Todays ride from Girard to Pittsburg Kansas was another battle with the heat and wind. After about 15 miles I hit a road closed sign..no prob as it said open to local traffic so I guessed bikes could get through...nooooo..the dam bridge wad down and I had to ride back to Girard and go around to the north...so..15 miles wasted..easy in a truck...somewhat irratating on a bike in 107f against a 30 mph wind.
I stopped in a gas station and saw the weather channel...hot hot hot and storm earnings in places...yipee.
So I just resolved to get to pitsburgh asap to avoid the real heat of the afternoon. Pittsburg super 8 motel only had smoki.g rooms so I left. The bike shop is shut until Tuesday. Hmmm...I'm starting to think the devil really does live in Kansas..lol!

But I'm really looking forward to meeting my mate from.vs planet tonight...its so cool to meet friends on a ride like this :))

This is a noticeboard in some gas station...it wasn't the girl that caught my eye but the advert for melons...cough..cough.

Shinto leaving Girard Kansas this morning

http://m.accuweather.com/en/us/chanute-ks/66720/weather-warnings/333252

Home for tonight...$40 but the sir con alone is worth it!

Kansas corn...shouldn't it be green?

It rained in Kansas today...it was still really hot and riding without a shirt in the rain was cooling after such intense sun recently. Headwinds still from the east and draining my legs but here I am in chanute not to far from the Missouri state line. Todays ride was just a question of head down and push through the wind...I am seeing trees now though and the fields look a little greener. I rode through one 'town' on my map without even noticing it wad there lol!
Tonight I am treating myself to a room on Santa Fe street with air con and a pool!

Looking at the route ahead for the next few days I'm going to ride through to Neal, Toronto, coyville, Benedict, chanute, shaw (although I heard h 146 might be closed) walnut, Girard and then right through the middle of pittsburgh Missouri. I'm aiming to get to Pittsburgh Saturday pm.

I've developed an uncontrollable urge to eat large amounts of ice cream in this heat...well the urge is totally controllable I just need to be stronger with myself after lo.g hot rides and eat an apple instead...well I would if there were any fresh fruit in the small stores here.

I'm still thinki.g about the guy who stopped and gave me cold water on the highway today...what mFe him do that I wonder...am glad he did...may he live. Charmed life and be happy all his days..thanks mate whoever you are.

Riding without a shirt recently is leading to sunburnt shoulders...but the shirt heats up so much feels like its scolding me. I've been to much hotter places but never riding these distances on a fully loaded touring bike before.

Looki.g at my rear tyre I see a small side small side wall split. Not good at all. If I could find a bike shop that actually hD tyres I would get a new one before this one dies on me.

Just as I am typing this on the city park..somebody just handed me cake and lemonade!!!...I love the genorousity of Kansas people.

Ice...something I never thought about..but here it is everything..and what a differencw it makes...just wish I could carry it on the bike!

Todays ride from newton to eureka was a toughy. This headwind is just not going to go away and the heat is still a real deRide of every ride. The winds usually come from the opposite direction but not this year and I am fighting for every mile. I didn't take any pictures because all there is here is grass and dry river beds. One guy in a truck stopped to ask if I was ok...the first all trip. Then later on highway 54 another truck driver pulled up on the shoulder and handed me am ice cold bottle of water! Gotta love the people of Kansas!

All day I've been trying not to get sucked onto.bigger truck slipatreams...the big trucks coming towards me cause a wall of air that stings as it hits me...then covers me in the stench of cowshit from thier cargo.

Roll on Missouri..they have trees..that means shade and possibly water. Kansas really is a dry county this year.

I'm riding slower than normal because of the headwinds...just over a hundred I'm the last two days..

No pole dancing jokes please!

Sleeping on the firesyation

Off to see the wizard!

Kansas farmland

Well I've cycled more than halfway across America and this is the first trsnsam cycle route sign I have seen lol!

The Kansas state flag blowing in the serious Kansas winds today

Well today the wind was just silly..had to be. Gusting at 50 mph easy I'd guess...I rode to newton against it and decided it would be dangerous to ride on further. The next map section says no services food or water for 58 miles and against headwinds like this its just silly. So...being a msn of many means and in need of a free place to sleep in newton I just checked into the lo al fire and ambulance staion for the night!

Newton is a bigger town around here and busy..so hopefully the wind will relent and I can move on tomorrow.

