As I stopped to gasp for air, mountain biking at nearly 11,000ft, I thought of how will the last two weeks had rushed by. We were in Crested Butte, CO, visiting Aaron’s brother Evan in the midst of our 3,000 mile move across the country. Days before we had been frantically packing, having last rides with friends, a going-away party which involved Bob and I singing a karaoke duet, and having many life lessons that moving can bring. The move was hard as it had come so suddenly and emotionally I had to sniffle between packing boxes as I was saying my good-byes to great friends. The move was also a life lesson as our moving quote was less than half of what the total expense came to be when everything was loaded onto the moving truck. Aaron and I gasped when they gave us the final bill and due to a lack of communication on the mover’s end, Aaron was able to negotiate some of the expenses down. “I guess this was a lesson that A, it would have cost less to throw more of our stuff away and buy it new than to truck it across the country, and B, we just need to get rid of more junk!”

So, my advice to you, is if you ever move, just estimate more than double what you think you have.

After the truck drove away on Sunday the 17th, Aaron and I met up with some friends for an easy ride. Once we returned, the car was packed , the apartment cleaned, and we headed on our adventure. A tear or two rolled down my face as we turned the corner onto Neponset St and onto I-95. We headed to Westborough to stay the night in a hotel where Aaron’s father Glenn was staying. It was father’s day and we were tired and in dire need of a shower. He listened to our stories of saying goodbyes and our life lessons and wished us on our journey.

The first day of our drive in our blue Suburu Imprenza was from Westborough, MA to State College, PA to visit our friend Clayton. He took us on a beautiful ride through the countryside and up a long 15 minute climb. Aaron took off out of his saddle, hoping to own the KOM, and I just sat comfortably with a smile on my face as I knew that he went out way too hard for the long climb. I took my time and enjoyed the scenery.

The following day we drove 11 hrs to St. Lois, MO to stay with Aaron’s grandparent’s. His mom’s side of the family all lives in St. Lois so we spent a wonderful evening visiting with family. Plus the next morning, Aaron’s grandma Yvonne made sure we were packed with plenty of food and cookies for the road!

Day 3 was the biggest stage of all. We drove nearly 1000 miles in 17 hours from St. Lois to Crested Butte, CO. As we had been making great time coming through Colorado Springs and onto highway 50, we suddenly came to a road closure as a nearby forest fire had suddenly been in our driving path. We pulled over and called Tiff (Evan’s other half) for an alternative route. “Over Cottonwood Pass,” she said, “it will be about 30 minutes longer but will get you here tonight. Sorry guys!” We debated staying the night in town and then heading up in the morning as by then we had been traveling for over 15 hours. We were exhausted but wanted to get there so we started driving. The pass was dark and windy. As we climbed to almost 12,000 feet the car began slowing and our ears popping. With the weight of our luggage in the car, the suspension was almost bottomed out so Aaron carefully drove down the dark road. After driving slowly through a bumpy construction zone, we finally made it to Evan and Tiff’s at 10pm that night. We had been driving since 6am.

The following day we stayed to visit with Evan and Tiff. Evan took us on an extreme mountain bike ride on one of the upper loops. We drove part of the way up, and started riding around 10,000 feet and climbed to almost 11,000ft! Every few feet I would stop to gasp for air and try to calm down my speeding heart. My body was freaking out as we had an extreme altitude change from the day before, being at sea level to now 11,000ft. I wanted to vomit and I thought my heart was going to explode. Evan rode next to me. “It’s ok Melissa. Take your time. Just push through this and after we get to the top, it’s all down hill. It’ll be worth it!” I shook my head and pushed the bike up the hill. I could hardly believe that I was suddenly riding like I was a very obese person. But Aaron and I knew coming to see Evan that he would have something in store for us that would have some sort of: fear of death, a challenge, and ultimately kick our butts. If you know Aaron and think he’s pretty extreme, meet Evan. He takes extreme to a whole new level (he’s a world class kayaker and back country skier). But I pushed forward and once I reached the top, suddenly my heart calmed and my body started adjusting to the altitude. I felt like flying.

We enjoyed our stay with Evan and Tiff, sleeping under the stars at night on his cozy deck, but on Friday morning, we were ready to head to our new home in Scottsdale, AZ.

The final drive was beautiful as we passed over the mountains and dropped into the desert. The temperature rose and once we had made it to Four Corners, the desert welcomed us by blowing it’s sand against our skin. We passed through the Navaho Nation and seeing the 3rd world conditions: battered homes, trucks carrying water (they have no running water), and people on the streets looking for work, made me appreciate everything I had. I couldn’t imagine the hard life they must endure.

We arrived in Scottsdale at almost 8pm that night. We rolled the windows down to feel the heat of our new home. We arrived, ready for the exciting challenges ahead.

On my journey, I have created a short video of the drive, however I am having technical difficulties with it crashing my computer each time I try to save it. So please stay tuned as I will have it up soon to share my perspective of our 3,000 mile journey across the U.S.