GP Route 66

Day 14 - end of the road...

2009-10-03T20:50:00.007+01:00

We made it to the end of the road!

First of all, I apologise for the delay in updating the blog for the last day. The closing celebrations went on until early morning!

When we woke up at Big Bear Lake there was frost outside. Luckily, by the time we was ready to leave the sun was out and it had warmed up.

Before we set off Alastair gathered both groups in the car park and explained what was going to happen throughout our last day. The second group left first shortly followed by our group.

The first part of the journey was more mountain roads going up then down the mountain.

I just loved the twisties but politely stayed in third position resisting temptation to make good progress and enjoy the road to the full as I didn't want to get lost on the last day. We arrived at a meeting point half way down the mountain where the other group were waiting. We then learnt that one of their members had got a puncture so Aliastair left to go back up the mountain to help out. In the mean time we all stood around taking some photos of the great view of LA from the mountain side and chatted about our previous 13 days of riding. After a while Alastair turns up followed by the Irish chap who had the puncture and of course Trey the scooper. They put some more air in the tyre and we all set off again down the mountain roads to the freeway that we was going to take into Santa Monica Boulevard.

The freeway ride was long (nearly 100 miles) and busy with lots of slow riding and lane swapping. Alastair had quite a job keeping 30 bikes together through the busy LA traffic which was a real experience and would probably worse than London traffic! Most of the drivers around here do not give motorcyclists any consideration, but thankfully we all survived without any issues. We finally got to Santa Monica Boulevard at about 1:30pm parked our bikes in an underground car park and walked the short distance to the end of Route 66 marked by the Will Rogers memorial plaque.

Wow, what an achievement, finally we had done it, reached the end of Route 66 having ridden more than 2500 miles since we left Chicago 14 days ago. Once we had done all the photo shoots we went to an English pub for a drink and a few of us had food as well! Then it was a ride back through the busy traffic to the hotel to unload the bikes before setting of to Eagle Rider where we was to return our bikes. Some of us were sad to depart with the bikes for others it was a relief!

A view from the rear...

2009-10-03T20:39:00.002+01:00

I'm not a very eloquent person when it comes to writing, (or speaking for that matter). But I would really like to take a second and reflect on, and thank all the participants of the Route 66 crowd. For the last 14 days, I have been your "Guide/Tailgunner/Errand boy/Pie critic/Food taster/Weather forecaster (sage)/and general interpreter". All jobs that made me smile and look forward to getting up and going again. You two, as well as the rest of the group have been a delight to ride with every day. We have seen everything from Freezing cold nights, hot humid days, Desert dry heat, to a Midwestern Thunderstorm that rained 3 inches in 1 hour. You all accomplished those with a smile and were eager for more. We rode the back roads of America and were lucky to meet some warm and open people along the way. Those people were warm and open because our group was equally warm and open. You were always smiling and delighted to be where ever we might pointed. Last night you all stunned me with gifts as well as praise. I am the one that should be presenting you with tokens of gratitude. You shared your Love, friendship and humor and allowed me to become one of you for a brief period. You are all welcome in my home anytime you are over. Thanks to all for a wonderful 2 weeks...
Cheers,Trey

I love riding with people from the UK.

Day 13

2009-10-02T07:32:00.003+01:00

The main attraction of the afternoon was the California Route 66 museum at Victorville after which we had another good ride through the mountains. Alistair set a good pace, and through the bends the sound of grinding metal would often be heard. From the back it was noted that big Al was unable to shake loose the ever present 'Staff' who could be seen cranking it down and around. Steve is currently trying to find a file to get rid of evidence from the bottom of his bike and during the ride would wonder why the sound of grinding continued even when he was upright, only to see in his mirror 'Blademan Cliff' grinding away. Into the the town limits and it was a slowdown to 30 mph with a fill up and onto Big Bear Lake where we were staying the night.

As we left Needles and started to ride through the Mojave desert the wind was much calmer than the previous couple of days but still had a bit of a chill to it. Luckily, I went prepared and had a few layers on.
Several stops in the morning to see more historic sights of the old route, one of which was a cafe where we had coffee and apple pie, (just the one piece of pie today) at Ludlow. Again like most of the cafes and other road side attractions along this route there was an old car outside, with flat tyres and even flatter paintwork!
We had lunch at Barstow Station, where they had some old railway carriages for restaurant seating. The donuts here were good, in fact very good so after my initial taster one, I got two more, (well I did only have the one piece of apple pie earlier)!

A woman's perspective of the trip...

2009-10-02T02:15:00.004+01:00

Hi everybody, Lyndis here, pillion to Chris riding R66. Ive been asked to add to the blog with a female view point on this trip. Hi Jen and Jacs I think this may be my 15 minutes of fame at last.

Our day begins with what I call the motor bike dash. This is twenty odd people running out of the hotel to pack their crap, no, sorry i mean personnel possessions on to their bike, no mean feat for the two ups. We have designer luggage, black bin liners. Having watched this event for the last 10 days I think it would make a great TV game show, so any program produces out there get in touch. Despite this daily trauma ever body smiles and looks happy, my guess is that we are all insane. Who but a mad person would ride 2 to 3 hundred miles a day on a hard motor bike seat, on the wrong side of the road and pay money to do it.

