I was in my new tent, camping by myself in Jose Delgardio’s backyard in the jungle town of Villa Tunari. At one in the morning, the grass around the tent was flooding and the rain pelted above my head like a cold shower.

We finally got the bike in fighting form and high-tailed it to Mizque, arriving several hours after the others as the sun dipped below the mountains. Somebody handed me a beer, we made our way to the grill, and I learned that I had a new nickname: “Pinch Tire Luke”.