Barfing...er..Biking Across Kansas

A little over a week ago I got back from my first multi-day tour, Biking Across Kansas. I've only had my road bike for a year, but I wanted to celebrate entering my 30s by doing this, so I signed up.

I caught a ride out to the start at Johnson with some folks from Garden City, and spent most of the week riding with them. We took the early start and rode the 16.5 miles from the Colorado line to Johnson Friday evening, so Saturday (June 10) was a nice ride of around 50 miles to Satanta. Most of us had a good day with a tailwind, but a few riders fell on some really rough RR tracks in Ulysses, and ended up with a broken hip and elbow.

Day 2 was our longest day, 85 miles, and unfortunately, the wind shifted to blow from the east, gusting up over 35 mph at times. At first I got to learn a bit about drafting, but then the rolling hills started, and it was difficult to stay together. A lot of people ended up SAGging into Ashland, but through shear stubborness I rode the entire way, although it took almost 12 hours counting lunch and SAG stops. The next day's ride to Medicine Lodge started out more of the same, rolling hills and headwinds, with many not finishing the day. The winds were extremely frustrating at first, but started to diminish by late afternoon so I again made it through a very long day.

After that, the headwinds started to improve, although I was so tired that my hill climbing speed did not. Still, my slow pace was allowing me to make it in every night. The ride to Clearwater was fairly good, with the exception of getting run off the road by some trucks hauling modular houses.

It was in Clearwater that the first EMS unit showed up at our overnight school, and again the next night in Burden. At this point the organizers thought that it was just dehydration, so we got the "drink lots" lecture at the nightly meeting. Later on that night they found out it was something more. By the time I rolled into Neodesha on Thursday, the public health department was involved, and I was stopped when coming into town and asked if I had been having nausea or any other intestinal problems. I said no, and was allowed to go on my way. There were signs posted about proper handwashing, and several people were already headed home.

The ride on Friday the 16th from Neodesha to Girard was pretty good, although still slow for me. After arriving in Girard we set up camp and went downtown, where food booths had been set up and streets blocked off (several of the towns did this). It was there that I started feeling bad. I went to lay in the grass in the town square for a little bit, but when I got up to catch a ride back to the school I tossed my cookies. And was up twice more that night to throw up again. It had been years since I had the stomach flu, and I had forgotten how much it sucks. I wasn't the only one who got sick, as one of the guys from Garden City ended up in the hospital.

Therefore, I did not ride the final 15 miles Saturday from Girard to the Missouri border. I wasn't throwing up anymore, but had little a bit of diarrhea and just felt completly drained. I caught a ride to the ending picnic site in Alma where our van back to western Kansas would pick us up. Sleeping on the way back and pretty much for the next 12 hours after that helped recovery.

So, a pretty interesting trip. Old-timers said it was one of the more difficult BAKs in recent memory. Latest estimates showed that around 75-80 people got sick, and tests show it was a norovirus. Despite the hills, wind, and sickness, I still had fun enjoying the company of other bikers. And I will probably do it again if I get the chance, although hopefully I would be faster and get earlier starts in the morning.

Sorry this got really long. Hope I didn't bore anyone.

That's a real bummer about the norovirus. I did a Bike VA ride a couple of years ago. We got hit with food poisoning. It is quite yukky being in the port-a-potties with full blown diarrhea - sweating profusely. I also didn't do the last day ride just because I was too weak.

Ugh. I'm sorry it wasn't all that you had hoped for. Maybe it will be better next year :) Glad you're feeling better!

I have one rule when doing organized rides (one-day or multi-day) -- do not eat anything that didn't come in a package. I've gotten sick once -- broke the rule and ate an orange -- will never let it happen again.

Here's what happens. Riders keep their gloves on all day long. They go to the bathroom and also put their hands (with gloves on) into big backets and bins of food at rest stops. It's called the Dirty Glove Bug.

The easy solution, of course, is to have volunteers hand the food to the riders -- not letting the riders touch everyone else's food. But for some reason that doesn't always happen.

This happens on single-day rides a lot, but you never hear about it (because it's a single-day ride and folks go home). But you hear about it all the time on multi-day rides.

Sorry you had to have a terrible experience like this at the end of your fabulous week!

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Originally Posted by velogirl

I have one rule when doing organized rides (one-day or multi-day) -- do not eat anything that didn't come in a package. I've gotten sick once -- broke the rule and ate an orange -- will never let it happen again.

