Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Day 34-Heading For The Border




Miles Completed Today: 84
Total Miles Completed: 2255
Miles To Go: 1445

Toronto Lake ordinarily would probably be a very nice place to stay, but it was a rough place for us given the high water remaining after the recent flooding and the mosquito squadrons that liked using us for targets. We survived the humid night and headed out at 9:30 AM for Girard, KS on Route 105 and then Route 39. It's an 84-mile trek, so today will be a a tough one.

The landscape no longer looks like Kansas as it is lush green, water is everywhere, and signs abound that, if we didn't know otherwise, would indicate we're in the South. We'll miss the friendly "waves" of the rural Kansas drivers who give a simple nod of a few fingers from the steering wheel as they pass on the road, but more adventures await us in Missouri.

Today's Internet courtesy of the Chanute, KS Public Library.
(Octave Chanute, the city's namesake was an engineer who built the first bridge across the Missouri River, designed the Kansas City stockyards, and was heavily involved in the railroads. He was friends with the Wright Brothers, and strongly encouraged them in their aerospace developments. Chanute Air Force base is named after him in Illinois.)

Update: Sean and Pat arrived in Girard, KS close to 7:30 PM after a long ride, including a slight detour due to the flooding from a few weeks ago. Fortunately, the Girard Municipal Pool was open until 9:00 PM, so we took full advantage of it. It was even sweeter since they told us cyclists were free! Kansas has been the most "cycler friendly" state in terms of friendliness and facilities, and we doubt they will be surpassed in the four remaining states.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Too bad about the mosquitos, Toronto Lake looked nice on Google Earth. Big day to Girard and then tomorrow to Missouri. Keep knocking those states down. You've got lots to do getting ready for college back here too.

Cheers Guys,

Anonymous said...

Hi Chris,

You appear to be adding photos while I am commenting. They loook great. But is there some reason Pat has been wearing same shirt for 22 days? I suggest kicking him out of van until that shirt is disinfected.

Soul Art By Jackye said...

Nice six pack Sean! Hurry up and finish your trip and get HOME so you can show off that hot bod to the college girls!

Be Safe, Ride Lots & Have Fun!

Call when you can.

Sean and Ariel Mahan said...

Wow Sean, I guess I finally got to see that six pack. Holy cow I miss you so much. I know work totally misses you too. Dillion quit, finally. Good for him. You are the best guy they have, now, and the best looking.
Ta ta for now. Keep up the good work.

Anonymous said...

Sean, you anorexic, homo, farmer's tanned, POS. You need to gain some weight, eat that chicken you were chasing or something.