I woke late and went to town for pancakes. Two other cyclists pulled up while I ate and introduced themselves as John and Dennis, both from New York.
These guys are seriously hardcore. Or nuts. I still haven't decided. They are doing the TransAm's Western Express Route, and have only alloted 7 weeks for the whole crossing. In fact, they had been riding 24 hours straight when I met them -- and they continued to ride throughout the day. I caught up with them later in the day, and they said they would continue to Tribune for the night -- 22 miles further than I went. Dennis said that the entire stretch -- 36 hours on the bike -- would probably weigh in at close to 200 miles.
They left Yorktown on May 19 -- three weeks after I left -- and, other than a few shortcuts, they've ridden the same route that I have. After making me feel like a total slacker, they rolled out. Still, for all of their speed, I'd never want to do the crossing the way they are doing -- their deadline for returning home is just too soon.
Ahh, my view never freaking changes. At least it's flat. You can see another mirage in the distance.
The afternoon took a pleasant turn after lunch -- the wind shifted to the north-northeast, giving me the slightest trace of a tailwind. I zipped along at 18 mph, eating up the distance to Scott City. Once there, I decided to continue onward, not wanting to waste the rare chance for easy riding. But I was only two miles out of town when I saw another cyclist -- also named John (for those of you scoring along at home: I've met 7 male cyclists: 3 Johns, 2 Jans).
I talked with him for a while, and when I got back on the bike, I found that my delay had cost me -- the wind was once again coming from the southwest, though its ferocity had lessened. I felt pretty strong despite the wind (probably due to the milder temperature), and I managed to catch Dennis and John, who were still continuing their marathon stretch. Their legs were shot, though, after a day and a half of riding, and we split up again as we pedaled west.
Note: Sorry this lst update is a bit boring, but I'm in Kansas. It's beautiful and open and great, but it's not the wildest place on earth.