Day 15. Chickasha to McAlester, OK. 145 miles. What a day this was! At breakfast, I couldn't help but notice the nervous chatter and laughter around the table. Most of us had never pedaled this far, and yesterday's 120 miles were just a few hours away. We loaded up the van at 0645 and were rolling as a group at 0650. We "soft pedaled" (small effort, just kind of rolling along) for about 15 miles until the first hills of the day appeared. While none of today's hills were long, big climbs, there were literally 50+ climbs of 300-500 feet. With a slight headwind and all these hills, I relied on my aero bars, a forward extension on my handlebars that allows me to kind of tuck on my bike and minimize the impact of the wind by being as aerodynamic as a 200 lb, 6'3" guy can be. I essentially rode alone for the next 130 miles, seeing Kari, our Finnish participant, as I left one of the rest stops and my room mate, Greg, as I was leaving the last rest stop. I essentially rode at my own pace, kept my rate of pedaling the same throughout and just relaxed for the duration. The weather was really comfortable and cool with a good overcast until about 1030, and then the light rain started and the humidity began to climb. At it's worst, the temp was about 85 degrees and the humidity was also about 85%. I took a few photos along the way, catching a funny sign at a store near the rest stop, and a helicopter mounted on stick. I saw lots of beautiful horses, and hundreds of horse farms. I laughed heartily twice as we passed nearby prisons that warned "The hitch hiker your pick up may be an escapee." What I figured out on this ride was, ". . . just get to the next rest stop." My brain isn't wired to put my arms around 145 miles, so instead, I make a deals with myself: get to the next rest stop; stand on the pedals until you get to that next sign; eat your banana at mile 120; give yourself a power jell with 10 miles to go. By now, my body is operating at a high physical level and I have few/no aches or pains. The challenge for these rides is now to keep my mind in the right place because my body is more than willing and able. The last 35 miles today were a mental challenge because the wind was in our face and the hills seemed to be endless. The road was very smooth and the traffic was light, so there were some chances to get some "airspeed." The end really never seems "real" until the mileage remaining is less than normal speed I can maintain. This means that with about 18 miles to go, I was averaging about 18 miles per hour, so that meant I only had to pedal about another hour to call it a day. As I approached McAlester, I was taken by the welcome sign and a sculpture of a bull bucking a cowboy, make that a prison cowboy! McAlestar is the home of the US Prison Rodeo Competition! We are staying in a Holiday Inn Express and compared to most of our recent hotels, this feels like the Ritz Carlton! We are living large and comfortably tonight! As an added surprise, my brother-in-law, Weydan Flax and his wife, Angela, surprised me with a visit. My room mate, Greg, and I cleaned up and we all went to Krebs, OK and visited widely renowned, Pete's Restaurant, for a fantastic Italian dinner. The food was absolutely wonderful, fresh, and plentiful. Each visiting party is seated in a separate room at an oak table that encourages conversation and handles room for plenty of delicious Italian dishes. Add this place to your "have to visit list." It has the Steve King 5 Star Rating! Tomorrow we pedal 105 miles to Ft. Smith, AR. Arlene is driving down from IL and my sister, Carole is coming up from Little Rock with my nephew, William. Looking forward to crossing into the state where I was raised from age 5-18. Stay healthy, Steve