Waiting for catalytic converters to get installed on Arlo's new cop car, I had a bonus 3 days in KC. I was antsy so I cooked up a new route to occupy a day. Last year I rode from NKC, where my folks live and I do when I'm home, to the Rock Island Trail. The trailhead is at the stadium complex where the Royals and Chiefs play sports ball, The Rock Island travels south out of Kansas City and ultimately connects the Katy Trail. The Katy goes all the way to St Louis. The RI goes right through my hometown, Lee's Summit, Missouri. The 1st leg of this ride is really fun but kind of spicy. North Kansas City gets urban industrial as it segues into the heart of downtown KC. Before you hit the Kansa City proper, you're in NKC and north of the Missouri River, a wide chocolate milk river with only a handful of bridge options to cross. The Heart of America Bridge was my into the city. Easy peasy, fully protected bike and pedestrian path the whole way across the muddy MO. Dipping into the city, for both of my KC rides during this trip, I've chosen to mess with Chestnut Trfwy and Cliff Dr. Chestnut Trfwy is a nostalgic climb from Front Street, along the river, all the way up to Independence Ave. Back in the day a group of friends and I would do a weekly Friday night ride that had us climbing Chestnut Trfwy. It seemed steeper and longer than it does now. If you'd told me then the elevations that I'm capable of now, I prolly couldn't comprehend. Cliff Drive is a popular climbing spot which is exceptionally rad being right in the middle of an urban area. I left that morning in the rain and without any food or coffee, trying to duck out of the house without waking my folks. Luckily PH coffee gave sustenance, it's a nice little spot on Lexington and you get a free drip with a donut purchase After fueling I decided to take Chestnut deeper into the city, trying to zig and zag my way to the stadium. Before I moved to Colorado almost 30 years ago, I spent a lot of time in the city. I grew up going downtown to skate, sometimes in the early hours of the morning. Maybe I was oblivious but I feel safe wherever I go in KC. Sometimes I can even feel the coziness and simultaneously hear gun shots. As I dipped and dove through some pretty run down neighborhoods I made my way to the Rock Island Trailhead. Now, on the trail, I poppped an earbud in and cruised the railroad grade Rock Island for 13 miles all the way to Lee's Summit. This trail also holds a ton of nostalgia because it goes right behind my grandparent's old house in Raytown. When I was a kid I remember hearing the train and seeing the Rock Island train. I met a high school friend in LS for a beer on the patio as the overcast morning burned off and the sun came out. The weatherman said the night before on the local news network that the temp index, with humidity, would be 100. Truth. I decided the bike wasn't going to ride itself so I hopped on Lee's Summit Road, heading for the LIttle Blue Trace Trail. This scenic trail is non motorized and meanders next to the Little Blue River. As I started to head NE on the trail I started to feel the heat and the fatigue from the mileage. I needed to start going west, back to my folk's house. I jumped back off the trail and back west, toward 291. This is my way back across the Missouri River. 291 is a busy, 4 lane highway and wasn't what I was in the mood for at this particular moment in the ride. And, come to find out, the north bound 291 bridge was super narrow. No shoulder at all, I could not cross. Feeling fucked I pulled off to the frontage rd and found some shade to explore an alternative on my phone. If I went due west I could get to 435 to get me over the river but I think the additional mileage would put me at about 125 miles for the day. I wasn't feeling that. I looked at Google Maps and could see that the south bound lane of 291 was wider across the bridge. There was a shoulder. Fuck it, I walked my bike against 70MPH oncoming traffic on the shoulder, I was nervous the whole time and can only imagine how many people in their cars said, who the fuck is this guy. Strongly don't recommend. The remaining miles kind of sucked. I won't ride through Liberty again. It's shit for cycling infrastructure and it's too hot:). Really though, I love this city and seeing it again for the 1st time by bike is a great way to spend an August day.