Day 28
The word of the day:  Green!

The word of the day was "green."  It's hard to believe we are still in Kansas by the terrain, but the wind keeps reminding us that we're still west of the Mississippi River.  Everywhere you look you see the trees leaning toward the north...a result of the never ending southerly winds that pummel everything standing on the landscape.  Today's terrain was a stark contrast to the Kansas we've seen so far as the flat sage grasslands and wheat fields have turned into lush, green rolling hills speckled with cows grazing in the sunshine and lonely oil rigs endlessly pumping black crude from the earth.  There were several farms with "corn belt" black soil that had just been planted with corn and wheat.  As we got closer to Topeka, we started to see several dairy farms scattered over the landscape but what ever the topography, it was always scenic.  I heard a rider say it was the best day so far...that's saying something since we are still in Kansas. 

After 1.6 miles, our route trekked out into the country and we stayed there all day long.  We had a mix of "lineless" country roads to what I call "country highways."  These roads usually have smooth pavement, center lines, and little traffic to spoil the ride.  There were several groups that rode most of the way together today and didn't really push the pace...it was sit up and see the country today.  But even though most everyone was taking in the scenery all day, I don't think anyone saw the buffalo between the SAGs.   I put this photo of the buffalo in so they could see them.

Our first SAG was in a small village named White City.  It's just a spot in the road with a small gazebo park on the way out of town.  I drove around the town and found that all the streets in the residential areas were dirt.  The only paved street in town was the main drag...which was brick.  I just found that interesting.  But as I was taking a spin around the metropolis, I got a call from Monica and Steve...I wasn't able to make out what they were saying since the coverage was poor, but anytime someone calls me, it can't be good.  I knew they weren't too far from the SAG since they had just left within 10 minutes so I took off to see what was up.  This time of year we usually get a bridge or two that are being replaced...that's what it was.  I got about 2 miles past the SAG and found a "Road Closed" sign blocking the road.  There was no detour sign so I guess they figured we'd find our own way around the problem.  As it turned out, the riders could get through but the vans had to find their way around the open trench.  Luckily I remembered a detour we took in '98 to get around another bridge very close to the one today.  It required us to drive about 6 miles on a gravel road to make a box pattern around the construction.  It didn't take long for us to get back on course and caught up with everybody. 

One of the treats today was the second SAG stop.  An alumni, Jeff Unruh (and family) from the Fast South Ride, hosted the SAG with watermelon, home made cookies, and popsicles...what a treat for everyone.  After the SAG, Jeff and I rode the final miles into town.  I only got to ride with him a time or two on the South Ride, it was good to have a hard effort the last few miles on the hills.  It would have been better if the temperature would have been about 20 degrees cooler, but we burnt a few calories before we were through.  Jeff and Julie also invited the staff for dinner...nice to have friends along the way.  It was also nice to have a home cooked meal for a change.  They put on a great spread...thanks Jeff and Julie...it wouldn't have taken nearly as much to impress us...remember we've been out here since mid-April. 

We are staying at a Holiday Inn in Topeka tonight...one more day until St Joe and a day off.  It's going to be another hot one, but it looks like the winds will be "friendly" again.  The high winds are a blessing...they keep us cooled a bit, but if they were blowing from the north, we wouldn't like them as much I'm sure.  Tonight our puppies are tired and ready for some time off...but we still have one more day to ride first.  Tomorrow I'm in the van all day...bummer...see you in St Joe.