Day 26: Emporia to Topeka, KS

https://give.michaeljfox.org/barbarasbigride

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/123006741

Today’s Ride

The Stats

67 miles

2,865 ft. climbed

Challenges: We're still in Kansas!

Highlights: PIE!

Miles Completed: 1,717

Miles to Go: 1,679

States Visited: 6 of 15 (still in Kansas, but not much longer!)

Total Climbed: 56, 962

The Ride

Simply one of (if not THE) best rides yet. Could’ve done it all day (which sometimes we must, but would rather not) but it was only 64 miles with ideal conditions, and I easily could’ve gone longer! Cloudy and cool to start, chasing the rain (better than being chased as we never caught anything more than some wet pavement), smooth roads with little traffic, rolling hills, and lots of animals to mo/neigh/baaaa at (and yes, they do seem to hear me, though none have talked back...at least not yet!). 

Did I mention there was pie? Really good pie? Nostalgic strawberry rhubarb pie? 

We were in Dover at the Somerset Cafe (apparently a regular stop on the tour and now I know why!). But a digression to explain the nostalgia part.

Briermere Farms, Riverhead, NY

For much of my time growing up in Wantagh, we either travelled to the North Fork of Long Island to sail or, later on, kept our boat there. I have vivid memories of our Long Island Expressway (LIE) rides and in my ultimate geekhood had even memorized all the exits between Exit 53, where the Sagtikos Expressway joined the LIE, and Exit 73, where it ended in Riverhead. 

Along the country roads that were then potato farms and now tourist-attracting vineyards was Briermere Farms, known most notably for their pies. Strawberry rhubarb was my all-time favorite. We routinely stopped on the way out to the boat to collect a pie. Within minutes of stepping off the dock onto the boat, hunger roared, and pie appeared. We savored it, perhaps because we could only get it there. After the weekend, the dreaded ride home and inevitable traffic on the LIE was eased only by the promise of more pie -- and though the "farm" was closed by the time we came through Riverhead, my dad apparently had magically arranged to prepay for another pie and pick it up from the milkbox by the side of the store. It made it feel really special. And I tasted the memories of that special feeling in the strawberry rhubarb pie of today.

The State Capitol

So, it seemed fitting to pay tribute to the state in which we will have spent more days than any other on the tour. As the short day and favorable winds got us (even me!) to the hotel early enough, I Ubered into town and paid a visit to the state capitol. My timing was impeccable, as there was a tour of the dome starting at 2:15, within minutes of my arrival. In fact, my Uber driver had mentioned the ability to climb to the dome and enjoy the view from outside, so I was in! The building is grand and rife with historic displays I didn't have the time or wherewithal to fully explore (I was shortly becoming very hungry, despite the aforementioned pie!). But I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity for a view from above, to see where we had been and where we were going. 

If there's a dome to climb, I'm going to climb it!

Penny, my tour guild for the Capitol, a former school teacher who didn't want to retire from teaching people.

At the fortuitous Facebook recommendation of a former law firm colleague who had been following my ride and saw I was in her home state of Kansas, I landed at the Brew Bank, conveniently located just a few blocks from the Capitol. I enjoyed not only a delicious Asian salad (still craving those flavors!) and self-serve beer (the first allowed in the state--they passed a special law to govern this practice), but an inspiring conversation with Chad, a local who overcame a difficult and impoverished childhood who  now works giving back to the community with the federal government's "weatherization program." The program provides home improvement services to help persons in need reduce their energy costs and therefore make more funds available for food and other essentials--the benefit of which Chad was so acutely aware given his personal experience with poverty. He also had a "beshereit" (meant to be) experience meeting his current wife which I can't do justice to at the moment, but perhaps will recount on a later reflection. His experience and ability to turn around his life was inspiring overall.

The view from my seat included a great view of some renditions of Dorothy, the Tin Man, and the Straw Man. It was only when I went to take a selfie that I noticed the Cowardly Lion behind me overhead (see the Liberal KS post for the lion connection). Though I don't generally believe in this stuff, I'm starting to feel that my parents, in whose memory I ride, are oddly with me on this trip, looking over me at every step of the way. I'm just going with it!

Soundtrack(s) of the Day

This was a big day for the Route Rap Rappers. Knowing that we'd reach the halfway point of our trip in mileage, it was the perfect time for Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer," modified as follows:

Dododododododododo

Paula leads the Crossroads crew,
Each and every day, there's so much to do for Saaaa-ag (that's no gag)
Riders ride their bikes all the day, mile after mile,
We eat all the Gu and stuff, it's not enough….

We've got to hold on to what we've got,
It kinda a makes a difference if we make it or not,
We've got each other, and that a lot for us…
We'll give it a shot

Ohhhh, we're halfway there, oh, oh, biking on a prayer,
Take my hand [hold hands], we'll make it I swear,
Oh, oh, biking on a prayer...
Biking on a prayer...

It was a good one...and we even had international (Canadian) groupies filming the show, who I had met at breakfast and most generously donated to my ride!

