US Tour - Final Day, 19 - Vegas - Home, 28th June 2010

Our last day. We are up just after 8am. Weather, the usual. Sounds like you are having something similar at the moment. That'll be nice and cool for us when we get back!

Mission this morning was to go to Walgreen's. Couldn't have the offices going without their sweets, eh? Got a bit of breakfast, then back to the room to pack up.

All packed we checked out. Bit of a query with the bill. They wanted to charge $67 resort fee, to cover dressing gowns, papers, etc. This had been introduced after we booked last year, so that came off the bill.

Cases were left with the bell boys whilst we spent our last day on The Strip.

We headed over to the Flamingo. They have a tropical garden there, with, yes you guessed it, Flamingos. It's quite remarkable, this little piece of greenery and water is surrounded on 3 sides by massive skyscraping buildings. Besides the Flamingos they have some Koi Carp and some other big black things that can grow up to 400lbs in weight or something like that!!!

We move on, searching out the next attraction and more importantly the shade. The sun is blisteringly hot. Up to 109F/43C they reckon.

Next stop was Planet Hollywood and the Rainstorm. As usual the attraction is about 1/2 mile walk through all the casino area. As with other hotels, the ceiling is painted like the sky and shops are made to look like old buildings, these seem to be of a Morrocan influence. The Rainstorm itself is pretty disappointing. A few flashes of light on the ceiling accompanied by some bangs of thunder and water falling from the ceiling into a large pool. You'd get more water if you set off the sprinklers! After a few minutes it was over, 2/10.

We made our way back out into the heat and over to the Harley Cafe. This is quite a large diner with a small shop attached, selling t-shirts, etc. The cafe itself has all sorts of Harley/US66 memorabilia/signage on the walls but most spectacular of all it has Harleys hanging from the ceiling in cradles and a moving track, so as you sit and eat, a variety of HDs pass above your head. They have a Fat Boy. I think of David off the trip, there's a picture for him! They also have Captain America (maybe a replica), the chopper ridden by Peter Fonda in the film Easy Rider. I take some pics, then realise it's a pay to have you pic taken with it attraction. A guy comes over but we talk our way out of any possible 'situation' and leave.

We head for the MGM Grand. They have a lion sanctuary inside the hotel. Across the road is New York, New York, complete with miniature Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty. A roller coaster weaves its way through the buildings and we can hear the screams of the punters on it.

Outside the MGM is a bronze statue of a lion. Not just any old statue but the biggest thing you are ever likely to see in your life. Indeed, it claims to be the biggest bronze statue in the western hemisphere. It is huge, like everything around here. Inside, we find the lion enclosure. There is a glass roofed passageway through the middle. On top, along with a couple of trainers are two lionesses, doing what cats do best, sleeping. There is a little talk telling you about the lions and their enclosure. They have 37 in all but bus two/three in each day from the 'ranch'.

From the MGM we took a wander into New York. No attractions here, so we just had a quick look round. Themes run through most all the hotels it seems, sky painted ceilings and walkways/shops made to look like streets. These, obviously, of New York.

Time was getting on so we started our trek back towards our own hotel, stopping off on the way for a late lunch, Subway once again. We played some more slots, then popped across to McDonalds for a McFlurry. By this time it was time to head back, collect our cases and get changed into travelling clothes. That done, we spent another half hour or so playing the slots before making our way outside for our bus to the airport.

We had already checked in so it was a quick affair to get through the bag drop. Security was pretty much the same as over here, except we had to go the through the x-ray scanner, legs apart and hands above your head. Not so much as a piece of paper in your pockets! That done, shoes and belts, etc, back on we found seats at the gate and got talking to a young Dutch lad about football.  Blow me if whilst we are talking to him, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink doesn't walk up to the gate to board our aircraft. We both look at each other. He says is that JFH. I reply I'm sure it is. Cath says she's going to ask for his autograph.

We board the plane and Cath asks the stewardess is she will ask JFH if he minds giving her his autograph. A little while later, the stewardess appears with a 1st class menu, on it is written "To Catherine, Best Wishes" and JFH's signature. Cool!  Not sure what he's doing in Vegas, I guess he hasn't got any TV commitments for the world cup, else he'd be in South Africa.

Flight passes fairly uneventfully and we are at Heathrow about 14:45. By the time we clear customs, get our bags, get the tube and arrive at St Pancras it's about 2 hours later. The 16:58 high speeder gets us into Chatham just after 17:35. We decide to get a cab the short distance to Cath's, to save struggling up hill with the luggage. The driver, unlike the Americans, is less than helpful. Firstly saying he doesn't think he can get the luggage in his Vectra!, then standing and watching whilst I load it all in the back. When we arrive at Cath's I unload everything myself whilst he fumbles about trying to find change of a fiver for the £4.20 charge. In the end, although he has done nothing to earn it Cath tells him to keep the change. The drivers in the States do expect a tip but they do something to deserve it, unlike this t*sser.

We dump the luggage at Cath's, I retrieve my door keys and we then get the bus back to my place. I then drive back down to Cath's to drop her off and collect my luggage.

Back home, my US tour is finally over.

It's been a memorable 3 weeks. I have so many memories from the bike tour AND Vegas that's it's very difficult to pick a particular highlight. There's the excitement of the limo drive to the Harley dealer in Chicago to pick the bike up, the low of the Oklahoma storms, the Wild Hogs diner, baring my arse in the Mojave desert, the sheer scale of the Grand Canyon and the sense of satisfaction at having completed the ride in Santa Monica. In Vegas, the roasting temperatures, the various free shows and the size of the resorts all stand out along with the frustration the crowds caused me.

Would I do it again. The ride, maybe. maybe in reverse. Vegas, possibly but maybe when it's a bit cooler. 45C ain't much fun.

And that's it, the end of my blog. I hope it's been both informative and entertaining. I've tried to give you all a flavour of what I've been experiencing and feeling along the way. Hopefully, it's kept you entertained and not sent you to sleep.

Thanks for following me on this journey.

Neill

US Tour - Day 18 - Vegas, 27th June 2010

Barely felt like we'd been to bed. 3:50 alarm for the Grand Canyon tour. It's still dark but as we get outside it's still warm. It's quite amazing to see people on the slots at this time of day and revellers still up from the night before. Do I sound old?

Tour bus arrives about 4:55 and takes us out to Boulder airport, just outside the city. We are checked in, where we are both weighed, then given a coloured sticker to wear. Then, along with about 11 others we are called to the gate. A bus takes us a short way to a smallish aircraft. It has 3 seats across and about a foot wide gangway. They don't use the middle seat though, so everyone has a window. We belt up, put on our guide headphones, then before you know it the twin engined aircraft is in the sky. It flies out over the Hoover Dam for a photoshoot then heads out across the Mojave desert towards the west rim of the Grand Canyon. We touch down about 40 minutes later on Hulapai Indian (Native American) territory. We are transferred to a bus and then bused out to Eagle Point. This is the home of the Skywalk. For those that don't know (google it) this is a glass horseshoe shaped bridge that extends out over the edge of the canyon. We take some pictures of the canyon, then Cath and I make our way in the Skywalk entrance. We are the first. All personal belongings have to be left in a locker and we have to go through a scanner. Next we have to put overshoes on, so as not to scratch the glass. Then we are at the skywalk itself. Given Cath's fear of heights, what happens next is quite amazing. Well, next, next. First of all she steps on the glass, looks down and steps back immediately. The guy there points out that the rock is only 10 feet below. We then both move out onto the glass, Cath leading the way. I'm so proud of her. We move out over the glass and look down at the rocks below. There is a photographer with us and he tells us the floor is 3000ft below. The scale of things here means you lose perspective. Cath knows it's a long way down but it's not that apparent, so she's OK. We catch a sight of the Colorado river. It is, apparently, 3 miles away. Again it doesn't appear that far away. Cath even manages to sit down on the glass and look down. By the time we come off it, last to do so from our party, she is a little shakey but she has achieved something quite remarkable for someone with her fear.

We take a few more snaps and catch a bus to Guano Point. Named after 'bat turds' we are told. Here we have our breakfast, for me that's shredded beef and rice, Cath, corn, rice and vegetables. Whilst we're eating we are visited by an Albert squirrel. It's a bit bigger than a grey, with a redish back, almost matching the red rock.  

