What's Fred Up To Now?: Day 20 - Ordway, CO to Pueblo, CO (53 miles)

Well, I made it to the western end of the TransAmerica route Map 7; Pueblo, CO. My bike odometer is at 1,209 miles. This was my 20th day in a row of riding and tomorrow I'm taking a rest day. Sunday, unless I change my strategy, I'll head up the canyon and towards Hoosier Pass. A lot of things crossed my mind today so far as this trip goes and there are several options from Pueblo. I'll mull things over the rest of today and tomorrow before making a final decision tomorrow afternoon. In all likelihood, I'll stay with the original plan of following the TransAmerica route to Walden then either "fly" down Poudre Canyon or ride on to Laramie then down to Ft. Collins.

Last night's stay in Ordway, CO was very nice. The Hotel Ordway is highly recommended to anyone passing through. Carol and Ted were terrific hosts and it was very quiet. I had the best night's sleep since I started on May 20.

After updating this blog yesterday afternoon I walked a block to the Bits and Spurs Cafe. It was about 6:30 PM and all the tables were taken. I asked the person at the counter if she thought a table would be open any time soon. She sat me with one of the local men, Bill Kimbll. In addition to a very good meal, I had a terrific conversation with Bill. Bill is retired but is an EMT, fire cheif and get this - the local undertaker. Everyone in town still talks about the April 15, 2008 wildfire. Two firefighters were lost during the fire, one of them a very close friend of Bill. The fire started in Olney Springs and, with 70 mph wind gusts, eventually spread east to Ordway. There is a nice memorial to the two firefighters in Olney Springs and a photo is included below. So many small town firefighters are volunteers who risk their lives helping those in their community. Let's all remember them for a second and say thanks to those you know who volunteer in this capacity.

The past two day's weather in the area has been pretty severe; thunderstorms, large hail and tornadoes. None of this reached Ordway, though the skies last night made it look like it might get pretty exciting. But, not a drop of rain, and these areas really need it - like most of the areas I've pedaled through the past few weeks.

I tried to sleep in this morning, but was up and out of town by 7:00 AM. I only ate a breakfast bar as the ACA map indicated places to eat at six then 11 miles down the road. The first town was Crowley but I didn't see anything open and decided that I would survive another five miles. When I reached Olney Springs there was nothing open there either. I took a couple of photos and found the city maintenance building/fire department garage door open. No one was there, and I really needed to use their restroom - it was seven more miles to Fowler which is two miles off route or 20 miles to Boone. Anyway I'm sure no one would ever know I was there and I greatly appreciated the use of their facility.

I passed the turnoff to Fowler and was about 16 miles from Ordway when my phone rang. It was Tom from the Hotel Ordway telling me they had found my glasses and that he would be bringing them to me. I should have told him to mail them to my home address. I pedaled slowly for another two miles then decided maybe I should stop and wait. While waiting, I finished off two PBJs - which I needed by then. Shortly thereafter, here came Ted with my glasses. I tried as hard as I could to pay him for his fuel and time, but he adamantly refused. How gracious!

I arrived at Boone around 11:00 AM. The grocery store was open and I had a soft drink and Klondike Bar (what would you do-o-o for a Klondike Bar? Fred rode 1,200 miles for one!) The elderly gentleman at the store was very nice and when he noticed me looking at the newspaper clippings on the wall told me about the big train derailment back in 1983 that happened a stones throw from the store.

It was another 21 miles from Boone to the Guest Inn & Suites where I am spending tonight and tomorrow night. I arrived at 12:45 PM and there is nothing too exciting to report for the final section of today's ride. The weather was great today and the wind was not much of a factor. The terrain changed quite a bit from the flat-flat-flat eastern Colorado (see photo below). By early afternoon, the sun was baking hot - a dry heat, but hot on one's skin.

After checking in and cleaning up I went to the Great Divide Ski, Bike & Hike store which is only a few blocks from the motel. They looked at everything on my bike to try and figure out where the noise was coming from. Janet worked on it for about an hour; disassembled the bottom bracket, pedals, seat, wheel bearings, checked wheel true and didn't find anything wrong. The service manager took it for a final ride and, while the noise is still there, we decided that it is the rear wheel rubbing some part of the fender when standing and cranking hard. That is what it sounded like to me too, but I am sure glad I had a good bike mechanic look it over to make sure it was nothing more serious. The night we stayed together in Sedalia, MO, Susi mentioned that the rear tire looked pretty close to the fender - but did I listen? - no-o-o! Tomorrow I'll look at the fenders and try to make an adjustment to get rid of the noise. It was well worth the $20 they charged for my peace of mind.

Blah, blah, blah - a few photos from the day follow.