jwilly
Administrator of Drama
I had to make a trip to Oklahoma City this weekend for the World Cup of Softball. My daughter entered a contest sponsored by KFC to be the Official Batgirl for the USA vs China game on Friday evening. Well out of over 500 girls that were in the contest my daughter won!! Reba pitches on 2 fast pitch travel teams and this was truly an opportunity of a lifetime. She got to ride the team bus, catch balls during batting practice, do warm-ups with the team, and of course hang out in the dug-out during the game! The game was also broadcast on ESPN and they did a 30 second spot on Reba and how she won the contest and a little about her. 
Reba is far right.
My wife and 2 of our kids were in Chicago visiting family so we used the 3 flights that KFC paid for to fly them down from Chicago and I rode my bike! I took a direct route out there through Chattanooga, Memphis, Little Rock and then into Oklahoma City for a total of 921 miles. Good ride other than hitting and killing a dog on Rt 64 between Chattanooga and Memphis and my BT021 front tire giving out at an early age. (separate thread to follow)
I decided for the trip home I would take a little longer route and document everything and knock out a Saddle Sore 1000. I left Oklahoma City at 5:40am and headed south on I-35 towards Dallas. Great ride with the sun coming up and almost no cars on the road. Stopped near downtown Dallas for fuel and headed East for I-20. It was a pretty uneventful trip across Texas until I was within 3 miles of the Louisiana border. I got caught in a speed trap with a LEO standing in front of what appeared to be a broke down car with the hood up on the side of the road. Well he tagged me at 82 in a 70 for a total donation of $185.
Downtown OKC
Southern Oklahoma Sunrise
Don't Mess with Texas
Then came the rain! I rode from Monroe, LA to Meridian, MS (178 miles) in a nice steady down pour. No heavy winds or lightning, just a good ole rain! My rain suit performed great and I was also happy with the wet performance of the Bridgestone BT021’s. After riding for 3 hours in the rain when the sun came back out all the sudden I found myself feeling pretty tired. Just up the road a little ways I stopped at the next rest area. Took off my rain suit, rolled it up like a pillow and took a 45 minute Hobo nap on one of the picnic tables. Got back on the road and headed towards Birmingham. Traffic was really moving along once I got into Alabama so I made great time to B’Ham.
About halfway between Birmingham and Atlanta I stopped for gas in Heflin , AL. (Home of Scab) When I pulled in the station and got off my bike I notice a small pick-up right on front of the gas station with a small puppy jumping around in the back of the truck. There was a young guy kneeled down behind the truck doing something? When he stood up I notice that he had put a index card on the bumper that said free puppy? Keep in mind this is at 9:30 at night in the middle of nowhere! (Sorry Scab) I thought it was a little odd. Then all of the sudden this redneck chick comes out of the station, it appears it’s this guys girl friend, cousin, sister, whatever? She sees the sign on the truck, yells “No”, grabs the puppy out of the truck and hands it to the guy. She says, “That thing is not peeing in my truck no more, now go” and she points to the open field next to the station.
I go inside, go to the bathroom, and look for something to snack on and go up to the counter to pay. In comes the guy that was with the puppy. He is out of breathe like he just got done running, goes over and sits down next to Country Bumpkin to enjoy a slice of pizza prepared 8 hours earlier by the gas station attendant. I think to myself, if you went out in that field and killed that puppy, you’re gonna have a problem with me! I go out, no puppy in the cab or the bed of the truck? I hop on my bike and pull over to the side of the building. Grab a flash light from my tank bag and go looking for the puppy. After several minutes of searching I think that I can hear the dog whimpering somewhere over the sound of the passing traffic on I-20. Finally I find the dog down in a hole that’s about 3-4 feet deep with tall grass in it. I lie down and pull the dog out of the hole and nothing appears to be wrong with the dog. I walk back towards the station which is about 80 yards away now, when I came around the semi trailer that was parked on the side I see the couple driving out! Probably a good thing…
So, now I’m not sure what to do with the puppy? Well damn, I guess I’ll do the right thing. Come on little puppy, we’re going for a motorcycle ride! Emptied my tank bag into my rear trunk and put the puppy into the tank bag for the 100 mile ride to Metro Atlanta. I left the zipper open nearest me and hopped on the road. She stuck her head out the opening and was fast asleep. I guess this is the circle of life, killed one dog on the way there and saved another on the way home.