Employee of the Day

Today was the prime example of not allowing first impressions to negatively color your views. Mary was responsible for the breakfast service at our hotel. While I didn't have much interaction with her on our rest day, this morning when breakfast wasn't scheduled to open until 6:30 (later than usual), we were all chomping at the bit by 6 a.m. Mary was around, seemingly disgruntled as the crowd was getting restless. But really she was just focused on doing her job, getting everything ready that needed to get done before the "official" opening when she turned on the lights and unlocked the yogurts and other items in the breakfast pantry. In just moments, I learned that she and Steph had shared photos of their grandkids the day before, and that Lee heard her tales of being unable to afford a Starbucks coffee and subtly presented her with an envelope during the breakfast service. She made special efforts to find extra bananas and offer them up to each of us, and clear our plates so we had enough room for our water bottles and other gear. She was even excited about our "Route Rap Rapper" performance and wanted to post it on Facebook. I promised to share my selfie with her here. 

Thanks, Mary!

I'm sure I'm missing something I've meant to say, but it's too late, and I must to bed! 

Day 25: Emporia, KS Rest Day Reflections

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[NOTE: The "reflections I was working on all day just mysteriously deleted, so this may be truncated and less inspired than it otherwise would have been, as it's getting late. My apologies for my likely user error and frustration!]

Dear Blog, 

The only thing my bike was going
 to lean against today!

It has been 10 days since my last reflection. 

Hard to believe it has been 3 states and more than 700 miles since then. It's our 3rd of 5 rest days and day 25 of 49 of the tour, which means we're (nearly) halfway there. (Looking forward to tomorrow's Route Rap Rapper performance!)

Our route map makes it look like we've actually made progress!

So, in no particular order of importance (to me or anyone else), here are some thoughts and observations (to the extent I remember what I wrote earlier!): 

• I can't believe I've biked (almost) halfway across the country. Go me! (and if some want to call me badass, I'll roll with that!)
• I can't believe I'm in Kansas.
• I can't believe I'm still in Kansas.
• Emporia, KS is more liberal than Liberal, KS -- they even have a pride day and a drag show during pride week. 
• The Kansas scenery has surprised on the upside. Though some may find it monotonous, I find the subtle changes from town to town intriguing, and have relished in the small things you see and hear at (generally less than) 15 mph. Especially the blackbirds, which are plentiful!
• Much as I have enjoyed the scenery, I'm not sure I could live here. I purposefully avoided any political conversations with those who I met. Based on conversations I recently overheard at an Applebee's bar, I think that was a wise choice.
• I visited two "new" states so far on the tour (Oklahoma and Kansas). Have one more (Missouri) to go.
• I didn't realize how much I missed seeing water until I saw some. Did you know Kansas had lakes? 
• I didn't realize how much I missed hills until we recently crested one on yesterday's ride. The "A-HA" moment of a new vista is hard to describe, but is non-existent on a flat road. So is a good downhill coast! 
• A remarkable number of properties in New Mexico house inoperational school buses in their yards with varying degrees of possessions or debris (depending on your perspective) in them. Not sure what that's all about. Same holds true for much of eastern Arizona. Less so in Oklahoma and Texas, and even less so Kansas.
• The Hostess factory in Emporia perpetually smells of cinnamon buns. Yum! 

• I'm enjoying the small towns and nostalgia they evoke. Not so the repetitive, unoriginal strips of fast food, chain restaurants, and hotels that precede or follow each of them. They are depressing, even if the "quaint" small town main streets are in fact more depressed.
• I've been craving Asian flavors. Chi 'em EATS on 6th St. in Emporia provided delicious Vietnamese food to the rescue.
• Despite being with a group of 20-something other riders, this is an individual endeavor for many of us. It can be lonely at times, and I miss my family and friends (and even Bondi, especially when I see other dogs), but I wouldn't change this experience for anything. 
• It's a rest on a rest day just not having to move hotels - and sleep in until 7 a.m.
• Not sure if eating and drinking for 6 hours straight qualifies as resting, but I enjoyed the day!

Jamie Lee, at Chi 'em EATS, was moved that I was riding in memory of my parents.

Beer buddies at Radius Brewing Company!

Gelato at Sweet Grenada to top off a day of resting (aka eating!)

• A surprising number of small towns around here have murals. Not sure if these are a distinct art form from "street art," but this one was just recently completed (as Facebook kindly, and somewhat creepily, informed me this morning). Spent some time with a local who was admiring how colorful it was, and how the town should do more of these! 
  
  
  

  

  Here's another one. Apparently Emporia invented Veteran's Day as we know it, f/k/a Armistice Day.

  
  
  So, I'm sure I had more to say in the last draft, but it's getting late, and it's another 5 a.m. wakeup. Apparently there has been some frantic re-routing of our route tomorrow due to some impassable roads due to construction -- but from what I see it's not a major change and shortens the route by 1.5 miles -- so I'm not complaining!
  

