Day Twenty-five - Brackettville to Camp Wood

Today was kind of another recovery day from the 111 mile day. Mary doesn't think I said enough about that day, so I will go into alittle more detail. We went in with a plan. We stopped every twenty miles at the SAG to refuel and top off our water. Oh yeah, and to get off that little seat for a few minutes. They were very short breaks. Hit it while your hot was how we were thinking.We had no idea when the winds would kick in. We reached the lunch stop much earlier than expected so we had to wait while they put everything out. We quickly ate and hit the road again. Canada came out strong and pulled away (this would be her first century ride), so, again, it was Mary and I pacing each other in. We completed 111 miles in 6 hours and 18 minutes. Our average was 17.5 MPH. Probably the fastest century ride I will ever do. Virtually all of the elements were in our favor.

OK, now that said, back to today's ride. It was a good day. Our total mileage was only 48 miles with 1300 feet of elevation gain. Days like today are nice because we get to sleep in a little longer and let it warm up outside before we have to leave. We can actually stop and smell the flowers, or at least take some pictures of them. Our next two days are short which means we will be climbing again. I do believe that we will be through the worst part of the trip by Thursday. We only have eight more days in Texas and I hope we will be done with the chip n seal. It really just beats you up. We were in early enough to have a nice lunch, get our laundry done, and make it to happy hour with time to spare.

P.S. We are not expected to have internet service for the next 2 days. I will post when I can.

23 days down and 29 to go.

Day Twenty-four - Del Rio to Brackettville

We had a very light day today as far as mileage went, so we made some stops along the way. First we went to Wal-mart to stock up on misc first aide items. I had to get something to deal with my second injury of the trip, which is my thumbs. They’re so dry, they’re splitting and very sore. Then, to help ease the pain, we went to Ross’. I bought a new outfit and immediately felt better. We got back on the road and headed to Brackettville. I am thrilled to see green again. The scenery is finally changing. There are flowers along the road. The road surface was horrible. The worst of the chip n seal we have encountered so far here in Texas. Well, we were warned. After a few hours of vibrating, we pulled into Fort Clark Springs. We are staying at Fort Clark. I understand that John Wayne lived here while he was making The Alamo. We were also told that General Patton lived here. I have included some pictures of the pool. It’s huge and the water is about 70 degrees. We were able to actually swim some laps. It was the highlight of my day! We rode 43 miles with a total elevation gain of just 728 feet. I could use a couple of more days like this.

P.S. Amy is training to ride a bull. She thought she had better start with something a little smaller, so she tried her hand on the Javalina! She did great.

22 days down and 30 to go.

Day Twenty-three - Sanderson to Del Rio

111 miles......

Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses!
(as Willy would say)

I said to my roommate last night that if the wind would cooperate with us today, I would kiss the ground when we got here. Well, my camera decided to die today and I couldn't see doing it if it couldn't be documented. So maybe next time. We had a few little sideways gust and a little tailwind from time to time, but overall it was calm and we sailed along. We climbed 3103 feet, but it was mostly rolling hills. Nothing too steep. The temperature was just about perfect, the traffic light, and the road surface, though not perfect, was OK. Out of the 22 cyclist on the trip, only one person sagged a small portion at the beginning. Everyone else completed the ride in record time. Carol said that will probably never happen again. Normally the headwinds are horrible, the temperature is alot warmer, and the few people that do finish, are straggling in pretty late in the day. We also beat the record for the fastest times in. We celebrated with pizza and beer. What a great day! Good night.

21 days down and 31 to go.

Day Twenty-two - Marathon to Sanderson

Yeeeee Haw! That's Texan for we had a really good day. I guess the wind had finally decided that we needed a break. It was at our backs for the last 3/4 of the ride. There was barely any traffic, so we could ride in the road, which was a lot smoother than the shoulder. We got in early, had some lunch, showered, and still have ample time to prepare for tomorrow. We are staying at the Outback Oasis Motel. It's not quite at the 5 star level we had last night, but our only other choice was The Desert Air Motel. We rode passed it on the way in and we think we got the better deal. The rooms aren't too bad. We've had much worse. Remember the Bates Motel? I was warned however, not to enter the little room off the lobby. They keep a variety of snakes in there. Dead and alive. Noooooo Problem. Well, tomorrow is our longest mileage day at 111 miles. We are all praying for the wind to cooperate. A lot of the women have never ridden 100 miles in one day and are a little nervous about it. We were told that the weather, as far as the temperature goes, has been about 10 to 20 degrees cooler than it usually is. That is definitely been helpful.

We rode 54 miles today with an elevation gain 534 feet. Another reason it was a great day!

20 days down and 32 to go.

Day Twenty-one - Fort Davis to Marathon

Dictionary definition of wind: air moving from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure.
My definition of wind: treacherous, unrelenting, vicious movement of air spinning in all directions.

Today the wind wasn't as bad as somedays, but it continued to blow relentlessly. We had it coming at us in the wrong direction most of the day. From the left side, from the right side, and head on, until about mile 52, at which point we finally picked up a slight tailwind and cruised the last 8 miles into town. The highlight of the day was, of course, food related.... we stopped in the town of Alpine at a little coffee shop called the Bread and Breakfast. They had the best cinnamon rolls. We took a vote and rated them a 10! We arrived at our hotel at about 2:30. We're staying at the Gage Hotel. It is definitely a 5 star hotel. The rooms and the grounds are elegant and well maintained. Their bar claims to be "The best little bar in Texas". They have t-shirts that say so. They have a pool with a lap lane. I took advantage of that right away. It was great. We peddled a total of 60 miles today with 1138 feet of elevation gain. The landscape isn't changing a whole lot, so I didn't take alot of pictures. Well, that's all for now. Tomorrow is another day.

21 days down and 33 to go.