Start:  Woodward, OK

Finish: Watonga, OK

Weather:  100 degrees, sunny

Bike Time: 7 hours

Miles:  76

Distance to date: 834

This was the most uneventful day of the trip; riding from early morning to early afternoon through the landscape of a Hollywood Western with a mid-morning break for barbeque and a cinnamon bun at the My Way Café in Seiling.  The first half of the ride was glorious, the second half scorching hot.  Every few miles I took a short water break under the scant shade of a roadside tree and coasted on those rare occasions when a cloud threw the blacktop into shade.  Being Sunday morning, I had long stretches without vehicles, just my own quiet on the road.  As I travelled south and more trees appeared the cicadas nesting in them chirped along the breeze.

At one point I stopped at the crest of a rise and looked back towards Woodward.  To my surprise, the wind turbines I passed yesterday were still in full view across the horizon – over 50 miles away!

I arrived in Watonga by two, a dusty oil town without so much as a motel with a pool or Internet access.  But my room at the
Watonga Inn was quiet and cool, so I took comfort in that.  Outside my room is a pair of giant azaleas where more cicadas chant.  First one, then another, building to a shrill cacophony.
It is deafening.  Until, without notice or reason, they fall silent together.  The silence rings louder than the noise, until they start up again.

A few people have asked what I carry.  My organization is simple; I travel lighter than any other touring cyclist I have
met.  I have the two smallest waterproof Arkel saddlebags (aka panniers), which clip on to the heavy rack attached to my rear wheel.

I hang my ‘dry’ pannier on the chain side of the bike. It includes my netbook and mouse and all my clothes – one pair of microfiber pants, one pair of microfiber shorts, one black nylon t-shirt, one Columbia sunshade collar shirt, two pairs of rinsable underwear, and five pair of cycling socks.  I wear my cycling shorts, bright yellow shirt and NewBalance 835’s when I ride, but picked up two additional cycling shirts and a Courage Classic T-shirt in Denver, which I don’t need but carry anyway.  At the top of the pannier, easily accessible, I keep my baseball hat and rain poncho.

My ‘wet’ pannier hangs on the dismount side of my bike, where I can get at it during the day.  This includes four zip lock bags –
one each for toiletries/first aid, snacks, maps, and bike repair items such as tubes, lights, chain lube, patch kit, universal allen wrench, saddle soap and rag.  I also keep two one-liter water
bottles in this pannier plus my book and camera and phone chargers.  I keep my sunscreen and my active state map in the open pocket of this pannier.

The back of every cycling shirt has three pockets.  I keep my wallet, camera, phone, bike lock key, and lip gloss in those
pockets.  I have two more one liter water bottles mounted on my bike, as well as my lock, tire pump, and odometer.

That is all there is to it.