Next comes the petrol stop, this is quite an event trying to fill up all the bikes. We have tried using credit cards but as we have no zip code they don’t work so we pay up, fill up, then collect our change. People from all over the place ride this route, so when will it occur to someone to get a better system.

The route is fun to follow, with lots to see and interesting places to go. We are travelling with a great bunch of people, who have mixed well and been fun to be with. We have Brits, Scots, Welsh, American and Australian. Everybody eats too much and we seem to have a daily stop for coffee and pie. Graham the person responsible for this blog is one of the fastest eaters i have ever met, a few days ago his buddy Steve announced he had beaten Graham in a pie eating competition, using unfair tactics and failing to tell Graham they were racing , all is fair in love and war.

We have a couple along with us and guess what they are on honey moon. No sun kissed beaches, no romantic dinners, just a bike and a bunch of miss-fits. I am sure everybody wishes them a long and happy life together.
We have visited lots of different stores on our travels and you can buy almost anything. On this trip there are only three females, so shopping is of low priority. One day we went to a jewellery shop a few of the guys bought gifts for their loved ones, but mostly the men were out of the place quicker than a rat up a drain pipe. Had it been a bike shop they would have had to be pried out with a crow bar.

For the ladies out there trying to decide if they should accompany their man, go for it. My only tip would be to bring a gel seat to aid your comfort on the road. We spend a long time in the saddle. I paid 106 dollars out here for one and that was with 15% discount , a high price to pay for comfort. The good side to this is the vast amount of interest in my butt that my complaining created. At my age any interest is greatly received .

Doing laundry on these travels is a challenge, some of the guys don’t have a clue about using a washing machine, at least that’s what they claim. I have just dyed all my whites pale green, my hubby said there was no time for separate loads, put them in all together on a cold wash to save time. Oh well a good excuse to buy new when I get my hands on a suit case at the end of this trip
We have visited some great places on out travels especially the Grand Canyon.

There are two guys here who will remain nameless, but i am sure they know who they are, who decided to torture me cos I am afraid of heights. They climbed into trees and laid over barriers at the edge of the canyon, they have scared me for live, but I don’t think they feel even a bit guilty.

All in all it really is a great experience, but I need a holiday after this!

Day 12

2009-10-01T06:22:00.010+01:00

Time to burn rubber, and it was steady little run down the mountain, round some tight turns and long straights where those who wanted to have a play, could.
Interestingly, Cliff was seen hanging off the seat of the Road King giving it some like it was a fireblade, which led to Tony calling him 'Blademan' Tony couldn't play as Di was experiencing some form of motion and equilibrium malfunction. I suppose that what happens when you bolt your food and spend 45 + minutes sitting on something that resembles a spin dryer witrh a load of bricks inside on speed. Dennis was also seen giving it some big licks on the straight. Graham spent a lot of time with his bike collecting road rash on the pipes and pegs.
Arrived at hotel and some of us then popped out to get our photos posing with the route 66 sign.

A blast through the desert to Oatman, home to wild burro's where they are armed with sharp teeth and short of patience if you dont feed them. This place was straaight out of the western movie's with real wonky boardwalks and character buildings to match. We didn't arrive in time for the western shoot out but never the less, this town was full of character and the locals were really nice, wanting to talk to us all.

Another great stop was on the road going west from Kingman where we found Hackberry's general store. This place looked just like it did in the good ol' days when Route 66 was a busy highway.

At Seligman we learnt about Angel, the founding father of the route 66 preservation society, and he was still working today shaving customers. This town was another little route 66 gem. Full of old memories and preserved bits of the past mingled with the modern tourism industry that fights to preserve whats left of the old route 66. Here the $ in our pockets was shown the light, and much was purchased, from brown leather chaps (nice!) to key rings and cards. The timed stop passed swiftly and all too soon it was back on the bikes and on to Mr D's diner where we had probably the best burgers so far.

The day dawns, and I remember last night. A spaghetti western restaurant and 2 x 14" pizzas. One for Steve, one for graham. By the time Steve had eaten two slices, all that was left of Graham's was one bit of red pepper! On the table in the room were 4 bits of Steve leftover pizza. Yum! cold pizza & coffee for brekkie!

As we set off early in the morning we experienced the same strong winds that we had the previous day. It made the first part of our journey very hard work and seemed relentless until our first stop at Williams. Along the way one of our group had been 'blown off course' along with our guru, and ended up at Seligman, some 39 miles away from us! (Apparently wind plays havoc with pratnav's) They were supping coffee some 40 mins before we arrived!

Williams had some great Route 66 sites and several gift shops to browse. I took this opportunity to buy a long sleeved top to wear straight away as I was cold from the winds earlier. An old railway town, it still retained the charm and some splendour of its former glories, with many of the old shopfronts and garages still visible. A quick walk around the town then it was off to Seligman.

Day 11

2009-09-30T05:04:00.004+01:00

Thanks to Cliff for the above photos of the Grand Canyon.

Today is another rest day so I took advantage and had a layin. We then had the hotel buffet breakfast before leisurly getting ready to take part in Trey's ride to the Camerons trading post about 60 miles away around the canyon ridge.
The ride took us through the Canyon Park which was good, some lovely sweeping bends and beautiful vistas really added to the chilled day we were having.
The warm air was encouraging the pines to release their scent, so the ride was very relaxed and without stress. A bit like a Radox bath on wheels.

