Just Life | Steve Tilford

The weather has been pretty unreal here in Kansas this past week. I think the normal high is somewhere in the mid 40’s, but the last couple days it has been in the 70’s. Needless to say, I’ve been taking advantage of it. It is so much nicer riding a bike without something over your knees and all bundled up.

I’ve got about 70 miles to do today to have a 500 mile week. I’ve been lucky to usually have a pretty good group to ride with. Just having one other two-some to pull every once in a while makes the ride so much easier. Yesterday we rode to Lawrence the long way and met up with Brian Jensen out in the country.

I got an email from Jonathan Jacob from Indianapolis and he said that he was out on a 100 mile ride yesterday and thinks he might have run into Dale Stetina. He said his group was shattered and hightailing it back home when a guy rides up from behind and says his name is Dale. I told him I didn’t think it could have been Dale because he was alone. Turns out it was Dale, Wayne confirmed it. It is nice to see that Dale is out riding solo and is recovering great from his accident.

I replaced a window at a house I own. Some dick broke into the house only to steal a couple antique door knobs and a few window sash locks. I didn’t have double dead bolts on the doors, so I guess it is my fault, if someone robbing you can be your fault. I’m sick of other people causing so much destruction to society. It really gives people excuses for being mean to each other.

SInce I’m ranting, a fuel truck passed us yesterday south of town. He came up behind us and blew his horn for over 30 seconds. Then he went by and when he was hardly half way by, he started moving over, missing my bars by less than a foot. I got my camera out, but missed the shot, Below. What a dick.

I saw a house fire a couple days ago when it was super windy. Like 40-50 mph windy. I have to give the fire people credit for keeping the fire from spreading. They kind of let the house burn down being more concerned with the surrounding properties, which was the right thing to do. With wind like that, it could have gotten way out of control.

Talking about fires, they have already started burning the fields here. Yesterday the wind was less than 10 mph, so there were a ton of smoke plumes to be seen. I hate this time of the year, which is now from February to May. It used to only be the end of March thru the middle of April. Time to start thinking about buggin’ out for a while.

Tucker is growing by the day. He definitely has a mind of his own. He is pretty smart, which is sort of usual for an English Setter, from my experience. He is pretty fearless. He can take a bunch of rough play and comes back for more. He seems really happy.

I’m thinking about heading down to Austin to race next weekend in Walberg and Pace Bend. They are both 80 mile road races that are pretty hard for early season. Walberg for the wind and Pace Bend for rolling terrain. There are two races here locally, so if that plan falls through, then I’ll get some racing miles in either way.

I’m feeling better, but not well yet. I’m still coughing some nodules up, but can’t complain about being able to ride through it all. Tomorrow will be two weeks since I started feeling bad, which is about normal for me getting sick.

Okay, that’s about it for now. It is only supposed to be in the mid 50’s today, downgraded from the mid 60’s. It is sunny, so it should be fine for a nice longish ride.

Dick truck driver.

Fired.

Broken window. Now there are double dead bolts on both doors. Like that will help.

Tucker is always playing.

I’ve been riding back and forth to Lawrence from Topeka on the Scenic River Road the past month pretty often. Mainly this is because I love the ride, but also because when the wind is blowing from the south, which it has been, the route is kind of sheltered.

Around Topeka, more and more of these roadside memorials have been popping up along the roads I ride. That isn’t a good thing.

A couple weeks ago I noticed a new memorial at the top of the pavement, right before the road turns to gravel. I was riding with Bill and Kris and asked them what that was all about. They said that a kid riding a 3 wheeler had crashed and died there.

That made me sad. I’d seen those kids a couple times the previous two weeks while riding. I remember even having a conversation with Bill about the last time we had seen a “three wheeled quad”. Those things were pretty dangerous and I think they recalled all of them or something. I don’t think it even had a front shock.

Anyway, I stopped at the shrine the next time I rode by it alone. It is always a reflection of what the person’s friends feel that important to him for them. There were lots of quarters, a cross, of course, a few teddy bears, flowers, etc.

I think the first time I’d ever seen a roadside shrine is when I was racing the Tour of Baja. I was climbing the La Rumorosa, which is a long, barren, rocky climb, just south of the US border. I was dying, barely able to breathe because of all the semis passing me, spewing out diesel fumes.

It was like another world. I just looked off the edge as I was creeping up the climb and saw all the automobiles and buses that were down the cliffs, laying on the rocks below. Most of these accidents were marked by a cross, or a make-shift shrine. Some were elaborate, others just a couple sticks tied together.

I always wondered what the circumstances to each and every one was. But here in Topeka, I can find out, but choose not to. It would be so easy to just google search each of these roadside memorials to find of a little about them. But I won’t.

I would just rather remember waving to those two kids as I rode by. They seemed to be enjoying the day, as I was. That is the memory I choose.