RIDE FOR THE ROSES - THE FINALE

After a weekend of festivities,The Ride for the Roses was finally here. I never got to meet Lance.

We, Theresa and I, arrived early for the event and spent the morning preparing the bikes, drinking coffee, and waiting. I was in Lane 3 which was the class of the fastest Century riders and at the front. After hearing Lance speak and Robbin Williams tell a few jokes the celebrities took to the road, followed by the major fundraisers, tandems, then Lane 3. When we took off, I led for the first 9-10 miles. Then a peloton caught me and I maintained with them until we go to Elgin, which was 20 miles from the start. It felt a little fast,averaging 30 mph, so I fell back to the second peloton which was about 25 riders. Then we maintained a 26mph pace which was much more comfortable for me. At 10:15 the wind picked up,, which was a cross wind or tail wind, blowing 15-25mph but by that time we were headed back to Elgin. I passed all the rest stops and ate as I rode because I was shooting for a time of under 4 hrs. The peloton I was in fell to just four of us. We took turns dragging off one another until the last five miles when we hit some hills. I was third in the group and the leader fell to the rear to drag. The second rider said he did not want to lead so I knew he was tired or just did not want anyone dragging off him. I attacked the hill hard, maybe a little too hard but when we got to the top the other three fell well back. I descended down the hill and had another climb. One of the guys caught me and said to me, "let's work together and bring it home." I said ok but was unable to stay with him up the climb or catch him over the last two miles. He beat me by about two hundred yards. When I finished I looked at my time which was different than Theresa's watch. My computer acted up during the ride from time to time and read a finish time of 4hours eight minutes. Theresa checked her watch when I left and when I finished and she showed 3 hours and 50 minutes. Either way, it was 29 minutes faster than last years 4hours and 37 minutes and my best century. When I finished and got back to my truck, all I could do was cry. Theresa came over to me and gave me a BIG hug and was so proud of the whole accomplishment. I asked her about her ride and she had completed the 7 miles and was so impressed by the whole atmosphere. To me, she was the real winner today. I was so proud of her and her accomplishment.

I want to thank everyone whom made this dream ride a reality. Special Thanks to Emily and Theresa - although it was very long and sometimes demanding, I could not have completed this without you. We got some great press and publicity for the LAF and Red River. Also, without the support of everyone, it could have never happened. I have learned a lot about cycling, people and myself. I also hope that I have taught my readers something as well:
"One Person CAN Make a Difference."
Thank you once again to everyone,
Live Strong and Ride ON.
Paul Schnatz
Red River Town Councilor

SCHOOL VISIT

Today I went to Pflugerville Elementary School and spoke to the children about having a dream and being able to do whatever they put their little minds to. I discussed my ride, bicycle safety, where Red River is, and the support team that I had following me. I asked each of them what they wanted to do when they grow up and I heard football player, teacher, a mom, soccer player, police woman, and several other fields of expertise. I encouraged them all to follow their dream and how they can make a difference in the world. I then told them about the snakes and tarantulas that I saw while training and riding, and that is when the crowd got the best of me and they switched the conversation to Halloween and costumes. I finally got them back on track which was no easy task - what a tough crowd. LOL. They were so cute. They all received Live Strong bracelets and a Winter Visitor Guide from Red River.
Live Strong and Ride On

TEXAS REDS IN SAN MARCOS

Theresa and I went to the Texas Reds Steakhouse in San Marcos.

We visited with owners Nancigail and Troy Miller prior to their opening. They treated us to a delicious aged beef dinner with baked potatoes. It was fantastic and we really appreciated their hospitality. We had a tour of the facility and was just amazed with the atmosphere and the motif. The restaurant use to be a cotton gin in the 1800's. When it burned down, it was rebuilt in 1906 with a mostly brick shell and wooden interior that had a warm and welcoming feel. Thank you for being a sponsor and for the great meal.

Texas Reds
120 W. Grove
San Marcos, TX 78666.
(512) 754-8808

Visit the other Texas Reds in Red River, NM and Eagle Nest, NM.
Live Strong and Ride On.

STAGE 9 CEDAR PARK TO THE CAPITAL OF TX

Theresa and Emily shuttled me to Cedar Park to start the final stage.

