| Biking
with Bill |
|
JUNE 30 "GET OUT OF DODGE"The gang from AbB--about 10 of us--last night took in the Old West show in a re-created Dodge City, complete with the Long Branch Saloon, hitching posts, general store and a museum filled with guns and artifacts of that era. We read the stories of Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp in the museum, and drank beer and watched the staged gunfights in front of the saloon. Each evening, the Miss Kitty Show is performed in the saloon. They include people from the audience, and you can bet our crew took center stage (literally). Very funny evening!
The ride today was a favorite of many of our cyclists. It is 85 miles from Dodge City to Great Bend, KS, but we had good cooperation from the weatherman. It was cloudy all day, therefore cooler. It didn't rain, and the wind went away. These factors, plus very good road conditions, really helped our speed. The bike path on Routes 50 and 56 is on wide shoulders, newly paved and clean. We sailed. We had one 30 mile stretch between the SAG and lunch where we rode at a constant 18 mph pace. The topography is FLAT, "Florida flat," beautifully flat for me who has done enough climbing for awhile. We were home early...even with 2 stops for ice cream. In the town of Kinsley, KS we stood under a sign depicting Midway, USA. It is exactly half way across the 3000 mile continent. BUT, it is not halfway for our bike trip---our route is 3800 miles. Oh well, in a few days we will be at our halfway point--but what's the hurry, we are enjoying it.
This is truly the part of our country that puts food on our tables. Massive farmlands on both sides of the road reach to the horizon. Meg, a fellow rider from Myrtle Beach, may yet talk us into making "crop circles" in the wheat fields. The corn here is 6 feet high. And the cattle and the grain silos--everywhere. The small farm towns we cycled through: Wright, Spearville, Kinsley, Larned - all looked similar. Directions to anywhere in town required a turn at THE light (singular). We followed the Arkansas River and the Santa Fe Trail right into Great Bend, KS ("Heart of Kansas"), a city named for the great bend of the River here.
The AbB staff has given us the lecture on what to do in case of tornado warnings and electical storms. Good safety tips in this part of the country. Yesterday, Brantley, one of our mechanics, replaced my chain and cleaned the cassette (back gears) on my TREK. I have 3500 miles on this 3 1/2 month old bike already. It was time for a tune-up. Today it was as smooth as new. You learn more about your fellow riders each day. I learned that Steve (CO) has climbed 28 of Colorado's 54 "fourteeners" (14000 ft mountains). AND that he and his brother-in-law Dennis (MA), he of Mt Washington climb fame, went together to Tanzania in 2000 and climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro! I also learned that Kathryn (ME) has completed 11 marathons. It is a physically fit group! ATTENTION WEIGHT WATCHERS: Steve also carries a computer and heart rate monitor each day. It can measure "calories consumed," by a formula of body weight, distance travelled, and heart rate over the course of the day's ride. His numbers show 5000 to 6000 calories per day consumed on one of our rides. Bike ride, anyone? - Bill
|
|
Contact Bill now at bill@bikingwithbill.org |
Journal Entry Home