We had burgers for lunch at Eva's Corner Cafe in Glendo, Wyoming (pop. 191)
We had burgers for lunch at Eva's Corner Cafe in Glendo, Wyoming (pop. 191)
Ray getting ready to ride -- putting on shoes.
Entering Harrison, NE (pop. 195). The sign says "HARRISON NEXT 4 EXITS."
Along US 20. Notice the wide shoulders. Montana isn't the only state with a big sky.
Harrison's Hillside Service. The only service station in town.
This storm chased me for the last two hours, finally catching up just as I found Connie at the motel.
Connie at the Townline Motel.
Last Modified on 6/5/99 at 21:17:00
Day's Narrative: All morning while driving from Littleton, CO--just south of Denver--we discussed whether the weather would be good enough to ride from the Wyoming border to Crawford, NE, a distance of 37 miles. The weather channel this morning had predicted strong, even tornadic, storms for Nebraska this afternoon. When we arrived at the border about 1:30 PM the sky was overcast, it was cool, but there were no signs of any storms. There was about a 15 mph tailwind. So I decided to do the ride to Crawford. The pavement is smooth here on US 20, for the most part, and there's not a lot of traffic. Sometimes it would be five or ten minutes before a car would pass in either direction. Connie and I discussed how long it would take me to ride to Crawford. We agreed that if I didn't arrive by 5:30 PM she would start back looking for me. If a storm were to come up I would look for shelter and try to call on the cell phone. As one can see from the photographs, there is precious little shelter in this part of Nebraska. I had rain gear, but a long ride in a thunderstorm is really not such a good idea -- mainly because of lightening. Ten miles down the road I arrived at Harrison, NE (pop. 195). The only service station had cokes and I thought I might be able to strike up a conversation with the owner. The owner was busy working on a pickup in the shop bay and didn't approach me to chat. So after a few minutes I went in and asked if there were a store at Fort Robinson State Park 10 miles down the road. He said there was and a restaurant too, then he went back to work. A little after leaving Harrison I looked behind me and saw a thunderstorm forming in the distance. I was still at least an hour and a half from Crawford, and probably an hour from Fort Robinson. [Fort Robinson was built to protect the settlers on the Oregon Trail and has been beautifully restored.] So I increased my pace to try and get to Fort Robinson before the storm. As I rode it got bigger and bigger, as well as closer and closer. In addition, the wind turned on me and I now had a 15 mph wind from the front. I got to Fort Robinson ahead of the storm. Stopping only long enough to sip some water, I judged I might be able to make it to Crawford before it started to rain. I came into Crawford and started looking for the two motels. I passed the Hilltop motel -- no Connie. As I rode on in search of the Townline Motel it started to sprinkle. A mile or so down the road the Townline Motel appeared and the van was in the parking lot. Just as I took my bicycle into the motel room, it stared to pour down rain. As when I crossed the US in 1997, good clean living (don't smoke, don't drink, don't chase after women) saved me again. The weather channel has a tornado watch on for this section of Nebraska until 9:00 PM. They predict scattered showers and warm weather for tomorrow with wind of 15-25 mph from the northwest--mostly a tail wind. The early morning temperatures will be in the 40's (around 7C) so I will have to dress warmly. Tomorrow we will stay in Gordon (pop. 1800), probably at the Jefco Motel. © Ray & Connie Poore, 1998
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