It was good to be on the road again after 2 days in McDonald, Kansas waiting out the cold winter weather that I encountered unexpectantly. I felt much better as well and after a brief doctor’s visit in Atwood to make sure I didn’t have anything serious, I was able to enjoy a cycle perfect day. Cool in the morning and warming up nicely so by the end of the day just needing my jersey. A light to moderate breeze from the south. I recouped the distance from a couple days ago.
Now for the telephone poles. Notice how they are the same height from the ground? I learned that I could tell where the dips and climbs are in the road from looking at the tops of the telephone poles. In all my car travels across the US, I never noticed that. This was a particularly smooth stretch that was just plain fun to get into a nice cadence and cycle down the road.
In Atwood, KS I met another cross-country cycler travelling east to west. We had a nice time sharing stories. He’s been on the road since early April. He was impressed that I was doing this ride at my age – said it gave him inspiration. I was impressed that he was camping a lot of his ride, as you can tell by how loaded his bicycle is. I think his load made up for any age difference.
While having some breakfast in Atwood, KS a lady noticed the back of my jersey which led to a conversation of the ride and my hope to raise funds for veterans and other organizations. She took down the website info with interest. Two other ladies overheard the conversation and gave me four five-spots and wished me success on my adventure. Several others just chatted about my trip. I have met so many open-hearted people on this journey.
I do still wonder what causes some farmers to plant and some to have signs that the fields had crops in earlier years yet are un-planted now. From my non-farmer’s eye, it seems that they used to be either corn or wheat. Both green and brown go as far as the eye can see.
I have also learned that although Google Maps might say “mainly flat”, that I need to zero in a lot closer to see how hilly a day’s ride actually might be. On flat, I can average 11-12 mph. With the hills, or rollers, only 9-10 mph. I’ll be making some adjustments to my daily distance expectations taking into account the rollers.
Tomorrow – Heading to Phillipsburg, KS.