At the trading post I bought Karen yet another gift, I don't know, it must be the heat getting to me, or the fact that I appreciate her understanding my need to feel the road beneath my wheels and letting me away on another motorcycle jaunt.

The winds that were forecast had come and went up to about 50 mph which made the ride back rather
interesting. Steve was having fun on the fatboy, because it had solid wheels and the wind was steering the bike! There were a few times when we were down to about 35mph in the open.
Things improved when we got to the forested parts, and we had a lively ride back in places where footpegs were profiled once or twice.
We stopped off at a few view points on the way back to get some more photos of the Grand Canyon, then back to the hotel and straight to the bar to wash down the dust that was blown up by the strong winds.

It was happy hour, so we made the most of what was left, and then just on the button, in walked our weather guru, Trey. The barman immediatly said, "hi there again, welcome back" Oops, cover blown.

Bike reviews...

2009-09-29T06:07:00.009+01:00

Bike choices...

There are two clear choices if you want to ride a Harley solo on Route 66. You can go the retro route and hire a Heritage Softail with leather panniers and acres of chrome or you go the more practical route and settle for the Road King with hard panniers. Both bikes have similar performance characteristics and the all-important screen to prevent bugs in your teeth. Personally I would favour the Road King as it has cast wheels rather than spokes – a can of tyre foam gets you going quickly if you have a tubeless tyre, whereas repair of the tyre on a Softail requires removal of the wheel and replacement of the inner tube and that is not a roadside repair. The suspension on the Road King can be simply adjusted by using an airline to the rear shock – look for the valve towards the rear of the seat on the nearside. The Softail has only a single disc up the front that can overheat and becomes less efficient on the downhill grades – especially important if you happen to be two-up on the bike... There are other alternatives. You can be Arnie on the FatBoy and run the risk of a personal Terminator in the kind of side winds that brutally shifted the FatBoy sidewards as we crossed the desert in Arizona (those solid wheels are a nightmare in gusty weather) and the lack of a screen also adds to the fatigue over distance. The same issues arise with the Harley LowRider – spoked wheels and no screen make it a less obvious choice for a two week Road Trip.
For two-up riding there are only really two choices of limo-bikes. The die-hards will favour the Harley-Davidson ElectraGlide for an authentic and romantic all-American experience. On a practical level I prefer the USA-assembled Honda GoldWing as a better handling, better performing and less demanding ride. I have ridden the whole of Route 66 (2500 miles) on both and have to say that the Honda was a much easier bike to manoevre, especially at slow speed. The reverse gear is also a welcome bonus in tight parking spaces – especially on slopes! My wife has ridden pillion on both bikes and definitely prefers the Honda for comfort so it will be the GoldWing in future for both of us. That suits me. I prefer to hear the stereo rather than the booming exhaust of the V-Twin. I also find that I am much less fatigued after a day on the Honda – the ElectraGlide really is quite hard work. Both have big screens, big stereos, cruise control and pillow seats. You pay your money and make your choice.
Other things to look for on the Harley are:
Tyres which need to have enough tread to finish a long trip.
Riding position is crucial if you are going to have a comfortable ride.
Feet forward can really strain your back if you are not used to it.
Consider footboards rather than footpegs so that you can move around a bit on the bike.
Look for a backrest – especially if you are carrying a pillion!
Check the oil and look after the bike. Gear shifters can fall off, bolts work loose due to vibration and the exhausts have been known to work loose and blow exhaust gaskets. Things need to be tightened up and a visual inspection each day is recommended.

If you are not too hung up on the Harley thang there are many European and Japanese bikes available that perform admirably on Route 66. The Harley Sportster is definitely eclipsed by the Honda Shadow for both comfort and speed (and reliability) and any BMW will complete the tour with teutonic efficiency. The Honda STX1300 makes a good option for two-up if you are familiar with the machine (seat height is an issue for me) although it is maybe a bit too fast for the sightseeing and slower pace that Route 66 deserves.

Whatever your ride, rest assured that the Mother Road is there for you to explore. Why not come and join us on an American FlyRide holiday of a lifetime and get YOUR kicks on Route 66!

Alastair McFarlane
Tour Director, MCi Tourswww.mcitours.com

Steve's bike review...

Bike chosen for the route 66 trip was a fat boy.
Reasons? well I have a Road King at home so wanted to try something different.

This review is based on a bike that was rented and has about 26,000 miles on the clock.
First impressions are that the handlebars are quite wide and drop down. I feel that riding in this position may give me some wrist aches. I'm proven right, but its not as bad as I feared.
Its a heavy old beast, with big alloy wheels and a grunty engine, that coupled with the height gives the impression that the weight is low down. This helps with slow manoeuvring and a few figure of eights gets it onto full lock on the stops without too much trouble with balance being achieved by shifting your weight to counter the lean inwards.

