It’s been a while since I last wrote the blog or so it seems in the life of a touring cyclist – so many places and people all blur together. You’re probably thinking it’s not been that blinking long!

We’ve been busy relentlessly turning the pedals and dealing with the rain, wind and hills. Now I’ve got the time to catchup.

So last time I wrote we were at the nice Comstock Motel.

What a great place. Notice the nice touch with the life size silhouette of the horse and the cowboy – you just don’t get such authenticity at a Hilton!

Essentially, Comstock is not much more than a ghost town with nothing left at the centre apart from a small gas station, Border Patrol Station and The J and P Bar and Grill across the road.

The place next door to the J and P has long since closed and I was disappointed I was not eating catfish that night – a local southern States favourite. Instead, it was a rather nice burger and chips at the J and P and a great chat with the locals in the saloon with the chipboard walls. Obviously, one of those authentic retro designed places – you don’t get that either at the Hilton!

Next morning it was raining but as we only had 30 miles to cycle to Langtry, we waited until 11am when the rain stopped. We then started cycling and the rain started too.

So we arrived at Langtry soaked to the skin and sat in a warm and very welcoming Texas Visitor Centre where the staff couldn’t be nicer. The visitor centre was built around the original bar of Judge Roy Bean.

Now I could tell you the colourful story of Judge Roy Bean but to save me typing here’s a photo of the historical information marker.

Now here’s the best photo I could get of old Judge Roy Bean. Apologies for the quality – it’s a photo in a glass cabinet and I’m cold and wet through.

Hopefully, you read the plaque and it’s interesting to see that the town of Langtry was named after the actress Lillie Langtry.

Lillie, born in Jersey and known as Jersey Lily, was a famous actress and socialite in her day. Living in New York and London she had relationships with quite a few famous aristocrats including Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) and was introduced to Queen Victoria. It must have been quite a journey for her to travel to this remote place in Texas with its adobe brick (mud) and wooden buildings.

The visitor centre has correspondence from Judge Roy to Lillie and its quite poignant that by the time she actually visited the town he had died.

So guys the message is this. If you see a famous woman on the television or in the movies and take a liking to her then start corresponding. Rename your house in her honour (hopefully your wife wont mind) and persist.

If Judge Roy can get Lillie Langtry to visit a remote wilderness in Texas you also have a chance. Don’t get put off by the police and the restraining order and please don’t say I encouraged you. All I’m doing is giving you the facts – you may be old, have a beard, have next to no money and a house made of wood but you’re still in the game!

Ladies I’m afraid it doesn’t work the other way around – us guys are far too discerning 🙂 (yes I know that’s a damn big lie!)

Incidentally, ‘The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean’ was made into a movie directed by no less than John Huston and starring the incredible Paul Newman.

That night was camping night and we left the warmth of the Visitor Center for the relatively dry bit of ground behind the community center. Well it wasn’t actually dry but it was the bit of ground that wasn’t flooded.

Yes I know – you’re jealous your holidays are not like this!

It gets better though. We may have had no sleeping mats but we used the bike seat covers to lie on. We may have had no sleeping bags but we had a woollen blanket the kind owner of the Comstock Motel gave us. We may have had no stove but we had cheese crackers and spam for dinner ! Yes you heard me right! Tasty spam that all you posh people no longer eat. Get soaked through and lie in a tent in a wet field and then you’ll know how tasty spam is!

It gets better. The tent is pretty small but we shared it. Yes, Susan and I shared the tent with another couple – Mr Bourbon and Mrs Netflix! Ha ha now you really wish you could have been there!

So that was us – sleeping in damp clothes under a blanket. It wasn’t all fun though particularly for poor Susan. In the small tent we had to sleep head to foot and Susan’s head shared the same space as my feet in two pairs of damp socks. That’s what I call love.

• Uncategorized