So Cal

 I'm Finally going on a ride! 

My bike has been sitting for 2 1/2 months, the longest time one of my bikes has sat unridden...unless I was deployed that is. This 'sabbatical' was entirely self inflicted.

But then we had this ride planned for the week before Christmas and the time has at at long last arrived.

So Sunday (with plenty of snow on the ground) Will and I loaded our bikes on the trailer and headed south.

We will stay in Indio, California. With us is Beverly and Will's youngest daughter Addi.

For our first ride we buzz over to Salvation Mt. Sad to say two things, 1 - my cell camera was on a wrong setting...and I didn't notice it until later. 2 - The Salvation Mt attraction has changed, and not for the better IMHO...  Maybe the next time I go I'll see it differently but there was more commercialization there than the last time I visited. 

Leaving Salvation Mt we rode around the south end of the Salton Sea and....

Came upon this numerous sculptures outside

Bev and Addi

Bev, Will, and Addi

Will and Bev at our lodging

Amboy, Ca

One of two lions....alone and miles away from anything else.

Will and I also took a ride through Joshua Tree NP.

Plenty of cacti!

It was great fun to travel with these two!

And all to soon our time is up. We load the bikes on the trailer again and make the ten hour drive home - the next morning we have our annual Christmas Eve day breakfast at our house. 20 family members were able to come and enjoy some food and good times together.

Life is good, families are good, motorcycles are also good!

RC track I (no bike content)

Our youngest son, Theron, bought an RC car.....pretty soon everyone in the family was buying them. 

We bought two and then I decided I needed to make a track at our house.

 

We have a wall in the basement that is just begging for some attention...so I start the project, not really knowing what I'm doing.

I watched some online videos about RC tracks, but didn't see anything like what I had in mind. 

The one thing they all emphasized was they made their track on a budget.

Challenge accepted, and I started gathering all my scrap wood and parts.

I install the cleats to give me an idea of what it will look like.

Then I start adding the shelf material. I bought the composite flooring at a thrift store for $10 for a package. I was able to buy a 4'X8' 1/4" underlayment at a big box for $5.00 as a corner has a small amount of damage. Then I cut the sheet to 4 lengths of 11" 'shelving'.  And the 12" x 8' length of shelving I actually found on the side of the road... no really! So far so good on the budget!

I have some hinges in my hardware bin, so I design the track so I can change the layout as wanted.

The cars need to get from one level to the next so I make an 'elevator'... it works pretty darn good. I had hoped to power it with the car and pulleys, but the little RC cars just didn't have the traction to turn the pulley.

I continue to add obstacles...watch out for the Killer dog!!

A suspension bridge is in order...several twigs off a tree in the back yard, add some twine and wood glue and you have a very nice bridge!

The track still isn't done....and it probably will never be 'done' as I keep seeing new things to do. 

This is a video on Rumble of the track.

I hope you enjoy it!

https://rumble.com/vo68xi-rc-indoor-crawler-track.html

Or the youtube link

(available on 29 Oct)

https://youtu.be/tFaALrqcrTE

Haulin to and home from Oregon

Middle son, Fenton has landed a new job for the Oregon Air National Guard. So he and his family are making the move to Seaside. 

Despite the fact that I'm not happy they are going so far away  I offer to help with the move.

So we toss my bike into the U-Haul truck for the trek to Oregon. I'll drive one of their cars to the new house, then when we get the truck unloaded in Seaside I'll ride the bike home.

The sunset on the way to Oregon, taken through a bug spattered windshield.

We stop at Camp 18 a few miles outside of Seaside for some leg stretching.. Its a pretty cool place.

Apparently more counter weight was needed on this truck. They welded extra frame on the front, stuck a Caddy motor on it, and ran a drive shaft back through the original engine and on to the tranny and pto.

The bike (and household goods) transport.

We stayed here while waiting for the laborious process of the closing..

Its a nice place to stay, but the waiting and waiting drove us nuts!

Still waiting....so we go to lunch.

Clam "chadA"

It's a good plan and when the house FINALLY closes, we unload the truck. Kudos to his new co-workers several of whom showed up to help! They tore into that truck and it was soon empty...lucky for me... I as I was quickly running out of gas! 

And the new house!

So in two days I depart for home.

Obligatory pic with bike...

Cool covered bridge

I stop in Bend for a couple of days. 

Looking off the deck.

