The Redfishes ride to California

[Redfish Hunter]

This little RR is going to take me a while to do. I took too many pictures, rode too many miles, saw too many things, met too many people and made too many memories for this to be quick and easy. I will try not to get too wordy and I will try not to get too emotional.

Read along with me and we will work this one out together.

Tyler put me in a bind last year with this YFO thing and my pride forced me to accept. Pop was on board from the start but I was reluctant. Our friend hppants was excited from the beginning. I was reluctant.

A two week motorcycle trip is a selfish use of vacation time for a family man. California is about as far away from my swampy home as I can go. California is literally where the earth falls off into the ocean. And Pop is getting old, his '07 FJR seemed to touch the pegs too hard and too often, he was not as comfortable on it as he used to be, which made me uncomfortable.

Then he crashed, totaled the '07, almost died and the YFO thing was completely off the table.

All my YFO dreams lay in that ditch and flew off in that helicopter.





But then the cards and gifts started arriving. It started with Marty/Oface who was able to say that he bought Pop a new FJR.



The trickle became a flood and Pop felt it. He seemed to absorb the energy from each good wish from folks all over the country and in fact from all over the world. Against all odds Pop fought back. "I want to go meet these people" he said.

So I started Planning.

Our dear friend hppants hates to plan. I get a lot of happiness from irritating him with my plans. I figured out a route that would take Pop and I across the country without too much pressure and figured we would meet hppants in California. If we could make it that far.

hppants and I finally got on the same page and at his insistence we decided to cross the country together. Pop and I like riding with him, we think alike enough to make for good company and we think differently enough that we can solve problems effectively. I have no problem sharing the responsibilities and decisions with him, it actually cuts my stress in half.

But Pop and I were already slower than hppants, now we ride even slower. I did not want to hold hppants back from riding his ride the way he wanted to ride it.

We worked it out.

Mom fed me breakfast as usual and then:



We met our friend close to Ville Platte, Louisiana and he took the lead towards the TX border.

We stopped at the South end of Toledo Bend Reservoir:



I don't want to know what this expression means but I think it has something to do with that metal post he is sitting on:



Once in Texas he led us into hills and curves I was not aware existed there. He brought us to this little place in Milam TX:



Where we ate some delicious fried catfish:



Then I took the lead and we headed West through the Texas country side.

At one point what I think was a dog ran across the road in front of me. Pop said it was a Chupacabris. He may have been right.

The wind was a growing irritation but the TX back country was strangely beautiful and in many cases not what we expected.

We stayed in Comanche TX at a clean little local motel. We had supper at the Rockin J, I flirted with Lisa the waitress and we had a pretty decent meal.

582.5 miles for the day.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

I should mention that among the other wonderful things she did for us, Wonder Woman (Tyler) sent a Very Nice bottle of Scotch for the three of us to share "At The Right Time".

Our first night on the road seemed like That Time. We toasted to a few important things. Not dying in a motorcycle crash. Starting Over. Tyler Risk.

Good Stuff. Very Good Stuff.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

No available breakfast for Day2. Nothing. We rolled out in search of miles and food.

When we stopped for fuel and a gas station snack in the middle of nowhere Pop asked a local fellow if the wind was always blowing out there. The fellow thought about it for a moment, looked around, and said, "Yeah...Pretty much always...always."

I guess you get used to it eventually. I never did.

We rode through Cisco TX and I tried to get hppants to sing that song with me. He had to Google it to verify that The Cisco Kid really was from Cisco TX. There is not much there.

Here he is telling Pop, "That gray bike really looks much better than our pink bikes."



hppants and I re-routed The Plan, we collaborated on some changes and things went smoothly I think.

We had lunch in Post TX @ George's. It was an odd combination of Mexican, American, and Greek food.

There was a group of Harley riders in there and of course there was the stereotypical loud idiot with the sleeveless shirt and leather vest with the patches. I guess we all do what we like to do. We played leap frog with them for a while but we eventually outdistanced them.

We stopped Somewhere In West Texas for a break at a roadside picnic area. I figured we were about as far from a lake as we could possibly get when a guy pulled up pulling a ski boat. I guess I need to study my maps more.

hppants was just thrilled with the straight Texas roads.



