Ron Paul Riders

Still a bit hard to believe I am out of Texas. Easy to see on the ground though,

It was a bit of a tough ride yesterday, (hence the morning blogging). The roads are a bit rougher and the shoulder was thin to none. Cart was in the dirt most of the day with me riding the line and keeping an eye in front and behind. And yes, still a headwind, but that died in the afternoon so started making decent time as the shadows grew. They tell me rt90 is new down past Lafayette so should have a better ride later today, (20more miles of old road). Looking forward to that.

Louisiana is quite a different state. I’m out of the wild, wild, west and into the deep south. Different dress and attitude. I’m absorbing and adjusting my pitches. Really glad to have more Mosaic fliers. They are simply the best thing for a grassroots guy like myself. Got a bunch out yesterday, including a stack in a service station quickstop. The lady there said, “All candidates promise lower taxes, hows this guy any different?” After I explained it she was telling others in the store and asked if I could leave some with her. SCORE!!!

Got a few friendly beeps, and most everyone waves. Nice that no-one seems in a big hurry. People that got held up behind me smiled and waved as they past by, that was great, I hate to think I’m in someones way but they did not seem to mind at all. One guy went by shaking his head with a smile and doing the ol’ sign. LOL

Also, had to plant a sign in Jeff Davis county

Finally made it here to Crowley and found I had made the news big time in Beaumont, two TV spots. One short that I mentioned and one long I’ve yet to see. Quite happy with this also

Yes, it is most all the FRONT PAGE, and I love the large type headline. The article is here

And check the vid here

And last but not least, Austin put up a YouTube with “fitting” music

GO RON PAUL!!!

Pretty easy ride today, had to grab a lift over an 1-10 bridge, then got on LA - 90. Problem was my crank was still acting up under load, the shop in Beaumont had not caught it and it was making some ugly sounds. Once in Lake Charles a “born and raised for generations” supporter came to bring me to a bike shop where the manager was amazed that I had rode the bike for that many miles. He said, “This bike… its’ light duty… its’ not designed for… You’ve riddedn this for 2000 miles??? and are going another 1500??? Ya know, this is a light duty bike…” - LOL He agreed to a rasonable price and installed a bearing set that, “Is built for this kine stuff and will last the rest of the way” Said, it wouln’t have lasted another hundred miles, I’m glad it was fixed…

Someone asked about the grassroots today, “What is grassroots?"… Hmmmm…?

I think I answered that (paraphrased)-, true grassroots is people who spontaneously start seeding a fallow field of politics, which we feel our elected officials are neglecting.

It truly is, “We, The People".

We see a fertile field getting taken over by weeds and decide to bring attention and clean it up; taking an interest in our own welfare and getting the job done. Intitial success depends on the co-operation and communication (and understanding of the “cats at dinner-time” syndrome). Repeated success depends on persistance and detrimination. Now that we’ve all remembered something important, at the same time, let’s work this moment for all it’s worth. Choose Liberty!

Had a few, long, interviews today. TV and NP in Beaumont. NP in Lake Charles, LA. We’ll see, no links yet… And yes, that is Louisiana I wrote back there. Imagine that! Texas was great… and big . The people I met, and just talked to, took a certain pride in their State for good reason. Thanks.

RP supporters, in particular, are some of the best people this country has. We are all stripes, colors, and stars united for a cause, Working together to pull off this jaunt. It is really cool in that regard. Due to the fluid schedule of a bicycle trip, we have to all wing it, and that takes a lot of commitment

Louisiana is not Texas. Good people, different style. Different streets, different laws. I like the diversity afforded by our Constitution and “State’s Rights” (as intended). This, “incorporated” system of the last 100 and something years is bankrupt, in every sense of the word. We deserve better for ourselves. We are not trying to go backward, we are just hopping back onto the more prosperous, and peaceful, track we got siderailed from. Individual liberty and localized control has a proven record as being the right track! I’m glad I feel a change in character right on the border.

looks lie photobucket is going to take to long and I want to get some good rest.

GO RON PAUL!!!

The wind was hard but the troops came out and lightened my load. Made it to Beaumont and ate some aligator- when in Rome… Then, got on TV (Ch 12 ABC news) You Tube may takes a while but someone got it on tape. The money shots were two teasers with close-ups of the “Hope for America” side signs. Only a cameraman who asked a few questions they did not use, just an announcer talking about an LA to DC for RP bicyclist in Orange. The main clip included a full bike/cart shot with large signwavers in the background. I nailed the questions and am a bit bummed they didn’t use any, but the signs say it all anyway…

Afterwards we went signwaving, photbucket is down so no uploads…

Then a larger MU at the organizers house where I met some great folk and heard some war stories from a vet. Everyone knows the king has no clothes…

The bike was acting up today, in the shop tonight, pick up tomorrow. After hearing my story and reading a slimjim the owner said, No Charge! . Also got DVD’s and more to waitstaff and others…

Finally here is another short testamonial

GO RON PAUL!!!

First, I want to say thanks to Bruce, Delores, Sean, Tony, and Sharon for helping out yesterday. Tony and Sharon put me up, and Bruce set me up. Delores looked after me like a son, and Sean like a brother. I am truly honored and everyone I know is grateful. Thank you!

Words fail me in trying to thank Dr and Mrs Paul. Instead I will quote a comment from Daily Paul

“It is you that deserves the thanks!
On November 26th, 2007 LoveandLight says:
Thank YOU Dr. Ron Paul for risking all you have to show the entire country that our liberties are in danger.

I will work hard each and every day until you are elected.

Each time I see the establishment against you, I will stand up for you and all Americans.

Anytime my feet hurt (like this weekend) from standing for 12 hours at a gun show passing out slim-jims, I will remember all you have done for 30 years to defend my liberties.

I am embarrassed to admit that as a Texan, I never even heard of you until May of 2007.

Thank you Dr. Ron Paul.

You have caused me to read more about America than I EVER did in school.

You have helped me to understand the economic crisis that our country faces.

I will not tire. I will not falter. I will not give in.

So MUCH was risked by our fore-fathers to give us the gift of liberty. Anyone who isn’t willing to risk the same cannot (believably) call themselves a patriot to what America stands for.

Oh, and I will do my part to deliver another reason to celebrate December the 16th.

THANK YOU RON PAUL!”

Thank You, LoveandLight, for such a touching and powerful comment.

I want to thank all of you who are helping in this little jaunt. You who take me into your homes and make me a part of your “ohana". You who contribute to my expenses. You who come out to help me with my load, drive me through dangerous sections, wave signs as I pass. You who encourage me with comments and emails and phone calls. All of you. This is truly a grassroots group effort and is working in ways I never had dreamed and could not be doing without you.

Thank You!

Imagine my surprise. I had taken Tony up on his kind offer to attend his church service. While I am not an avid “church-goer” and consider myself an “un-orthadox christian", I am a firm believer and KNOW who my best friend is. It was an offer I was moved to accept and was very glad I did (the service by the youth pastor was outstanding).

First, we went to a pre-service prayer meeting where I was introduced and Tony explained who I was and what my mission is. After the initial shock wore off they all commented positivly about the Pauls and how the good Doctor had delivered many of their babies. They included this journey in the prayers and I was truly touched.

Then my phone started vibrating in my pocket and before I could excuse myself to return the call, Bruce was there calling me outside. Hmmm? , must be important… Well, the next thing I knew I was on my phone with Dr. Paul who wanted to know my plans and if he could ride a bit with me. I’m telling you, if cloud nine was not there to hold me up, I would have fallen over.

Now, I am not the type to bother anyone, much less a man with much more on his plate than I can imagine. I’ll admit that the thought that he might be in town, and might want to ride a bit had netered into my dreams, (unspoken dreams, I’ll add), but I had pushed those dreams deep because I am on a Grassroots mission and that is, and remains, my focus. Yet, there I was, as dumbfounded as a rock, on the phone with Dr. Paul, who was making my selfish little dream a reality.

