For anyone contemplating doing this type of ride, I would do it again in a heartbeat!  It’s one of the best ways to see the country and to really appreciate the beauty of the good ol’ US of A.  It would have been great having others with us, and perhaps the next long ride we take will be with Geoff and Neecer, Frank’s bro and sis-in-law (sis really!), among others.  To share this experience with more than just the two of us would be all the more special.

For all you women out there who think you can’t possibly do this type of trip because you have to take your entire wardrobe and beauty products along with you, think again!  I think I’m a pretty high maintenance gal because I have my hair and makeup products within easy reach, but really,  I made this trip with a quarter of what I normally use when home.  I packed a couple pairs of jeans, enough undergarments for about 5 days, 3 pairs of shoes, a lot of t-shirts cuz you don’t get dressed up on a ride like this, and enough bath and beauty products to feel comfortable.  Everything in travel size is the key!  So if I can do it, y’all can do it as well!

The best part of the journey was spending time with friends and family, as they made the trip all the more special.  Seeing my best friends Debra and Teddy again was marvelous, and meeting Frank’s sis Susan and his son Jason was wonderful as well.  We are blessed with many wonderful friends and family.  It was also great spending time with Frank and getting to know him a little more.  It was also great knowing we can spend 3 weeks together and not get on each other’s nerves, or want to run away screaming!! 

So that’s my perspective as a female, as a passenger and as someone who is fairly new to riding - I only began this experience last summer, so it’s not like I’m a pro at sitting a bike! 

Again, it was a great way to see the country, great to spend time with everyone, and I appreciate Frank for allowing me to share his journey.  Can’t wait to do it again!!  Thanks to all of you again who have been a part of this trip, made comments and kept us in your prayers as we crossed the USA.  Till next time!  Adios!

Here are the final numbers from our adventure:

21 days away from home, 4/18/09 to 5/8/09.

16 of those riding, 5 visiting.

40 gas stops, 145.5 gallons, $359.80, average of $2.47/gallon, average of 41.75 mpg, costing $.06 per mile.

15 nights in motels, for $1217.16; 5 nights in private homes with friends/family.

Souvenirs, meals, and other expenses: $1634.12

Total cost for 3 weeks on the road touring the southwest and visiting: $3211.08. 

Opportunity to travel the US by Harley:   PRICELESS!

We didn’t stay at the cheapest motels.  We found the LaQuinta chain to be moderate in price and comfortable in amenities.  One of the best things about that chain is good quality shower heads.  Maybe it’s just me, but I hate those cheap joints with the little crappy shower heads that either spray too hard, or not enough to rinse off.  Many motels now have an expanded continental breakfast that includes waffles, some even had eggs, french toast, plus the usual choices in cereal, danish, bagels, and such.  We did try a cheaper motel one night and regretted the decision.  Hard mattress, crummy shower, rough towels.  It’s true you generally get what you pay for.

What will I do different next time?  More research in points of interest in route.  Knowing where I want to stop and what I want to do there, what it will cost, how much time I will need.  I was a little ambitious in my planning on how far I was going and how much visiting I wanted to do.  We’d have liked more time with everyone, and to have done more at each stop.  I would also plan more time on secondary highways than the interstate, though you can’t beat the interstate for getting from point A to point B quickly.  Sometimes it gets a bit intense at 75 or 80 mph!

My next travel will likely be more in the summer months.  We did get very lucky in only having to deal with heavy rains one day.  We were often just ahead of or just behind the bad weather. Whew!  I’d also like to take the northern route west and see some of the national parks up that way.

Once again, thank you to all who shared our journey!

We hear on the morning news there are tornados on the leading edge of a storm cell in Missouri, and of course it’s heading our way!  Time to pack and run!  Can we stay ahead of the storm?  Just to be sure, we put on our rain gear before we even hit the road.  Again.  Rain gear.  We got spoiled with all that hot dry air in the southwest.  Rain?  Would we be lucky again and stay dry?  Yes!  Fate smiled upon us once more as we barely got hit with a drizzle all day. 

Traffic was heavy pretty much all day, but we just stayed with the fast movers and kept an escape route.  This is the second day in a row, and the only times the whole trip, we had lane changers not see us and had to brake to avoid them.  I make a practice of not riding in someone’s blind spot, and moving through it quickly when I pass, but sometime’s they still don’t see us.  Twice in three weeks and 6000 miles isn’t bad, though.

