Day 3 - 4/24/2003

TOM:

Wind! Wind! We started the day at Kerman going east into the wind for 5 miles. We then turned south and were still facing the wind. Then we were on Henderson road which headed at an angle in the South -East direction the wind was even stronger! We faced the wind for 70 miles all the time hoping for a tail wind. Finally our hope came true and the wind direction was from our right side slightly from the rear. This increased our speed for the 11 mph to about 16 miles per hour. This condition lasted for about 2 hours resulting in our average speed increasing to 13.4 mph from 11.8 mph. The last 15 miles the wind was not as favorable. It was more directly off the right side and only slowed our speed to 14 mph. We had several forms of encouragement today. 4 to 6 cars honked their horns. The same amount of trains blew their whistles. People waved and smiled. That reminds me of yesterday when I saw a nun beside us at the stop light in Dos Palos and she gave us a big simile and wave. I recalled this smile today at the end of today's trip when we were running out of energy and it gave us the energy to complete the trip. I had a flat tire on my bike at about lunch time that delayed us for a while to replace the tube. We saw and smelled lots of farm land and dairy farms. As we were passing through Caruthers they were just beginning the dedication of their new library. We saw a big happy crowd. We had 4 dog encounters today with no bad experiences. Over all it was a great day.

One of many trains that tooted their horn for us

Caruthers Branch Library Grand Opening Ceremony

ERIC:

Day 3 - (4/24/03) Today was a much better day than yesterday. Last night while in Fresno we went to a bike store and purchased a new bike seat for me. It made a big difference in my mood. Today was a long hard day that started off with wind in our faces. It ended with the wind at our back. (Sort of) The weather was windy, but no rain. We could see to the west the showers coming down. The clouds got a little dark at times but over all it was a good weather day. The temperature was in the upper 60's mid 70's. 103 miles is a long way to ride a bike. A new record for both of us. Have a nice day! :)

Kerman, CA to Wasco, CA 109 miles. Rolling hills starting at 225 feet and finishing at 330 feet

Best berries on Highway 43

Day Three - 4/24/2003

Lucille:

April 24 - Thursday -This morning we drove back to Taco Bell in Kerman and the guys took off from there. The highlight of my exploring today was my wandering in the town of Selma. I found 2 antique stores that I enjoyed. I had my lunch in a pretty little city park. Tonight we are staying at the Wasco Inn Motel. I was so anxious about this trip but am relaxing a bit now that we are establishing a rhythm to our days and I now know that indeed we will be able to find each other at the end of the day. We connected by cell phone today to firm up time and location of the motel. I was happy that the phones worked today because the wind made for a longer day than we had expected. We were all happy when they finally arrived tonight at 7 pm. On to Tehachapi tomorrow.