I quickly jumped off cloud nine, (before I got carried away), and got down to business. “Sir, I am honored; Yes Sir, I am at your service; Yes, Sir, one o’clock sounds great. Yes, Sir, anything you want. Thank you, Sir!; see you then” OMG x a google!!!

As I hung up I looked at the grin on Bruce’s face and felt a joy well up inside me that has not, and may never leave me. He and I were thrilled, we made plans for the afternoon and I went back into the meeting (after calling mamakar-lol)

The meeting broke up and we went into the foyer where Tony introduced me to everyone and explained why I was there. One gentleman in a suit explained that his son had worked for Dr. Paul as he slipped me a bill (which I later found out was a fifty and is paying for this room I sit in). Everyone explained how they admired Dr. Paul and the family. It was still surreal being in a place where “everyone knows his name”

Then we went into the service. I’ll only say that it was not only delivered with style, but it talked about “keeping the spark of Faith alive” and how “if you believe in something, give it your all” (Quite fitting…) The thing was, my phone was going nuts and Dr Paul had my number… I remember thinking, “Well I don’t care if it is the President of the United States, I’m in church and it cant be THAT important”

Anyway, the service ended and I was taken to be introduced, I was finally saved by the phone (logisical issues related to the overall ride and the days coming events) I talked to Bruce and we met up at Tony’s apt where my stuff was. We loaded everything into Tony’s truck and went over to… Dr Paul’s house… OMG !!!

When we got there, I got busy setting everything up when the next thing I knew Dr. Paul came walking up and I was shaking the hand of one of the greatest men that America has ever produced. A champion of the Constitution, a modern day Jefferson, a true hero of the people, a regular guy who happens to be a very smart, very sharp, and very fit Doctor. What is the word for beyond surreal? I don’t reacll the exact words but the conversation was relaxed and down to earth. I thanked him for making time for li’l ol’ me, and he thanked us for all the work we do for him. Then, I got to meet our future First Lady and was just thrilled. The smiles and aloha we were all sharing was priceless.

Dr. Paul then mentioned that he knew I didn’t want to take any more wieght, (I’m telling you, the guy is sharp), but if I gave him my address he would like to sign and send me one of his books. The next thing I knew, everyone was giving him something to sign for me. He exclaimed that the poor guy has enough weight with him! In the end he personalized a pocket consitution that I will always treasure (and am going to go look at again right now:) Honored? Beyond words!!! Everyone was taking pics all through this, and then I got to ask him to pose for the blog pic to end all blog pics. He laughed when I explained that I was getting this shot across the whole country and you can see it in his smile. That pic is something else. A statesman at home, relaxed and enjoying himself. Priceless.

Then, everyone else piled into the trucks and the next thing I knew I was riding my bike with a hero. We just chatted and tooled along. We talked about family and holidays and biking, very little politics. He asked about Hawaii and mentioned he had joked with one of our congressmen how he would like to go out and campaign a bit there. He was happy to hear we are working closely with the GOP there and have a strong presence. When we had to go single file I chuckled as I said, “I’ll follow you". Then the trucks got in front and behind and we had the roadway to ourselves, we came upon a photog who took some pics, Dr Paul realized we were holding up some folks and politely pulled over so they could go around, they went by with their cel-cams, taking pics and smiling.

The miles flew by and we ended up at the newspaper office where we were met and went in for the interview. It was again surreal as Dr Paul had me sit front and center and sat patiently beside me as the kind reporter asked her questions. When it was over we milled in the lobby where I got the video of my dreams. I had been thinking of all the questions I could ask but realized that I was in a perfect postion to get what I did, a messege to you all, for all of the work we all do towards the liberty we all deserve.

Then we got back on the bikes, Dr Paul led me through town and we parted ways as he pedelled off to go home. My final word was “Aloha", He turned and smiled.

Then, after a nice lunch with my new friends, I got back to work.

GO RON PAUL!!!

Yes, Dr. Paul rode with me today. Yes, he and his family are just as down to earth and decent as could be imagined. Yes, he likes to laugh. Yes, he is very smart, sharp, and fit. Yes, his constituents love and respect him, and his entire family. Yes, I am still speechless. I’ll try again tomorrow.

Not everyday one gets to talk to a true hero, one on one, while riding a bike; in fact, not every lifetime.

Please register republican, vote in the primaries, donate when you can (especially Dec 16), knock on doors, wave signs, pass out slimjims, talk to any, and everyone. Dr Paul truly brings a Hope For America - Be a part of it

Yesterday was the first truly rainy day I’ve ridden through. And it poured. Thunder and lightining, the whole nine yards. Cold too. It was good practice for the weather I’ve been expecting for the second half of this trip. I also became acutely aware of the gear changes I will have to make here soon. Will need to get rid of some things I will no longer need and pick up other cold weather stuff. I knew this day would come and it is kind of a milestone.

The good thing about the ride was strong tailwinds. I cooked along, made great time and arrived in Dr. Paul’s home district in the late afternoon. And then it was like a paradise for a Ron Paul supporter. A place where everyone knows his name. It is surreal for a person like me, who has been fighting the name recognition battle for months now.

It started about 10 miles north of town when I decided to pull into a service station for some hot coffee. All of my lit was packed deep in drybags and all I had when I went in was a button on my jacket. The station attendent and I talked about the weather a bit and I mentioned that I had been biking in it since LA for RP. He knew the name but not much about him, so I gave him my button and asked him to look up the website on the bottom. Then, as I was standing in front drinking my coffee, the manager came out and asked me to come in, get some more coffee and tell me about this man. So I dug into my cart and got the lit.

About this time a few other folk were going in and out and they all knew Dr. Paul. They all took stickers, thanking me for what I was doing. One lady came out of the store as I was talking to a gentleman and said, “GO RON PAUL!” with a knowing smile. I looked up and asked if she wanted some stickers, she said, “Sure, thanks!. You know, Dr. Paul delivered all my babies. Be safe!” Another guy asked if I had any road signs, I said, “sure, right here". As I was giving him one he said, “No do you have any of the rEVOLution ones like on the back of my cart?” I said, “Sorry, but I got that one in LA and that is part of my rolling billboard” He looked at me and said, “You’ve been riding that bike since LA?” (me) “Yes.” “Have you ever met Ron Paul?” “No", “Are you getting paid?” “No” “Why are you doing this? “Because that man, from your district here, is special, he truly is a good man, and I am sick and tired of the media/establishment telling us we need to vote for lesser of two evils. Your neighbor is not evil, and we have a huge grassroots movement working to get him elected” We went on to talking about the grassroots and how you all have been keeping me supplied with signs and lit to give out. He was impressed. Said he had heard of MU but will have to look into it further. Before he left he insisted I take some money and said, “You are doing a good thing, Thanks! and be safe” I’m telling you all, it was surreal. There I was in the pouring rain handing out lit left and right and getting the most positive response you can imagine.

I finally got back into the store to talk to the manager and we discussed the slimjim points for a while and every customer who came through got to hear our conversation. Most had something to say and all got reminded to vote in the primaries. Then someone came in and said, “Ron Paul!, his son is married to my sister’s aunt’s son’s nephew’s daughter! He’s family! Great guy!, what a nice family, real down to earth” He went on to tell stories I don’t have time to relate. The final thing about the service station is when I left, the manager asked if I had lit to leave with him for his countertop- YESSSSS!!!!!

So, I got back on the road for the last ten miles into town. Pouring rain so was afraid I’d missed the exit so I called and the local MU member gave me good directions to meet him and he led me to this empty apt, I’m in. He (Tony) invited me over for Chili but the local organizer and his wife (Bruce and Delores) wanted to take me out for dinner so I made plans to attend church (when in Rome…) with Tony.

