New Perk

So my job pretty much totally rocks my face off. On a weekly basis, I get to meet people with hearts big enough that they find themselves in Mexico building homes for those less fortunate. I see homes (not just houses) built and lives changed. I work outside and sleep under the stars when I choose. Both in the field, and back home at my desk, I work and live with amazing people who are an encouragement and help me see and understand what being a servant and a follower of Jesus look like. I am learning, seeing and experiencing more than I could have anticipated. While I have gone through and sacrificed so much to be here, I have been thankful for the fact that it has seemed that my job couldn’t get any better. Until now.

As I mentioned last week, I was able to repair The Superfly (or Interrobang), thereby making it Superfly 2.0 (or Interrobang 2.0) and giving me the opportunity to explore some mountain bike trails. I heard rumor that their were some trails near the Amor camp in Mexico, which were partially confirmed by recently witnessing cars driving by camp with mountain bikes attached to them on the weekends. This weekend, I had a one day trip scheduled. This meant that we would be arriving Friday evening, working Saturday and leaving Sunday morning around ten in the morning. I have become an early riser, so I saw Sunday morning as a potential opportunity to get out and explore a little bit on Superfly 2.0 (or Interrobang 2.0). As I put Superfly 2.0 (or Interrobang 2.0) into the back of my work truck, I really thought I was just having a pipe dream. I figured that the odds were firmly against there actually being nice trails near camp. It would just be too good to be true. Although I was taking my bike down to Mexico, I fully expected to lean it up against my trailer, walk past it repeatedly throughout the weekend and ultimately leave Mexico without having ridden it. As it turned out, the following was my timeline Sunday morning:

6:00 – Wake up, ponder over why I can rarely sleep past six anymore.
6:05 – Consider going for a bike ride, decide that it would be far more rewarding to stay in bed rather than ride aimlessly around Mexico trying to find trails that are probably just a fairy tale.
6:20 – Lay in bed, stare at the ceiling, realize that I will not be falling back asleep.
6:25 – Resign myself the fact that I will be spending my morning looking for trails that I do not believe exist.
6:40 – Finish taking care of morning stuff around the trailer.
6:41 – Begin locating and assembling riding gear so that I can get going.
7:00 – Skeptically getting rolling in the direction of the fabled trails.
7:15 – As I am riding down a dirt road, I spot a red arrow with the letters MTB painted on it pointing right. Shocked and excited, I turn right.
7:20 – See some trails on a hill to the left, decide to check them out.
7:25 – Realize these particular trails go nowhere, but discover a Mexican cemetery.
7:30 – Return to the road that the red arrow had directed me down, continue riding.
7:40 – Find another red arrow labeled MTB pointing straight down the road accompanied by a barbed wired gate that is wired up over the road.
7:41 – Remove gate, pass through and replace gate, all while questioning the wisdom behind this decision.
7:48 – Approach a card table placed in the middle of the road. The lady standing behind the card table informs me the bike trails are further down the road behind her and it will cost $2. Done and done.
7:50 – Arrive at an open field with a race staging area where it appears a race is being set up for later in the day. Proceed to pinch self to make sure I am not dreaming.
7:51 – Talk to race organizer. Unfortunately the race does not begin until 10:30, after my schedule departure time, but the trails are marked and I am more than welcome to get in a ride.
7:55 – Take off on some gorgeous Mexican singletrack. Pinch self again, is this really, really real?

(Towards the beginning of the ride . . . you can see the climb snaking up in the distance.)

8:05 – Stop for a breather – perhaps I got a little too excited.
8:05-8:40 – Enjoy a five mile loop of beautiful Mexican singletrack, including tough climbs, fun descents, beautiful scenery, and technical rocky sections including what seems to be a prehistoric creek bed.

(Eight foot deep, seemingly prehistoric creek bed.)

8:45 – Meet some Americans who have come down to Mexico from San Diego to race, and make some connections (one of them was even from Baltimore, small world). Talk to race organizers, find out about more races and trails in the area.
8:50 – Take off for camp, reluctantly, but knowing that I would be cutting it close to take another lap and make it back to camp by ten.
8:51-9:05 – Ride back to camp while literally getting passed by dozens of vehicles going in the opposite direction. This was clearly a big race.
9:05 – Arrive back at camp to find my group is nearly packed and ready to go, they want to leave a half hour early. Sweet!
9:35 – Leave camp, grab an ice cold Mexican Coke on my way over the border. For those of you that don’t know, Mexican Coke is sweetened with natural cane sugar rather than high fructose corn syrup, making it roughly 10,000 times more delicious than American Coke. Great Success!

Overall, I consider this to be a very, very, very successful morning. I am blown away by how many gifts I have received through my decision to come work with Amor. Honestly, having nice trails near camp is minute in comparison to so many of the other things that are taking place in my life. That said, I have made the biggest sacrifice of my life as a part of being here. As a result, every time I am affirmed or find something that just seems like a gift tailored specifically for me, I can’t help but feel encouraged by the very intentional design of so much that is happening. Enjoying my favorite hobby in Mexico just seemed surreal. Feeling the fun and envigoration of riding some nice trails can really take so much off my mind, if only momentarily. It allows me to get lost in the marvel of creation all around me and the amazing construction inside our bodies in my own way. It stuns me the types of things we have been designed to do and the doors our abilities open for exploration of creation. There were even some parts of this trail that were green and tree covered, giving me the brief, wonderful feeling of being back home in the rolling hills of Virginia. Although I consider so much of what I do a gift, it is still to great to get some outlets in the form of hobbies and fellowship. Additionally, I am so happy that yet another integral part of what makes me the person I am has found a niche in my new home. Even with all the sacrifice and trials that have come along over the recent months, encouragement seems unceasing.

(More beautiful views of the area surrounding the trail.)

Adelante!

-Clint