Day 23 McPherson KS to Abilene KS - Happy Memorial Day

Day 23
McPherson KS to Abilene KS
62 Miles  - Memorial Day
Last 40 miles was FAST.

                                                             Happy Memorial Day
This morning started out with a ridiculous wind from the North. We had 22 miles to push East and the side winds kept the pace slow and the grip tight on the bars. To be quite frank, I'm tired of Kansas. I'm sure the people are great and there are beautiful farms but the wind is insane. The wind was so high this morning that it snapped the metal bracket holding on of the riders flags. We still have 1 more full day of riding in Kansas and then we can check it off the list. BTW, just in case you ever decide to visit Kansas let me help you with a little local knowledge that we were not aware of...you can't buy beer in Kansas on Sunday (but you can buy a gun) look, I'm not sure what the reasoning is here but The Indy 500 and some big NASCAR race was Sunday and I'm pretty sure that there were a gazillion Kansasonionians whooping and hollarin' in front of their functioning T.V's that are sitting on top of their old T.V's that were just maybe drinking a few beers during the races. OK, enough commentary.....the ride:

We have a van stop once during normal days and twice on longer days. We can refill on liquids and grab a bite to eat along with stocking up on powerbars for the remaining miles.
As slow as the first 22 miles were today, the last 40 were FAST. I averaged 29 for the last 40 with a top speed of 43 on the flats. There was a local club rider that passed us son after we had the wind at our backs and after we spotted him about a mile Chris and I decided to try to chase him down. This guy was really moving so we had to really hammer for about 6 miles until we could catch him. He was really shocked to see me and it felt great to be able to fly for the last hour of the day. Since tomorrow is a day off there was no need to leave anything in the tank.

Abilene KS is really a nice little town and has some nice mansions and such but if you want to do something weird on Memorial Day (like eat) you are S.O.L......we were able to find a mexican restaurant that was open and it turned out to be a great time. Since tomorrow is a off day we decided as a group to let loose just a bit and have some fun.

            We all had a nice meal and maybe a Margarita or 3....who cares, we earned it.

The Margarita's came in 3 sizes, I just couldn't decide on the right size....kind of a Goldilocks drink dilemma, guess which one is mine.

Today was Father Thomas' birthday (or not) but we had to celebrate something and as you can see from this picture Thomas was looking for guideance,

After a couple margaritas and guidance the shot of Mexican "hoochy moochy" was just the ticket to end a perfect day.
If you are one of Father Thomas' parishioners I must say that these photos are photo-shopped and this really never happened, it is just that I'm here in frickin Abeline KS with nowhere to eat and I have alot of time on my hands.
Tomorrow is a "off day", first one in the last nine days. I will relax by working, I have projects to check on and things to take care of.
Tomorrow will also be a day to reflect. I have a great deal to be thankfull for, my wife & our kids are a very precious thing that can't be taken for granted. I'm very fortunate and appreciative of these gifts.

Do something special for yourself and do something unexpected for someone else.

Dream BIG, Jeff

Day 22 Great Bend KS to McPherson KS. We lost an original today.

Day 22
Great Bend KS to McPherson KS
65 Miles - late neutral wind - HOT

 Above is a picture of Aunt Luetta from Friday afternoon as she became Rrose Festival Princess at her care facility. She passed away early this morning in her sleep and we will miss her greatly. When I told Luetta about the cross country bike ride she looked at me and said "do they pay you to do that?" I just said no. If she knew that I paid to ride she would have flipped. She didn't want me to go on the ride because she was concerned for my safety but she was very proud of the effort and after I left she would show people newspaper stories and her official ride towel with the map. Someday I should do a blog on things that Luetta either did or said, the woman was comedy gold. 1915-2011, think of the things that she saw in her lifetime.

Today, Memorial Day Sunday, started off with a heavy fog and began to clear late morning. I chose to ride alone today, I thought it best to clear my head a bit. The small towns that I rode through today were empty.
I think that it was a combination of folks going to church and staying home to watch the Indianappolis 500.