Well, Bruce and Delores turned out to be one of the funnest couples I’ve met on this trip. In their 60’s, they wanted to go to the place with the best Margaritas . They were as cute as a couple could be who are still in love after 41 years of marriage. It was a blast just being with them. And that is saying nothing of the fact that they know Dr. Paul personally, work on his congressional campaigns, go door to door with him, etc. It is amazing sitting with people who talk of Dr. Paul as the regular, very smart, down to earth guy, that we all see him to be. They talked of him as a neighbor, not as a presidential candidate. “Carol is just the nicest lady, we go to the same salon and everyone just loves the Pauls…”

We talked a bit about the campaign and Bruce talkedd about the city hall fight he is involved in over signage durational limits. He was a bit peeved that in Dr. Paul’s Hometown the enforcement officer was being a bit overzealous and was having it out in city hall with his good the mayor. Like I said, surreal.

After dinner they took me on a bit of a tour. We saw the campaign office, the F.R.E.E. office, and even drove by Dr. Paul’s house. He is home and they joked we should pull up and highbeam them to get-em to come out… I said “no no no, he is a busy man and I don’t want to bother him". They laughed and agreed. I gotta tell you all though. Dr Paul lives in a nice, regular house, in a regular neighborhood, no fancy smancy nothing about it. I was kinda thrilled. The light was on in his office and I pictured the good doctor up working on getting himself in postion to really help us regular folk and change the direction this country has been sliding down.

Finally we went to Bruce and Deloras’s house where I met the son Sean. Dr Paul had signed his yearbook and they had lots of pics with the families. Again, it is kinda surreal. They gave me lots of RP gear that I’ve never seen and we took some good pics and videos. Bruce’s truck is lit up with RP. These people are just plain special and we are all lucky to have them on our team. Deloras lives on DailyPaul and Bruce does A LOT.

Here are some pics

Delores, Bruce, and lil ol me

Son Sean and I

I’ll upload the vids but want to post this before I get sidetracked

OK, got my new phone, still have to program it and all but at least I’ll be able to post remotely.

Had a good signwave this morning. A bit chilly but all good. I took over the empty corner and got so into it that I didn’t even notice when most everyone left. In the end it was just Bryan and I - lol. I went into the coffee shop to get a warm up and some guy came up and asked me why I supported RP. Had a great conversation. He was just thinking how sad it was that the whole system was so corrupt and how could one man stand against that? He was really pleased to hear that this rEVOLution was not just about one man, how it was about the re-awakening of the American Spirit, how we are identifying other candidates with integrity to support, how we are working to grow this movement beyond RP and joining in the process to further the greater mission of reminding politicians that they are PUBLIC SERVENTS and WE are the PUBLIC!. how we will no longer vote the lessor of two evils. We’ve had enough of being told “we can’t fight the system” The fact is we don’t want to fight the system at all, we simply are going to change it. Step by step, vote by vote, mile by mile.

Freedom is Popular

Just one short vid today 17secs two signwavers

and few pics from yesterday
Josh (Lowry) and I

The boy’s name is Landon Carl and he is a Ron Paul Rider (I stickered his bike)

And finally here I am eating some more of that health food I need for my journey

Enough for now. On the road tomorrow toward Lake Jackson

GO RON PAUL!!!

I didn’t ride at all today. Ate alot of food, drank a few frosty cold beverages, played some traditional holiday games with Josh’s Family (one armed football and boys vs girls trivial pursuit). They had 38 for dinner, quite a crowd of fun-loving Texans. They took lots of photos, I didn’t. They’ll e-mail me them and I’ll edit them in. This is a huge RP bastion of support, it was great being able to talk politics without being impolite I was thinking of interviewing them all but then figured I was a guest and best to just enjoy the company.

We did have to run to the store twice where we got some liberty cards out so even on Thanksgiving I got ssome work done. Tomorrow we have an early sign wave. My phone should arrive early so I hope to get back on th road early PM.

here is a vid of Josh, Natalie, and I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUyaUF7Jmt8

and a pic Natalie’s car

Will be back on track soon (and Xar figured out what I was doing wrong with comments, they work now)

Thanks everyone

GO ROL PAUL!!!

The bad news first. Lost my phone AAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!

Alot more good news. First, the phone was insured and a replacement will come soon. This will cause a delay and I will lose the distance gains I have made in Texas but, so what. I’m on this trip to promote RP and will deal with whatever I have to. The silver lining in the delay is, A DAY OFF Thankgiving even! And Josh from Ron Paul Forums came and got me outside of Houston and I’m now the guest of his fine family. Bryan even came over tonight and we had a real world good old time. Sorry no pictures but I’ll get to them tomorrow. It’s great to put faces to names I have worked with for months.

Josh’s family is all Ron Paul. It was great being amongst so many supporters who are bound by more than the campaign. The big news for the campaign today was the L. Lepard’s RP ad and the NH primary date. The USA Today ad came out great. Hats off to the great patriot Mr. Lepard. the NH thing means IOWA will be first. If anyone can help the IOWA penpal project, email me and I’ll forward on.

Posts may be light the next two days as I enjoy a holiday and sort out my new phone

Enjoy and…

GO RON PAUL!!!

Another good day for RP. Rode up to the Capitol this morning where the MU was waiting and waving signs. Got some lit out. Had some good hits on the way in. A girl asked, “What about Obama?” I metioned that he has little experiance and seems bought and paid for by special interests, then asked the Obama KO Question, “What is it you like about him?” She gave the common answer, “Uhhhhh…. Uhhhhh….” I gave her a raised eyebrow and a knowing look, she smiled and said, “I really don’t know” I mentioned that most people don’t and I KNOW why I like RP. She said she’d check him out.

The sign-wave was fun, had people pulling over asking for stuff. I was quick with the bumper-stickers. Being in front of a Statehouse is always a good place. Lots of tourist types and a few suits, who I could tell wished we didn’t exist, poor saps…I was talking to an older gentleman when everyone called me. TV had shown up (after much teeth-pulling by the local organizer). They asked to get some riding footage and then do a short i-view. Sorry to say that after riding by a bus-stop where I HAD to stop and give out lit, then turning around and getting “legally” back, they had gone. Some lame excuse by the cameraman… People were dissappointed and told me they had only wanted a few seconds of “riding", perhaps they could have told me that first and perhaps we should have done the i-view first. I just did what I was told. Maybe they showed something tonight, maybe not. I’ll know better next time and do any interview before any “ride” takes. Sorry Austin, but I had no intention of flaunting traffic laws on camera. I don’t trust the media at all and this only increased my dissappointement in the “fourth estate”

Here are some pics

This is Ryan and child

This is an “in the wild” supporter who asked for any material (and found out about MeetUp.com)

Some signs I saw leaving town

and here are some testamonial vids, first is Austin MU,

second is “in the wild”

Should be in Houton tomorrow, some RP friends have invited me for TurkeyDay and may just have short blogs till Fri. (when I head for RP’s home district) Then again, I may just be able to make some cool vids because these guys I’m visiting are strong supporters, and not e-gnoramuses like myself. Well see…

GO RON PAUL!!!

Well, except fo the browser crash half way through the blog…, it has been a great day.

Late start due to fog, one big hill to start with , then smooth roads a gentle hills, all the way into Austin. No flats, John from the MU came out to meet me and guide me in. Got a bunch of lit out. Had some good conversations. One older, well dressed lady was very agreeable. I hardly even have to finish the words MSM and I get a sympathetic ear. Then the lesser of two evils line seals the deal.

Just giving away gold out here. Easy as that… I’ve got pitches distilled to soundbites and tailored to appearences. Not selling a thing, just giving away gold…

Talked to this guy for a while, lots of supporters are not MU members

This guy is a member, but didn’t have a road sign (and does now)

Speaking of gold, Austin is treating me golden. Gave me cool shirts and lots of give-aways, tradables. Took me out to dinner. And put me up in a top hotel that one member works at. After tha last couple days in Hill Country, I don’t mind at all. Thanks everyone.

