Alaska Day 8 part 2

Don and I were up early ready to head on to South Dakota. A look out the window revealed light rain. A quick check on the weather channel showed us that the rain would end near the Iowa border. We suited up in rain gear and headed out. After about an hour and a half we had ran out of the rain and the day ended up being another very nice riding day. This was my first visit to South Dakota and I must say I like it. The seemingly endless wide open spaces and beautiful scenery make for a very enjoyable ride across the state.

We wrapped up our riding day by taking a ride through the badlands. Wow! What a amazing place. The pictures show a small sample of the badlands. 583 miles today

Alaska Day 8

John and I were up early again and were greeted by another beautiful morning for riding.  We left downtown Rangely Colorado and headed out for Utah first.  15 Miles down the road John decided he needed more clothes so we stopped and he added an extra shirt. We traveled a route 191 from Vernal Utah to I-80 in Wyoming and this was a great ride.  It included a couple of mountain passes and the Flaming Gorge recreation area.  We were up at high elevation and it kept the temperatures cool. (I should have added extra clothes too)  We then took off on route 30 west and then on route 89 to route 30 that took us to Garden City Utah next too Bear Lake.  It appeared that all for miles around came to the lake today.  We continued on over another pass and down through a canyon which was a good ride also.  We finished the day making our way to Burley Idaho and just dodging a huge thunderstorm on I-84.  Timing is everything.  We covered 465 miles today.  Tomorrow on towards Yakima.

Alaska Day 7 part 2

John and I were up with the sun again and ready to go across Colorado.  It was once again a beautiful day and the temp only got up as high as 84 and low as 54.  A pretty big swing.  Colorado is a much more scenic state than Oklahoma was or at least the parts I saw.  We went over the Monarch pass elevation 11,312 and it was 54 degrees at the top.  (a little chilly)  We then came into Grand Junction and went to the honda shop and they actually had the part I needed in stock, hard to believe for us folks who go to the dealer and they never have it in stock.  Then we headed out for Rangely and to our surprise went across another pass and it was quite scenic also.  It was a great day and we covered another 500 miles on the way to Yakima Washington.

Alaska Day 7

Don and I were up before the sun ready to get on the road. We traveled through Indiana and stop just in Illinois for breakfast. One surprising sight in Indiana was a snow ski resort, Perfect North Slope Resort. From the looks of the hills I can't image they have much vertical drop. Indiana was great, Illinois not so much. There was a lot of road construction fortunately because of the holiday most of the DOT workers were off add it was smooth sailing through the construction zones. As we began Iowa see saw Iowa 80 the world's largest truck stop. We didn't gas up there as we had just fueled up about 20miles earlier. A surprising feature in Iowa is real gas you actual get to choose between gasohol and real gas. Real gas for me and the improved mileage as well! I thought this would be a rain free day but 15 miles from our planned stop in West Des Moines it started sprinkling. Oh well no big deal.

An added bonus to our hotel is the Good Guys National street rod meet is in town and lots of nice cars abound.

609 miles today

Alaska Day 6 part 2

This is actually day 1 for Don and I (Bruce), as we had to begin the trip later than Dave and John. We didn't have internet service last night so I'm posting a day late. We left town at 5:30am and had a great day. The sky was overcast all day with occasional sprinkles, which kept the temperatures cool ranging from the lower 60's to the lower 70's. Traffic wasn't bad at all except for the Charleston, WV area. We finished the day in Florence, KY which is just south of Cincinnati. 633 miles for the day

Alaska Day 6

Day 6 dawned early for John and I as we had a scheduled departure from Tulsa of 6:00 AM.  We said our goodbyes to Larry as he was staying at Tulsa to go to the vendors and do some shopping.  We were out and on the road on time.  I don't want to say that the panhandle og Oklahoma is long, straight and boring but I will.  John and I put in a 509 mile day just to escape Oklahoma and stop in Lamar Colorado for the night.  It was a long and hot (99 degree) day ride.  Not a lot to see as it was a lot like Kansas.  Have to figure out a way around these states.  Well that's it for today got to go eat and get some rest for tomorrows adventure through Colorado.

Alaska Day 5

After having sufficient rest from our dinner at Lambert's we headed out for Tulsa and Wing Ding.  It was a short 192 mile run to Tulsa mostly on the Oklahoma tollway.  (a very interesting pricing system)  We arrived in time to check in to the motel and have lunch prior to going to the Wing Ding site.  By the time we arived the parking lot was quite full of goldwings already.  I got my pre-registration packet and Larry registered for a day pass on Thursday.  I then went to the couple of the year selection and John and Larry went for a little ride around Tulsa and back to the room.  The selection process went well and finished ahead of time. (don't know who was selected not announced until opening ceremony).  As usual we went out to eat and wrapped up day 5.

Alaska Day 4

Day 4 was once again a great day for riding.  I (Dave) had to say goodbye to my father and set out to meet the rest of the crew to depart at 8:00 AM.  I took this chance to introduce my riding partners to some of the finer things in life that you can only get in Evansville.  They had some Lics ice cream and donut bank creme filled long johns.  I believe that they fully enjoyed each delicacy.  We covered 404 mile and arrived in Springfield MO.  We secured a hotel and proceeded to Lambert's Cafe for dinner.  This is the famed home of the throwed rolls.  John and I have both been there before but it was Larry's first time.  The food was good as always and the guys even got a chance to catch some hot rolls.  We returned to the room to sleep it off and get ready to move on to Tulsa and Wing Ding in the morning.

Alaska Day 3

Day 3 was a day of down time as Dave visited with family and John and Larry just relaxed and rode around Evansville a little.  Tomorrow it is off to Springfield Missouri and Lambert's the home of the throwed rolls.

Alaska Day 2

Day 2 started early as we were to meet my Father (Dave's) for Lunch in Evansville Indiana.  It was an other beautiful day for riding even with all of the construction on I-64 in Indiana.  We arrived at my dad's house right on time but no dad.  I finally called my dad's step daughter and she informed me that they were on Central not Eastern time so we were early.  We went and had lunch at an Amish Buffet and I had a piece of chicken and John and Larry pigged out.  Day 2 only consisted of about 250 miles but any day in the saddle and safe is a good day of riding.  It was also a historic day for Dave's bike as it rolled over 100,00 miles on I-64 West at mile marker 78 in Indiana.

Alaska Day 1

Day 1 for John and Dave started out late as Dave was late to the departure point.  Tested the new fuel cell and it worked (load off of Don's mind).  We departed and Larry joined us at the rest stop prior to Richmond.  It was a gret day for riding and we stopped a little short of our goal of Lexington Kentucky in Morehead Kentucky for about 517 miles.  Great day and were are on the way.