Pancakes for breakfast and then it is time to look at the cruise control. Vicki has problems with her internet connection and she calls up the provider. They decide that a service call is needed so if they show up today maybe I can post this on the same day. Doug decides that the cruise control needs to be looked at by a Harley dealer so he goes to the dealer and Tom follows in a car so that if the bike needs to be left overnight Doug will have a way back to the house. I take the top off of my trailer so that one of Tom's friends can weld it tonight. Vicki is going to the dentist so Linda, Patsi and I are staying inside away from the humidity and the mosquitoes. But eventually one must go outside and the bloodsucking mosquitoes are waiting. And while you are fighting off the mosquitoes the chiggers are going after your feet and legs. In the evening the mosquitoes are even more aggressive and of course that is when I am putting the top back on the trailer. Two of Tom and Vicki's grandchildren are here for the weekend and Vicki has to take them home before we eat. Tom has bought some beautiful steaks which he grills outside and they taste as good as they look. And of course the internet repair person never does show up nor does he call to let us know he won't be there.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Armadillos on the Toll Roads
Monday 5-30-11
The wind is still blowing and beating the tents down to the ground. Terry & Joyce's tent is pretty well flat on the ground. Ours had 2 stakes pulled from the ground and one of the tent poles had popped off of the pin that holds it. And the wind is still blowing. Wayne & Calleen and Terry & Joyce are going to go straight east on the highway and go to Arkansas while Doug & Patsi, Linda and I are going to take a tollroad northeast that we will turn onto about 125 miles east of the campground. We decide to stop for breakfast in 20 or 30 miles and Wayne is leading the way. We saw several trees along I-40 that were completely uprooted, we assume that the wind was the cause. We keep going by restaurants and finally we reach the toll road without ever stopping for breakfast. Doug and I turn off while the others keep going. We don't know if they ever did stop for breakfast. By now we are in the green area of Oklahoma which means that we start seeing armadillos. Lots and lots of armadillos, all of them are dead and on the side of the road. As far as I know there is no such thing as a live armadillo and there are also no dead ones in the road, only on the side. We finally stopped for gas and got a breakfast sandwich at the Subway shop at the gas station. The toll road is still going straight east but we are in rolling hills with lots of trees blocking us from the wind so it is easier riding. And so it goes, from one toll booth to another until we finally arrive at Missouri. We are on Highway 44 which goes right by the city of Joplin which just had a very bad tornado destroy much of the town. We see some damage along the highway and to highway signs but the damage to the town was not visible from the highway. The next major town is Springfield and then it is 60 more miles to our friends Tom & Vicki Mooney's house where we will spend a couple of days. In Springfield Doug's cruise control starts giving problems and then his speedometer starts acting up as well. This is a problem for him as he has a damaged right wrist and relies on his cruise control. Tomorrow we will have to see if we can get it fixed and I will have to see if someone can weld my trailer bracket. But at least we are out of the wind which has been replaced by a high pollen count which is not good if you have allergies. Linda and I have had to clean out our eyes with eye drops once already. Finally we arrive at Tom & Vicki's house. They have burgers and hot dogs ready to cook on the grill. Lots of stories are told, some of them may even be partially true. We enjoy our meal and sleep like logs
The Winds of Texas Are Upon You (Oklahoma Too)
Sunday 5-29-11
After seeing the start of the Monaco Grand Prix we leave the house at 7 AM heading east on I-40. There were 4 bikes and 8 people, all except Linda and I were from Utah. Doug & Patsi and Wayne & Calleen on Harleys and Terry & Joyce on a Goldwing. All of us were pulling a trailer behind our bikes. 4 bikes with trailers completely filled the garage. Today is supposed to be a very windy day in New Mexico and unfortunately the weatherman was right. But the wind was behind us and we were getting very good gas mileage until we got to Texas. Then the wind was from the south and it was very strong even for Texas. We had stopped in Santa Rosa,NM for breakfast where Calleen was introduced to Huevos Rancheros. Just before Amarillo, TX we stopped to see the Cadillacs buried nose first in the ground. You could walk south to see them from the road but that would be against the wind and the sandstorm so we decided not to make the walk. By the time we reached Oklahoma we were tired from fighting the wind which continuously became stronger. We were going to a campground about 125 miles into Oklahoma but when we reached one only 50 miles into the state everyone decided that it was time to stop. The lady at the campground gave us a spot for our tents that was supposed to be sheltered against the wind. NOT! It was difficult to set up the tents in the wind and we all had to help each other by holding the tent against the wind while the others put it together. I opened my trailer to get the tent out and the wind caught the lid of the trailer and snapped one of the steel brackets that act as a hinge. I will have to have that welded when we reach Missouri. Of course the wind would die down during the night. NOT! It never stopped all night long. The tents would be flattened and then pop back up only to repeat the process all night long. Finally Terry & Joyce's tent decided not to pop back up. None of us got much sleep that night. This was my third time at this campground and I had forgotten that the highway traffic was very loud and of course the wind was blowing it right to us.
Friday, May 27, 2011
2 Days Before Departure
The plan was to leave today with our friends Doug and Patsi Hendrickson from Utah. We would be going to see our friend's in Missouri Tom and Vicki Mooney. But Doug and Patsi were delayed and now our departure day is Sunday. Naturally that day is scheduled to have very high winds in New Mexico. Normally the winds will come from the west which would give us a tailwind but my guess is that they will shift against us just for spite. Across the Texas panhandle they will probably be from the south causing us to ride at an exaggerated lean angle just to go straight. At Oklahoma City we want to go northeast so we naturally expect winds from the north at that time. You may call this pessimism, I call it experience! After visiting Tom and Vicki I hope to go to Memphis and ride south on the Blues Highway http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Route_61 to Natchez, Mississippi and then ride the Natchez Trace to Nashville, TN. http://www.nps.gov/natr/index.htm However there have been many tornadoes this year and if the weather is conducive to tornado formation our plans will change immediately. And from this comes the blog name "Tornadoes or the Mississippi Blues". We will do the Mississipi Blues unless there is a chance of Tornadoes. I will be planning alternate routes today and tomorrow just in case. We also plan on camping on this trip so it makes sense? to leave on a holiday weekend when all of the campgrounds will probably be full. As you can see this trip will be full of opportunities for us to practice our ability to adapt.
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