Listed below are the towns where I had overnight motel stops by day and date:
Day 30 | Saturday | June 17th | St. Louis, MO | Guest Host Motel |
Day 31 | Sunday | June 18th | St. Louis, MO | Days Inn |
Day 32 | Monday | June 19th | Washington, MO | Super 8 |
Day 33 | Tuesday | June 20th | Jefferson City, MO | Americas Best |
Day 34 | Wednesday | June 21st | Tipton, MO | Twin Pines Motel |
Day 35 | Thursday | June 22nd | Warrensburg, MO | Days Inn |
Day 36 | Friday | June 23rd | Paola, KS | Paola Inn & Suites |
From the time I crossed the Mississippi on the Daniel Boone Bridge on Day 30, about 2Guest Host Motel was a good place to get sleep. The next day, day 31, June 18th, I decided to stay in St. Louis one more day for 2 reasons: 1) I needed a break and time to rest and 2) rain was in the forecast. It rained almost all day on Sunday. I felt good about the decision to plant myself in the room all day with the view of the rain. The Days Inn room I had was spacious, clean and felt up to date. A good place to rest.
Day 32, Monday, June 19th after checking out of the Days Inn I found a Starbuck's about 4 or 5 miles away on route to Washington, MO. I ordered a hot coffee of the day and a cup of ice and had a few sips of hot coffee and then poured the rest into the cup full of ice for an ice coffee to boot. While seated outside I planned my trip to Washington, MO and input the destination address for the Super 8 Motel in Washington, MO. The route took me over the Missouri river coming out of the St. Louis metro area. I allowed extra time to deal with traffic and avoided a high mileage day. I rode along the Katy Trail for several miles at night. Good trail, but with lots of these trails loose gravel or topsoil requires extra caution and slower speeds. The trail was flat which more than made up for the surface. Eventually late at night I crossed over the Missouri river a 2nd time to enter the town of Jefferson City. I was hungry and tried to order at the drive up window at a Jack-In-The-Box restaurant. No luck. I was refused service because I was on a non-motorized vehicle. I pointed out the bike was an eBike and in fact it was a motorized vehicle. Service was still refused. I moved on to a gas station and loaded up on convenience store provisions for my dinner once checked into the Super 8 motel. Once the guy at the gas station convenience store was cool about me searching for my wallet which was jammed in a zippered pocket to my bike shorts which were covered by outer long legged pants. He did not consider my reach for my wallet as a form of undressing in the store to get to my shorts. I was glad about this as I would not give it a second thought in Connecticut, however as a passing traveler looking a bit scruffy with a beard and on a bicycle not found to be popular at the Jack-In-The-Box, I was relieved I was not seen as a nut by the gas station convenience store clerk. I did make him laugh a little when I explained I was fully clothed - there is a pair of shorts under my outer shell, long legged, water resistant pants.
The young woman at the Super 8 check-in desk explained to me she was 2 weeks on the job and did not know how to reassign my room from the 2nd floor to the 1st. No elevator meant unpacking my bike and making 4 trips from the 1st floor to my room on the second. I mentioned to the check-in clerk she should not tell anyone she is new - that she gave every indication of knowing what she was doing and I appreciated her efforts... Besides, as long as no one was not going to tell me I could not push my bike up the stairs to the 2nd floor, I was happy. The goal was to get the bike in my room so I could charge it up for the next day. I checked out about 11 a.m. the following morning and had not problems with the clerk at the front desk. I did not draw attention to my bike being moved from the 2nd floor to the 1st, but I did mention I'd be outside packing the bike. In the Air Force I once heard someone say that if an issue is undetectable then it is probably ok do proceed. That is the vanilla version. In person, ask me how the line really went! :)
I remember riding out of Washington, MO with a plan to make it to Jefferson City, MO. I planned an 88 mile ride which is a stretch for the eBike. I have mentioned before that this bike is designed to always have power with a load as heavy as is with the current configuration. Having power to travel over many assents and rolling hills required I make to McDonald stops along the way to charge up. Timing was critical as I had to get to the second McDonalds well before closing to allow time to charge up and make it to the America's Best in Jefferson City. I had to take a zig zag course to get to my destination as the area between Washington and Jefferson City in Missouri is remote. Besides, the route I took while longer, had less traffic. I'm on land, but it feels like I am sailing when I tack a zig zag course to get from point A to point B. The plan for the day worked and I arrived in Jefferson City about half an hour after midnight. The woman at the desk seemed distracted yet had no problem with me and my bike. Again, on the second floor but this time there was an elevator! I have slept very well every night on this trip. And again I slept well at America's Best! In the morning, I missed the continental breakfast but the manager is an extraordinary man and had no problem with my request if it was still possible to get coffee. He was very generous and kind. He showed me to the dining area and served me, handing me a bowl after filling it with Cheerio's. This, and in addition, helped me with the coffee. Some of the best parts of this tour are some of the people I get to meet.