Here is their office and a few of my hosts

John, who helped me into town

Pam, who organized my welcome

The road sign out front (notice another on the building in back )

Here is Pam’s car, (I love that window chalk, everyone should use it)

And yes, I got some video uploaded.
The first is a bit embarrasing but, it had to be done…
Bad Singing

And here is my first attempt at documenting
Bad Producing

Yes, they are both… but, I’ve got plenty of time to practice

GO RON PAUL!!!

Pretty beat from a day in the Texas Hill Country. Up and down all day. First it was The Texas Canyon, then The Texas Hill Country, if there is some Great Texas Incline or something in Georgia I’m gonna have a cow…

Tried to upload a video but taking too long, will have to wait for a better connection.

Brownwood has been working hard, saw signs all along the road. Really great bunch of folks. I hear they got 5 new members from the gunshow. Steph3n was the best. Really enjoyed spending some time. He is a smart and “on it” supporter. I am lucky he is helping me out here in the Great State of Texas and we are lucky he is on our side. Thanks to the whole family for the hospitality

Only went through two towns all day. It was alright, I got a few slimjims, bumperstickers, and a DVD out. Talked to one older guy from Colorado who told me that his father in law had told him that RP is the only guy making sense. He was glad to take some lit. These Texas folk are a bit camera shy…

I gotta crash, still have 50miles to get into Austin. Here are a couple pics

I’ve been trying to get more on but taking too long, gotta crash. Wow, them hills beat the heck outta me…

GO RON PAUL!!!

Internet is bad here, barely able to post and uploading pics is almost out of the question. Will try to get one on and post a detailed blog tonight. Got the new vidcam, made some tests, not even going to attempt an upload. Wildest story from the GunShow was a guy who said, “Yeah, I heard of RP. I like most of what he says but I imagine we are going to differ on one point. I think we need to nuke Iran ‘cause we need their oil.” I was a bit taken aback. Went on to say, “But sir. Isn’t that theft!” He said, “Don’t matter, we need their oil.” I finally got through to him using the 10 commandments and the fact that most other candidates are weak on the 2nd ammendment. When he took a slimjim and said he’d take a second look I figured that was enough for me and thanked him for the “enlightening” conversation. Sheesh

Lometa TX, finally got a slow connect and uploaded one pic I thought you’d all like,

still got lots of miles to go. Hope theres a good connect in Burnet.

GO RON PAUL!!!

Boy did we have fun in front and inside of the Taylor County Republican HQ

The Abilene MU had their first sign wave,

just a few of them, (others were inside talking to the GOP) but we got lots of honks and thumbs up and they saw how this is an effective recruiting tool. We, also, haned out quite a few slimjims. It was great that the GOP had a meeting scheduled so all arrivals had to walk past us to enter. I got a slimjim to a respectable looking cowboy type. He asked a few questions including my favorite, “Can this man beat Hillary?” I said, in all seriousness, “Sir, this is the only GOP candidate that can!". He said “Well, I’ll check him out, thanks". Just as we were parting a man in full blown business suit came hurrying up saying to the gentleman, “Mr. So and So, Sir. May I have a moment?” I then knew I had just talked to a big man around town. I went back to signwaving, but when they split up I approached the suit and gave a “catch the terrorists using constitutional rule of law” pitch. The guy was real interested and promised to check him out. Turns out he was running for Sherrif and going into the GOP meeting. Score!!!

Then the local newspaper came by to interview me and take some pics. The story is here. I’ll need to practice a bit more as my words got a bit minced but, not bad. Thanks for coming down Mr Myers.

When I was inside the head GOP guy kept trying to lecture me about RP being an isolationist. I listened politely but was having none of it. I simply stated that an arguement based on a false premise is not worth getting into. The fact is that RP is not an isolationist and wants a commerce based foriegn policy. He then tried to use the ol’ “they hate us cause we’re free” ploy and had no answer to the fact that the CIA and 911 commision report states that they hate us cause we meddle in others affairs for hypocritical reasons. I realized this guy was just repeating lies and trying to convince himself they are true. I bid him a good day, thanked him for his time and went back out side to wave my sign.

Another attendee walking up spent a few minutes telling me how I was just a young man and couldn’t comprehend the “isolationist” issue and told me how we have to support our troops. I ignored the age thing and suprised him with the fact of RP getting more donations from active military than any other candidate and if we want to support the troops perhaps we should consider who they support. He looked at me and said, “is that true?” I said, “Yes sir!". Just then another sign waver walked up and joined in saying how yes it was true. The man asked if he had ever served and the guy answered, “yes, I’ve been in Iraq and am still active duty!". I left them to discuss a few things and went back to sign waving.

What fun!!! I got to do an interview, plant seeds in the GOP and signwave right in front where hundreds passed by and knew exactly where we were.

Then I had to get on the road. The local organizer took me to a bike shop for some new tubes and showed me their billboard

They are trying to raise cash to keep it up (and maybe another) so if you see their chip-in, please help out. (I’d post it but haven’t recieved the link yet.)

I got on the road late so Tim got me south of town and we bid adieu. I had some great hits when I stopped to fix a flat at a quick stop. These small towns are the best.

Finally made it close to Bangs where Stephen met me and took some weight to help me make time. Dark was falling quick when the next thing I knew I was being escorted with a car in front, and behind, with flashers clearing a lane so I could cook on the smooth road rather than the dangerous shoulder. They took me out to dinner at a great little mexican hole in the wall. Thats where Trish did the second interview of the day. Here is a pic of my host and his sis here in Bangs

Tomorrow, I have a short ride planned so will be able to help canvass the Brownwood MU at a gunshow for an hour or so. Looking forward to that.

Oh, heres a pic of the cook from yesterdays blog

GO RON PAUL!!!

and the wind was better, still in my face but nothing like weds. Made good time. Had a few flats. May have to break down and get a new set of tires. Getting really bored of spending all day with eyes peeled for tiny bits of tire and goatheads.

Had a busy night last night. MetUp witht Abilene group who fed me a fine dinner. Connections real slow and fell asleep trying to upload some pics. Still trying if no luck I’ll post them when I can

Had a great day for RP yesterday. Talked to a Sheriff for quite a while. A bunch of folk where I stopped for some coffee. One old cowboy responded to my “honest politician” line with, “we have an honest president from right here in Texas!". OooKaaayyy… I answered, “Yes sir, but he is on his last term” (I know better than to argue some points in soem situations) He then said, “I’m thinking about that Rudy fellah". I answered, “That New York Gun Grabber? Why don’t you take a good look at this here Texan who is a STRONG supporter of the 2nd ammendment, strong on morals, and strong on the proper defense of this country". He said, “He’s from Texas, let me look at that stuff” He left saying, “This boy looks pretty good, thanks boy”

The best was in a truckstop I stopped for lunch at. I generally don’t bother people while they are eating. So I just ordered some food and was waiting when the cook/waiter noticed my shirt. He exclaimed, “Ron Paul. The man who should be our next president". He then raised his voice so everyone in the place had no choice but to listen and went into a ten minute rant about God, Guns, and Country. How corrupt the present crop of candidates are, How RP is the only one who can beat Hillary. I just sat there and lwt him go, trying to keep the huge grin I felt inside from slipping out. When he started to slow down I said something about “hunting terrorists” and off he went again. Must of been a half hour rant. It was amazing. I still am chuckling over it…

Since Abilene was planning on meeting me at the edge of town I was in no hurry so got to stop at every place there were people. Got rid of a bunch of lit and had quite a few folk read it right there and come back and tell me they are going to tell their friends and family. All in all a great day for RP.

