Blogs from Kansas, United States, North America - page 4

This will be short. I am truly camping with no electrical power. My phone has limited battery. Today I got on the bike very early and plowed into the usual strong headwinds. I had lunch at the Dighton Diner with several of the Adventure Cycling Group. Nobody seemed to know that this diner existed, so it was a real treat for us all. The server Nancy was very nice and bent over backwards to make everyone happy. Once lunch was complete, we all got on the bikes and realized the wind had settled down to a light breeze and I flew to Scott City. Although I had intended to spend the night there, I just could not stop when the winds were so favorable. So instead I hooked up with a young fellow named Conner and ... read more

In my last article, I teased this one a little bit by saying that I wanted to write about possible trends in traveling over the next year or two. To tell you the truth, I don't even know if trends is the correct word. Maybe observations? Hopes? Who knows. It's my responsibility to write, and yours to judge. The problem arose that there's only one trend that made me want to write this. So what should I title this article/blog? Whatever title you read, I promise that I didn't put it in the box until the very end. A little insight into the writer's mind for a moment: we get too cute for our own good sometimes. I'm about to spend half of this article discussing the marketing genius of a cartoon mouse, and the second ... read more

I'm a history nerd. It was my major in college and obsession as a kid. I don't believe in the idea that "history repeats itself." It's an assertion that implies that things are meant to be. Nothing that has ever happened HAD to. There didn't have to be a World War 2. The Roman Empire didn't have to exist. British imperialism wasn't "destined to fail." Things happen because people are independent and make decisions based off of their needs and desires. History is unpredictable because history is the study of people, not events. Thus the reason I love history: it's people-centric. Studying people and their motivations interest me. The same holds true when I travel. I look at a place's historical significance and the people when I go somewhere. I want to know where the people ... read more

Early to rise and early on the bike seems to be a good formula. I was on the road at Sunrise and it turned out to be a good day. I think I even had a bit of a tailwind today. The topography helped a lot too. After Newton, the Great Plains has been left behind and it is more farmland with TREES! I could have been in Central California, Iowa or Western Kentucky. Lots of crops, corn,spinach, and tobacco I think. Beautiful big farms with huge barns. Farm equipment and storage facilities were abundant. I stopped in Nickerson for lunch and was amazed that Main Street was brick! I haven’t seen that at all since I left Yorktown. One glitch today; somehow I missed a turn and rode about 5 miles on a dirt road. ... read more