We're HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We arrived safe and sound on Monday afternoon - felt good enough to ride more, but the weather was uncooperative. We would've loved to spend more time in Kentucky (who would've thunk it), but figure it's another road trip!

Some stats:

3,669 miles
1 qt oil
1 helmet
46 mpg average
3 laundry trips (thanks to Timmi for getting us on the road w/fresh clothes!)
9 Harley dealers (maybe more?) = 18 new shirts (we need more hangers)
105 degrees - dessert
67 degrees - Los Angeles

Animal sightings:

antelope
hawks
turkeys
deer
double crested cormorants
armadillos (all dead)
lizards
prairie dogs!
snakes - rattlers and black (all dead, we think)

We slept in late today and did some stuff around the house. Discovered that the water heater's leaking...amazingly, it's still under warranty. Transplanted a tree and cut our phone line...we still have phone service, so it must be because we have Vonage...who knows. It's good to be home and back to the craziness!

Only a couple of days to go!

Too much to do in Memphis to post much lately. As the saying goes "what happens on Beale Street, stays on Beale Street" - that sums it up nicely!

We did a lot while there...toured the city via the Mojo Tour - singing, instrument playing, and laughs along the way. Visited the Harley dealer for a new lid (helmet) for moi, paid to park at Graceland then realized we had to pay to even get on the grounds (we did not), saw the Peabody ducks take the elevator to their Duck Palace on top of the Peabody Hotel, strolled along Ole Man River aka the mighty Mississippi (it's huge AND mighty), listened to the blues up and down Beale Street, ate ribs ribs and more ribs (the Germantown Commissary had the best) - we made the most of the city in 3 days and wouldn't want more. A little bit of Memphis goes a looooonnngggg way.

We left Saturday at 10:20am for Bowling Green, KY. Got to see newly planted tobacco fields, pretty scenery and at least 500 yard sales. We actually saw a couch at one place along the way that has now made it to our hotel via the back of some guy's pickup truck - irony.

We're in Cave City, KY (Mammoth Cave area) for the night, then off to Chillicothe OHIO (YES....OH - IO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) tomorrow. Hoping for clear skies to the end....

Memphis! but first......

A tiny bit about the journey here.

The weather was lovely in Hot Springs, contrary to dire forecasting from the Weather Channel. Randy "took the waters" at the Buckstaff Bath House in the morning, while I chose to sit on the lovely front veranda and read my first newspaper in over a week. Feeling rejuvenated, we hit the road for Memphis. Unfortunately, our helmets also hit the road as they flew off the back of the bike in the middle of I-30. Randy walked back to retrieve them.



Some idiot yacking on a cellphone didn't notice the two big black helmets in the middle of his lane in time to avoid them. Mine took one for the team. Ouch...we'll be buying me a new lid in Memphis.

Got to Memphis around 4pm...blue skies all the way. Went to Beale St for dinner and blues. Randy found an old pool hall and taught me the finer aspects of shooting snooker...crazy. We listened to the Red Garlic Trio until the wee hours and met a bunch of crazy characters...Heath, who was layed over for the night due to mechanical difficulties with his plane, David & Julie from England, who wanted to swap Harley shirts with Randy (Randy wasn't giving up his Sturgis shirt, so they're going to send each other shirts when we all get home), Tonya the barmaid/nursing student, who was writing an English paper while tending to our beverage needs. We walked "home" in the rain and crashed for the night.

Off to tour Memphis today via bus, as it's pouring right now - no problem, 'cuz Sophie's tucked away in the hotel parking garage. Can't wait to see Graceland and the ducks at the Peabody Hotel!

Rain gear...again!

The forecast for today, Tuesday, was all doom and lots of gloom. Fortunately, it was just cloudy and 70 degrees this morning, so after a quick look at the radar we headed down the road. Ironically, the local Harley shop was a block away, so we were waiting when they unlocked the doors. After another clothing purchase for both of us, we hit the road. I must add that our Harley bags have some kind of magic in them, because we just keep adding to them and somehow it all fits.

The skies were threatening as we rode, so Randy pulled under an overpass on the Muskogee Turnpike (everybody sing along: "I'm an Okie from Muskogee") and on went the rain gear. Just a few sprinkles, but glad to have the suits with us. Stopped for gas and Salems, at which point the cashier stated "we don't have Salems, but there's a smoke shop behind Charlie Chicken over yonder" - I swear that everyone's speaking a foreign language on this trip.


