USA Midwest 2023 Day 4 starts in Onawa, Iowa as I roll through town and north to Whiting, Iowa.  From Whiting, I cross the Missouri river and south on US Highway 75 to Omaha, Nebraska and then end the day in North Platte, Nebraska, 368 miles for the day.

Onawa, Iowa
Onawa, Iowa is 38 miles south of Sioux City, Iowa (which was on my original planned route.  However, the Sioux City Railroad Museum I was planning on visiting was closed on the day I was in the area.  So, I rerouted to include Omaha instead.)

My mother grew up in Whiting, Iowa, just north of here.  Growing up, we would drive down to Whiting, Iowa from Anoka, Minnesota (where I am from) just about every summer visiting family in Whiting and in Omaha.  Onawa being the bigger town compared to Whiting, it was common for daily trips to Onawa for grocery shopping, a treat at Dairy Queen (now gone) or taking a dip in the public swimming pool.

Whiting, Iowa
Whiting, Iowa is a small town about 31 miles south of Sioux City, Iowa with a population of 745.  This is your postcard Iowa farm town surrounded by endless fields of corn.

As mentioned, Whiting is my mother’s hometown.  When I was a child, I knew this was a small town but even so, it seemed so much bigger then.  My grandmother and step grandfather, my mother (Mary), her two triplet sisters Marlene and Marcene, younger sister Ilene, and older sister Geraldine all lived in a small two-bedroom house here.  My maternal grandfather, a farmer, passed young in his early 40’s due to a heart attack.  Afterward, my grandmother, my mother, Marlene, Marcene, and Gerladine moved from the farm into town (Whiting) into the little two-bedroom home.  My grandmother and aunt Geraldine lived the rest of their lives there.  Although challenging periods occurred, numerous years of shared experiences, affection, happiness, and humor were passed down to me, now complementing my personal memories from Whiting, Iowa.

One such personal memory is when I was 5 years old walking back from the store with my Aunt Geraldine and asking her why the flagpole was in the middle of the road.  Without hesitation she stated “well honey, here to get your driver’s license, we must drive around that flagpole as fast as possible without crashing.  If you can do that, they will give you a driver’s license.”  And I gullibly believed her for at least a year lol.  She was always sharp witted, a bit of a smart ass and awesome.

Fun Fact:  Whiting, Iowa is one of the locations where the 1984 movie “Children of the Corn” was filmed.  In my numerous visits here in years past, I can honestly say that I’ve never witnessed any sacrifices to He Who Walks Behind the Rows. 😊

Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha, Nebraska is the 41^st most populous city in the United States and major city for the region outside of Kansas City, MO to the south, Minneapolis / Saint Paul to the north, Denver, CO to the west, and Chicago, IL to the East (Des Moines, IA is closer and a sizable city but smaller than Omaha, making Chicago the next largest city to the East.)

My Aunts Marcene and Marlene (along with several of my cousins) lived in Omaha for many years.  During my family’s annual summer two-week road trip from Anoka, Minnesota, after visiting Whiting, Iowa, we would then spend the second week in Omaha visiting family there (and sometimes shuttling between Omaha and Whiting (about a 71-mile dive)

With family no longer residing in Omaha, my destination today is Kenefick Park to view the 4-8-8-4 Big Boy Steam and DDA40X Diesel locomotives on static display there.  Also, a slight detour for a mini tour of downtown Omaha.

Ride of Terror into North Platte, Nebraska
Riding south on U.S. Highway 83, a few miles north of North Platte, Nebraska, I rolled into a line of strong thunderstorms.  In this part of Nebraska (well most of Nebraska), there are no trees, buildings, large hills, and more importantly in relation to this ride, shelter.  The gust front from these thunderstorms was very intense and likely amplified by the fact that this terrain is so open.

  The winds I encountered while riding into North Platte were the strongest, I have ever ridden in to include some of the Santa Ana winds while riding over Cajon Pass in California (those are often nothing to joke about either).  The wind gusts were so strong they frequently blew me and Dexter out the lane onto the shoulder.

  I was very concerned about being blown off the pavement and equally or more concerned about the frequent (and sometimes close) lightning strikes, I felt naked and exposed to nature’s wrath.  I also was not certain of just how strong these storms were if I was going to encounter even more severe weather with strong winds, hail, or God forbid a tornado. 

The last portion of video today shows this ride into North Platte and picks up where I was being blown over to the should and I just stop to quickly consider my options.  With no shelter, I was considering just parking Dexter there and getting low off the road.  The concerns I had with this option were being struck by lightning (still a concern on the bike) and about unseen flying debris (also still a concern on the road).  However, at this time I was less than 15 miles from the motel and ultimately decided to persist through the storm, feeling this was my best option available.

The video does not serve justice to the intensity of the wind, though the wind strength can be somewhat seen by the blowing grass as I pulled over.  Also, I noticed that a lot of the lighting was not captured on the GoPro either, but overall, you get the idea, pure TERROR lol.

When the wind backed off a bit, I found that I could increase my speed and make myself as small as possible and tucked myself behind the fairing as much as possible.  At this point I moved off the shoulder back on to the main portion of the road but left my hazards on for more visibility by anyone coming up behind me (or in front for that matter)

The storm stopped as soon as I rolled into North Platte, you know, where there are city lights, shelter, etc. LOL.  This last little bit of today’s ride was exciting and a massive adrenaline dump and terrifying.  One of the few times that I have been actually freaked out riding……ah, Good Times 😊