We walk out onto an outcrop and take some more photos, then we catch the coach back to the airport terminal. The flight back is a little shorter than going, as they bypass the Hoover Dam. We touch down and are transferred to the terminal building, then onward to our hotel. Back in the room and TV on, Argentina are beating Mexico and the commentator makes a statement about how will they cope with Germany. I guess we lost then. Later the humiliation becomes clear.

Cath takes a nap whilst I catch up with the blog and uploading photos. We then get ready to go out. We have a rendezvous planned with the destruction of Atlantis in the Caesar's Forum. It seems like you are walking for miles inside before you reach the spot. We take up our positions and wait. The show itself is quite stunning. Animatronic figures wave swords at each other, then dancing waters and flames ensue. Finally a beast appears to swallow everything up and there is darkness.

That over with we step into the Cheesecake Factory for our dinner. I have a blue cheese burger and fries, Cath an omelette with potato cubes and tomato. It's decent enough grub and reasonably priced. We leave there to do the rounds of the Caesar's Palace and Bellagio. The latter having a botanical garden, with real flowers and olive trees but in the setting of a giant garden. There are massive bronze ants, a huge flower pot and trowel and other creatures such as ladybirds and bees. Out of the Bellagio we stop to watch the dancing waters once more. Unfortunately some loud yank girl stands next to Cath and insists on bellowing down her ear. As the music begins Cath asks her if we can listen to the music, she replies we can hear it. Cath's retort is short and to the point, "not with your mouth, we can't" That quietens her down a bit.

Finally we make our way back to The Mirage and watch the volcano erupting again (we saw it the previous night), this time from the road side. It's better but still not up to some of the other free shows we've seen.

We head inside and do a few more slots. I win $10 on a roulette machine, then promptly lose $5 on a blackjack machine. We make our way to bed.

Tomorrow is our last day. I have checked us onto our flight, so we can guarantee sitting together. The flight is scheduled for 20:40, so we still have most of the day to do some more sightseeing, even after we've packed.

The next and final blog will be from back in the UK.

Neill

US Tour - Day 17 - Vegas, 26th June 2010

Bit of a lie in today. It's Strip day. Weather is starting to get really boring now, hot, hot, hot.

We venture out into the sun and head across the street to Walgreens. It's a Boots like offshoot of Walmart. It's probably the only place on the Strip that you can buy anything 'normal'. Most other shops are boutique shops. We'll be back later to make some purchases but for now we make our way into the Venetian hotel.

Once again we are hit by the wow factor. As we step through the doors we are met with a ceiling covered in Michael Angelo type paintings. Wandering through, the ceiling changes to one of blue sky and fluffy white clouds. At this point shops down the walkways become old venetian style buildings. It's really quite a good effect. Just round a corner we are confronted with the canal, complete with gondolas and singing gondoliers!

We wander round some more marvelling at what we are seeing, when the walkway or street opens into a big piazza. All this inside the hotel complex. A group of singers sing some traditional Italian songs.

Before we know it we have completed the circuit and cross over into the adjoining hotel, the Palazzo. This isn't a themed hotel, so nothing to report other than more designer shops. We make our way back outside and continue along the Strip. We venture into the Casino Royale. Sounds grand but is anything but. However, at the back they have a Subway so we stop for lunch. This is a first for Cath, she's never had one before. A veggie delite for Cath and Italian BMT for me, are washed down with lemonade.

Next stop on this tour is the Paris hotel. The entrance is under the legs of the scaled down Eiffel Tower! Once inside, similar to the Venetian, the walkways are made to look like streets. Whilst in here Cath decides to have another go on the slots. This time the machines aren't so friendly and she's down a couple of dollars.

We start to make our way back to our hotel, via the Forum shops at Caesar's Palace. Again this is a themed building. Fountains with prancing horses and massive roman serving wenches holding up the 3 floors are what greet you. Like everything in this place it's grand and way over the top.

There's another visit to the slots on our way through our hotel and we book a table in the BB King's restaurant for 8pm. There's some blogging and photo downloading before it's time to get ready to go out again. This time we are off to the Treasure Island Hotel to see their show but first we re-visit Walgreens and buy some snacks and root beer.

The TI show lasts about 15 minutes. Story goes; pirate gets lured to ship by sirens. They hold him hostage and his crew mates sail up in another ship to rescue him. Sirens won't let him go, so there are a few blasts of cannon fire, which the sirens ignore. In return they sing and dance and that stirs up a storm that sinks the pirate ship. Pirates end up swimming to siren ship and everyone lives happily ever after. Firework finale. We again have a quick go on the slots in TI, then get the tram back to the Mirage in time for dinner. BB King's has a live blues band playing. It's a bit noisy for us oldies but very entertaining none the less. I have a pulled pork sandwich, with fries, Cath a baby spinach leaf salad. A large blue moon beer sets me back $10!!

After dinner there is another play on the slots. It's my turn to play this time. I'm up nearly a dollar when the wins dry up. I decide to quit, retaining my dollar stake. Cath says she'll buy me out and gives me the dollar, then precedes to win $4. Who's a mug, eh?

Winnings claimed we head back to our room. We have to be up at 3:50 for our trip to the Grand Canyon, pickup 4:35.

Neill

US Tour - Day 16 - Vegas, 25th June 2010

Well the tour may be over but now I and Cath are gettin' our kicks in Vegas.

Today was car hire day. I rented a Mustang and we drove out to the Hoover Dam.

Weather was pretty damned hot (no pun intended) when we left the hotel at 8:45, the overnight low was only 79!


We took the short walk to the Wynn hotel, completed the paperwork and were soon pulling out onto The Strip in our electric blue mussa! There wasn't much fuel in it, so we had to look for a gas station. Navigation out of the city was a piece of p*ss, as I'd already printed off directions from google maps. We pulled off the interstate following a sign for gas and ended up in a supermarket car park. We decided to make a quick visit. Round the corner we fuelled up and then joined the interstate again to head for Boulder City and the Hoover Dam beyond.

We drove through Boulder City and past our planned lunch stop, the Boulder Dam Brewing Co. This is a micro brewery or brew pub. Basically it means they brew their own beers on the premises and that's what they serve. Shortly after Boulder we rejoin the highway to be confronted with a 4 mile queue of traffic to the Dam. There is a new road/bridge being constructed and I had thought it was finished but it's not. Not sure if this contributes to the queue or not but certainly the security checkpoint does. This is a bit like a customs check at a border. Every car is stopped, then either waved through or directed to an area for a search. Soon as I open my mouth (foreigner) they wave me into a bay. I have to turn off the engine and open the bonnet and boot. I pop the buttons and get out. I expect the woman to lift the bonnet but she says she's not allowed. I tell her I don't know how to do it as the car is rented!! I manage though and she seems quite happy that there is no high explosive strapped to my engine! The boot is empty, so we are waved on our way with a cheery have a nice day. F U assholes! Once past these, the traffic moves swifter and we soon pull into the visitor centre car park. The temp gauge in the car is registering about 107. We park up and make our way to the centre.

Security in the centre is very tight. no food allowed, no drink, except water. It's like the airport, everything having to go through the scanner. I have my camel back and wonder if that might prove a problem but it's Cath that gets turned back with a carton of juice. Ticket bought we walk about 15 feet before someone else wants to check it!!

Once past the stiff necks, there is a short film about the building of the dam. Next a guide takes you down 54 stories into the inside of the dam itself. Here you see the massive pipes, 30ft in diameter, that the Colorado water rushes through, from Lake Mead. Next stop, the generator house with 8 massive generators. Finally we are deposited at a viewing overlook, giving a superb view over the dam, lake and the river the other side.




It is baking hot. There is quite a breeze blowing but it's like the blast of air you get when you open the oven door. We take a walk out onto the dam. The middle is the state line between Nevada and Arizona, so we cross into Arizona on one side then back on the other. Cath is feeling the heat, so we seek out shade asap before she passes out. A quick visit to the gift shop follows, then we are back in the car heading for the brew pub at Boulder City. Traffic coming towards the dam is still backed up for about 3-4 miles.

We have our lunch at the brewpub, a salad and some fries for Cath, a bratwurst hotdog for me. I try a small glass of one of the brews, Raspberry Vice then have a root beer to dilute it, as I'm driving. Cath has iced tea. The waitress directs us to the hotel across the road. It's a landmark, as it's an original building from when the city was built to house the dam workers in 1933.


