Danny’s Ride

Day Statistics:
Bike Time: 1 Hours, 42 Minutes, 54 Seconds
Miles: 39.84 Total
Average Speed: 23.2 mph
Max Speed: 47.7

Total Miles to Date: 700.13
Total Flat Tires For Trip: Drew 4, Danny 4

We had a great end to yesterday’s day – a donation from Browning Raines.  He was a terrific young man who was interested in our trip.  After an enjoyable conversation, he opened his wallet and got us closer to $30,000.  Thank you Browning.

Also, thank you to Hilda Aguilus of Comfort Inn- Deming, New Mexico for making our stay with them possible.  They were able to give us a great rate and were extremely accommodating to us.  Danny hit the road early.

By the time I got up, he was already gone.  Since I had ended yesterday 19 miles past town and only had around 40 miles to go, I wasn’t worried so I began calling local media in El Paso.

The response was phenomenal.  We set up interviews with the Fox affiliate, the NBC affiliate and will possibly get some pictures for the El Paso Times newspaper.  While I was busy setting up interviews, Danny was busy changing tires.  Within 10 minutes of each other, he had two flat tires.

And when Danny was not fixing his flat tires, he was getting pulled over by Highway Patrol!  Apparently, a couple drivers had called in a guy biking on the Interstate rather than on the shoulder.  Luckily, Danny was able to talk his way out of an expensive speeding ticket and managed to only get a warning about biking on the Interstate.  Danny said the police officers could not have been any nicer.  He had a great time talking with them and they were even willing to take a picture.  Thanks guys!

Ken and I hit the road around 11:00 a.m.  He dropped me off exactly where he had picked me up yesterday.  Once again, we had a terrific tailwind behind us and were able to cruise almost without pedaling.  About twenty miles in, Danny called to tell me he and Ken were at a Subway not far from where I was.

I met them at the Subway, had a quick bite to eat and we hit the road again.  Ken was going to meet us at a coffee shop called The Bean.  It was right where we were going to be staying and it came highly recommended by the El Paso Bike Club.

As we were heading to The Bean, Danny and I came over the top of an enormous hill that overlooked Las Curces.  With the wind behind us, we pushed it.  At one point, I looked down and saw we were going 48 mph.  Danny seemed to be pulling away and he later said he was going 55 mph.  Cars that had once been flying by us, now seemed to slowly creep past us.

With the wind in our face, it was an exhilarating feeling.  Going that fast on two little skinny wheels, is a real adrenaline rush.  Once in town, we stopped at a Comfort Inn and the manager was more than willing to help us out on our trip.  He gave us a tremendous price and was extremely accommodating.  We appreciate your help!

About a mile from our hotel, we met Ken at The Bean.  There is a reason it comes highly recommended.  It is fantastic.  Danny and I had fruit smoothies while Ken enjoyed the freshly brewed coffee.  In fact, he enjoyed it so much that he went back for seconds.  The Bean is the type of place where anyone can walk in and feel comfortable.  An artist – Moshe Koenick – came in and asked if he could hang up some of his pictures.  They agreed and he hung up some beautiful paintings.

When we went to pay the bill, we were told it was on them and they wished us the best of luck on the trip.  They even gave us food to take with us.  What great food, atmosphere and, most important, people.  Thanks to everyone at The Bean for the great food and company.

We walked down the historic district and saw where Billy the Kid was tried and convicted of murder.  Although he did manage to escape, it was neat to see.

After changing and washing up at the hotel, we enjoyed a terrific dinner at an Italian place just down the street.  We are doing our best to eat as much as we can so we don’t lose too much weight.

We are  having the time of our lives out here on the road and we appreciate everyone following us.  See everyone tomorrow in El Paso!