Sunday ride home

We decided to pass on the early morning ride to the beach...since we are from Arizona, the thought of driving in the mist and 62 degree temperatures seemed too much like work ;).  We also realized that heading home to Arizona on Sunday meant we would miss Monday am Los Angeles rush hour traffic.  So home we came.  

Added a few more photos from our weekend along with a closing note.

We made it home by 6 pm, and picked our dog up from the doggie penitentiary this morning (Monday).   Great weekend, and a wonderful event organized by Jack Stein, Bob Leonard and their VJMC folks.

Saturday VJMC update

Today was a busy day, bike show in the morning,tour of the Solvang Motorcycle Museum, Danish pastry for lunch, bike ride through the Santa Barbara county countryside in the afternoon and finally dinner at the bike Museum. Due to editing difficulties, photos will be sequential but not titled ;). It should be apparent when we get to the bakery. For the record, there is a reason that God made apple turnovers. Never understood until today when I ordered one at a real Danish bakery. Oh my, it was a religious experience;)

Thursday-Friday update from California

As Stu and I were thinking of vacations, we discussed the coast of Texas, the coast of Florida and this trip to Solvang.  So first Texas was crossed off the list, then the coast of Florida...narrowing it down to Solvang.  When we got here, I googled earthquake zones in California and am happy to see we are in the middle of one.  ;(.  But so far, the ground is quiet.  Last earthquake was months ago, whew.  Locals are talking about the recent microburst that hit the beaches of Santa Barbara, some so strong they picked up a 125 pound person and tossed him/her in the air.   If I ignore the increased chance of death by being here...the place is lovely and beautiful.

Thursday was an all day drive (8am to 6:15 pm) to Buellton, Ca.  To say the traffic in the Los Angeles area is dreadful is an understatement of "epic proportions".   

Friday, the start of the VJMC weekend, started in Solvang (4 miles away) and was filled with registration (50 plus bikes), a ride (22 bikes) to Cold Spring Tavern and then dinner at Mendenhall's museum of Gasolina.   

September 2017 trip to Solvang for another VJMC motorcycle weekend

Wednesday afternoon preps are underway for a Thursday am departure.  Lucy has been delivered to the dog penitentiary, the 1971 Honda CB500 has been readied for the trip.   Since the round trip is over 1100 miles, and the CB500 has a seat that isn't fabulous for that type of long distance (at least for me, the hapless passenger), we are loading it into the truck.

Should be in Solvang tomorrow evening.   I will post photos tomorrow night of things we see along the way tomorrow, unless the scenery is more Mohave Desert and endless Los Angeles basin traffic...otherwise, the action starts Friday.

Sunday and we are home

We left super early on Sunday so we were home by 1!  Including picking Lucy up from prison.   Will review all the photos and add a few more in the next day or two.  I have a new blogging app that I need to learn...editing this blog sounds easier than starting anew.  Next trip is scheduled for the end of April.

Saturday's Tiddler ride

Greetings from a place we cannot recommend you stay overnight, the Avi Casino and Hotel in Ft Mohave.  A one star place if there ever was one ;).  Tonight's excitement is mixed martial arts wrestling at the hotel, so a huge number of excited people, and you can imagine they are generally pretty unusual looking, have been streaming in all afternoon.  Alas I could not take photos.  Stu and I decided on a brilliant new product idea:   A new type of tattoo ink that fades after 10 years or the first 100 pounds gained.  Pretty great idea yes?

Back to the topic...the ride was excellent. I am estimating 15 old and interesting vintage bikes.  We went up the hill toward Oatman then down the hill into Kingman for lunch.  The term tiddler means small bike and the goal today was for the bikes to be under 30 hp.  Our bike was bigger so that I could come along too.   We stopped at a tourist trap restaurant in Kingman for lunch.  Stu and I decided to come back the fast way so parted company with the group.  We were back by 3:30 and finished up the day putting the bike back in the truck.

On a separate side track, I went to buy bottled water and the only spring water available was from Iceland.  Photo attached so that my niece Adelaide, currently living in Iceland, can see the bottle.  How it makes financial sense to bottle water in Iceland and ship it to Fort Mohave, Nevada is one of the world's great mysteries.

Oatman was full of tourists and only three burros, so the ratio wasn't great and we didn't stop ;)

Overall the people on the ride were friendly, the weather was excellent and the ride beautiful.  All we could ask.  Plus we have seen hundreds of super weird looking wrestling fans. ;)

Arrived in the scenic hamlet of Fort Mohave, Az

Ah, yet another lovely five hour drive through the Mohave Desert.  It is not in bloom, excluding brittle bush, and we have zillions of those in our back yard.  We ate lunch at the crossroads restaurant in Parker, az.   Got to the hotel in time to check in with hundreds of girls, ages 6-18, who are here for a regional soccer tournament.   Wish I had autographed posters of my niece Adelaide with me ;). I could have made her some money selling her poster.