From Boulder we head back towards the dam to take the lakeshore drive. This is quite pleasant, affording some lovely views of Lake Mead. We stop at a few viewing points along the drive to take pictures. I get a fresh roasting each time I get out of the car. We have seen the temp gauge in the car hit 114!

Our final destination in the car is the Gun Shop. I had planned to fire a gun here since I first discovered you can. I have to say though the whole experience was a tad disappointing. Pretty much like a production line. You walk through the door and are invited immediately to sign a form if you want to shoot. Then shuffling along the counter a guy asks you what you want to shoot. He suggests a Glock 17. I say I want to fire the Dirty Harry .44 Magnum as well. He asks me to chose two targets. These are paper targets on the wall. Numbered 1-18 they range from basic target type images to several of middle eastern chaps. He unashamedly suggests the one of Bin Laden. I chose this and one of a Nazi zombie, given our upcoming game against the Germans. Racism rules in the Gun Shop. We choose goggles and ear defenders, then wait in line for an instructor to become available. When he is, we are taken to the ranges. There are about 8 shooting bays, with guys, women and kids even, shooting machine guns and all manner of hardware. The floor is littered with spent shell cases. I'm led to the booth. The guy attaches the first of my targets and winds it down the range. He loads the Glock and shows me how to hold it then tells me to line up the sights. That's my tuition done. I take a few shots but have to stop to put my reading glasses on. I can't focus on the sights. Glasses on I can see properly and empty the clip into Osama. The guy loads the next clip and I have another 10 shots at the hateful terrorist. One down, the magnum to go. The target is retrieved and I think I only missed once. OBL would definitely be dead and the world at peace once more. The next target is wound down the range, the magnum loaded and the same drill run through. I pump all five shots into the Nazi zombie. Once more the world can rest easy. And that's the experience over. Probably from walking through the front door to walking out again was no more than 20 minutes. Not quite the experience I was expecting but still something to remember. It's a bit surreal really. Another first in my life though and they say life begins at 40!

We ran the car back, then headed back to the hotel for a rest and freshen up before going out again. We walked up the strip to The Bellagio to watch the dancing fountain music show. Each performance is different, with different music. Our performance was to some USA forever, God bless the yanks type anthem. The water and light show is pretty spectacular though. We make the walk back to the Mirage. I have to say I'm not really that happy in the crowds. You can barely move for people, half of whom seem to be drunk or on the verge and carrying huge glasses, yards of ale, etc, full of beer or cocktails. I like to walk fast and you just can't do that I'm afraid. I long for the open road of R66 and my Harley again.

Back at our hotel, we get a table at the pizza restaurant. An all meats pizza with a root beer fills the gap for me.

Cath dips her toe in the gambling waters by having a go on the 1 cent slots. Loading up $5 she plays for a little while, ignoring my advice to 'bank' when she got over $6, finally retrieving her $5. None the richer or poorer but having had a good time none the less.

Bedtime. No alarm set, DND sign on the door, that's all for today.

Neill

US Tour - Day 15 - LA to Vegas.

Up earlyish and packed in plenty of time. Texts from Cath tell me that her flight has been delayed by 4 hours. BA are useless. By the time she clears customs in Vegas it will be gone midnight.

Weather once again is sunny and warm, though it’s a bit cooler here near the coast, still high 70s though.

I leave the hotel just before 10am to get the airport shuttle bus to LAX. I miss one by 30 seconds but it’s only about a 5 minute wait for the next one. That takes about 10 minutes to drop me off at Terminal 1. I am wearing my Union Jack t-shirt and it draws some comments from the women on the check in desks. I check my case in, at a cost of $20 and then have to wheel it myself over to a guy who puts it through a scanner. I clear security with a couple of comments about how we have scraped through with the US to the last 16 of the World Cup. I get myself a light lunch, i.e. a bottle of water, a packet of ‘chips’ and a Hershey bar, my first chocolate of the tour. I have about 2 hours till boarding time. I find a seat and wait.

Turns out the flight is overbooked, so they ask for volunteers to wait for a later flight. They give a $200 voucher to those that do, so not a bad incentive. Aircraft is small, so they then decide that we can’t take medium sized hand luggage on board. I have my laptop, camera and crash helmet in mine, so I have to take the electricals out and hope they don’t chuck the bag about with my helmet in.

Flight is only about an hour long, just time enough to have a free soft drink. The stewardess has the sexiest voice I’ve ever heard on a stewardess. She’s not a bad looker either, if you like the Sarah Palin lookalikes!  I get talking to a guy in the seat next to me. An ex marine and a big bloke but a proper Jessie, he doesn’t like flying. I talk to him as we come in to land at Vegas to take his mind off things. The landing is rough, so that doesn’t do anything to help allay his fears. Nice guy though.

The heat hits me as I walk out of the aircraft door. It’s hot, very hot. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it’s 100+.

Whilst waiting at the carousel  for my case I notice a slim black guy, with a suited guy and a minder. I recognise him as a boxer but can’t for the life of me remember his name. If I do I’ll let you know. He’s well known though. He won’t be fighting for a while, if he isn’t retired, as he has his arm in a sling.

Outside the terminal, I buy a ticket for the shuttle bus. You can buy a return but can’t use it the same day. Only saves a dollar, so no sweat. Have to wait about 15 minutes in blazing sun for bus to arrive, then it’s a 10-15 minute journey to the hotel, The Mirage. I check in and then make the journey, yes that’s the only way to describe it to the elevators. It’s a 5 minute bleedin’ walk, through all the slot machines. Room is on the 16^th floor. View from the window is rooftop and interstate, though the Trump hotel is off to the right.

I watch a bit of TV, then head out to find out where the Hertz car rental place is in the Wynn hotel. That’s about  10 minute walk up the strip. When I get there I again have another 5 minute walk through the interior of the place to find the Hertz desk. It’s closed but at least I know where we have to come in the morning.

I then take a walk back down the strip to look for something to eat. I end up in McD’s, the first ‘junk’ food of my trip. It fills a gap and doesn’t break the bank, so it’ll do. I head back to the hotel and wait. I have about 2 hours to kill before I have to go to the airport to meet Cath. I watch one of these travelling chef type programmes with some fat bloke eating all sorts of disgusting stuff in Bangkok.

I go down to the lobby and decide it’s probably quicker to get a cab than wait for a shuttle. I’m not sure how often they run anyway. I get a cab, something I’m not usually prone to doing. After the driver drops me at the wrong place, despite me double checking with him (b’stard), I have to get the inter terminal shuttle to international arrivals. Luckily Cath hasn’t come out of the customs hall by the time I get there. 15 minutes later she’s in my arms. It’s been a long two weeks and I’ve missed her, despite the distraction of the ride.  We get another cab back to the hotel,  a much nicer chap this time and we finally crash out at about 00:30. Car pick up is 9am, so I set my alarm for 7:30 and turn in.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 14 - Victorville to Santa Monica

Apologies for blog update being delayed. Hilton wanted to charge $6 for an hour online. Typical of these big chains, nothing’s free.


This is it, our last day of the tour. We have a bit of a lie in today as the journey from Victorville is only 80 or so miles, we leave about 9:45.

Weather, yup, same old, same old.

I manage to get in some internet business before I leave and see England have won against Slovenia, so finally I can wear my Union Jack T-shirt to dinner. And where better than the LAX Hilton!!

For our final rider briefing Gary warns us about the mad LA drivers. We will be travelling on the interstate all the way into LA today, not riding US66, as this will take too long and being quite an arduous journey, due to many traffic lights, he’d rather we don’t have to suffer that in the heat. Plus, there ain’t much to see anyway. We are told to stick close together, keep our wits about us and keep the speed up. Off we go.

Frenetic is how I would describe the journey into Santa Monica. There are cars, trucks, etc, passing on both sides, cutting in front of you, sometimes across 5 lanes to take an exit at the last minute. I’m used to travelling at high speeds in close proximity to other vehicles, so I’m quite comfortable in this environment. Not sure some of the others were. However, despite their best efforts, the locals were unable to claim any biker trophies today and we all arrived safely at Santa Monica Pier.