Arrival Home
Trip Totals SS1K:
Miles: 1029 (odometer) 1014 (Streets and Trips/Google Maps)
Fuel: $82.88
Donation to Waskom, TX Fraternal Order of Police: $185
Time: 16 ½ Hours
Total Weekend Mileage: 1950
Reba is far right.
My wife and 2 of our kids were in Chicago visiting family so we used the 3 flights that KFC paid for to fly them down from Chicago and I rode my bike! I took a direct route out there through Chattanooga, Memphis, Little Rock and then into Oklahoma City for a total of 921 miles. Good ride other than hitting and killing a dog on Rt 64 between Chattanooga and Memphis and my BT021 front tire giving out at an early age. (separate thread to follow)
I decided for the trip home I would take a little longer route and document everything and knock out a Saddle Sore 1000. I left Oklahoma City at 5:40am and headed south on I-35 towards Dallas. Great ride with the sun coming up and almost no cars on the road. Stopped near downtown Dallas for fuel and headed East for I-20. It was a pretty uneventful trip across Texas until I was within 3 miles of the Louisiana border. I got caught in a speed trap with a LEO standing in front of what appeared to be a broke down car with the hood up on the side of the road. Well he tagged me at 82 in a 70 for a total donation of $185.
Downtown OKC
Southern Oklahoma Sunrise
Don't Mess with Texas
Then came the rain! I rode from Monroe, LA to Meridian, MS (178 miles) in a nice steady down pour. No heavy winds or lightning, just a good ole rain! My rain suit performed great and I was also happy with the wet performance of the Bridgestone BT021’s. After riding for 3 hours in the rain when the sun came back out all the sudden I found myself feeling pretty tired. Just up the road a little ways I stopped at the next rest area. Took off my rain suit, rolled it up like a pillow and took a 45 minute Hobo nap on one of the picnic tables. Got back on the road and headed towards Birmingham. Traffic was really moving along once I got into Alabama so I made great time to B’Ham.
About halfway between Birmingham and Atlanta I stopped for gas in Heflin , AL. (Home of Scab) When I pulled in the station and got off my bike I notice a small pick-up right on front of the gas station with a small puppy jumping around in the back of the truck. There was a young guy kneeled down behind the truck doing something? When he stood up I notice that he had put a index card on the bumper that said free puppy? Keep in mind this is at 9:30 at night in the middle of nowhere! (Sorry Scab) I thought it was a little odd. Then all of the sudden this redneck chick comes out of the station, it appears it’s this guys girl friend, cousin, sister, whatever? She sees the sign on the truck, yells “No”, grabs the puppy out of the truck and hands it to the guy. She says, “That thing is not peeing in my truck no more, now go” and she points to the open field next to the station.
I go inside, go to the bathroom, and look for something to snack on and go up to the counter to pay. In comes the guy that was with the puppy. He is out of breathe like he just got done running, goes over and sits down next to Country Bumpkin to enjoy a slice of pizza prepared 8 hours earlier by the gas station attendant. I think to myself, if you went out in that field and killed that puppy, you’re gonna have a problem with me! I go out, no puppy in the cab or the bed of the truck? I hop on my bike and pull over to the side of the building. Grab a flash light from my tank bag and go looking for the puppy. After several minutes of searching I think that I can hear the dog whimpering somewhere over the sound of the passing traffic on I-20. Finally I find the dog down in a hole that’s about 3-4 feet deep with tall grass in it. I lie down and pull the dog out of the hole and nothing appears to be wrong with the dog. I walk back towards the station which is about 80 yards away now, when I came around the semi trailer that was parked on the side I see the couple driving out! Probably a good thing…
So, now I’m not sure what to do with the puppy? Well damn, I guess I’ll do the right thing. Come on little puppy, we’re going for a motorcycle ride! Emptied my tank bag into my rear trunk and put the puppy into the tank bag for the 100 mile ride to Metro Atlanta. I left the zipper open nearest me and hopped on the road. She stuck her head out the opening and was fast asleep. I guess this is the circle of life, killed one dog on the way there and saved another on the way home.
Arrival Home
Trip Totals SS1K:
Miles: 1029 (odometer) 1014 (Streets and Trips/Google Maps)
Fuel: $82.88
Donation to Waskom, TX Fraternal Order of Police: $185
Time: 16 ½ Hours
Total Weekend Mileage: 1950
