Monday, July 14

Leaving Memphis early this morning, around 6am. The Saturday and Sunday in Memphis were hot and humid. Temps were in the mid 90's. thank goodness for Blake's air conditioned car when we were driving around, and for AC at his house! This Monday was forecast to be even hotter. Packing up the bike at 6 was already uncomfortably hot.

Today was going to be another travelling kind of day, because my hopeful destination was Denton, TX. quite a ways off, where another Internet friend from the motorcycle sohc4 forum had offered me a spare bedroom for the night. After watching the soccer World Cup (yeah, Germany!) on TV on Sunday, the big local weather news was a cold front coming through late in the day on Monday with potentially severe weather, and I wanted to avoid that. It wasn't to be.

I drove through Little Rock, AR. before lunch on I40, then continued on to enter Texas at Texarkana on I30. These interstate highways were not very crowded, and I was making good miles. At Texarkana, there was a welcome center and rest stop. I found some shade to park the bike in near some grass where I could lay down for a few minutes. Fatigue on a motorcycle is something to be mindful of, and frequent breaks, at least for me, are important. After a rest, I went back to the bike, and noticed some oil on the stator cover. (Like an alternator on a car, it creates electricity to keep the battery charged.) looking more closely, I saw that all 3 screws holding the Honda plate on, had vibrated loose but very luckily had not completely fallen out. I tightened them up, and off I went again. 

Today was the hottest day so far. Temp reached 100F.

MI had made good time/progress to that point, so instead of the interstate, I chose a more interesting parallel road #67, that went through communities along the way. 

The storm front that was forecast was indeed on a collision course with me, but initially the active weather cell was more to the north. I stopped for gas at sulphur springs and checked my phone.John, my host for that night warned me of bad weather in Denton. I kept heading towards the on-coming front, hoping for a road north into a clearing between 2 storm cells. There was no such road,soas the rain started, I turned around 180 degrees to keep from getting wet. I made several turns in attempt to dodge the active storm cells but they eventually converged andcorneredme.Seeingnowhereoutand with the raindrops starting, I put on my rain pants and jacket. 

Even moderate rain on a motorcycle is not a big deal. With rain gear, the rider still usually gets wet, but its only water. The danger is with extreme downpours, hail, and lightning.The rain wasbecoming heavier and I heard thunder, so I knew I had to find somewhere to hole up in while the storm passed. In my attempt to dodge the storm cells, I ended up in the countryside and there were justnotowns around.To make matters worse, I saw several lightning bolts, too close for comfort. I rode along pretty desperate for shelter. I rounded a corner and there it was: a church with a covered drive through entrance.All that was missing was a shaft of sunlight and a choir of angels! I was saved! I took shelter there as the storm worsened  in both rain and lightning. 

Here's John in front of his cb750 that he built from parts! He buys and restores these Hondas. That's his cool land rover in the back.

Tuesday, July 15

As I said, after breakfast (which I attempted to pay for!) John directed me out of Denton on 380 to Jacksboro, then 281 to Wichita Falls, then 278 to Amarillo. Along the way I saw my first Texas oil derrick, cactus plants, and roadrunner bird.

Wednesday, July 16

On the TV weather forecast last night, there was another afternoon storm front to consider. That would be the factor that would influence me to head north, straight into Colorado, instead of west. Iaskedthe motel clerk about the Cadilac Ranch. Yes, it's just ahead, west on I40. Also in that direction are sections of the old Route 66. These 2 considerations outweighed the weather concern, andIdecided that I would be heading west into New Mexico and having Santa Fe as my next destination. I hoped that I would not end up regretting that decision.

The Cadillac Ranch was a dud. It was located on the other side of the highway. I would have had to drive past and double back in order to reach it. It did not look that impressive from what I saw,soIcontinued on. Finding Route 66 sections was fantastic and more than made up for that disappointment. The old route ran parallel to I40 for about 60 miles west of Amarillo. Every few milestherewereRoute 66 road stencils. This road was so lightly travelled, I was able to stop my bike in the lane, get off, and take pictures.

The change in landscape was exhilarating. It's a kind of place I've never been to before so it feels like a grand adventure. And I know it will only get better as I'm just on the fringe of it. 

No. The weather missed me this time, and wreaked havoc farther south in Albuquerque, where I decided not to go. I'm safe and sound, and dry, in a Santa Fe Motel 6, thank you very much!

For dinner tonight, I took a chance on a Mexican food truck. Tasted pretty good, except that I told him that I liked my food spicy, and it wasnt. I'll let you know how things go tomorrow. ;)

Tomorrow I anticipate riding into my first mountains west of the Mississippi River, into Colorado. I "plan" to head north on 285 to Alamosa, 160 to Walsenburg, then 25 to Colorado Springs where I hope to meet up with Jerry, a fellow Honda sohv4 forum member.