We park up and walk up the hillside overlooking the beach. Here there are two things of interest. Firstly, the Will Rogers plaque. Will Rogers was a comedian who travelled R66 last century as he embarked upon his career. I think when he made it big he attributed his success to the Mother Road bringing him out West (Google if you’re interested). Next up, there is a sign saying this is the west end of R66. Photos are taken at both before we head back down to the pier and our lunch.

Many of you will be familiar with the film Forrest Gump. Well, lunch today was at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Apparently it is owned by Tom Hanks. It’s very popular, people queuing to get in but we just saunter in, as like most everything on this tour, Gary has it covered and we have a table already booked. I have a Shrimp Po’ Guy, least I think that’s what it was called. Deep fried shrimps, prawns to us, on French baguette with shredded lettuce and tomato, accompanied by French fries. I wash this down with a root beer. As usual what you imagine will be small turns out to be quite a belly full.

Outside Bubba Gump is another sign for R66, this one claiming to be the end of the trail. And indeed it is. A 100 yards or so further on you would fall into the Pacific.

We take a walk down the Santa Monica Pier, opened in 1909. It’s not a whole lot different from our own piers. Cotton candy (candy floss) kiosks, amusements and the now familiar back home, fairground rides. This is the Pacific Ocean we are staring out at. My first, maybe last, ever experience of it. David and I had said we might take a swim, though having had lunch we decided to forego that ‘pleasure’. We decide though that we must at least have a paddle. In the end David bottles it, not wanting to get his boots wet! Simon, Vivien and I all experience the sea lapping round our feet, some more so than others as a bigger wave catches me out, covering my boots and running halfway up my legs. Simon caught it on film. No matter, it’s warm enough that this will soon dry and at least I can now claim I’ve been in the Pacific.

We head back to the van where we line up for a group bike shot with the golden sandy beach in the background. Such an attraction are we, that 4 or 5 Japanese young ladies want to photograph us too, waving us off as we start our final journey on the bikes to drop them at Bartel’s the LA Harley dealer.

A short ride later, a quick fuel stop (bikes have to be handed back full) and we are handing over the keys. They do a quick check to make sure there is no damage and that’s it, tour over.

Gary takes the van with all our gear and heads off to the hotel. We inspect some shiny Harleys and make more purchases whilst waiting for our transport. An air conditioned 16 seater takes us to the LAX Hilton. My room is on the 10th floor. From my window I can see aircraft coming in to land. With 3 hours to kill before we all meet up again for our farewell dinner I key my blog notes, mugged off that the Hilton want to charge for internet use. I’m hoping that the Mirage in Vegas won’t be so tight!

We meet in the lobby for dinner. This is a freebie, courtesy of California Sun Riders, excluding alcohol. We have a green salad to start and then there is a choice of steak, salmon or chicken, all served with creamy garlic mashed potato and vegetables. Hardly gourmet but nice enough. I have the chicken. After the meal Gary gives a little speech to officially close the tour. He also hands out gifts to us all. These are, a map of the US with the route we took highlighted in gold, a certificate to say we completed over 2600 miles of the route and a framed picture of us doing our graffiti at the Cadillac Ranch. There was an additional presentation to David. He had wanted to ride a Harley Fat Boy on the tour but that had been trashed days before we arrived, so he ended up with a Road King. His gifts were a toy Fat Boy and a T-shirt. I think the slogan went ‘The ride’s not over till the Fat Boy sings’

We then made a presentation to Gary. I had bought a card in Santa Fe and everyone had signed it. We had also had a whip round for him. I gave him the card and made a little speech, then handed him a plastic bag with a few odd coins in it. Small value coins out here are like our 5p and copper coins, too small to be of any real use, so I had just been collecting them in the plastic bag. Not sure he guessed it was a joke until everyone laughed, then I gave him an envelope with the real cash in it. And that was pretty much it.

We all said our goodbyes, hugs, kisses, manly handshakes and backslapping abounding, then went our separate ways to bed. Gary will be away early, as he has to prepare for the next tour. Pat will be off about 10am to meet up with his wife and I’m leaving around the same time to go to Vegas. The others are all booked on the same Virgin flight back to Heathrow, so they can continue the friendship that bit longer.

The tour is over but the blog will continue. I’ll be posting what adventures Cath and I have got up to in Sin City.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 13 - Needles to Victorville

Weather, you guessed it, sunny and hot. Due to get even hotter as we head into the Mojave desert.


Had a rather lame free breakfast before the off, free, except you have to pay for one drink. $2 for an OJ! Meal and service not nearly as good as we had the night before at the same joint.

We set off at our usual time, 8:30 and fuelled up. Then we hit the open road. This is more a riding day than sightseeing day, though we had plans for a photo shoot when we got into the Mojave. We rode for only a little while to get acclimatised to the heat, then stopped for a short break and to sort out our camel backs. Gary assured us we would need them in 100+ temps. We were all wearing long sleeved white shirts, to ease the effects of the blazing sun. Jackets were discarded, definitely not needed on today’s journey.

Whilst we were stopped the eagle rider mob cruised past. They hadn't stayed at the same hotel as us this time round, so this was the first sight of them since sometime yesterday. We continued our journey.

A little way up the road we came across the Eagleriders, stopped in the road, having their photos taken with the Route 66 shield emblazoned on the road. We motored on for a few miles until we came to the spot where Gary had said was the best spot to get the pictures of the shield on the road. Just at the crest of the hill. We pulled over and took some individual photos. Then we re-enacted the poses from the poster for the Wild Hogs film. This involved the 4 single guys lining up behind Bill's Harley, which had been carefully laid on its side. It made a great pic.



We were soon alerted by the sound of Harleys approaching. Gary is good mates with the Eaglerider support truck driver, Mark and they are always having little pranks between them. So Gary decides it would be a great idea if we mooned Mark as he drives by. Some of the guys preferred to retain their dignity and take photos, so it was left to Gary, myself and Bill to do the honours. Imagine the scene. You're in the middle of the Mojave desert, it's over 100 degrees, there is absolutely nothing for miles except this ribbon of tarmac, when you happen upon a few bikes parked at the side of the road. Suddenly, 3 guys, 2 the wrong side of fifty, drop their trousers and flash their bare white arses at you! Absolutely unbelievable! What a crack. We couldn't stop laughing. Bill, love him, was a little too keen and instead of just mooning the van, gave a virtuoso performance a couple of extra times for the preceding bikers! We've since watched it back on video and it is even funnier than when we did it.


Trousers buttoned, we made our way a few miles further down the road. to Roy's cafe. Gary cut us loose again for this section. It's incredibly straight and being downhill, with no worries about visibility, I wound the RK up. Luckily for me there were no CHPs about, I doubled the legal limit! It's an amazing stretch of road. At one point you crest a hill and can see Roy's cafe in the distance. The road then slopes gently down, true as an arrow for 5 miles to the cafe. There's nothing like that in the UK to my knowledge. A brief stop ensues and we take some photos. Gary hoses us all down with cold water and we continue in the searing heat.

Our next stop is a lunch stop in Barstow. An unremarkable diner, where the service, it has to be said, was chronically slow. This is probably the worst place Gary has taken us too. I did notice when he was telling us where we would stop, he didn't talk about how good the food was. Unusual for Gary. We were soon on our way again.

Barstow to Victorville is only a short ride, 25 miles or so, away. We still had one more stop to make though. This was at Elmer's Bottle Ranch. Elmer, another friend of Gary's (aren't they all), makes steel 'trees' on which he then sets a load of bottles, usually topped off by something metal, maybe an old wheel, sign or windmill made from hubcaps. Take the name and the nature of the 'art' and you'd be forgiven for thinking Elmer is a redneck nutcase. Well maybe he is but he comes across as quite an intelligent guy, despite his ZZ Top style beard and dungarees. Just another one of the astonishing experiences we have had on this tour. Never a dull moment on Route 66, especially when following the bear!



We soon mount up again and take the short ride into Victorville and the hotel.

Tonight it's end of tour night in Gary's room. After freshening up, we meet up for beers from Gary's cooler, chat, watch some video and order in takeaway pizza. As Pat has a birthday after the tour ends, we have got him a card and Gary has bought AND decorated a cake. It's a nice way to end the evening, our last with the bikes. This time tomorrow we will have completed our journey and be in our hotel at LA airport. But before that we have a shortish ride into LA and Santa Monica Boulevard, with a 10 lane highway to negotiate, in anticipated 90+ temps. What joy. Another memorable experience though, I'm sure.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 12 - Williams to Needles

Day 12 started as most of the others have, sunny and warm. There was a bit of a breeze so the temperature wasn't too uncomfortable.


