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« on: March 22, 2011, 07:03:07 pm »
We did the ST way back in 1996. Started in FL in Jan and arrived in San Diego just in time for tax day. We took a week long side trip to Big Bend NP plus we visited just about every park along the way. We hit bad ice storms near Houston and wound up renting a car for a week to wait out the bad weather. So we would not recommend the middle of winter as a good time.
For some reason the ferry across the Mississippi was not running and we had to hitch with some truckers. That's not the normal situation, but it could happen again.
Water in Texas can be a big issue as some of the towns we went by were basically ghost towns. The ride up to Davis Observatory was worth the visit, but if you're on a really tight schedule you may want to bypass it.
I agree that when those wind storms hit you can end up completely stalled. We got stuck in 2 or 3 and wound up having to hold up or make just 4 miles per hour. One word of warning, when those wind storms hit a lot of sand gets blown around and that can damage your tent. Take a hotel room.
RE: shipping your bikes. If you fly British Air they count your bike as your second bag. So the cost is currently $50/bike in a bike shop bike box. That's what it was last year but by 2012 that may change. One small tip for protecting your bike, use those foam pipe insulation tubes you can buy at a hardware store. These split nicely and wrap around each tube. Make sure they're well taped in place. You toss them when you arrive in San Diego and then buy new ones when you're done. Always use a fork spacer and we also use a plastic piece of pipe to ensure the rear frame dropouts don't get smashed. Remove your rear derailleur since it will usually be pushed right on the side of the box. This makes sure it doesn't get bent. Even still, expect damage. Every time we take our bikes on a plane they come out of the experience with new scratches and dings. Last year my frame pump got smashed and I got a big new dent in my downtube.
Just remember, if you're not dirty you're not doing anything.