Last, I’d like to talk about songs getting stuck in the head. It is inevitable when spending hour after hour just pedaling through lonely sections of this great country. Something always triggers it. In the desert, it was a song by America about a horse. That wasn’t too bad. Now, however, I’m in cotten country and the songs that triggers are a bit… hokey. So what I have done is countered it by singing patriotic songs like The Star Spangled Banner, America the Beautiful, etc. You’d all laugh if you saw me, pedaling my Ron Paul mobile, wearing my Ron Paul suit, pedaling through the vastness, belting out them beautiful words with tears streaming down my eyes. It may not be the best for my wind, but does wonders for my spirit. God Bless America and…

GO RON PAUL!!!

20mph winds with 40mph gusts. From the NNE, and of course, I am travelling ENE. My left eye teared all day. It was most decidedly not fun. It was all I could do to reach 10mph, downhill!!! And that wasn’t coasting my friends, that was pedaling for all I was worth to try to make up the time I was losing on the flats and the uphills. Wow! I was told there’d be days like this… and there was! At least there wasn’t much dust, just a few devils harassing me.

Anyway, the wind won today, rather than a 66 mile day, I only did 38. That means instead of an easy day tomorrow into Abilene, it’ll be another long ride. But, TG for the meetups. A kind lady from Abilene drove all the way out and picked up a bunch of my stuff so I will be riding light. Still have the trailer and saddle bags so won’t be stripped like my El Paso ride, but basically empty (except for RP lit and the trailer as my rolling billboard). I curious to see how much that helps. Also, the wind should be moderating tonight so should be better all around. Still 60+ miles though.

So rather than fight the weather I pulled into Colorado City, Texas. Rather than follow the I-20 around the outskirts and I decided to go straight through town and am very glad I did. The town itself seemed a bit run-down, lots of abandoned buildings and businesses. Maybe the side by the interstate is better, but I stayed on Main and found another $25 room. While parked in town, checking google for motels, I saw a lady leaning out a doorway looking at me and my rolling billboard. Turned out to be the local newspaper and she gladly took some lit. I gave her one they made for me in Phoenix that describes what I’m up to. Maybe she’ll write something…

After getting my room I went out to get some stuff and meet the people. Everyone I met was interested and appreciative. One lady at a store even walked out side after I had left to thank me again. I talked to a few folk at the local convenience store, and then hit the jackpot.

A guy was walking towards his truck as I got on my bike. He looked a bit busy, didn’t even give me a glance, but I decided to pitch anyway, “Excuse me Sir” (Sir and Ma’am are required in these parts if you want to be listened to), He turned and I said, “have you heard of Ron paul yet?” He said no, so I went into a version where I talk about his integrity and voting record. Of being a man of the people, and for the people. He took the lit and asked if he was running independant, I said, “No sir, He’s a republican". Then he said something that brought joy to my heart, “Well, thats good son, cause I’m the GOP Chair for Harrison County and I’ll be sure to look him up”

So, it is quite possible that this little detour will turn out quite well for the good guys, US!!!

There is one thing I want to mention. I have been treated quite kindly this entire trip, so far. The people of this country are very good people. In cities, in towns, and in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps its’ the fact that I am on a bike, perhaps its’ because of the aloha I have inside, but I prefer to think thats’ just the way people are to anyone who is polite and respectful. We tend to think that Americans are how the media portrays them to be; fat, lazy and rude. Or elite snobs. But that just ain’t the truth. Yes, there are those type folk, but they are the minority and the majority are the good guys, US. So lets’ get this country back for ourselves and tell them damn aristocrats to take a hike, again. Its’ Time!!!

Become a delegate, vote in your primary, get everyone you know to get involved. It is our civic duty and we owe it to our country. Ron Paul has kept the torch of Liberty alive for us, lets do the right thing and reward him for his effort by restoring what is good and right about this great land!

GO RON PAUL!!!

Oh, am I bummed… just finished a long blog and the darn thang locked up - aarrrrggghhhhh… Sorry, heres a condensed version

Three Grassroots efforts to promote

Dec 15th-16th
Bill of Rights-Tea Party anniversary. Please donate all you can. The Nov 5th moneybomb was… explosive. Made my job much easier. Many prospects mention it, those who didn’t hear are impressed. Please donate what you can on these dates. Let’s make more history.

Nov 20-21st
Please buy USA Today to see a grassroots ad paid for by a single man. An immense expenditure that is sure to impress and if we make a sales record for USA today we will score twice

Nov 21-25th
The most travelled days of the year. Please plant signs which simply state “Ron Paul for President” 10 per supporter, lets paint the country Ron

I’ve had some big days, they beat the heck out of me but I am making up time and back on schedule. Here are the pics…

This is the couple who put me up and the DR. All strong supporters

The cowboy guy who gave me twenty, hows that handlebar?

The road seems endless

with few rests

Heres what gave me a hard time, doesn’t look that, bad does it?

might be late but I still gotta work

Imagine my disappointment

Then I saw this, right in the belly of Bush Country

and met a local legend

Saw a sign that reminded me of ronpaulforums.com

and got off the road in the nick of time

Sorry for the glitch, hope you enjoy

GO RON PAUL!!!

(note- connection really bad here, kept getting booted, can’t upload pics, tried for a while last night, finally went to sleep, still bad this AM, will edit later)

Started out a bit strange. Got up early to rebuild my rig (had too fold the trailer up to get it into Bobs car). Looked outside and… ughhh. Fog! Not good for riding on an interstate. And a 77mile day ahead… ughhh. The only other times I did long days was with chase car support to move gear and lighten my load. Okaaayyy… I’ll just wait a while to see if it lifts, otherwise its onto the “frontage” road. I did some email stuff and saw that the fog was lifting :, got on the road at 9. I had done 60mile days starting at 10:30 so was not to worried, just knew I had to keep at it and limit breaks. Got a boost while finalizing the rig by talking to some folk in the parking lot.

This guy was imprssed with the hand-out, said the usual, “been looking for a guy like this". The 5th data really helps sometimes to cement the need for support. As he was walking away, he turned, reached into his wallet and gave me a $20. I was so stoked… I then reached in and gave him one of my few remaining stickers.

Had a good talk with the store clerk where I bought my water. A guy came in and tried to put down RP saying only Kucinich was “doing” anything. I responded that RP and Kucinich often worked together, he decided he didn’t want to talk any more, said, “I’m done". I smiled and said, ‘good day’, then caught the clerk wink at me as I walked out.

The ride started great, really smooth road and I was averaging 12-14mph for 30miles. Was stoked. Took my time talking to people at a rest area and at lunch. Was talking to guy on line at Subway and he ended up buying my lunch. People do appreciate someone going out of their way to promote a candidate they believe in

Then… I hit this 20mile section of highway that had a rough shoulder and was a little slice of hell. It was all I could do to get 9-10mph and that was pedaling hard. Not good! It was, also, through oil country and there were times the “aroma” was overpowering. By the time I finally hit a better road surface I was beat, and still had 20 miles to go. Imagine biking for 20miles on a washboard…

Finally made it here to Odessa as the sun was going down. Still had a few miles to get to this motel, so had to get off the freeway due to darkness. I attached my lights and made it in. Stopped to get some dinner a mile from the motel and got rid of more lit. 3 very receptive guys. One even said he was a republican and sorry RP was running independant, he had heard of the 5th. I was glad to clear that up for him. He said he was trying to get college kids to vote and I suggested chalking the campus which he thought was a great idea. He left with a big smile, and so did I. Then I got here, tried to write, had lots of trouble with pics nad fell asleep, up early now. Still can’t seem to upload pics so will try again tonight.

Its weird how on the road there are lots of things I think to write about but by the end of the day, they are hard to recall. Still musing on the “giving away gold” thing. If we are having trouble, we are doing something wrong…

Oh, almost forgot to mention the Texas folk are checking in, in record numbers, seems I’ll be quite busy here and well taken care of, once I get into more “civilized” areas. TG…

GO RON PAUL!!!

No Pics today, not much to see out here in West Texas.

