Last weekend, I had the pleasure of working with a great NM-based USAC crew in Carlsbad during a three-stage omnium. I had worked this race once before after meeting the NM coordinator at Collegiate Nationals two years back. Ever since, Pamala has invited me to be on the crew.
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| The only "green" is on the signs |
It was a laid-back weekend. The time trial, for which I was the starter on Friday afternoon, went off without a hitch, and in the two road races on Saturday and Sunday we had only a few minor crashes. Eight riders from my club in Lubbock had made it out to Cavern City, and they all did very well and better. what a joy to see my friends race!
Our crew worked super-well together. they are all good commissaires, but more importantly, they are really nice people. We all went out for dinner at the Trinity Hotel on Saturday evening (the best place in town, which obviously doesn't mean much in Carlsbad!), and that's the best time to bond. Thanks for welcoming me, Tom, Reid, Joanna, Michael, Jeff, Sharon, Bill, and of course Pamala, in no particular order.
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| Inexpensive fixer-upper outside of Brownfield |
On both days I had the same entertaining and competent driver as last year, Valerie. even though she likes to shoot a few hundred rounds on the range while I prefer to hug a tree, we got along super-well and had fun while following both the Cat. 5 as well as the P/1/2/3 fields. we have a lot of things in common (travel, diving, food, etc.), and I'm already looking forward to coming back out next year and continuing our non-stop chat in her mega bubba truck (carbon footprint of a 777!).
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| That's why the places are called Levelland, Plainview, and Brownfield |
The drive back home was about as entertaining as a drive through eastern NM and West Texas can be. Rolling through Hobbs, it is always better to roll up the windows and lock the doors, lest one wants to become another statistic. The potash mines and nuclear facility (WIPP) in the Carls bad area soon give way to oil-field trash and then the uninterrupted barren cotton fields that come blowing by Lubbock whenever the wind blows from the west. The only green one sees is on the road signs....
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| Endless vistas on the way home.... |
And now I am in the DFW airport, with an hour or two to kill before taking the hop to Europe for two weeks of visits and sightseeing. I suppose I'm on the road again.
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| With Marion, Sherman's wife, in the AC in Dallas—chance encounter |
Jürgen
Great Post. Thanks for sharing your another flight activity. I enjoyed reading.
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