March 23, part 2.

This was a killer day. We had headwinds all the way from Las Cruces, NM to El Paso, Texas. One rider even got blown off the road into the ditch. The same rider got chased by two dogs. It just wasn't her day. We were really just schlagging the miles out today. It was hard. At about mile 46, Gail, Lynn and I stopped at a shopping plaza to eat at a restaurant. They let us park the bikes IN the restaurant. The waiter asked us where we were going and we told him. He told the manager, who came over and asked a lot of questions. The people at the next table heard us and asked if they could take our picture. I felt like giving out autographs. We floundered down the road a little farther. Gail and Lynn got ahead when I stopped for a rest. And who came up behind me? The guy from Finland and the two guys from Florida he is riding with. They were beat and looking for a motel. I couldn't help because the directions to ours were very complicated. In fact, when I caught up with Gail and Lynn again at the bike shop we pushed on ahead and then just didn't know which way to go. Lynn used her GPS and we made a couple of false starts, but finally got in. It's in a very busy, pedestrian-unfriendly part of town. I think there are 10 lanes of traffic. So Nancy and I had the hotel shuttle take us down to Walgreen's, where I finally found postcards. I also bought some Ben Gay for my tired muscles. Sheila from Scotland had told the cook that it was St. George's Day in Britain and asked her if she would prepare bangers and mash for supper. Sheila lied, but we still got the bangers and mash. It was great. Sheila also read the 2nd of her two poems which she has written about the trip, and Gail, our Texan, sang us the Texas State anthem. Tomorrow we won't start until 9 because we only have 52 miles to go. Se we can sleep a little later and I can get my cards written. Once my head hits the pillow, I will be out. ________________60 Meilen mit Gegenwind heute. Mensch, bin ich KO. Ausserdem, war das Motel schwer zu finden. Wir sind fast alle verloren gegangen. Nachher bin ich mit Nancy zu einem Drogerie Mart mit dem Motel Shuttle gefahren. Habe Salbe gegen Muskelkater und Ansichtskarten gekauft. Endlich mal welche gefunden! Morgen fangen wir spaeter an weil die Entfernung kuerzer ist. Heute Abend schlafe ich bestimmt gut!