Out on the open road, and the position is OK for me at 6'2", but I find the legs a bit cramped. I would have liked some highway pegs to stretch out on. Steering to me feels a bit 'mushy' with all the front suspension soaking up the bumps and leaving the rider with a wobbly feel at speed. However, its ability to turn into corners is without question, but the footboards tend to grind up too easily.
Ride is nice with the rubber engine mounts taking out a lot of vibration, with the gearbox doing the usual HD clonk at each gear change, and sometimes being a pain to get neutral when hot.
Acceleration is OK if the gearbox is used, and providing you can hang on, illegal speeds are possible on the interstates. Prolonged riding at speed will fatigue you, as with the wind pushing you back in the seat there is a tendency to lean back and use the luggage on the passenger seat as a backrest. An aftermarket rider rest would be a bonus.

Braking was interesting, with a single front disc to pull all that weight plus mine to a stop meant that effort is required to get any kind of reasonable stopping power to the wheel. So after a couple of days you develop a grip in your right hand that is equaled only by the terminator.

OK lets look at the luggage space. If you are riding alone, then the two measly leather panniers with kit strapped to the seat is enough. If you are two up, then forget it.
So on the subject of seats, the fatboy has a nice wide rider seat that feels comfortable for a few hundred miles, but I found that the pillion strap gives two nasty little pressure points that tucking the strap down partially solves.
Fuel economy is reasonable. With its now 6 speed box 200 miles out of a tank is a reality if you ride sensible. (Boring)

Did I like the bike? Well its OK in a straight line, but the ground clearance limits the fun on bends, as prolonged grinding of the boards would become expensive, and could prove dangerous if you really get one of those OFMe moments and need to get it over. Its a staid bike that would really suit the steady plodder who's days of scratching are over and who wants A to B in comfort and pose. I wouldn't buy one to use in the UK. For the US its a bit of fun, but not as much fun as the Low Rider which I rode for a day. Now that's a bike that talks to you!
This review is the personal view of Steve Mingay, and does not represent the views of any other person.

Graham's bike review...

My bike for this trip of a lifetime is a 2008 Harley Davidson Low Rider (Dyna series) with a 1584cc V twin engine with electronic fuel injection .

I must admit, after having this bike for a week now, so far I am very impressed.
Once you get used to the loud thud as the engine starts you can relax, if you heard that noise on a Jap bike then you would certainly feel the pain in your wallet.
For near on 1600cc it isn't as quick as some bikes half the size but it does have bags of torque which gives you ample power for over takes.

Then there is the loud clunk when you change gear, it is a very positive, (almost agricultual) method of changing gear, not silky smooth like a Honda gear box but having said that I have no missed gear changes and finding nuetral has been very easy. There is a '6' that lights up in the speedo when you are in top gear. What makes me smile about this is that there is a slight delay from selecting the gear to the light coming on. It's like a very laid back american thing you know... oh' you selected 6th gear, I'll just go and turn the light on for you!

The seat is reasonably comfortable, although it does seem to have soaked up the water and remains wet for a few days later. I found it best to put some anti-slip matting on it which helped stop my bum getting wet and also made the ride more comfortable because I wasn't sliding around on the seat.

Foot rest position is just fine for me and I can even reach the forward crusing pegs which I just love for the long straight roads here, plus there wasn't to much vibration.

The handle bar position is great but this does bring me on to one small concern which I noticed within a few miles of riding the bike, that is that there appears to be some free play in the stearing or front suspension as when I brake I can feel a small amount of movement that ends with knock. I am getting used to it now but if this was my bike I would certainly have to get tgo the bottom of it.

Brakes, are, now there's a thing that needs some looking at. The rear brake has too much travel for my liking and the front brake when gently applied seems to re-act like it has a warped disc, if you give it a big handful then it does not seem so bad and does pull the bike up to a stop, so it does do its intended job. However, I don't get much feed back from the leaver, it almost feels like the pads are made from wood. Unlike my Honda back home where I get a very good response through the front brakes leaver to an extent that you can control the front brake very nicely, even in a downwards inclined corner where you need to control the speed during the corner to keep the steering more positive.

I have now riden Steve's Fat Boy and can definatrely say that for me, the Low Rider is definately better.The Low Rider fits my short legs better, although the Fat Boy is not too bad for that, but the Fat Boy is top heavy and therfore not as nice to ride slowly manouvering through tight turns. Also the Fat Boy isn't as quick and tends to wobble a bit above 80 mph. The straighter position of the Low Rider handlebars is also more comfortable for me, especially when travelling on the freeway without a screen.

Despite a few little niggles and querkes with the HD Low Rider, (which all adds to the character of the bike) I am impressed enough to consider buying one. OK, I know the guys in my local club I ride with (CAM) wouldn't be impressed with that, but heh, the Deauville was thought to be a dullsville before I showed them otherwise!
Now what colour do I want???

Day 10

2009-09-29T05:46:00.006+01:00

Trey enjoying the sunset at the Grand Canyon.

We rock up to the hotel to find the other MCi tour group is here, and we book in at 4 pm, with our weather guru, part time historian, rear gunner/road captain and all round good geezer and interpreter Trey, taking those who want to see the sunset over the rim at 5 pm.

A fill up with water, and its about 100 miles to the Grand canyon through some good roads, where we see the boys playing. At some point during the ride one of the HD's decides to shed its heel gearchange lever.
Anybody found one?

