Day 3 & 4 Ozona to Lamesa w/Century Ride

I left Ozona this AM thinking I would take it easy today and catch up later. However, a couple of miles out of town the terrain flattened out and I picked up a 10mph wind at my back. Looks like I reached the top of the Edwards Plateau. The on board gps tells me the terrain flattened out at 2300 ft. The highway was straight, flat, and fast so I just kept going. 114 miles later I reached Stanton only to find that the inns were all full. Joseph and Mary must have felt something akin to what I felt. Except of course I haven't conceived, immaculate or otherwise. But I digress. It was about 7pm and I was losing light so I made a decision to pedal out of town and find the first stealth campsite available. I found an old abandoned gas station and have made camp behind a 1 foot high brick wall and a big Evergreen feed sign. I am quite comfortable and as soon as it gets really dark I will pitch my tent because my friend from the library, Mark, tells me the snakes are out and that they are hungry.




I survived the night and was up at sunrise just in time to see the sunrise catch the windmills on the wind farm. That's really something to see!!  Also, the land is changing before my eyes.  From rocky hills and river canyons to flat, red, farming fields. The 50 mile ride to Lamesa was easy and peaceful. I even managed to get a motel room and was able to put together this video. Enjoy.

 P.S. I've lost the charger to my netbook which may impact this blog. I'm working on getting a replacement soon.

Mb2Cb Day 1 & 2

Days 1 and 2 took Skeets and me 120 miles from Acuna to Ozona, Texas. The day 1 ride was spectacular with panoramic West Texas vistas spread out over our handlebars. There is absolutely nothing like viewing the vastness and splendor of Texas from a bicycle. We headed west for the first 30 miles out of Del Rio with Lake Amistad to our port and starboard sides. I was surprised that we did not see many RVs or boats on or near the lake, especially since this is Easter weekend. At Comstock we turned north toward Ozona and Canada. Hwy 163 to Ozona is probably one of the most scenic and isolated roads in Texas. There are no gas stations, towns, stores or even very many people for about 100 miles. About 40 miles from Comstock, you'll cross the Devil's River at Baker's Crossing. Years ago some friends and I canoed the Devil's River. You better be ready to paddle hard if you expect to survive that river. The Devil is probably the most isolated and pristine river in Texas. It's famous for its small mouth bass and was the standard for river water purity in Texas. Sadly the old Bakers Crossing put-in and campground is no longer open. For years West Texas ranchers did everything in their power to limit public access to the Devil. I fear the demise of Bakers Crossing is a consequence of those efforts. I had originally planned to camp at Baker's Crossing but had to make other plans. About 65 miles into the day 1 ride, with an elevation rise of over 1200 feet, we were both very tired and looked for the first, best, stealth campground we could find. Safety and security are foremost concerns (not so much comfort) in stealth camping. You want to get in and out without anyone, good or bad, knowing you are there. I thought we picked a pretty good site but we were too close to a creek bed, and because we were tired, didn't keep looking. Around midnight, out of nowhere (or maybe somewhere but we had no way of knowing), a powerful West Texas gully washer blew in. Lots of wind and heavy rain. I didn't feel secure fearing a flash flood. Skeets had already moved to high ground. I had to move my bicycle, tent, etc in the dark with a driving rain and strong wind. I'm telling you, bicycle touring isn't for wussies. We both got soaking wet and almost froze. Morning  finally broke, we packed up our wet gear, and hit the road. Within  few minutes, the misery of the night before was forgotten, and the adventure started all over again. The ride to Ozona was fairly difficult with a significant elevation increase and a couple of very steep and long hills. Skeets broke a spoke on his rear wheel and also experienced a problem with his rear cassette. Even so, he smoked me for the entire track and was able to complete his ride to Ozona. Sadly Skeets goes back to his job and real world tomorrow. It was a great pleasure riding with Skeets. He is a strong cyclist, a real trooper who finds something positive even in a bad situation, and, as I found out in Del Rio, my future son-in-law. That was a complete surprise to me, and I couldn't be happier!! Tomorrow morning I strike out solo toward Big Lake, Tx and points north. Stay tuned!!

Day 0- Mb2Cb Cuidad Acuna, Mexico & Del Rio, Texas

The Mb2Cb 2012 Tour has officially started.  Liz & Lorie dropped Skeets and me off in Del Rio this afternoon. We checked into the Best Western, Del Rio and dropped all of our gear off in the room. We've taken the bikes a whopping 5 miles across the International Bridge and are now in MEXICO.  Day 0 is a scheduled acclimation day and not much riding was planned .Amazing, as soon as you step across the river you're in another world. Acuna is not an attractive town these days. I remember a few years back when the shops were loaded with people. Very few American tourists these days and even the natives seem somewhat reserved. We're told by a tavern owner, Maria, that the violence perpetrated by the drug cartels has everyone on edge.  We stayed in Acuna just a few hours, road around the town, had some refreshments, took some pictures, and headed back to Del Rio. Security crossing back into Texas was very tight. Every car was being searched. Tomorrow morning we're up and running at least 60 miles where we'll camp out somewhere close to Juno, Texas. Photos of our Mexico visit can be viewed at the following video link;

