Razor

I have some guys I know that are a little crazy, all return missionaries, really great guys actually... but they've just gone a little off the deep-end (judged by 'normal' standards). I actually think they're smart, they don't let 'social norms' hold them back, they actively pursue ideas that may seem impossible or ridiculous to others. One of their ideas of late was to get Razor scooters, and go as far as they could in a day. They chose Mona, UT as a good destination and began to plan and publicize. When I first heard of the idea, I told them it wasn't possible, that their scooters would fall apart after only a few miles (Mona is about 40 miles from Provo). However when they day came of their unheard of journey I had somehow been pulled it.

Starting just past 8 in the morning from a house north of BYU campus, we Razored... down 9th East and onto State St. Arriving in Springville I was surprised, no broken scooters (well only one wheel had problems, but they had replacements), no broken bones, and a lot of enthusiasm from all participating. We continued on, south into Spanish Fork and down Main Street (really fun!) out past the Hari Krishna temple, and into Salem. Finally the magnatude of what we were doing began to set in, we weren't quite halfway there, and it was getting hot, and we were getting tired... However out designated spot of lunch lay just over one small hill (One Man Band in Payson) so we pressed on.

After a rejuvinating lunch and rest we all felt ready to continue on with high hopes of reaching Mona soon. However Spring Lake had it's own ideas for us. As we Razored past Spring Lake Elem. School (down a hill) we felt fine, and quickly hopped back on the highway to head into Santaquin. That simple stretch of road nearly killed us. At the top of the second, LONG hill we reached a yet unopened gas station, thirsting for cold water, we settled to sit in the shade of the building and began to doubt the plausibility of the ride ahead. The rough shoulder of the highway was no place for a scooter, vibrations disabling your fingers and slowing you down with every push... I was done, I just didn't think going over the several hills reamaining between Santaquin and Mona was worth it at all. Eventually we realized that no one was taking us home, and giving up just wasn't really an option (who wants to say that that *almost* Razored to Mona?) Moving on under the freeway and up Santaqin main, second west on the left, and straight on 'til Mona. The majority of the riders felt it better to walk up the hills, ride across the flat section at the top, then coast down the side, before picking up their scooters and walking up the next hill (only on guy actually rode up all the hills and he's a cross country runner). Three hills later we found ourselves in an endurance ride through the outskirts of Mona. Luckily the sun was low enough that any trees on the side of the road provided paradisaical shade and some smooth recently re-paved section of road made coasting possible and then suddenly in the distance the sign was seen, "Welcome to Mona" and we all crossed, collapsing thereafter to rest until our ride back to Provo showed up about 10 minutes later.

We'd Razored from Provo to Mona, a 40 mile trip, nearly an hour drive in a car, and it took us 10 hours. What an accomplishment, what a sense of fulfillment resonated within our group. Two of the riders were complete strangers to be in the morning, but we were great friends as we rode side by side for most of the last few miles. What many thought wasn't possible now was done, conquered, and the seed of a legend was planted.