Day 47 (7/18): Sedalia, MO; ??? Miles

“I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore….” Woke up feelin pretty refreshed this morning…gotta love having your own bed. Jake and I had our usual sibling-style squabbles as we got ready which I of course won every time. After finally getting our bags packed up in the vans (sucha loooong walk through the school!) it was time for some breakfast.

Oz and Jake, Two Kansas alums and Pi Alphas from North Team ’04 (quick shoutout to Moshier and Smitty) sponsored breakfast for us…rockin bagels and krispy kreme donuts. Pretty cool guys…Jake was nice enough to take care of some postal needs for me as well. We thanked them and Bob for letting us stay at the Kansas School for the Deaf and were on our way.

Had a couple of ride alongs today…Ted from Beta chapter at Presbyterian, a Pi Alpha who lived in the area and decided just yesterday to ride with the team, rode with us for the first 10 miles out of town…Dale, Ed, and Randy from the Kansas City cycling club also joined us for about the first 30. Got a sweet police escort out of town…really do wish we could have those the whole way!

The KC cycling club guys were pretty cool…Randy had a sweet recumbent (meaning you sit lying down) bike which looked comfy. They pointed out that the back roads we were on wouldn’t have a “Welcome to Missouri” sign so the best we could do was a “Stateline Road” picture…laaaame. Dang Missouri…already off to a bad start.

So apparently Missouri spends the least out of any state on its roads…which quickly became apparent as we rolled over many a nice crack and pothole next to the nonexistent shoulder. All things considered the ride was going pretty well though. Only problem was it seemed like time was flyin and we weren’t….by around 12:30 we had only gone 50 miles on what was supposed to be a 105 mile day (they rerouted us this year in hopes of finding better road conditions). Startin to worry when right around mile 65 we see our fearless PM Steve Sollner…he made the call to rack the team up because 1) there was a ton of construction up ahead; 2) we were way behind on time; and 3) the route in actuality turned out to be 130 miles…wooo! Good call brotha.

We ate lunch quickly there at the rack point under a nice pavilion…and even got to play on some swings nearby…weee :-)

On the drive up to Sedalia I very quickly passed out…which made for a very quick ride. Our lodging is a local community center multipurpose room…we had to walk over to the pool next door to shower (though time was tight with dinner coming up we took a quick dip in the pool…it had a sweet slide and 1 meter diving boards! Kids were asking us if we were Lance Armstrong….I replied “of course”).

Dinner was provided by Josh Donde’s family (his mom grew up in the area) and they were finishin up grillin as we came in from the showers…and this is when we got to meet Hal…ohhhh Hal. See Hal is not a reporter…he is a pure and dedicated photojournalist. And man was he upset that we didn’t ride up on the bikes. Apparently his whole day was budgeted to get a pic of the team for tomorrow’s news in the wildly popular Sedalia Democrat. “If it seems like I’m perturbed…it’s because I am,” pretty much sums up my attempted convo with him as he lectured me then Rodney on the ethics and philosophy of journalism. Sollner wouldn’t have any of it and reminded old Hal that safety was our number one priority, which quieted him down a little. Ohhhh Hal.

Dinner rocked…bbq chicken and beans and cheesy potatoes and homemade pies…mmmm. After we had the rest of the night off…which was excellent because it’s Mr. Mike “Country” Algozine’s 21st birthday wooo!! A whole bunch of us went over to a local establishment called the End Zone to celebrate. Kind of a whole in the wall but perfect for our needs….had ourselves a nice little celebration and ole’ Country was feelin good. Highlight was the Carnevil machine in the back (best game ever…just ask my dad). After a fun night of shenanigans we walked it back to lodging and hit the hay.

Day 46 (7/17): Olathe, KS; Day Off

Quite the busy day off. Got up at 7 to head over for breakfast at the “Mahaffie Wagon Stop”…a famous stop on the Sante Fe Trail. Had some amazing omelettes (world famous, in fact) prepared by Beverly Wittenborn with help from Anna and some other friends…Cindy and Victor from yesterday also came out to join us. After eating we toured around the wagon stop for a little bit…basically the family would feed travelers passing through, having contracted with the stage coach line.



