Friday, September 17, 2010

What Should Have Been

Day 14 Alpine, Tx. To Dryden, Tx. 104 miles 7hrs. 53 min. 13.6 avg. Total miles 1180

I know a lot of you have been praying for a tailwind. I want to assure you that God has answered your prayers. He said "NO."
It should have been an epic ride. Mostly downhill with lots of rolls and it was, except for the due east 10-15 mile an hour headwind this morning followed by the 20-25 mile an hour headwind this afternoon. Have you ever heard that winds prevail from the west in our country? Ya, I'm not seeing that so much yet. I did make a century, mostly because if I hadn't I would have had 120 miles tomorrow to get to Del Rio, Tx.. Now I only have 102 miles, pinch me I'm dreaming.
We went through some interesting country today, acaross the whole 100 miles there was a total of one stop. That was in Marathon, Tx. Pop. 455. it actually was one of the nicer small towns we've been through. Marathon is home of the Gage motel, a former headquarters for cattle baron, John Gage. Gage at one time ranches over 600 sections of land in that area. Do the math, a section is 640 acres. Lloyd Brooks for instance ranches one third of a section, but don't get me wrong he's a fine fellow.
The distances were so great that Jamie had to pick up sandwiches in Marathon that we enjoyed 30 miles later at a roadside picnic table.
Other than that and a few gems you'll catch in the pictures, it was another grind. You know, sometimes life is like that. Sometimes you just have to keep going. Headwind, uphill, 100 miles or more, just keep going. Hey, people, get out there and keep going.
I really questioned God today. I was saying to myself, come on God, I'm out here killing myself, can't I get a tailwind? I came to the realization that there are a lot more important things going on in this world than my comfort. Hey, guess what? There are a lot more important things going on in this world than your comfort too. So hey, get uncomfortable!
In other news, Jamie got stopped again. Yes, it's true. This time a Terrell county deputy sheriff pulled him over for suspicious behavior. Somebody alert Huntsville, HPD, Jamie is flying home tomorrow, somebody should keep an eye on him.
Ok, I'm almost done. I fight a headwind all day, ride a hundred miles, and marvel at the expanse of this great land. We check into the Budget Inn. This is probably the finest establishment I've ever had the privilege of staying in. They charged us $39.00. They probably should have paid us for staying here. Pictures to follow. We then tried to go out for dinner. The four restaurants in town were all closed for HOMECOMING! We had to eat at a gas station! I probably have food poisoning, I'll let you know tomorrow.
Please Lord, get me to Del Rio.
Jamie leaves for El Paso tomorrow to fly home. We're expecting Jason any minute. That's all for now.



Early morning drizzle over Alpine, Tx.


Early morning start.



As promised, the Gage motel.


Me and the support car.


Jamie said, "don't touch the car."



I'm really not that fat, the camera adds 10 lbs.


Vulture eating coyote, very cool.


Those are buffalo in the wild.


Ahhhhhh, the trusty steed waiting patiently for lunch to finish.


Have you seen that shirt before?


That's a train, Jamie thought it was cool.


Nice room.


Love the decor.


Let's take a dip in the pool.


Even the office is scary.
See you tomorrow,
Lincoln
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Sanderson, Tx.

9 comments:

  1. Have you seen Psycho? Hopefully God is just saying NO for today. Will continue to pester Him for tailwinds. Recalling the Bible story of the nagging woman...that'll be me!! Safe trip home, Jamie. Welcome, Jason. Good job, Linc. Del Ray tomorrow!!

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  2. This is Bill. I read LaNette's post. She meant Del Rio, not Del Ray. I think Del Ray is in CA. If you are still there, this must be a hoax like the moon landing that was really in AZ. By the way, I have been reading a blog by a woman from a group called Women'sTours. They were riding this route. It was a group of about 12 women who were all from 50 to 65. What's the problem?
    One more thing, this kind of puts Exodus in perspective doesn't it. No roads, no bottled water, no motels and no route map; just desert. And oh by the way, walking, no bicycles.

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  3. Well I am in Atlanta at my folks. Dad tells me that Del Rio is not far from where I spent the first year of my life. He also says that there are only 934 people in Terrell County - the deputy sheriff was bored.
    Well no matter what, I will continue to pray for tailwinds. Life does include headwinds - just have to keep the faith in His promise that there will never be more than we can handle. We will keep you in fervent prayer.
    Safe travels home for Jamie and enjoy your time with Jason.
    Blessings will be yours.

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  4. Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of riding a bike. ~ John F. Kennedy

    Wishing you a ride full of simple pleasure!! I know a tailwind would make your simpler and more of a pleasure so I pray you get one!

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  5. Ok, so you made this one a bit tougher on me...because not one eleventh chapter in the Bible goes to verse 80 in order to correlate to your total mileage of 1180. John 11 gets close with 57 verses, so I turned to Psalm 118 and lo and behold look what popped out...

    It starts off by saying..."In my anguish I cried to the Lord, and he answered by setting me free."

    You've needed this sabbatical for quite some time, and now you're getting to enjoy the freedom afforded by it. Then it goes on to say...

    "I was pushed back and about to fall but the Lord helped me. The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation."

    Couldn't help but think of the continual headwind your riding into. Psalm 118 goes on to say...

    "I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done."

    God's hand has been in every mile of this journey, and I know your whole purpose in this is to draw nearer to Him. Lastly it ends with...

    "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; his love endures forever."

    Endure my brother, knowing that you're covered by our love and prayers!

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  6. Nice that you made the connection between land & cattle baron John Gage and yours truly. Actually I'm on 1/8 of a section if you throw in my yard and don't count the south Alabama homestead. While he probably ran 30 head per section, I can easily carry 40 on my 1/8. And I can count my entire herd everyday --- bet John G never knew how many he had. Nice looking Headquarters though; mine's between my ears. Right now his spread & mine do have one thing in common => drought --- my cows think they're in south Texas.

    Enough cattle fax. The Lord knows what He's doing with the temporary head wind. He wants Amy & the boys to meet you in Texas, not Louisiana. See if Jason's got a pair of cyclist boots on sale or maybe a Hoss Cartwright broad brim 4X Beaver that'll fit over your girly helmet. Too much sun can't be good. You know how you hate us rednecks. And get him to find you the best breakfast burrito & chili rellano (where is spellcheck?) before you leave that country.

    Hang tough, LMB (still not Bunny)

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  7. The wind can make it very tough, so we will just pray that it will calm down a bit to give you a break. I was thinking maybe when you get to the east coast, you may want to turn around and go back the other way. Maybe the winds would be at your back in that direction:)

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  8. Ha, I love the concrete deer at the motel, classy. Hey, its better than sleeping in the car (im guessing, but maybe not). I love seeing your progress each day; I knew you could do it Lincoln but i'm sure this is the journey of a lifetime. Hope the bike is treating you right.


    Victor

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  9. Hi guys...this is Jodie, Jamie's mom. I will tell you the first thing I have to do when I wake up is read your blog. I am just amazed at what you are doing! We are so glad Jamie had the chance to come be with you on your journey and to be part of this experience. God's speed...

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