Afterwards I checked out and was met with a warm, breezy, cloud filled, sunny day. Tipton, MO was my destination for the day with California, MO as my McDonald's stop to charge my batteries along the way. As usual I liberally applied sun block to my face, neck and bald spots on my head and wiped my hands clean with a baby wipe. The most memorable part of the day's ride was as I was approaching Tipton. I was riding more Google Maps bike routes with lots of gravel roads. I traveled through areas where all you could hear was the wind, and bike sounds of tires tracking dirt and gravel, slapping sounds of the chain against sprockets when shifting gears and cows mooing and birds chirping when stopped to shoot a photo or squeeze a drink of Gatorade or motel water depending on which water bottle I grab. Motel water can be a great experience at times when the sun is baking the earth and me or at other times such as late at night surrounded and bombarded by bugs attracted to my helmet light. Even if the temperature at night is 75 degrees, it can get cool while cycling - after sunset in Missouri, at least, the air gets heavier and cooler. Often when I stop, the heat and moisture from my body remains trapped inside my outerwear. If I linger long enough, I cool down, but get going before I feel a chill. I have decided not to part with my 2 pairs of Merino wool long John's, as even though it is summer, temperatures can drop.
The ride approaching Tipton was memorable. Imagine, just the sounds of nature when standing still on a warm summer day!
Once checked into the Twin Pines Motel I went next door to a Mexican Restaurant and had steak tacos. I love McDonald's for all the good it has provided on this trip, but to eat something different with solid chunks of beef was a real pleasure. My body thanked me profusely! And the taste was up there with motel water when consumed at the right moments. :)
The following morning was day 35, Thursday June 22nd. I remember sunning myself wearing just a pair of shorts (orange). A couple observed me in the parking lot and did not know what to make of me. I did mention I was getting some sun. The man was silent and the woman responded with something like "yes", "That will do it". The manager walk by and was fine with me - nothing awkward. Maybe they get all types at the Twin Pines. My experience there was good. Slept well, charged my bike, had a great dinner the night before and proceeded with my trip. Before leaving town I visited a convenience store where there was a Subway and got a 6" Philly Steak sandwich, purchased some Gatorade in the adjoining room where the convenience store was, and grabbed a cup of coffee and a twister sugar covered donut. Planned my trip for Warrensburg, MO once outside and hit the road. I had a pit stop for battery charging in Sedalia, MO on the 1st leg of the day travels. I rode State Highway 50 which had a nice wide shoulder for much of the way. There were some narrow stretches. I ride close to the white line on the side of the road. I ride steady with cleats off when the shoulder is precarious. The more relaxed I am, the straighter the path I follow which helps drivers with passing by. Some of the truckers are a menace. I ran into this in the 1st trip. The key is for me not to be startled. With the radar I get audible beeps and a visual display of what's coming. This and my helmet mirror and listening keeps me safe. I need to post photos for the days 30 through 36. The stay at the Days Inn in Warrensburg, MO was great. The manager Bobby saw to it I got a room on the ground floor and helped me with the pancake machine in the morning. I ended up having a great breakfast and met some great people at the motel. I hope they visit my blog. I would like to stay in touch. Real salt of the earth people I get to meet. A good feeling.
After checking out I found some shade across the street near a fast food restaurant and was greeted by a man with deep roots in the community. I got the feeling there are a lot of folk in this part of the country with strong family heritage and a connection to the land and the way of life that perhaps in some ways has been consistent for over a 150 years. Don't know, but that was the feeling I got.
Currently it is day 36 and I am at the McDonald's in Harrisonville, MO. There are 2 of them. I am at the one to the south part of town. My batteries are just about all charged. I have 35 miles to ride till I get to Paola, Kansas where I have a room waiting for me at the Paola Inn and Suites. I'm going to get ready for night riding and have picked a window of light traffic to travel road numbers 2 and 68. Don't expect any gravel. If traffic is not good or if the road conditions are not right I have 2 alternative routes I can take. With plenty of battery power and well rested from my camp McDonald's break, I am ready. Hopefully tomorrow I will find time to post pictures for the days covered in this post.
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