Day 3. El Reno, OK to Albuquerque, NM – 518 miles

The day started early. At 6:00 AM eastern time I was up packing the tent. Slowly the campsite came alive. Brad and Eric were the last to appear. Slowly the coffee got made, the tents collapsed and the bikes packed. Brad and Eric are hauling most of the stuff, which allows Pete and I to run hard and ‘slow’.

We left El Reno at 8:00 AM and it was cool – 85 degrees. We rode to Amarillo, TX and had breakfast at “The home of the free 72 oz steak!” If you could eat the steak, the salad, the shrimp cocktail, and the boot full of soda you did not have to pay the bill. Oh, by the way, you had to do it in 60 minutes. We tried to talk Pete into it, but as you can see he was more interested in the fruit bar.

We crossed over into New Mexico. HOT. We stopped at the welcome center. I got of the bike, walked over to where a little girl was playing under a sprinkler and (in full gear) let the sprinkler cool me down. Rumor has it my riding suite sizzled. I then went to the cooler, took off my T-shirt, poured the water from the cooler on it, and put it back on. Once the heart started pumping again we were off.

Now, in New Mexico they have a very different version of the speed limit than North Carolina. I am pleased to report the bike is as stable at 55 mph as it is at 65 mph (J). We covered a lot of ground quickly and Cathy, the recording on the GPS is wrong. The bike cannot go that fast!

Pete left us all behind. He got up to 75 mph. (L). Eric and Brad just faded into the background.

Once we reach Albuquerque, Eric and I went to buy dinner and I cooked. Tomorrow we will see the Grand Canyon and try and make Las Vegas. We have three days to get to the beach in California to celebrate Brad’s birthday.

Brad is fading fast and Pete lips are dry. The music is playing; we are relaxing after another long day. Tomorrow may be our last day on I-40.

Good night all.