Ride Like the Wind

Day 14: Garden City, KS to Greensburg, KS (96 miles, 600 feet of climbing)

I was still feeling tired even after a rest day and sleeping in until 6am. But I set out to ride anyways and 3 hours it ended up flying by. It’s all flat and farms as far as you can see. Every 15 or so miles we pass a Co-op with a large grain elevator then a “feed yard” with a lot of cows. I imagine a feed yard is a nicer way of saying slaughterhouse. Then we pass a small town which may or may not have a gas station and stoplight, but almost always has boarded up houses. It feels like riding on auto pilot after a while. Kansas is the least visually stimulating state we’ve ridden through.

After three hours we met Mom and she started riding with Dad. They rode with a cross/tail wind for 57 miles, which was a welcome relief. Overall, we averaged over 17mph; our fastest ride yet. Maude and I met them at 25 and 40 miles to refill water bottles, before going to the hotel to check in. Dad got a flat tire 6 miles before the hotel and had to stop twice to pump it up, but they made it to the hotel where he took out a piece of wire from his tire and changed his inner tube.

We’ve all settled into our routine and know our job upon check in. I unload the car, get the ice, set up things to charge. Mom does the wash in the sink and sets the room up. Dad attends to the bikes. Maude normally goes out, eats and then takes a nap. Then we decide what to do for dinner and fall asleep before sunset. Tonight our dinner options are limited to a grocery store, subway, pizza place or sandwich shop.