Git the heck into Dodge

Today was a day that was just pure joy for a cyclist. We left Liberal on US 54 in the early morning sun and picked up a bit of a tail wind almost immediately. The road was smooth (for the most part) and rolling with just a few long gradual climbs. Again, the country is mostly wheat with a bit of corn (just starting to come up) as far as the eye can see, and I mean that literally. We again fell in a with a group for awhile and were moving easily around 20 mph just enjoying the country and the morning. A bit of truck traffic but 54 has wide shoulders so we share the road easily. We rode without stop to Meade, about 38 miles out, where we had a SAG at the Dalton Gang's hideout (and for the Ahers: can you imagine one SAG on an 83 mile day?). The hideout is the house of the Dalton's sister with a secret tunnel under one of the outbuildings and the whole thing has been turned into a museum and tourist attraction. Was a fun place and the support folks had a supply of melon and chocolate chip cookies to make it even more attractive. (photo to the right is the Dalton house). And while we were hanging out I had a Navy/Marine photo taken with Chris who wears the USMC jersey in honor of his brother who recently returned from Iraq - and, I think I mentioned that my jersey was a gift from Z and David (our family's Marine).

Fortified by the cookies and gatorade we headed out of Meade and basically cruised for the next 45 miles. The wind shifted a bit and was in our face for awhile but it was not strong and the warmth of the sun and the big puffy clouds helped make the ride a cyclist's delight. We turned left at one point onto a lesser highway with less of a shoulder but also much less traffic. For minutes at a time the only sounds were our rolling tires and the occasional bird calls - and maybe once in a while a click as one or the other shifted gears for a little climb or descent. Wonderful!

I continue to be amazed at the farms we are seeing. I want to describe the fields we see on either side of the road but "field" is misleading - we are seeing huge expanses of land planted in wheat or corn and there seems to be no limits - they are simply seas of green that go to the horizon. I'm sure they talk of acres but it seems to me that square miles might be more appropriate. Every now and then the growing crops will be interrupted by a feed lot or a grazing pasture with scattered herds of cattle but these are not small either. And, of course, every 15 miles or so there will be the huge grain elevators rising out of the plains and creating a tiny little settlement of maybe a couple houses and a gas station.

At about mile 80 we came into Dodge City and took a left turn onto Wyatt Earp Blvd (I kid you not) and within a minute or so were at the Boot Hill section of town. There are a couple of photos above but this is basically a reproduction of the main drag in the original Dodge City with the general store, the Long Branch Saloon and so on all the way down the line. Halfway down the wooden sidewalk we found a terrific restaurant. Among other things they featured a pulled buffalo sandwich with a b-b-q sauce and the whole package was delicious....and with a hot fudge sundae for dessert - what more could a hungry cyclist want?

Both inside and outside the restaurant we attracted questions from other customers (why anyone would think that 4 somewhat senior citizens in spandex shorts, funny shoes, and brightly colored jerseys is a matter of curiosity is beyond me). Where are you headed? You mean today or ultimately? Boston??? Omigosh! And today one of interrogators was a real old-timer, maybe 80, who had ridden from San Diego to San Francisco twice - he had a couple of stories of his own. And outside was a man with two small boys, maybe 5 and 7 who were just awed by our bikes - and their father wanted us to know that we had a lot of great scenery ahead in the mid-west. These kinds of little encounters with people along the way say a lot about people in general but are also a lot of fun for us.

Tomorrow is another 80 plus day and we are looking for fair skies and gentle breezes again . Our destination is Great Bend about which I know absolutely nothing but our experience to date has taught me that, like people, each little town has something - stay tuned while we find it for Great Bend.