14th day In California!

California . . . here I am!!

Arrived Saturday around 3:30pm Ca. time (see picture to right). DonVSP's got me to 680 and then returned to Stockton for other commitments. My thanks to Kiwi and
VSP for riding to Winnemucca to meet me and bring me "home".

Got off 680 at the wrong exit. But no problem. Rode through Milpitas and took a left on El Camino Real. In about 10 minutes I was at our son and his wife's home.

Off to church in a few hours . . . for obvious reasons and to see the "church ladies" Bonnie and Marlene. Totally random that I meet them last year at church. Marlene's from Maynard, Ma. (town next to mine) and one of her
kids was born in the same hospital where I used to work in the ER.

I plan to head back east in around two weeks from this coming Monday.

12th Day Reno

Taking off today around 9:00 am for Reno.

I'm so psyched!! The two Dons and I head out after breakfast to Reno . Don's been so helpful. All the support from VROC and Manjo has been a real blessing. THEN tomorrow (God
willing) I'll be Sunnyvale!!!

I'm in the motorcycle parking garage at the Silver Legacy Casino
in Reno. DonVSP's radiator boiled over on the Beemer just as we pulled
in. He's got to drain the air out of his engine before he can put coolant in his radiator. So we'll be
staying somewhere on the road. Don found out it was the fan and the dealer took one off another bike and put it on Don's bike. Great dealer. We're staying in Minden, NV tonight.























Here are some some casino pics.






Tip: McDonald's in Lovelock, Nev. has "senior"
sodas: 51cents for a small. Saw lots of locomotives today.

11th Day Leaving Salt Lake City

Great Salt Lake leaving SLA on the way to Wendover, NV.

Duke (Ron Bennet, SLC, UT area) rode with me form SLC to Wells.
(More text coming later to fill in the blanks). ON the way to Winnemucca, NV and Basque food with Don VSP and Kiwi!


It was a very hot ride from SLC to Winnemucca. The heat
wouldn't been so terrible except that it was compounded by the heat
coming off the damn engine of the Street Bob!

Last night we went to The Martin in downtown Winnemucca for Basque
food. All the sides are served family style. A guy sitting our table
was from St. Anthony Newfoundland. It was totally surprised that
Manjo and I had been there twice and that I knew where his town was
and that we had been there.

Dinner in Winnemucca, NV at the Martin Basque Restaurant: Don, Lil Doc, and Kiwi.

10th Day

Leaving Rock Springs, WY on the way to Salt Lake City.
Up at 6 AM and getting gasoline.

Tuesday - August 25th - 9th Day Near Rock Springs WY

Thankfully the bike is OK! High altitude, strong head winds, and a

heavy hand on the throttleall contributing to poor MPH. I stayed

at a really nice/new Quality Inn in Laramie Monday night. The

manager - Annette - has a "soft spot" in her heart for bikers. I asked

her this Tuesday AM if there was a Dunkin Donuts nearby so I could

get the shop guys some donuts. No DD and I'd have to go back into

town to a local bakery. So I asked if I could buy a dozen donuts from

her. She didn't have a dozen left after breakfast. So she gave me a plate

full of homemade brownies that she was going to put out later in the

day. Totally blew me away. Shop guys loved them.

Met a guy in the gas station in Laramie who was from the North End
( Boston). Said he lived on Hanover St.

Meet a guy yesterday who was on a Wing and doing

an Iron Butt from Downers Grove, Il. to Laramie,
Wy. and back. He lives very close to where my folks

lived. 6 degrees of separation?

Took 130 out of Laramie - Thanks to suggestion from Utemike.

Rode through Centennial, Saratoga, high plains, the mountains

and Medicine Bow National Forest. Some - but not much- snow

on themountains. Absolutely beautiful. Saw antelope. Lots of

good twisties and switchbacks. A few pics from Rt. 130:

Roadside monument (between eastbound and

westbound I 80) near Laramie.

