Tribe

Riding Day 14

Today was the best day of riding so far, and we covered 112.57 miles from El Paso to Van Horn, TX, which ain’t too shabby for two geriatric bicycle riders! The winds picked up as predicted in the early afternoon, and Odie and I simply put our heads down and cranked out the miles in a glorious blur of speed and focus. We kept the RPMs elevated, which is the secret to going fast, and I kept looking down at our shadow flying alongside us, amazed at how easy it felt. Days like this on a bike are rare, but we’ve already experienced two of them in the last week.

The thing that made the day truly special, though, was that we kept meeting up with members of our tribe, those kindred souls who have chosen to ride coast to coast on their own recognizance and without the support of an organized tour group. This tribe includes the brothers Von & Wendell, Dustin & Ana, our new friend Jamie Lee who hails from Australia, and occasionally Oscar the Frenchman. There may be others who will eventually join our tribe, but for now it’s these good folks who have become our road family.

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During my time as an air traffic controller in that other lifetime, there was always a food truck that would come by the facility around 9 in the morning and then again at lunch time. And at every facility this food truck was always called “the roach coach.” And why am I telling you this, you might ask? Well, the OREM has become the “roach coach” for bicycle riders of the Southern Tier. We’ve told every member of the tribe that if they see the OREM parked alongside the road, it’s open for business free of charge. Odie and I are truly blessed to have The Bob trailing us in a vehicle filled with energy drinks, nutrition bars, cookies and candy for quick energy, chips for fat and sodium, apples, dried fruit, two 7-gallon tanks of water, and so on. Sharing such abundance is a no-brainer, and the camaraderie that has grown amongst us will be one of the best things I take away from this adventure.

Tomorrow we’ll be turning south on Highway 90 with the goal of making it to Marfa, TX. The winds will be similar to today’s, which will mean that we will have a quartering headwind for most of the day, which is far better than a direct headwind, but still a challenge. Marfa is approximately 73 miles away, and we hope to leave early enough to avoid most of the stronger afternoon winds

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Tonight, we are once again in a hotel thanks to The Bob. He had a free night coming to him at a Holiday Inn, and he surprised Odie and I as a reward for having such a great day on Hank the Tank. So far we’ve only camped 6 nights out of the 14 days we’ve ridden, which feels a bit like cheating, but my oh my do those showers feel good! And the difference between starting to ride after a night in a tent versus a night in a hotel is a wide chasm indeed. We’re 945 miles into the journey, basically 1/3 of the way completed, and I’m certain there are plenty of nights of camping in our immediate future. Anyway, I’m pooped and ready to lay my weary bones down on a soft bed before rising with the sun to do it all again. Good night all, and remember to be kind to those you meet along life’s road, cause we’re all in this together…