We took the back country to Hot Springs. A lot of it went through the Ouachita National Forest - greenery! trees! grass!


In the 90's when we got to HS...booked a hotel, ate an early dinner (paninis and gelatos - yum) and hung around downtown Bath House Row. Lots of motorcycles and old buildings. Grabbed a few souvenirs and rode up something called Mountain Tower - oddly enough, it's a twisty, climbing road up to a panoramic view of Hot Springs. In addition, there's a very very tall observation tower that you can pay to go up into....we did not. The view was spectacular and the ride wasn't bad either! On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at La Hacienda for chips and salsa. I practiced my foreign language skills once again, and the waiters responded! No doubt they are mocking me as I write this, but even Randy told them "gracias". Now our goal is to see how many times we can get a response in a foreign language. We're lame, but I hope you can tell we're having a wonderful journey!

More doom and gloom weather forecast for tomorrow, but we'll be Memphis bound and staying 2 nights. "Walking in Memphis. Walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale"

Look for us at The Crossroads!!!!

Words of wisdom from....

a biker on his way home to Montreal, Canada (we met him at a gas stop and had a tough time understanding his French Canadian accent):

"The key to travelling a long way is good underwear."

Now you all know the secret to our successful ride thus far!

Off to Tulsa from Amarillo on Monday - June 1st already?!? Amarillo treated us to an awesome lightning display all night and bid us a fond adios this way:



Fortunately, we now scoff at looming black clouds. Okay, honestly, we were heading to the blue sky, so we were actually sighing with relief rather than scoffing. No problems on the road, and we arrived in good time.

Decided a good Oklahoma steak was in order, so we went in search of a place called The Spudder, which is some oil term (hey, it's oil country y'all). We couldn't quite find the place, so Randy pulled into the drive thru of some Taco Villa or something (picture Taco Bell and asking the kids working the window directions to a pricey steakhouse - they don't even know steak anything can cost more than $1.99). Not to mock the Taco place employees, but after mucho discussion, they decided that none of them had heard of any place like Spudder, so we thanked them and pulled away....upon exiting the drive thru lane, I look across the street and exclaim "hey, look, it's the restaurant...and they have a perfect view of the enormous sign from the Taco Villa drive thru window". Sigh....NOW I'm making fun of them. Anyway...good dinner. We finish up and now zip down the 4-lane thoroughfare to the hotel (picture Dressler Rd by Belden Village) and Randy's glasses go flying past my head to land in the middle of said thoroughfare. My first thought was "oh heck, there go another pair of 89 cent reading specs." My second thought was "oh shit, those were his RIDING glasses and NOT 89 cents". Traffic's coming the opposite direction, there's no place to pull over or turn around, and the poor glasses are just laying a block back waiting to be pulverized by some Okie in a redneck pickup truck. Randy proclaims "I'll just have to stop in the lane right here", which is my clue to hop off the bike and run down the middle of the street to retrieve the glasses. What a sad sight that was...my bra straps kept falling down and I'm frantically watching the traffic stopped at a red light to see when it's going to come at me or the specs or the bike or my husband. As luck would have it, one truck straddles the glasses and avoids me, I reach the spot where they're laying and traffic starts coming at me. So I do the only thing I can think of....snatch the glasses up and hold up both hands to stop traffic. Mortifying, but hilarious (since neither of us got crushed!) As I walk/crawl back to my beloved, cars stop to ask if everything's all right. Other than needing oxygen, I smile and wave them on - with the hand proudly displaying the glasses, of course. We laughed all the way back to the hotel. Bonus: I ran off a few calories from dinner!

Next blog....Hot Springs, AR

Once upon a time, there was a drought in....

Amarillo. Have no fear, the Sloans are here!

Bright and sunny and hot on the way to Palo Duro Canyon (barring a few wayward sprinkles that just seem to come out of nowhere here in the West). Our first view of the canyon was breathtaking and the rest didn't disappoint:



But wait! What's that strange sky formation to the west?!



Could it be a never-ending row of "possible scattered thunderstorms" bearing down upon the adventurous couple once again?