We hit the road about 8:30. Gary had said we would have breakfast on the road but Pat had snuck in with the Eaglerider mob to fuel himself up before the off. We were headed for Seligman. This town is quite famous for the ice cream parlour and barbers/gift shop run by the Delgadillo family, specifically Angel and Vilma. Angel has spent most of his 83 years on the Mother Road, his father before him, if I'm not mistaken, running the barbers shop and opening the Snow Cap, ice cream parlour. Angelo is one of the few left who can remember the road in its heyday and is in constant demand from radio and TV stations to do interviews about R66. Gary as always, knows him and was hoping to arrange for us to meet the man and also get a haircut, as Angelo still cuts hair in the chair in the front of what is primarily now a gift shop. This is reputed to be the best for R66 memorabilia along the whole road. Gary got word that Angelo had been taken ill, so we weren't expecting to meet him. But I digress.

We rode through Seligman to the far side of town, to Lilo's Westside Cafe, our breakfast stop. I was still carrying my pizza from the night before so made do with coffee. Others, including Pat (two breakfasts) had something cooked. Lilo, as for most of these places we stop at, is good friends with Gary. He didn't even have to order his food, it was just his usual that came to the table. We left the cafe and after taking a few snaps nearby, including one of the jail, not much bigger than a garden shed, we headed back East and to the Snow Cap and barbers. We parked up and went inside the shop. It turned out that Angelo, despite his recent illness was in the shop after all. He was being interviewed by a crew from BBC Radio 2. They were recording and also shooting footage to go on the radio 2 website. Following his interview I managed to get a few words with him. This old guy has done over 500 interviews and includes amongst his possessions, a Blue Peter badge. I believe his is the patron of the Route 66 preservation society or such body, so gets quite a lot of exposure. Before you know it Gary has somehow managed to get an interview as well. I speak to the young woman, production assistant or something and explain Gary is our tour guide and we are travelling along the road with him. Before you know it Gary is doing his interview and then we find ourselves taking part in a Harley symphony. The guy doing the interviews is also a musical conductor (Charles Hazlewood) and thinks it will be great to conduct us revving engines and tooting horns. This is recorded in sound and vision. Bizarre! For those of you interested listen in on Radio 2 on 5/6/7 July or check the website for a link to R66 and hopefully view us in action.

Slightly later than anticipated we then head off for our next stop, Hackberry. I'm not actually sure if there is anything else in Hackberry apart from the famous general store at which we stop. This place is readily identifiable by the Corvette sitting by the petrol pumps out front of the store. A beautiful car, fully restored. Again this store sells all manner of R66 memorabilia. It's probably not quite so famous though, for its men’s room, though Gary says it's the best along the road. Of course we have to check it out, even if we don't need a pee. It is covered from floor to ceiling on all walls and including the ceiling with glossy magazine cuttings of scantily clad females. You could certainly spend quite a while in there if you had the inclination and didn't have someone trying the handle! We notice the owner wears a gun and a knife on his belt. Round the back in a garage sits a 1919 Ford flatbed truck. I don't know if it's a Model T but it's of the same ilk. Remarkable.

We depart hackberry and head to our next stop, Kingman and lunch. We stop at Mr D'z, quite appropriate I think. This place is as garish as they come. Inside is turquoise and pick upholstery to the booths and stools. The walls have various pictures of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe, the piste de resistance being the massive portraits of them to indicate which rest room is which. I have a Harley Dog, which is basically a beef hotdog in a roll with chopped tomato and onion, covered in some sort of sauce.. It's tasty but the roll can't really handle the sausage as well as the salad, so it falls apart a bit. That's washed down with a very tasty root beer.

We head outside to take some photos. Just over the way is a steam loco. Now most of you will have seen a steam engine in the UK but I guarantee you will not have seen one this big. It's a bit of a joke with us that everything in the US is bigger, well this just goes to prove that its true. This is the biggest mofo of an engine I have ever seen. It stands about 20ft tall. The main wheels are as tall as me, so about 6ft in diameter. It's unbelievable. Pics taken, we hit the road again.

Next stop is another small store/disused garage at Cool Springs. This place is the start of a mountain pass. Gary lets us go ahead of him on this stretch, as he says it's easier to keep tabs on us. If he leads, the roads are so twisty, he wouldn't be able see if anyone got into difficulties. The road leads over the mountain to Oatman, a small former mining town.

I've been looking forward to this bit of the road. It brings out the racer in me. With a warning to avoid donkey shit, we set off. Pat goes first, then me. It's not long before I have caught and passed Pat. The turns are very twisty with short straights in between. Brilliant. I am soon stopped at the half way rendezvous point, purring and waiting for the others to arrive. A minute or so later, Pat joins me. Another minute or so and three more arrive. Finally Bill appears round the bend with Gary on his tail. We dismount and walk a short way to Dead Man's Curve. A rough old track with a hairpin bend, is, a 1926-32 alignment of the road. Off to the side are crosses, memorials to those who never made the turn and went crashing off down the hillside. We then head down the hill into Oatman. 4th on the road this time, I have soon passed everyone again and am waiting in Oatman, Burros (donkeys) blocking my path, when the others catch me up.

Oatman is something to behold. I said to Gary it's like the wild west. It IS the wild west he says. This place is like something out of a film set. All old wooden buildings, wooden boardwalk, rails to tie horses to, the ice cream 'saloon', just like you have seen in many a western. Difference being the road is tarmac and not dirt. Truly amazing. As it's quite late, the place is deserted, almost like a ghost town or one where the inhabitants have locked themselves away awaiting the arrival of some outlaws.

We leave this remarkable throw back town and continue the final leg of our journey into Needles. Needles is just over the Colorado river from Arizona and means that we have now entered our eighth and final state, California.

Tomorrow we head for Victorville, the last night we will spend with the bikes :-(

This adventure is nearly over but our spirits are still high. We have experienced some amazing things, almost, if not entirely on a daily basis. The trip of a lifetime, you betcha.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 11 - Williams rest day - Trip to Grand Canyon

Day 11 and we have another rest day, though we all choose to go up to the Grand Canyon, about 60 miles away. 3 people, Bill, David & Francoise opted for the helicopter flight.

Weather getting boring now, hot and sunny, though it is quite breezy up here, something that isn't helping calm the forest fire we witnessed on the ride down yesterday.

Up before my alarm so took the opportunity to have a quick webcam session with Cath. Last before she flies out. Quite weird her saying she'd been out cutting the grass and me sitting here getting ready for breakfast. Buffet breakfast was OK but for some reason there was a bus load of orientals, maybe Japanese, swarming around the place. Least they didn't photograph it but scrabbled egg on pancake?!!!

Took a quick blast up to the garage to fuel up and then had a little ride round town. Stopped to take photos of the Grand Canyon railway, including a big old steam loco. Blow me if the station wasn't teeming with orientals too!

Met the rest of the crew back at the garage and we headed up R64, north towards the GC. This road is remarkable in itself, in that in the entire length, 60+ miles it has no more than 4 or 5 bends! We arrive at the rendezvous point, a pizza joint and Gary gives us our instructions. We are free to do what we like but he makes the suggestion that we head for a particular point, Desert View, as this is where the best view of the canyon can be had. We agree we'll meet back at the pizza parlour when we finish, then he heads off with the three doing the helicopter flight. We head up the road to the booths, paying $12 to enter the park.

Desert View is about 35 miles from the entrance to the park. We plan to get there and have some lunch. As we set out on the road we soon come to a viewing point. We pull over, dismount and stare at the view that beholds us. I swear our mouths dropped in unison. Nothing you have seen on the TV about this canyon can prepare you for that first sight. It's absolutely amazing. Not only is it deep, though how deep is hard to tell due to the scale of the place but it stretches out far, far in front of you. Beautiful reds, browns, oranges & greys make up the mighty rock formations that you see before you. Awesome, as they say over here.

We make a few more stops along the way. Each view seems to be getting better and better. At Grand View Point we actually get our first view of the Colorado River, many, many feet below us and many miles away too. A signboard points out some of the rock formations we can see and the distances away. One ridge in the distance is 42 miles away!!

