Ness City, Kansas to Tribune, Kansas
Lunch stop - Scott City, KS. 56 miles so far and it’s only 2 PM. The pattern repeats - town, then 10-20 miles of farms and ranches. Wheat fields graded, tilled and ready for planting. Finely combed seas of brown soil with an occasional grain-silo “ship” out on the horizon. Dirt roads break off the blacktop and disappear into the northern and southern skies.
I set out very early today- pre-sunrise, although it was quite bright out with a good deal of fog coating the landscape. Twenty minutes west I spotted a bright red ball in my side view mirror. Stopped to turn around and watch it come up. Ambivalent feelings arise. Yes, beautiful, but also the fuel for the winds. So calm right now. No wind at all, but as it rises the air will heat and cool and determine the favorability of my ride. Looking out across the field to the north, is that injuns I see??? Actually just statues to convey a sense of what the pioneers might have seen goinacross.
I turn on Nancy and clip the radio to my collar. I hear a very strong 50,000 watt AM out of Colby, KS. KXXX or K-triple X, as they call themselves. Interesting format: country oldies like Johnny Paycheck type tunes, weather reports, and a lot of agricultural news. Not surprising, but there are auction results, auction listings, financial futures quotes, then they’ll play a song. Most of the farm reports sound like another language but I try to grasp what they’re talking about. The station serves 5 states, including Colorado, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Kansas, and Iowa.
A few miles from Scott City, KS, I am struck in the chest by a projectile from an oncoming tractor trailer. Don’t know what it was, but it smarted like hell for a mile or two. I kept checking to see if it was embedded in me.
Scott City, KS. Actually been here before, in 1997 on the “Griswolds” cross country trip. We came up Rte 83 from the south and crossed Rte. 96 on our way to Prairie Dog Town, after visiting Dodge City, KS. Little did I know then, the circumstances that would return me to this town. Well, the good news is the wind is pretty much directly out of the south so biking’s pretty good today. As I said, 56 miles so far Who knows how far I’ll get today. With all this talk of wind here's a windmill photo.
Beeps and Waves
One thing about Kansas, everybody waves. Every oncoming car greets you with a wave. Passing cars sometimes beep after they pass you and wave, definitely encouraging you on.
Feed Lots
You can smell a feed lot several miles away. They fence the cattle into sections and feed them very well. No exercise and a lot to munch on plumps them up real fast. But the waste tends to be grossly concentrated and, depending on which way the wind blows and how hard, can be unpleasant to say the least.
Wichita Lineman
Remember that Glen Campbell hit from the 60’s? Well, there is a city called Wichita, KS but the song is not about a dude who worked there. It’s about a dude who worked in Wichita County, Kansas of which the city of Wichita is NOT a part. In fact, the city of Wichita is several hundred miles away. I pedaled through Wichita County for most of the day and considered myself the Wichita Landman... still on the bike.
Crossing out of Wichita County on Rte. 96 west, I entered Greeley County and the MOUNTAIN TIME ZONE! I stopped to take a picture of the sign. Soon I passed the 100 mile mark for the day. My second “century” of the trip! I ended up in Tribune, KS - 18 miles from Colorado. There is a neighboring town called Horace. So let’s see Horace, Greeley, Tribune... hmmm. What’s up with that?
This is a town sharing the same name as the company that wouldn’t give me a leave of absence. That Tribune's most notable individual said, “Go west young man,” but my Tribune couldn’t find a way to sanction a middle-aged man doing the same.
Quizzing the locals, who after scratching their heads collectively, came up with a simple explanation of Horace Greeley passing through around the time this town was being founded and had such an impact on the people, they named everything after him and what he represented - a New York newspaper called the Tribune.
A Day At The Beach
It was a hot day today. In a way it felt a lot like a day at the beach. Hot and windy, but no dip in the ocean. The wind was mainly out of the south so it blew through my spokes, through the bike frame and past my profile pretty easily, but it didn’t slow me down much. Little by little, I passed through each town. By the end of the day, the grain elevators started looking like Atlantic City casino hotels, as they would rise up in the distance. The more I thought about it, these 10 story structures are basically grain hotels. The grains register and stay for a while and then move on. So from now on, I’m calling them grain hotels.
I stopped briefly in Leoti, KS, at the library. As I was leaving, the librarian, Deandra Gittlein, ran outside with a map and glossy magazine all about Kansas. She assumed I was going east and thought it would come in handy. We talked for a bit about the name of the town Leoti (pronounced Lee-oh-ta) and about various aspects of my trip. She was as nice as Kansas. I gave her the website address so she could track my progress. I still would like that Kansas magazine, but it was too much to carry with me. Maybe I can order one, when I get home.
Totals for the day: 107.95 miles 8 hrs. 12 min. 2144.2 total miles