Chapter 9

Chapter 9


They took 34 north, through more mountains, to give a wide berth to Boulder and Denver. The mountains interfered with radio waves, so they were alone. They noticed more and more animals, from bison to bear to fox, that were flourishing in the new world. Some were clearly mutated. Some were animals that they hadn't seen outside of zoos.
They drove right through Ester and Lyons, though a few people did wave. At the larger town of Loveland, they were stopped by a group of people holding a sign that read, “Welcome, Lewis and Clark!” “They spelled our names wrong,” complained Louis.
They mayor of Loveland led the group. Word had been spreading over the radio of two guys driving around, and the mayor had been expecting them. He eagerly asked to look at their map. “We sent a few scouts in all directions when the long winter ended,” the Mayor explained. “Most of them didn't come back. We don't have the speed that you have, or a Geiger counter.” Many townspeople copied the map and gave them gifts in return. Some would head the way that Clarke and Louis had come from to seek family and oppurtunity. Others asked fro rides and deliveries further along the way.
This became more common with each community they came upon. A map with a safe route was connecting isolated groups, and they were all looking for something. In Fort Morgan they were stopped by a group of about fifty men in Harley Davidson attire riding bicycles. One of them did the talking for the group. “I'm Spike. We run a delivery route between here and Weldona, and we'd really like to know about more safe routes. We love these roads, but we would love to have a larger range.” The Harley Davidson riders had been riding together on the way to a convention. They had all traded in their hogs for pedal power, and the two communities they helped loved them.
Clarke and Louis took much longer than anticipated to get near Topeka. They were giving rides to strangers, swapping stories, and making deliveries that weren't too far out of the way. They had become radio famous, and everyone they met wanted a look at the map. Before, they had just been two college kids with a cool car project. Now, they were really making a difference. “Maybe someday,” Louis mused, “we'll even be internet famous.”

Clarke did most of the driving because Louis loved playing around with the Geiger counter and changing their course as needed to avoid hazards. On a rainy day, with batteries running low, they were stopped in Manhattan, Kansas by an unhappy looking fellow under a Sponge Bob umbrella. Louis questioned the use of an umbrella in the land of a pineapple under the sea as Clarke rolled down the window. The man had news about Topeka.