Eventually we role up at Desert View. We decide we'll have lunch first, before enjoying this vista. I chose a chilli dog. A hotdog with chilli sauce on it me thinks. No, a hotdog covered with chilli (as in con carne) topped with cheese and some jalapenos. I wash that down with an iced tea. It was very nice and pretty cheap too.

We then head down to the viewing point. WOW!! Gary was right, this really is the best view we have had so far. Snaking far, far below we can see the river once more, a small ribbon of turquoise amongst the reds and browns. We can just about make out one of the boats that you can ride the rapids on and the rapids themselves, a band of white in the turquoise. At the point there is a viewing tower, built in 1933. It's a gift shop now but you are still able to climb the 3 stories to the top. To be honest it doesn't afford any better a view of the canyon below but least we can say we did it.

We ride back non stop to the rendezvous site, passing as we do the other two bikes going in the opposite direction, them having finished their airborne adventure. When we arrive Gary is in his van watching a movie. We grab ourselves a coffee and then start the journey home. After a short while I pull over to photograph the fire smoke that is clearly visible in the distance. The others continue without me, so I'm on my own. About halfway back to Williams there is a small airfield. It houses an aircraft museum. I stop to take some photos and have a brief chat with an little old lady behind the counter. Our conversation is cut short by a little old man who says to her "did you wash Bob's shirt?"!! The answer is no and she hurries off, the conversation is terminated. I jump back on the bike, head back into Williams and fuel up once more, ready for tomorrow's journey. Fuel here is dirt cheap. No wonder they all run around in 4x4s and big pickup trucks. Since we started the tour I think we have paid anything between $2.60 and $3.20 for a gallon. That's £1.85 to £2.30!!

Back at the hotel, I see Simon & Viv having a swim and then for some strange reason can't get into my room. A visit to reception confirms I am actually trying the right door but the keycard has had a malfunction.

A couple of beers and we head off to Pizza Hut for dinner. Even this is different from the UK. For example, a small pizza is 6 inches at home, here it is 10. I had a small one but the other guys suffered from 'eyes bigger than belly' syndrome and ordered medium at a mere 12 inches but couldn't finish them. It's easy to see why the Americans have such a high rate of obesity. Their portions are much bigger and you can't turn round without being faced by a diner or fast food outlet of some sort. I can't imagine they ever do any of the home cooking, of which Gary is so fond.

Tomorrow we are off to Needles, which will take us into our 8th and final state, California. The next two days will prove to be the hottest so far, as we head into the Mojave desert. The forecast for tomorrow is 104 degrees in Needles, so we'll be needing our camel backs to take on fluids.

See how we got on in Day 12s blog.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 10 - Gallup to Williams

Up with the alarm and ready to roll. Skipped brekkie again, sleep seems more important at the moment.


Weather, as it has been for quite a while now, sunny and warm.

Left Gallup at about 8:30, destination the Petrified Forest National Park. On the way we enter our 7th state, Arizona. We get there and are “cut loose” as Gary says, to do our own thing. There is one road through the park, so we can’t get lost but it’s about 35 miles and we have just two hours before we have to rendezvous at the other end. Seems plenty but road speeds vary from 15mph in some place to 45mph in others and you have to factor in the time taken to stop, view and photo stuff. In the end, none of go over the time.

The first thing you come to is the Painted Desert. This is a variety of reds, pinks, whites, etc, of both flats and small hillocks. It could almost be, what one imagines, the Mars surface looks like. Very barren. They call this the badlands. Those poor people travelling in their wagons all those years back must have been totally disheartened to come across this place.

As I move round the park I come across what they call newspaper rock. This is a couple of big rocks with ancient script carved into them. A photo op but not sure how it’ll come out. Moving on, I’m beginning to wonder where the petrified forest is, when I turn off to Agate Bridge. This is a petrified tree that has fallen down over a ditch. Or, the rock might have been eroded around it. In any case the fallen tree forms a bridge today. Snap, snap. I continue until I come to the edge of what would have been a very lush and dense forest, I imagine. Here there are petrified tree trunks in abundance. Some are just in chunks, others in line, just as they were the day the tree fell. There’s plenty of photo opportunities here. Finally, we all meet up at the rendezvous point and hit the road again.

As we travel along, there are a large number of signs for native American crafts. This is the heart of Navajo country and no opportunity is lost to relieve travellers of a few bucks. We can’t go on all parts of R66, because some of it is on Navajo land and they won’t upkeep it. It’s therefore too dangerous to attempt. For a lot of the time we are on interstate but that is because they laid the road right down on top of R66, so it kinda counts.

Next up is our lunch stop. This is at another famous diner, Joe & Aggies. It’s been in use since the early days of the road. As usual, Gary knows the owners well and has rung ahead to make sure we are catered for. Lunch for me is another toasted sandwich washed down with lemonade. We take a few photos, as always, and once again jump into the saddle but only for about ¼ mile. There we stop at the Wigwam Motel. Another very famous R66 landmark but unlike many others, it is still in use. The rooms are, as you might have guessed, all separate little wigwams. To retain the nostalgia of the place, many of the wigwams have old vehicles parked outside. It’s quite a sight, the cars being the perfect touch. It’s almost like another motor museum.

We hit the road again, this time bound for Winslow. Now anyone who listens to the Eagles will recognise the name of this town straight away. This little town has been made famous by the song Take It Easy.

Well, I’m a standing on a corner
In Winslow, Arizona
And such a fine sight to see
It’s a girl, my lord, in a flatbed
Ford slowin’ down to take a look at me

There is a bronze statue of a guy with a guitar, not sure who (google it) and just up the street is parked a red flatbed Ford. Behind the statue is a high wall with a mural on it. It is a hotel scene, windows, basically. Once upon a time though the other side of the wall was a hotel and it was here that the Eagles stayed when in Winslow. I think the story is they were only their because their tour bus broke down. This is a huge photo opportunity so we do it justice before heading out on the road again.

We motor along the interstate bypassing Flagstaff. From at least 60 miles away we can see what is clearly a big fire, we can see the smoke and it’s drifting for miles and miles. We pass through it briefly and for a short period you are breathing in the smoke. No harm done though, we're soon out the other side. I notice a helicopter over the area and though I can’t say for certain, I think I saw it drop a huge load of water onto the tress below. The sort of stuff you see on SKY news, not in real life. This trip has provided so may new experiences and memories. I’m sure they will stick with us all for a very long time.

Once passed the ‘danger’ our next stop is Grand Canyon Harley Davidson. Another chance to drool over new HDs and also for some to get their caffeine fix over the way. From here it’s just a brief run down the road to Williams, where we spend 2 nights. Tomorrow we will take a ride up to the Grand Canyon. A few of the group have opted for the helicopter ride. The rest of us will be free to do what we please, hoping there will be some stunning canyon shots available to us.

This evening we all met up in the bar for some beer and dinner, then Gary put on the video of Wild Hogs. Not sure Bill was all that happy once he saw what Dudley was like in the film but he’s a good sport.

Signposts are now showing the mileage to LA. A bit depressing really, as that means our journey, this fantastic journey is nearing its conclusion. It’s going to be very hard to beat this as a biking experience. So much more than just a holiday.

That’s it for day 10.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 9 - Santa Fe to Gallup

Had a bit of a lie in as  I wasn’t wanting any breakfast today and we were packed and ready to go by 8:30. Today is the first time we have got away before the Eaglerider mob.

Weather superb, not a cloud to be seen.

A short ride to our first stop off, a diner in a town called Madrid. This is no ordinary diner, in fact it’s not even a diner but a gift shop. BUT, it happens to be the diner that featured and was built especially for the film, The Wild Hogs. You may know it, it’s about 4 mid lifers who go on a road trip on their Harleys. I’ve already mentioned we’ve nicknamed Bill after Dudley from the film. Here we were able to show him the character. Gary knows the owner and rang ahead so she could open up for us. She has a shop next door, so it’s not normally open. I bought myself a R66 skull cap. They reckoned it makes me look like John Travolta, I’m not so sure.  I’m made to feel like a film star though as David and wife Françoise but take photos of me. They are much more artistic than yours truly, who just points and shoots and they have me turning my head at a certain angle to get the diner reflected in my mirror sunnies. As we were stopped the Eagleriders came cruising by but didn’t stop. Another piece of one-upmanship for Gary. Not sure what they have seen this tour, not as much as us, I bet.

