vacation 09 day 3 desolate

day 3, Algona Iowa.....This morning we stop and look at motorcycle trailers at a small dealership in Algona, we pack anything else and we may need one. A short stop to top off the tank, and we head west on route 18 . Just over a 100 miles later we stop in the town of Hull Iowa for a snack break and map check, while there we top off the tanks. Between the speeds we are able to run out here, and the wind we are fighting I notice a drop in my mpg.

We continue on route 18 into South Dakota, stopping at a truck stop at the state line where we top off, make a few calls,, and grab a snack.

Riding across South Dakota the first thing I notice is how desolate the area is. Just because you see a town on the map is no reason to think you can find fuel when you arrive. With the VTX getting less mpg, that becomes a worry.

We stop to take a break in Turkey ridge, just a dot on the map. The reason I stop is the small general store along the road, a place that looks to inviting to pass. we visit with the owners for about half an hour , take a few pics and we are underway again. We go north on route 81 to the town of Freeman looking for fuel. The station does not have premium , so we ride on up 81 to the next town. Doulton South Dakota,,"No fuel Here" Doulton , population 38. according to the 2009 census,yes I looked that up online.. The town had a gas station at one time, long closed up and overgrown with weeds. On fumes now, we head back to Freeman, no choice today, fill up with regular. Leaving Freeman we turn west on route 44, an hour later we pass through the town of Parkston South Dakota, this is where things get interesting. I have seen road construction before, but not like this. They were repaving 44, and had , in many places,,ground the pavement down to the dirt. 18 miles, single lane,,dirt!!! the traffic in front of us kicked up so much dirt we could barely see. We were covered in it, our bikes turned brown from the clouds of dirt and dust.

That evening we call it a day in winner South Dakota, we stay at the Buffalo Trail motel. After unloading our bikes, we had to find a car wash to clean up the bikes. They had a thick layer of brown dirt on them. Back at the motel for a long shower and dinner out of our packs,,time to rest.

vac 09 day two...off to the museum

I wake at 5:30 am.,, shower and load up. Today we are headed to the National Motorcycle Museum, in Anamosa Iowa. A quick stop at a park on the Mississippi river, near the stadium of The Clinton Lumber Kings, a single A ball team.

We head out of town on route 136, once out of town this winding two lane road provides a beautiful scene, rolling hills and a few nice curves through the countryside. I can't help but think,,this is why I do this. This makes up for the four lane ride yesterday. I stop along route 136 for a quick picture.

On the way we roll into the town of Wyoming Iowa, a small town. Population,,613. There we stop for a picture in front of the town library. The town looks as though it has not changed since the 50s. The first thing we notice in Wyoming IA. are the gnats,,,the minute you stop they swarm you.

From Wyoming we continue on 136 to route 64, then into Anamosa. The National Motorcycle Museum is a must stop for any motorcyclist traveling through Iowa. When we leave the museum we decide to have a quick lunch before moving on, we dig into our supplies and make some sandwiches.

Back on the road we head northwest to avoid some bad weather that is moving into the middle of the state.As we cross Iowa we see a wind farm, I was amazed at the size of the windmills. At 6pm we make it to Algona IA.,,we fought a nasty cross wind all afternoon and we are tired. We have dinner at The Chrome shop restaurant,,a bad decision,,bad food poor service. What happened to the days when truck stops had good food??? After dinner we head to the local hotel where we stop for the night.

vacation 09,,day 1 I just wanna ride

It's 5:50 am, I roll into Bob Evans parking lot to meet Steve for breakfast before we leave. I see him and Patrice waiting in the parking lot for me, she came to see us off. The morning is cool, but comfortable riding weather. While inside having breakfast a shower moves through, but the rain stops before we finish eating,,good deal.. After breakfast Patrice snaps a few pictures for us, we say good bye, mount up and we are on our way.

Today's ride will be boring, we have decided to ride the four lane most of today to make time and get a jump westward on our trip. We take route 35 west, and make our way to I 70 west. The sun is coming up and so is the air temperature,,it is a great morning.

In Indianapolis we face road construction and heavy traffic,,this stinks. We take I 74 west out of the construction . A stop for fuel Veedersburg Indiana, and lunch at the Apple tree Restaurant. A cheeseburger, fries and a diet soda and we are on our way.

We make our way to route 67 into Clinton Iowa , 558 miles for the day, we check into a hotel and go to the grocery store. Time to call it a night.

vacation 09 preview

6/11/09 I just got home this evening, what an adventure this trip was. Just to give you an idea of whats to come,,13 days on the road, 4410 miles, and 10 states. . I met some great people, made some new friends.

5/23/09 Dakotas poker run

The day began with a phone call from Steve at 6:25 am. "Wanna meet for breakfast?",,Sure, meet you at Carl's in one hour. A sausage and cheese sandwich and several cup's of coffee later ,,we head for Dakotas. A quick stop at the atm, another for fuel, and we are there. Today I ride with my cohort in crime,,Steve, his girlfriend Patrice,,Wook,,and Big T ( Tim ) ,,,Tim is a friend from Leesburg Ohio, it is good to see him. The last time we rode together was the memorial ride last year.

We register, then walk around looking at the bikes in the parking lot. A vendor is setting up tables of saddlebags, riding jackets, helmets.

10 am we pull out, our first stop is in Jackson Oh. We ride through town to old rt 35 east bound. We take the old two lane to Richmondale where we have to get on the newer four lane. 25 minutes later we are in the Dakota's parking lot in Jackson. A short break and it's back on the road to our second stop, Waverly...

