Day 2 - not exactly to plan - a grueling ride

With a long day ahead of us we set out shorty after sunrise. After a quick, rather unfulfilling breakfast sandwich at a Subway around the corner, we set off at real nice pace under a cloudless sky and calm winds.

At the 30 mile mark, things changed dramatically and we were encountered 30+ mph winds varying from front quartering to head on - not pleasant at all.

We struggled in the winds for another 10 miles until deciding an alternate approach is far smarter.  We hitched a ride with a local farmer to a turn about 12 miles up the road onto a less busy section.  We continued to fight the unbelievable winds all the way to our accommodations in Kingston.  The planned 88 mile route ended up as 76 miles, but certainly consumed the energy of much more.

But we did it!  Tomorrow's winds are forecast to be reasonable - we'll see.

 Toured the Fort Selden Museum

 more Pecan trees

 Flood irrigation

 At Fort Selden

 Immigration Checkpoint

Sign says.... "Not plowed evenings or weekends"!

Day 1 - We're off!

Today it all came together.  We quickly found ourselves quite overdressed and were down to a single jersey and shorts in no time.

It took us a while to escape the city and navigate around much unexpected road construction.

But we soon found ourselves in New Mexico with the US-Mexico border fence just off our port side.









Then the scenery opened up......

 Flood irrigation of the fields - looks rather inefficient  use of water

 Cotton fields getting ready for planting

 Through the numerous groves of nut trees.

Pecans!

And after a rather warm and relatively flat 50+ miles, arrived our lovely AirBnB accommodations for the evening.  We did pay our dues fighting the wind today.  Off shortly for a stroll into town for dinner and sightseeing.

The flights were uneventful, the bikes arrived in one piece!  A very good start.  We got a preview of the topography while landing.

El Paso is a very attractive city, but there doesn't seem to be much happening.

When I inquired with a local as to what is the dominant local industry, "Bars" was the answer.

We had enough time in the afternoon for a brief visit the El Paso Museum of History.  There is a lot about El Paso to learn.  Did you know they grow cotton?

We found a very quaint out of the way Mexican restaurant for dinner (of course, what else would we eat) courtesy of TripAdvisor.

I just saw there is a stage race along many of the same roads starting April 19th:  Tour of the Gila

Well, off the airport shortly ......  stay tuned.

We have the option of either paved or dirt sections for day 2 and 11.

Day 8 looks interesting with all of the ride above 7000 ft and an climb to 9000 ft.  Never biked in the thin air!

Ride with GPS is great!

Our itinerary....

Bike shipped!

Dropped the bike off at FedEx this morning using the BikeFlights.com service.  FedEx says it will arrive to the hotel on Monday, we will see how that goes.  At least there is a 2 day cushion should it be delayed.

My first experience packing up a bicycle for shipping.  Many thanks to Steve Miller for letting me use his box from Performance Bicycle - a real nice unit.

This became a bit more involved than I expected as it is recommended one removes the disk brake rotors.  A rather tight squeeze all in all, but nothing rattles!

Much of the bubble wrap isn't doing anything as it is there for the return trip - just in case.  Quite surprised the loaded box weighed in at 65 lbs. Beware - the max weight for home delivery is 70 lbs.  The same 70 lbs limit pertains if you pay the airlines to take it as checked bagage.

Christian got this whole thing going....

So, it was an email from Christian in late November that got the wheels turning (is that a pun?) on this adventure.  Two of us, Sergio and myself took the bait.

We owe Christian a tremendous Thank You for putting this together. The route planning is all his and via a constant stream of emails, Christian has provided his expert guidance in all sort of matters, from equipment, tires, dress and conditioning to mention a few.  I have learned a lot!  And am I sure there is more to learn in coming weeks.

THANK YOU CHRISTIAN!

Check out the entire route here:  https://ridewithgps.com/events/28126-el-paso-tour-of-gila