Back on the bikes and it was a hot ride over to the meteor crater.
This thing is big! but its not the biggest. This one is the most intact and preserved due to the little rain they have. (6"-12" pa) It has a rim of two and a half miles and a depth of 550 feet! It's only 50,000 years old, so by crater standards thats young we're told.
Most of us had the little walk along the trail to see a bit more, but the pictures here just cannot convey the huge size of it all.

We've just arrived at our hotel in the Grand Canyon after a short ride in terms of mileage, but via some interesting spots.

First call of the day was just a couple of miles from our hotel in Winslow, to the corner made famous by the group 'The Eagles' in 'Take it Easy'. Here is a mural on the wall that embodies key lines from the song. The statue stands on the corner, whilst overlooking him is the "girl my lord in a flatbed Ford" and above that one of the woman with him, in a window. A dream or wish?

A visit to the shops on that very corner, saw us buying trinkets and T shirts.

Day 9

2009-09-28T07:07:00.007+01:00

It was a warmer start to the day than expected and we had a lot \of miles to cover and several stops planned.

The heat rose as the morning went on and layers were removed at the lunch time stop.here was some amazing scenery as we rode throughout the day with an added bonus of riding through the 'Petrified Forest National Park' which again was very scenic inparts.

Today we have gone from the state of Texas to the stater of Arizona.

Day 8

2009-09-26T17:25:00.007+01:00

Rodeo photos courtesy of Cliff.

But, just to keep you bike fans happy I will be including some photos (thanks to Fionna) of the group members riding their bikes.

This is kind of off the bikes day, in the morning we have time to look at Old Town Albuquerque and in the afternoon we will be going to the New Mexico state fair plus later this evening we are off to a rodeo event so although not on the bikes, it isa busy day!

Day 7

2009-09-26T06:31:00.016+01:00

The next section of ride took us along some dead straight roads that could have been boring without someplaytime. So we played. We took turns at overtaking aqnd going to the front of the ride where Fiona was busy clicking away with the camera. Have a look at the piccies to get an idea of the fun we were having.
Against principals we did stop at McDonalds for coffee and a break where people had a little sustenance to keep them going. One of our number managed a chicken burger in 97 seconds without even appearing to struggle! Guesses anyone???
So, another 50 minute run bought us to our hotel in Albuquerque. Nicely laid out with pool and jacuzzi. This is our stop for a day, with Saturday seeeing us go to the state fair and rodeo. watch this space!!

We got on the old road again and rode until we got to the MidPoint Cafe in Adrian, Texas. This is so named because it is half way between Chicargo and Los Angeles with 1139 miles each way. Steve and I had a coffe and two pieces of pie each which were absolutely fantastic, also needed as neither of us got up in time for breakfast! Another piece of pie was considered, but someone gave a warning eye, which intimated we were just being greedy. (We were, but what the hell, they were great pies).
The Disney pixar film cars used a lot of route 66 history, which was woven into the story. Dot's mini museum features her and her husband as a characters both runnning a museum and a car wrecker recovery business when he goes out and collects crashed vehicles on route 66. Also the two waitresses in the midpoint cafe on 'cars' are imortalised and based on true charecters working at the cafe!
A look around the gift shop ith a few purchases made by most of us before having the group photo taken in front of the MidPoint sign outside.
Hard to believe that we were now halfway through the roadtrip.

Another early start today and Trey said it would remain dry but cold, and boy was he right. I had several layers on but at our first stop I put on the waterproofs just to keep the wind out.Fortunately I didn't have to wait too long as we pulled into Cadillac Ranch.

The Cadillac Ranch has 10 Cadillac cars planted nose first in a field located along the old historic Route 66, just west of Amarillo.

This site has appeared in several movies and visitors are encouraged to take a tin of spray paint along and add their own graffiti, which some of us did!

Day 6...

2009-09-25T05:39:00.006+01:00

No one in our group went for the 72oz steak at the Big Texan, but we did see another guy that tried and failed. Never the less, the steaks that we did have there were excellent.

We get to our digs and its a mock western town. Cool! and bar does BIG steaks! we're off to see what damage we can do to a sirloin.

Crossing another state line!

Off we go againg, and not long into the ride does the sage call the ride to a halt and states that
that the roadkill patterns show rain on the way, so we don the gear and sure enough, as we set off
it starts. A light shower, and enough to damp us but not our spirits.

We roll on eating miles and stop off at a place called Sandhills curiosity shop where we are greeted by Harley and Annabell. Two people who's neural networks obviously fire off in a different pattern to the average redneck!
Still, they make us very welcome and hand out the beers and soft drinks, and we then sit down and amongst many ye haws and shaking of various things we get a little sing song.
These guys have been doing this for years, and they look amazing when you consider they're 64 years!
I reckon the stuff they were smoking in the 60's is what makes their thinking engine fire up like a Hog on moonshine! and even then the mpg ain't that good!

Back on the road and Steve finds a new way to get a few extra mph out of his HD, and gets into three figures!

Surely, I haven't put that much weight on?

Tommy placing his order using his best Scottish accent.

