It was early December in 2006 and I was on my way to work at the "South-West Times" newspaper in Liberal Kansas. I had few options for getting there from Virginia and the only two that were feasible were a Delta flight to Atlanta then to Dallas then a Continental flight to Amarillo then a 2 hour drive to Liberal or … a US Air flight to Charlotte then a flight to Wichita then a 4 hour drive to Liberal. I chose the Wichita route.

I arrived in Wichita about 4 PM, got my luggage and rented a car. The map said that State Route 54 went directly from Wichita to Liberal so as I left the rental car lot I asked the man at the gate how to get to Route 54. He turned and pointed a a traffic light about one hundred feet away and said to turn right at the light. Sure enough …..down a ramp and I merged onto Rt 54. It was a beautiful 4 lane divided highway with entrance and exit ramps and everything ……….. for about 10 miles ……… then it turned into a fairly nice, 2 lane road for the next four hours.

The sun was fairly low on the horizon and directly in front of me as I drove along it seemed to stay in the same spot during my journey. The drive is the most memorable I have ever had. The road ran straight as an arrow and the sun seemed to be suspended in the sky as I drove. There was a set of Rail Road tracks that ran parallel to 54 on my Right and I must have encountered 3 long freight trains going East and was a little unnerved when I encountered the first. It appeared as a single bright light on the horizon and it kept getting larger and larger. At first, because it was so far away, it seemed like it was a car on the road and it was only when it got a lot closer that I could determine that it was a train………… an incredibly long freight train at that.

Gradually as I continued on the sun started getting closer to the horizon and since I was apparently the only one on the road I increased my spped in an ill fated attempt to keep it above the horizon. It finally drifted down and disappeared on me …. and for the last hour or so, my trip was in total darkness.

That part of Kansas is mostly barren, and it was only as I approached one of the numerous small towns along with their huge lighted grain silo's, did I encounter any lights at all. Once and a while along the way, way out in the distance I could see a farm house with its yard light marking its location.

The elevation in Wichita is 1305 feet and the land gradually slops upward as you continue west, The country is flat and you have no idea that you are traveling upslope. Liberal is at an elevation of about 3000 feet and as you continue west to Colorado Springs and 7000 feet it remains flat.

On my return I told a lady friend of my journey and she wrote back: "Now that is a cool thing to do. I like the way you think. Attempting to make
time stand still."

end.

Attempting to make time stand still.

Wichita elev 1305

Liberal 2872

Colorado Springs 7000

Wichita to Liberal 220 miles. And about 4 hours.

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