On your mark, get set, go!

September 5, 2014 ($175mxn)

Tijuana – Punta San Jose (180km)

Early morning, sunny skies and perfect timing, with emotional good byes to all my loved ones gathered together and inspiring music in the background, as I stylishly mount my fully loaded motorcycle and drive away into the horizon as my friends and family wave good bye. That is more or less how I imagined this six-month adventure would begin. However, that was not the case.

One week prior to departing, my family organized a dinner with all my loved ones and it was then when I said my farewells. This way, on D-day I would be ready to go first thing in the morning… ideally.

All of the equipment I needed had arrived in time, my motorcycle was in excellent shape, I was in great health and had nothing pending, except student loans, of course, those will follow me forever. For some reason, though, I did not start packing everything until the night before we took off. You see, what I should’ve  done, was pack everything days prior, go out for test rides, and adjust accordingly, leaving the entire set up well tuned in order to just start up the bike and ride off when the time came. Instead, I was fumbling back and forth that night, trying to perfectly arrange everything into the Wolfman luggage, like playing tetris: food in one saddlebag, clothing in the other, camping equipment in the duffle bag, essentials and documents in my backpack, frequent items in tank bag, and tools in the fender bag.

The reality is I was never entirely ready to go, despite knowing I wanted to, knowing I needed to. Maybe it was a mental thing, not believing in the reason behind this adventure, ‘what if this’, or ‘what if that’. Human nature, fearing and questioning the unknown, the uncertain. I wanted this trip because I was only thinking about the bright moments it would allow me to enjoy. I wanted to travel, I wanted to ride my motorcycle, I wanted to have no worries. Deep down inside me, though, with full acknowledgement, I also knew I needed this journey. I needed not only the bright moments, but also the dull and overcast ones this experience would undoubtedly bring forth. I needed to prove, not to anyone other than myself, that I could complete something of this magnitude. I needed the experience points, I suppose is a way of looking at it.

In a hurry, ill-packed, with my tank bag hung around my neck (bad idea) due to poor time management skills, I took a quick snapshot as my departing photo, said one last ‘goodbye’ to my family, and rushed to the customs office in Tijuana, Mexico where Dominic and Tom were already waiting for me. I noticed my mother’s teary eyes as she saw me leaving, and my brother, who has never been an affectionate person, even gave me a hug. I hugged my sister, niece and nephew and, with that, this trip had officially began.

By the time I met Tom and Dominic, it was already 5pm. The goal for Day 1 was to make it out to Punta San Jose, Baja California, where Dominic was expecting good surf the next morning. It was a reasonable distance to cover, but given the time we started at, we were obligated to break one of the rules we had established: No nighttime riding. It was Day 1, we had not even made daytime riding the norm, and yet we were already making an exception to riding in the dark. We broke that rule quite often in the coming months, actually.

Sometimes, while riding, I become self-absorbed into my own thoughts, daydreaming. As I did this while on the open road south of Tijuana, with autopilot on, I began assimilating the significance of what was currently taking place; these were the first miles of that (initially) four month trip we had planned and dreamed for a long time. It was happening, it was now a reality, but for some reason, it didn’t feel special, it didn’t feel real. Not yet, at least. We were currently covering previously known territory to us, from prior trips, which could be the reason for the lack of impressiveness I felt.

In the dark, we pulled off the main highway and turned into a dirt road that would lead us into Punta San Jose close to midnight. We triumphantly cheered the end of Day 1 and high-fived each other. We set up camp and I finally had the time to secure my tank bag to its proper place and off my neck.

Still reflecting on my emotions regarding my preparedness, I resolved to excitingly await the good, the bad, and the ugly experiences, all of which I would find personal growth through. As many preparations one makes, doubt and uncertainty may present themselves. In that moment, it is imperative to turn off “thinking mode” and just go for it. Whether it is an extensive motorcycle trip or any other life situation, I believe it applies to a wide range of circumstances. I would hate to be old and say “I never did x, y or z because I was afraid”.