As we approached Roswell NM on Hwy 380 the temperature climbed. It was over 100 F and there was no greenery above knee high anywhere. There were large bird nests on every single power pole for miles. Where they found all those sticks to build those nests I have no idea. They were mostly ravens with a few hawks scattered in.

Pop said they were stupid. They should have built one upside down on top so they would have some shade.

We stopped at a Picnic Area in the remote nothingness and sat in the shade for a while. It was nice to recharge. Then it was back into the blowtorch.




hppants wanted to ride through the Ruidoso area and Pop and I happily followed. We had no idea it was New Mexico's version of Gatlinburg TN. It was lovely and cool, the road out of there was wonderful but the traffic and the tourists and the crowds and the traffic and the full hotels with the high rates were a bit tiring. We finally got out and the road was awesome.

But we were now miles from anything and it was getting late. hppants had gotten a bit stressed with his GPS and then with the traffic and seemed tired. I was as supportive as I could be, I have had the GPS argument and led my group into traffic snarls before. We did not blame him at all. He let his GPS lead us through some residential areas and soon we were back where we needed to be.

In Carrizozo NM we found a Very Clean, very inexpensive little motel. hppants and I realized that our hand signal communication was not very good. I was trying to signal that I was happy, we could stay there, he took it as the opposite. We still have to work on this hand signal thing...

The Four Winds Motel:



We found some beers and then we walked to the Four Winds Restaurant. Supper was quite tasty, we had a lovely waitress named LaShaye. She informed us that they were open for breakfast at 5:00 am.

hppants is happy with his supper:



The temp was dropping but the wind never did. It was a bit chilly walking back to the motel.

535.7 miles for the day.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Some kind soul had wiped all the bugs off my FJR when I finally came out of the motel room that morning. (Thanks again hppants)

We walked back to the Four Winds Restaurant for breakfast. I only counted one wind but it was strong, persistent, and quite chilly. Breakfast was good, fairly fast, and we were on our way.

hppants told us that a friend of his had told him about some interesting lava flows right out of town and he wanted to see them. I was wondering how many friends he had that had ever been to this out of the way little town. We had barely cleared the corp limit sign when:










I am fairly sure hppants will have some better pics of the lava but you get the idea. It was really interesting to see.

At that point we all realized that if we had pushed on to The Next Town we would never have stopped to see that. We would not have enjoyed it at all. That just reinforced what we already knew, it is hard to enjoy a motorcycle trip when you are pushed for time.

The roads were fine, the views were excellent, the morning was splendid. The world was perfect. Since we had been able to get as far as Carrizozo that set us up for a perfectly timed run of a perfectly planned day.

We passed by the VLA (Very Large Array) and we took pics from a distance. I would have been more interested but a few years ago Gixxerjasen had taken some excellent pics of this and did a good RR for part of it. I don't like Gixxerjasen.



We stopped for some picnic fixings at a little store, and hppants made an executive decision to purchase a large chocolate muffin. The lovely Miss Jenny behind the counter was laughing at our silliness and we left there happy. We talked to some riders outside who were taking a rest after a brisk but tiring ride. We were going to where they had just been.

We stopped at a picnic table beside the road with no shade and had an excellent lunch complete with the delicious muffin.





Hwy 191 Arizona. Jes Sayin', Nuff Said.



Alligator Juniper:



Smoke from a Distant Fire in the background:



hppants hiding from us Slow Riders.



Pop and I enjoyed Hwy 191. Hppants enjoyed it too, he just enjoyed it a lot faster than we did. He would be waiting for us, we would chat, then he would disappear in a streak of red fire. Several times I was astonished to see just how far ahead of us he was when I would see that red streak across the canyon or up the mountain.

We all got surprised when a guy blasted past us on a KTM Super Fast Something. The guy was older than me and he was riding the tires off that thing. 191 was obviously his playground.

We reached an ugly gash in the earth, the Morenci Open Pit Copper Mine.



Pop didn't like it at all. I had seen it before and had a slightly different opinion. It is far from anywhere. Very few folks will ever see it. It provides jobs in a place that needs them. I use a lot of copper wire.

