day 24/25/26/27/28/29 (kansas and the central time zone)

i've been dreading day 24 for a while now because of what i was to confront- an 11,542 foot monster named hoosier pass, the highest point on my trip. 11,542 feet! not good. luis, my ride from day 23 had already brought me up about 1,000 feet to an elevation of 8,500 feet, but the last three thousand feet was on me. and so up i went, climbing slowly, but moving. the most amazing bike path, nestled between the towering mountain tops and overlooking a lake, took me halfway up my climb. i've never ridden such a scenic bike path, and plans of returning quickly started to formulate in my head. as soon as the bike path ended, everything changed, however. i got really tired, the climb seemed steeper, and i was getting light headed. i tried to push through on my bike, but all the switchbacks got the best of me, and i was forced to hike the last mile and a half. somewhat disappointing. early on, walking was typical protocol for climbs, because of my bike at first, but also because once i did it, it became easier to stop riding and just walk. my riding companions had pushed me to keep pedaling the past few days, even when my legs were burning. alone, i was no match for hoosier pass. i reached the summit, and other tourists were amazed that i had made it up on my bike. i informed them that i walked the last bit. they were still impressed, but as i flew down to my camping spot for the night, i kept wondering if i could have made the climb with some support. either way, i am going to miss flying down descents at 40 mph, but i will definitely not miss those insane climbs!          





day 25 was a smooth 86 miles, mostly downhill. i recorded my fastest average speed for the trip at 16.45 mph. doesn't seem like much, but as a cyclist, being able to knock out more than 15 miles in one hour is awesome. as i start to leave the rockies behind, i have a feeling more of these days are ahead of me on the plains. i spotted a wendy's today, and of course i could not resist. i hung out there, waiting for the day to pass so i could head to florence to camp in the city park. when i was planning this trip, i was under the false impression that camping in city parks was the norm all over the states, but apparently, that isn't the case in the northwest. almost all campsites charged a decent amount, and the national forest campsites even charged about $10. i didn't allocate anywhere near the amount of money i needed for lodging expenses, but now that i am approaching the midwest, free city parks might be more common which is great news to my food budget! it was somewhat awkward setting up a tent at 5pm, with families and kids around playing and enjoying picnics. but there i was, waiting for a decent hour to crawl into the big agnes. i slept somewhat uneasy. there were still a bunch of teenagers out close to 10, and at some point, some motorcycle guys rolled up to the park, swearing and drinking apparently, as i laid listening to them inside my tent. i wasn't worried about my safety, just didn't want anyone to have fun at my expense. besides a dog sniffing near my tent, nothing eventful happened that night.     





day 26 started much earlier than i'm used to being awake. the previous night the sheriff had warned me that the park sprinklers turned on at 5.30am. i was going to try to sleep through it, but i woke up at 5.15am without having set my alarm, and, in a frenzy, i got up, packed, and rode away. it was close to 6 when i left the park and no sign of sprinklers. i left feeling the sheriff had pulled a fast one on me. well, sprinklers or not, i rode a quick 40 miles into an amazing sunrise, and reached pueblo, CO, my final destination, at 9am! this was a perfectly executed motel/hotel night. a full 24 hours to chill, so i decided to live it up and i splurged on a room at the marriott. i walked in, sweaty and unfresh from two nights of camping, and retired to my room for the next 24 hours. besides coming out to get some dinner, a quick trip to walgreens and the post office, i laid in bed all day. it was the best "rest" day.   