I saw a dead armadillo on the road...I didn't know they had those here...also several prairie dogs.

Subway lunch in newton kansad

So todays result of going with the flow is that I find myself sitting in on a training meeting here at the newton fire station. The room has four fire fighters sitting around trying to figure out how best to map out the local school walls and corridors or something...much frustration about computer knowledge in the group. How cool is this...I wonder hoe many regular tourists get to see real America like this. These guys are on a working fire shift...ready to drop everything if the bell goes...and they let me in on a meeting...let me shower and hang out in the mess room...let me store my bike and all for nothing!

Just listening to the conversation going on now I'm getting an insight into the work that goes on in the background and life in an American frontline fire station. Very cool .

I'm being extra carefull which tap I turn on around here and not to push any red buttons!

For those female readers out there let me just say that yes these guys will let you play with their pole if you ask them nicely lol!

I'm going to ask them how best to turn off city park sprinkler systems quickly in an emergency tent situation lol!

Newton fire station Kansas

Sleeping in the firestation in newton kansas

My swimming pool ...took a dip last night.

City parks are by nature noisey places. Tonights free entertainment is brought to me by the combined chorus of skool kids parked I'm the pool all day by parents ...by said parents screaming from airconditioned trucks in the carpark at their offspring to git your ass here right now...by the musical efforts of the local theatre group in the hall complete with backing tracks..fake cheering and of course the obligatory out of tune skool band. Alongside all this I am honoured to have front row tickets for the evening big bug ensemble from a neigjborouring tree. Earplugs...Rolf mate..earplugs.

Well I'm a few days ride from the Missouri Kansas state line and I'm reflecting on Kansas as a state to cycle through. This year has been one if not the hottest ever on record here and everybody is telling me I picked the wrong year to ride through Kansas because of the drought ANC heat wave. I have no choice of course o have to ride on. Kansas has the most friendly people so far on the tour...but the riding is a serious challenge. Although the state is flat it is also wide open with absolutlt no shade between towns and strong petsistant winds. The heat is excessive and extremely uncomfortable to cycle in over any distance. The scenery is mostly open farmland with grass...dry dead corn...and dried up river beds. It's better than Wyoming but the heat and wind mean I give it my vote for the toughest state to ride so far. Riding at night is an option but it messes with sleep patterns because its almost impossible to sleep in the day in this heat with nowhere to.sleep...it is also impossible to.see potholes in the roads at night.
..oh and it does rain in the dark.here as I.found out this morning.
The people here are just so welcoming and friendly and very open and aware of the needs of cyclists. I think on a normal year without this heatwave it would be an easier ride. I think I had to make just two turns so far on my route through Kansas..the rest is a simple straight road direct across the state. The city parks are the best of any state yet in terms of facilities..many have free swimming pools.
Nice people...tough rides in this heatwave.

Forgot to add that the truck on the last picture is where I am sleeping tonight ..in my dreams lol!.....look at what its carrying.

Well after 69 miles I'm in buhler Kansas...city park swimming pool..library WiFi..nice people and the dam headwind can  kma until the morni.g lol!

At 4 am I was on the bike riding. The plan was to get some miles in before it got to hot to ride. So ten minutes into the ride and the heavens opened and I'm drenched to the skin in a heavy thundery shower. I took cover near some old barns but the sand turned to mud in the rain and things were looking messy. I kept riding and eventually it stopped raining. It's overcast today and humid and hit. I've met three westbound riders this morning and now I'm sitting next to fat hot dog woman at the gas station in Nickerson. Both knees are painfull now...Kansas headwinds really suck!

I'm going to take a break here then head to newton.

Shinto skipping work today to watch the women's water polo in the Olympics...ha ha.

Now the big question.is....do I get put of this comfy bed and air con room and ride on in the burning heat...or ..just sit on top of the air con all day? Lol!

I've finally got a good enough wi fi connection and all the recent backlog of updates seem to have gone through at once and some in the wrong date order...hey Ho..at least they finally got uploaded.

I could get used to this air conditio.ing thing you know...its taken my body a couple of hours to cool back down from todays ride in the heat...

