Hopkins 4K for Cancer

June 19, 2006

Paola, KS
44 Miles

Today was in the middle of our 11 day nonstop riding marathon, and the light mileage was appreciated as we passed just south of Kansas City for our state crossing. The day started with a little road bump, as we realized one of the state roads on our planned route was actually a superhighway. At the last minute, all the riders waiting to leave, we plotted out a route on the back roads through the western end of Missouri. Luckily, our chosen roads all turned out to be paved, and we had a pleasant ride all the way through. The rolling hills are easing up a little bit from the nasty terrain we were facing earlier in the state, but they still prevailed with some annoyance as we crossed into Kansas.

I caught up with Jess part way through the day and rode with her through the state crossing. I could tell Jess was really pushing today, especially since it was a crossing day, and she loved nothing more than getting to the sign and photographing everyone as they came by. She even started to chase down a group that was leaving the sign when she arrived. Once in KS, we reached an overpass just as a train was crossing underneath. It took five minutes for the entire thing to pass as we peered into the empty bins, perhaps used to transport coal, imagining how easy it could be to jump on in. From there it was a short trek to Paola to end our short day.

We were put up in an amazing youth recreation center at the Assembly of God church in Paola. A first time host, the congregation of this church was amazingly hospitable, providing us with an amazing dinner that night. In addition, the recreation center was fully stocked with a soda machine, Internet access, and video games consoles. While some of us hung around and organized group van gear (and relaxed a little), about half of us drove an hour into Kansas City to visit the Hope Lodge located there, the third one we have encountered in our travels. The 4kers who went came back full of stories and inspiration from its members that would stay with some of them for the entire trip.

During dinner, I made copies of the next 10 days, and all of them fit onto one sheet of paper. Some of our upcoming days, especially in Nebraska, are going to be especially bare, with long miles spent on a single, straight highway – thus the compact directions. There was a playground outside of the rec center, and a few of us spent the night outside under the crystal clear Kansas stars.

-Ryan t