Hopkins 4K for Cancer

June 21, 2006

Frankfort, KS
The day into Frankfort was my van day. Lauren Jia and I had a lot of fun singing along to music, and we had a water stop at a lake where we could swim while waiting for the riders (with popsicles!!). Towns are pretty sparse at this point, so we had leftovers for lunch, but the scenery was incredible. We passed through a creepy but very cool swamp, with fog and tons of big, strange birds.

We stayed at the Catholic Church last night in Frankfort. Everyone here is so nice and willing to help out! After unloading the vans, we walked to the community pool, where we swam, showered, and spent way too much time playing on the playground. Walking back through town, we stopped into a little store on the corner called Elsie Grace’s. I fell in love with, and bought, a hand-made quilt from Missouri, which the woman at Elsie’s is kindly shipping home for me. We also ate the BEST homemade ice cream in the history of the world, and ended up buying seconds…and homemade fudge. But miraculously, we didn’t spoil our dinner, which was among the most delicious I’ve ever had – tons of fresh fruit, and about a million other options. Cyclists can eat a heck of a lot…we’re like endless pits for food.

Last night was also our first tornado scare. Ryan and I were about to go out for a walk when Garrett came chasing after us and told us not to leave, because there was a tornado warning (a red cell?) for Frankfort and the surrounding counties. The sky looked like Swiss cheese, which was scary but also very interesting for us New Yorkers. We stayed outside to watch, and, fortunately, nothing materialized. One of the community members told me a story about a town that was destroyed in a tornado – they must be terrifying, and I’m glad to say I’ve still never seen one.

Frankfort has the quiet small town charm that makes everyone feel at home and comfortable. All in all, a great stop on our trip!

-Emma