day 27 was the designated full rest day. but a full 24 hours at the marriott was enough, so i opted out of an extra day in pueblo. one day shaved off the trip thanks to the great sprinkler hoax of day 26! i left, with no clear end point. i was refreshed, the elevation was dropping into the 4,000 ft range, and all i could see were plains ahead. 80 miles? 90? another century? everything was flying smooth until a chunk of barbed wire got me. there on the shoulder was a clump of tangled wire, and before i could swerve away, it got caught in my rear wheel, kicked up into my gears, and wound itself tightly into my rear wheel. i braked just in time to avoid flying off. out came my tools, as i flipped my bike over and started taking out the tangled mess. i was able to get most of it out, but two pieces were really caught in my gears. i pulled with no success, until a woman and her grandmother stopped and asked if i needed help. with the temperature rising into the 90's, i accepted a ride into town to see if someone could fix my bike. after an hour of, "well, there used to be a bike shop in la junta, but not sure if it exists anymore," i politely asked if they could just take me back to the road where they picked me up, and i was going to try to hitch a ride to the nearest town that showed a bike shop on my map. they took me to the nearest intersection, where a car mechanic was able to pry out the last two pieces of wire. now, i'm not sure if the wire getting caught or if the car mechanic caused this, but as i reattached my rear wheel, it was so lopsided. i took off the rear brake, and rode with a squeaking noise for another 67 miles to eads, CO. 97 total for the day! i wasn't planning on riding so far, especially after the wire incident, but a looming storm behind me for my last 20 miles motivated me like nothing else. as i entered the local diner, it began to pour outside, and i heard the staff say that there were tornado sightings just east of eads. the city park was drenched, and the only motel in town had no vacancies. i walked around, trying to figure out what to do, when another cyclist came out of her room and told me that there was a cyclist by himself in the room next door. i asked if i could crash on his floor, and without hesitation, he was clearing some space for my bike and belongings. thanks johnny. a difficult day, that could have been ten times worse.    





so apparently there is a heat wave in the states. i'd been in the mountains so long, battling cold morning rides, that i had almost forgotten what hot temperatures felt like. well, day 28 was a great reminder. it was already 90 degrees when i started my ride for the day, and from what the locals said, it was going to climb to 102 degrees. yikes! i've caddied and backpacked through mexico in blinding heat before, but i've never biked. it was a beast. the sunscreen i slathered on my body quickly turned into an uncomfortable, powdery white residue. two additional sunscreen applications later, i had ridden 82 miles in the blazing heat and was enjoying a refreshing cold shower at the local pool in leoti, KS. kansas! a new state and a new time zone. central time zone never felt so good! when i left chicago, i never reset my watch just for today. for the first time in weeks, i also looked at a map, and stared in disbelief at how far i've traveled. i really am crazy. i played basketball with some local kids, who gravitated toward me at the local convenience store, asking about my trip, and then proceeded to follow me to the city park. they were all latino, living in this tiny town, and they assaulted me with questions for a good two hours. "what's chicago like?" "why are you riding?" " you speak spanish!" "will you be out of kansas by tomorrow?" it was wild. i had so much fun hanging out with kids half my age, shooting hoops, sharing family stories. "more bang for my buck," is how marc described it. i still wonder sometimes what kind of impact i can have if i taught at a latino school in chicago. but don't worry, mrs. campbell, my heart and efforts are deeply rooted in howe for the foreseeable future! go jets!

(special shout out to monty from sheridan lake, who trued my rear wheel and got rid of that horrible squeaking noise. just in time, apparently, as he said the side of my tire was getting worn down and might have burst from the constant friction.)  



day 29, and i'm sitting in a convenience store, hiding from the 103 degree heat outside. this heat is intense. well, today, my anti-heat plan was executed flawlessly. i woke up at 5.30am, without a threat of sprinklers, but very much aware of the midday heat index. i rode frantically for 82 miles, taking only a 15 min break at mile 49, as i tried to take advantage of the cooler morning temperatures. it worked amazingly well! i'm super sleepy, but i've been resting now for about 4 hours in AC, waiting to regain my strength to tackle my final 20 miles. i'm going to try to break a century again. in 103 degree heat, on top of that. this next week is probably going to be all morning/evening riding, because i don't see a cool down in the forecast. plenty of liquids and careful planning will have to get me through this week.