Van Horn, TX to Marfa, TX
Up at 0530, packed my gear, stowed my tent, and had breakfast in the campground cafe. Then watched a beautiful dawn. Sunrise was not until 0815, but I was on my bike as soon as morning twilight dawned.
Started to ride with Tom R and Joe, but they must have stopped to take a photo, as I found myself riding alone as soon as we got on TX 90. There was a strong headwind, even at this hour. The road condition was wonderful - smooth and very little debris. At mile 15, as I paused to take a photo, I was caught by Tom C, Erwin, and Eric. I jumped on their wheel, and we were pacelining (riding in a single line, each following the wheel of the rider in front of you, taking turns pulling) for the next 60 miles. At mile 20, the wonderful smooth pavement gave way to fresh, new chip seal. As if the headwind weren't enough, this slowed us down even more. For the next 25 miles, this section of TX 90 was under construction. (Chipseal is very rough, and not pleasant for bicycling). The chipseal was complete, but no lines, and there were zones where contractors were installing guard rails on bridges. This area was under construction when Dianne and I drove through in March. They must have taken the summer off!
At one point, we came across a traffic control, where one lane was closed for three miles. The pilot vehicle came, turned around, and the waiting cars followed. We were left in their wake, but that was fine. There was very little traffic on TX 90 anyway, but now there was NO traffic! Oops, soon the pilot car and traffic came from the opposite direction. We pulled to the side and stopped. Seven minutes later, they came from behind us. Repeat several times! Soon we were out of the traffic control area, but still with very little traffic.
The headwind was strong, and we could only eek out a measly 10 mph on our loaded bicycles, each of us taking turns pulling for one mile each. It did seem to make the miles go by quicker, but it was taking us a long time to get through "miles and miles of Texas."
Approximately one mile before we reached Valentine, we came across the world famous Prada Marfa store. Not really a store at all, but art in the middle of nowhere. Behind the "store" was a fence with many locks on it, placed by lovers who are leaving their shackles behind. Actually, I don't know why people place their locks here, but there were some expensive ones!
At about 1300, we came to the village of Valentine, just past the halfway point for today. It was sad to see all the businesss closed and in various states of disrepair, but there was a library! We stopped in the library to refill our water. So glad the library was open, otherwise we may have run out of water later down the road. The library serves the Jr. and Sr. High School students in town. They are very proud of the school. The businesses in town dried up when passenger trains ceased to stop there in 1958, compounded by the freight trains changing their base of operations to Van Horn.
At mile 45, the fresh new chip seal surface ended, and we found ourselves riding on a surface that was in dire need of new chipseal or pavement. We felt every single bump through our forks and saddles, all the way to Marfa, another 30 miles! Tom C and I took turns wanting to fall off the back, telling the others to go on, and we will go at a slower pace by ourselves. The group wouldn't have it, and slowed down the pace so that we could hang on.
Approximately 15 miles outside of Marfa, we stopped for yet another break. Our breaks were becoming longer and more frequent. Tom C had to lay down on the shoulder and stretch out. We were all craving a cold drink, when a Good Samaritan stopped and asked if we would like some cold water. He pulled four waters out of an ice chest, and passed them out the passenger window. This was the highlight of the day. That water was SO GOOD. We learned later that the same Good Samaritan passed Joe, who was ahead of us, and gave him a cold soda! Ironically, this person was just pulling out of the Dairy Queen in Marfa when we pulled in. We waved enthusiastically, and he honked and returned the wave.
All in all, it was a very tough day. There was a very slight uphill grade from Van Horn to Marfa, against a headwind, with a very rough riding surface. So glad to have three other riders to share duty. (When drafting behind another rider, one expends up to 30% less energy.) By the time we reached the campground, it was almost 1900, 11+ hours later. Next to the Good Samaritan, the next highlight was receiving my new tent when I got to El Cosmico. I wasted no time setting it up, hitting the shower, and taking a much needed rest in the lounge.
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