After a few more cold miles we arrived at the 'Route 66 Museum' at Clinton. It had a fabulous display of
the history and plenty of artifacts to see as well. The gift shop had a fantastic selection of memorabilia
that most people seemed to purchase something of.Whilst in Clinton we popped over the road for a spot of lunch. Some people went to the Mexican while the
rest of us went into 'Del Rancho' a general grill type place that done burger and steak sandwiches etc.The interesting thing with this place was that you picked up a phone handset on the table to place your
order with someone standing behind a counter no more than 20 feet away! We all had a great laugh when one
of the Scottish guys went to place an order and he spoke so quick that they couldn't understand him!
Steve and Trey hit the tex mex, and Steve declares its the only place where the cheese dips got teeth that
bite you back, and food that warms you like swallowing lava.

Trey, our weather sage said that today will be cooler but dry. So we fitted the linings to the jackets, put on the wind proof tops and prepared for the off at 8am. It was a busy ride through the rush hour town traffic full of commuters going to work but we eventually got out onto the open roads.

Within an hour I was really feeling the cold and couldn't wait until we stopped so I could put a waterproof jacket on to keep the wind chill off.
When we did stop, it was at an old fuel station on Route 66. It was an over the drive design of which there are only two left on the whole of Route 66.

Day 5...

2009-09-24T03:54:00.008+01:00

We had got through a lot of miles during the day on some great roads with interesting places to see but
there was time for one more stop before our hotel in Santa Fe, this was the local Harley Davidson dealerwhere on of the group managed to get a replacement front light and the rest of us looked at their amazing
display of bikes and accessories.

Next stop was the Totem Pole Park at Foyil, Oklahoma, which has the worlds largest totem pole standing 90' tall and made from 100 tons of sand & rock, 28 tons of cement and 6 tons of steel.

Another reconisable attraction of old Route 66 was the Blue Whale. The Blue Whale and its
pond became a favorite stop and swimming hole for both locals and travelers alike.

There was a heavy dew over night but other than that it was dry with fairly clear sky above.
It was a high mileage day today so we left at 8:30am.
The first Route 66 attraction stop was at 'Miami' in Oklahoma, yes that means we entered moved into another state today.

The first attraction we saw was the fabulous Coleman theatre that had been restored to its former glory after many years of neglect and abuse. From the local community, hundreds of volunteers have given countless hours of labor and raised the funds to work on this massive project even mamanging to restore the fabulous chandelier and get back the original 'Mighty Wurlitzer' pipe organ.

The theatre tour guide then told us about Route 66 Vintage Iron motorcycle museum further up the road which we then went to...
...and boy was this a fantastic place, not only did it have a fabulous collection of old motorcylces,
(including Steve McQueens racing Husqvarna!) but a great gift shop, I could have spent hours just looking around but of course we didn't have hours to spend and Fionna was soon blowing her whistle asking us to finalise our purchases ready for the off.

Day 4 continued...

2009-09-22T23:37:00.010+01:00

We also stopped off for a quick look at a Route 66 drive in movie place. Which was then extended with the usual american hospitality, we found the owner coming out and opening the gates for us to take a closer look and tell us about the history of the site and take some more photos. He actually still runs movies 3 nights a week and business has been very good he tells us.

The next stop was 'Carthage' where we stopped for lunch in a real old times Route 66 cafe. It had the front end of a pink Cadilac on the wall and the rear end turned into a seating area by a table. Some great signs etc on the walls really made this an interesting place.Once we had eaten, we went over the the County Courthouse to see their Route 66 museum which proved to be quite interesting.

Day 4 continued...

Well at the end of the days riding here in Joplin, we have no wet gear to dry out tonight! There was only a few drops of the wet stuff from the sky today so nothing to worry about.
It was a relatively low mileage day today but the roads were interesting and we did stop and see some great Route 66 attractions.

The first port of call today was a motorcycle shop just a few miles up the road from our hotel.Some people were after the gel cusions thingys to put on the seat to make it more comfortable, whilst a lot of us wanted some new waterproofs. Sadly, they had nothing in the way of gel cusions and hardly anything in the way of waterproofs in stock.

Moving on, our next stop was 'Sinclair's Garage' which had been restored to a wonderful condition. The owner, Gary Turner was there and told us about the history of it and let us wander around taking pictures, blowing the horn on the old car out front which some people used to make a ring tone for their mobile phones! Something I saw which was of great interest was an old 'Champion spark plugs' machine for cleaning and testing spark plugs under pressure. We was just leaving when more guys turned up on their motorcyles, quite a popular place it seems and I can see why.

Day 4...

2009-09-22T14:10:00.004+01:00

The morning has started off dry and most of the kit has been dried out over night so we are just about to load up the bikes again and ride some more of the fabulous Route 66.
We are not going to let the freak weather of yesterday put us off, after all, we are British bikers and used to riding in crap weather!

The Deluge on day 3...

2009-09-22T04:51:00.013+01:00

Our weather sage (Trey) then reads the clouds, the birds circling in the sky licks his lips and declares that rain is on the way, and we should run for the hotel on the interstate rather than the back roads. True, the skys a little dark but heavy rain???We set off and really start to move like rabbits going for the burrow. Not too long and oh boy does it rain! We stop to don the waterproofs and ride on into valhalla where Thor the God of war sends rain, lightening and thunder the likes that neither of us have ever seen. At times we are down to 20 mph and visibility is 20'. Its so bad that some of us ride past the turn to the hotel.