Today was a great day for a gentle 65 mile ride. I'm feeling much better and the initial shock of losing a loved one has been replaced with a sense of thankfullness for being able to experience the wacky world of Aunt Luetta and for her to be able to say her last goodbyes and pass quietly in her sleep.

The ride goes on with even more inspiration and the comfort on my part knowing that I have a Princess looking down from above to keep me safe.

Dream BIG, Jeff

Day 21 Dodge City KS to Great Bend KS - 9 hours in the saddle

Day 21
Dodge City KS to Great Bend KS
85 Miles - CONSTANT headwind at 20 + mph.
9 hours on the bike.

Today was a terrible day on the bike that I was fortunate enough to share with a great group of people.

Pictured above are Penny, Chris, Dave, Adrianne and myself. We passed the halfway point between San Francisco & New York, since we are riding Los Angeles to Boston we really shouldn't give a hoot but we haven't found any signs for for "our" halfway yet.
Have I mentioned that today was headwinds the entire day? Today was a grinder, we took turns pulling every mile and we were all just waiting for the 9 hours of torture to end.

You have to be careful to watch for things in the road, this fella must have been real tame because he didn't move a bit when I rode past.

Even though today was a absolute riding nightmare we did stop whenever there was a opportunity to take a picture of something (which happened almost never).


At Pawnee Rock which was at mile 70 of 85 I received a phone call from Stephanie informing me that our Aunt Luetta had suffered a heart attack and the outlook was not good. The team did a great job of riding tight with me to the hotel so I could call to find out more information. I was able to speak with Aunt Luetta for a few minutes, she was in good spirits and we expressed our feelings for each other and she wished me continued safe travels on the ride. Aunt Luetta is comforted by having Stephanie, who she loves very much, at her bedside.
When someone is 95 years old things tend to wear out. As much as we all know this, it is still hard to watch a loved one decline and get closer to the inevitable.

Let people know you love them, tomorrow it might be too late.
Dream BIG, Jeff

The Daltons Hideout and fighting our way into Dodge - Day 20

Day 20
Liberal KS to Dodge City KS
82 Miles  - Dalton Hangout then the headwinds came.

This picture is from late yesterday is Liberal. I promised my new buddy Hudson that I would post his picture on the blog so, here you go big guy.
Hudson is co-pilot with his mom, Mandy, in a shuttle service from the hotel. They suggested a very good mexican resturant and after dinner I called and they were there in 5 minutes to haul me back to the hotel.
Hudson is playing T-Ball and likes nachos and riding his bike but doesn't think is is a good idea to ride far from home, Hudson is a smart kid.

                                                    Knee High by The 4th of July?

Today's ride provided us a glimpse of what we will be seeing for the next few days. Huge farms, flat or softly rolling roads that are straight as a string and go forever. The locals have promised us that the other thing we can count on while in Kansas is....wind.

At the halfway point of the ride we took a quick detour to The Dalton Gangs Hideout. I realize that hindsight is 20-20 but I really think that if The Daltons didn't want to get caught they shouldn't have put all those signs with directions to the hideout on the hi-way.

                                               Dalton Gangs escape tunnel from the house.

Yes, this is a 2 headed calf, what does it have to do with The Dalton Gang?, well nothing except it was in the museum and I suppose that this will be the only time that I will be able to include a picture of a 2 headed calf on this blog or any other.

As soon as we arrived Dodge City I joined Dave and Adrianne for 1st Dinner of Pizza. Today was a "grinder", the pizza was well earned after fighting the late day headwinds.

                            Boot Hill Museum in Dodge City - Wyatt Earp was nowhere to be found

The day finished with a very plesant dinner at a small mexican resturant were we talked about everything except riding a bike. I have come to look forward to our late dinners and talking with new friends that I suspect will remain friends.

So, here we are somewhere around 1,300 miles into the ride and everything still seems to be working well and feeling good. I took a nap before 2nd dinner today ( is it a nap if you plop on the bed and pass out?) this is the first nap I've taken but I don't think it will be the last because I think that the miles might be catching up with me.

