Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Day 24: Joplin MO to Broken Arrow OK (125 mi)

Ignore the mileage, I only biked about a fourth of it.

First two hours were pleasant enough. I went west into Kansas for about 10 miles, then south to the Oklahoma border. A few miles into the state I got another flat. Changed tubes, flat. Patched original tube, flat. Patched spare tube, flat. It was like days 2 and 3 all over again. The punctures were all against the rim too; I needed a shop to put on new rim liner. Fortunately according to Google, the nearest shop was a couple miles down the road. I walked the bike - it's surprisingly heavier when I'm pushing and not riding it.

Turns out the shop is a sporting goods store and has no bike equipment. My immediate plan was to hitch-hike all the way back to Joplin with the wheel, get it fixed, and hitch-hike again to Oklahoma. The clerk at the sporting goods store immediately extinguished that idea; it's strictly illegal to hitch a ride in OK, and I could face jail time for attempting it. Out of options, I gave my host Mike a call. He took three hours out of his day to come get me and the bike and bring us both to Broken Arrow. He's retired, but still.

Mike took me to a shop in BA so I could fix tire issue. Hopefully it works... bike shops are pretty spread out the rest of the ride.

Tomorrow is a similarly-long distance to OKC, and it will likely be my last host for a while. During that time, I may actually stop blogging. There's a certain component of solitude in the adventure I'm seeking, and staying connected everyday in social media may not be the best for that. Access to a computer and/or WiFi will be patchy anyway.

I know the last few posts have lacked photos. I'll make a note to take some.

3 comments:

  1. Flats fluctuate for flatland. Make sure you let someone know you're okay daily dough.
    Estás seeking solidarity, but then you need to be with people. Make up your mind Ric ;)
    Perhaps during your "Solidarity Stay," you could ponder the significance of fashion, the Fermi Paradox, or the Hedgehog Dilemma.

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  2. Eric, do you mean solitude? Solitudarity? I think I understand what you mean but I just want to say that Day 23 didn't surface here until today, followed by day 24. And we were concerned! I suppose it didn't help that my daughter, SIL, and granddaughter also didn't check in as they found themselves in a dead spot in Utah last night. Wishing you no more tire troubles!

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  3. Don't stop blogging! Your leaving us all hanging! Lol and yes more pictures! Don't be down about a flat. It's all in the adventure! Good luck!

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