Day Thirty One: failing, 14K, norther

This morning I asked myself, "How could we have failed so miserably as a country?"

It's true. We export a lot of American culture to other countries. You can buy a McDonald's hamburger in Moscow or a pair of Levis in Tokyo. Our cultural presence is seen everywhere in the world now.

Klaus even has a KFC in his hometown in Germany. And yet...

And yet, he's never heard of Willie Nelson. How can that be?? This is an educated man in an industrialized society. Where have we gone wrong??

So, I've decided to ask for your help. I'm going to give Klaus a list of Country and Western songs that he needs to be familiar with. What Country and Western songs should Klaus know about before leaving this country? Of course, "Let's go to Luckenbach, Texas" comes to mind. Please help me correct this cultural void in Klaus' world. I'll pass all of the responses on to him (or, more likely, he'll just read them on the blog).

Today, I've been on the road for one month. ("On the Road Again... I just can't wait to get on the road again") So far, it's been a blast.

Vickie was already at work by the time we got up. Tommy fed us breakfast and we visited a little more before finally leaving at 10:00.

Three miles later, Klaus began yelling for me to stop.... what?!?! a flat? a broken spoke? a two-headed deer? Nope...

He's at 14,000 kilometers.

Instead of beer, he pulled out a special bottle of wine. It was produced in Texas; Klaus met the vintner a couple of days ago, who, after finding out about his global circumnavigation, gave him a bottle of his reserve wine. A regular-sized bottle of wine was too large, so the guy put it into a smaller one and labeled it himself as Klaus watched.

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

Five miles after our 14,000 kilometer celebration, we parted ways again. Klaus has decided to go to Austin and take a rest day there. He's only taken one rest day since I last saw him, and he's really ready for one.

Although we only traveled together for eight miles, it was nice that the 14,000th kilometer was included in that short stretch.

Again, we said our goodbyes and parted ways. Who knows? Perhaps we'll hook up again. At 15,000?

Riding this morning was nice. I had a rarely-seen tailwind (it was actually more from the side, but it wasn't a headwind so I'll take it).

This is still the Hill Country, with its rolling hills, and very beautiful.

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

There are a lot of huge old oak trees in this area. Each one seems to have a personality of its own.

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

There are also a few patches of prickly pear cacti around.

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

In Wimberley (pop 3797), I stopped at the Visitor's Center to ask about some good places to eat. Among the choices was Marco's, an Italian restaurant.

As I was waiting for my lunch, a couple of local bikers came to chat. One of them has previously done a cross-country trip. Since they knew the area, they recommended taking a certain road out of town on my way to Lockhart. Of course, it was the same one that ACA had routed me through.

On my bike map there's a notation: "There is no or bad shoulder to Kyle." I think that should be corrected to: "Ther is no or no shoulder to Kyle." The traffic was slightly heavy in places (of course, that's RURAL heavy), but the drivers were always nice.

On the other side of Kyle (pop 5314) the land becomes flatter. There's a lot of farmland... I'm leaving The Hill Country.

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

From Mark on a Bike 08 2

I lost 750 feet of elevation today, all of it earned on the other side of the continental divide. I'm dropping a little each day, usually only a few hundred feet.

When I arrived in Lockhart (pop 11,615) I stopped at the Visitor's Center just as they were closing at 5:00. There were two employees in the parking lot on their way to their cars, but they stopped and spent about ten minutes telling me about the town.

I checked in to a motel, and two minutes after I closed my door a Norther blew in. The wind began blowing about 20 mph and the temperature dropped by about the same number.

I'd heard about Black's barbecue for miles, and was planning to go there for supper, but I would've had to pedal (or walk) two miles into that 20 mph wind. Instead, I decided to just walk across the street to Chisolm Trail Barbecue.

There, I bought a chopped beef sandwich, a large drink, and chips - for under $4.00. I thought she didn't charge me for one or two of the items, but that's what it cost. I didn't think you could still get a meal for under four bucks, but I guess it's still possible here in Lockhart, USA.

And... it was excellent barbecue.

Back in the room, of course... I blogged.


61.78 distance
13.2 average (a tail wind, even if it's mostly from the side, makes a big difference)
30.9 maximum
4:39:31 time
1500.5 total miles