We rode 118 miles today along Highway 9.  This was our longest ride of the trip, but the weather conditions were good and the road was okay, making this more of an endurance ride than a physical challenge.  We are now only about 80 miles from Fort Smith Arkansas, which we intend to enter tomorrow afternoon.

It was interesting to see the scenery change in the last four or five days.  Last week, we were in New Mexico, riding through mountains. Crossing the Texas Panhandle, we went through treeless rolling plans. Western Oklahoma looked like an extension of Texas.  Eastern Oklahoma is still rolling, but there are trees and pastures. We have slowly worked our way out of the west. With that transition, our weather patterns are changing and our biggest challenge may soon be dodging rain and storms.

With today’s 118 miles, we have now ridden over 100 miles on 4 of our last 7 rides.  Our pace is quickening.

Quick note – many thanks to Cindy Wesphal and Debbie Packo at Wildwood for helping me train for this trip during the long Toledo winter.