Tomorrow is 85 miles to Great Bend KS, wind might be smacking us in the face the entire way.

My body says it's time to go to bed.

Dream BIG, Jeff

Day 19 - Hookers, Liberals, Dorothy and Toto...riding the yellow brick road

Day 19
Guymon OK to Liberal KS
40 Miles, shortest day of the crossing and well needed after yesterday.

This morning we were able to sleep in due to a 2 hour later start time of 9:15 since we were only riding 40 miles. The weather today was fantastic compared to yesterday, slight headwind and cool temperatures.

At mile 18 we rode into the town of Hooker Oklahoma, not much in Hooker but we stopped into the Chamber of Commerce where there was a sweet old lady who has heard every hooker joke possible. She just smiled and laughed at our "funny jokes" while she sold a couple hundred bucks of Hooker T-Shirts.
There is a lesson to be learned here, name a town something like this and make a fortune selling t-shirts & mugs (here comes the plug) and when you need promotional apparel or products be sure to contact Proforma Prosource Marketing Group www.proformaprosource.com seriously....this bike ride cost a load of dough and I need to pay for it and if I don't do some biz during the ride Stephanie will be pissed :)

                                           Another day, another state...Hello Kansas.

We will be in Kansas for 6 days. The ride takes us from the southwest corner of the state to the northeast corner where we ride into St. Joseph MO.

This is pretty much what I expect to see for the next week, fields of "something" as far as I can see and then coming to a town, We have Dodge City, Great Bend, Abilene and Topeka coming up, should be a fun week.

Liberal KS is "Home of Dorothy" and has Wizard of OZ land to prove it.

At Dorothys' House..She has her own statue.

Wizard of OZ Land will never be mistaken for Disneyland but I had to make the 3 block detour to get the pictures for the blog.

Tomorrows ride is to Dodge City  and will take us past The Dalton Gang Hideout and Boot Hill Museum.

The Hookers & Liberals were fun but it is time to move on.

Dream BIG, Jeff

Dalhart TX to Guymon OK..Head down, Hold on tight & Pedal hard.

Day 19
Dalhart TX to Guymon OK.
72 miles - crosswinds steady at 32 mph with gusts to 54 mph.

Today was a day that I hope is not repeated soon. We had severe wind warnings and were given a quick education on what to do if there were thunderstorms or a tornado. We were fortunate to be 36 hours and 50 miles away from the tornadoes but it had me a little on edge for most of the day.
Being a Oregon native I know how to handle normal wind and normal rain but the stuff that is going on to the north is frightening. Weather report looks better for tomorrow and it is a short day so we should get some needed recovery.

                                                             You don't say.......

The wind was so strong that you really had to think twice about attempting to take a drink from the water bottle. You would have to lean the bike left and ride "tilted". When a tractor trailer rig would come past it would toss you back upright and then you would get hit immediately with the wind so you had to react quickly or be blown off the road (6 times today for me). Our mechanic suggested that we rotate the bike tires since the entire day was ridden on the inside edge.

About every 10 miles we would ride past these gigantic elevators..gotta keep those cows fed.

We had "all you can eat buffett" at a local resturant tonight,

The place should have been called "human feed lot".

Big Tex....just before we got to the Oklahoma border.

Humor...it seemed funny at the time (holding on so the wind doesn't blow me over).

Now it just looks lame but I really don't have any other pictures so it acts to fill space.

I know that this a poor effort as far as blog posts go but:

1. Today sucked and I'm beat.

2. There is nothing to tell you about the ride from Armpit Texas to Asscrack Oklahoma other than it was so windy that everyone required multiple showers to get the grit and grime off.

( the above comment is not endorsed by Ride for Kid's Sake, Jeff or anybody associated with Jeff, it is a rant from someone who really shouldn't blog when running on empty and doesn't reflect on the fine people of Dalhart TX and Guymon OK)

Tomorrow we will be in the town of Liberal KS, home of The Wizard of Oz museum and Dorthy's House. We will be riding US 54E (The official Yellow Brick Road).