I met a young couple riding to sanfrancisco from Virginia...they had had enough of Kansas winds ...I can understand that. Kansas so far for me has been all about the cool friendly people. The rides to be honest are scenically similar each day and the wind and heat are bordering on dangerous...dehydration is a real risk.
Tonight I'm able to watch the Olympics on tv...cool down...do some washing and relax.
There is a bike shop in town so I may take time to get the bike tuned up tomorrow.

I'm looking fleets to meeting some of the guys from vs planet here in Kansas soon hopefully.

Cool bikes in kansas

Free rock concert in deigjton city park Kansas last night

From what I can tell most of the towns here are built along the railway lines...my route is basically a straight line right across the state following the railroad

On a mission from god

Railroad crossing at dawn outside deigjton Kansas this morning

All roads lead to the horizon

Ha ha...this wins my award for the most imaginative post box I have seen so far on this tour!

Classic American car show on dieghtpn city park this afternoon.

Today I decided to rest my knee and not ride. The city park in deighton has a classic car and bike show and I've met lots of car owners...mostly polishing the cars with rags and sitting in camp chairs. I found a shady spot to eat water melon and fell asleep. Preople

Here are interested in my trip...the hotdog seller was more interested in the mental strength it involved.

I will watch the rock bands here tonight and move on tomorrow.

My bedroom tonight in the city park in dighton kansas

This is Brian Powers who chatted to me for a while in the city park.today

Classic bikes on Kansas today

Sunday stRted early at 5 am. I had tailwinds for 65 miles from deighton and  thankfully my knee held up. Along the way I called in at elained b and b for cyclists and was treated to icecream fruit and a very welcome shower. It was to early in the day to
Stop riding and this tailwind is fun so I didn't check in and carried on my way. I wojld recomme.d elaines oasis to any cyclist on this route.

I got to rush centre and found everything closed. It's to hot to ride now at over 40c in the shade so I'm sitting in some shade at the gas station where there is a soda machine. A coke costs a dollar but the machine let's you have it for 25cents. I ran out of change but two farmers in a pick up truck called in for gas...they didn't have change for a 20$ bill so they just gave me 3$ for the soda machine!  I have never k.own people as friendly as they are here in Kansas. Thanks guys!

It really was to hot to ride today but I did 74 miles anyway to dieghton Kansas. The wind here just goes round in circles so you get both tail ans head winds all the time. The rides between watering holes are dry patching and totally void if Amy shade whatsoever. Sun screen is a must as is lots of water. I have a pain on my knee which is due to fighting this wind for to long. It needs packing in ice in an air con room with a DVD player and a fridge full of ice cold coke lol!
Locals here tell me there is some kind of festival on this park tomorrow..I am wondering if a day off the bike might be in order. I rode as fast as I could to get here before the pool shut..but it shut just as I arrived. So I headed to the store and bought ice cold water melon, mountain dew by the bucketful and a tub of strawberry ice cream and retired to a shady spot in the green city park. Here I have power water restrooms and a place to sleep outside. I may swim on the morning.
People in Kansas have been wonderfully helpful and friendly to me so far. I had to disturb a guy in his office so I could get something scanned from my phone...he was adamant he would do it and didn't mind taking half an hour of his day..even his boss was happy to help. No charge.
The scenery remains flat and the same as the last few days if a little greener. Riding between towns is like running from the shade of one umbrella to another on a scolding hot sandy beach...except there are no cold beers...no sea to swim on and I have fat truck drivers instead of bikini babes. Oh well!
Over half way now and still loving every minute of this adventure!

Well this afternnoo.s ride was hot windy and dry. I got so hot I had to sleep in a ditch to cool down. Then I found water at fort larned even though it was closed I went in anyway and took a picture. Eventually I got to larned Kansas after 92 miles riding ..it was  109f when o rode I.to town...in the shade.
I went to subway to eat and as I was ordering Tim bought my dinner because I wad from lo.don and cycling across the states! The kindness of people here is amazing! So I have a free foot long sub and unlimited ice cold coke after a very hot ride!

This is where I am

I had this pool all to myself last night in tribune Kansas city park

Starting to see Kansas corn instead of dust now.

Crossing the state line into Kansas yesterday

Bad thi.ha happened here to Indian women and children

Jerry from Vermont and I hide from the midday sun

Cat bro.ha water on middle of nowhere

Here I am

The pool on tribune city. Park I had all to myself for free.

Kansas corn is starting to replace eastern Colorado dust.

Crossing the state line into Kansas

Bad things were done here to Indian women and children