Save 22 A Day Trans-America Cycling

The link to today's route and statistics is found here . A great, yet difficult, day in the saddle in west Texas.  Our tour leaders picked a superb route that was a deviation from the Adventure Cycling Association (ACA) map.  There was a lot of wildlife and scenic beauty along today’s route. It was a tough slog climbing  into the wind of 20 to 25 mph on Texas Farm Road 505.  Eventually we climbed to an elevation of  5860 ft.  The gently downhill for 10 miles near the end of the ride didn't seem like a downhill, because of the wind.  Several riders commented that today was the most difficult of the tour, due to the wind. At least three herds of pronghorn antelope were seen as we rode up Highway 90 in Antelope Valley.  One herd was on the shoulder of the highway as the author rode up.  Antelope are extremely skittish, so they run off before one gets an opportunity for a close-up photograph.  In fact the antelope that were on the sh...

The link to today's route and statistics is found here . Special Blog of Rest Day in Las Cruces on April 14 by Guest Author, Kristin The best possible way to rest is to have fun!  Our Trans-America Cycling team spent our first full rest day, Day #14, “resting” in Las Cruces, NM. I planned a full day of visiting key spots around town for the team, and we had a blast. We started by taking Uber downtown. Just ordering an Uber from my iPhone was a cultural experience for our Maltese riders. They found the drivers and vehicles to be, “quite exquisite.” When we arrived downtown, we found a comic store, museums, a movie theater that plays the classics, bookstores, and restaurants, all with a fountain for kids to run through in the center. We made our way to Beck’s Coffee where we got coffee that met our Swiss riders’ standard. In front of Beck's Coffee From there, we walked to Little Toad Brewery where we shared flights of beer  Toasting at Little Toad Brewer...

The link to today's route and statistics is found here . The morning began with a farmer on an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) describing a 9-11 memorial in Clint to the author.  The memorial was at the bottom of the hill below the Best Western Motel in which we stayed.  Clint decided to build the memorial in remembrance of the persons in and around the buildings who died when the Twin Towers In New York City collapsed, and as a tribute to the heroic First Responders, both firemen and police, who ran into the buildings to save lives.  Many of those First Responders made the ultimate sacrifice.  The farmer explained that the memorial is built of solid concrete cylinders used by a local test laboratory for testing concrete strength.  Each cylinder was loaded in compression until it had a first crack.  The cylinders were painted on the ends to represent an American flag, and with the pattern used, this allowed only 49 stars.  Therefore these Texans ad...

The link to today's route and statistics is found here . Today was our last ride in New Mexico, as we cycle into Texas for 18 days.  New Mexico has been very accommodating; the best cycling roads/shoulders on the trip so far have been in New Mexico rather than in either California or Arizona.   We have so many award winning quality photographs today, it is difficult deciding which to include in the blog.  The first photo is not award winning quality, however, it is our only photo of our signed entry into Texas.   There was no large sign proclaiming TEXAS, since we entered on a minor road. Entering Texas in El Paso were Ray, Roberto and Barry Back at the start of the day at the motel, Ray from Pennsylvania is doing anything he can to get close to our Swiss lady riders. Ray pretends to be Swiss with Nichole and Ester   On our ride today we kept seeing pecan orchards all the way from Las Cruces to El Paso.  I will think o...

New Mexico has long touted itself as a state with a rich heritage that is a blend of three different cultures (Native American, Hispanic and European) that have amalgamated in a positive way.   There are 23 Indian tribes located in New Mexico - nineteen Pueblos (most situated near the Rio Grande River), three Apache tribes (the Fort Sill Apache Tribe, the Jicarilla Apache Nation and the Mescalero Apache Tribe), and the Navajo Nation.   New Mexico has been celebrating its diversity well before it has become fashionable to do so.  Cyclists revisiting the state should check out the many Native American and Mexican festivals that take place through the year.  Albuquerque and Santa Fe have large cultural centers in which to learn about the different cultures in New Mexico.   Now back to yesterdays ride.  The prettiest part of it began in Hatch, NM.    Hatch takes pride in being called the chile capital of the world, so there is a...