The ride from Austin was quite different from your experience two years ago. Too bad there are such differences and you got the short end of the stick.

I don't really recall going through too many towns, certainly none that seemed unprepared. Police support was just right, drivers were courteous as were the locals in the two convenience stores I stopped in. The one gripe I had was that ALL the aid stations were out of Power Gel by the time I rolled through, and I was somewhere near the mid-frontish of the ride. I really liked the aid station run by the young *alternative* girls who had the music pumpin' from their car stereo!

The showers were great , but I forgot to pack a towel ! There was a concert at the end with food booths all around and riders were given tickets to "spend" at the food booths. I had enough tickets to feed me and my son and get an extra beer ! All in all it was a good time.