attached to the left of the bike is a game changer in terms of cars giving you space (he gifted me one). The next day, I planted and played a tune at the canal by his place.
In the morning, I woke up to the smell of smoke – the AQI was red. The wind had shifted in the night and the smoke from the massive Cedar Creek wildfire made its way to Bend. Thankfully, Marcel was kind enough to give me a ride out of the smoke so I could continue my journey safely. Thanks for everything, Marcel!
