167: Tour de Fort Worth

Our tour leader, Jim

Since our bike was back in the city, we had to be transported there by car in order to pick it up and get it back up to Azle, where we were staying.  My brother-in-law Jim had arranged for a get-together at lunch with some of his friends and colleagues who have been following our trip, so he came with us to the bike shop and then gave us a great riding tour of Fort Worth.

Josh worked wonders on the bike

But first - the bike!  Oh, the bike!  It hasn't been this clean since the day we got it.  Josh of Velo Gold did a fine job of adding the disk brake onto the new wheel assembly that we received.  In addition, he replaced bits and pieces that needed attention, cleaned it up and - finally - got the shifters lined up properly. Roger was thrilled. Everything worked great and we particularly enjoyed a chance to ride the bike without the packs.

Museum of Modern Art - KAWS

Jim took us along the river path, through the museum district, and into Fort Worth's Water Gardens. Walking down into the big pool on bike cleats was a bit of a trick, but worth it for the amazing sensation of being inside the fountain.

Pete couldn't join us for the ride, but came out to the bike shop to see us off.

You can walk down into the fountain

Alix from Mayor Price's office, with Urbin

When we arrived at our lunch rendezvous spot, one of his friends was waiting with a representative from the Mayor's office.  She had gifts for us from Mayor Betsy Price - bicycle jerseys and other active wear!  Mayor Price is a cyclist and friend of Jim's friend Urbin, and it turns out that my niece Rachel had designed the jersey.  Unbelievable!  You can read about Mayor Price in Bicycling magazine - she was just named America's most bike-crazy mayor in their recent article.

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Pete came to see us off

Rachel, and Jim and friends who joined us for lunch

Modeling our new jerseys

Me and Becky on the SeaDoo

After our lunch, Jim led us through the old Stockyards and then out to the house where we had another chance to play on the lake. It had gotten hot by the time we arrived, so we were happy to cool off in the water. This time, Roger and Jim took the sailing kayak out.

And there can be no better way to end a great Texas day than with margaritas and Mexican food.  So that's what we did.

The day's report:  Fort Worth to Azle, part two:  36.4 miles/7738 to date

Our Tour of Fort Worth

Cooling off by the lake

Jim and Roger on the kayak

A Texas favorite

166: Feeding body and soul

One of the lovely things about a rest day is that we have a chance to do some things other than ride the bike. If I can find a yoga class, I like to go. I haven't done it often, but it always feels good to try the poses, relax and work some different muscles for a change.

Since the bike was back in Fort Worth awaiting new wheels, today was a day for all sorts of treats.  My sister regularly attends a yoga class on Wednesday mornings, and so I was able to accompany her. Jan gave us a great workout!  And then, a real treat - a massage that Becky had arranged for me. Yes, I know I had one not even a week ago. But who can resist a massage?  And Elvira has a magic touch. Sigh.

Elvira worked her magic on my muscles

Becky and her husband Jim live on a lake, and so we also had a chance to go play on the lake. Now, I will ride the bike with Roger anywhere - and I have - but I didn't choose to go tandem with him on the SeaDoo!  Instead, I chose to ride with Becky, who took us around the lake and up the creek for a great look at some of the wild life there. Since I am a bird watcher, it was a particular treat to be able to see some egrets and kingfishers over the water as we cruised along. We also got a good view of an osprey over the lake.

Roger considers his next ride

Up a creek without a paddle?

Walnut Creek off Eagle Mountain Lake

Great Egret

And then there was dinner - more home-cooking and a chance to visit with my niece and nephew and his girlfriend.  We had some great goodies from our cousins in Croatia, who had sent Becky and Jim home with a suitcase full of their home made brandies, meats and jams.

Croatian appetizers and cordials

Jim, Paula, me, Becky and Rachel with a toast - Hvala!

Happy Aleska

So, that's what I did on my day off - ate, drank, played, rested, and enjoyed my family. All is well.

Roger, Jim, Becky, Rachel, Byron, Paula

165: Old friends in new places

Doesn't everyone have a steer-shaped BBQ pit?

