Day 28 Abilene, KS to Topeka, KS
On the 1st of July, we had a long, hot ride that was literally over the river and through the woods. We peddled 108 miles on our second to last day in Kansas and a strong tail wind made the adventure still more pleasurable.
I started off riding alone and eventually joined up with Sue, a PE teacher from Florida. About the time we joined up, we encountered a "Road Closed" sign and began to call our ride leaders for suggestions. While the call was taking place, a local farmer was coming from the other direction around the closed signs and told us we could make it and what we could expect. Suffice it to say, there were 2 bridges out, but we were able to walk around them since there was no water to contend with.
Along the way I had a cluster of 20 cows run to the far east fence line with me and about 10 minutes later, 10 horses did the same thing. Something about my sweaty jersey and wind direction I guess.
Sue and I solved all the world's problems in about 10 miles and then I rode with Doug and Darryl for a while. We were racing down some nice hills, but they kind of trailed off when the uphills appeared.
The rest stop at 72 miles was a welcome sight indeed (especially since I initially missed it and road 2 extra miles to find it!). By now the temps exceeded 90 degrees and the heat from the reflecting road made it seem much hotter. The rest stop had all the normal treats plus some extras provided by an America By Bicycle Alumni, Jeff Unruh and his family. Cold, seedless watermelon and a popsicle on a really hot day with 36 miles to go are literally "priceless" refreshments.
Refueled and ready to go, I roared out of town for the final push. Mother Nature was very warm but gave me a great push on the tush with a 15 knot tailwind. And the road was so much fun with its turns, twists and rolling hills. I love this kind of terrain.
At about the 80 mile mark, I saw Momma deer and two of her fawns. I think they had wandered out of the woods and were heading for a nearby firecracker tent before I shooed them back into the woods. Hope they still get those sparklers!
After arriving at the hotel, I had the pleasure of meeting Tim Trelfa's daughter, Tasha, a news reporter for one of the local TV stations. She was doing a story on our group motoring through Topeka and asked to interview me and one of our female riders, Linda. The spot is supposed to be on tonight at 10 pm on local channel 9, so I know you won't want to miss it.
We just finished up yet another in a series of spaghetti and lasagna dinners. Great food topped off with chocolate mousse and the team was happy. Breakfast is tomorrow at 0600, so the march to Portsmouth continues.
We are headed for St. Joe, MO tomorrow and will enjoy a rest day. I'm definitely excited to have Arlene stop in for another visit. She is flying to KC tomorrow afternoon and should arrive in my neighborhood about 3 pm.
Happy 4th holiday to all. Let freedom ring!
I started off riding alone and eventually joined up with Sue, a PE teacher from Florida. About the time we joined up, we encountered a "Road Closed" sign and began to call our ride leaders for suggestions. While the call was taking place, a local farmer was coming from the other direction around the closed signs and told us we could make it and what we could expect. Suffice it to say, there were 2 bridges out, but we were able to walk around them since there was no water to contend with.
Along the way I had a cluster of 20 cows run to the far east fence line with me and about 10 minutes later, 10 horses did the same thing. Something about my sweaty jersey and wind direction I guess.
Sue and I solved all the world's problems in about 10 miles and then I rode with Doug and Darryl for a while. We were racing down some nice hills, but they kind of trailed off when the uphills appeared.
The rest stop at 72 miles was a welcome sight indeed (especially since I initially missed it and road 2 extra miles to find it!). By now the temps exceeded 90 degrees and the heat from the reflecting road made it seem much hotter. The rest stop had all the normal treats plus some extras provided by an America By Bicycle Alumni, Jeff Unruh and his family. Cold, seedless watermelon and a popsicle on a really hot day with 36 miles to go are literally "priceless" refreshments.
Refueled and ready to go, I roared out of town for the final push. Mother Nature was very warm but gave me a great push on the tush with a 15 knot tailwind. And the road was so much fun with its turns, twists and rolling hills. I love this kind of terrain.
At about the 80 mile mark, I saw Momma deer and two of her fawns. I think they had wandered out of the woods and were heading for a nearby firecracker tent before I shooed them back into the woods. Hope they still get those sparklers!
After arriving at the hotel, I had the pleasure of meeting Tim Trelfa's daughter, Tasha, a news reporter for one of the local TV stations. She was doing a story on our group motoring through Topeka and asked to interview me and one of our female riders, Linda. The spot is supposed to be on tonight at 10 pm on local channel 9, so I know you won't want to miss it.
We just finished up yet another in a series of spaghetti and lasagna dinners. Great food topped off with chocolate mousse and the team was happy. Breakfast is tomorrow at 0600, so the march to Portsmouth continues.
We are headed for St. Joe, MO tomorrow and will enjoy a rest day. I'm definitely excited to have Arlene stop in for another visit. She is flying to KC tomorrow afternoon and should arrive in my neighborhood about 3 pm.
Happy 4th holiday to all. Let freedom ring!
posted by Steve King at 3:42 PM
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