(June 20th) We started the day by driving back to the Kansas state sign where we had stopped to finally put a cap on our longest day. What we didn’t realize is we ended up creating back-to-back 100 mile days for ourselves. After a few detours and some long stretches of biking into the wind, we ended up biking 119 miles into Hoxie, KS. Most of us finished around 9:00 P.M. so you can imagine how tired we all were. Fortunately, we were met with a warm meal at the Methodist Church while gathering around to laugh at The Office. All of us went to bed and slept very well.
(June 21st) The next day, we woke up to one of our best breakfasts yet! All of us had biscuits and gravy to fuel us through the day! Despite back-to-back long days, we woke up ready to go the next day! We biked another 95 miles through some hilly terrain to get to Osbourne, Kansas. Most of us realized that music just wasn’t getting us through the day quick enough. Podcasts were our solution. We’ve actually become podcast critics on top of being cross-country bikers. As we rolled into Osbourne, a few of us were able to receive some quick tune-ups on our bikes. Most importantly, the Wesleyan church provided us with about 30 gatorades and more food than even we could eat! We are so grateful for the generosity of the Church and the kindness of the town!
(June 22nd) We took off on another long day, yet again (75 miles), from Osborne to Miltonvale, a town with an astounding 539 people haha. The scenery was beautiful this day with more wheat farms and cows blanketing the landscape, and the town of Miltonvale was just as pretty. Podcasts once again got us through the day, and led to many hilarious conversations afterwards. We were fortunate enough to bike through Cawker City, where the “World’s Largest Ball of Twine” is located, and had a blast making the ball a little larger. We SMASHED some grub at a local Bar & Grill that night before returning to the local methodist church and calling it a night.
(June 23) The trek from Miltonvale to Rossville was a crisp, 95 miles. We were able to enjoy a (slight) tailwind today, making the ride easier than the day before, and we are extremely thankful for that haha. Before we knew it, we had crushed all our miles for the day and returned to Manhattan, Kansas to stay the night with the Kansas State Fiji chapter. They were extremely hospitable and we could not have asked for a better place to stay!
(June 24) Today was our last day in Kansas, as we marched ourselves down the highway from Rossville, KS to Kansas City, MO. It was supposed to be an 80-mile day, but we encountered our first batch of very rough weather, with thunderstorms swiftly closing in on us. After being pelted with rain for an hour or so and with the weather showing no signs of stopping, we decided to call it a day and pack up. Although this was a minor setback, we were able to kickstart our rest day in Kansas City and explore some of Missouri! Kansas was a beautiful place and treated us like kings! Thanks to everyone who made it so memorable!
