Day 39: Newton, Kansas

Hey guys,

It’s Kawther. On day 38 we arrived in Newton, Kansas. From where? I don’t remember. Too much time has passed. 

We stayed in an Airbnb, courtesy of the Newton Public Library, which we are so grateful for. Thank you Newton Public Library. The house was really nice and even had a silo attached to it. Unfortunately, we were in too much of a rush to spend time in the silo since we had to prepare for our teaching day. 

I’m too tired to write the rest of the blog so please enjoy these photos from our teaching day in Newton and our subsequent trip to downtown Wichita:

Day 37 & 38: Humid Kansas

As the days roll on, the relentless Kansas heat and humidity have become our constant companions. Biking in this weather isn’t as brutal as it might sound, thanks to the wind, which serves as a natural air conditioner. However, the moment we stop, the heat catches up with us. It’s like an instant sauna, and sweat begins to pour out, taking our sunscreen with it. (I take my sunscreen job very seriously.) I think this humidity has been an unexpected but effective motivator to keep pedaling as fast as possible! 🌬️

Here’s a detailed account of our adventures over the past two days:

DAY 37 🌞🚴‍♂️

STATS: Ness City, KS -> Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, KS (93.78 miles) 🌄

We started the day with the sun already beating down, casting a golden glow (or “yellow tint” according to Ethan) over the vast Kansas landscape. As we cycled through this flat expanse, our companions were the fields of corn and the curious cows. (We’ve become so accustomed to the smell of the cattle that it’s almost comforting now.) Today, however, was particularly delightful when a playful calf decided to run alongside us for a while. 🐄💨 It’s moments like these that make the long hours on the bike worth it!

For lunch, Will and I shared a wholesome $5 deal meal at McDonald’s!  🍔🍟

Upon reaching the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, we were treated to a breathtaking view of endless fields stretching into the horizon. The sight of the sun dipping below the fields was the perfect end to a demanding day of cycling! Beautiful moments like these after a long day of biking remind me of my goals and the mission of our trip. 🌅

Important info posted at the bike hostel!

Our evening was spent at the Zion Lutheran Church Bike Hostel. The facilities were fantastic, providing a comfortable place to rest and rejuvenate. We whipped up a simple yet satisfying dinner of rice, chicken noodle soup, and macaroni and cheese. 🍚🍜🧀 As we ate, we indulged in watching "The Mole," a ridiculously cheesy reality TV show. 📺😄

DAY 38 🌞🚴‍♀️

STATS: Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, KS -> Newton, KS (71.19 miles) 🚜

Today marked a bit of a milestone for us as we cycled later into the day than ever before. Let’s just say our departure time ended in pm… ⏰🌞

Our evening lunch was a highlight; we stopped at a gas station where we found another excellent $5 meal deal. The 2 hot dogs, bag of chips, and iced tea was exactly what we needed to power through the rest of our ride. ⛽🌭

The highlight of our journey today was discovering a group of farm animals that perfectly mirrored our own group dynamics. We named the mother cow Kawther, the father horse Hunter, the twin black calves Will and me, the white calf Ethan, and the youngest orange calf Tubb. 🐄🐎👶🏼

Side note, I made it my mission to pet a cow on this trip, though I still haven’t gotten close enough… Mooing at them as we ride is the closest way I can bond with them for now I guess. 🐮💛

As we approached Newton, we stumbled upon a cutesy Christmas in July-themed farmer’s market. 🎄🌽 The festive atmosphere was a welcome surprise, and we couldn’t resist sampling the Grinch lemonade. 🍹 I also bought a handmade bracelet from a little girl, and some of the others picked up adorable crochet animals. 🧸 It was an amazing experience speaking with the community members behind the stands! The market was a charming detour and a reminder of the little joys that punctuate our journey. 

Arriving in Newton felt like stepping into a fairytale. We were welcomed by the director of the Newton Public Library, who provided us with a unique and beautiful stay connected to a silo. 🏰🌾 After settling in, we prepared a simple yet delicious pasta dinner. 🍝 The rest of the evening was spent relaxing; I caught up on "The Mole" with Will, and Kawther and I also enjoyed a bit of "The Bear”. 📺🧑‍🍳

Goodnight, and here’s to many more days of adventure! 🌾🚴‍♀️

Eva :) 

P.S. I think emojis make reading more fun! Comment down below ur fave emojis!! 🤗

day 36: mid-trip reflection

We are officially halfway across the country!!! YIPPEE!!