Dr. Bob from the El Paso MU (a longtime RP supporter)gave me a headstart today to bypass a zone along the Rio Grande known for smuggling of both drugs and humans. I was strongly warned, on the net, about this area and this was confirmed by everyone in the El Paso MU. He stayed with me all day and I zipped along with the stripped bike. A century would be easy without 50-75lbs of gear/lit/electronics/etc. I was glad to have someone watching my back and helping me through this impressively desolate section, got quite a few fliers out at at truck stops. We enjoyed dinner together and made friends with the local sherriff who promised to pass off our flier to a guy he knew who would be “very” interested. Said he liked what he saw but could not be seen as being “political” (so no RP bumper sticker on the car or sign on the hoosegow )

There is something a lawyer in AZ said to a new “students for RP” group that stays in my mind as I pass out lit. We are giving away gold, literally. It should be easy and fun. If we try to force it on people, they will think it counterfeit. We are right and our messege is golden. Just give it away and people will thank you for it.

Long day. To sleep, perchance to dream

GO RON PAUL!!!

Wow, non stop activity, kind of a blur so I’ll do my best to catch up. The highlight for myself was entering Texas. Never did hook up with the Las Cruces people. El Paso tried to contact them but, no answer, so…

I did get to talk to a whole bunch more people, here is a guy that was working in his yard.

I talk to everyone…

Got chased by another dog who almost got creamed by a car, (which would have REALLY bummed me out). I cannot undestand people who live by busy highways who let their dogs run loose. It’s not only dangerous for the dog, there is also the drivers who may swerve and kill people. Just plain irresponsible. Sheesh…

Anyway, I arrived in El Paso and the local MU found me and brought me to their second sign-waving. Four last time, eight this time. Freedom is popular.

These guys are just getting going and it was great being able to share the experiances I’ve had with other MUs so they can get an idea of what works and doesn’t. In fact, this visit of mine provided the first opportunity for most of them to meet offline and everyone had a good-time getting together and we started making some solid plans for building their organization. This is a liberal town so they have a great opportunity to make inroads with the GOP. Two of the members have already been meeting with local GOP and now they have more committed to attending meetings and showing the political benefits of including the RP Republicans. I certainly encouraged them to bring a large and diverse group of repectably dressed members to these meetings, and show that we are the “new blood” and RP is the only candidate who can beat Hillary.

The took me out for Pizza where there was a buffet and I realized I was famished for 3 plates of salad and a pile of pizza. Gotta love a buffet when you’re working hard…

Then, yesterday we had a very full day. The new organizer had a connection with an AM talk radio host who invited us to the studio, was supposed to be there 15minutes but he kept asking us to stay, so in a two hour show we got numerous RP plugs in . I am hoping someone can edit the show, as much of it is alternative health talk, but it was certainly interesting and since the guy was a strong supporter it was a great place to “cut my teeth". He was quite the character and though I tried to get a Kaiser plug in…

In the end I was just happy to have been able to get out what I did. Matt did a great job of promoting his MU, and all in all it was kinda cool.

After that we, finally, got my bike to a shop for a tune-up. They did a great job, the main problems seemed to come from the continual vibration of rough roads and things got loose. The dust, also, was mucking things up. But, now all is good and I’m tooling along with a much easier operating bike. (It was amazing riding around with-out all the gear on and behind the bike) just breezed up hills, etc.

Then, after a Sub for lunch, three of us were off to the convention center to sign wave for a Womens GOP meeting. This was very interesting. Many ladies were very mis-informed and closed minded but we still got to hand out lots of fliers and quite a few had not made up their minds and were quite polite and interested. We were on our best behavior and even some who professed their candidate was not RP acknowledged our dedication (and ability to raise cash-lol).

I found out the main oppostion surrounded the war issue so modified my pitch, “Excuse me ladies, have you heard of my candidate yet?” (most had). Did you know that he gets more donations from active military that all the other candidates?” “Perhaps those who want to support the troops should consider supporting the candidate that they support” “Did you know that he wants to secure and protect our country with a strong defense and wants to actually catch terrorists with special forces” “Did you know he is Pro-life and wants to return the abortion issue to the states, that he believes the federal gov’t has no business in our bedrooms?”

The looks on the faces of the more opened minded peoplw was great as we politely engaged the more closed minded ones. Even ran into an attendee who was a strong RP supporter. We styed abuot an hour and I got rid of lots of fliers

Then it was off to Matt’s church to meet a whole bunch of Christians who were very receptive to our messege. While I didn’t activly canvass, Matt’s introductions and my shirt allowed me to get rid of several dozen fliers. The sunset was great.

Then it was off to a “HOME-COOKED!!! steak and mashed dinner, pick the bike and get ready for tomorrow.

Lots more, but I need to catch up on other things and will try to write a SW desert summary later. Oh… did I mention we had another MU where 3 new people showed up, 9 total

I really like the idea of public MU’s… Finally here is a picture of how we all will feel when RP wins

Take a good look my friends, this is why we do this…

GO RON PAUL!!!

Had a great day. Styed on the freeway just to get out of Las Cruces then rode down a secondary road where I gave out a bunch of Flyers. The El Paso came out and met me and got me to a sign wave. They have a full schedule for me. We went to dinner, now they want to go take me out to see the town a bit, so I’ll have to edit this later. For now here is a pic.

daaaa da da da da da da daaaa

…and a great day it was. Got about 45 miles before I got another flat. This one was caused by a spoke and just blew, no slow leak this time. Took me a while to figure out what happened, and wasted time inspecting the tire, but time I had. No wind today, and though the shoulder was rough at times, I made good time. Todays run made me feel better about a 90 I have coming up in Texas. While my body does start protesting after fifty or so, I just consider the ol’, “No Pain, No Gain” adage and keep pedaling.

I got a late start today because people wanted to talk about RP . I was stoked. I stopped in a Mc’Ds for a McMuff, (I still love them things). Since there was no suitable place in front for my bike, I just pulled into a space and parked. There was a gentleman sitting in his SUV talking on a cel next to me and I noticed him looking curiously at the signs on my rig. I walked by holding a slimjim with a “would you like to know more?” look on my face and he opened his door and took it. I simply nodded a wry grin and went in to order.

I was pleasantly surprised when he later came walking up with his breakfast and asked if he could join me. “Of course, glad to have the company". We talked a bit about about my ride, and he insisted I eat his homefries. I had one and told him having that too much in the belly, out in the desert, can be awkward. He laughed and agreed. We talked for a while about RP, and like most everyone else I talk to he undertood why he had not heard of him. No-one trusts the MSM anymore.

This man was obviously well off and it was great having the Peter Schiff endorsement to work into the conversation. In the end I knew he was going to study the net and imagine we have another supporter who will be glad to donate. We left together and I gave him a sticker which he was happy to get. Great to meet you Frank!

Then, as we were saying goodbye, another couple walked by and exclaimed, “Ron Paul… the only candidate making any sense". I asked if they would like some stickers and they said, ” Yes, please". I could tell this impressed my new friend and suddenly the five of us were talking about the state of the world. These two, also, knew who Peter Schiff was, and were glad to hear of the recent news. As always I explained that RP doesn’t take special interest money, and I hoped they would be able to help out. I left with a smile.

I had to fill my front tire some more and wasted money on two “pay for air” machines, (cant fill 125psi), before finding a garage; nice guys, but too busy to pitch. Then I got back on the freeway where I, again, saw this sign, which always reminds me of the Darwin Awards

After that it was just pedal, pedal, pedal, till I got to Las Cruces and had a good downhill run into town. I found this cheap ($30) room and here I sit, looking forward to reaching The Great State of Texas tomorrow. I must say the poeple of the desert are nice, friendly folk; it must go with the territory

GO RON PAUL!!!

