Des Moines to Kansas City
As I made my way down I-35, I was reminded of the last time that I came this way, just a couple
of weeks before this trip. I had just visited a friend in Keokuk, IA and was returning
to KC. As I turned onto I-35 from Iowa Route 2, I could see a column of military vehicles
heading south towards the Missouri border. The convoy consisted of a lead humvee, followed by
17-18 large fuel-tankers, with a trailing humvee. As I worked my way to the front of the
column, I noticed that not only was there no indication as to what the cargo might be, there were
no unit markings or even any insignia to indicate which branch of the military this might be--
U.S.Army, National Guard, or even U.S.Marines. Even the soldiers' uniforms had no discernable
patches. The only markings were done by hand on the trucks --some printed with chalk
and others crudely painted with stencils. The vehicles were all dark-green camouflage.
Now, I not saying that there was anything sinister about this convoy, but it sure was suspicious.
The final stop on the trip was in Bethany, MO. There was nothing remarkable about the stop.
After filling the tank, I skipped the Snicker's and went next door to a Dairy Queen for a dipped cone.
Odd thing--there was a sign saying that all day July 6th, all Veterans were entitled to a free
sundae. Nice gesture, I suppose, but how was I to prove that I was a Veteran. I seemed to
have neglected to bring along my DD214! And what's with July 6th? These guys and the
St.Louis cops should get together for next years July 6th celebration!
DATE TIME LOCATION ODOMETER
8 7/6/02 8:11 PM 3601 MILLER ST, BETHANY, MO 36813
Another thing I noticed was that as I neared the end of the trip, each stop seemed to last just a bit
longer. This last one had started at about 8:00 PM. By the time I filled the tank, used
the restroom, and enjoyed my dipped cone, it was nearly 8:30. It just didn't seem to take that
long.
I'm Goin' to Kansas City... Kansas City, Here I Come....
Finally, the last leg of a long day's journey into night. Darkness fell as I approached
KC, and the stars peeked through. The skies had been clear since the Iowa border--the
showers I had seen on the radar had moved off to the East by the time I got midway between
Des Moines and the border. According to the odometer, I passed the 1,000 mile mark just
south of Bethany. The rest was gravy.
As I pulled into the same Quik Trip in Westport that I had left that morning it was 9:56 PM.
At the next pump, was some poser on his custom-made Boar chopper, telling me what a great night
for riding it was. I said "Yeah, how about 1,080 miles in a day?". "Oh, no!" he said,
"That's too much!" It certainly would be too much on the hardtail unit he was riding.
I wouldn't want to ride more than about 50 miles on it. The thing is--- 1,000 miles in a day
IS too much. But it was nice to do, anyway. A friend told me over thirty-years ago--and
it's true--no one should have to ride more than 500 miles in any given day.
DATE TIME LOCATION ODOMETER
End 7/6/02 10:07:38 PM 1301 WESTPORT RD, KANSAS CITY, MO 36905
By the time the tank was filled and the clerk gave me my final receipt, it was 10:07:38 PM.
That makes an official elapsed time of 18:56:45 for 1,080 miles, or 57.0 mph. The bike had consumed
28.23 gallons of gas, for an average of only 38.3 mpg. I normally get right at 40 mpg, but
I kinda had my hand in it a bit on this trip. I did 80 mph for long stretches, especially
early on, but later in the day as well.
After getting clocked in with my official finish time, I went back over to the police station for
back-up verification. The same sergeant was on duty that night, so he did both the Start and End
verifications.
Well, that's that. I've sent my documentation to the Iron Butt Association
for certification. Only time will tell.