Final Prep_T minus 1 Day_ Mb2Cb 2012 Tour Start

After two years of training and six months of planning the Mb2Cb 2012 Tour begins tomorrow. As you can imagine, taking 5 weeks off from your life to go and goof off, isn't a trivial thing. In order to pull off that type of epic irresponsible behavior, a guy needs enablers. To that end I'd like to thank my wife Liz, who knew better than to try and talk any sense into me and who will have to jump through hoops with her job schedule and at home to make up for my absence. I'm pretty sure most spouses wouldn't be so understanding and I'll do my best to make it up when she leaves on her own adventure later this year. I want to thank my 92 year old dad, who cannot understand why anyone would want to ride a bicycle when there's a perfectly good car sitting on the driveway. He had real trouble with me making this ride, but is finally warming up to the idea. To my son Eric, his Christmas and b-day gift cards went a long way toward outfitting me for this ride. To my daughter Mel, who encouraged me to embrace social media as a way of sharing this adventure with family and friends and who is cheering for me from the Big Apple. To my other daughter Lorie, who's shares my sense of adventure and who lent me her friend Skeets for part of this tour. I want to thank the Board of Directors of the Medina Community Library, who didn't even bat an eye when I asked for the 5 weeks off. Many, many, thanks to the paid staff and volunteers of the Library who will step in and take over my responsibilities. I hate to admit it, but it will likely be weeks before they figure out I'm gone. Finally thanks to all of you who have offered well wishes and encouragement. I very much appreciate all of you.

If you're curious what a librarian takes along on a five week bicycle tour and how much it all weighs you can view a detailed list at this link;

Randy's Mb2Cb Gear List

Tomorrow morning Liz will transport Skeets, me, our bicycles and gear from our home in Bandera to Del Rio, Texas. Skeets and I will cross over into Cuidad Acuna, Mexico on our bikes and then point our wheels north, back across El Rio Grande del Norte, and begin the Mb2Cb 2012 Bicycle Tour. I'm excited!! Here's a few photos of final prep and packing. Next posting... from the road!!

Medina ISD Students and Teachers Cheer On Mb2Cb 2012 Bicycle Tour!!

Kim Richardson's 5th grade and DJ Dabney's 6th grade classes visited the The Best Little Library in Texas (aka The Medina Community Library) today to learn about bicycle touring, bicycle safety, and the Mb2Cb 2012 Bicycle Tour. In order to give the kids a good feel for long distance, endurance, cycling  I brought in my fully loaded touring bicycle and explained the working of the gear shifts, drive train, disc brakes, derailleurs, racks, panniers, lights, reflectors, GPS devices, handlebar cam, etc. A large part of the conversation dealt with safety issues and specifically how to mitigate dangers on the road. I was mightily impressed by the questions and comments and it was especially gratifying to see that many of the kids were as excited about the tour as me! The kids plan to follow and track the tour daily on a large wall map in their classroom and we all agreed to communicate with each other throughout the tour via this blog, e-mail, and telephone. Many of the kids know me from the library or have seen me biking over the past couple of years during my morning and/or afternoon commutes to and from work.  Many of them (and their parents) just call me "that crazy bicycle guy". Though I cannot claim that I bike for altruistic reasons, I have often thought to myself that it would be nice if even one of those kids someday discovers the joys of cycling because they saw me biking when they were growing up. To view a photo montage of my meeting with Medina's Best & Brightest see the video link below. Oh, and one last thing. Many thanks to Judy Moore, ex-teacher "par excellence", an original founder of this library, and a long time library volunteer, who helped organize this visit by MISD and who has supported & encouraged me on my quest to undertake and complete the Mb2Cb 2012 tour.

 

Bryan Schmidt Joins Mb2Cb 2012 Tour!!

My old friend Bryan Schmidt has joined the Mb2Cb 2012 Tour!! Bryan and I go back almost 25 years working and playing together. He currently lives in Minneapolis, MN. with his wife Darlene (also a good friend).  Bryan is employed as a semiconductor process engineer, is an Aggie,  a dedicated bicycle commuter and back in the day was known far and wide for his willingness to "moon" at the drop of a hat. Bryan & his bicycle will hitch a ride from his home in Minnesota to Rapid City, SD. He will ride his bike from Rapid City and meet the tour at Crazy Horse, SD.  From Crazy Horse, we will ride over 600 miles together until we reach our destination, Regina, SK, Canada. You can view Bryan's track at:

Bryan's Full Moon Track

Great to have you along Bryan!!

Skeets Rapier Joins Mb2Cb 2012 Tour

My  friend, Skeets Rapier, has joined the Mb2Cb tour and will ride with me out of Mexico and through 200 miles of West Texas. Skeets owns and operates a  renewable energy company out of San Antonio and is an experienced long distance bicycle tourist. Open the attached link to view Skeets route;

Skeets' West Texas Fun Run

The excitement is building!! The train leaves the station in Cuidad Acuna, Mexico on April 6th.There's still time to join all or part of the tour (Che, Bryan, I'm talking to you!!).