May 21, 2005
Day 4: Mercey Hot Springs to Madera
What a glorious sunrise! In the dry country with a chorus of birdsong.
But I waited too long. A strong north wind kicked in early in the morning.
I struggled to ride downhill along Little Panoche Creek. When I got into the Valley, I took a long break in an apricot orchard, but when I got back on my bike, the wind wore me down. It took an hour to ride five miles.
I stopped for another break at an elementary school to escape the wind. The janitor, working on Saturday, opened the bathroom up for me to use and so I could refill my water bottles. It's amazing that people with the least power and resources are often the most generous.
The twelve miles into Firebaugh were long, straight, and monotonous - but, at least I had a sidewind instead of a headwind. Firebaugh is clearly a Valley town. The language is Spanish, small shops abound, and cars cruise up and down the main drag. I had a great lunch at a Mexican cafe and then took off an hour to snooze in the shade at the town park. I put off getting back into the wind as long as possible.
Finally, I decided to head towards Madera instead of Chowchilla to avoid killer headwinds. Just as I was coming into town, I stopped at a convenience store where the owner was speaking an unfamiliar language. I asked him what it was, but he refused to answer. I sat down at a booth to have my Coke and Cheetos and started talking with a young guy in the next booth - the owner's son. It turns out that his dad was speaking Arabic, but was probably concerned about anti-Arab sentiment. The son was struggling to get back into college. I gave him as much encouragement as I could as well as a few tips to make it easier. I hope he gets back in.
Today's ride: 58 miles (93 km)
Total: 201 miles (323 km)
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