Graham and Trey try using the bikes as waterjets and the water is coming UP out of the drains and is 8'in places. We later hear on the news that over 3" has fallen in an hour in our area and that flash floods have hit town. Not one of us is dry and even some of us who had clothing inside waterproof bags are peeved to find even thats wet! The Hotels washine machines and driers are pressed into overtime after some instruction and guidance from one of our kind ladies. THANK YOU!

We hope tomorrow is kinder, but we fear that having viewed the forecast, its another day of rain.

After lunch its another run along some of ole 66 with the sun blazing and heat rising whilst we ride along soaking up the miles to the Devils Elbow which is a bit of a landmark on 66 where we stop for photos.

This is Eric, known to the rest of us as 'Gringo', he is our Australian member of the group and he is a roadside attraction in his own right!

Day 3 continued...

Onto the bikes and we're off! Some fantastic roads with good turns sees the group making good progressto Cuba, town of murals where we stop for lunch. The locals are friendly with a few cars and bikerswhooping at us as they go by. The local website for Cuba have even put a bit about us on their site... click here

Day 3...

2009-09-22T04:36:00.009+01:00

Its a cloudy day, low mist envelops the arch, but we gamely head out for a look. What a fantastic piece of engineering, but undaunted Staffy, Graham and Steve are the first to take a 'pod' to the top. It reminds us of a scene from a Jane Fonda film, Barbarella. At the top the mist lets us see over 600 feet to the bottom and about 2 blocks out. Never mind a few postcards and we're off, only to find that as we get to the bottom, the mist clears andvisibility is superb. Bummer!

The arch was built in the 60's out of stainless steel and looks as if it were built last year. The last bit at the very top was put in by the gap being seperated by hydraulic rams, and the 6' section being dropped in.

2009-09-21T04:46:00.007+01:00

Day 2 continued...

Plenty of old sights to see along the way, from old vehicle sales to old garages where we stopped for a photo shoot.
Lunch was had at great little diner called Ariston Cafe, where the buffet was awesome. Steve and Alistair had a little battle over who would/could eat the most desserts.........Steve won! - although a mole in the camp claims Trey beat Steve. Any witnesses??
The discussion on the 72oz steak challenge was raised again and we are still looking for anyone who fancies their chances. Graham is a popular choice but as the challenge involves eating fries with it, this will probably exclude Graham on the grounds that they are veg and he's already eaten his five a month portions. Watch this space.

Ever onwards and a trip to see the chain rocks bridge where we were able to cross the state line fron Illinois to Missouri, so we are now one state further away from our starting point.
A brisk ride through the suburbs got us to the Hampton hotel at St Louis via a fuel stop where most of us seemed to wrestle with getting the fuel to pump. Some people opting to pay inside first others paying at the pump with credit cards. The whole process can speed up if a few bikes fill up on one card and then pay the card holder in cash.

A wet day 2...

2009-09-21T04:31:00.004+01:00

The first challange of the day was to load all the gear back onto the bike. Although we now new that it does not all fit in the panniers, remembering what I put where yesterday was still beyond me, but after a while I got it all sorted and strapped down ready to go.

It was a dull start to the day and rain was forecast, some people put on their waterproofs but some of us braved it out.As we left the 'Route 66 hotel' we got a large cheer from the large group of bikers getting ready to leave themselves. Hopefully it was a cheer of good wishes and not that they were glad to see the back of us!

The first stop of the day was at Springfield where we saw the staue of Abraham Lincoln, had a history lesson from Trey before a group photo taken before setting off again, how ever, more people put on their water proofs but I still remained optimistic and stayed in my summer riding gear. (despite Steve telling me to!)
Several miles later I felt something on my chin like needles, it was not bugs but rain! Then within another mile or two it came down harder, so the group pulled over whilst the remainder of us forefiet our optimism and put on our water proofs.
However, it wasn't long before I had that wet feeling inside as my water proof over jacket that came with the airtext jacket proved to be no more than shower proof, and a dry shower at that.
Steve has a similar experience to tell; 'Feeling smug in my nice new all in one didn't cut it when the water pooled in the crease where the zip and velcro was. Why does italways leak there? (If you're a biker, you know where it is!)'.

2009-09-20T04:13:00.007+01:00

Day 1 continued...

Steve and I start near the back of the pack getting the feel for our bikes, happy to just
sit back and relax and enjoy the ride. It wasn't long before a few of us the back were
seperated from the main group by a railroad crossing. Boy, oh boy are the freight trains
long here, by the time it had passed and we got going again the others were well out of
sight. Trey, our American guide who was riding as the tailman takes over the lead oand
guides us to the lunch stop at the historic cafe, 'The Launching Pad' where a large fibre
glass figure of the 'Gemini Giant' stands outside. After something to eat and drink we all
set off as one group again.
The next few hours take us on and off the original Route 66 seeing various original
attractions along the way. As Steve and I get more familuar with our bikes, the pace picks
up and riders start to string out with the faster riders moving towards the front. At another stop, where this time we see another large fibre glass figure called,'Bunyon's
Statue' we realize that the pack is divided again. Apparently, a few riders never came off
the interstate and rode on past with Trey at the rear ready to guide them back on the right
route.
Eventually we all meet up again at our end point of the day, 'The Route 66 Hotel' where we
will be staying the night.

