Well, we made it. Dan and I were dragging this morning. Everyone else seemed to be running circles around us. The motel coffee was undrinkable! I take back the "charming" comment I made yesterday. We left too early to find a hippy cafe for some decent coffee and a nice breakfast. Instead we got hassled at the gas station and I ate some trail mix rather than spend another dime in that place. Dan had a Red Bull. Neither of us ever found a groove all morning. Mark took off to take his own route to Trinidad to avoid aggravating his shoulder. Ryans route had me questioning his skills as we rode across a field and I seemed to hit every rock in it. But soon enough we found a road and my confidence in Ryan was restored. That didn't mean I started riding any better. Some days I just don't have it and today was one of those. Maybe I mentally checked out on the trip last night. But I seriously could not ride a bike today. I wanted to park the bike and throw rocks at it for awhile but the schedule forced me to continue in utter contempt for my bike as it tried to throw me down in every turn. As my frustration reached a boil the trails got tighter and Dan suggested we go find something easier. I think he'd gotten past laughing at the folly of my riding and had moved onto genuine concern that the bike might just succeed in tossing me. I was ready to get the ride over with as soon as possible. So we split from Ryan and Jeff to make our way to Trinidad along a surprisingly scenic path to pavement. After we reached pavement the fun was over for me as my DRZ400 with low gearing for dirt riding is horribly outclassed by a 65 mph road. Ugh! The 50 mile ride was marked by my bike vibrating like crazy and the engine periodically making sounds like coins hitting a slot machine tray. Bad. The bike held together to the Trails End motel where the truck was parked. Mark beat us to the hotel and was eating lunch when we arrived.
We loaded the bikes, loaded our gear, and got ready to head out when Ryan and Jeff showed up. It was good to see them. Surveying the bikes in the parking lot was amazing. We have luggage racks barely hanging on. We have once pristine hard bags that now look like they took hail damage. Ryan's bike sounds strange. My bike sounds whooped. Mark's bike show signs of oil pushing past the valve cover. But we all made it! Our bikes need some love.
We're on the road now headed to Oklahoma City for the night. Ryan, Jeff, and Mark have rooms at the same hotel. They're less than an hour behind us as we are 92 miles from the hotel and we're driving into some threatening clouds. We'll get a good night of sleep tonight and then spend tomorrow driving.
WOW, Joe, what an experience you all had!!!! Stan and I waited anxiously every night to read your posts...............they were great! It was fun to hear of all the adventures,. and know that everyone was at least still alive! Thanks so much for doing the blog!!
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