Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Pushing myself, eating a cowboy and tossing my salad...

I knew today was going to be rough for me for two simple reasons.  The Packers lost yesterday vs. the Bears (17-20)... and here i am wearing my Packers shirt (again) because i have to do laundry. dammit.

Went off to do some laundry at a coin wash. FYI, never bring any detergents or anything. they always have some there in small towns.  $1.75 a wash and $0.50 for a scoop of soap the owner gives you.

While i waited for the wash, I did what this trip is all about.  I put some stickers on the bike. heh.
I hope the American flag will save my life in the future.  thanks for the reminder |Doug :)


Michigan (UP), Missouri and Oklahoma. I couldn't find any for Wisconsin or Illinois.  At least i got the Packers on there.
I spoke to an older couple and their friend from Ohio who are doing the 66 again.  they've done it numerous times and gave me a few tips.  Some i followed, others i didn't. They said that that Rock Cafe (literally in sight) served good breakfast and has been around in the old days of the 66.  it had burned the year before but the owners restored it.

The Rock Cafe along route 66 in Stroud. established in 1939. neato.

neat little joint

breakfast is served.  no toast tho. odd. no cream for the coffee too. another oddity I'm sure will repeat itself. apple smoked bacon was delicious!  egg yolks and hash browns are awesome. necessity breeds invention. i call it sloppy hash.
What a hottie.  The girl was cute too. lol
This guy said something and i almost laughed out loud.  She said "Why do you come in here every day for coffee?"  he replies, "The only reason i'm this handsome is because i come here for coffee every day and see you."  what a character. heh. There's also a monument dedicated to fallen soldiers in various wars.  I love these monuments.  It means people gave a shit about them and ensured others will remember.  I always make sure that at the very least I read the monument and take a picture if i can.  It's the least people deserve.

I'm putting a link (to the right, to the right) to small versions of some of select pictures,  the ones i used for the blog and the ones i didn't.  I can't upload them all or else i'd be at ~400 pictures. heh.

I was having a nice ride, not even thinking about what i should see and just rode.  It was a nice beautiful sunny day with light winds.  I kept an eye out for anything of interest and i whipped by a motorcycle museum.  This place was phenomenal for a small museum.
I took a bunch of pictures, many didn't turn out right as my batteries were dying.  Here's a few of interest.

1979 Tiumph Bonneville 750cc. in the original crate. never opened.  PRICELESS.
The story behind this goes something like this.
Man buys a warehouse that collapsed. Finds a room in the rubble untouched with many motorcycles in it with thick dust.  He seals it back up for a later time.  Seems he forgot about it, passed away, his wife passed away and it the building went up for auction.  Someone else buys the warehouse and JACKPOT.  finds a bunch of bikes, still in their crates, with about an inch of dust on it all.  Amazing find. 

1913 Pope.  1000cc  twin (also came in the 500cc single).  It's top speed was 100mph and had no brakes. you think i'm crazy? my bike's top speed is 93mph and i have two disc brakes.

1959 BSA 650 twin hill climber.

various cool bikes
faster than mine
If you're in Warwick, OK, go there.  It's by donation only, so i gave them $5.  Here's the thing... all bikes except for 5 are owned by a single person. how cool is that?

Onward with loot in hand and in a good mood, i headed west
to this awesome structure:
The Round Barn
Few remain of these types of barns, built to help withstand the tornadoes that hit the area. it was rebuilt, board by board.  that's dedication.  There are many displays to read and see.  The upstairs can hold banquets.  The acoustics are great.  Couldn't take a great picture due to the scale inside.



i suspect an air-raid or tornado warning horn.
I knew there was a giant pop bottle around here somewhere, so down the street a mile or two i came upon it.

very big.  see the Semi parked at the pumps below and to the left? very big.
 
Got to Oklahoma city and pretty much ran through it.  I hate cities of this size, but it seems nice enough.  Finally found a Starbucks and asked the barista why all of the starbucks seemed closed.  Seems that they all closed last year.  damn GPS has info on it from 2008. arg.
took the interstate and at some point the winds were really starting to pick up like they were in Wisconsin. I was getting really annoyed since i was on some interstate at that point and saw a sign for historic 66, hopefully getting some relief from the dangerous crosswinds.
Route 66 ahead
route 66 behind me.  i'm a happy man... for now
The 66 ended at some point and took the interstate westbound.  The winds were brutal again like in Wisconsin. I was frustrated, slightly angry and beaten (mentally and physically).
I stoped at a picnic area for some snacks i had picked up
that monster is 710ml. huge. it took me 2.5 hours to get from Ok City, OK to the Hinton picnic area. It's a 56 min drive. arg.

