bhr4

continued:
here is the correct, trip beginning vid: It's a little dark, but what adventure doesn't begin in the dark? V and Z
had grabbed a couple of hours of sack time on Q's couch and floor altho the floor was not as comfortable as Z remembered from his earlier days and so tried to watch a movie on tv to zone out to. V woke me up around 1:30 saying "he's here. lets go." Z groggyly rolled over and truly did not want to go. "You guys go ahead. I've changed my mind and do not want to go." He really didn't, deaths cousin was too enchanting just then. But up popped Z finally realizing there was no backing out now. It was Q's girlfriend's birthday the next day and so we thought he was in giving her a going away present. He tells us "No" later, but you know what a gentleman Q is. Anyhoo they all load up and start the start clock at 2:26 a.m. e.s.t. V. is quite the driver, heas a cdl, etc. and has lots of stories about driving long distances, so he grabbed the wheel first and drove till 2ish pm sunday all the way to north georgia. Here is a pic of the first gas stop and our chance to donate 150 dollars to those poor suffering oil barons.
I took over the wheel and lasted only 4 hrs before i just couldn't keep awake any longer.

Up thru Chattanooga, then Kentucky then calling it good for my shift somewhere in Illinois. Q takes over after getting some good sleep time.
In this pic two of the bike covers are still intact. Altho they will both be gone zoon. A major truck was backing way off from behind us and a passerby hollered out about something "flapping in the wind" behind them, so they stopped and removed the remaining threads of the covers. It was grand to finally be on foreign roads and this adventure was finally becoming a reality. Actually, these 45 hours of continous driving was so surreal they called it a time/reality warp that was used to escape the day to day same old same old reality.


finally St. Louis is in sight after spending the night rolling thru Kentucky and Illionois. wow what a bunch of Gambling Casinos are camped out along the Lewis and Clark route. Q is all afire that co-pilot/navigator V and Z snap some good pics of the "Arch". So much so that he misses the correct turn off and they end up down-town. Now, I'm sure St. Louis is a fine burg, but this neighborhood's age was not hiding. There is one jewel tho and of course it's the baseball park.








Monday around noonish they finally roll just outside of Wall Drug and pull over to feel the intense winds in person. "This would be a catagory 2 backhome" Z laughs. The motorhome was running rough and the next fill up confirmed they were only getting 4.5 mpg as opposed to the usual 7.5 mpg average. They jump on the celly and find the location of the closest dealer and make an appointment for a scan. Q, who is an expert mechanic theorizes "its a sensor. maybe a heat/fuel sensor and hell i can change that myself". "while the dealer is scanning the home we can unload the sleds and go find something to eat!" "Nah." V. states, "I'm going to stay with the bikes" They meet with the shop foreman and he tells them they are next on the list and should be looked at in one hour. "ok, then! Lets ride" exclaims V. After 34ish hours of continous motorhome confinement the freedom of being on the bike where they belonged was fine freakin tastic. Found a Mexican joint for Q and for a chain, it was acceptable. But now for the good stuff. They saddled up and beat it back across the super slab to the Rapid City Harley shop that was chockablock full of activity. They rolled in only to find nothing really happening yet and so decided to ride. "Turn right and lets see what we can see" shouted Z and away they zoomed. It felt like being a kid in a candy store. Finally riding the bike on way foreign roads. Roads with turns and hills. Yahoooooo. They zoomed this way and that being totally lost and lovin it. around here and there Z kept turing right whenever the roads climbed up, "Up", what a concept for boys from the 50 feet altitudes.