Day 12 – Dalhart to Pampa TX

Burrrr. This morning was cold, and what’s more, I didn’t determine how cold until after my luggage was loaded onto the van. Since I didn’t have my long fingered gloves, I rode the first 12 miles one handed. The other hand was held behind my back in an attempt to keep it warm. Every half mile I would switch hands. After 12 miles I stopped at the first store on the road. I hoped to find some hot chocolate but settled for what passes as coffee in the non Peets drinking parts of the world. As I was about to pay for the coffee I saw some while liner gloves. When I went to pay the cashier asked what I was doing, everyone else in the place was preparing to tend to their farm land or to work in the oil fields. So I guess a shivering person in bike clothes looked a little out of place. I told her that I was from California and I was cycling across America. She said the coffee and gloves were on the house. I simply could not give her money. At this point another woman said that while she was married with five kids, ‘Honey’, the cashier, was looking. When I said that I was married, Honey’s friend replied that Texas was a long way from California. I suspect that Honey’s friend was going to be reprimanded at some later time. I left to store with a smile, but also in Karma debt. Twenty miles down the road two other riders told me how they had made good investments in gloves at that store. Both paid retail, or more, for their gloves.

Eventually the day warmed up. Our route turned so that the winds were more to our backs and we started to speed across the Texas Panhandle. By no means the fastest rider, more likely in the slowest third of the group, I did today’s ride of 110 at 20 mph.

There was very little to see along the route. I saw a few cows in pastures, many more cows in several feed lots, a lot of ‘cricket’ well pumps, and a large number of trucks from oil service companies. The trucks were not a major problem because Texas has WIDE shoulders, at least a lane wide on most two lane highways. We had our lane and the traffic had theirs. The highways are one good thing about Texas, even though I am sure they were not designed for the benefit of cyclists.

The motel, from what I could see the only one in Pampa, was near a Wal-Mart. This allowed me to restock items for my long ride fuel of choice: a mixture of apricots, gum drops, prunes, and walnuts. This plus the lunch food and some fruit at the sag stops gets me down the road. When I talk to the other riders, many have problems with the offered food options and seem to run on power bars, gels, and powders. I have used my mixture for years and see no reason to change.

The one sad note of the day was that we learned that Andrew, a 47 year old Brit who lives in San Francisco and who started off as one of the strongest riders, spent the night in hospital. He had been feeling ill for a few days in the higher elevations and when the doctors in the Dalhart ER checked him out, they concluded that he had had a minor heart attack. Needless to say all of us were shocked by the news. Our hopes and prayers are with Andrew.