Last night, Eva and I spent an hour driving around town, thinking of locations where we might be able to take a shower (our park had no running water/bathroom and we hadn’t showered in two days and could smell ourselves). After contemplating using a hose, we ended up getting a very kind guy to open up the Leoti City Gym for us so we could “shower” ourselves in their sinks.

I did get to sleep in a hammock last night, however. I missed being a hammock queen. There is truly something so blissful about it that I will miss so much when I go back to normal, hammock-free life at Stanford. The quality of sleep I get in a hammock is just unparalleled, and waking up to nature has been amazing.

After waking up in the park, I discovered I needed to use the restroom. Luckily, the park was located right next to a hospital, where we could ring a doorbell for the doctors and nurses to open the door for us to use their bathroom. They were so kind to let some random grimy Californian bikers in - we are so grateful to the hospital staff for opening up their facilities to us.

It’s been moments like this that help me reflect on my gratitude for the simple things that I’m lucky to have in life, like a warm shower, a nice warm meal, or a sink to brush my teeth with. As a city kid through and through, I never went camping until SPOT and have probably hiked seriously maybe three times. I came on this trip because I knew it would push me outside of my comfortable city lifestyle, and it has done so in more ways than I’d ever imagine. I got so used to my 17-step morning routine at home, from cleanser to serum to moisturizer to concealer, and on Spokes, I’ve realized that the best you can do sometimes is just wipe your face with a baby wipe, and that’s good enough!! There’s so many things I felt that I needed at home, and now, I truly feel like all I need in life is good company, a bike, and deodorant.

I’m very glad my team is experienced in the camping realm and has helped me with everything I need to know about the outdoors. Camping has been a wonderful adventure, allowing me to better connect with the world around me and decompress. It has also taught me to cherish the basic comforts and conveniences that make everyday life so much easier and more enjoyable. This experience has truly highlighted how much I have to be grateful for, and I’ll carry this newfound appreciation with me long after I return home. Suddenly, my one-room double and communal showers in Crothers Hall from last year look like a golden throne. I’ll never complain about my Stanford housing ever again.

The other best part of this trip so far has been meeting people from different backgrounds across the country has been a transformative experience, especially having grown up in the bubble of San Francisco. In SF, I was surrounded by a community that largely shared similar values and perspectives, which often reinforced my own worldview. Traveling and interacting with individuals from diverse regions, however, has broadened my understanding and challenged my assumptions. Each encounter, from talking to a Warmshowers host about meditation to a lady on the side of the road about her past relationships, has taught me great lessons - the importance of empathy and open-mindedness, and the variedness of perspective and background across the US. It has been enlightening to hear varied stories, experiences, and viewpoints, which have all contributed to a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the world.

After the 81 miles of today, we have made it to Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Ness City - where we have a lovely shower and kitchen!! Thank you so much to Father Pascal for allowing us to stay in your convent - we could not be more grateful to have a method of removing our stench. See you tomorrow when we take on 93 miles - our second longest ride yet!! 

Will

P.S. We also made a friend, Bentley, on our way out of Leoti!! He developed a close bond with Hunter, who helped him fix his bike, and he showed us the way to the gas station so that we could fill up our water bottles. He wanted to bring us to his home too, but unfortunately we had to depart to Ness City!

day 35: kansas + podcasts!!!!!

Hi!

We are so back. In KANSAS!!! Wow. State #5. This is crazy. I’ve never visited Kansas, so this is my second new state of the trip (#1 was Utah!!)

The Kansas vibe. Kawther repping the Kansas vibe.

We began today in a church - luckily, no alarms were set off, and no cops were called. Instead, we cooked a lovely breakfast for ourselves using the resources from Lake Sheridan Bible Church (thank you so much!!) Having a kitchen to cook for ourselves is such an incredible privilege, especially after having been camping for a while. The convenience and comfort of a well-equipped kitchen can make a huge difference in our daily routine and overall well-being. No more relying on our Coleman stove to make oatmeal. It's these little things that can really make us appreciate the comforts of home.

