4/5/2011
Yet again I crossed paths with someone biking across America. I’ve become an expert at spotting fellow adventurers. I reached Adrian Texas just before lunch. This is the exact midpoint of route 66. There is a little cafe right there on the midpoint and my mom had suggested we have lunch there. I spotted a guy on a bike and I asked him where he was going. I had a feeling he was crossing America. I was right. His name was Austin and he started his journey in Myrtle Beach, SC. He is riding for the Vets. We shared stories and tips and he suggested I have some pie at the cafe. It was a good suggestion as my peach cobbler with ice cream hit the spot. I can honestly say that finding all the little restaurant gems across the country is one of the highlights of this adventure.
The rest of the day passed pretty quickly. The road was flat and long. Everyone waved when they passed me and they were cautious not to drive to close. The sun was strong, so I’m looking a little red. I encountered a couple of deer and a couple of longhorns. The birds sang new tunes and I listened to the melody for many miles. I didn’t even realize I had completed around 35 miles when I took a hydration break. As I cracked open the back of the Rav 4 to grab my sports drink, Sheriff Harris pulled up to see if I was OK. The first thing I noticed in his car was the high powered rifle. It turned out that he had seen me about 22 miles back earlier in the day. We chatted and I gave him a book to give to his ten year old son Lane. He was cool and suggested I do more with the small towns. I completely agree. I think kids in small towns need to know they are capable of doing big things. I would love to book more small town schools. We took a picture but the one unfortunate thing was that he left his cowboy hat at home today. I need to get one of those before I exit this state.
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One of the things that kind of makes me sad is seeing some of the businesses that no longer exist. We should do something to revive travel in our great country. Perhaps it’s time to reread “On The Road”, or perhaps a new great classic road book needs to be written. Hmmmm.
I could have continued at my steady pace through the night but ending one mile out of Wildorado was fine with me. There are still many more days to come
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