May 28, 2019
Second Eureka
Chanute to Eureka
After dinner of peanut butter on flour tortillas and an apple, I read some of Corey’s Crazyguyonabike.com journal. The sandman whacked me in the head at 9:30 and I didn’t move a muscle for eight hours.
I started the day with the typical mediocre motel breakfast, then The Mule and I hit the road, west bound for Benedict with a strong cross wind.
I spotted what I thought were statues of three horses near the road. Then I realized they were real. What beautiful creatures. They posed for a picture but wouldn’t say hello.
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Corey and Mark caught up to me. I think they are on PEDs. Or maybe I’m just old, fat, and slow.
At one point I passed a baby snapper turtle in the road and pointed it out to Mark who nobly stopped and saved it to grow and wreak havoc.
Once we turned north and had a tailwind we made like bakery trucks (and hauled buns).
After 40 miles we stopped at Lizzard Lips Cafe for lunch. We were each given little plastic lizards to attach to our bikes. I took the pink one to match my WABA socks. Now my tour has a mascot. It needs a name. Suggestion welcome.
After lunch we headed west to Eureka, my second Eureka of the trip. The road was a busy highway. We had 19 miles to go and were racing the predicted arrival of thunderstorms. Along the way we met Ian Graves who was heading east on the TransAm. He gave us the forecast.
We pushed the pace. Well, Mark and Corey did. I kept them in view and hoped my left knee would survive the trauma.
I did stop to take a selfie with a sign.
Thankfully it did and the motel that Ian recommended was adequate and walking distance to a beer store.
Tonight we dine at Pizza Hut. (It’s nearby what can I say.) We will be joined by Sweet T, another TransAm rider who we’ve been an hour behind for the last few days.
One thing has been very clear: had we come this way a day earlier we’d have been sitting for days waiting for the flood waters to recede. So despite our inconvenience yesterday, all has worked out surprisingly well under the circumstances.
Miles today: 62
Total miles: 827.5
Evidence of flooding was all around us but the flooding near the Verdigris River was astonishing. The highway passing through some farm fields was raised above the fields like a causeway. The fields were filled with flood water for as far as you could see on either side of the road. About two feet from the road was debris from the peak of the flood. The water must have been at least a foot higher. That’s a mind boggling amount of rain.
The road had no shoulders and a drop off on either side. Strong crosswinds and passing cars and trucks made for a hairy mile of riding.
Today's ride: 62 miles (100 km)
Total: 832 miles (1,339 km)
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