2009-09-20T04:08:00.005+01:00

Shouldn't that side salad come with the meal?.

This is Trey, our American guide who will be assisting Alastair with managing the ride.

It is Trey who has the GPS tracker attached to his bike so you can see where we are along the way.

Day 1 - Route 66 here we come...

2009-09-20T04:00:00.004+01:00

After breakfast we finished packing our bags and checked out of our room ready for Alastair
to take us to collect our bikes for the trip.
As we arrived at Eagle Rider, we could see all the bikes lined up outside, a fine site that
was. We went inside to sign the papers etc. then one of the Eagle Rider chaps took each of
us to our bikes and went through all the controls etc, before checking round the bike for
previous damage that was noted so that we don't get accused of that when we return the bikes
at LA.
As he handed me the keys to my Low Rider a sense of excitement came over me, this trip of a
life time was about to start. However, a few minutes later and the excitement was replaced
by worry, as I soon realised that the two leather panniers that were on the bike were no
where near large enough to take all the gear I had brought with me. OK, plan B, will have to
tie something to the bike. They do kindly do provide a luggage rack on the bikes, just big enough for a sandwich box!
So my large yellow bag that I thought I would be empting the contenys of into my panniers
was now gonig to have the majority of my clothes in strapped to the rear seat & luggage
rack. With a few bungie cords and a cargo net the bag was tied down and everything ready to
go.
Time ticks by as nearly everyone faces the same problem of cramming their luggage onto the
bikes. Finally when everyone is done, we have a group photo, then climbed on our bikes and
the guys at Eagle Rider hold up the traffic while our 18 bikes with 21 people aboard, turn left and start our 2500 mile journey heading to the west coast.

2009-09-18T21:58:00.007+01:00

Easy day today, nothing planned, so after a long breakfast where we met another two new guys doing the tour we got a taxi to the local HD dealership and bike rental place here in Chicago.

It was quite an impressive show room with lots of bikes and clothing etc. to look at. Steve was looking closely at the chrome accessories that he could get for his Road King but resisted temptation and we both came out without spending anything!

Tonight we have a meeting at 7pm to discuss the tour starting tomorrow and a ride briefing as to what the traffic laws and recommended proceedures are for riding over here.

2009-09-18T04:57:00.016+01:00

As I sit on the bed typing this, I find it hard to believe that our first day here has been one so full of doing things. We set off this morning after breakfast of crispy card that the Americans call bacon, (tastes ok though) plus the usual toast & eggs etc.

A drive in the van that Alastair had hired took us to the Harley Davidson museum where all of us had a great time checking out HD's past and present plus a few iconic oneslike those used in the film 'Easy Rider', and the Evel Knevil ones. This was followed by a visit to the museum shop where wallets were lightened of their load after a few trinkets purchased.

A trip into Chicago town to find the start and end of Route 66 ended up with a visit to the Sears Tower (now owned by the BritishGroup Wallis and renamed the Wallis Tower) where we experienced walking out of the 103rd floor onto a glass platfrom overthe city! cool, scary and fun!
Unfortunatly, we didnt keep an eye on the time and collected a ticket for a parking violation!

The trip back to the hotel was a bit of a rollercoaster ride, and Steve ended up a bit travel sick and declined to join the group for dinner!

A big thank you to Alastair & Fionna for taking the time to show us these great sites today which was not part of the planned tour.

Check out the photos for an insight into the days events.

2009-09-17T03:56:00.006+01:00

Our first beer of the trip with Alastair (tour manager), but not the last!

Arrived in Chicago

2009-09-17T00:31:00.004+01:00

View from hotel room...

We arrived safely and ahead of schedule at Chicago Ohio aiport where Alastair and Fionna picked us up.

Now sitting in our room at the Double Tree hotel using the free Wi-Fi access to update this blog.

The journey has started...

2009-09-16T14:04:00.000+01:00

Well so far all is going well, got the 8:25 train and now sitting in terminal 5 at Heathrow.
Thankfully Steve woke me up so that I didn't travel all the way back to Kings Cross!

Just about to board so will update when we land in Chicargo!

2009-09-15T16:41:00.003+01:00

Less than 24 hours to go.

Have got most of my work done and even started on the packing!

2009-09-06T22:56:00.002+01:00

With just over a week to go time is running out to get everything sorted for the trip.
Went and done some more shopping this weekend so nearly there, just got to sort out a bag to put it all in.
Still got a lot of reading to do and clothes to sort out. Still cannot decide on which ipod to get and not finished configuring the netbook either.
So much to do, so little time...

oooh, just thought of something else to order, must go and do that now.

2009-08-30T22:20:00.000+01:00

Well this trip has been booked for quite some time now and what seemed to be a very long time away has come round fast. With just over two weeks to go I had better start getting my gear ready!

MCi Tours have sent the tour pack through with the route plan and lots of other information that I need to have a read of.

Route 66 2009

2009-08-23T08:55:00.000+01:00

Welcome to my blog about the fantastic holiday I have booked where I travel the mother road of the US, Route 66, with my good friend Steve and a group of other people all organised by MCi Tours.
This blog will show the highs and the lows of our 2500 mile journey from Chicargo in the east to Los Angeles on the west coast of the United States of America.