Apparently so. Randy tucked the bike into the overhang of the Visitor Center and we patiently waited out the multiple storms that rolled through. A couple of hours later (!) we rode to home base, where a rainbow greeted us....ironic, eh?



Randy opted for this mode of transportation - no, seriously - to the Big Texan Steakhouse for dinner:



We had a great time at dinner, then watched 2 people try to beat the Big Texan 72oz steak challenge. One of the guys was from a reality show called On The Road In America and had an entire film crew with him. We ended up on film and had to sign waivers that they could use our footage! Of course, the Big Texan also has a webcam to show the challenge, so we called Nan (we knew she'd be awake that late!) and she watched us on the cam. Tough to beat a day like today!!!

Off to Broken Arrow OK tomorrow...

We made it to Amarillo at 8pm Saturday evening and we're stayin' put for 2 nights. The weary butts need a break. As mentioned in the previous blog, 'twas an unexciting ride - oil wells, windmills and beeves. It was pretty cool to see all the cotton gins along the way. The fields have been harvested and they're planting again...mountains of cotton at different gins and delinting plants. The earth was very red against the blue sky:





We booked a room (did I mention we're staying in ONE place for TWO nights - yeah!!!) at the 1st Amarillo exit as there were storm clouds brewing over Amarillo. Yep, we learned our lesson about going just a "little further" into the greyness in hEll Paso! We went in search of chicken fried steak and found it at the Country Barn. Another fine day.

Sunday: Woke up late - 8:30am - rode to the Cadillac Ranch, which is just too kooky for words. We left our mark on a few of the caddies and took off for Historic Rte 66.
We cruised the route, made an offer on a Navajo rug at an antiques store (rejected), then pulled up to a roadside biker dive. Watched the bikers arrive while we grabbed a snack and refreshed with tea (lots of it)! Now we're off to Palo Duro Canyon, the "Grand Canyon of the Panhandle" - we'll see about that. After that, it's off to dinner at the Big Texan - Randy's all aflutter. Later.....

The sights, the sounds, the smells...

The riding is gorgeous, but we've met a couple of biker buds who tell us the next stretch is boring...I have no fear that we'll find something interesting along the way.

We watched the Cavs win, while drinking Coronas and eating chips/queso at our beautiful ($$$) El Paso hotel bar/lobby. We departed at 9am, and headed straight to Barnett HD - the largest dealer in the US. The weather was cool after all the rain, so on came the jackets and we headed out scenic rte 82 to Carlsbad. The stockyards seemed never ending - here's the answer to "where's the beef". Not far out of El Paso, we spotted this guy standing along the road:





We rode through the Guadalupe Mtns and on in to Carlsbad to grab a room. After questioning 6 locals on the best BBQ joint, we ate at Danny's Place Pit BBQ. We agree that it's excellent! Off to explore the caverns...94 degrees now and no jackets! Met another couple there who were riding from Columbus, OH...small world.



We opted to take the Natural Entrance hike into the caverns...strenuous but well worth it. By the time we finished, it was "bat time" at the amphitheatre. What an unbelievable thing it is to see them exit the cave! We watched them until dark and they were STILL coming out. Ranger John said there are approximately 400,000 bats and it takes up to 2 hrs. We could hear their wings as they swarmed out, and they bring that special bat guano essence out with them.

Star-filled night ride back to town, stop at grocery store for local chips/salsa, bed time. Headed to Big Spring, Lubbock and (maybe) Amarillo TX...long day tomorrow, for sure.

Here are some views of the cave entrance, the walkway into the abyss, the smell of guano, looking up to the outside world, and cave formations - enjoy!

The rain in Arizona, New Mexico, & Texas falls...

on US! What the heck...it's supposed to be a DRY heat, not threatening type cloud formations to the north, east, south and west. Well, we haven't had internet access for a few days, so I'll make this one short and sweet (trust me, I have a LOT of great stuff to tell, just don't have the time or brain power right now).

We made it to El Paso, TX tonight later than tentatively scheduled (see above mention of rain). We've seen Border Patrol busts, I've practiced my limited foreign language skills numerous times (basically "hola", "gracias", and "dos Corona, por favor"), and we've met some great people along the way (see above mention of rain and think of us looking like drowned rats while seeking cover - people are very very kind to crazy gringos).

