Warning to Big Bend Riders!!!

[lonestarmedic]

After months of planning I went to Big Bend this past weekend. It was supposed to be 4 days of riding and sightseeing. The first night we stayed at the Marathon Hotel. Nice place and great courtyard to have a gathering after a ride. We at at the OASIS CAFE down the street. We left the next morning to end up in Terlingua. At about 4 in the afternoon I began to get indigestion. We ate supper at the Starlight Theatre and Cafe. By 4:30 that next morning 2 of us were visited by Montezuma and his revenge!! It was ugly. Spent the night in the bathroom on the john with a trash can in front of me. So weak the next morning that I went straight to Ft. Davis and checked in early. By 10am a third in our group was visited. He made it in by noon. We spent all of Saturday in our rooms and missed the stargazing and all the riding.. On Sunday we left at different times (no sightseeing). I checked out at noon and started home. I planned my trip home to possibly take 2 days. The others started at 9am. I got in at 7pm and almost fell off the bike. Still sick as a dog and will lose tomorrow at work as well. THE ONLY FOOD IN COMMON TO THE 3 THAT GOT SICK WAS THE CHICKEN-FRIED STEAK AT THE OASIS IN MARATHON. The other 4 people were ok. It was worse than simple food poisoning. I drank almost 4 gallons of water between Sat. in the AM and Sunday night. It all went out the wrong way. I won't go into more details. Just want to warn people that the OASIS CAFE is now off limits for me! It is a small hole in the wall place. We all at at the Starlight-different foods and common appetizers. Nothing in common between the 3 there. Enough for now, going to go drink more water and eat a couple pieces of bread.

 

JB

[eagleeye]

Sounds brutal to me. Tood bad you had to go through all of that.

Sorry you missed all the riding.

 

Better days are ahead.

Steve

[Gray Ghost]

When a bunch of us got something similar in Iraq, the docs gave us Cipro. Imodium wouldn't even touch the stuff, but the Cipro cleared it right up.

 

After months of planning I went to Big Bend this past weekend. It was supposed to be 4 days of riding and sightseeing. The first night we stayed at the Marathon Hotel. Nice place and great courtyard to have a gathering after a ride. We at at the OASIS CAFE down the street. We left the next morning to end up in Terlingua. At about 4 in the afternoon I began to get indigestion. We ate supper at the Starlight Theatre and Cafe. By 4:30 that next morning 2 of us were visited by Montezuma and his revenge!! It was ugly. Spent the night in the bathroom on the john with a trash can in front of me. So weak the next morning that I went straight to Ft. Davis and checked in early. By 10am a third in our group was visited. He made it in by noon. We spent all of Saturday in our rooms and missed the stargazing and all the riding.. On Sunday we left at different times (no sightseeing). I checked out at noon and started home. I planned my trip home to possibly take 2 days. The others started at 9am. I got in at 7pm and almost fell off the bike. Still sick as a dog and will lose tomorrow at work as well. THE ONLY FOOD IN COMMON TO THE 3 THAT GOT SICK WAS THE CHICKEN-FRIED STEAK AT THE OASIS IN MARATHON. The other 4 people were ok. It was worse than simple food poisoning. I drank almost 4 gallons of water between Sat. in the AM and Sunday night. It all went out the wrong way. I won't go into more details. Just want to warn people that the OASIS CAFE is now off limits for me! It is a small hole in the wall place. We all at at the Starlight-different foods and common appetizers. Nothing in common between the 3 there. Enough for now, going to go drink more water and eat a couple pieces of bread.

 

JB

[Smokee]

I always thought of C.F.S. as "heatlth food"....meaning that no germ in the world can stand up to hot grease! But I don't want to appear to make light of your ordeal. Sorry to hear about that. Reminds me of when I got e. coli from under cooked hamburger meat a couple of years ago. I thought I was gonna die, and I didn't really care. Maybe the C.F.S. was under cooked...which would make sense, since that was the common food you all ate. Hope you get over it really soon. Take care.

[lonestarmedic]

Wish I had some Cipro or even Augmentin! I agree that deep frying should have fixed any e. coli but what about the gravy? Don't know and don't care now. Just glade to be home and safe in my own bathroom!!

 

JB

[george c]

THE ONLY FOOD IN COMMON TO THE 3 THAT GOT SICK WAS THE CHICKEN-FRIED STEAK AT THE OASIS IN MARATHON. .

 

JB

 

that is what got me ten years ago.

and still have problems from that.

when i got home from my trip the doctor put me in the hospital

hope you feel better

George C.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

Hey man...sorry to hear about your ordeal too...maybe it was a salad or something else yall had eaten...oh well....like they say in hollywood movies...what doesnt kill you makes you stronger!

 

 

[cowpuc]

This is a very good subject to discuss with would be cross country riders.. I have ridden over and back and up and down our country many times and, due to my freestyle of riding habits have had several occasions of tummy trauma as a result.. A few things that I have discovered may help you all..

1. NEVER drink water directly from a creek no matter what glacier it is running off from.. I now carrie milk bottles that I keep filled with city water.. I keep a couple jugs of the good stuff on my antenna and a couple jugs of "just water" on the other side.. Perfect for dumping in the wind in front of the group your riding with on those hot days..

