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Events
Pedaling to Benefit Behind the Scenes - Day 10
March 15, 2008
Only a couple of days to go, and today was probably the best riding conditions of the entire ride. Blue skies, warm temps, pleasant company and fast road - I wish the entire ride had been like this. I guess the cold and windy days were my karmic payments for the Texas portion of the ride. Or maybe it's just Texas. It IS a special place!!!
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Taking the road out of Athens, we passed ranches with horses, cattle, and goats. These East Texas ranches are mainly forest and pasture. The rolling hills and scenery remind me of the Missouri Ozarks, while Jeni is reminded of her childhood Maryland countryside.
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We rolled past some interesting cattle that are common here in Texas. They were Brahman. This is the same breed that is so well known to wander amongst the starving Hindus in India. Natural selection in India helped create a very hearty breed. With a telltale hump on the shoulder, these are extremely durable animals, able to withstand drought, parasites, heat and disease. |
The first 15 miles of highway was a busy two lane highway without any shoulder. It made for some tense moments when traffic piled up behind us, but most of the time the road was clear. We actually got pulled over by an "off duty" deputy who gave me a stern warning about not riding in the lane of traffic. Apparently knowing the rules of the road for cyclists isn't a requirement for the "county Mounties" out here. We were careful to ride single file close to the edge until out of the county. The last thing I needed was a traffic ticket from Deputy Dawg. |
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Lunch was is a sandwich shop/antique store in Palestine, TX. The town is pronounced "pal-es-teen", which makes as much sense as New Yorkers' pronunciation of Houston Street as "hows-ton". The sandwiches were good, and we topped it off with pecan pie. In this part of the country, pecan pie is the equivalent of cheese cake in a New York restaurant.
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Today's destination was the city of Crockett, TX. Yes, it's named after Davey Crockett. He stopped here in 1836 on the way to the Alamo. This is home to a now defunct Mary Alen College, a black women's college that closed in 1972. It was established by a local Presbyterian Church in the 1800's to teach high school aged black women, but eventually grew to a college. Unfortunately it is now literally falling down and there is little hope of restoring it. The town of Crockett itself is racially mixed, but there are "white" funeral homes and churches, "black" funeral homes and churches, and now "latino" institutions. Sadly, segregation still exists in America.
The county was dry up until about a year ago, so it was a big deal to find a restaurant in town that served beer. When I asked what kind they had I was told "domestic - Bud, Coors, Coors Lite" and "Imported - Corona, Michelob, Sam Adams". It may take a while before the local servers learn the proper descriptions... |
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The B&B we're staying at is owned by a couple of guys who moved here from Las Vegas. One of the owners has a business/hobby of quiltmaking and has a shop out behind the house with a Gamill long-arm quilting machine. The house has something like 60+ quilts decorating beds, tables, walls and sofas. It's the reason Becky and I picked this place to stay. Like most B&B's, this place hearkens back to the early days of the last century. So much better than a Holiday Inn!
Tomorrow is the last long day of this ride. Almost done...
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