February 28, 2024
Day 31 - Falling Like The Stars
I fell! It was scary. But we woke up and another one of the most amazing hotel breakfasts. We had some nice tailwind once we got started. For the first 60 miles we dealt with heavy traffic and lots of construction. Pretty much the only cars the passed us were semis or pickup trucks. I could probably count on one hand any other type of car. At 17 we stopped. We were riding in the shoulder they closed off or the other lanes they closed off. And when we weren’t doing that we were riding on a shoulder that would sometimes get very, very narrow. Around mile 20 we were on a shoulder. It got very, very narrow. We looked ahead and saw semis barreling towards us. Same thing when looking back. At times cars are patient. They will wait. I knew this semi wouldn’t wait. I saw a driveway into an oilfield upcoming. Figured I’d get there. The semi passed me. Probably within an inch or two. My dad got safely to the driveway. I was too focused on getting safe and missed a 3 inch lip. It was 3 inches higher on that driveway. Just a drop off. I went straight into it. Thankfully I fell to the right. Out of traffic. I looked and my bike as close as it was to the road was safe. I jumped up to get safe. Shockingly everything on my bike was fine. Somehow my derailleur didn’t get messed up. Now I know how I didn’t fall into traffic. It’s undeniable the ways that God is protecting us out here. I can give you an clear example from everyday where it’s clear. It was pretty ugly in Texas. But we got to some rises and were able to look out for miles on miles. At oil fields. After lunch at mile 60 we were on a really fun road for about 40 miles. It was real hilly, windy and now we were starting to see mountains. Well hills then mountains that were very distant. We went to New Mexico to take a picture and I really had to get to the bathroom so was not enjoying it. We had about 10 miles to a rest area so I made sure we worked hard to it. Made it. Barely. We waited there for some time. Resting. Fueling. Eating. Drinking. Procrastinating. We had 10 miles left and about 1100 feet of climbing. I didn’t really want to do it. We got going. It was really cool with the mountains. Eventually we made it. After I was dripping in sweat and my chain fell off. Made it to the campsite but we switched cause this one is better. Asked some people if they’d boil water for us. They did. Dina and Arnaud. From Germany. More Germans! Called Grace and had my chicken pesto pasta. Absolutely incredible views from the campsite. We won’t be riding tomorrow! Today’s high was 50° and it was freezing rain tonight. We’ll hike Texas’s highest point tomorrow. Staying at about 5800’ above sea level so will probably be sucking air for some of it. Can’t wait for a change! It should be beautiful. Longest day on this trip. Feeling good.
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Today's ride: 122 miles (196 km)
Total: 2,375 miles (3,822 km)
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