2. Learn to live on Wendies chili.. YEARS of expereince has taugt me that Wendies Chili is the only quick food that you can have in your food bag and not have to worry about going south after a few days.. I actually went 3 weeks one time in the desert with only Wendies Chili and water.. Had a GREAT time too cause I had NO deceases from food poisonings.. Also, back packers trailmix is good too but I prefer Wendies Chili..

3. I still do the old Cowboy routine of sleeping on the prairie and staying out of the motels.. Lets face it folks,, if you want to motel it you can do that anytime,,, Cowboy up and get out under the stars.. If you do though it is wise to practice a couple Cowpuc Rules to stay safe.. First of all,, no matter where you are staying - be it 300 miles back in the desert or in a Walmart Parking lot under a pine tree in Sterling Colorado (done it MANY times) your camping techniches shouldnt change.. If you have to have a tent up always make sure your door zipper is located on TOP of the door and not along the bottom - Grass Rattlers are small enough to squeeze into the same hole that a mouse can and they will do it to get close to your body heat.. If you prefer camping without the tent just you, your bag and the stars you are with me!!! I have been practicing something for MANY years now and it works for nighttime protection.. Keep a couple of beef sticks rolled up in your sleeping bag while traveling. I keep one in my bag and one in my pillow that I keep inside my bag too.. I have found that both Grass and Diamond backs detest the smell of Beef Sticks and have NEVER woken up with that rush of adreniline and am usually not hungry either..

4. If you do dishes while out roughing it dont!! Just scrape out your pots and pans, wipe them down with paper toweling and call it good enough - let them set in the sunshine until dry and crusty is good too.. Rinsing/washing dishes in creek water is a MAJOR no no and many recorded stomach flues attributed to food poisoning is actually free flowing bugs in creek water. Some well meaning "experts" in all this will tell you to just boil the creek water and all is well.. Well,, I am no expert and my only contact with all this stuff is my absoulute love of roughing it as a modern day Cowboy biker still living off the land and it only took me a few minutes of study time to find out that a VERY sick friend of mine with E-Coli came about the decease by drinking creek water that had been boiled... Come to find out, the boiling idea is just fine unless you happen across E-Coli or Listeria or many other bugs associated with food poisoning.. bottom line, carry your own water - its very easy to do..

5. For a real treat after you have been riding for 15 days, have 8 thousand miles under your belt and you just want some fun... Find a store (s) that has those ladies passing out free food for tasting.. Make a few passes in your biker clothes, then go back in your beach clothes and then again in your night clothes.. This gives you a chance at some very good food (every cowpoke knows those food people give out the best of their product and its free), with the chances of food poisoning at an extremely low rate.. A riding buddie of mine and I spent over 4 hours at one of these places on a short sea to sea crosscountry ride a couple years ago.. I am still a little bound up from eating 30 pounds of Monterey Jack cheese and if it hadnt been for the qourmey crackers and european pop to wash it down with I would have gotten sick = my fault though..

Anyway,, ride safe, eat right, live long and prosper.

Puc

[V7Goose]

There ain't nothing simple about food poisoning! What you describe is almost identical to what hit me from a liverwurst sandwich in France 30 years ago. We stopped for lunch just north of the Spanish border, and it hit me about 4 hours later. Did my damnedest to make it to the German border to get medical care at the Canadian base (the closest NATO base), but just could not even sit the bike by 7 PM. Ended up hugging the one toilet in the motel all night long (didn't make any friends from that!), and could barely ride the next day. Really bad stuff!

Goose

[Blackjack]

Sorry to hear that you got so sick, JB! I've also had food poisoning and it is truly an awful experience...

 

Hope you get better soon!

 

Terry

[86er]

I feel for you, JB. I went through that this summer after a sandwich in a deli outside the NE entrance to Yellowstone. Thought I was gonna die, and wouldn't have minded!

 

Feel better soon!

 

[bill p]

I have to jump in here.I was one of the others who got sick with JB. We think it must have been the gravy or maybe the small amount of letuce and tomato they called a salad . Vince : alias Ham is still not feeling good and for sure Im a wreck;; I have spent more time in the bathrooms of west Texas, and finally at home. Taking Imoudium,both the liquid and pills.. Daughter suggests honey and cinimon. Im going to try that now. Hope it works

Should anyone else have any good remedys please log in

That first night meal ruined the trip for all. Even those not afflicted had to put up with us.

 

Bill P:sick::sick::sick:

[lonestarmedic]

I was wondering when you would chime in. I guess you got the delayed action version. I must have been right behind you guys on the way home. I am about 90% tonight. I ate solid foods today and they stayed solid. YEA!!! Tell Ham to give me a yell and maybe we can all get together for a better meal. Thanks for all the good wishes from everyone. I guess we all need to be reminded about the perils of bad food once in a while.

 

JB

[Tom]

OK I am gonna chime in....NEXT TIME CALL ME,I will come pick you guys up.It aint that far!

[bill p]

I finally think Im going to live!

 

 

Bill P:cool10: