JULY 1: St. Joseph, Mo. to Topeka, Kans., 85 miles via U.S. Route 59 and Kansas Route 4. Average speed today, 11.3 mph. Total trip mileage to date, 1,693.

A long day that left us tired and ready to quit about 10 miles before we got to our cozy home in Topeka – the Kansas capital’s Motel 6.

Today’s milestone: Crossing the Missouri River into Kansas at about 11:30 a.m.

“You know that bridge is just like the one that collapsed in Minneapolis a while back,” said Robin Heilig, a Winthrop, Mo. teacher who was moonlighting as a fireworks dealer – isn’t everyone these days – when we met him.

“You’ll go over it and think, “Man, I can’t believe how old this thing is,” said Heilig. “I think they’re going to replace it next year.”

Leading into the old railroad town of Atchison, Kans., the bridge was decrepit, narrow and had a corrugated iron surface not made for bike tires. But we survived.

Stopped at Nortonville, a farm town on life support, for a great lunch at the Bootlegger Café.

“You’re lucky it was open,” said Larry Dinann, owner of Larry’s Barber Shop on Main Street.

 “We used to have a grocery store, a drug store, a hardware store and a lumberyard,” he said, gesturing at rows of empty store fronts. “All gone now. Everyone goes to Atchison or Topeka to shop.”

But his own business, Larry said, had been good. “Short hair is back in fashion,” explained the 38-year Nortonville barber.

Not only that, but his price was right: For $9 Larry removed most of my hair, which these days spends most of its time under a helmet. Now it feels cool and comfortable and looks, well, not bad.

Temps rose into the 90s during the afternoon and had hit 95 when we hit Topeka. Humidity, hills (yep, even in Kansas) and strong headwinds slowed us down.

In Topeka, we faced a dilemma at 78 miles. Drive one mile to a nearby Ramada Inn or save $34 by driving six more miles to Motel 6. We did the right thing, but were good and tired after pulling in at 7:30 p.m.

For tomorrow: a shorter run, but forecast thunderstorms.