The American Dream

This is a brief record of my day cycling the Cotton Capers (28/10/00) with the Austin Cycling Association.  As a method of meeting new people in strange countries or cities I can now thoroughly recommend e-mailing the local cycling club and asking to come on their Club Run.

I want to thank everyone who took the time to to chat to the strange lad from England.

A Club Run in England is a little different.  We tend to divide the group into sub-groups of roughly equal capability and then ride in a number of tight groups each with a defined leader.  So my first surprise was to receive a detailed map with the options.

I was riding a Cannondale tourer kindly lent to me by Preston Tyree - after a brief fitting in the car park - a couple of dramas (like pedals falling off) and a test ride round the car park.  Given the detailed and careful fitting the bike was amazingly comfortable - thank you Preston.

So - with about 250 yards of test riding completed off and an introduction to lots of people in the car park off we went.  It was immediately clear that your fast guys were fast.  For me it was very hot (at least 20 degrees F hotter than my recent UK cycling) and humid.  So I tagged along with some of the slower guys & gals at a comfortable pace.

This was my first visit to Texas - so I came with a preconceived expectation of long-horn cattle, cacti and an arid semi desert.  The countryside round Austin was remarkably green and pleasant - in many ways not unlike the area where I live in England - gently rolling countryside though somewhat more open with wider horizons than at home.

Anyway, first we pass the poor people's homes :-) 

Then I spot a cactus - not the mighty branched job of Hollywood legend - but bigger than the little thing with the silk flowers in a 2" pot at home!

Preston & I dismount to inspect the plant.

As I am taking some photos by the side of the road a rider 'on the dark side' comes by.

Recumbents are not widely seen in Britain - and recumbent advocates have some of the characteristics of evangelical preachers - they 'know' they have found the 'one true way' to eliminate that pain in the posterior ;-)

Next, an image straight out of Hollywood.  The Cele cafe.  Only John Wayne and the hitching post are missing.  There is even the sound of cattle nearby (but normal cattle - no long-horns - still I can't have everything).

Here a decision is required - back home for the 29 mile run or onward.  Now there and back rides are never my favourite - so onward has attractions.  Preston suggests a compromise over the full 43 mile loop - so its a done deal and on we ride.

Construction prevents me getting too near to this church which dominates the landscape for the next few miles.

Now we are a small group.

Preston, riding 'on the dark side', leading the way.  

Bob (Vitray) and I discuss history and politics - comparing political, electoral and legal systems in Britain and America until debate diverts attention for a moment and I find myself laying on the road after a minor fall. (I believe no damage to the bike.  The immediate diagnosis for me is a small cut on my right thumb - not even worth a Band-Aid.  A few days later all the bruises come out - nice big multi-coloured ones on my left knee, right arm, backside and belly.  The good news is that they are all totally painless!!)

On to the New Holland Church.

{Some (bad) retouching required here to eliminate some bad fogging.} 

Where do the congregation come from?  Its a big church and, though not empty, the countryside is not heavily populated.

This is cotton country - and a further link with Britain.  Much of the local production would have been exported to Lancashire - home of the industrial revolution and centre of the cotton spinning and weaving industry.  It was said Lancashire manufactured its own requirements before breakfast and the rest of the world's after.  As a child I remember seeing the chimneys of the many mills in Burnley, Rochdale and Blackburn.  Almost all have now gone as the industry has moved to the far east.

The home straight now.  A final photo of my companions and back to the car park to see who else has returned.

The next morning I was back on a plane to London, via O'Hare, carrying with me memories of a great day exploring a new part of the world and of the friendly people who helped make the day complete.

My thanks.  I hope I can come out cycling with the ACA again soon.

Best Wishes