So, until next time, this is Jeffs' auto-blogger wishing you a good night.

Beef, Beer & a Birthday...Don't mess with Texas.

Day 17
Tucumari NM. to Dalhart TX.
96 miles with a nice tailwind.

Today started with a nice tailwind and beautiful smooth pavement. It was a very fast first 50 miles to the Texas border.

                                                I love this sign....bullet holes included.

                                             This is the sign they use on roadside garbage cans

I wish that I could show you some great scenery between Tucumcari to Dalhart but there is absolutely nothing to show. This area of the country is really void of color or contrast and the "highlight" of the day was coming to the feed lots on the outskirts of Dalhart.
The feed lots hold between 600,000 and 1,000,000 head of cattle that they are fattening up prior to sending them off to become dinner.
We had hundreds of trucks pass us during our ride to Dalhart and they created a strong breeze with a even stronger smell.
The dust and smell as we rode past the feed lots was very memorable. The dust storms that were blowing all around us was incentive to pedal fast and get out of the area knowing that the "dust" wasn't dirt.....it was dried, powdered poop from a zillion future cheese burgers.

After each days ride we always eat "1st Dinner" which has often been a Sonic double cheese burger, fries and a coke and maybe some ice cream to go. Today in Dalhart there was nothing close by except a variety store within walking distance where I bought the gourmet meal shown above, 90 seconds in the microwave and as you can see this delicious meal looks just like the picture. I topped it of with 2 king size Butterfinger and a pint of chocolate milk.

Prior to "2nd Dinner" we had a Cake & Beer party for Chris. Chris and his lovely wife, Penny, are from England and today is Chris' 65th Birthday. Chris is the strongest rider in our group, he climbs like a goat and powers on the flats. For 2nd dinner we all went to a local steakhouse and we all did our best to consume a local grown cow.

Tomorrow we have a relatively short ride to Guymon, Oklahoma. We had the discussion tonight about what to do in case the weather becomes a problem. The forecast is for very high winds that will not be in our favor and there are warnings for possible thunderstorms. Tomorrow's blog entry might be late because it could become a very long day.


Did I mention that this ride is to raise awareness and funds for Big Brothers Big Sisters?
There is a donation button if you feel so inclined, 100% of this money goes directly to BBBS.

I appreciate you following along via the blog.

Dream Big, Jeff

1,000 miles down, 2,500 miles to go.

Today we left Las Vegas NM with Tucumcari NM as our destination 108 miles away.

At mile 27 we hit the 1,000 mile mark of the ride. It was fun to be able to hold up the sign.

Here we decided to make our own sign. Penny (1) Debbie (comma), Dave, Adrienne, Me as 0's.

At the 40 mile mark we rounded a corner to see the world open up below us. This was without question the best view of the day. To the left you can see the road carved out of the hillside and the fantastic descent that awaited us. A good descent is the reward for climbs that you put in prior to getting paid off with a rocket ride down the other side.
At mile 66 we were promised a "bump" that would bring up the heart rates. Most of the climbs throughout the day are a 3% to 7% grade, "The Wall" is purported to be a 17% up through a gap that is only 3/ 4 of a mile long but at altitude and in the heat it will get your attention.

This is what the entire 2nd half of the ride looked like, Long, Straight, Empty roads with hills and a whole bunch of nothing to look at. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that the vast area of nothing was ugly and boring, I'm just saying that the beauty must be similar to modern art and I'm just not smart enough to appreciate it.

At 108 miles and 5,000 feet of climbing today wasn't the most difficult day that we have had but today is the most tired that I have been after reaching the hotel. After eating 1st dinner I hit the bed for a half hour nap and then went to "route rap" where we go over the days ride and discuss the next days route. I'm now back at the hotel after 2nd dinner and will be turning out the lights soon.

Tomorrow we enter our 4th state, HELLO TEXAS!

