Tuesday, June 28th, 2011 (Day 12)
This morning we woke up to the sound of kids playing at the park we were camped at. I got up and took my tent down after writing in the journal for awhile and realized I had not yet changed.
That was awkward. I ended up sitting inside my velomobile and getting completely naked to change, even though there were still people all at the park. Luckily it was a success! :D
While I took my tent down, changed, wrote, etc., Adam decided to make use of a piece of cloth he found on the ground. He tied it to his flag pole in such a way that it made a mini sail that during the day he claimed helped a noticeable amount! Wind + human power... can it get more green than that? I doubt it!!
When we made it to Ogallala, we stopped for a rest. It was a nice town and we found a gift shop in it for tourists. We bought hoodies to show our love for the flattest state ever. Hell yeah.
After we got our hoodies we walked through a little Ogallala museum to make it to a restaurant in the same building. On our way over there we were stopped by a group of pretty cute girls. They were all giddy when they asked us if we were the guys driving the "rocket bikes" outside. When we said yes they got so excited and said: "Oh my god, you guys are really cool!! Can we take a picture with you??"
So they got their picture and we were off to get a huge, satisfying meal... which ended up making both of us feel sick because we ate so damn much.
After we filled up on water, we were off again. We made it to Big Springs, NE and stopped for a rest. We were absolutely exhausted. Completely drained. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky all day and the sun had been beating down, paired with the intensely intense super strong side wind we had been dealing with all day. It takes so much out of you!
We laid in the grass in Big Springs for awhile, and by that I mean about an hour and a half, before continuing on. We both agreed we HAD to cross the border tonight. Knowing that it was only another 16 miles or so we decided to just cruise with the tops down and play some music. This is the first time we had ridden any sort of distance with the tops down besides uphill, because it is much less efficient, but this was really nice. The sun was finally starting to go down, and the highway we were on felt much more like a bike path, because there was not a single car on it!
That was awkward. I ended up sitting inside my velomobile and getting completely naked to change, even though there were still people all at the park. Luckily it was a success! :D
While I took my tent down, changed, wrote, etc., Adam decided to make use of a piece of cloth he found on the ground. He tied it to his flag pole in such a way that it made a mini sail that during the day he claimed helped a noticeable amount! Wind + human power... can it get more green than that? I doubt it!!
When we made it to Ogallala, we stopped for a rest. It was a nice town and we found a gift shop in it for tourists. We bought hoodies to show our love for the flattest state ever. Hell yeah.
After we got our hoodies we walked through a little Ogallala museum to make it to a restaurant in the same building. On our way over there we were stopped by a group of pretty cute girls. They were all giddy when they asked us if we were the guys driving the "rocket bikes" outside. When we said yes they got so excited and said: "Oh my god, you guys are really cool!! Can we take a picture with you??"
So they got their picture and we were off to get a huge, satisfying meal... which ended up making both of us feel sick because we ate so damn much.
After we filled up on water, we were off again. We made it to Big Springs, NE and stopped for a rest. We were absolutely exhausted. Completely drained. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky all day and the sun had been beating down, paired with the intensely intense super strong side wind we had been dealing with all day. It takes so much out of you!
We laid in the grass in Big Springs for awhile, and by that I mean about an hour and a half, before continuing on. We both agreed we HAD to cross the border tonight. Knowing that it was only another 16 miles or so we decided to just cruise with the tops down and play some music. This is the first time we had ridden any sort of distance with the tops down besides uphill, because it is much less efficient, but this was really nice. The sun was finally starting to go down, and the highway we were on felt much more like a bike path, because there was not a single car on it!
After awhile, we did finally make it, and we decided to stay in Julesburg, CO, the town that was on the border. We camped out under a gazebo in the center of a park after stopping at the grocery store for some food.
While we were getting set up under the gazebo, we put our tents up and our velos under the roof and we started playing some music. We brought out some food and ate some dinner right on the picnic tables they had set up there. All the while, we watched as people from this small town started circling the park, whispering things to each other. A nice old couple came out to the gazebo and talked to us about tomorrow's route for awhile after talking a bit about the velomobiles.
After they left a guy and his brother and father came out. His name was Levi. He wanted to know what the things were and what we were doing. He explained to us that he came out because one of his sisters told him "there's some guys dealing drugs at the gazebo!"
Once the drug dealer confusion was cleared up, Levi went home and came back with all of his sisters and one of their friends, and then they called some more people and in a little while we were hanging out with a group of about 20 people total. It was awesome! Levi brought his camera with him this time and took a ton of video of us and of the velomobiles while we all sat, ate and talked.
Before leaving, Levi's sisters asked us what we liked for breakfast, telling us that they were going to bring it to us in the morning. Happily surprised, we told them, and everyone headed back home for the night.
While we were getting set up under the gazebo, we put our tents up and our velos under the roof and we started playing some music. We brought out some food and ate some dinner right on the picnic tables they had set up there. All the while, we watched as people from this small town started circling the park, whispering things to each other. A nice old couple came out to the gazebo and talked to us about tomorrow's route for awhile after talking a bit about the velomobiles.
After they left a guy and his brother and father came out. His name was Levi. He wanted to know what the things were and what we were doing. He explained to us that he came out because one of his sisters told him "there's some guys dealing drugs at the gazebo!"
Once the drug dealer confusion was cleared up, Levi went home and came back with all of his sisters and one of their friends, and then they called some more people and in a little while we were hanging out with a group of about 20 people total. It was awesome! Levi brought his camera with him this time and took a ton of video of us and of the velomobiles while we all sat, ate and talked.
Before leaving, Levi's sisters asked us what we liked for breakfast, telling us that they were going to bring it to us in the morning. Happily surprised, we told them, and everyone headed back home for the night.
Miles covered today: 65
Miles covered total: 914
Overnight Town: Julesburg, CO
Miles covered total: 914
Overnight Town: Julesburg, CO