Day 26

Day 26: October 24, 2021 (Anderson TX to Dolan TX)

This was Beth’s and Kimberly’s last day with me on the ride.  Last night, we hung out in the lobby of the hotel and played Cheerios poker.  The Cheerios were the chips.  We had a lot of fun.  I even stayed up late; I made it to 8 PM.  

This morning, we had a nice shoulder to start.  Beth rode the gravel road bike, and I was on the recumbent.  The first day in several days that I was able to ride the recumbent and it felt good.  We got about 10 miles into the ride, and we lost our nice shoulder.  I took over the gravel road bike, I wanted the platform pedals on the narrow shoulder roads.

The next part of the ride was through Sam Houston Park.  It was beautiful, nice big trees and everything was green.  After three plus weeks of desert, the trees and the green were nice.  The weather was nice too; about 80 and partly cloudy.

For an hour or so, the traffic was light, and it was so peaceful.  I was thinking about where we’re at with donations; we are way behind our goal.  Then I thought even if we raised $100M, that wasn’t going to help the problem of child abuse much, if any.  We need people talking about it, we need victims talking about their experiences, and we need abusers to get help so they stop abusing.  It made me feel better about not being close on our financial objective.

Along the ride, I encounter 4 women on bikes.  They are training for ½ an iron man, which takes place in April 2022.  Beth and Kimberly were talking to them as I approached and told them what we were doing.  We took some pictures, and I rode with them for a few miles before they turned off.  They were very supportive of our mission, and it lifted my spirits.  I like little boosts like that.

I was really enjoying the ride, then I got buzzed by two pickups.  They both went flying by me.  There was no oncoming traffic, so they easily could have given me plenty of room.  They didn’t and were about a foot from my left shoulder when they went by me.  That scared me and the ride was no longer peaceful.  

We made it to our destination at 1:30 PM.  I’m staying in a hotel in Cleveland TX, about 30 miles north of Houston.  Beth, Kimberly, and I had a nice lunch at a Mexican restaurant.  22nd day of 26 on which I’ve had Mexican food.  It has all been very good and I’m not sick of it.

At 3 PM, Beth and Kimberly headed to the airport.  Our time together on this journey was too short.  They are amazing people, and I am so grateful for their support and friendship.  Plus, they did all of the leg work on the logistics so it was fun to live it together.  

Kelly Hale arrives today.  He is part of crew #5.  It’s Kelly and me tomorrow and Tuesday.  Dave Marr and his wife Sabrina join us on Tuesday night through Friday.