May 7 – Back on the Road Again

Today everyone suffered from the effects of yesterday. A relatively easy 105 mile ride proved to be a good deal harder. We were able to go more slowly, some would say forced, and see both the beauty of the now rolling Kansas countryside and the aftermath of the rains. Topeka where we are tonight had over four inches of rain on May 6^th. Several hundred people were evacuated by boat from their homes. Fortunately, our Holiday Inn appears to have been on higher side of town and there was no direct evidence of flooding in that area.

Kate is leaving the ride in Topeka. We will all miss her eternally cheery outlook. We will continue to marvel at her cycling ability. Hopefully we will all realize that good cyclists can come in a variety of sizes and shapes and that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Last night some of us took her out for dinner at a Japanese steak house, a Benihana like place. The food and the chef’s show were good, but the best thing was when the waiter tried to open a bottle of Champaign with a cook screw. Fortunately, I saved the day by jumping up opening the bottle for him. The Mumms was good, the food very good, but the mental image of the befuddled waiter will last a life time.

So let’s take stock of our last three days in Kansas. Friday we rode from Liberal in the southwest part of the state to Dodge City. Except for some bad winds the ride was great but that night the town of Greensburg, 40 miles from Dodge City was destroyed by a monster tornado. Fortunately for us it occurred at night and we didn’t worry about tornados on Friday evening. On Saturday the winds were very bad for the first part of our ride. The riding got easier as we went through Kinsley, Larned and Dundee on our way to Great Bend. Kinsley, Larned and Dundee all had tornado sightings that afternoon and evening. On our Sunday ride to Independence we again had strong winds and played hopscotch with thunderstorms all day long. We rode through Ellinwood that was flooded from the previous night’s storms. We passed through Lyons, McPherson, Galva and Gypsum Valley all of witch were flooded by torrential rains on Sunday, but only after we got through the towns. Sunday night there were flash floods in Independence and Topeka where we are tonight. If the Kansas Chamber of Commerce were to compare this week’s destruction and the America by Bicycle route they might be well advised to ban America by Bicycle from the state.

I hope that America by Bicycle is not banned from Kansas because despite all there recent problems I have found Kansans to be the nicest people we have encountered on the trip. The state while lacking some of the mountains and breath taking vies of Arizona and New Mexico has its own natural beauty that evokes deep images of the American Heartland and of an unhurried time that many urban American’s secretly long for. In the western part of the state there are immense flat planes with fields that are now being prepared for planting. In the east there are rolling hills with cattle ranches. Throughout the state there are well kept back roads with little traffic and as far as I can tell universally considerate drivers. Cyclists would enjoy riding in Kansas. After the better part of a week in Kansas, I know why Dorothy left but I can also appreciate why she would return.