Day 3 – Axis of Evil

Wednesday, June 10th

Waller, TX to Cleveland, TX

We got an extra late start today.  Yesterday’s ride wiped both of us out and though we planned to wake up early, it took several rounds of getting up, walking around, sitting down and falling asleep again before I fully awoke.  We took our time over breakfast and planning our route, then packed our bags and found the mount for the GPS was missing.  We looked everywhere it could have been and an hour later, just as I was about to give up, Dad walked over to me with the mount in his hand.

“Where was it?!”

“In my shoe.”  He had put it there so we wouldn’t smash it or lose it.

We got underway a little after 11 and enjoyed a wonderful mid-morning ride.  Pretty streets, smooth roads and light winds were a welcome change from yesterday’s grind.  A couple of smooth, shaded roads – Decker Prairie Rosehl and Firetower Rd – were particularly enjoyable on the bike and near The Woodlands, CR 242 had a lane-sized shoulder which we had all to ourselves.

About 25 miles into the ride, we needed to stop for food so we pulled into a CVS and picked up some ham, chips and Dr. Pepper for lunch.  After eating on a park bench outside the store, I went inside to use the restroom and returned to find that while Dad was packing up the bikes, two large, talkative ladies took over the bench.  He told me later that he got a good laugh when they stopped mid-sentence to watch him put sunblock on his calves.

The rest of the afternoon was beautiful, but the details were not memorable except for one stampede we caused by surprising a group of lunching horses and the road we rode into Cleveland which had a 12 ft shoulder with only about a foot of it paved.  Once in Cleveland, we couldn’t find our motel.  All but two of the streets we passed were unmarked and the motel wasn’t answering their phone.  We stopped at a grocery store to buy dinner, then hunted down the motel only to hop back on the bikes when they turned us away for lack of a picture ID.  We had planned to pay with a Visa TravelMoney Card which – by declaration of the Visa company itself – should not require an accompanying picture ID for purchases.  There isn’t even a name on the card to compare an ID with.  It just says “Member Travel Card” where a normal credit card would have the cardholder’s name.  Correct me if I am wrong, but if we provide them with a valid form of payment why would they need a photo ID?  We are riding bikes, so we can’t make off with the room’s TV, and even if we found some way to snatch one of those giant TVs and strap it to the bike, it’s not like it would be hard to find and catch us.  My top speed is just over 30 mph without the weight of large electronics.

Anyhoo, we found a Super 8 motel run by a very kind family and the owner – who normally requires photo ID – was willing to give us a room.  It’s a lesson we are slow to learn, but between this trip and our last, we now know we should really try to avoid this triumvirate of towns that have given us so much trouble with motels.  From now on we do solemnly swear to do all we can to avoid spending the night in Cleveland, Shepherd or Kountze, TX.

Today’s Quick Stats:

Bike              Distance (mi)    Average Speed (mph)     Trip Odometer

MiniWini             70.74                  18.5                           286.22

Sti(ck/g)            71.89                  18.5                           289.06

Stampedes: 3

Roadside Pees: 1