The Americas: Heading South

Marfa continued to enchant this morning. We had breakfast at an old Mexican diner called Mando’s and after some “interesting” Huevos Rancheros we prayed for no Montezuma’s revenge whilst riding between stops!!

The ride from Marfa up route 17 to Fort Davis and onwards to the I10 is motorcycling heaven! Long winding sweeps, beautiful scenery and great little towns. This all however comes to a crashing end once you cross the I10 onto route 285 which is an industrial run of oil riggers making their way North and South from Pecos. The road is heavily potholed and one competes for space with the riggers and not a route I would recommend. Kind of reminded me of The Dalton but for the lack of scenery!

Beautiful route 17, Texas.

Fort Davis, Texas..really worth a visit.

Rupert continues to gain confidence with every riding day and is beginning to get that biker swagger!

It all eventually comes down to this along 285. Miles and Miles of oil donkeys!!

The fascinating thing about the riding is not so much about the bike, or even about the travel (both of which I love by the way) but is more about the amount of headspace one is afforded when locked away in the Kevlar prison! My life (and most people’s I am sure) is so consumed by work and family demands and pressures, that down time is usually made up of some inane activity to simply switch off the incessant chattering of my mind! work this, meet that, call this, do that etc etc…I am sure most can identify. The beauty of the bike is that after the first few days of settling into the ride, my mind eventually starts to shut the F*ck up and although some might consider that the verbal debate between me and me would make me a prime candidate for institutionalisation, it generally produces healthy and progressive thoughts and ideas about my own development as a man, a husband, a father etc and it is therefore likely that this sort of thing is something I will continue to do well into my very old age, and hopefully my blue gnome(s) will be joining me again in a couple of years.

Today’s 420km ride from Marfa, Texas to Roswell, New Mexico

Tonight we are spending the evening in Roswell, New Mexico, the town famed for the (alleged) UFO crash landing in 1947. The place trades, and is heavily reliant on this myth for its commercial survival as every second shop is about alien/UFO/otherworldly memorabilia.

We were due to continue to head north tomorrow to Santa Fe, but have decided against continuing along route 285 and instead we are going to head west, towards Arizona and the Cibola and Gila National forests which will be awesome I am sure!