Oklahoma

I slept in a bit this morning and we then headed back to Frederick for the Day Zero Freewheel ride to the Red River and back while Hollis and Grace went out for a little bird bothering. It should have been a piece of cake ride with nothing resembling a hill to be seen, however a stiff headwind made it slow going down to the Red River.

Up really early to drive back to Frederick one last time before heading back out towards Elgin. It started out nice and flat with a great tailwind, but we all knew that once we got into the Wichita Mountains, things would get tougher. However, the ride in was beautiful with the prairie, wild flowers and the mountains all around.

Woke up to a grey, crisp morning eager to get on the road. After a nice oatmeal breakfast, I hit the road. It misted all morning, but it never really rained on me and with the temperatures under 70 degrees I made really good time without any worry of overheating.

After a few hills coming out of the mountains, the land really opened up back into flat farm land and not much else.

I woke up to a beautiful dawn over the lake and enjoyed a great breakfast of oatmeal and tea. I left the camp refreshed for the very short and very flat ride into Frederick. With almost no wind, I covered the distance in a couple of hours and arrived in Frederick before 10 AM. It was obvious that the rumors about the effort Frederick had made in anticipation of Freewheel were true. Various businesses had decorated bicycles and scattered them around town.

I got a really early start this morning. My mother drove us into Elk City for a fast food breakfast and then she gave me a bit of a head start by getting me through some busy highway driving first. But now it was time to see if I could really make this happen.

Well, it was like Sunday had never happened. My legs felt great and I started eating into the miles. Then, the gods really smiled upon me and granted me the rarest of favors, a north wind in June. I was half way through by 9:30 in the morning. With my confidence restored I was really able to start enjoying the ride.

Today was my first scheduled day off, and I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to be extremely lazy. Woke up to a beautiful sunrise and had some nice oatmeal for breakfast. Then, I went back to bed.:)

I repeated this system of getting up, eating a bit and going back to sleep for most of the day. Which is about the perfect way to spend a vacation day.

Update (7/2/2012): The program has reopened.  Read about it here.

[flickr id=“7253069806” thumbnail=“small” overlay=“true” size=“large” group="" align=“right”] After only two weeks in operation, all bikes belonging to the Spokies Bike Share program have been removed from the racks.  Citing problems with the credit card software and a design flaw in the bikes that has “led to incidents of theft and vandalism”, the Oklahoma City Office of Sustainability and Downtown Oklahoma City, Inc. made the decision to temporarily suspend the program.  The software and bike fixes can be expected to take up to three weeks to complete at which time they hope to restore the program.

I don’t often put out fundraising pleas to this blog, but this is a cause worthy of all the attention I can muster.  As fellow Oklahomans, you know all to well the severe impact that diabetes is having on our community.  As of 2010, more than 10% of the Oklahoma population had been diagnosed with some form of diabetes, far greater than the national average.  That doesn’t even begin to count the large numbers people who have the disease but remain undiagnosed.   Diabetes is, without a doubt, one of the largest health problems affecting our state.

Many of you have expressed upset, if not downright dismay, at the lack of head shaving from me this year. While I really enjoyed the St. Baldrick’s Day event, this year I am serving on the organizing committee for the Tour de Cure ride in Mustang, Oklahoma. This ride raises critical funding for diabetes research for the American Diabetes Association. As of 2010, over 10% of Oklahoman’s have been diagnosed with some form of diabetes and many more remain undiagnosed. This far outstrips the national average and it one of the most critical health issues facing our state. So, to do my part, I am going to be riding the 62 mile distance on June 23rd in Mustang, OK.

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The League of American Bicyclists has increased Oklahoma’s bicycle friendliness ranking from 43rd in 2011 to 35th this year. Even more impressive to note is that in 2008, Oklahoma was ranked 48th. According to the League, this steady improvement is due to increases in “infrastructure and funding that provide on-the-ground bicycle facilities; education and encourage programs that promote cycling; and passage and enforcement of bicycle-friendly laws that make it safe and comfortable for people of all ages to ride.”