I'll try! This ride report is nearing the end.. As maligned as they are, the Great Plains are still pretty great in many ways. The open sight-lines and big swatches of texture can be engaging. And it's just nice to be so far from everything (at least when the bike runs and nobody's hurt).. A clash of ecosystems? Kit Carson, Colorado.. Somewhere nearer the Colorado/Kansas state line.. Stopping for a quick pee in Winona.. A motel along I-70 for the night, then a couple hundred miles to my sister's place in Abilene and the Jeep. Margaret loads me up with hand-harvested elderberry concentrate to distribute to family in Indiana... Long drive home, complete with an 8-hour nap at a rest stop in Missouri (I guess I was tired)... I drove 1135 miles and I think I rode 4360. The front Dunlop looked like this after all that pavement.. It was the best of trips. It was the worst of trips. I certainly enjoyed the time with Neil and of course the astoundingly beautiful scenery we rode through. The time alone was good as well. Sometimes I pushed harder and sometimes I took things embarrassingly easy. The rain was a dissapointment, for sure, as were the mechanical issues, but it was a trip on the bike and those are all good. John
Good stuff John. I really like the two of the trains in the lowering sun. I love the western US. So big and vast and beautiful. And for big parts, mostly empty. Thanks for shining a light into some places I've not been yet. John
Thanks, John! I'm glad you liked it. As for the trains, one of these years I'll devote a trip to taking railroad pictures. They must remind me of my youth or something. John
Great Ride report!!! And I got to ask, Where you with DJ and the B Flames in August, at the Terre Haute Block party? If so Ive sat in the street and drank beer and listened to ya. Its a real good band!!! You shoud put a ADV sticker on your Guitar, I would have said, Hey!! And flipped ya the bird!! Jailor8
Thanks! Thanks! And I commend you on your fortitude! That was actually my brother Mark playing bass. Until September he and I took turns playing every other weekend with Dicky. I have since parted company and he's stuck playing all the gigs now. They just won the Indiana Blues Challenge last night at The Slippery Noodle in Indy. Great band and lots of fun to gig with, but they work just about every weekend and that doesn't leave much room for anything else. Here's a set from a gig last April where I'm playing bass.. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/aqlnP9pTWCQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> John
Thanks for the great RR John! AND that set is what I was wantin' to hear! -OMP in San Diego. I grew up listening to Blues on the three Black radio stations in 50's Houston. Now there are none that play Blues. And of course San Diego's radio sucks hind tit to any kind of music. Ride on.
thanks for the RR, I really, really enjoyed it... long distance with a KLR, great photos, desert, prairies and just enough weather and technical challenges to keep it interesting (to me, I'm sure it was more than enough for you). looking forward to your next RR.
The last time I was in Big Bend, I stumbled upon an AM radio station somewhere near Fort Stockton that played the old cowboy country music from the '50s and '60s. That stuff doesn't get played ANYWHERE from what I can tell. It was absolutely refreshing to hear, and I don't even like country music. It would be nice to have some variety like we used to have. Media conglomerates have ruined music and pop-culture, as far as I'm concerned. Thank you! Hopefully the next trip will be dry from start to finish! John
John, head for Weiser, ID with your acoustic the third full week in June for the "Old Time Fiddlers National Competition". There is 5 acres of camping for all the itinerant musicians to jam 24/10. Yep, all day/night long for 10 days! Jazz to fiddlin' with everything in between!
Everywhere I went it seemed like they were either just about to have a music festival or had just finished one. How awesome is that! I can envision one day just traveling around and jamming with strangers in neat places. It's definitely something to shoot for with the long range planning.. John
Do it John! My mother was one of those childhood fiddlers that just stopped playing and never picked it up again. She "sort of tried" to get me to play, but I'm one of those persons who are known not to carry a tune. I can't dance either, but like my dad, I sure have fun making a fool out of myself. Let me know when you can make it to Weiser and I'll meet you there. We can crash at my cousins place.