Day 26: Addendum

Jean couldn't read my chicken-scratch? How strange. Gil did mention to me that they shut down part of the interstate to large trucks for part of the day. He informed me that Kansas is NOT flat.....there is about 2,500' elevation at the Flint Hill area, and for some reason he didn't like going only 4 mph at some places due to the WIND. Rick, one of the mechanics, said it was the worst crosswind he's seen on the tour. Gil now has a temporary "stylized cyclist" tattoo on his calf, much less hair and bird feathers attached to his bike helmet. [See picture on left. -Jean] Does anyone think he's been on tour too long?

The wind was really howling on occasion, and once it picked up Gil's whistle on the string around his neck, blew it to his side and actually blew his whistle. The wind was really something. He took some pictures of cows with their butts into the wind while others were facing the wind and the grass was blowing like "you know what," [see picture below. -Jean] and they were all glad to get to Topeka.

The van stopped in an "itty bitty" little town called Bogart (between the 75 mile SAG stop and Topeka), and Gil talked to and videotaped some old timers at the general store. He's found that the video camera is a great social tool for meeting and talking to local people - "hey, I'm riding across the country and like to interview people. Would you mind talking to me about your town?" The people in Kansas are extremely friendly....even hotels are more accommodating. All the biking books report that the people in Kansas are the friendliest, and so far on the tour that has proven to be true.....not that other people haven't been, but folks in Kansas really stand out in that department.