Day 6: Cuba to Abiquiu

Last night, as it was getting dark, we pulled into our A-Frame Airbnb cabin north of Cuba. I had ridden at least 50 miles on a flat tire, so our max speed was around 35 mph, including being on the highway for a short bit. It took forever to get there. I was surprised at how well the bike tracked with the tire the way it was. My Motoz Tractionator tire on the back has thick, heavy rubber. I could put the bike’s weight on the sidewalls and luckily made it to our stop for the night. As we went through Cuba to the property, Jeff spotted a tire repair shop called “Freddy’s Tire Shop.” He stopped and found out they would be open today at 8 a.m. Once at the Airbnb, we chatted with the owner for a few and then just relaxed with a glass of Buffalo Trace and talked about lessons learned from “mechanical” issues during the day. We all crashed early and didn’t mess with the bikes at all. First thing this morning, I went outside and pulled the back tire off my bike to save a little time. After that, I grabbed the heavy tube I pinched yesterday with the rim irons, jumped on Jeff’s 2007 KTM, and made my way to Freddy’s. It was about a 20-minute ride each way and a little brisk. I was waiting for Freddy when he arrived. He took the tube, got his grinder out, roughed it up, and then patched it. He even set it on fire to help with the bonding. 10 minutes and $35 later, I left and went to Napa Auto Parts. We needed chain oil, shop rags, and general-purpose grease. As soon as I returned to the A Frame, we fed the new tube into the tire and carefully started to set the tire in the rim. It took all three of us to do it. That is one beefy tire. From there, we started our day. We backtracked through Cuba, hitting some blacktop, gravel, and dirt. Today was maybe 100 miles. We went through a ton of government land, and the ride was great. Roads were well maintained, plenty to see, and the terrain went from desert to dense forest and then back to the desert floor. Zero mechanical issues today, so that was a plus. We eventually made our way to the Yurt, but the unit wasn’t ready yet. The owner met us and told us where the good food places were. We dropped all our gear and headed to the Abiquiu Inn Restaurant about 5 minutes down the road. When we returned to the Yurt, we took many pictures and relaxed for the evening. We were visited by “Osa” as we brought in all our gear. She’s the property dog and was really friendly. Tomorrow is our last day….

Animation of the trip:

https://www.relive.cc/view/vMv8prgDRNv