One of the joys of our trip is catching up with friends in the cities we've visited. Most of the time, these are people that we met in our travels, or in one of our home cities through the years, and they now live somewhere new. So it is with Pete, who is a friend from our riding club back in Redlands. He moved out to Texas a few years ago, and now lives in Fort Worth.

Pete playing hooky

So he set us up with a bike shop to handle the wheel exchange, and then met us for a short tour of some of Fort Worth's coolest features:  the bike trails, riverside, cool eateries, and down home burger joint.  These are all things that Roger and I enjoy, and such was our synchronicity that we were just a few minutes from his proposed rendezvous point when he circled up on the bike path right beside us!

Cyclists have their own bridge over the river

Roger and Pete at breakfast

Breakfast was delicious at Press Cafe, right on the river pathway. Since it is right next to Mellow Johnny's, it's the launching site for numerous cycling groups every weekend. I have to confess, it beats the heck out of Antonious Pizza for a post-ride beer - not that there's anything wrong with the beer prices at our favorite Redlands post-ride refreshment stop!

A few  more miles enjoying the river and then we arrived at the bike shop, where Roger was like a kid at Christmas unwrapping the new wheels.

Fort Worth skyline from the Trinity River trail

Is it possible to have "buyer's remorse" on anything related to more cool new bike stuff?  I don't know. But Roger was wondering if we really needed the wheels after our ride yesterday proceeded without incident. For that, we have to thank a couple of the engineers in our family; on Sunday, both Colin and Jason were out with Roger in the garage, offering expert opinions and some dang good advice about how to deal with the bent axle. Only problem - their advice about how best to position the axle to minimize the chain issue was diametrically opposed! I won't say how it ended up, but I will report that the ride in from Waco was not burdened by the problem. So, have we bought new wheels for nothing?

Kincaid's Grocery and Burger Grill

Gotta admit they are pretty!

A fine Texas burger for lunch, and then a hand-off to my sister Becky for the ride out to their place in Azle completed our day. Well - almost! The rest of the day included a little toddy and some fine time on the porch enjoying the lake breeze.

Kathy and Becky  enjoy a refreshing gin and tonic on the porch

We ended up with one of our shortest days on the bike yet - 11.6 miles - but it was "on the route" and we'll complete the journey to Azle on the bike tomorrow with Becky's husband Jim and perhaps a few of his buddies.

The day's report:  Fort Worth to Azle, riding 11.6 miles/7701 to date.

Our squirrelly path today

164: The longest day

Only in Texas would you have a BBQ pit shaped like a gun!

We have really had a great gift with the weather the past few days. Even since we left Houston last Tuesday, we've had cooler weather.  The skies were clear and the air cool over the weekend, making our weekend gathering very comfortable. So when we headed out this morning, we were anticipating another nice day. What we did not expect, but were delighted to enjoy, was a wonderful tailwind for the entire day!

We rode through Waco and out the north end of town, expecting to reach Alvarado (about 70 miles away). But we were both rested and feeling so cocky, and making such good time, that we decided about lunch time that we had a chance to go all the way to Fort Worth in one day. So I contacted my niece, and asked if we could bunk with them, and then sailed on the winds into the city.

Hillsboro courthouse 

No relation!

This was our longest day yet, at 95.1 miles. We averaged 15.1 miles an hour, too - our best yet for a loaded bike. (We had one short day when we averaged 16 miles an hour, but as Roger was quick to point out, "we weren't carrying the packs that day so it doesn't count!")

Along the road, Colin passed us as he was driving to his work site in Cameron. It was a surprise to have the truck pull up next to us and see a familiar face!

Who's that?

A final so-long to Colin on the road

We had a nice visit with Rachel and Jeff and baby Aleska. They live in a cool neighborhood near downtown, and we walked to a great pizza place for dinner. Turns out they are also just a few miles from the bike shop where we will need to go tomorrow to check on our bike wheels!