So, I couldn't decide weather to tell this story or not and after discussing it with the team I have been persuaded to share one of the funny moments of today.
To set up the story you need to understand that I really like my morning coffee and that without question I will need to get rid of that coffee at about mile 15. Today was no exception to the rule so at mile 14 I put the hammer down and rode up ahead of the group so that I could find a spot to pull over and relieve the pressure of the coffee. I was several hundred yards ahead as I pulled off and found a small scrub bush and while in progress I saw Dave approaching so as he road by I raised both hands into the air in a "look ma, no hands" sort of gesture and I hear the high pitch voice of Debbie say "wow, 15 miles...you're like clockwork".
I guess it wasn't Dave after all.
No, Dave and Debbie do not look anything alike but spandex and helmets can be confusing.
We all had a good laugh and I guarantee that at 15 miles tomorrow I will be along side the road but this time I will stick to business.


I need a good nights sleep and a good dose of energy for tomorrow, next day off isn't until Abliene, Kansas.

To my family...SDGNILY.
Dream BIG, Jeff

Day 15 Santa Fe to Las Vegas, not THAT Las Vegas ( last day on the interstate)

Yesterday was a day off for riders and crew. Above is The Basilica in Old Town Santa Fe. Stephanie and I had a great day with a visit of Madrid and back to Rio Rancho to have dinner with her Mom, Aunt & Grandparents. Being able to meet and reconnect with Stephs relatives has been a real bonus in this Southwest area of the country.

Today was really perfect conditions for our 72 mile ride from Santa Fe to Las Vegas....not THAT Las Vegas, this was a ride to Las Vegas NM. We reached our highest elevation on the Glorieta Pass at 7,570 ft.  and had another day of healthy climbing. Most of today we were on old Route 66, we rode what has been promised as our last miles on the interstate. Many of our miles to this point have been on the interstate with 18 wheelers and elderly men driving football field length motor homes while towing a SUV. The 18 wheelers don't make me nervous but the elderly motor home drivers can give you a scare.

The Interstate

We had some good views in the middle of the day.

My favorite stop of the day was at El Alto Bar at the 45 mile mark of the day. This is "The First Bar West of the Pecos.

Alex is the bar owner and they were still closed but he saw us standing outside and opened the window and asked "would you like to use the restroom?"......the answer to that question is almost always "Yes Please" when you are riding in the middle of nowhere. Alex opened the back door and let everyone come in. Alexs' dads name is Alex, his son is named Alex and his grandson and granddaughter are both named Alex.

I love this picture above of Alex and his helper, Earl. As we road away and shouted thanks they just smiled and waved and wished us a safe journey. Twelve people used his bathroom and he made no profit from us yet he was happy to be able to help us out and I will always remember Alex and his bar.

Do you remember George? George powered through today and had a great ride. Go George Go!

                                         Above is the Plaza Hotel in Old Town Las Vegas.

The Plaza is a square block with a gazebo and benches surounded on all sides by old buildings such as the Bank and Hotel. It is like stepping back in time except like the majority of older buildings and towns along Route 66 their time has past and the buildings and towns have become neglected or forgotten. I hope that time will find a way to be kind to these towns and that these Plazas and beautiful old buildings.

Tomorrow we leave the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas NM and ride 107 miles to Tucumcari, NM. At mile 27 we will celebrate our 1,000th mile of the ride.

Everyday we get a route sheet with directions and instructions, this is how tomorrows route sheet reads:

1. Left out of motel on Grand Ave.

2. At Light, Route 104 Turn Left toward Tucumcari, No Restrooms or Services for 75.9 miles.

( this means that when we leave the hotel there is NOTHING for 76 miles).

3. Store at mile 76 - Restrooms, No services for 32.2 miles after store.

4. Hotel on left at mile 107.8

So tomorrow in a nutshell is: Turn left and ride for until the 1st thing you see is a store at mile 76, leave the store and when you get to mile # 107.8 you have reached the La Quinta Inn.

Sounds like tomorrow might not be kicks and giggles.

1,000 miles down and 2,500 to go. Things are looking good.

Dream BIG, Jeff