Cyclists
Biding Their
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June 16, 1979 By NED DISMUKES BARTLESVILLE - Generally, bicyclists can be divided into tow groups, those who ride just to be riding and those who prefer to explore the countryside they are riding through. Free Wheel '79 participants are no exception to that rule. The cross-Oklahoma ride's touring contingent is centered around two Wichita, Kan., cyclists who have earned a reputation over the last five days for being the last to break camp and the last to arrive at the day's destination. The two, Larry Ross, 39, and Karen Winterhalter,20, are members of the Oz Bicycle club of Wichita. Larry has been touring for the last four years while Karen is on her first extended ride. Ross, a freelance photographer, has ridden across Kansas several times as well as participating in an annual bike tour of Iowa. Joining the Wichita cyclists Friday for the trip from Sand Springs to Bartesville were Jerry Custer, 27, Fort Smith; Howard J. Rosenthal, 30, Tulsa; and Burce Kecham, 28, also of Tulsa. During the day's journey, the five came to call their little congregation the 'nine o'clock group," honoring the fact that their usual departure time is 9 a.m. Friday was an exception to that rule as the five pedaled off from the sand Springs campground at 8:30 a.m. The day's first adventure came in Skiatook where the explorers visited the local historical museum and ran across a policeman who rides his bike to work. Officer Larry Steel explained that he started riding a bike "to beat the high cost of gasoline." The tour's next stop was the future home of Ketcham's family, a solar-equipped structure being built near Collinsville, Ketcham's father is director of solar programs at the University of Tulsa. By that time, morning had turned to afternoon and it was back on the road again. Traveling north on old U.S 75, aided by a strong southerly breeze, the bicyclists quickly made it to Vera for a rest stop and conversation with the local sign painter. The Vera sign painter recounted tales of old US 75, now a Washington County road. When it was first built back in the '20s, it was known as the 'singing highway," because the concrete always made a person's tires hum, especially near Ochelata. Fortified with that bit of folklore the Free Wheelers forged on. Each segment of the day's ride was fueled by continuous conversation - tall tales, get-to-know-you questions and small talk. The nearer the touring contingent got to Bartlesville, the less the toured and the more they concentrated on getting to camp. True to form, they were the last to arrive but had the most stories to tell. |
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