On the road!!

[DiverRay]

Well,
It's time to go once again! This time, I'll be towing the MNS a LOT of the way, not riding the 3K miles. SWMBO and I are heading out about noon today, and will be in Barstow the first night. We then go to Lost Wages for two nights at Harra's. After that, it will be a short drive to Zion Nat. Park for two day's camping. I plan on riding the MNS to the North Rim on one day, From there, it's up to the Grand Junction area for a night. I'm looking forward to seeing motoman and Jerry again! My travel from there to Santa Fe, NM will depend on what Jerry has to say. I've not been in that part of the country so I'll defer to the local experts!
We will spend two nights in Santa Fe, or actually Los Alamos. It's a 30 minute ride down to Santa Fe, and an excuse to ride some great roads. After the two day stay, we will head West once again to Scottsdale, AZ and my cousins place. We will be there for about two days and then head back to the coast. I'm not sure if anyone will be around on parts of this trip, but if you see a Silver Honda Accord towing a "Radio Flyer" with a MNS onboard, it's me! I'd love to talk with some of the owners, so don't be afraid to post or look for me!
I will update as I can, and yes, I WILL post some pictures.

[motoman]

You and SWMBO have a great time, be safe, and watch out for ALL the hazardous drivers AND riders out there.

Brant

[Wildkat]

and worst of all... the gambling tables... can't forget those hazards...


Y'all have a great time!
looking forward to your report...

[madmax-im]

Yeah have a great trip and watch out for those one armed banditos in Lost wages..LOL sure do miss the West myself...spent 15 years in Tucson. Thats where I learned to ride street bikes and my first road trips were thru Ariz,NM,Colo, and Utah..God's Country

[XJOK2PLAY]

Ray,
Hope you have a safe, "profitable", and fun-filled trip!

I'll look forward to your pics!

Bob

[Silent]

Enjoy the trip

[3Phase]

And you're already on the road so, "Watch out for those one-armed bandits and card sharps in Nulvada!" is a bit late.

Have fun and ride safe!


Regards,

Scott

[Crazcnuk]

"I'll be towing the MNS a LOT of the way"


OMG!! The XS will be soooo embarrassed, being treated like a Hardley....

[trbig]

Zion National Park is a great place... BUT... I have been all over the U.S. and have NEVER seen any place that has a higher concentration of deer that LOVE to just hang out in the middle of the roads in groups of several dozen. When you lock up the brakes and lay on the horn.. they stand there looking at you.. which is the only reason I got to get through them without wiping out the front end. There was a restaurant just outside the west/south entrance to the park with at least 20 vehicles lined up in the parking lot with wiped out front ends. The waitress told us they were all from deer strikes in the park.

So... beware of Bambi's revenge!!


Tod

[DiverRay]

Well,
We are in Lost Wages, NV. we have just about been even on gambling, had a good meal at the Rio, and a good ride!
We rode out to Red Rock BLM site, and had a good time on the ride. We should have left a little earlier in the day, as it was HOT out there. The scenery is great and the roads are good. It was a "free" day at the park, so there was no charge for the bike! Saved a whole $2.00!! That is about 1 minute in a quarter slot machine, and just a partial bit towards a bet on the blackjack table.

The photo is the car , trailer, and bike in Barstow, on Route 66! We spent the night there, and are now in Vegas. We will leave in the morning for Zion, and on Tuesday will ride out to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon! I am
looking forward to the "glass walk" that you can take over the rim, looking down about 3,000 feet or more to the floor. I'll see how well the camera work on the photo's, as it will be close to what I saw just as I jumped
from the C141 in the Army.
If you would like to look over the pictures, they are at: http://www.rjmatteis.com/images/motorcycle/IMGP1288.JPG . That is the first picture, and they go up from there. So far, I'm to 1350! These are all the FULL SIZE pictures, and have NOT been shrunk as I did with the one I posted. They are about 3 to 4 MEG per photo, so please keep that in mind if you are on a dial-up network.

[Special Ed]

Hey Ray, you left just as all hell broke loose here: Bonnie Doone is on fire. It made the national news, so maybe you are aware of it.
Scott called me, concerned. I told him I was alive and well. He then said that there was an Oregon meet planed for September, and that he, (they) are coming through here in September on their way to Oregon. Sounds like a ride op to me. Visit my thread "I'm alive thank you very much!"
Meanwhile, be advised that Santa Fe / Taos has a reputation of having the hottest Mexican food in all of Hispaniola. Beware the Habaniero peppers!
Hope you untrailer your bike and let it breath that high mountain, ratified air. Keep the rubber side down.
Special Ed.

[DiverRay]

Ed,
Thanks for the concern about the peppers! I actually LIKE Habaniero peppers!
Yes, they are hot, but have a really nice berry flavor. SWMBO and I just arrived in NM today! Had a GREAT visit with motoman and Jerry in Colorado.

Jerry and I in front of his garage.
Zion National Park was a great two days. the geology there is nice, but the temps were TOO high! The trip from Grand Junction to Santa Fe was a great drive! We took two days for it. As it's late, I'll post more later!

[DiverRay]

Well, The trip was nice up to today!! Rode down to Santa Fe, for the yearly Indian market. had a great time walking around and viewing all the blankets, sculptures, jewelry, and everything else. About 3:00pm, walked back to the bike, reached for my key, and it was not there! SWMBO had a spa afternoon set up, and I was the ride there!
After five hours of looking, talking with police and security, came back to the hotel in a cab. CSAA is NOT on my "good" list as of now!! I was waiting almost four hours before they called me back and said, "sorry, California State Automobile Association will NOT pay for a tow for your motorcycle. It will cost you $10 PER MILE if you want to have your bike towed back to White Rock, NM." This after waiting to find they could NOT find a local locksmith to make a key, and they first said they WOULD put the bike on a flatbed to get it back to the hotel.
So after about five hours and $110 for a cab, I'm back in the hotel. I'll be taking the car and trailer down to Santa Fe in the morning, load up the bike after I break the fork lock, and haul it home. NOT a happy ending for me, but the key CAN be replaced.......

[oseaghdha]

I think we've all learned a valuable lesson here.

Tough break Ray.

I always have a spare key in my wallet.
I keep spares for the fairing and disk lock in the tool kit.

[DenyP]

That sucks Ray! I've been there. I always carry a spare in my wallet now.

Deny