Day 54 - Ness City to Great Bend: The Heat Is On....... - Off To See the Wizard

July 22, 2014

Day 54 - Ness City to Great Bend: The Heat Is On.......

Jack came up with the sub title today and of course it sparked a discussion about who sang that song. Jack said right off the bat Kenny Loggins.....I just didn't think that sounded right so we Googled it. An hour or so later I am getting back to this entry......the first five references to "The Heat Is On" were Glen Fry. Seems it was his first solo adventure from the Eagles. Then there was this YouTube reference to his introducing Linda Ronstadt into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame this year. Well of course we had to watch that and then we had to watch all the women that sang all of Linda's great hits. You may or may not know that Linda has Parkinson's and doesn't sing anymore...which is just sad for me but Linda being the gracious lady she is takes it all in stride. I heard an interview with her on NPR just before leaving on this trip. You might wonder who could do justice to her songs...it was Carrie Underwood, Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris and Stevie Nicks. check out this link.....

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/linda-ronstadt-tribute-hall-of-fame/

Seems Kenny Loggins did write it and recorded it but Glen's version was the more popular version.

Now back to the business at hand. Today's ride! I am starting to feel like a tape recording "up early and out, slight wind, no downhills". Well not so today......we were out early however there was NO wind and we did have some fun rollers for about ten miles which gave us some down and up hill that worked to cool us off on the down. Not only that, I used my brakes for the first time in days. So, you see, it was a little different.

I'm not saying our room was "old school" but this was in our room. Can you tell which part of the room? Yes, the bathroom.....you never know when you need to call the "lounge". Which BTW is no longer but you can still call.

We enjoyed the hills and the livestock along the way. As we rode it started feeling more and more like the Kansas I know. Rolling hills, limestone homes and fences with beautiful farms of corn and soybeans (the wheat has all been harvested). I am starting to feel like I am coming home. The next three days should really look familiar to me as I have traveled the roads we will be on many times.

The rollers start....yippee. Just the right steepness.

Mommy!!! I started another stampede...am I that scary?

When we rolled into Great Bend the clock on a bank said 100. I am glad I didn't know.......I would have felt worse. It was only noon and my bottom was already very uncomfortable from the heat. My trusty CatEye Adventure has not been working for mileage or elevation since Montana. I thought that the temp was at least correct....seems NOT. It was saying only 91 degrees. Sometimes it's better not to know..I was hot enough at 91 thank you!

We didn't make a reservation for tonight thinking why would Great Bend, Ks be busy on a Tuesday? Well...we pulled into the Best Western (which was the last motel heading out of town but we wanted Best Western...we had passed several motels already) and guess what they were full last night but they had 1-one room available for tonight. It is the "Bridal Suite" would you like that? They gave it to us for a big discount (sure because we are on their frequent visitor list) however it would not be ready for an hour or so. No problem is there somewhere we can wait indoors?

No....we are not camping in the activity room again. Just waiting. Seems the Bridal Suite is the room upstairs with the cleaning cart in front...now we really are curious. Looks like there won't be a great view.

Of course....a heart shaped tub. Guess you know what we will be doing......I have Epsom Salt!

It's time to get something to eat and then it's back here for some serious soaking. This heat is making it tough on the old body. We have our reservations booked for the next two nights since Kansas seems to be such a hot vacation spot. Mom, Do we need to call ahead and book Friday?!

Today's ride: 64 miles (103 km)
Total: 2,152 miles (3,463 km)

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