Stopping for lunch and gas just south of Dayton; we thought it was going to have to be chain food (oh no!).  But as we turned into Perkins, there it was!  The Dark Horse Tavern!  Yes, cold beer!  Very nice decor and excellent food & service.  Then back on the road home.

We got into Belleville at 5:30, and breathed big sighs of relief.  As much as we enjoyed the journey and adventure, it’s always nice to be home.

A few statistics: 405 miles ridden today; 37.5 mpg; 45.3 mpg; and 44 mpg.  21 days away from home, 16 of those on the road.  6,164 total miles ridden, average of 385 per travel day.  Tomorrow I’ll do a little bit on what I learned, what I’d do differently, and what I wouldn’t change.  I’ll also share details on expenses for anyone planning their next adventure.

We’d again like to thank Martin for allowing us to use his website for the blog, and Ryan for all the hard work setting everything up and making it look great!  We’d also like to thank each and every one of you who followed our journey - it was great having you “ride” along with us!  Frank and Sharon

[gallery]

After stuffing our faces, we gassed up the bike and headed north.  At Park City, we turned off and toured the Diamond Caverns.  It was shorter and easier to get in than Mammoth Cave, and after all, a cave is a cave, right?  We enjoyed the tour and got back on the road.  We decided to stay over in Elizabethtown again since we had a good stay there the first night.  Our favorite desk clerk Stephanie hooked us up with a room that has a jacuzzi.  I hope this computer doesn’t fall in!  Ahhhhhhhh…..

Tomorrow we’ll be back in Belleville barring any untoward events.  Saturday night whoever has time is welcome to drop by and listen to our stories and see the rest of the pictures.  Say around 7:00? 

The numbers: 346 miles ridden; 40 mpg; 44 mpg.

[gallery]

The Parkway runs 445 miles from Natchez to Nashville.  We originally planned to drive it all, but after a close look at the maps and seeing how infrequent gas stations and rest spots are, had second thoughts.  After riding 100 miles of it to Jackson, MS, we decided the interstate was better for the rest of this leg.  So we took I 55 up to Memphis, and got settled in around 6:45.  By 7:05, we were in the hot tub!  Ahhhhhhhh…….

We did stop at two historic sites on the trace: Emerald Mound indian ceremonial ground, and the “sunken trace” a section of the original trail that is worn deep in the soft loess soil.

The ride north on the interstate was pretty relaxing.  We had a tail wind and light traffic making things nice.  It was looking like the skies would bust loose again as we got into Memphis, and as we pulled into the motel, here it came.  Do we lead charmed lives, or what?

By the numbers: 479 miles ridden; 41.6 mpg; 40.6 mpg; and 42.9 mpg.  We have now ridden 5413 miles since leaving Belleville.

[gallery]

The wind gods turned on us again today, with a strong and stiff cross wind and gusts all day.  The landscape in east Texas reminds me a little of back home…rolling hills, trees, farms, etc.  We saw no wildlife, but lots of farm animals.  There was one ranch with bison and ostriches, an odd combination indeed.

We stopped for lunch near Beaumont, at a little mexican place called Tortugas; they also had some Caribbean cuisine as well.  Their food was quite good; it turned out to be a good choice.

Back on the road, we hit a brief traffic jam from an accident in a construction zone, between a semi and a car.  Not pretty.  Coming into Lake Charles, LA, we went over a very high bridge, which on approach concerned me due to the high winds, the openness, and not knowing if it would be one of those bridges with steel grating.  Fortunately, it was concrete all the way.

We motored into Lafayette around 5:30  and got checked into our motel.  Then off to WalMart for a few supplies.  While there, I inquired about where there might be a restaurant with local cuisine.  The man suggested Prejean’s with no hesitation.  So off we went, and hit paydirt!  There was more crawfish and shrimp and cajun seasons on the menu than anyone ever seen ‘afore!  Sharon had the Louisiana Zydeco shrimp, and I had the blackened catfish.  Then we topped it off with Creme Brulee and bourbon pecan pie.  Quite the meal, indeed.

By the numbers: 462 miles, including about 30 around town yesterday; 40.7 mpg, 34.6 mpg and 38.3 mpg.[gallery]

The Riverwalk was very relaxing and enjoyable.  The canals and the shade from the surrounding buildings keep it much cooler and pleasant on the lower level.  We walked the full circuit looking at all the shops and restaurants, and had lunch at The County Line, a BBQ joint.  Not a chain, Tim!  The food was ok; nothing to write home about.  

There are guided walking tours of the Riverwalk where people can learn about the canals, the shops, etc. while listening to informed docents.  There are also boat tours on the canals as well.  Being hard core bikers, we didn’t stoop to any of that; we did our own tour of the entire Riverwalk!