I told Pop that he would never buy copper wire from Lowe's or Home Depot again without thinking of the Morenci Mine.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

After we dropped into the flat desert heat on the south end of 191, straight, flat, and hot became the reality. And it was HOT. We passed through Safford and Pima on Hwy 70 and then on to Globe AZ on Hwy 60. It was over 100 F. We were passing lots of Saguaro but hppants was not seeing them. When he finally did see them I had shouted myself hoarse, which was completely useless and probably very irritating to Pop who could hear me clearly.

We agreed on another local motel, The El Rancho. It was a bit yucky but it was cheap and fairly clean. I found a leaky water hose and we rinsed off the bikes as best we could. We had an unremarkable Italian supper at DiMario's and called it a night.

No pics of any of this.

470.6 miles for the day.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

There was no coffee pot in the motel rooms and none in the office (it was locked up anyway). In a moment of inspiration I realized there was a Circle K behind the motel. I proudly presented my companions with Hot Coffee and earned a little gratitude.

No Breakfast. Dammit.

Almost immediately upon leaving Globe on Hwy 188 we found the Giant Saguaro Cactus. hppants was off the charts thrilled. It was a joy to see him so happy and excited by these wonderful plants. The birds that have adapted to life in and on these prickly giants had him fascinated and thrilled. The morning was perfect, the roads were perfect and hppants was fully immersed in the Joy of Life. Pop and I were there with him.

These Giant Saguaro were a Big Reason we had endured the heat of the Southern Route.



Notice how hppants in his jealousy tries to block the Gray FJR out of the picture:






We continued alongside Lake Roosevelt and our day was splendid.

Suddenly Pop's voice in my helmet was urgent and upset. I know this sounds like a Harley Davidson story but he said, "Something Chrome just fell of your bike and it hit the front of mine." WTH? We pulled off the road and looked both bikes over thoroughly. There was nothing that we could think of and nothing that we could see. Pop said, "I saw it bounce off your saddlebag and it came flipping back toward me."

I had lost that damned Yamaha sticker that sits inside the chrome strip on the saddlebag. We all fully understood then what he had seen and why it had not damaged his bike when it hit. Of course there were three brand new ones on my dresser at home that I had decided NOT to put in my tank bag.

We stopped in Payson at a grocery store for picnic supplies. hppants selected some treats from the bakery and because Pop was always fussing about wishing we had a Cold Watermelon, he also bought a small melon which we kept a secret from the Old Man.

We made an effort to see Montezuma's Castle but the parking lot was full, there were lots of cars waiting and it was HOT.

I wanted to run North up 89 to see the south edge of Sedona and hppants agreed. The views were wonderful but the Traffic and the People... We had to ride through Sedona and I will say that those roundabouts work. As long as the idiot in front of you does not treat each one as a stop sign.



We had our picnic lunch in the little mining park in Jerome. No shade. There was plenty of interesting mining equipment and information there and we did enjoy our lunch.

Pants proudly carving our melon. It is worth mentioning that Pop had a somewhat specialized...blade that was long enough to cut through the melon. Pop likes his knives.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

We rolled out of Jerome which would have been interesting if it were not so crowded on 89A. Just as we were leaving town a jackass in a white Mercedes eased out in front of us. This sucked for hppants because 89A is a wonderfully twisty road. He and the Mercedes played tag until the jerk finally pulled over and let him past. Pop and I held solid about 100 yards behind him and that was fast enough for us. Every slow car we caught pulled over at the first opportunity and we enjoyed that road fully. hppants enjoyed it too, just at a much faster pace.

When we got down into the valley the road got straight, the traffic kind of stalled and we wanted to catch up to our partner. Mercedes Jackass seemed pissed that the red FJR had dusted him so easily and he seemed to be aware that we could have passed him when we wanted also. Now when we would set up to pass him he seemed to go into a Nascar blocking maneuver. I was upwards of 115 mph in a construction zone when I finally got around the jerk, Pop right on my tail.

As soon as I let off the throttle back in my lane the bike went stupid on me. It went left, it went right, it started shaking violently. The conversation between Pop and I was Very Tense. It only lasted a brief span of seconds but I did my best Lee Majors impression of the opening for The Six Million Dollar Man. You remember, "I can't hold it, she's breaking up, she's breaking up!" I still don't know how I kept it from going down. Probably more luck than skill. I have never had a tire go flat so quickly or so violently.