What a day! Started out early because the wind was still up, not as bad as yesterday but…

Wind plays a large part in a ride like this, with a 10mph (true) headwind and me travelling at 10mph, it is like pedeling into a 20mph (apparent) wind. With a 10mph (true) tailwind, and me traveling at 10mph, it is like a 0mph (apparent) wind. Hence, even with a 3mph tailwind, I will still be heading into a 7mph headwind. While these simplified technical details may be boring to some, they are quite engrossing to a guy like me when facing them hour, after hour, after hour. In fact, if they had not died out in the afternoon, I might be posting this while camping amongst the critters of the desert. But they did, and I made my next destination, Deming NM.

But the title says “too little” air, what is that about? Well, let me tell you about tires, thorns, and steel belted radials.

There are these little thorny seeds in the grasses around here the locals call “goatheads” that certainly butted me about today. Not one, not two, not three, but four flats to fix during this leg. It all started first thing in the morning when I found my rear tire flat. I had done a little “off-roading” to plant that sign last night, and boy did I regret it today. There I was psych’ing myself to face the still stiff wind, when climbing onto the bike I discovered that I had to get off and fix something. No biggie, I had the flat fixed quick and pumped enough air to get to the gas station I knew to be at the edge of town.

Imagine my disappointment to find the “pay” for air machine to be hopelessly jammed with quarters. So back I went into town to find a working pump. I pulled up to a repair yard where the owner obviously hadn’t had his coffee yet and told me that his compreesor wasn’t on yet… OoooKaaaay… Thanks sir, I’ll go (pedal another mile in the wrong direction), find another, no problem… While climbing back on the bike I noticed another goathead on the front tire, since it was still full I thought it was just a shallow sticker… NOT. Boy did I feel stupid as I pulled it out and heard the unmistakable hiss of another repair to perform, DOH!

Luckily, I had better luck at the next place and got to work, quickly patching the front tire and filling all with the required PSI (125lbs on bike) 40psi on trailer. By this tim it was 9:30 and my early start was shot, so much for a paced ride, now it was a race against sun and wind. So I hopped on and started off. I saw that I was able to make my required 10mph and figured I had an hour leeway before the setting sun would start to distract me. No leisurly breaks today.

Then, about 3 miles out of town I noticed my front tire was getting low… OH NO!!! In my haste to get going I must have missed a leak or done a bad job. DOHx2! Because it is just about impossible to pump 125psi with my little repair pump, and the leak was slow, I decided to keep going till the tire got so low it caused me to slow to under 10mph, pumping when necessary. That worked, but was still strenous and nerve wracking, (hitting a bad crack with a low tire can be really bad) About 25miles later, after muliple stops to pump (and be thankful my arms were getting some exercise to balance the exercise my legs are getting), I saw an Oasis in the desert, an open truck repair shop. I was very glad that the owner, though a bit grumpy, had obviously had his coffee and let me use his shop to fix er up. This time I was very careful to inspect the tire and tube. I found another tiny hole, got it filled and was off again, cool.

By this time the wind had died, my tires were holding, and I was feeling good making up for lost time. The miles flew by at a blistering 14mph and the town appeared in the distance. The shadows were getting lower but I had plenty of time to cruise the last two miles when… My rear tire went flat, aaarrrggghhhhh. I couldn’t figure out what had happened when I saw a tiny strand of steel belting sticking out of the tire. Ah HA, I said as I plucked it… DOH!!! AGAIN!!! I’m an idiot!!! Instead of a slow leak, I now had a moderately fast one, and a setting sun, and me on a freeway past beer thirty, not good…

I decided to do the pump/pedal routine instead of risking a long repair and getting cuaght out there after dark. You shoulda seen me. Pumping like sailor on a sinking ship, then pedaling like I had the hounds of hell behind me, then less than a 1/4 mile later repeating the whole thing over and over. For a man that had just pedaled 60 miles, through a day like this it was… not fun. As you can imagine I was quite relieved to pull off the exit and find a hole in the wall motel right there. SAFE!!!

On the brighter side, I met some really nice folk and let them know we can vote for a truly good man this time.

One guy even gave me a twenty for dinner. The best was an old man who thanked me with a God Bless You Son, I certainly needed that today. Sorry not many pics, was kinda pressed for time and… Oh Yeah , hows this for a milestone,

GO RON PAUL!!!

Got a few miles in today, about three into the 15-25mph winds (with higher gusts), and about three miles back to the safety of this room (11mph without pedaling). There is nothing in between here and the next town, sixty miles away, and I was getting up to a whopping 6mph in the lulls. With the days short and dust storms in the distance I decided to pull into a truck-stop for some “local” knowledge and make an informed decision, glad I did. Those dust storms can reduce visibility to zero and that is no place for a cyclist to slog through. Not only can such conditions be choking but the “zero” visibility factor was a clincher. My mission is not a suicide one…

It was good to rest and catch up on other factors of a trip like this. I, also, tooled around town and got about a dozen fliers into people hands. had a long talk with a “minuteman” who took a bumpersticker but refused a pic. Also talked for a while to a Purple Heart Hero who had heard of RP but hadn’t seen any lit yet and was glad to see the link on the slimjim. Lots of Indians here, reminds me of Hawaii, an easy smile for a polite stranger.

The highlight of the day though was finding a killer place for a sign, directly at the bottom of Main St. I waited till dark for obvious reasons…

The weather report looks better tomorrow, still some wind but going down so will be back in the saddle and on my way

GO RON PAUL!!!

and you know all the losers in this race won’t forget it - LOL

Lordsburg, NM - mining town

Great Job everyone, What a day! I’m almost too excited to blog…

I had a good day as well, 76+ miles. Over two mountain passes, (nothing like Texas Canyon though). Seemed like I was going uphill all day. I must have gained elevation but no time to check and no matter anyway. I made it before sunset and all is good. Less flattened wildlife, but did pass one huge wolf, wouldn’t want to meet a live one like that on a hungry night. On the bright side, I saw a road runner doing his thing down a side track, it was great, I turned to see if Wile E. was chasing him but just saw an expoding dust cloud in the distance (jk)

Got LOTS of honks today, even one GO RON PAUL screaming by at 70mph . The best was the quick toots from a passing freight train though.

Got rid of lots of lit today, from checking out to checking in and all points in between. Talked to some folk for quite a while. A pro 2nd ammendment guy here, a trucker there- none had heard of RP and all were thankful I had come by. I love it when people ask questions while scanning the page. I just stand ther with a smile and wait for it. One lady in particular was really glad to hear of the good doctor, she was an ex-pat Englishwomen who moved here 25 years ago and was thinking of moving back because of the direction this country has turned. She now has a renewed Hope for America and I am stoked to have witnessed her wonderous reaction.

People of all ages, colors, shapes and sizes are sick of voting the lesser of two evils, and we have the doctor with the cure. All of the other top tier candidates have nothing but ill gotten warchests and a corrupt media behind them and everyone knows it. A trucker passed with a blast going the other-way with a raised index finger, at first I thought it might be another type of geture, but it wasn’t. Got me thinking though how the supporters of other candidates are so rude to us. I know they are just afraid of losing their cash-cows,(us), but sheesh, can you imagine being that rude to other Americans for having different opinions, isn’t that what makes this country great and strong. I had one couple that refused to look at the lit after they heard the word Republican. I thought it was sad that people have forgotten the warnings of the founders regarding politcal parties but would never have considered being rude to them. I simply wished them a pleasant journey and moved on.

I am running low on signs and am out of DVDs, Still have slimjims and bumper-stickers so will make do. El Paso checked in and has a place for me to stay, they are low on hand-outs also so I’ll see if others can help them out. Didn’t plan on going through Los Cruces but am going to now that I understand the interstates. I’ll try to contact them in a few, otherwise they may be in for a surprise.

That’s about it, I have some e-mails to do and some forum work. Only 60 miles tomorrow, I hope it is easy…

GO RON PAUL!!!