Some of you may be interested in seeing what I packed in terms of tools and parts:

Thursday, July 17

Woke up at 5:30. No problem with the mexican food from the food truck. :)

Continuing in this vein of perhaps too much information, I have had no problems to date with "monkey butt", an uncomfortable irritation afflicting long distance motorcycle riders in hot conditions.

Cool morning. Headed 285 north

Landscape became more arid, rock/boulder/gravel mountains, mainly red with colour end striations. Looked like the southwest landscapes I'd seen in pictures, but in person, they were jaw-dropping lay beautiful.

Saw many houses built in the traditional pueblo adobe mud brick style. It just seemed that the inside of those structures would be cooler than those with the building style we use.

Speaking of cool, I was feeling chilly all day. First time ever on my trip that I wasn't feeling warm or hot. 

And here was this character. I commented on how cool the bar was. He seemed friendly and we talked for a while about the history of the bar.  Then he asked where I was from.

Me: I'm from near Toronto, Canada.

Him: Speak some Canadian. How do you say, "Have a good day,"?

Me: Well, I have been speaking Canadian with you, and we also say, "Have a good day,"

Him: Jeez, I can't understand a word you're saying!

What a joker.

As I rode into Colorado, the landscape became more mountainous and less arid. The mountainsides were completely green, covered by conifer trees. Quite the contrast to the southwest arid look. Many vistas had a European alps look.

Man, people drive fast. The speed limit along curvey mountain roads with no guard rails and drop offs that would certainly be fatal, was in many stretches 65 mph, which is faster than we are allowed to drive on the 401, Ontario's primary controlled access expressway. And 65 wasn't fast enough for some, who were doing 80.

I took road 24 through parkland drive, where I stopped to say hello to Chris, a sohc4 member, who had offered me a place to stay, months before while I was still "planning" my trip. We discussed why my bike's power was diminishing and why his newly rebuilt bike, a cb550, fouled its plugs within a few miles. The culprit is altitude. The thinner air at 7,000 feet causes the fuel/air mixture created by the carburators to ignite in the cylinders to be too rich to burn well.

I continued on into Colorado Springs to Jerry's house. You guessed it, a sohc4 motorcycle forum member. During the evening, we looked at maps and he offered many westerly route suggestions based on much motorcycle travel in this area. We also discussed the effect of altitude on engine performance, and I was happy to have an explanation that didn't involve problems with the mechanics of my bike, just the carburator jet set-up.

Strong coffee, yum!

Jerry drove me to an auto parts store to buy oil for an oil change. Only about 3300 miles since the last one I did just before my trip, but they have been long, hard, hot miles. Chain lube and tire pressure done.

Here's Jerry! A happily divorced guy with all the toys, including dual weber dual barrel carbs (thats what he's holding, in case you weren't sure) for his other project bike in the basement. The blue bike is one he bought new back in the '70's.

Instead of the input current to the coils travelling through the points, Mark's invention uses more robust electronic components to handle this high current and transforms the points into relay switches that operate on a mere 1/10 amp. This way, the points will last pretty much forever, and the electric pulses sent to the spark plugs are consistently strong. The bike runs better, I felt that right away, and I just spent 6 hours on it, riding from Denver to Craig, CO.

Saturday, July 19

Early start again, chilly morning. I put on an extra long sleeved t-shirt.

Bonus! The motel offers bananas, bagels with cream cheese or peanut butter, and coffee (although with powdered creamer.)

I'm riding along #40, the northern part of Colorado. I've been told that the southwestern corner of the state is the best. Oh, well. Will have to come back. :)

Leaving Colorado and entering Utah, I realize that I did not take advantage of colorado's recreational use pot law. And I've always wanted to try smoking pot, legally. Oh, well. Will have to come back. :)

In the picture below, you can see the pic i took, and where i stopped. I did the top pic in medium format black and white, too, (without my finger in the frame.)

I haven't mentioned yet that it turned into a very hot day. 

The ignition module I got yesterday has also improved my gas mileage by 4 or 5 mpg, from in the high 30's to the low 40's.

So, I called it an early day after about 350 miles. I'm in Nephi for a single night in Utah.

4000 miles total so far

Tucked in for the night.

The reason for 2 of each, is 2-fold: redundancy in case of breakage, and for a normal and wide angle option. 

My buddy in Memphis gave me the little Olympus while I visited him on this trip, which I'm using surprisingly a lot, for snapshots with film.