 After a few photos, some of the group outside, we hit the road again.

Our next stop was in Albuquerque old town. Once again we are stopping for lunch at one of Gary’s haunts, where he knows the owners and they have a special area set up for us out on the patio. By the time we reach the town it is very hot. I think this must’ve been our first 100+ temp day. Before we eat we take a little time to look round the old town square and take a few photos. This is very wild westy.

Lunch is a nice toasted turkey and ham sandwich washed down with iced tea. The restaurant is the oldest building in Albuquerque and the 3^rd oldest in New Mexico. It’s soon time to move on though and we’re once again back in the saddle in the baking heat.

Just a short journey this time before we pull in for another photo shoot. This time we are at the Rio Grande. We walk out onto the bridge and take our snaps. It’s nowhere near as big as the Mississippi and quite shallow from the looks of it. Not hard to imagine John Wayne herding his cattle across it.

Back on the bikes again we stop off a another couple of sites for a photo shoot. An old abandoned store and sign and the point of continental divide. A sign tells you that to the east, rainwater flows into the Atlantic ocean and to the west, the Pacific.  Whilst stopped we listen to Tom Jones’ ‘The Young New Mexican Puppeteer’. A tad surreal. We also stop for an ice cream, Gary likes his ice creams, before finally arriving in Gallop. We are staying at the El Rancho. This hotel looks really nice, all wooden, cartwheels, etc. It’s been here a long time and is famous, amongst other things, for the film stars that have stayed here making westerns over the years. Each room has a name on the door. I’m in Forrest Tucker. I have Rita Hayworth over the hallway, so I may drop in on her after dinner ;-)  Simon & Viv are in William Holden. Not sure about the others.

Once checked in, we headed down for dinner. Most of us had burgers, which are all named after films stars. A couple of people had a Ronald Regan, I went for a WC Fields. That was washed down with a couple of Sierra Nevada pale ales.

There is no internet in the rooms here, so I’m sitting in the lobby doing this. The guy behind the desk has just turned half the lights out but tells me I can stay as long as I like. Just long enough to send this and upload some pics.

Tomorrow we are off to Williams and will be entering our 7^th state, Arizona. We are there for 2 nights, the second day being a ride up to the Grand Canyon and optional helicopter ride. I’ll be on the Harley but not in the helicopter. Too expensive!

Hopefully I’ll have time to get the blog updated before we leave for the next stop.

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 8 - Rest day

Today we have a rest day. Thoroughly deserved/needed as well I should say. It’s been fantastic so far but quite tiring.

Weather this morning is sunny and warm.

Had a lay in, got ready and went out into the town. The hotel is literally 2 minutes from the main plaza.  The place is teaming with arty shops. If they are not selling Indian stuff, then it’s statues, paintings, etc, etc. I headed for the Five and Dime!!  I checked out some of the R66 stuff, eyeball a mug that I want to buy and have a general look around. Then I went back out to continue my tour. I discovered the Santa Fe river, about 5 feet across at the moment but the gulley can only be twice that, so not exactly the Mississippi. It joins the Rio Grande somewhere downstream. Then I came across a church that they wanted to charge $3 to go in. Can you believe it, charging money to enter the house of god. I skip that, obviously and walk round to the Cathedral which is free. It’s not massive but has some nice stained glass windows in it. Via the main square once again, I checked out a potential dinner spot for tonight. It does new Mexican food (?) and is a micro brewery, so does its own selection of beers.  I have a comp card, obtained from the waitress last night, which gets us something on the house, probably a little snack. I then headed back to the room via the Five and Dime again to make my purchases, where I wrote up some of my blog, awaiting the return of an internet connection.

Internet back just before I went next door for some nachos, so peeps should now have had time to catch up with day 6 & 7.

Was supposed to be going shootin’ with Gary but met Bill and David on my way to lunch and it seems it’ll cost us $100 each to do it. I’d already ID’d the Gun Club in Vegas to have a crack at this and the cost is considerably less, so I shall stick with the original plan. Chill out afternoon writing post cards and messenger folks back home, webcam link to my ol’ lady, is just what the doctor ordered. Seems a shame to waste the sunshine though.

It’s 17:35 US time, 00:35 UK. I have a couple more hours to kill before we hit the town and the brewery. On my walk about I noticed some leaflets that tend to suggest there is more than one micro brewery in the town, surprising as it’s not that big a place.

Well, have managed to upload all the pics now, so check them out.

Back from the microbrewery. Had a nice chicken burger type thing with salad and a nice lime coleslaw. Washed it down with 3 different beers. 4oz shots give you just a nice taster and are only a dollar each, plus tax!!!  Why can’t they just tell you what the thing costs, instead of adding a bit on at the till?

I promised some more nicknames. Here we go.

The elder statesman of the group is Bill. He’s a real nice chap and a real gentlemen. There’s just one thing wrong with him though and that’s his propensity for dropping the bike when he comes to a stop or has to turn tightly on uneven ground. He’s only got short legs, so it is a problem. In the first four days I think he managed to lay the bike on its side about eight times. To this end we have named him Dudley out of the film The Wild Hogs, as he had similarly bad luck with his Harley. We were going to watch the film in the lounge after dinner but a couple of bozos wanted to watch netball. Their team lost. LOL! To be fair to Bill though, the last 3 riding days he’s kept a clean sheet. Good on him.

Next, it’s probably me. Gary has named me Lord Flashheart from Blackadder. Purely because when it’s time to start the bikes and get going I have shouted the Flash catchphrase, “let’s doooo it!”

I’ll have more later.

Off to bed now. We are on our way to Gallup tomorrow. About 200 miles and still in New Mexico.

Come back soon to see what we got up to.

 

Neill

US66 Tour - Day 7 - Amarillo to Santa Fe

Left the Big Texan at about 9am.  Weather, sunny and warming up.  Distance to cover, about 305 miles.

First stop was a short drive away, at Tripps, the Harley dealership. A few people had expressed an interest in buying stuff and checking out the bikes. To be honest I could have given this a miss. OK the bikes are nice but I was never going to buy anything, I’d rather be riding.

When we left Tripps’ we made our way to the Cadillac Ranch. This is, I suppose, art.  A farmer one day decided to stick his old Cadillac nose down into the ground in one of his fields, leaving two thirds sticking up, as something for the public to come and look at. Subsequently there are about 10 such cars buried in line. Today it is a famous landmark and attraction. People come from far and wide to visit and to spray paint the vehicles. Legalised graffitying!  Gary being the guy he is produced a can for us to have a go.   More can be had from other visitors who have got bored and are heading back to their cars. We all had a good go at creating something and Gary took photos, some of which may be posted online.

We left the Caddys and rode to the Mid Point Café for a mid morning snack. This is the place where you are exactly 1139 miles from the start of US66 in Chicago and from the finish in Los Angeles. There is a big sign to mark the fact and group photos were duly taken. The café has a little garage alongside it with an old pickup truck on the forecourt. This is covered in writing. The café owner provides a paint pen and invites people to leave a message or just their name. Most of us had a go, though it’s not easy finding room to do it. I manage to secure a piece of front tyre rubber for my name.

The land in Texas is very flat and featureless for the main part, this is after all, the Great Plains. Just to underline this we saw a prairie dog close by to where we had parked the bikes. They are about the size of a chipmunk, so quite small and they sit up like meercats, cheeping if they sense danger, before scuttling into tiny burrows.   I got a few photos of the little critter. The temperature was on the increase and rose 3 degrees whilst we were stopped at the café, 92 when we hit the road once more.

Next up we stopped for some lunch at Kix on 66. I apologise for not knowing the names of the places we have stopped at but I’m struggling even to remember what day it is. It’s so easy to lose track of time when you’re caught up in such an incredible experience. We sat down to a very nice lunch, all lined up on stools along the counter, just like you see in the movies. Lunch for me was a large (what else in the US?), chicken salad, washed down with ice cold raspberry lemonade. More ice than drink in the US but they do free refills for as long as you stay, so not so bad. We had a little while to head up the road and take a few photos. There are a number of motels here, the ¾ of a square, single storey jobs you see in the old movies. Some of these are pretty old and carry a fair bit of history from when the road was still the main drag.