Heaven. So grateful.

The church also had Gogurt, which I tried for the first time. Delicious! Highly recommend. Gogurt is added to my list of foods I want in my house after this trip - the list currently includes Earth Balance butter, coffee with notes of cocoa (shoutout to Heather, our host in Crested Butte), cornbread (shoutout to CB, Tubb’s step-grandmother), and SPAM (shoutout to Walmart). 

For our last moments in Colorado, I decided to begin listening to podcasts while riding - specifically, the TED audio collective. Perhaps this was my way of conquering the rumors of the mundanity of Kansas. Although sometimes drowned out by a semi-truck zooming by at 80 mph, these podcasts were extremely intellectually stimulating and kept me entertained throughout the cornfields of eastern Colorado. Here are some takeaways.

  1. Don’t take life too seriously. So many experts emphasized the importance of taking your job/role seriously while maintaining a balance and not taking yourself too seriously. Humor is an aspect of life that has so many benefits even in the professional world.

  2. Always have water accessible/near you.

  3. So many things revolve around human connections - namely, being present and actively listening to the people we interact with. 

  4. It’s also important to read books/articles about groups of people we don’t interact with much in our daily lives to learn about and better understand them - this helps us build a sense of empathy. Growing up and going to college in the SF Bay Area bubble, this trip has opened my eyes to so many people of different backgrounds. Definitely my favorite part of the trip has been meeting people so different from myself.

Some food for thought. Contact me via this website or our email if you would like to have a conversation about any of these. Some other food for thought is the pasta and SPAM we are cooking up right now! We are staying at a city park in Leoti, Kansas tonight, with no showers for the second night in a row. There also is no running water, and the gas stations near us are currently closed. Will update with our survival status tomorrow. 

  • Will

Day 34: Flat, but Not Flat (and Without Flats)

Hello again! Day 34, going from Boone to Eads, was our first day with less than 1000 feet of elevation gain, our third day over 90 miles long, and our last full day in Colorado. While the ride was incredibly flat, the day was far less so (although there were no flat tires to spice things up further).

It’s still crazy to me how much happens every single day. After we had a hearty breakfast at Tubb’s grandparents’ house and drove back to Boone, we biked to Olney Springs and visited a veterans art museum. The museum curator, who also created the paintings, told us that the paintings all share the same horse who is going on different adventures. Just like us with Spokes!

Then, with a thunderstorm approaching, we approached Sugar City. I must say, intentionally biking towards a thunderstorm was a fascinating experience. The outflow from the thunderstorm turned into the strongest headwind I’ve experienced thus far, and even pushing the pedals twice as hard I was slowing down quickly. Thankfully, we arrived at Sugar City before the thunderstorm and had a few hearty (and reasonably priced!) homemade burgers at the Sugar City Café.

Homemade burger :)

After the thunderstorm passed and the rain reached a comfortable level, we set out again. These miles between Sugar City and Haswell were beautiful but probably the most desolate miles we have biked thus far on this trip. While the miles in Nevada were even more remote, there were mountains and other features by which we could mark progress. Here, the most fascinating geographical feature was a draw. We came across a sign indicating a “Draw” and were baffled. According to Wikipedia, a draw is like a valley but formed by two spurs of a ridge, sloping downwards from the ridge’s crest. The ridge where this draw occurred was hardly fifty feet tall, but I suppose it still qualifies as a draw. If you have not stopped reading this post by this point, I hope this discussion draws out for you what those miles were like. (OK, I’ll stop with the puns.)

Right after the thunderstorm (still raining a tad)

Later and hazier, but equally flat

In Haswell, which is also the namesake of Intel’s Haswell chips that powered almost any computer you might’ve had ten years ago, we visited the nation’s smallest jail. I invite you to check out the picture below to judge for yourself whether this is indeed the nation’s smallest jail.

The nation’s smallest jail!

In any case, we also had a lot of fun at the playground in Haswell.

