The idea of this trip has been germinating for a long time! But you know how it goes. Life gets in the way of some dreams and then those dreams seem more like whims. It’s easier to do what needs to be done next and move back what seems to be irresponsible frivolity to the back recesses of your mind. The flicker of which is kept alive only in the privacy of your hopes and dreams. This trip, or something like it has been back there for awhile.

Over the last half dozen years, the preciousness of life has been presented to me in three different ways. First, my Dad passed away.  He was in his mid 80’s and had lived a good life.  He liked his work, enjoyed the routine, did what he needed to do.  He was a wake up in the morning, shave, dress and have a purpose type of guy.  A good Dad and a good family man. Didn’t really have any personal dreams and never got to enjoy retirement very much.  

Six months later, my Mom passed away.  She was younger and full of life. She had goals and loved having fun. She had some great adventures (Bali, Europe, Africa) and her big passion was buying her parents lake house in MN and had plans of spending her summers there. But she never really had the time to make all of those dreams happen. 

Three and a half years ago, Kristy, my wife of 25 years passed away way too soon. We were just entering our empty nest period together and we were excited about going places, having fun, doing it “right”.  When that happened, I set out to make the most of each day, to see the world, to make sure that I didn’t leave a long list of things that I didn’t get to do. I took it as a responsibility and marching orders. In that first year, I travelled to Spain and Portugal where I learned that an active vacation would be a better fit for me.  I then took a bike trip to Vietnam, which was great! Then Covid hit and, like everyone, I was grounded. Nose, to the grindstone, taking care of life at home.  

”Big bike trip?” Had showed up in my yearly goals for a few years and last fall I decided that I wasn’t going to wait any longer. Life is made for living and now is the time.  I drew the line in the sand and here I am.

Not long into my ride I met Chris Truett, a similarly outfitted bike tourer from England who is currently riding from New York to Los Angeles. He  was bored with the landscape of the U.S. and was slogging through.  He did say that the people have been outstanding! It’s now been four days and I haven’t seen another bike tourer. Maybe it’s late in the season?

There is definitely a mindset and a rhythm to touring by bike. I’ve found that the key to the mindset is to take it as it comes. Each day is different and it’s an outside sport. Therefore, you can only control so much. There is actually so much that is out of your control such as the wind (important!), heat, rain, how the legs are feeling, hills… you get the idea. The important thing is knowing that if you keep at it, you will cover ground. You’ll get there eventually. And that feeling of covering ground is a gratifying feeling. Progress is contagious. 

The rhythm of the journey is determined by the day. Each day I have a plan which is determined by what seems to be the best place to stop.  I then consider the required mileage, the weather (as much as I can know) and then make a plan on when I need to leave and where I might be able to eat along the way. Out here in Kansas, the towns are spread out and there are not many options.  Sometimes it goes as planned and sometimes not.

Flexibility is key on a trip like this. There are too many variables to make a definite plan. My original intention was to leave from home in Colorado and then ride from there, but I was delayed by a week and it seemed best to get a ride out to where I should have been. So Beth Hawkins, unselfishly drove me out to Ness City, Kansas and I started from there. I set out riding in a light rain and conditions improved throughout the day. It was good to be back in the saddle again. I’m trying to ease into it a bit and in the afternoon, I discovered the restorative power of a nap. Especially one on a picnic table at a small wayside park.

Take this morning for example, I knew it was going to be hot in the afternoon so I set my alarm for before sunrise and was off and riding by 7 am. I never considered that I would be riding in a rainstorm into a headwind for the first 10 miles. But I also didn’t consider that I would be passed by the first car of the day at mile 12.5 and that the rain brought such a beautiful rainbow.  

Over the first 250 miles the landscape has changed. The first part was highly agricultural and there were more towns. Mostly flat.  Over the last two days I have been riding through the Flint Hills which are wide open bluestem grasslands of prime ranch land. This morning, I was treated to a large herd of horses out for a morning run. I watched 30 or 40 horses do a circle and then just as quickly crest a hill and run out of view. It was a brief moment of supreme beauty in a primal landscape.  

For the first four days I have have been riding between 60 and 75 miles. I have camped out twice, stayed in a hotel and tonight, I’m staying in a church that has been converted to an Bed and Breakfast. I’ve talked to some nice people along the way including Corey who was sitting at a STOP sign when I was riding by. I made a bee-line right for him because I recognized his van. He was driving the old “3 The Longmont Channel” van. I live in Longmont and there is only one Longmont. I knew we had to talk. It turns out Corey lives in the van, so we both live in Longmont in different ways. He stayed in a beautiful rural setting not far from where he is from and after years on the west coast, he was back. He said he is teaching people to wave and making friends. We had a wide ranging conversation and parted with a handshake and mutual best wishes.

I’ll continue to write about my journey as I have time. Thanks for reading and I’d love to hear your comments.