The weather was beautiful, very hot, maybe too hot for pounding up and down on foot taking pictures. Then Gary appears in his van, shouting (or was that his normal voice?) that we need to get moving as there is a storm brewing. In these temperatures, I think I’ve said before, these storms come out of nothing, move very fast and are very severe, in both the rain, wind speeds, thunder and lightning they produce. It’s best not to get caught in one. Like a cowpoke Gary rounds us all up and we head out onto the road again. This time we are trying to catch a gap between the first storm and another that is brewing to take its place. As always, this guy Gary does his thang and we are deposited outside the R66 Motor Museum, as dry as a bone. We’d encountered some strong winds but nothing too serious.

The motor museum is made up almost entirely of vehicles that the owner has bought and lovingly restored. From 1930s Auburns to 1970s muscle cars, pickups, sedans, etc.  We have an ice cream and a look round, take some more photos and then it’s back onto the bikes once more.

It’s not long before we pull over and Gary jumps out to tell us that this next piece of road runs straight to our next fuel stop, without any turn offs, so we are free to go at our own speeds, go fast (within the limit), go slow, stop to take photos, do anything so long as we meet up at the petrol station by a certain time. We’re being let loose! Barely has he finished speaking than I’m off down the road. It soon occurs to me that I need my camera for this experience, so I pull over and get it from the pannier. Two of the others, Bill and Pat pass me. As we bowl along, I set the cruise control and start taking snaps. The road is so straight, you can see for miles. As I catch up Bill, I get a shot of his rear., the bike that is! Next I get alongside Pat and manage a shot that just about gets him in the picture. I’m leading on the road once again. This is one beautiful ride. I don’t think I’ve been anywhere with roads quite like it. Maybe some of the Poplar lined avenues in France come closest for straightness. As I’m cruising along I catch site of a R66 sign. OK, so I’ve got photos of those from each state (though Texas is somewhat different) but this one has a pre 1937 sign as well, so this is a really old part of the road. They have what they call different alignments. Basically as a town grew and businesses grew up, they would re-route/re-align the road to bypass parts. This then is a pre 1937 alignment. I spot the sign too late to stop, so have to turn round to get my photo, by which time almost if not all the others have gone by me. It’s only another few miles to reach the fuel stop. Gary rolls up and I think is somewhat surprised to find I wasn’t the first to arrive. He half expected me to have been there for half an hour twiddling my thumbs. It’s good not to be too predictable.

After fuelling up we had about a 60 mile ride into Santa Fe and unfortunately directly into the sun. It did prove problematic for some, even with sunglasses on.

So here we are in Santa Fe. We’ve just been out for dinner at a nice rooftop restaurant and now I’m looking forward to my bed and more importantly a rest day. Yes, were are at leisure. In the morning I’ll take a walk round the town, then in the afternoon we’re all going shootin’. Gary amongst his many talents (and I’m not being sarcastic there) is as it turns out, also a qualified gun instructor, so he’s taking us all down to a range to experience that, which is the right of every American citizen, to be able to blow the shit out of summat with a great big gun!

Come back soon to check on whether any of us manage to shoot ourselves in the foot or even hit  target!

Neill 

US66 Tour - Day 6 - Weatherford to Amarillo

Fear not bloggers. I’m perfectly safe. The reason for no blog updates for a while is the lack of internet connection at the Big Texan in Amarillo and the Plaza Real in Santa Fe.

Day 6, we moved from a wet and sodden Oklahoma into a hot and sunny Texas. Yee-Haw!

Incidentally, the 'little shower' they had in Oklahoma turned out to be the heaviest ever amount of rainfall in one 24 hour period. 59 of 77 states faced a state of emergency. And we rode through it!!  Bit of a trend here, July 2009, UK Harley tour, wettest July week on record!

Anyway, we set out from Weatherford about our usual time, having had breakfast at the little diner across  the street.  The service in there can only be described as slow. One Mrs Overall  like waitress (for those that know Victoria Wood’s Acorn Antiques) serving to about 40 people. It wasn’t that spectacular when it finally did arrive but it filled a gap though.

On leaving, we took a short ride down to another one of the Route 66 museums. These tend to be small affairs running off donations or modest entrance fees. It’s not that big but the route through it takes you through the decades, with music of the era to accompany you.  The final room shows a short film giving some of the history, how the road built up and people made their livings from it, to ultimately showing how it declined and fell into disuse and disrepair after the Interstate highways were built. Quite poignant.

From there we headed on west and made a second museum stop at the National R66 Museum. This one we weren’t going in though, the sole purpose being to get some photos of a 30 foot US66 shield. It’s twinned with an old town museum, so there are lots of old buildings that have been preserved.

As we continued to head west, in gloriously sunny conditions, Gary took us to a piece of old road that is disused but unlike some other sections, is not fenced off. Here you can experience the thrills of riding with no helmet and jacket and the sounds from the exhausts, wind blowing through your hair (!!) and t-shirt flapping in the breeze.  An excellent feeling.

Still in Oklahoma we continued on to a little town called Erick for our lunch stop.  This is the most bizarre stop you will ever make in your life anywhere. I cannot begin to describe this fully but will have a go.

The place is called the Sandhills Curiosity Shop (google it). It proudly boasts as being the “Redneck capitol of the world”. It’s a ramshackle looking old building covered in signs and pictures, etc, from a bygone age. As you pull up and get off the bike, you are greeted by Harley (real name or not I don’t know) a man in a stars and stripes dungarees, with the hair and beard straight out of ZZ Top. He grabs you enthusiastically, hugs you and makes some comment about you, not necessarily flattering (he called two US women hookers) before heading off to the next victim! Following closely  behind carrying a welcome sign, is Annabelle, a similarly clad woman, with similar long grey hair. She also hugs you and welcomes you just as vigorously but spares the witty/rude comments. Your first clear thought at this point is, “What the !&£$”. Your second, third, fourth, etc, are exactly the same. This is weird shit. Either these people are on drugs or you are!!

After the hugs are over we were taken on a tour of the property. A dilapidated house out back hosts all kinds of memorabilia, antiques, etc. Some may even say junk. Having had the tour, you are then led to the building on the street, where there is bread, meat, cheese, crisps and canned drinks for you to help yourself and make yourself. Harley then gathers everyone round and asks them what made them want to travel the mother road. There is witty or rude banter once more. Then Harley and Annabelle proceed to sing and dance the Route 66 song. Get your kicks, etc, etc. Having had that little performance everyone has to join in and shake a tambourine and sing along to a second rendition. By this time you have just about got used to the crazy old goat. The finale to all this is a group photo outside the front of the ‘shop’, Harley at this point is atop the porch roof. Then it’s more hugs, etc, before we make our departure. Truly, truly surreal.

From Erick we continued our journey down the Mother Road to the U Drop Inn. This is an art deco building that was once a popular café on the road. It has been restored but is currently being used to house a photo collection. It’s unclear if it will ever be  a café again.

We then made our way into Amarillo and the Big Texan Hotel. This is a whole complex. Not only does it have rooms but it also boasts a horse hotel. If you’re driving across country with a horsebox, then whilst you slip into a big comfy bed, your horse gets its own little penn for the night. Finally there is the Steak House. The home of the free 72oz steak. Free, only if you can eat this monster piece of meat, 3 prawns, jacket potato, a roll and salad, in 60 minutes. To be honest, I wouldn't recommend staying here. The rooms weren't that great or well equipped and there was no internet. The meal prices in the steakhouse also seemed a bit pricey, though there were no shortage of punters, it was heaving. The steak house itself also boasts a gift shop, complete with caged rattle snake and a fairground style shooting gallery.  Why these people who have such free access to firearms need to go and shoot clowns and hillbillies whilst out for a meal is beyond me.

We ate what was once again a massive meal, though still not justifying the cost in my eyes and enjoyed the show as four brave souls attempted the 72oz challenge. All failed miserably and subsequently had to cough up the $72 it costs.

Tomorrow we shall be heading out of Texas into New Mexico, our 6^th state. On the way we shall pass the mid-point of the journey, 1139 miles and also do some time travelling as we cross the dateline and gain an hour.

Come back soon to see how we got on, on the way to Santa Fe.

Neill