Willcox, AZ

I cannot quite explain the feeling of accomplshment after todays ride.
It was a fifteen mile uphill ride to the top of Texas Canyon. Parts of it were steeper than I think is normal for intersate highways. I only took 4 rests. Two of them were on the first particularly steep section, one on a gentle grade where I just wanted to refill my camelback, and one one on the last steep. The last few miles up just rolled by as I scouted for a spot to plant a sign.

I am getting used to the bike and felt strong as I crested the top. I can now pedal on with increased confidence and am no longer apprehensive of terrestial obstacles in my path. The only things that could stop me would have to be man-made or an act of God. I continue to pray for a blessing of this journey and am thankful for the ability to do this outlandlish thing.

And speaking of things… I saw The THING today, I am sworn to secrecy but must admit IT was very cool. If anyone ever travels I-10 over Texas Canyon, THE THING is not to be missed (lol).

The big dissappointment of the day was that I did not give out one bumper sticker . I did get a bunch of lit out at the truck stop I started at, and a bit at the gift shop on top, plus some here in Willcox. I am still being asked if I’m Ron Paul but once I get a slimjim in people hands, they recognize RP’s face. Our collective efforts are working and more and more people are becoming aware of the best chance for a better country than we have had in years.

I had an interesting time at the rest area on top. I usually hang out a while and talk to the travellers’ This rest area, however, had a Nazi Janitor who “forbid” me to “bother” people there. I didn’t want to get in an argument so just ate a bit with my signs, and let my shirt do my “talking” for me. I, also, figured I’d better get out of there before the sad sack noticed all of the stickers “someone” had plastered on the backs of all the “wrong Way, Go Back” signage on top. “Who-ever” seemed pretty clever because it is illegal to “de-face public property

I did get one sign planted on the way up, there was NO WAY I was gonna mar the physical beauty of the rocky landscape, but I did find an old signpost that looked forlorn without decoration.

GO RON PAUL!!!

… most as flat as day old beer. I’m in Benson about 50miles SE of Tucson. I’ve seen lots of Coyotes, a few Owls and a pheasent or two. Today I started seeing baby snakes and a big cat . Will be extra cautious going off road for sign planting and other more mundane activities. Quite hilly today, getting in shape for the big Texas Canyon climb tomorrow. Had a flat on my trailer again, took a while for me to figure out what was wrong, at first I thought it was just the gusty headwinds. Sure am glad I ain’t doing this for pleasure or I’d think I was crazy

Nothing on the road for miles, lots of friendly horns though and the truckers are being quite encouraging on the hills with quick blasts. Its’ great to know people can still read my signs at 80mph. The tailwinds from the heavier trucks are a blessing in disquise, had a convoy pass and wished I could rig a sail.

Finally got to a small town and pulled in for a tuna sandwich and gatorade. As I pulled up a young guy walked up and asked if I had any RP stuff, he got the whole enchilada . His girl was jazzed about RP and he was asking for her but I’m sure we’ll see a new MU member soon. Also got a taxfree tip + slimjim to a Taxi Driver and other lit to others. One guy had a sad look when I handed him a slimjim, said he doesn’t vote, I said “you just might once you read about this guy, check the net". He said his girl does the net but he couldn’t read… I quickly reached into my pack and handed him a DVD and you should seen his eyes light up with thanks. Small towns, good people…

Thanks to peoples generous donations to my chip-in, I am still able to afford cheap motels, have some big expenses coming up; on the 5th and need a new trailer, but have enough for that and alot of faith…

Two things I thought about today. One concerns Tucson’s success with the GOP and my experiance in HI. Anyone in a “liberal” area, who is not working closely with the local GOP is missing a big opportunity. They are starving for “new blood". All you have to do is dress decently and bring a large diverse group to the meetings. The locals see the potential to swell ranks, and as long as everyone is respectable, will be glad to work with you. Sure there will be some crumudgeons, so what. The rank and file are decent folk who will see that RP has the ability to bring a LOT of good people together for the good of all, who have passion about good ol conservitive values and give them the ability to beat Hillary, nuff said about that.

The scond thing is another under utilized tool for us all. Roadside clean-up sign-wavings. This is a no brainer. We are out there anyway. If we were also doing ecologically responsible volunteer service, we would attract more people from both sides of the fence (and it would make it really hard for anyone to complain.) On this trip I am seeing plenty of “adopted” highways suffering serious neglect. It is disgusting and a blight on this great country. This idea was proposed months ago and I have not heard of anyone doing it, c’mon people. Please…

Here are todays top pics, I mentioned a sign plant yesterday

I-10 Pima County

Repairs

New Friend

Mountain ahead

GO RON PAUL!!!

Great day, once again. Got to sleep in a bit. Found a flat when I was putting the trailer together, easily fixed, glad I remembered to check the tire and remove the thorn before resetting. Easy, mostly downhill into town. Quick handoutss to most I passed. Got to the college and found a hard sell… Kids would just ignore me when I said my standard, “excuse me". For a while I thought I was at a college for the deaf One was quite rude. I simply asked if he had heard of RP, he answered, “Yes, and I think he is a piece of shit” I asked why, considering he is one of the most respected members of congress. His answer astounded me, “He is against mandatory vaccinations and will never get my vote”. He then jumped in a car and drove away seething. I kinda feel sorry for him. Wacko!

I then sat at an outdoor cafe and had lunch. The waiter got the full pack and liked what he saw. Got rid of a lot to passerby, When I was leaving I walked through a laundrymat and scored a real hit

Finally made it to the signwave and what a turnout with positive energy

Here are a few more

They had all four corners of a busy intersection plastered with live bill boards. We gave out a ton of lit. It was great, really recharged my batts.

Afterwards we went to the college for a first (still unformed) students for RP rally. We got lots of lit out and I got to help show some how to do it with a smile. They did great on their own, a bit rambunctious but… that’s what “kids” do -lol

On the road again tomorrow towards Texas Canyon, hope to make it over, may camp on top, we’ll see. On the way out I’m gonna help place a superlarge sign at a car dealership that has asked for one

GO RON PAUL

I have figured out why people say the desert sunsets are so beautiful; cause the sun finally goes down enough that people can stand being in it (LOL)

Today was a biotch!!!. The road was rough and uphill for miles. Usually I avg aroung 10MPH, for the first 45 miles I avg’d 7. Kinda wonderered if I’d get to Tucson… but I did

My new best friend in Tucson came out and got some gear from me to lighten my load about 40miles out. Thanks Mike!

That helped but the rough pavement was the worst, not broken up, just rough pebbly road. At about thirty miles out the hills got higher and steeper (ugh). Then… I got to the top and… 25miles DOWNHILL BABY!!!. I was stoked. Got up to 28mph at one point. Still wondered if I’d make it due to the time but… I did. Even planted my Pinal County sign

Sorry its’ a bit crooked

Actually got lit into peoples hands out in the middl of nowhere. One lady at a mailbox, and an older couple at a rest area who waved as I went by; “an invitation!!!". Just as I pulled up, before I could say a word, the man asked, “so tell me about this Ron Paul".

Seems he had heard of him at his tennis club. I was glad to answer any questions. He liked most everything but was confused on the isolationist issue. I explained the trade and commerce, no entangling alliance thing and he was glad to hear it. Left him with a B-stickr, DVD, and mosaic flyer. As I left I mentioned that RP does not take special nterest money and has to raise it from us. He said, “That I can do!” I left with a big smile.

Finally got into town and found a room. The lady was glad to take my lit, we talked a bit and she is interested. I’ll check back when I check out.

Met the Tucson MU tonight; great bunch. Iwent with my new air-force buddy and his wife (who brought me a delicious homemade spagetti dinner. He had seen this blog and e-mailed an offer of assistance. I asked if he had talked to his MU, he hadn’t heard of MU, now they are new members and enjoyed meeting fellow patriots. Tomorrow I have an easy day in town, canvass the uni in the AM, sign-wave at 4, place to stay at a members, leave Sat am.

GO RON PAUL!!!