Cattle Country!

Hi YA"LL!!

Boy are the people here in Texas just the friendliest...you feel as though you have known them all your life! We are in the town of Dalhart, Texas...cattle, grain and train country...and miles and miles of plains. The two lane highway is nice with a wide bike lane...lots of trucks moving cattle though. Somehow we have been missing the rain here...it was windy last night and Stan said they had the worst bicycle ride this morning fighting the wind.

Yesterday the guys met up with a young group of about 30 cyclist... doing what do you think? Cycling from Manhatten Beach to Boston in 50 days. Stan and Roy rode with them for 20 miles or so drafting a little and increasing their mph to 18+. Not bad for ol' guys!! This group averages about 75 miles per day and sleeps in hotels every night. Their SAG wagon follows behind providing food, drinks etc. Trip cost is about $8,ooo per person.

Stan and I toured this little town of 7,000 and wondered where everyone was. Only one fourth of the stores were open for business... the rest were empty. The streets in the old section were made of bricks. I talked with the lady at the fabric store and she said everyone drives south to the big city of Amarillo for business and shopping...that's over 100 miles!

Hope everyone is doing well.

LOVE YA', Helen

We're in "Norma" Country!

Yes, we crossed the New Mexico/Texas border this afternoon! Beautiful weather and the road was straight. The towns here are far and few.

Tucumcari, New Mexico

Dear Class,
Good Morning to all of you. It is Tuesday morning, May 29 and we are in Tucumcari, New Mexico! This afternoon we will cross the border and be in the northwest corner of the state of Texas. Can you find where I am on the map?
Have a wonderful day!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Rose

1,150+ Miles And Still Pedaling!

*Finished Week # 4 and Day #28
* Visited 3 states / 12 different RV Parks / 2 National Parks/8 Indian Reservations
*Total of over 2,500 biking miles
*Chased by over 35 dogs
*14 Flat tires changed
*2 cases of Clif Bars devoured
*About 40 gallons of water consumed
*One pant size lost
*1/3 of destination completed

Nature Center in Albuquerque, NM

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Well, we arrived in the BIG city of Albuquerque, New Mexico on Wednesday evening and we are still here! The wind in the late afternoons has been ghastly!! Especially in our Fifth Wheel....I really wanted to be in my solid rock home in Santa Maria!
We learned immediately that this city is truly "Biker Enthusiastic"! There are over 85 miles of biking trails. We received a very thorough "Metropolitan Albuquerque Bicycle Map" with color-coded bike lanes, bike trails and recreation trails. We all rode our bikes the past two days on our favorite trail, the Paseo del Bosque which goes along the Rio Grande River, past the zoo, Nature Center, and the Botanical garden...over 16 miles one way. It was great to see so many people of ALL ages using these trails either biking, rollerblading or walking ... a very cross section of the community.
Today was a wonderful day weather-wise...it only rained slightly, conveniently AFTER our ride and the wind didn't come up!!! We attended Saturday evening mass at John XXIII Catholic Community up on a hill overlooking the city...lovely view...very modern church architecturally - round with interesting ceiling beams. A wide red cloth was draped on the beams from the entrance to the altar. Behind a simple altar was a plain wall that served as a screen for the music to be sung by the congregation. I forgot my camera, DARN!
We will bike again tomorrow and rest Monday when we head east to Tucumcari, New Mexico....What a name!
Take care and I look forward to hearing from you. Love Ya', Helen