The weather has cooled a bit and I really didn't pack for the cooler temps....that's ok, at least I packed my 'lectric vest and I wore my raingear....so I survived...

I drew a smiley in the frost....

Another stop in Ontario and then I made it home.

Cold weather be darned, I'm very glad I was able to go over and help with the move. I'm excited to go back and see the house when it is all moved in and arranged!

The Four Corners of the U.S. - intro

 I didn't start riding seriously until I was around 43 years old. 

Yes... I had a Suzuki TS 125 in my mid 20s that I put about 5K on, but then kids came along and bikes got put waaaay down on the priority list....in fact they weren't even on the list at all.

Me on the TS...I had just ridden through a canal and got some water in the intake... One of my sons in the red jacket. 

Then, in my 4th decade, several buddies started buying bikes - Goldwings and Beemers being the most popular. 

After hearing them talk about their bikes, and the riding they were doing...the motorcycle bug bit....HARD....and I joined in the fun with a well used Goldwing 1200 (no pic), 

then a short time later I got a little nicer GL 1200 and rode it for a year

(22,000 miles)

and then yet another wing that I rode for two years, this time a beautiful GL1500.

(60,000 miles)

At that point, I had surrendered to the 'moto-illness' and every spare moment was spent on the bike riding .......somewhere....anywhere it didn't matter where I was going as long as I was riding!

It was in year two of this moto-madness that I got wind of a ride called;

"Four Corners of the US"

Which is sponsored by the SCMA aka:

Southern California Motorcycle Association;

sc-ma.com

That ride....sounded like SO MUCH FUN and even though I KNEW I would enjoy it it seemed like a pipe dream...I really didn't think I would ever have a chance to do a 4 corners ride. 

....and then....

22 years and 473,000 motorcycle miles later I'm getting my chance!

And this is how it will happen:

For our annual family trip, we are going to Steamboat Springs, Colorado for three days.

The families will all drive over, and I'll ride.

When it is time to return home, instead of riding west into the setting sun, I'll go east toward Maine where I'll start my 4 corners ride. 

On the way to Maine, I'll do two of the 15 US Best. 

One in Ohio, another in Acadia NP, Maine, and also during the 4 corners I'll ride the Blue Ridge Parkway for my 15th road. 

(Fast forward to the end of family vaca......) 

And (I think) the family had a great time.  I know I did!

Will, Luke, Taylor, and I took the highly recommended Buffalo pass over to Walden and enjoyed some shopping at a huge yard sale!

(Thanks Mike, the GSA rider who told me about Buffalo Pass!) 

I'm not sure who enjoyed breakfast more Millie or Poppy.

Another breakfast with some of the family and it was time for them to head home and for me to motor northeast to finish up the 15 best, and start the four corners.

Along the way I decide it would be a good idea to stop on the freeway and hang out for an hour or so in this traffic jam...

It turned out wonderfully!!...

I made my way to Little Hocking, Ohio And rode the spectacular winding, twisting, and rolling  555 with Bob and Tom. 

Bob is on the SCMA board and is in charge of the 15 US best ride. 

It was so nice of him to meet us and lead us on this ride. I was very happy to meet Bob.

Tom was in the middle of a 600-mile day and is also riding the 15 best. After the 555 he has only one more road and he'll be done. It was also a pleasure meeting, and riding with Tom.

After we went our separate ways I went to see Vase Henge in Zanesville, Ohio.

Then I stopped in Hopeland Ohio at the Memorial Honoring Fallen Riders.

I was very impressed and moved by this well-done Memorial. Because of recent storms the glass on the registration case was dust covered, so before I left I got my spray polish and a rag out of the bike and made sure to leave it shiny and clean.

Next a quick stop in Keene, New Hampshire for this photo op in front of the Parrish Shoe Company sign of the Jumanji movie fame. Several scenes were filmed in Keene.

Then, a short 10 days after leaving home, as I entered Caribou, Maine I ran into this guy. He's trying to get this bike running so his mother-in-law can sell it. 

I pushed him a looong way down the hill until we got it running. He seems like a great guy I hope it works out for them

And that's kind of an intro to the Four Corners ride. Tomorrow morning I'll go to Madawaska, Maine and visit the Four Corners Park that honors long-distance motorcycle riding. 

I'll meet with Joe LaChance who is the motivating force behind the park and then I'll start my four corners ride, riding South to Key West Florida and that will be "part one". I hope you continue reading!

See-ya in part one.

Stir the oil, Baby!