Today’s ride started with exiting El Paso, and that was quite the challenge in morning rush hour traffic. Add to that coming head-on to an unplanned detour, it made for an interesting morning. Luckily Eddy Dalrymple, a former rider and now support member, led a group of us through the detour and then headed back to make sure the new route was marked for the rest of the riders. It took twenty miles just to exit the city of El Paso. Our first SAG stop was at a local market that had the best bakery items. I also had the drink horchata for the first time and it was delicious. It is made with rice, milk, vanilla and cinnamon and served with ice. From there most of the ride was relatively uneventful (except for a few lose dogs that chased the riders) and full of pecan orchards.
Stats from the day:
Start city: El Paso, TX
End city: Fort Hancock, TX
Miles: 61.43
Total miles to date: 913.86
Pedaling time: 3 hours, 57 minutes
Avg. speed: 15.6
Feet climbed: 636
Fatigue factor: 3 out of 10 (10 is the worst)
Wind: start: NNW 8 mph; end WNW 14 mph
Road condition: 4 out of 5 (1 is the worst); last 12 miles was a little less
Temperature extremes: 39 at ride start, 63 at ride finish
First SAG stop with the delicious pastries.
Orchards and orchards of pecans, and pletny of warnings not to pick.
A water sighting...guessing it is used for irrigation,
Irrigation system flowing along side the road.
View of more pecan orchards from the seat of my bike.
Desperate for photo opportunities today. Yep, all that remains of the old fort are two pieces of stone.