After Haswell, we blew out the last 21 miles in just over an hour. I don’t know what got into us at that point, maybe it was a desperation to finish or just the wonderful temperatures and tailwind, but I think we all set speed records. Then, we drove to the Sheridan Lake Bible Church, had a delicious dinner thanks to food provided by our hosts Jim and Pam, and settled down for the night.

And as is becoming tradition by this point, here is a sunset from those last few miles. See you next time!

Hunter

Days 32 & 33: "Rest"

Howdy blog! It’s Tubb…we’re nearly halfway through Kansas now, but our loyal readers deserve updates about the two awesome rest days we spent in Colorado Springs, CO. Springs, as many of the people we met there call it, was about 50 miles north of our planned route, so we biked from Cañon City, CO to Boone, CO and piled in the van for a rainy drive north.

En route

Eventually, we reached the hills of Manitou Springs, where my Baba and his wife CB were so generous to host us. After much-needed showers, we enjoyed a scrumptious array of several of my favorite CB recipes, like Texas chili and wonderfully crispy cornbread. Sleep deprived from the previous days of biking and teaching, we conked out quickly afterwards.

Grubbin’

The next morning, we caught up on some much-needed rest, ate a delicious breakfast, and headed east to explore both the new and old downtowns of Colorado Springs. We found several quirky stores, including a totally strange witches shop selling a variety of wand-making, crystal-enchanting, and spell-casting supplies. Once we got hungry, Eva, Will, and I located the nearest spot to grab coffee, where we also discovered great avocado toast. From there, we split off. I went back to the house to see my dad, who’d just flown in, while the rest of the team bought groceries and some long-craved boba. That night, we ate tasty braised beef tacos, hot-tubbed, greeted my mom and sister Kathryn when they arrived, and slept early…we had an early (and absolutely insane) morning ahead.

Alarms (and my grandfather) blared at 3:15am. My teammates let me, my sister, and our desire to make the most of the many opportunities we encounter this summer persuade them into hiking Pikes Peak on our last real “rest” day for almost two weeks. On a 14,115 foot mountain, starting any later than 5am puts hikers at undue risk of thunderstorm, hail, and lightning strike. We had 14 miles of continuous uphill ahead of us, so Will, Eva, Hunter, Kathryn, and I wasted no time layering up, filling water bottles, and stuffing snacks into our hiking backpacks. Thanks to an early ride from my dad, we were headlighted and powering up the Barr trail at 4:30, which gave us the rare opportunity to see the sunrise from start to finish.

The pre-sunrise horizon was absolutely breathtaking

As an aside, Spokes has been one of the busiest, most jam-packed experiences of my entire life. We’re constantly biking, planning, cooking, eating, sleeping, or doing something insane like waking up at 3:15am to climb a 14er. And I love that 99% of the time. But when I’m super busy, I occasionally need a moment of total or near-total serenity. And because I’m super busy, those moments, when they do unexpectedly pop up, are incredibly meaningful. As we took our first proper rest a few miles into our trek, I looked east over the still-twinkling lights of the city, several miles away. As I caught my breath, the sun began to crest the horizon below a beautiful mix of swirling reds, pinks, and oranges. If you looked carefully, you could still see the stars behind the colorfully brightening sky. I thought for a second about how we live our days largely without paying attention to or thinking about the slow changes in the color of the horizon, steady crawling of the sun across the sky, and gradual changes in position of the stars. But when the moment, your headspace, and mother nature all strike a perfect chord, it becomes effortless to be aware of the sublime changes that are always happening around us. Similarly, it’s easy to feel stuck in each mile, hill, or logistical hurdle of spokes, which can prevent us from experiencing the real change that occurs in us, our team, and the world around us as we bike. As I write this, we’re more than halfway into our journey — I hope to take zero of the next 34 days for granted.