We head out of town on Beaver pike , "rt. 124" a two lane that winds through farmland to the small town of Beaver Ohio. We continue on to rt. 220 into Waverly. A short break at the waverly stop, long enough for a group picture of us. We stop for Wook to top off his tank, then back on rt. 220 west. We follow that to Idaho ,,a small burg in southern Ohio,,,where we pick up rt 124 again. Rt 124 will take us to our next stop in Hillsboro.

In Hillsboro we take a little longer break, quench our thirst and listen to the band. In Cahoots I think was the bands name. They were good, but it was time to go. Now it's Tim's turn to top off, then out of town on rt 50 east. It is a good ride, but very hot. The afternoon is leaving all of us red. I can feel the sunburn on my arms, face, and ears,,should have brought the sun block...

13 miles from Chillicothe , in Bourneville we see a fire truck, an ambulance ,,and three bikers. They were riding in the poker run, and left Hillsboro about 15 minutes before us. We never heard what happened, but it looked as though the one woman lost control on a rough spot in the road. The bike did not look too bad,,but the paramedics were putting a neck brace on her when we rode by. You could sense the mood change in our group, we were a little more alert, a bit more cautious after this. A great ride can turn into disaster in a split second. One pot hole, one distraction , and the day changes.

Back in Chillicothe we check in, draw our last card. What do you know, I have a flush. Patrice says I have the winning hand, but I am sure another rider will arrive with a better one. I have seen it many times, I can't win,,I know my luck. We enjoy the cookout Dakota's puts on for the riders, burgers, brats,,baked beans,,,oh was I hungry. They call the name of the rider with the winning hand,,its me!!! I am stunned, years of riding in poker runs and I have never won anything..until today...100 dollars,,oh yeah,,that will be added to my vacation fund,,because we leave in seven days. It was a good day, and a great ride. We say our goodbyes and go our seperate ways, ,, Wook heads East to Jackson, Big T heads West towards Leesburg. Steve and Patrice decide to ride to Columbus,,,and I head across town.

5/17/09 Adventures in your own back yard

Every now and then, things fall apart for the better. That was the case today. Some people could not make it, the place we were going to was to be closed that day. "we learn this an hour before departure time",,not good!! I was to meet Wook at Tim Horton's. I pull the VTX out of the building at 10:15 and get ready to go. The temperature is in the low 50's...I pull out of the drive and get underway, Wook shows up at 11:10,,,a little late,,oh well...Wook has his 10 year old son Keegan with him, poor kid looks cold. We ride out to Steve's house to find him and Patrice waiting in the drive. With our plans going south we decide to ride out to Jimbo's for lunch and ride the Hocking Hills area. Jimbo's is a long time favorite hang out for bikers. We stop to top off the tanks and get underway.

I am in the lead, wook is behind me and Steve bringing up the rear. We take rt. 159 out of town to rt. 180, turn right and towards Laurelville. I open up the throttle and bring the bike to 60 mph. At 60 mph the air feels cold, but it is good to be on our way. We roll through Hallsville and and its back up to speed . A cemetery on our left tells me over the hill is Adelphi, I know this area well. I roll off the throttle slowing the VTX to the posted 35 mph. A left turn and over the hill and we roll into Laurelville, where we pick up rt. 56.

Leaving Laurelville on rt. 56 east I cannot help but get a warm feeling inside despite the brisk temperature. The first thing I notice is an American flag waving in the breeze high upon a flagpole, then another,,and another. I see 5 flags in the first couple of miles, one looks new, another faded,,the next a bit tattered and worn, faded,,but still she flies proud. The next thing I see are the rolling hills of southeastern Ohio, in this rural and depressed area lies some of the most beautiful scenery in the country. Before I know it, we arrive at Jimbo's. Time for a Jimbo burger, fries and a diet pepsi.

Lunch was great, and the company of my friends even better. We leave Jimbo's with full bellies,,stuffed is more like it. We continue on rt 56 , a small detour to Old Mans Cave. We stop to explore a little, do some hiking,,and see the lower falls. Wook's 10 year old son running ahead we trek down to the bottom of the waterfall,,what a site. But with the late start we find the day wearing on,,, time to roll..

Back on rt 56 we head east to rt 93. A right turn and we are now southbound, 10 miles to Mcarthur. A short stop there to say our goodbyes , Shawn (wook) and his son will stay on 93, Steve, Patrice , and I will turn on to rt 50 west. 30 minutes later the ride is over, it has been a great afternoon. An 89 mile ride I will remember for a long time

5/10/09 More like family

This is a bit of a different story. But a bike ride is involved. I have always been blessed with great friends. This story is about some of those friends . I do not have a lot of family, and the family I do have I am not that close to. The past 3 years or so I have spent every Thanksgiving and Christmas with people who are more like family to me than anyone I know. My friends Dale and Tammy, and for 3 years now Tammy has asked me to take her for a bike ride. I always said I would, but never got around to it. I don't know why, no reason for it other than I never made the time to do it. Sometimes we put things off , we all do it. These people have been such a big part of my life the past 3 years, I am ashamed of myself for not making time for this ride sooner. Sunday may the 10th, Mothers day, I picked Tammy up at 1:00pm,,,she said she wanted to visit her Mom around 3,,so we take off on route 50 west towards Mcarthur Ohio where we pick up route 93 north. We run rt. 93 north to rt.56 east. We follow 56 through the Hocking Hills area. When we reach Laurelville we pick up rt. 180 and run that back to Chillicothe. Not a long ride, about 89 miles,,It was a nice ride, the weather was a little cool but not bad. I enjoyed the afternoon with someone who is like family to me,,the sister I never had. I just hope she enjoyed the ride as well. She was a little nervous because she had not been on a bike in a long time, Tammy,,sorry it took so long to take that ride...