Hit a few periods of rain on I-80. Nothing terrible.
It looked like it had really poured earlier - puddles along

theshoulder of the road. In Rock Springs tonight. Plan to take

a fewmore rides through the mountains on my way to SLC.

Having dinnerthere tomorrow night w Utemike and his wife.

Going to meet up with DonVeryShortPerson and Kiwi Don on

Thursday. Ron B. is going to ride with me from SLC to Wendover

on Thursday morning. I really appreciate all the support I've

received from you VROC guys - most especially MANJO.

Monday - August 24th -8th Day on the Road

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/ithaca/

Picture taken of rear view mirror at dawn filling up in NOrth Platte, NE. Left DesMoines about 8:15 yesterday. Stopped in Kearney, NE last night. I probably could have gotten to North Platte but figured SW. So that was about 382 miles. A couple from Ill. (She dyes her hair and became a RN at 50 - yes the gift continues!) estimated wind at about 25mph.
Stopped at westbound exit 442 in Ne. for gas and a snack (BTW there's a Cabela's
there. I didn't go in.). The stop is called Fantasty Island. Clean, all
kinds of nice "looking" fresh fruits, salads, sandwiches, and baked
goods. Got a huge decafe with lots of milk. Slugged almost all of it
back before I stopped to "savor" it. The freaking milk was sour. I
guess the fantasy is the milk will be fresh! As Manjo predicted, I hit
"road mopes" today. Seemed like so much flat, open space and so much
more to go. But I had a few chats with myself reminding myself that I've
been wanting to do something like this since I was a kid and I'm
totally blessed to be able to do it now.
Hope to make Cheyenne WY today before the rains hit.

Made it to Laramie to get in line tomorrow morning at the dealer to have the trike checked. Poor mileage and gas gauge not working. Might just be poor gas.

Sunday, August 23rd - 7th Day On the Road

Spent the night in DesMoines, IA. Up and out as a reasonably early time.

The guy that took this pic - Joey - big (6 feet tall) HVAC/Harley dude from OK - was complaining to the front desk folks while I checking out this morning how tired and achy he was. The bike in the background is his. He flew to Minn to pick it up. Very cool bike but no windshield or speedo. Windshield wouldn't have made any difference. I feel great and am ready to hit the road!

Saturday, august 22nd - 6th Day on the Road

At the mighty Mississippi River on the Davenport, IA side. I'm at a roadside rest area with a nice gift shop and a couple of motels. Manjo and I stayed here last year when we caged it across I-80. There are several nice riverside restaurants around here. Manjo got a catfish dinner around here last time.

Friday, 21st - 5th Day on Road

Stopped for the night in Joliet, IL. I might have gotten to Moline, IL

but big winds reminiscent of a trip Manjo and I made across the Canadian

prairies several years ago. Special thanks to MaD MiKe for his offer of

roadside support if needed.

All packed and ready to go Saturday morning (around 7am)

Shooting for Des Moines, IA tomorrow.

September 18th - 2nd Day on the road.

Stopped in Youngstown on Tuesday b/c of the weather. Didn't realize how hard it had rained until (after checking in) I took my Aerostitch jacket off and found water in the unzipped pockets. Staying here in Youngstown, OH for a day or two until all the heavy rain passes or slows down. Been like this at least once a day the last two days. Tornadoes and in the surrounding area, but luckily not right here. I ended up spending several days here. Dodging hail and being on alert for tornadoes didn't seem like much fun on a motorcycle!

After First Day on the Road

I finally left on Monday the 17th. Manjo rode with me to Danbury (Conn). I had lunch with Badger in Mt. Cobb, Pa.

A few pics of Badger and LilDoc.

Stopped that night in Bloomsburg, Pa. Overslept in Bloomsburg, PA.

Views from the lawn of the motel in Gouldsborough, Pa.

On the road a little late. Aiming for Youngstown, OH. Trying to beat the rain. My thanks to 2soon for his support.