It wasn't always an easy ride for Phil Jackson.

"That last stretch was tough, about 480 miles into the wind," Jackson mused last week in a telephone interview about returning on his motorcycle, across the Dakotas, to his Montana home over the summer. "I'd usually do the 600 miles in one day, but all the way into the wind it was dirty, dusty. I had to stop after 480."

That was only a fraction of the miles Jackson traveled last summer on his motorcycle. He made a big loop around the Rocky Mountain states and the Plains to attend a high school reunion in Williston, N.D. He saw friends and the backwoods and the soaring beauty of America.

It was an eye-opening trip for Jackson, who was given another view of life after heart surgery last spring. Familiar sights seemed clearer.

It was during that span--June 30--that Jackson happened to land for the night in tiny Eagle, Colo. It seemed like an ideal place to stop. The town is high in the mountains, seemingly closer to the brightest stars.

Jackson had no idea how close.

Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant was there as well. The events of June 30 would eventually lead to sexual assault charges being brought against Bryant in Eagle.

"Unbeknownst to me, he was just six miles down the road," Jackson said. "We weren't aware of the fact. We knew he was looking for medical clinics to appraise his knee and the situation. But it caught us by surprise."

The paths of Jackson and Bryant will cross again this week as NBA training camps open. But a season that looked so promising for the Lakers, who signed All-Stars Gary Payton and Karl Malone, won't be an easy ride.

"I'm certain I look at every year as a great challenge," Jackson said. "But this is going to be one of the most challenging years I can see."