I decided to hit the interstate, hoping the wind died down a little.  I think it was actually a little worse.
At this point, i made a choice.  Either i was going to let the wind kick my ass and win, or i was going to defeat it.  I think i went a little insane as i let loose a gutteral scream into my helmet and yelled "i'm going to make you my bitch, wind"
so i planted my feet firmly on the pegs, knees to the tank like it's holding a money bag, gripped the bars hard and pushed forward with both and relaxed the rest of my body.  I did the same with my mind.  I had to be in the zone for this shit.  I bet it's what it feels like during races... seriously.
Nothing was scarier nor as calming to me as riding today.  3 times while passing trucks i rode the outside yellow line,  wobbling like some 80s toy. heh.  They weeble, they wobble, but they just don't fall down.

Womper 4, Wind 0... screw you bitch.

I really wanted to get to the national route 66 museum. got there just in time for... closure.  got there at 4:55pm and they closed at 5. dammit.

one last stop i wanted to see, which was in Erick, OK.  The Curiosity Shop. If i get the chance, i'll post more info on it. 

It's run by Harley and Annabelle "The Mediocre Music Makers".  Great folks!
When i walked in someone spoke loudly "Who ass just came in that i have to kick!"
Dull witted i am, i replied with "My boots are bigger"  and i sat down and started to chat.
These people are great.  Harley says he's a pack rat.  I say he's a Historian of Americana.  the place is jammed packed with all sorts of history. it's not junk, this stuff is awesome!

pure awesome. i could spend hours here
Annabelle and I with Their favorite sign.  This shield was all sorts of awesome.
Outside the shop with Annabelle and 66 signs.  how cool is that??  Harley didn't want to be in pictures, so he snapped them off for me :)

I left them a small donation.  totally worth it.
Harley's and Annabelle's Redneck Castle
I was walking back to the bike and Annabelle met me to give me some info about them, and a couple of pictures.  how sweet is that.  Just found a blog about them as well Harley and Annabelle
They were sorry they had to kick me out since the grocery store was closing, but no matter... I felt great leaving there.  It's good to find people doing what they love.  I admire people like that.

Harley said i should be able to hit a mom and pop motel in McLean Texas (i think that's what he said) and i should be able to get to it before sundown. I headed down the road to the gas station as i was running on empty.  actually i had a gallon left. Took the interstate and for some unknown reason, there was no wind at all. WTF? not an hour ago it was brutal, now nothing. oh well.

Mirror got in the way of the "Welcome to Texas" sign
just a relaxxing ride in texas, smooth pavement, no winds, 85 mph and good tunes.

how cool am i now? heh
I got to McLean with sun to spare, but i spotted the Cactus inn.  May not be the one Harley recommended but looked sound enough  Cheap enough room with wifi. what else does anyone need?

The owner's built in alarm alerted her to my presence.  I spotted them.  Two little chihuahuas.heh.

She suggested some places it could eat; a pizza join and stuff, or the Red River Steakhouse. when in Texas...

I ordered the Cowboy Steak. I didn't think a 12oz steak would do me in. boy i was wrong.

fresh salad, warm bread and butter and crackers with my Dr. Pepper.

12oz ribeye (cowboy) with steams veggies.  both cooked to perfection
It was tough to do, but i couldn't finish it all. also to note, no HP sauce here, not that the steak needed it.

a small dent, but i was so stuffed.
she asked which type of cobbler i wanted as it was complimentary.  I told her i shouldn't as i might waste it, but she said it was small, so i chose peach.
Absolutely FANTASTIC. i could have eaten a few more of those, they were that good.
I got my coffee and guess what. no cream.  she brought milk though and the coffee was good. I took the coffee to the front porch to have a smoke and watched the sun set. ahh.. .nice to unwind after a busy day at work. heh.



I think the lesson i learned today was about trust.  If you need to succeed at anything (like my harrowing bike ride, you need to trust the machine you are on, and likewise you need to trust yourself completely. My ride today was a times like running on a razors edge.  I pushed myself and the bike almost to my limits.  I had that same feeling once... in Alaska.

The difference between Alaska and today was that in Alaska I became overconfident and fatigued.  Today i was vigilant and determined to stay vigilant as I was. I swear it felt like i was on a race, my mind on fire (adrenaline), body on fire(adrenaline and muscle soreness) and fully aware of every action on the road around me, how the bike was handling at every second and how i was doing.

I was in "The Zone".

1 comment:

  1. Good Stuff Al!! How many times have you seen that steakhouse shot in a B or close to B movie!! Have fun!! Dom

    ReplyDelete

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