Of course we were prepared:





I remember that Hwy 89 north to I-40 was long and straight without much excitement. I was obviously worried about my plug holding but it did just fine, in fact is still fine several thousand miles later.

We had to get on I-40 for a few miles and then we got off on old Rte. 66 through Seligman and around to Kingman. In Seligman we stopped for a rest and some hydration.



As we sat on a bench in the shade of the front porch there was a seemingly endless stream of astonishingly attractive ladies coming and going out here in the middle of nowhere. Pop and I had no explanation and really did not care.

No, we did not take any pics. That would have been just creepy.

Just west of Kingman we took Hwy 68 westward to Bullhead City AZ. Laughlin NV is just across the river. As we descended into the valley coming into Bullhead City the temps started climbing. I was at 104F, Pop was showing 105F. As we got into town my bike showed 105 but Pop had 107F. But it was DRY heat.

hppants had found a hotel with a guest laundry, we found some beers, but we did not find a decent restaurant. In desperation we settled for an IHOP and had a decent but unexciting supper.

It was still 100 F at 9:30 that night. At least it was a dry heat...

436.8 miles that day.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Good to see the RR and pics here RfH...'jus sayin!

--G

 

[Craigar]

Great ride report. Looks to be a heck of an adventure. I'm envious of the 3 Amigos.

 

[Niehart]

Folowing this thread. Thanks RFH.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Good to see the RR and pics here RfH...'jus sayin!
--G

Folowing this thread. Thanks RFH.

Redfish does not forget who his friends are.

 

[exskibum]

Enjoying the report, Andrew. No wonder you were so bubbly and effusive in Yosemite - it was probably the first day in a week that you boys weren't getting broiled. You missed the heat here - we got that going on now. So I'm in under the fan, reading your report procrastinating from wrestling with tire mounting levers, spoons, lubricant and such.

 

[Tyler]

:wub:

 

[Panman]

Great read my friend, it was nice to shake you hand. I'm still thinking on those ten items.

 

[festar]

Excellent ride report ANDREW,

Got a way with words my friend.

It was great meeting you, pops and pants at YFO.

Festar

 

[SacramentoMike]

Same for me, but on your NEXT cross country trip, when you mention "a lovely waitress named LaShaye" or "The lovely Miss Jenny behind the counter," think about putting in pictures of them, and maybe not another shot of Pants eating. Just a suggestion. Other than that, great report, nice pics. It was so good to meet you, your Dad, and Joey. But too bad you lost that Yamaha emblem. Now prolly everybody will think it's a BMW.

 

[RossKean]

Very nice Redfish.

However, I have to agree with Sacramentomike - photos of the lovely waitresses would trump pictures of hppants eating every time!!

 

[dcarver]

! ! N I C E ! !

 

[garyahouse]

As soon as I let off the throttle back in my lane the bike went stupid on me. It went left, it went right, it started shaking violently. The conversation between Pop and I was Very Tense. It only lasted a brief span of seconds but I did my best Lee Majors impression of the opening for The Six Million Dollar Man. You remember, "I can't hold it, she's breaking up, she's breaking up!" I still don't know how I kept it from going down. Probably more luck than skill. I have never had a tire go flat so quickly or so violently.

Really enjoyed your report. So very glad you are still onboard the forum. Always a joy to see that you've posted something up again. I'm stuck at home, keeping a close eye on mom, as usual. My riding days are over for awhile, but I certainly enjoy putting on a few miles with you through these amazing reports. MY FJR has been very patient with me, and waits for its chance to go to the gas station or grocery store once in a while, but that's about it for now.

As you know, I see the world around me a little differently than most. You came up with two possible answers for the amazing outcome to a serious close call, but I believe I know exactly what kept you from going down, especially in the light of how fast you were going and what would have happened. You could have been writing this report from a hospital bed, or even worse my friend. You have a lot to be thankful for. But you can't thank dumb luck. And we're glad too. Glad that this close call was only that, and that you are doing just fine.

FWIW, I'd give just about anything to talk to this guy for just 10 minutes. He's been in Heaven now for about 7 1/2 years. Though he taught me how to ride, we never got to ride together.

Enjoy these days with your pop. You've only got one, and soon enough you'll be reading someone else's ride report and remembering the good old days like I am today. Thank you again for sharing this with us.

Gary

darksider #44