Thursday, July 26, 2007

AK Trip - Day Forty One - Thursday, July 26th,

Garden City, KS to Iola, KS


We are definitely being watched over.

Today we were at Clark Motorsports in Garden City, KS before they opened. Fortunately the Service Manager was in early and got to my bike quickly. It did not take long for him to determine the chain was in a bad way. The bottom line was it “might” have made it back to Paducah but the odds were not good.

As luck would have it they had a replacement chain in stock. I had no intention of holding my breath for the next 800 miles wondering if it was going to let go. That made the decision to replace it easy. The staff at Clark Motorsports was great and got us back on the road by 10 am.

Clark Motorsports
4575 E Hwy 50 Plaza
Garden City, KS 67846
(620) 271-9380

Once we finally got rolling the miles went by quickly. We followed Hwy 50 to Dodge City and then took Hwy 54 – 400 to Wichita and southeast to Iola, KS. We managed to squeeze out 400 plus miles, in hot weather, after a late start.

We are about 40 miles from Fort Scott National Historic Site and we plan to be there bright and early in the morning when they open. After that we quickly cross over into Missouri north of Joplin and head south for two more National Parks.

We rode through Greensburg, KS today. Many will remember this small town was totally destroyed by an F5 tornado May 4th of 2007. The town was flattened and remains largely the same today. A tent on the main street serves as a hospital.

The last thing this town needs is a gawking tourist taking pictures. I will let the link below serve. Suffice it to say, riding through Greensburg was a sobering experience.

On a lighter note. This morning while we were getting ready to leave, I looked over and noticed Ted taking out a pair of socks from his oversize bag. The socks were still wrapped in the original store packaging. Six weeks after we left Paducah this man is still pulling out brand new clothes he has never worn…. LOL…. Go figure!

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime. ~Mark Twain

4 comments:

  1. I was lucky enough to stop at Greensburg to see the Worlds Largest hand dug well before it was destoryed. I walked all the way to the bottom. For years Rhonda would not let me stop. You did make good time today. Ted sure is something. I'll try to remember always have a new pair of socks.
    I'll watch for Ted tomorrow.

    MikeJ

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  2. Hey, I'm with Ted! Ask Jim sometime about my obsession with new socks for trips! Glad you got the chain fixed and you're making good time! There's a light at the end of the tunnel! You're almost home!

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  3. After the "Rhonda wouldn't let me stop" statement, I'll let you in on a real piece of info. He might have a new pair of socks, but I would have to pack them for him.

    Rhonda J

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  4. Well, a new pair of socks makes everything look brighter and better. I'm for new socks (and new chains). No sense worrying about something you can fix. At least you don't have the problem of being bored! Marg

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