We headed straight over to the Lakemary center for lunch and a friendship visit. Started off with an intro to the center, where they played their latest fundraising video…a music video of sorts with the friends at the center jamming out: “Only youuuu can do what God intended for you to doooo…you’re CUSTOM MADE!!” Pretty funny but also heartwarming. We then got a tour of their facilities…which provide an incredibly broad range of services, from day programs, to housing, to work opportunities. Ate some sandwiches for lunch then got to hang out for a couple hours…the real character of the visit was Baird, a young fun-loving guy who had all sorts of Special Olympics championships under his belt. Always super excited…loved showin off his dance moves and playing games with us no matter what they were.

On our way back to lodging we stopped at Mark Cameron’s house, where he showed us all of the incredible technology that allows him to live in near independence…voice activated lights and locks, a lift to get him in and out of bed, a voice activated computer and head-tracking mouse, and his chair which is controlled by sucking and blowing into a straw…really amazing stuff.

Back at the Kansas School for the Deaf we all got changed up…next up was a minor league baseball game: the Kansas City T-Bones versus the Joliet Jackhammers! Got to tailgate with some friends of Mark Cameron’s who had their own grill company…and cooked us up some incredible burgers and pork tenderloin on a $6500 smoker. The game was a lot of fun…just really hot!! I sat with Sally from the Kansas School for most of the time…total sweetheart.

We all said our goodbyes to Mark and headed back to lodging….catchin some sleepy time for tomorrow’s ride.

Day 45 (7/16): Olathe, KS; 75 Miles

The lovely Dawn was up to greet us once more this morning…with some delicious sponsored breakfast :-) Had a few special guests today: Leffler was joining us for a crew-along in his sweet Park Avenue, and cycling we had Tom French and Scott Rossell, both KU guys and Pi Alphas from last year’s TransAm team.

Rode with Scott for most of the day….around halfway through we passed through Lawrence, KS, home of KU. After taking a pic in front of the statue of Dr. James Naismith (the inventor of basketball and only coach in Kansas history to have a losing record), Scott broke off as he actually had summer classes today. Rest of the ride went pretty smoothly…though the hills got rougher and rougher as we closed in on Olathe. Right before getting into town we hit some of the steepest hills I’ve ever seen…Kansas is definitely NOT flat!

We staged up just outside of town at a local park, where Jay’s mom and girlfriend Becka were there to surprise him…awww! Pops and I got a few quick pumps of the bike in so the guns looked good for the arrival, haha. We had a cool police escort into town…cops on motorcycles: always the coolest….and arrived at the town hall building to a great reception of town officials and friends. Turns out Olathe goes all out for the Journey of Hope!!

After slappin some high-fives outside we were led into the town council chambers where we sat front row for a reading of a proclamation and a warm welcome. We were directed around by the saucy Cindy…a young interpreter from Latin America. Afterwards we all at lunch at the town hall…I sat with sweet little Pat and Janice…snapped some pics with the boisterous missy…all in all good time.

We rolled over on the bikes to our lodging at the Kansas School for the Deaf…led by Bob…the director of the school. Super nice digs…dorm style rooms with 2 guys in each and their own bathrooms!!! Got all cleaned up and did some bike work before dinnertime.

Dinner was sponsored for us at the Texas Roadhouse, where we were joined by several members of the town commission for people with disabilities. It was here that I got to meet Mark Cameron, who had pretty much set up everything for us here in Olathe. Mark is quadriplegic as a result of a diving accident a few years ago…but it is absolutely incredible what he is able to do despite that. His is a story of true hope…his family and friends (many of which are his Sigma Pi fraternity brothers - an incredible example of lifelong brotherhood) have rallied around him and allowed him a life of near-independence. I’d personally like to thank Mark for taking such great care of our team and for all that he does for the greater community - we’ll be keeping up with him through his website: www.teamcameron.org !

I sat with Mark and his friend Anna, as well as the super charming couple Wes and Mike….we all enjoyed some delicious steaks and delightful conversation.

We had the night off after dinner so most of us are just relaxing around our super sweet accommodations.

Day 44 (7/15): Topeka, KS; 80 Miles

So these 5 am wake-ups are kickin our butt…one is more than enough. Sollner, Farley, and Rodney were indeed up at 4 though as penance for yesterday morning’s snafoo…they had all gone out for some mickey d’s breakfast. This morning was definitely a scramble as I packed up my clothes that were still delightfully damp (now they’ll be clumped in a bag in a hot car all day…wooo!). We rolled out of the community center, grabbed some crew chief breakfast, and got ready to hit the road. I finished off my 5-day manifesto on Asperger’s Syndrome for the disability of the day (a mental disorder some consider as a high functioning form of autism…features difficulty with social interaction despite an otherwise higher than average IQ) with the cool fact that there is speculation that some of our greatest minds (Einstein, Newton, Jefferson) might have had the disability.

