Friday, September 5, 2003

297 Miles

1002 Total Miles

Another day of sunshine. And facing us, the plains of Kansas, over 500 miles of not much. Not or so we thought.

Although farm fields, loooong straight-aways and flat terrain are not most Tennesseans idea of beauty, southern Kansas has been great fun. The people are nice to strangers, the natural beauty is subtle and the roads are great. By the way, I don't think we've mentioned that we are avoiding interstates whenever at all possible.

LOST IN KANSAS?
Ever seen a map of Kansas? It's just one big grid laid out across the plains with a pauciy of curves & diagonals. It looks like you would have to work hard to get lost if you had a map & could see the sun.
Well, that also assumes you never look a road markers because in Kansas they tend to hurt more than they help. Take a look at this fine example of KDOT work.

SAY WHAT?

We were forced into a two hour detour into Wichita in order to buy a iBook power adapter. Funny, but there are no Apple Computer stores in rural Kansas. While stopped for gas, we tried to call the computer store. We couldn't get service and were walking to the pay phone when Sarah, an early 60's Kansan pumping gas next to our bikes said, "You need a cell phone? My husband and son are bikers." That's been typical of the trip. We've yet to make a pit stop without having an involved conversation. "Nice bike." "I used to ride." "Where are you going?" "I wish i had a job I could leave for 25 days without being missed."

Yes, we got lost briefly today but recovered nicely. We spent hours on K160 going across the southeastern part of the state. It is surprisingly beautiful & made for a fine ride. Everybody, even LOL's, drives fast out here. Our motoring day was broken up by a detour to Wichita & a WalMart stop to replace Bill's too tight boots. The sun & heat really take it out of you on a bike. The fatigue at day's end is real.

THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FOR 500 MILES!