Mid-sunrise pondering

Trekkin’ at the top

Ok…life reflection over. As we climbed, I enjoyed talking to my sister about her summer and our shared hiking, running, and biking goals. We stopped for coffee, a bathroom, and (most importantly to me) free apple walnut pancakes at Barr camp, the only campsite and primitive post along the trail. Eventually, we passed the treeline, where we were lucky to get beautiful views of nearby mountains and Colorado Springs, which at that point looked so far away. Our pace slowed as the trail steepened and thick fog rolled in, but we made it to the summit just minutes before a hailstorm began. I can’t be completely sure, but I’d be willing to bet we set the all-time spokes record for highest elevation reached by human power. We ate at the top and drove down with my parents, who expertly descended without overheating the breaks. That afternoon, we rested, logistics-ed, and ate juicy burgers courtesy of my grandparents. I spent as much time as possible with my family, which rejuvenated me before I’d bike 12 of the next 14 days.

Sometimes, sleep and planning are going on simultaneously

The next morning, we drove back to Boone and biked to Eads, CO, which is the Kansas border. Thank you so much to my entire family and especially my Baba and CB for all of their generosity, especially in culinary form!

The Tubb clan…thank you so much Baba, CB, Mom, Dad, and Kathryn!

DAY 31: On Trees and Colorado

Canon City to Boone, Colorado

Trees by Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918)

I think that I shall never see

A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest

Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day

And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear

A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;

Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,

But only God can make a tree.

Today I noticed this poem on the back of my rhubarb oak tree painting, which is really weird because when I bought it last Thursday, I thought I examined every single part of it. Almost a week later as I reflect on that day for this blog post, I'm realizing how many things I miss every single day on this trip no matter how hard I try to remain in the present.

The painted rhubarb leaf I bought, poem attached.

We try our best to cherish every moment and stay alert to everything that might be changing around us, but when nothing is static, it's a challenge to notice the little things, like a poem about trees that's attached to a hand-painted rhubarb leaf frame you bought at a roadside farmer's market in Florence, Colorado.

I find myself already mourning the things on this trip I don't remember and the things I forgot to take notice of. Joyce Kilmer is right to be astonished by the beauty of the trees and the nest of robins they may hold, which makes it all the more devastating to think of all the trees with nests of robins in their hair that we didn't stop to notice along the way. We've passed thousands of trees and thousands of people, all with so much character and life, and without a moment to think about it all.

I wonder if the most transformative part of this trip will come after it’s over, possibly several years from now, when things start to make more sense in the larger context of things.

I want to thank Diana vonHoldt of Juniper Creek Country Crafts and Special Orders who made me stop for a second to reflect on trees and Colorado. We met her at the Florence farmer's market and nearly cleared out her entire stock of artwork. Along with her, we met many wonderful people and vendors at the farmer's market, whose names I do not know, but we still appreciate just as much.

At some point while we were sampling Palisade peaches, one of the vendors stopped to ask us if we were that Stanford cycling group. This was the first time we were recognized! It felt like we were C-list celebrities, as Will likes to say.

She knew about us because she had been at the Canon City library with her daughter the day that we taught. It is so amazing to know that our impact reaches far wider than we think. Hopefully, we can reach more educational hubs and create an even bigger impact.

We then made our way to Pueblo, Colorado, the road to which was visually pleasant; however, I cannot say that it was topographically pleasant. The entire day before, Hunter swore up and down that the elevation profile was nice and that there would be minimal uphill. He lied. There were so many small hills back-to-back, but I couldn't complain since it was a gorgeous route.

The rest of the ride was mostly uneventful. The weather was nice and the roads were kind. The only mishap occurred right as we were ending our ride when I fell over my handlebars. What could have been a very bad accident ended up being a pretty good fall. My bike was completely fine except for ripped bar tape and an unaligned handlebar + shifter. And I walked away with just a gash on my elbow, a scrape on my knee, and one bruise. Considering I fell forward over my handlebars, this is as well as the fall could have gone. So I'll give this fall an 8.5/10 on the fall scale. Pretty good.

We ended our day in Boone, Colorado, and headed up to Colorado Springs (in a vehicle) to stay with Jonathan's grandparents. We were met with a gorgeous house, generous hosts, and a candlelit dinner!

Beautiful candlelit dinner (food not pictured). Thank you CB!

Jonathan's grandparents were so lovely to us and we appreciate everything they did for us. If you guys are reading this, thank you so much for your hospitality!!

Jonathan’s grandparents and us!

- Kawther