Here's what happens. Riders keep their gloves on all day long. They go to the bathroom and also put their hands (with gloves on) into big backets and bins of food at rest stops. It's called the Dirty Glove Bug.

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I ALWAYS take my gloves off in the potties. I also like to take a change of gloves with me and change at mid day of a long ride, but your point is VERY valid!


I'm glad for you that you didn't get sick unti the end of the ride though.
How yuccky for you! (and all those other people!)

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Originally Posted by bikemom

That's a real bummer about the norovirus. I did a Bike VA ride a couple of years ago. We got hit with food poisoning. It is quite yukky being in the port-a-potties with full blown diarrhea - sweating profusely. I also didn't do the last day ride just because I was too weak.

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BikeMom, I was on that same Bike Virginia and also contracted a nasty case of Camplyobacter poisoning. It was simply the sickest I have ever been in the intestinal tract in my life. I couldn't ride the last two days of the tour. (It seemed to hit everyone at different times; a guy in our bike club didn't have symptoms until arriving home, but then was sick for weeks after!)

I was one of the lucky ones; we were moteling it rather than camping and had an amazing SUITE in an elegant inn with 18th century antiques and a HUGE marble bathroom. It was the last lodging anywhere in town when we booked, so we ponied up for the expense and called it our anniversary gift for each another. A better gift was never had; I felt like I had a guardian angel.

I almost hate to tell you this, but there was a bidet in the bathroom! That was the best thing a girl with the serious trots could ever, ever hope for. I LIVED in that bathroom for two days. I remember sympathizing heartily with any riders with this illness who were camping and having to use porta-potties. I would have died. :eek:

Did you hear? The CDC finally ruled that the poisoning came from polluted water from chicken farms that splashed up on water bottles on the 1st or 2nd day of the tour (I can't remember which), when there was a brief shower. We drank from water bottles not knowing they had been contaminated. Some people didn't get it, others did. My husband never got sick, lucky guy. He skipped day four's ride to stay with me but did do the fifth day to go get the car at the end and pick me up at the inn.

What a memory! :(

Emily

Wow, emily_in_nc and bikemom, that BikeVA sickness sounds nasty. I was sleeping indoors on a gym floor, so running to the school bathrooms was better the portapotties, but a private bathroom with a bidet would have been way better.

I learned my lesson about not eating anything not packaged. I did take off my gloves before going, and had antibacterial hand gel. Thing is I probably should have forced everyone around me to use it. Hopefully the BAK organizers learned some lessons too and there will be some improvements for next year.

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Originally Posted by emily_in_nc

The CDC finally ruled that the poisoning came from polluted water from chicken farms that splashed up on water bottles on the 1st or 2nd day of the tour (I can't remember which), when there was a brief shower. We drank from water bottles not knowing they had been contaminated. Some people didn't get it, others did. My husband never got sick, lucky guy. He skipped day four's ride to stay with me but did do the fifth day to go get the car at the end and pick me up at the inn.

What a memory! :(

Emily

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Ooh yuk. I think I remember reading that the same thing happened at the TDF one year. Lots or rain, lots of manure washing onto the road from farms and splashing up onto the riders bottles and voila lots of seriously sick TDF riders.

Thanks for the heads up, I've got a couple of tours planned for later this summer. I'll be more cautious now.

What BikeVa was this? I did it in 04. The volunteers would not let us touch any of the food. Actually, in some places they ran out! We didn't buy the lunches and ate in the towns. Sounds like we were better off!

My riding buddy was on that Bike VA trip - she said it was awful - with so many people SO SICK (including her). NEVER fill your water bottle from a hose in the middle of the boonies!

How awful. Thanks for telling us, though. I will be much more careful about the food. L.

emily_in_nc - yes it was definitely terrible running back and forth to the port-a-potties. By the time I'd make it back to my tent, I would have to walk back again.

I only was sick day 4, and this didn't start until after I finished that day. I knew I wasn't feeling well since I had more difficulty than usual on the hills. I chose not to ride day 5 since I was so weak. By the time I broke camp, I had no more energy. My hassle was that I had a very long drive back to St. Louis to begin that day.

Kathi - I think it was 2003. It was the Winchester ride.

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Originally Posted by bikemom

Kathi - I think it was 2003. It was the Winchester ride.

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Yes, it was the 2003 Bike Virginia that we got sick on. It sounds like they were much more careful that next year, but what happened in 2003 had nothing to do with the food or the organizers not doing something right or careful from what the CDC determined. But I am sure the organizers of the ride didn"t want the ride to get a bad rep, even undeservedly.

Emily