The goal of Biking Across Kansas isn’t to make it from Colorado to Missouri.

If that was the point, I’d simply gas up the truck, pick the quickest route and make my way across Kansas in just a few hours.

I’d get to the other side alright, but I’d miss the experience from here to there. I’d miss every sunrise and sunset, every kid running a lemonade stand. I’d miss the rich scent of the earth, and the sound of bullfrogs singing thanks for last night’s rain. And I’d miss the chance to meet so many Kansans who so willingly share their communities and kindness to those of us cycling across the state.

Every June, upwards of 800 cyclists excitedly gather on the state’s western border and prepare to spend eight days trekking roughly 500 miles to Kansas’ border with Missouri. Depending on the distance, and our speed, we’ll spend 5-10 hours each day pedaling between towns – where we’ll end the day pitching a tent near the high school football field or sleeping inside the gymnasium. There’s no leaderboard, no scorecard, and no trophy at the end. The journey is the prize - and each rider determines what makes a successful ride.

For me, Biking Across Kansas serves as a sort of reset button on my life. It’s the one time of year I can let the whole of the outside world slip away. I don’t read the news. I don’t check my email. I have one job - to get from one town to the next, and soak up as much Kansas as possible along the way.

It might take a little effort to see the real beauty of Kansas - a jaunt away from the fast-moving interstate traffic - but it’s worth the effort. The sky is vibrant with color, and the horizon teeming with new growth. Sometimes, when the sun highlights the undulations of an expanse of the Flint Hills, or shimmers through a grove of trees, it feels like this place is as near perfect as we mortals might ever hope to experience.

Yet, it’s always the people along the way who really make the trip a memorable and spiritual experience.

Every stop along this year’s route - Elkhart, Satanta, Spearville, Stafford, Newton, Eureka, Chanute, Garnett, and Pleasanton - included people who welcomed us with open arms. They were excited to share their community with us, to show us all the good work they’ve been doing, and all the unique and interesting elements of their hometowns. The towns between our overnight stops were equally kind, inviting, and warm.

The story others tell of rural Kansas sometimes isn’t very flattering. It’s often framed in terms of what used to be and what might have been. If they talk of our future at all, it’s usually about how we’re on the way out. But every town I’ve been through - and I’ve been through quite a few on my bicycle throughout the years - has something worth seeing, learning, and something worth holding onto.

It’s important for the people who love this state to tell the story of us - because to tell the story right, you have to properly understand who we are, what we are, and how we engage life. And in a world that often feels tense and uncertain, where it seems everyone is on the edge of anger, and there’s potential conflict in every social media posting, it’s important, I think, to be deliberate in finding and remembering who we really are and the purpose in our lives.

In June of 2024, Biking Across Kansas will celebrate its 50th ride across the state. A lot has changed in those five decades, but not the people and qualities that make Kansas great. We work hard, dream big, appreciate the small things, help our neighbors, and love our family and community, even if we don’t brag on ourselves very much.

In my view, nothing brings out this side of Kansas quite like a bicycle.

If you’re interested in participating in the 2024 Biking Across Kansas event June 8-15, check www.bak.org. Registration opens Jan. 29.

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