Day 21, Bike Tuneup - No Riding

Day 21 – Bike Tuneup

No biking today. Pat and I slept in a bit and were preparing to go out but after some discussion and some careful map review, we decided that Pittsburg, KS would be our last chance to tune up our bikes for some time. For the next 700 miles it would turn out. The next bike shop we would hit would be in Pueblo, CO, 700 miles down the road. Looks like we made the right decisions. Neither of our bikes were in bad shape, but it was good to get the brakes adjusted and the cables lubed .

We spent the day at the Tailwinds Cycling bike shop with the owner, Roger. Roger had 2 couches set up in a corner of the shop for bikers “and for my kids” with a TV, X Box, and a computer. He also had Wi-Fi that we used. Pat and I used the day to get some laundry done and to swim at the “Aquatic Center” where we used every amenity the pool had to offer: curly slide, diving boards, kiddie slide, and the lazy tubing river. While at the laundry mat we encountered an interesting fellow. Pat was noticing that there was a funny metal strip on the edge of the counter where you dump your clothes to sort your laundry. The metal strip was on all of the counters. Pat asked an elderly gentleman who was passing by what the strip was for. The man, who had a hooked nose, white, wavy hair and wasn’t wearing his dentures and looked as if he had escaped from the nursing home, looked at us and replied, “I blame it on President Bush. I blame everything on him.” He was a very animated, ornery, little old man. He then went on the explain how he used to be for Hillary but now he’s for Obama and he’s changed the signs in his yard accordingly.

Pat and I finished the day off with some Italian food and got to bed early in order to get a jump start on the day tomorrow. Our good intentions of getting a good nights rest were well intentioned, however, what we hadn’t counted on were the plethora of neighbors near the city park where we set up camp who were anxious to test a sample of their fireworks. The booms and bangs went on until well past midnight.