May 30, 2001
Things started out sunny and warm, but went downhill from
there. I actually managed to get everything packed and
stowed and hit the road on time. The sun was peeking out
every so often as I hit 635 heading for 75 northbound
through Oklahoma. The cruise was going great up 75/69 until
I was about 60 miles into Oklahoma, then the sky let loose.
I managed to get my rain gear on before I got too wet. But
in the process, my right turn signal switch broke. I
thought I had finally gotten out from under the rain when I
stopped in Joplin to get the switch fixed at the dealer
there. Can't say enough about their service dept. They
squeezed me in, got it fixed, and got me back on the road
just in time to get soaked heading on to Springfield, where
I ended the day.
May 31, 2001
I hit the road from Springfield under MORE clouds and
drizzle. The only difference was that it was colder than
Wednesday. I dodged fog and drizzle all the way to St.
Louis where the sun decided to come out to tease me. Not
being all that trusting a soul, the rain gear stayed on,
which was a good idea since Illinois decided to welcome me
with a gullywasher. Cruised the rest of the way over to
Litchfield and met up with Steve Tuttle, Ivan Gregory,
Dana, Andrzej, Greg, Firefly Dave, Panhead Charlig &
Sam. After getting settled in Steve and I met up with Fire
Nazi and Ohio Dave to head on to Fast Eddies and the
ballet. Fast Eddies was PACKED! They had a blues band
playing cranked up to 11. Many a netscum was present
including Paulie, Steve Gaultier, Sputter, Yo!Adrian, and
Mr. & Mrs. LESDL. Food and beer were had, though with a
little delay on the food. We then hit the road for a night
of ballet. Many thanks go out to Mr. Cheezie for the passes
to get in the club. The ballet was great. Everyone needs to
be cultured every so often. And what you get for a buck!
After much entertainment it was time to head back to the
hotel.
June 1, 2001
Woke up and headed over to Denny's for breakfast with
Mikey, Cuda, and the rest of the motel crew. After that I
headed in to St. Louis to pick up Joi at the airport. We
then came back and headed up to the site. That gravel
driveway is definitely more of a drunk test than the bridge
at Mick's Lake ever was! I think I've still got a pucker
mark in my seat! After much fun and reunions we decided to
beat the rain back to the hotel. We didn't.
June 2, 2001
I'm not going to write much about the actual event because
I just don't think that words do it justice. We saw many of
our old friends and made a number of new ones. Red's BBQ
was, as always, a highlight of the trip. Another thing that
stuck out was Eddie's appearance. I wasn't around when he
was active and so didn't try to take time from people who
knew him better, but still said hi. In the afternoon,
Cowpoke, Ken, Joi, and I went into Gillespie to get some
lunch and check out the carnival. Ken's 'voices' shirt was
a big hit with the carnies. All throughout the evening we
chatted until it was time to head back to the room. Joi had
to catch an early flight back to Dallas and I was heading
up to Chicago with Mikey, Cuda, Sam, and Sputter. The
goodbyes hurt. There really isn't enough time...
June 3, 2001
Sunday started with an unpleasant suprise. It turned out
that Dave had a bug crawl in his ear and cause some serious
pain early in the morning. They're going to see a
specialist to get it out and we're all praying for the
best... Joi and I motored down to drop her off with LESDL's
wife, who was also flying out in the morning, thus saving
me about 120 miles in an extremely cold morning. We hit the
road for Chicago in weather that we Texans call winter, not
June. I just kept adding layers and finally was warm enough
with a long sleeved shirt, 2 sweatshirts, my Thinsulate
liner, leathers, and rain gear. When we arrived at Mikey
and Cuda's, the thermometer read 57 degrees! Brrr... That's
like winter for Texans.
June 4, 2001
I got up this morning and got ready to head up to Milwaukee
to go on the Powertrain tour. The tour was very
interesting, though abbreviated due to some equipment
maintenence. This plant does the Sportster and Buell
engines, the Evo big twin remanufacture, and the
non-current parts. The oldest part they still make is a
1916 kickstart pedal. I bought the required shirt and
headed back to the house. I'm now getting myself psyched up
for the cold and quite possibly wet ride south tomorrow.
I've been thinking of altering my trip plans a little. I
may just ride until I'm tired. I'm hoping this will cut a
day off the return. We'll see...
June 5, 2001
600 miles on a Sportster? Hell yes! I left Gurnee at about
9:30 after waiting for a band of rain to pass by. Fat lot
of good that did. Headed down into Chicago to pick up 55
south. Friggin toll booths, the only consolation was the
looks on the attendants' faces when I told them where I was
going. The rain continued off and on (more on than off) all
the way down 44 past St. Louis. My rain gear held together,
but hands and feet got wet. It's time to go shopping...
Once I got south of Villa Ridge the rain stopped for good.
I also crossed the front on the way down. It was amazing to
feel the temperature rise 10 degrees that quickly. I pulled
in to Joplin at about 8:30 pm with the odometer showing
just over 600 miles.
June 6, 2001
Last day. I hit the road at about 9 and worked at eating up
some miles because lo and behold, there's a fucking
tropical storm heading my way. But I felt a lot better
about pushing past my initial stopping point because it
looks like the Mississippi is going to flood! I get into
Oklahoma on 44 and hit that toll booth just before Big
Cabin and they want $3.50! Good grief! I know that I get
half of it back but still. The cruise down 69/75 was pretty
uneventful, except for the trucker who ran off the road and
overturned. Looks like he fell asleep and missed a curve. I
pulled into the lot at home right about at 3:30, the
odometer read 2254.1. Not a bad trip.
Afterthoughts
Gloves: I need warmer and drier ones.
Boots: Gotta get some gaitors.
'Stitch is looking more and more attractive as time goes
by.
My Leatherlykes have given up the ghost. They leak, the
locks don't, and one of the doors is falling off.
The Progressives are the best upgrade I've done!