Days Like This
By Van Morrison
When it’s not always raining there’ll be days like this
When there’s no one complaining there’ll be days like this
When everything falls into place like the flick of a switch
Well my mama told me there’ll be days like this
When you don’t need to worry there’ll be days like this
When no one’s in a hurry there’ll be days like this
When you don’t get betrayed by that old Judas kiss
Oh my mama told me there’ll be days like this…

Hello everyone,

Van Morrison’s song captures the essence of yesterday’s ride. You reach a certain degree of perfection and you realize it doesn’t get much better than this. It wasn’t just the ride, but the camaraderie that develops. After dinner one rider commented, “This is why you came back to do this ride 3 times?” The bad days of riding on the highway, the headwinds, the cold, the rain and the crashes make the overall accomplishment unique and special, but the “Days like This” add clarity and perhaps one word captures the essence of yesterday – “joy”. However, I am getting ahead of myself…

We left Albuquerque to bright blue sky and cool but warming temperatures. There was to be 5400 get of climbing and it last all day. However the overall elevation doesn’t change appreciably so that means some really nice ascents as well. I felt pretty good and scooted ahead of the group. I rode alone for about 0 miles and then was caught by Howard and Lou and wound up chasing them until the first SAG at mile 34. The other two times that I rode through this area, we had pretty good headwinds and we escaped those on this ride. It is quite scenic through the area with mountain vistas and very wide open spaces. Many of the local flowers are now in bloom so tat certainly adds to the experience.

The first SAG was like no other. I saw a gentleman on a motorcycle standing and talking to the CrossRoads crew and could tell that Tracy and John Dillon were fast friends. I recognized John as the guy who had waved to us as he passed. Herds a big BMW loaded with special bags to accommodate a lot of what I assume to be cloths. John has visited every country in the World save fro Ireland, is retired and spends many months  every year touring the world including the Northern reaches of Alaska. He was going to be touring out west and then return home to NewYork state via a southern route that would take him through North Carolina. John is a vet with some injuries that makes some physical activity difficult but manages to stay active.

Now you may recall that Howard is also a motorcyclist ex policeman who has led the vanguard for Olympic races. Coincidentally, he also rides a BMW. I was surprised when John asked if any of us would like to ride his BMW and Howard took him up on the offer. Imagine the surprise of some of our fellow riders as Howard zipped past them on this big motorcycle. John also removed some of his gear and changed the seat positioning so Howard could ride albeit in cycling shoes which I imagine was a bit awkward. I may see if I cam post the video of the ride as well as some pictures.

I would be remiss if I did not note some changes in CrossRoads staff. Jane has left for several weeks to take care of some family business but will return when we are in Ohio. Carroll who was on staff my prior two rides has arrived to help out and she is one awesome cook. On her first day, she had made these “to-die-for” chicken wraps. Tom least this morning and Robin his wife left several days ago. Tom daughter will be having a baby in a few days and they left for that happy event. They promised some photos so I will post when available.

After the SAG, we had an 11 mile ride to the little town of Madrid, an old hippy community with lots of shops and eateries. I didn’t remember this, but much of the movie Wild Hogs was filmed here. It is a motorcycle movie with John Travolta and the town has a LOT of motorcycles every time that i have been through. Howard and Lou had zipped ahead but I told them that I’d catch up in Madrid. I found them at Wild Hogs a store with motorcycle t-shirts, charms and other items commemorating the movie. I led them to a little diner that I had eaten at before. We had iced coffee and pie and enjoyed the scenery. We talked to one Harley owner who had rented an Indian motorcycle and I guess the proprietor didn’t give him the key fob so the Indian wouldn’t start after he stopped. Someone was driving down from Santa Fe with the key fob but he did.t have very complimentary things to say about Indian motorcycles. We also saw a group of motorcyclists take off and one with a passenger fell in the gravel of the parking lot. On a bicycle that is usually just embarrassing but on a motorcycle it can result in burns or broken bones. Fortunately the lady wasn’t hurt.

We all felt a little sluggish on the ride into Santa fe and we encountered several of our group along the way. Many of us had stayed so long at the SAG or Madrid that we caught some of the other riders on the road especially when they stopped to take photos. It is hard to capture the sheer vastness of the landscape. Richard who is a creative professional shared two photos that are exceptional and I intend to post them. There is also quite bit of sculpture art along the ride such as weather vanes and other art that is very pictureesque and in tune with thelawdscape.  Coincidentally we encountered quite a few state troopers along the road just sitting there and apparently Bernie Sanders was coming into town. A coupe of riders claimed to have seen his entourage.

I rode the last 10 miles or so with Barb who is an exceptional rider and very strong. She works for the Forestry Service and we had a nice chat coming into town. Once we arrived in town, I was able to get my laundry down, clean my bike (Tracy insist that we look presentable), get a shower. Mary Clare had already scouted out potential places to eat and about 14 of us confined on a Mexican restaurant that was a bout smile walk. Coincidentally, the CrossRoads staff also stooped in for dinner. Sabina’s husband Charlie joined us for dinner. He attended school at Washington University in the 70’sand remembers a lot of St. Louis points of interest. He is also a hedge fund manager so we had an interesting discussion on the industry and markets. I think we bored some of the others….

All in all, a very special day. One that we all will remember for the rest of our lives. Today is a rest day and some of us will explore Santa Fe bit although we take the rest part most seriously. I may stop in and say help to my friend Heidi who has he pottery studio down with many other art galleries.

Thanks for reading

~Chuck