Rachel, Jeff and Aleska

The day's report:  Waco to Fort Worth, 95.1 miles, 7690 to date

Blow me all the way to Fort Worth

163: Oktoberfest

Our family celebrations continued on Sunday with a fabulous meal presented by my sister, Melinda. She fixed jaeger schnitzel, spaetzel, potato pancakes, sauerkraut, bratwurst and homemade applesauce. Oh, man, was it good! Her husband Colin has a collection of steins so everyone could enjoy their bier in an appropriate vessel.

 front row:  Caitlin holding Jericho, Kathy with Amelie, Lori, Dad, Mom, Melinda
back row: Nathan, Jason with Zeke, Colin, Roger, Greg

We ate and drank and had a great time. Too soon, the travelers had to say their goodbyes, including my brother Greg and his wife, Lori. We managed to get a group photo of the assembled members of the BehrensClan before everyone headed off. The only person missing was my great-nephew Stuart, who was napping at the time.

Can't have too many cooks in this kitchen!

Master Chef Melinda

Nathan on potato pancakes

Caitlin and Stuart helping

Lori

Greg, Dad and Amelie

Not everyone is fortunate enough to have such a large and loving family. Our visits with both Roger's and my families have been a high point in our trip, and one of the main reasons that we chose the route we did.  We are blessed, indeed.

Bier Master Colin 

It's all good!

162: KaRoPalooza begins

I have to explain the name of this post. My parents have used a conjunction of their names (Mary and Bob) - Marbo - as the prefix for their email account for years.  So we sometimes refer to them collectively as "Marbo" and when celebrated their 60th anniversary a few years ago, Melinda coined the term "MarboPalooza" for the festivities.

In this year, they both celebrated their 85th birthdays, and so this summer, we held MarboPalooza II at my brother's house to enjoy each other's company and raise a toast to everyone for their birthday this year. So I figured while Roger and I were in Texas on our Excellent Adventure, perhaps we could have a KaRoPalooza so that we'd have a chance to visit with some of our family, as we'd been somewhere across the country back in June when everyone got together, and weren't able to join them.

My older sister wasn't able to make it, but two of her sons came and brought their families. And my other sister and brother were there, with their spouses. So it was a pretty fine group, and we had a great time visiting, eating - and riding! - while everyone was here for the weekend.

First thing Saturday, Mom and I hit the farmers' market for some goodies. Waco has a very fine market, with some great local and organic farmers, cheeses, meats, food vendors and such.

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One really cool vendor with a product I've not seen before was Crowned Bird Cafe, which was making up and serving something they called "Puffles" - a waffle-like confection with fresh fruit and amazing sauces. These are based on a street food popular in Hong Kong called quai gai jaan. If you are in Waco, go try them - they are great.

Samples of the puffles

The other thing we did was drive by the silos. Man, the SILOS! If you are a fan of the Fixer Upper show, I guess you know about the silos. I don't watch the show, but it was clear that it's very popular. This place was mobbed! They have a trolley bus that runs from the farmers' market to the silos and downtown. There were people everywhere. It goes to show - if you renovate it, they will come!

These silos have become a huge tourist attraction

My nephews Jason and Nathan arrived by Saturday afternoon, and their children had a great time playing. We even got to take a short ride with them on Sunday, while Nathan's wife Caitlin looked after the kids at the park.

Play ball!

Zeke and Stuart

Dad, Caitlin with Stuart, Nathan and Jericho, Amelie

Jericho with uncle Nathan

Nathan on the Brockton

Jason down by Lake Waco

Some trick riding

Dad tries out the tent with Zeke and Jericho

Sunday was Oktoberfest at Melinda and Colin's house. More on that tomorrow!

161: Ahhh . . .

Mom and Dad live close by a great Y facility, and since they are members, we are able to use the club when we visit. So I was able to attend a yoga class this morning, and in the afternoon, both Roger and I had massages!  Man, oh man, did that feel good. The rest of the day was pretty chill. Roger worked on our route maps, planning how we'd get home.  Mom fixed a great dinner - red snapper with a red sauce that has always been a family favorite.

Waco is also home to my sister, Melinda, and her husband Colin. So it is a natural gathering place for our family. Here's Mom and Dad with Melinda and Colin, and our map. By Saturday, the house would be full. But for tonight, it was calm.