“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war.”

-Douglas MacArthur

Hello Everyone,

Here’s to a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend to all of you. Since I am riding for the Wounded Warrior Project, this seems like a fitting time to ask for donations for my ride. I would rather see a lot of $5 and $10 dollar donations or even less than a few big dollar amounts. I know that times are tough but in many cases they are even tougher for the brave who have served valiantly and were left scarred for their service. I wasn’t in the military but know may who did serve and I feel I am in their debt and in that thought don’t consider it a charity. IF you enjoy reading my blog, I sincerely ask that you consider a small donation to the Wounded Warrior Project as a way to honor our real heroes who have served.

The ride from Albuquerque Nm to Santa Fe was another beautiful day and we winded through deep canyons, long climbs and high desert. For the first 20 miles, it seemed that we just kept going up and up. We turned into  canyon around mile 10 and were greeted by our old friendMr. headwind and he was feeling his oats toady. Usually I don’t experience headwinds on climbs but the canyon funneled the wind down on us. Brutal is a kind word to describe it. I rode most of the way with Herm and we took turns out front – not really drafting but setting the pace.

While it was tough, it was also exhilarating as the airways cool and the scenery captivating. The miles melted away and the headwind lost much of its steam by the time we hit the SAG at mile 33. There was a cool dog there and he seemed to take a dislike to Richard from England / Wales and i explained that all properly trained dogs in the USA bark at Englishmen – Mad Dogs and Englishmen. I gave him (the dig not Richard) a pretzel and he was a friend for life. Richard is a retired vascular surgeon and a very strong / consistent rider who is generally towards the front every day. There is a degree of bantering back and forth between the riders fro the UK and the US riders – all in good fun. Ross from Australia typically does’t take sides and is so good natured that he stays out of the fray.

Just before the town of Madrid, I suffered another flat – number three. It happened use after a steep descent as I reached the top of a small climb. I was fortunate that it didn’t happen on the downhill. I had a bit of trouble with the CO2 cartridge and wound up using an inadequate hand pump. Luckily Herm came to the rescue and got be up to 80 pounds pSi so I could continue until Tray figured out that I need help. I didn’t ask her to stop but she said that i had a “funny” look on my face. I have been told that i always have a funny look on my face so she must be able to identify subtleties while driving a support vehicle. Tracy to the rescue and tire now fully inflated, I took off….

At around mile 45 we hit the town of Madrid NM (pronounced the same as New Madrid, MO with the emphasis on Mad.) I guess it is an old hippy settlement or as Geoffrey cal stem the great unwashed of the 60’s. It is a thriving small tourists town with lots of arts and crafts. Most of unstopped at a local coffee shop for a delicious cup of java along with a piece of pie. I had apple and it was excellent. The only problem is getting back on one’s bike after indulging and sitting around for a a half hour or so. the general rule is that the more riders that congregate for a break, the longer it takes for them to get started again.

I rode the rest of the way with Herm and we stopped for photos quite bit. We faded from being out front to being in the rear of the finishing group but that’s ok. The roads got better as we neared SantaFe and zipped along quite well even though we got stopped by many lights and had to navigate weekend warrior traffic.

After we arrived, Herm and his lovely wife Doreen invited me to have lunch with them. We had a fun conversation at Denny’s. Doreen is an ultra runner and former Iron woman who is preparing for a 3 day race in the Alps. I think they run about 25 miles each for a week and then top it off with a 50 miler. Doreen is also an attorney, but I will refrain from any attorney jokes because she is a really nice lady. She just so happens to represent Wells Fargo in some mortgage suits so in many respects, she is protecting my dividends. As we lunched a terrific thunderstorm ensued. I was told that downtown lost power for an hour an I heard sirens most of the night.

When i was in the lobby waiting for Herm and Doreen, a bus load of senior citizens arrived for some type of old folks convention. The whole lobby was full of old folks and the  tour lady was shouting because some of them apparently had turned off their hearing aides. There was mass confusion. I had the urge (almost but not quite irresistible to shout at the top of my lungs, “Dr. Marvin, calling Dr, Leo Marvin.’ For this of you who have seen the comedy “What about Bob”, you might get the connection. For others just consider that the headwinds and climbing and long hours in the saddle are having an affect on my brain. I did make my self useful as I help the door for all the older folks who left the lobby for their rooms. It had to be at leads 50 folks. Most of them offered heart felt thanks but nary a single tip did I  receive. (:

After I returned from lunch, I turned the heat on in the room because the temperature had dropped dramatically. I kept noticing a popping noise but paid little heed. Of of the corner of my eye when one such “pop” occurred, I saw a flash from the heating / AC unit. I called the front desk but never got a response obviously because the bus load of senior citizens couldn’t use their access keys to get into their rooms. I turned the heat back to AC and was getting ready to go to dinner with most of the riders at an establishment that served adult beverages. Just as I was about to leave, I heard another loud “pop” and fire erupted form the AXC unit. I quickly shut it off, but it didn’t quite right away. I called the front desk and was asked ifI could “hold” obviously in deference to other clients with issues. I said “no”, i had an emergency and was going to set if the fire alarm if they didn’t send someone up immediately. That got their attention. The maintenance man confirmed my suspicion that I had a faulty unit but he did ask if I just got off the bus with the “other” folks. I said that i arrived by bike and he just gave me a funny look. No more fires but I don’t have a functioning AC unit yet.

Today is our off day andI will bedding laundry, visiting a local bike shop and possibly seeing a psychiatrist for undertaking this journey. Obviously, something is not right with this lad.

Here’s to a safe, healthy and fun Memorial Day weekend. Please honor our heroes.

We have much to be thankful for!

 

Chuck