After we left the Riverwalk area, we met up with Jason, Misty and James for dinner at Capellini’s Italian Restaurant, one of the area’s nice places.  The food was good and so was the company.  We visited with the kids for awhile longer, said our goodbyes and headed back to our hotel.  Tomorrow we head out on the road again, toward Louisiana and Lafayette or Baton Rouge, depending on how much we feel like traveling. 

No numbers today; just local travel.

[gallery]

We rode into San Antonio around 12:45 and found Jason’s place 15 minutes later with no trouble.  The city is big with a great freeway system.  We drove right by the Alamodome.  It was great to see Jason and meet his girlfriend, Misty (that’s her given name).  Then it was a short hop to the local pub called the Trap for some cold brews and pool.  I can still whoop the kid most games.  Jason and Misty fixed us a nice dinner and we visited for a while.  Tomorrow we plan to visit the Alamo and the Riverwalk, then visit some more when Jason gets home from work.

By the numbers:  230 miles ridden; 44 mpg.[gallery]

We slept in a little today, not sure if we were that tired from yesterday’s ride, or if the time zone change threw us off.  Not that it matters why.  It was in the 90’s yesterday and my oil pressure was getting scary low, so I decided to watch it closely today.  There is a Harley dealer just east of where we spent the night, so I figured if it acted up at all in the morning, I’d pull in and get some fresh oil.   Temps were in the high 70’s when we pulled out, and the pressure ran low from the start (yes, I checked the level and looked for signs of leakage), so I wheeled into Barnett’s (the world’s largest they say) Harley Davidson.  They recommended straight 60 weight for the heat down this way, so I had them dump the 20 - 50 and go with the heavy stuff.  My bike likes me for that!  So we didn’t really get on the road till noon.

The wind was out of the southwest, so we pretty much had a tail wind all day again today.  From El Paso to Fort Stockton the scenery was pretty much like yesterday, wide, sparse, arid valleys surrounded by mountain scenes in the distance.  The only break in the monotony was when you got to a small mountain range and cut through the pass to the next valley.  Riding through the barren terrain makes one wonder what hardships the settlers must have faced passing through and learning the land.  East of Fort Stockton, we moved into higher ground, so it cooled off a bit and things were much greener and more pleasing to the eye.  We fell in with a group of bikers and rode with them for about 20 miles till it was time for a gas stop.  It was nice riding with a group for a while.  It looks like Texas is taking the lead on wind energy.  We saw a gazillion giant windmills in several huge farms.  We also were right next to a couple blades on a semi in a rest area.  Those puppies are ginormous when right next to you.  We’d have gotten a pic, but he was pulling out right when we got off the bike.  The 80 mph speed limit?  Looks good, but I didn’t want the engine exposed to the extra heat of necessary revs with the oil pressure situation.  Even with the 60 weight, the heat stressed the oil and kept the pressure lower than I liked.

We finally rode into Ozona, TX about 7:00 local time.  It’s a quiet little town and welcome to our eyes.  It’s just a short little 210 mile jaunt from here into San Antonio tomorrow.  We ate dinner at the Cafe Next Door.  Yes, I capitalized that as it’s the name of the joint.  A cozy little diner in a cozy little town. 

Today’s numbers:  365 miles ridden; 51 mpg; and 45 mpg.[gallery]

We didn’t see much of note today.  One high spot was the trike we  saw.  It looks home made, and sports a V-8 engine, and steering set up like a tractor.  Then we hit the foothills at Las Cruces, and things were greener and more hilly.

One of the great things about motorcycling is that you are out in the weather and sense everything right away.  No isolation in the litttle cocoon of a car’s cabin with A/C or heat.  You know right away if the temp dips or jumps, if it starts to rain, or if you pass a stockyard (yuck!).  There were several of those between Las Cruces and El Paso.  Nice.  Still, a bad day riding beats a good day working!  Today was a good day riding.

Dinner was at Leo’s Mexican Restaurant, a local (exit 11 off I-10) joint here in El Paso.  It was very good; I had some of the best nachos I have ever eaten.  Yes,  Tim, better than Mexican Fiesta, and sorry Susan, but I think it beats Tony’s, too.

Today by the numbers:  455 miles ridden, 42.5 mpg, 42.3 mpg, and 44.6 mpg.   Love that tailwind!  We were cruising 75 mph much of the day.  Tomorrow we’ll break 4000 miles since Belleville![gallery]