Having a wonderful time, even in the rain. We head to Carlsbad, NM tomorrow! Will try to catch up then, but for now please enjoy a ride into the storm with us. What adventure wouldn't be complete without the words "oh shit, is that a tornado?!"








(On an informative note: the Continental Divide is VERY VERY WINDY. Randy got us through that little bit of blustery business like a real pro).

(On an uninformative note: I melted my boot sole onto the pipes while travelling through one of the deserts. My husband is still talking to me, and for that I love him even more)

California - Captain's Log 5-24-2009

Who would've guessed that Randy and I are such extreme coffee swilling people? We'd made 4 pots before the rest of the house woke up (okay, let me add that the Cali Sloans have a 4 cup coffee pot - WTF?!)

Had breakfast at Harry's Grill - Randy got his 1st Mexican fix of Huevos Rancheros and a '64 lowered Chevy Impala sitting in front of the restaurante (still practicing my foreign language skills).

We could hardly wait to pick up Sophie from HD of Westminster, so that was next. She travelled like a champ, minus a burnt out headlight. Parked her in the condo garage and went to Casa Sloan for the day. We had a fabulous day just hanging out, laughing, imbibing, weeding flower beds, sipping wine, laughing, organizing, grilling out, drinking wine, laughing - life is great. PS: yes, that's a towel I'm wearing. Terry is the new cashmere, especially when one's husband steals one's hoodie for warmth.

and they're off!

We're not in Ohio any more! Departed CAK yesterday - layover in Chicago. Took the taxi ride from hell to Murphy's (no, seriously, the haitiian driver took cell phone calls while doing 90 mph AND looked at the cell phone while talking)...where we ate one of these.

It was worth the ride, plus I scored a mailman delivering to Murphy's.

We opted to take the Blue Line back to O'Hare, and Randy worked his people skills at the transit gate to get us free entry to the train.

Clear flying to LA...we got to see the Rockies, Grand Canyon, desert, Las Vegas, desert, mountains, desert and more desert. The flight actually arrived 1/2 hr early - who knew.

We settled in at Rick/Timmi's soon-to-be "former condo", headed to their new house (it's great - orange tree, lime tree, roses the size of plates - what a yard!) Had dinner in Laguna Beach at Watermarc (Rick bought, so we sprang for the $60 tip - yeah, pick yourselves up off the floor and read it again), then called it a day.

Time to start....

checking the 10 day weather forecasts for the Wild West. Hmmm...average highs in Yuma, AZ = 100 degrees. Sunscreen on the list! At this time 10 days from now, we'll be arriving in Los Angeles - santo cielo!!! I'm brushing up on my espanol - buenos noches amigos.

and she's off!

The bike is on her lonely journey to Cali via air-ride semi transportation. She's traveling better than I will be! See ya in 3 weeks!!!

Bike bling!

Sophie has new bling for the trip! The kids got Randy an early birthday present - chrome lay down license plate holder. I think the bike's finally ready to roll. 28 days, 0 hours, 33 minutes to lift off...

We've been warned!

Oh my....what are we getting into? I don't think we're in Ohio anymore.

34 days, 0 hours, 21 minutes!

Mulch spread today - check 1 off the "to do" list...unfortunately, I keep thinking of more...brain spin.

Bike gets washed & shined tomorrow. Our riding time is short, as they'll be scheduling pick-up in the next couple of weeks. I'm sure we'll have more than enough riding in the near future - did I mention only 34 days?!

Sophie (the bike - she has to have a name, and I claim full responsibility) has some new bling for the trip. She has passenger floorboards for me and a tool kit, which I hope is NOT for any of us.

Excited....

Loooong, sloooow wait...

T-minus 39 days, 5 hours, 9 minutes, 1 second until we head west, but who's counting? We are!

Not only are we counting...we're number crunching, mapping, listing, revising, buying, wrenching, hand twisting - get the picture?!

Randy's doing a fine job of locating Harley dealers with cool names along the way. I feel it's safe to bet that the 1st shirt will be from HD of Westminster CA, since it happens to be where we're shipping the bike to. They were very accomodating when I called to ask if they would find a corner for Sophie until we arrived in their great state (Randy's idea, and a brilliant one)!

Yuma AZ should be our 1st night out on the road - just checked their website and it's 95 degrees right now - oh my.

Nervous, excited, can't wait!