What an amazing day! Our goal was to get into Beaumont before it started raining. We started around 8:00 and made it into Beaumont around 12:10. I felt strong all day and managed to finish with the first group of four riders which was a real thrill. We were headed East most of the day with a strong cross wind from the South but it wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. I surprised myself by coming in with the first group of four riders with an average speed of 20.8 mph on a very windy day. About an hour later, a storm blew in so it's a good thing rode hard.
We were supposed to stop three times and talk to the locals who were manning the rest stops. When we got to Dayton, the first stop, the rest stop wasn't set up yet so we continued on to Devers where we were greeted by the local cheer leaders and had a quick lunch. Our final stop was China where we were greeted by the local Boy Scout troop. Everything was first class - for me, if the rest stop serves dill pickles, it's first class.
We're staying at the Hotel Elegante in Beaumont which is a really great facility. For dinner, we took shuttles to the Spindletop Museum in Gladys City where we were entertained by team of actors doing reinactments from the old days. The highlight was when they turned on the Spindletop well to set off a gusher. That was really awesome. Then it was back to the hotel to watch the Apprentice and lights out.
Tomorrow, we will follow the coast to Creole, take a ferry and end up camping on the beach at a Red Cross shelter. We probably won't be able to post from there so don't worry if we skip a day.
Pickles! Gross!
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