Decided to ride up front with the “’Flaggits” (so named for their desire to ride so fast that they often get red-flagged (stopped) up at the front crew stop because everyone else is too far behind). Donde, Geren, Pops, and I zipped out of Emporia treated to a Kansas sunrise (possibly the only cool part of getting up at 5). Good riding today…lotsa of rolling hills (Kansas is not flat!) but we were movin at a fast pace. The eastern side of Kansas (which has apparently had record rainfall this year) is very lush and green offering a pretty view. Before long we were pullin into Topeka and staging up at a local gas station as the rest of the guys came in. Got to meet Jon Leffler (crew guy from last year’s team) and his girlfriend McKayla…both extremely nice.

When everyone got in we double pace lined it up and arrived at TARC, an organization that helps people with disabilities find work as well as providing services like training and counseling. A big group of folks was outside to offer us a warm greeting as we executed our smoothest arrival yet. We’re actually lodged up at TARC (Dawn and her crew take great care of the team in Topeka)…but there’s no showers so we rolled over to the local YMCA to get cleaned up…always an experience with 24 of us in a locker room all at one time.

Back at TARC we all got to enjoy another great pot luck meal. I chatted it up with Ruth and Mike for the most part….Ruth worked over at another facility of TARC’s in the cafeteria, where she had to constantly fight the temptation to eat junk food. Mike was one of the supervisors and joked about settin up some fun stuff for the team to do next year.

After lunch a few of us did a quick walmart run, then had some downtime before dinner. Chad Snyder's dad Charlie actually took care of us here at TARC, bringing in some good eats.

With the rest of the evening free Leffler took a bunch of us out to a local watering hole...transportation was a bit cramped but all the more fun. Ezra and I had bloody mary's just cuz they were on special...those things really just aren't a late-night drink. Good times all around though...had to quietly tiptoe over sleeping bodies back at lodging and now its time for some sleep!

Day 43 (7/14): Emporia, KS; 115 Miles

Bright and early wake up today at 5 am for today’s long ride…longest of the trip on paper. Ate a quick breakfast outside the hotel and hit the road.

Ride wasn’t so bad for the most part…passed a lot of oil refining and drilling equipment which I didn’t expect, but I guess we’re actually pretty close to Texas, more familiar oil country. Enjoyed some more wide shoulders and silly conversation.

Plan was to have lunch in a small town along the way sponsored by Van Buchannon and Mr. Argetsinger…who have been treating our team like kings. Just before the town though we hit some road construction, and had to rack past the most devilish machine I have ever seen: some sort of “road recycler” that chews up the asphalt, melts it with flames shootin out of the bottom, then smooths out fresh pavement…glad we didn’t try and bike past it. Ended up racking the extra 15 miles or so into lunch because I was in the back group for time considerations…the guys in front were able to push it at a pretty extreme pace and make lunchtime with only a minute to spare.

Lunch was awesome…burgers and pork tenderloin sandwiches at this great little restaurant called the Grand Central Hotel and Grill…had fun chattin with Van, his son Brad, his daughter and grandkids, and Mr. Argetsinger before getting back out on the road to finish the ride.

Before long we were pulling into Emporia…a pretty good sized town with a university in it. We lodged up at a local community center where “Dan’s Hands” were waiting to massage us. Got cleaned up and either got a massage from Dan or used the electric massage table that was also provided for us…good stuff.

Around 6 it was time for dinner, which was being provided right in our lodging by the Kiwanis club. Another Pot-Luck!! Definitely the best kind of dinner on the trip. I sat with an interesting chap named Chris…somewhat of a politico type who questioned everything: “so when you guys get to DC you’re gonna be lobbying for something right?? Like isn’t that what you guys do??” Ummm…no, Chris.

After dinner a few of us went to do some laundry…which almost ended in disaster for me: turns out I accidentally left a chocolate “Gu” pack in my pocket which proceeded to coat my clothes in the drier….thankfully I had just enough time to run my clothes through the wash again and get the stuff out…then dry them for exactly 7 minutes before the place closed. The older ladies who ran the place were flashing some pretty intense glances over, cigarettes dangling from their mouths. Looked they had had a pretty rough go of it in good old Emporia…and I sure wasn’t making em happy by staying till close on a Friday night!