Before I speak of my ride, I must tell you about last night. Theresa found the promoter of the concert and spoke to Big Joe about my ride. Just prior to Rik Trevino coming on stage, Big Joe thanked all the sponsors for the concert and then preceded to tell everyone that they had another special guest here from Red River. He spoke of the ride and I got a very nice applause as I took off my hat and waved to the crowd. What a nice reception.

Due to not taking yesterday off, my ride today was only 38 miles and 1 hour 30 minutes.
I rode down highway 183 to Mopac then took Mopac to Caesar Chavez. The ride was a little uncomfortable due to heavy and fast traffic but it is exactly what I expected. The fast and the furious. I took a left on Congress and I saw the Capital towering at the end of the street. I stopped about 5 blocks before and reflected on the ride and my accomplishment before riding to the finish. I was excited yet sad that it has come to an end. It was an awesome trip and if you are reading this, I want to thank you for taking the time to keep up with me and the interesting happenings that occurred along the way. I rode up to the steps of the Capital and Theresa and Emily took photos as a last hurrah. Tonight is the first night I feel tired, I guess because I have nothing left to do tomorrow but rest. I will go for a ride tomorrow but I know it will be different in many ways. The state police referred me to some phone numbers to call first thing in the morning the get in touch with Governor Rick Perry. I will keep you updated. Tonight and for the next week, we will be staying with my stepdaughter and son in law and my two beautiful grand sons. Emily is leaving tomorrow to head back to Red River as Theresa and I wait for the Ride for the Roses next weekend. I will keep you posted on any updates this week.
Live Strong, Ride On, and Goodnight.

STAGE 8.5

Although I wanted to sleep in and rest, I just couldn't do it.

I awoke at 5:00am and by 7:00am I was real restless so I went for a bike ride. I rode to Cedar Park, TX, which is 38 miles through the hill country toward Austin at an average speed of 25 mph. Like I stated ionone of the earlier stages, the longer the ride went on, the stronger and faster I got. This was Theresa's first day of SAGing with Emily and she was very impressed and speechless (I finally did - write this on your calender - Theresa Buck speechless). Now a SAG is responsible for supporting the rider during a ride, however, with both SAG's in the same vehicle and myself on a bike, guess who had to help who with a flat. Yep, the SAG's went down (like a sack of potatoes) with a flat and I had to wait on them. I would have completed the ride today but I have family and friends that will be on the Capital of Texas steps at 10:00am on Sunday. Tonight is the concert so we plan on having a good time and enjoying the atmosphere.
One observation that I found out to be very interesting was that I did not have to deal with one single dog the whole route.
Live Strong and Ride ON.

STAGE 8 BROWNWOOD TO LAMPASAS

I want to start this out with an apology to Ron Key of Lubbock. Ron won the 2004 Ride for the Roses cycling jersey at the Red River Century Tour as part of a fund raiser raffle for the L.A.F. When I arrived in Lubbock, Ron wanted me to have the jersey back so he gave it to Debbie Callaham's father to give to me. I received it Ron and thank you for the gift.

