This year we are planning to do the Bike Across Kansas (BAK), a seven-day, 475 mile ride from the western border with Colorado to the eastern border with Missouri.  It’s a great adventure filled with the beauty of the Kansas plains, the hospitality of the small towns that we stay in, and the camaraderie of 800 fellow cyclists.  We are now in serious training mode.  We headed out on our bicycles yesterday morning with chilly temperatures in the 40’s and overcast skies, hoping to get a ride in before the promised rains that were on their way.  As is common in spring-time in the upper midwest, the weather can change at any time (and usually does).  The skies were gray and dark to the north, but occasionally the sun would peek out long enough to give us a bit of warmth. Unlike our fellow-cyclists living south of Minnesota who are now logging rides of 50 miles and more, we are just unthawing from our winter weather.  Our ride yesterday gave us the chance to test multiples layers of clothing along with full-fingered riding gloves to keep warm.  Eventually we will pare down to single layers and cycling shorts but that time is still ahead of us.  Yesterday’s ride was filled with the scent of blooming lilacs and the spring-time colors of the ornamental trees.  All this, including the rain holding off until the afternoon, made our ride a delight and a joy.