Laid my clothes out back at lodging to dry a little bit more…now its time to grab some shuteye!

Day 42 (7/13): Wichita, KS; Day Off

Definitely didn’t want to get out the comfy Hyatt bed this morning…but we were in for a treat with breakfast. The parents of Adam Argetsinger, who had ridden Trans two years ago, had us over to their house for an incredible buffet of deliciousness. Eggs Bendedict (my favorite), bacon, sausage, pastries, fruit, quiche, pancakes…you name it. Best breakfast on the trip.

Had some time to shower up and relax back at the hotel before lunch and a friendship visit. We headed over to Rainbows United, an organization that serves children with disabilities with day programs and educational opportunities…visiting the kids is always the most fun! First did some finger painting masterpieces with Hannah…then sat with Hannah and Briana for story time (about a boy who lost his dog, of course…”
For lunch we had some pizza and milk school-style…I sat with Billy and Brendan, a couple of fun lovin little guys. Didn’t want to leave but before long we took the team pic and were on our way.

More hotel downtime turned into more TV watching with Snydes…get caught up in that darn thing! Dinnertime rolled around so we packed into the vans to head over to an organization called Independent Living. These folks do just as their name says: try and promote independent lifestyles for people with disabilities…a mission I have been working with back home in Blacksburg as well. Ate with Peggy for most of the visit, who loved to share her love for poetry and said she had already written books full of poems!

After dinner I rolled out with Ezra to try and find a Kinkos to print out some pics…no such luck there but we did successfully get ice for the crew chief food and attempt to eat the largest gumball I have ever encountered…a monstrous strawberry “seedling” gumball with no joke half-inch thick walls of gum. Got back to the hotel with my jaw in pain…but its cool because we’re sleeping in these sweet beds :-)

Day 41 (7/12): Wichita, KS; 75 Miles

Got to sleep in a little to 6 am before getting up to some awesome breakfast. The Buchannan family had driven over from Wichita with some delicious pastries for us. Their son, David, was my Project Manager on the Gear Up Florida ride in ’05…one of the finest leaders and nicest guys I’ve ever met. His parents are now huge supporters of Push and are taking awesome care of us all through our time in Wichita.

Ride wasn’t bad at all…passed some really nice neighborhoods coming into town…reminded me of good ole suburban northern Virginia in fact.

After rolling through the suburb area we all of the sudden just emerged on downtown Wichita…and right on the edge was the beautiful Hyatt hotel…where the Buchannans had sponsored our lodging for the next two nights (in all honesty, the hotel was waaay too nice for us!)

Before getting all cleaned up we headed straight over to Chipotle for lunch, sponsored by Geren’s parents who had driven up from Graham, TX…also got to meet his fiancé Laura…a sweet southern belle.

After lunch we showered up and had some downtime to read mail :-) Then it was time to head over for an awesome friendship visit at the Jaycees “Cerebral Palsy Ranch,” which is a summer camp that invites kids with CP and their friends every week for some fun times. I sat at a table of cool cats…Bubbles, Roller Boy, and Tootle Bug (everyone’s got a nickname here…mine was “Crazy Thumbs” cuz I can bend them all the way back) Munched on some awesome pizza and salad before it was time for activities!

Pretty much just had fun stuff happenin left and right for the next hour….I hung out at the fishing game first where the kids would toss a line over a sheet then reel back in a sweet prize. Cody, Fisher, and Colin couldn’t get enough of the game….even the headstrong Kaci came over to play…cute as can be! Soon after I got to meet Marcus, who was blind but did the funniest voices you’d ever heard (my favorite sounded like a cross between the Terminator and Hannibal). Marcus and I bonded pretty quickly and I hung with him for the rest of the visit…he would hold my hand as we went around places and call for me if I wasn’t right there. During wish time around the campfire I got to read Marcus’s aloud…which was that he wished he could listen to music all of the time (he was really into rap…eminem especially haha). Finally had to say goodbye as we were leaving…which was tough to say the least.

Back at the hotel we had the rest of the night off. I capitalized on the opportunity to sleep in a comfy bed and called it a night early. A few guys went out on the town which I hear was a pretty good time…day off tomorrow!