We are, as of 5 pm, the only vintage Japanese bike in the parking lot.

We should have lots of photos tomorrow at this time, once we get back and I can connect.  It appears our route will be through Oatman, Az up and over the hills to Kingman, lunch and then home.   (To my brother and his family, Oatman is famous for very few things, mostly famous for Clark Gable and Carol Lombard spending their honeymoon night there.   There are also wild donkeys that roam the streets now, fed carrots by tourists, the burros are descendants of burros abandoned by prospectors when they quit mining.)

Warm out right now, at least 85, with the traditional gentle Mohave 30 mph breezes.

Yet another photo of the wonders of the Mohave ;)

April 7 start of Vintage Japanese Tiddler ride

The 1971 Honda CB 500 is all ready to go.  Friday, we will drop Lucy off at the spa and then drive the pickup 250 miles to scenic Fort Mohave, Az, with the bike in the back of the bed.  Weather is forecast for 30 mph winds, of course.  Saturday, we gather up with other Vintage bike owners and go for a 250 mile day trip, returning to the hotel at night.  Sunday homeward bound.  Will post photos as we move along the way.

Bike is loaded and ready to go (Thursday afternoon).

Home safe and sound Tuesday at 7

We made it home just as the sun was setting. Overall 1300 miles this trip, averaging 51 mpg on the Triumph.  It was windy most of the day after we got to Lucerne Valley, maybe 15/20, with long periods of tail winds ;).  When we stopped in Yucca Valley, I looked at Weather.com again, since early am forecasts had been wind under 10 mph the entire trip.  Ha!  Now they were calling for 60 mph gusts in Barstow and 25-30 in general along the Mohave desert.  How is it possible for them to be incorrect all the time.  Gees.

We were lucky to be ahead of the worst winds and the day went well.  The highest price of gas we saw in Ca for regular was $3.99, the highest we actually paid was $3.69.  Of course, crossing into Arizona the price was $2.25.

Our sole purchase was a Death Valley mug.  Apparently I only buy glasss souvenirs ;).  When I got it home and read the bottom of it, it says hand wash only.  Sigh.

Off this am to spring our dog from the penitentiary.

Thanks for all the comments;)

Arrived with huge winds and dust storms in Barstow

What a ride today, 152 miles of huge wind and gusts.  30-35 mph (plus gusts) for the last 100 miles and dust storms too.   We made it fine but it was a lot of effort for Stu.  Now at the scenic and quite nice comfort suites in Barstow.  Waiting in the lobby for dinner to be delivered ;). Not going out again unless we have to.   I'd like to say the views were great today but with the wind...plus this section of the Mohave desert is pretty bleak.  As is Barstow.

High point of the day was a visit this am to a museum in Lone Pine, the museum of western film. A wonderful place to see.

Hopalong Cassidy area:

Steve McQueens short gun from Wanted Dead or Alive

Stars and their horses -names too

Sunrise in Lone Pine

Beatty Nv to Lone Pine Ca

Great day to ride.  Chilly wake up in Nevada, 45 degrees, but we stalled until about 9, ate breakfast at Mel's diner, picked up our charming VJMC Death Valley ride T-shirts and hit the road about 10.  We rode across the park and ended up in Lone Pine for the night. Amazing views, and very little traffic. And no snakes or other horrifying desert dwellers.

One extraordinary side trip we did here in Lone Pine:  Manzanar internment camp. A very sobering look at what is possible in a democracy where citizens get rounded up and put in camps with no due process (or the ability to show these citizens were a risk).  The camp structures are mostly all gone now but they are making progress creating examples of the buildings.  Over 122,000 Japanese were interned, with 10,000 of them at this camp, until 1945.

Overall a great day to be alive ;)

Across Death Valley to Beatty Nevada

We left Barstow about 9:30 am, with a group of other VJMC folks heading into the national park.  We stopped in the few towns there are, always to get gas since it can be miles beteeen towns.  Stops had names like Randsburg, Trona and last, but not least, Stovepipe Wells.  Then on to Beatty.   Overall we estimate over 50 bikes are riding on this trip, even a 1954 Vincent in unrestored condition.

Happily for us, even with the rain this year, Death Valley is not having a Super Bloom of flowers like they had last year.   So driving through the park this year was easy, no need to avoid minivans full of tourists. ;)

Pictures below.  Tomorrow we are going back across the park to the other side to Lone Pine, Ca.  

Driving through Death Valley 

1954 unrestored Vincent 

VJMC members blathering away 

Atomic Inn

Stu