Today we had coffee and muffins with Anna at Gate 1 Inn. Shortly after signing my first autograph on the trip, I began to ride to Lampasas. Another perfect and blessed day was ahead of me. We also passed out many of the Winter Visitor Guides promoting our lovely community. Today's 72 mile route was completed in 3 hours and 45 minutes. Aside from a lot of road kill, the ride was pretty uneventful until I was between Lameta and Lampasas. I saw a truck go by and the gentleman looked real familiar to me but I continued on. I saw the truck turn around in my helmet mirror and to my surprise, Bill Gill, owner of Texas Reds in Red River pulled off the road. Bill and I visited for about 10 minutes before we parted ways. Bill's foster mother passed away and he came down for the funeral. Bill, our prayers are with you and yours. Also while traveling down highway 84, iI saw a tractor driving on the shoulder. My first thought was I am going to catch him. I caught him at the bottom of a hill and thought I would draft uphill. Then I thought I can take him. I pulled up beside him and gave him the infamous look (like Lance gave Ullrich) and blew by him on the long climb. I owned that farmer from then on. When I arrived in Lampasas, we checked in to the Holiday Inn Express and already I feel smarter. General Manager, Paul W. Thomas welcomed us and presented us with tickets to see John Conlee and Rick Trevino performing tomorrow night, therefore, I am taking tomorrow off from riding to Austin until Sunday, besides that, I am two days ahead of schedule. How cool is that. Then we went to eat at the Best BBQ house in Texas (The Roadhouse). Owner, Barry Linthicum, visited with us for a while and then donated $20.00 to the L.A.F. Thanks for the great food Barry. Emily and I then went to The Darn Good Radio Show "The Best Music you Ever Heard & The Best Music you Never Heard" KCYL AM - Q102 FM Radio Station and did a live interview about the ride and our adventures. Disc Jockey Bob Fullerton actually used to live in Eagle Nest about 20 years ago which is 18 miles from Red River. Theresa Buck will be here shortly to Sag the last leg for me. Looking forward to a good nights rest and sleeping in past 5:00am. One last thing that caught our attention was a prickly pear cactus without the pricklies. Wouldn't that just be a pear?
Live Strong and Ride On.

STAGE 7 ABILENE TO BROWNWOOD

I woke up at 4:45am to face the toughest day of my journey to date.

Leaving Abilene the roads were my toughest challenge but I still have many great and funny stories to share. The roads started out great - smooth and flat. Approximately 7 miles later the roads changed as did my good easy ride. I found myself riding on a chip seal shoulder and highway. Chip seal is tar then topped with chunky rocks - it was like riding on cobblestone for the duration of the 77 mile ride. Even the white lines were rough, however, it was not the bikes fault, wasn't the routes fault, It was the ASPHALT. (LOL) Then I was faced with about a 5mph head wind along with the rolling hills of the outer hill country. Put them all together along with 85 degree temperature and high humidity and it made for a long ride (77 miles in 4 hours and 11 minutes). This was the first day I had to make multiple stops during the ride instead of just one. There was a lot of road kill on the highways from skunks to deer. Fortunately the buzzards I saw were pre-occupied with the deer and they didn't circle me, therefore I knew I was doing better than I felt. My knee pain I discovered was due to fatigue and my knees coming away from the frame of the bike while peddling instead of a smooth circular motion. Once I figured that out I focused on my spinning and the pain subsided. I also saw my first redneck today. I knew it was a redneck when his boat trailer stuck out further than his vehicle and seemed to be very close to me as he passed. When I looked up, I saw a pole sticking up in the rear of the boat with a pair of pants flying full staff as he drove by me at Brownwood lake. You might be a redneck.......I couldn't help but laugh. When I arrived into Brownwood, Emily and I stopped at a gas station and a gentleman from Verizon came up to me and asked if I was the guy that is biking to Austin. I said, "yes" and he reached out and handed me $20.00 and said, "I think it is great what you are doing." I asked him how he heard about my ride and he said it was on the front page of the newspaper on Monday. After he left, I turned around and there was a lady checking me out in my cycling shorts. Emily and I smiled at her and she asked if I was riding cross country. I told her about my mission and and she replied, "Oh Lord, God be with you." We left there and went to the Chamber of Commerce. Emily went to visit with them to see if we had a room for us in town. A lady that was in the Chamber at the time asked if we had a room yet and when Emily said no. She replied, "I will take care of it." This young German lady was Anna Iller, owner of the Gate 1 Motor Inn. The room must have been a suite because it is so large with everything you could possibly need with two very comfortable queen size beds and a steak house right next door. Thank you Anna and Jessie for your hospitality and generosity. It is greatly appreciated and we look forward to having breakfast with you in the morning. We also stopped at the Brownwood Bulletin, the local newspaper , and I was interviewed and photographed by Managing Editor Gene Deason. Due to your efforts, I was recognized by several individuals throughout your lovely community. I would also like to thank Nadene Lyles in Abilene for offering to put us up. Unfortunately I decided to ride on to Brownwood and after a long day I didn't feel like driving back to Abilene only to return back to Brownwood to travel on south. Tomorrow I am sleeping in until 6:00 tomorrow and hoping for smoother highways. Until then,
Live Strong and Ride On.