Day 24: McPherson to Emporia, KS

 And finally we rest!

https://give.michaeljfox.org/barbarasbigride

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/122799740

Today’s Ride

The Stats

81 miles

1,342 ft. climbing

Highlights: "Cresting" a "hill" (if you could call it that) for the first time in days -- which gives you not only views but a downhill!

Challenges: Some body parts that have spent too many consecutive days in a saddle!

Miles Completed: 1,650

Miles to Go: 1,746 (almost halfway!)

States Visited: 6 of 15 (yup, still in Kansas!)

Feet Climbed: 54,097

The Ride

Getting moving this morning was really tough. I was physically and mentally fatigued, and probably didn't get enough sleep, in part because of a last ditch effort to get my laundry done last night, so I could truly rest on the rest day. But once I got on the bike, I soaked up the special quality of the morning light at that time of day, and something kicked into gear. I literally got the legs moving faster and in a higher gear than usual -- meaning I was just going faster! The weather was perfect -- once again, starting in the high 50's/low 60's and topping out at no more than the low 80's (which I understand is pretty lucky for this time of year). The greens of the fields were so vibrant, evoking memories of all the various Crayola colors in my 64-color flip top box with a built-in sharpener -- pine green, spring green, forest green, yellow green -- that I obsessively organized into rainbow order (and my sister cavalierly disregarded!)

Convinced the pictures wouldn't capture hues or expansive vistas, I took fewer than usual, but did stop for one of a cool beer sign and a Mennonite cemetery (apparently, the Mennonites came to the region from Russia in the 1800's and have a rich history in the area). 

One of several cemeteries I noticed on today's ride.

I also borrowed a great steer pic from Linda (which I noticed, but opted not to cross the road to photograph)! There were many other cows, but I just mooooed at them.

As someone said yesterday, I had "get-there-itis" and was more destination-driven than usual. I did enjoy a brief SAG stop at a campground. Did you know there were lakes in Kansas? And rivers, too?

Since these days in Kansas have arguably been "monotonous," I tried to remain curious and engaged in some respect and gain something from the time as the miles roll by (or, more honestly, as I keep pedaling to make the miles roll by!) Here are some of the things I pondered today: 

1. I kept noticing these signs that said "Jake Brakes Prohibited." I have since learned the following from the Google machine:

"You may have noticed signs that read "Engine brakes prohibited" or "Trucks please no Jake Brake." This is because Jake Brakes make a very loud noise when the compressed air is pushed out the exhaust. Because of the loud noise, several cities and towns have laws in place to prohibit the use of Jake Brakes."

But does that mean if a truck with Jake brakes comes through the town it isn't allowed to brake? Doesn't make sense to me!

2. The landscape continued to evolve, including the man-made infrastructure. As the grain silos gave way to natural gas facilities, I became curious about what they actually were. Thanks to Spencer for sharing information about the underground salt caverns storing millions of barrels of natural gas liquids below the mazes of pipes at this facility.

3. I noticed that each town of 5 blocks had nearly twice that many churches. Made me think of the joke of the man rescued on a desert island with two buildings. When asked what the first one was, he replied, "That's my synagogue." When asked about the other building, he replied, "That's the synagogue I used to belong to!" I wonder if the same holds true for churches in rural Kansan towns?

4. The symmetry of the telephone poles and geometric patterns in the water towers was surprisingly zen.

5. When the scenery gets monotonous, it's all about the music and the metrics. Thanks to my friend and cheerleader Kevin for suggesting a great podcast to get me through the last 20 miles (always the toughest, regardless of the mileage or the route!) -- Hit Parade: Le Petty Prince Edition (about Tom Petty and Prince) took me on a great journey through the soundtrack of late high school, college, and beyond!

Emporia, KS

Because I was faster than usual, I arrived relatively early. As has become predictable, we are staying some distance from the "downtown" in the realm of the Walmart's and Applebee's. So I quickly showered and changed, concluded that no Uber or Lyft would ever come, and called a cab to go downtown. The designation "downtown" is a bit of a stretch, especially on Memorial Day, when everything was shut tight as a drum - our "ghost hunters" from back in Prescott might have done well in the few blocks of the historic district, which was a literal ghost town today. I was thankful to Casa Ramos for remaining open, as it was truly the only game in town! I was graciously welcomed, poured a cold Dos Equis into an iced mug, and served a delicious salad. They figured me out very quickly!

I strolled around a bit after, and am sad we're going to miss the festivus of the Unbound Gravel 2023 event that rolls into town this weekend -- apparently Emporia, KS is the self-anointed Gravel Grinding Capital of the World. Not sure how much more activity there will be tomorrow, but I probably will at least check out the brewery in town. While I appreciated the murals and varied architecture, I'm not sure it will make for a full day's activities!

At least I will have more time for my "rest day reflections"...

Employee(s) of the Day

While I didn't get on the usual first name basis with the bartenders and servers at Casa Ramos, I appreciated their working on a holiday where others have taken off and closed their business. It is a family-owned business frequented by the locals. So thanks to them, I had a non-chain restaurant meal today!