Canyon, Tx to Clovis, New Mexico

Call to Alms . . . Today I completed 1590 miles on my journey to the West Coast.   Remember my ride is to draw attention to the greatest charity in the world the Pelotonia.   Over the last couple of weeks the donations to this cause have fallen off sharply.    The fault is mine in that I don’t really know how to use social media.   I AM ASKING that those of you that use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any other popular social media tool to somehow connect “TheScottsKid.com” and request others to donate.

If our friends contact their friends and the word spreads then donations should pick up and the WINNERS will be those that never get cancer or are cured because of us.

Please help me get the donation bus rolling!

Pictures:

1. Crossed into New Mexico late today.   I am one city past Texico (Clovis) but liked the sign.   I am told that now the weather will get hot, there will be some big hills in the coming days and the cities will become more sparse.
2. Texas makes everything bigger as we all now.   The giant cowboy is an advertisement for a bank.   I think he deserves having his picture taken anyway.
3. In a conversation the other night I was told that the “ginning” season was over.   When I asked for an explanation they said that this is the time when cotton should be picked and so it is and transported to market.   In this field apparently the ginning was done on the major field but this little corner wasn’t worth the effort.  All of the white in the center of the picture is cotton.
4. This is a picture of a vast Texas prairie.   If you look carefully you can also see the wind turbines in the background.   This is the 3rd day that I have seen turbines that go on and on.   As a special treat I saw a train carrying 39 wind turbine blades.   What was kinda’ cool is that each blade rested on two flatbed railroad cars that were bigger than normal.   The tip of the blade actually went slightly over the third car.    Not sure how much energy is produced but it is a lot.
5. The dragon emblem was in the Clovis Fire Station #1.   Who doesn’t like a good dragon.
6. The last picture is of a cattle pen.   Ranchers bring their cattle to one of these ranches and sell them to the company.   The company then feeds them vitamins and fattens them up.   When they are ready they are shipped to other cities where they are processed.    The dark behind the signs are all cows.   I got to the top of a small hill to try and show the huge size of the operation but only lost clarity.    There are several thousand cows making up the dark blob.    Hereford proclaimed itself the “Cattle Capital of the World”.   Not sure if that is true but it sounds good.

Stories:

1. Dogs – Every now and again people will ask if dogs ever chase me.   The answer is “yes”.   Over the last 3 weeks I have been chased 3 times.   The first two times I growled as the dogs approached.   The dogs had never been growled at before and slowed to think about what they were doing.   By the time they figured I was crazy I was too far ahead for them to continue the chase.   Today was different.   I was attacked by the well coordinated two dog team of Chico and Goliath.   They must have been laying in wait in the grass.   Chico came charging out of the grass barking his head off.   His job was to divert my attention since he was the size of a large cat.   I growled at him and he said “crazy human, it’s up to you Goliath”.   Goliath had charged to the left which was my blind side since I was looking at Chico.   I quickly turned my head to the new growling sound only to find that Goliath wasn’t a minature anything and was probably 75 pounds of fast, angry dog.   My self defense reflex kicked in and I pulled my foot out of the peddle clip and began the 4 point foot defense.   Wherever the dog’s teeth went so did my foot.   After a while Goliath tired of the game and figured he wasn’t going to get a taste of good hearty “Ohioian” flesh and went back to join his partner in crime.
2. Jack Rabbits – Please understand that while I can tell the difference between a rabbit and a cat I am clueless about the different kinds of rabbits.   Again, Texas says they have the biggest and best of everything and while I won’t give them carte blanche on the statement I will grant that their rabbits (which I will call Jack Rabbits) are pretty amazing.   In Ohio a rabbit will run about 40 feet, stop, look around and decide if it should keep moving.    The Jack Rabbits I saw this morning (for some reason me riding a bike by the road scared them while they ignored huge trucks) would take off and not only go as fast as any other 4 footed animal I’ve ever seen but would keep going.    They were also the size of small cats.   My guess is evolution had to give them speed given the number of predators that are around.
3. Special People – Every now and again I get overwhelmed by the generosity of people.   I hesitate to put names since I don’t want to say anything about a person good or bad unless they approve it.   I have been on the road for 18 days.   During this time I have met 100 people or more that have done everything they can to make my trip a success.    They have shared dinner, given me mementos, bought me dinner, donated to the Pelotonia, shared map information to keep me out of trouble, ensured my plan is medically sound (i.e. am I using sunscreen and am I getting enough liquids).   Most of these people have been fire fighters from one of the great states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Texas, and now New Mexico.   Remember these are heros that are willing to risk their lives daily to help complete strangers.   In truth, when they are helping me out they are also helping a stranger.  In the last couple of days a fire fighter took me to the restaurant of my choice, paid for dinner, and then gave me a $100 donation for the Pelotonia.   We live in an amazing country filled with very generous people.   It is a shame that the interstates take us to places quickly without given us a feel of the wonderful people in the middle.    THANKS GUYS!
4. Time – My computers is showing 3:39 pm.    This means I made it to Mountain Time.    This may mean my blogs will start coming out a bit later.   Given the distance between towns my mileage may become a bit erratic.   While I am willing to go 90     miles I don’t want to go any further due to the winds, hills, and unknown roads.   Should be interesting.
5. Mileage – For those of you keeping track I made 89 miles today and completed 1580 miles since I left Candlewood.   Wind remains a heavy factor in that it comes and goes and it wishes.   I just try to push through it when it appears and enjoy the heck out of its absence when it leaves.
6. Red Skeleton (sp?) was a favorite comedian when I was young.  I loved his various skits.    The thing that impressed me most was how he ended every show and I will take the liberty of copying him by saying, “Good night and God bless”.