directions_bikeWhen Mordor Clouds Part

My stomach was staging a full rebellion against latest dietary crimes – cakes, chips, and everything in between fighting for supremacy. Grinding into the headwind toward Žilina, I was actually savoring the resistance. Little did I know what nature had prepared for my return journey. What doesn"t kill you makes you stronger, right? :)

Descending into Budatín, the first raindrops arrived like uninvited guests. The wet skin immediately erupted in goosebumps from the descent wind, but movement is medicine – a few pedal strokes and the chill retreated. My mind started playing horror movies, flashing scenes from that brutal wet ride in Prečín that had murdered any chance of riding the next day. Rain so violent you couldn"t see past your front wheel, roads transformed into rivers, wind trying to physically remove you from the bike, chain stripped of every molecule of wax and lubricated with sandy grit instead.

Not this time. The black Mordor clouds that had been threatening total annihilation suddenly retreated, replaced by a masterpiece sunset - that belonged in an art gallery – the perfect mix of cloud shapes and colors that makes you forget every bit of suffering.

Had packed the jacket, leg/arm warmers, and extra gloves - all ready for whatever altitude fever or darkness might bring. Turns out I just gave my back a workout carrying dead weight. The temperature hit that impossible sweet spot where short sleeves feel perfect – maybe two moments of chill that vanished the instant my legs remembered their job. No sweat pooling, no shivers, just that rare equilibrium where your body and the world agree on everything.

The approach to Bodina turned into a horror show of invisible cyclists. First some girls pedaling through darkness, then few km later on another rider – all of them dressed for stealth operations. No lights, no reflective anything, just shadows on wheels. Wished I had spare reflective gear to hand out, but at least I could warn every car I passed about the human obstacles ahead. Hope everyone made it home.

Rolling into Bodina, a deer launched across the road – but with proper clearance this time, not the near-death experience from yesterday. Sometimes you get the bear, sometimes the bear gets you, and sometimes the deer keeps a polite distance.