Dragonslayer

You were right about the after market fork seals the left tube seal gave up in the badlands in South Dakota and bled fork oil all the way back. Gas mileage got better when the gas octane started getting better without ethonol, #4 carb float still sticking and I had to change plugs twice, the two plugs on left were black and sooty two on right fairly clean. It was losing power on the long incline pulls up towing the trailer and my big butt at high altitudes other than that she carried me 6,506 miles. I did run all the rubber off the rear metzler in the desert of NM and had to resort to putting a Harley Davidson Dunlap on in Tucumcari, NM. I couldn't help it that was the only motorcycle tire in that whole town I was just glad it fit.

Hey don't complain North Georgia needs it Lake Lanier up a foot and 1/2 17 more feet to go.

My roommate the dog expert shes shepard and chow I say wolf, when in doubt you can always call it an American Dingo

I'm back home now in Atlanta safe and sound after riding into the remnants of hurricane Faye's rain from Birmingham all the way to Atlanta. The last part of the trip I was trying to complete the Saddlesore 1000 from Amarillo to Atlanta. Which I will cover under a different post. But, I still needed to finish telling y'all the rest of the New Mexico portion of the trip which be covered in three parts. This part being # 2 which will cover from the Cimarron Canyon to Las Vegas, NM. Which was one of the most interesting parts of the trip. Leaving the Cimarron Canyon I reach a place called Eagles Nest. Where Eagles Nest Lake is. Supposedly the best Trout fishing in New Mexico but I'll never know because my fishing pole blew off the trailer somewhere in Tennessee. But I know it sure was windy all the way to Angel Fire. NM where I toured the National Vietnam War Memorial. I spent some time there and was sincerely moved by the exhibits and the movie presentation of the Vietnam Years both in country and stateside. Vietnam was the war of my generation and the images depicted brought back quite a few poignant memories. After Angel Fire as I'm entering Taos, NM I stop to check the map. While stopped I decide to answer Nature's call so I step off the road and into the woods and walk down this incline about 15 yards where I reach this creek culvert where I stand to add to the water flow of the creek. As I'm finishing up I look over to my left, and notice something strange down in the creek. It appeared to be some bones sticking out from under some clothing. The clothing appeared to be some sort of jacket. Now if it were just bones I would just assume it was some deer or animal carcuss but since it looked liked it was wearing clothes and I had never seen any wild animals wearing clothes in this sort of setting my next guess was that it was the bones of a person not an animal. Not knowing exactly what to do at that point, I decided that I probably should not get any closer to it so that I don't get totally grossed out or disrupt a crime scene should it be one. So I take a picture of it and climb back up the hill and get on my bike and ride on into town. As it turns out I find a New Mexico State Police office about two miles down the road so I stop to make sure I can ride off with my conscience being clear. So I pull in to report it. One of the Officers followed me back up the road to where I had pulled off and I lead him down the hill to the exact spot on the culvert where I first saw the bones. He evidently saw the same thing that I had seen because he immediatly gets on the radio and calls for a Supervisor and back up. While I was wondering why he needed back-up I slowly backed-up the hill. Turned out he needed a Supervisor to make a decision on what to do next and back-up for a third opinion on if it was a crime scene or not.So by the time the third, fourth and fifth cop car showed up and all of the officers had a chance to walk down the hill and stand where I first stood. They all had decided that it was very suspicious and maybe they should call for the criminal investigators to come secure the scene. It was at that point that they politely asked me if I wouldn't mind waiting to tell the criminal investigators How I happened to stumble over this exact spot all the way from Georgia by way of South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah, and Colorado to this exact spot in New Mexico. One of them did suggest in somewhat of a joking way, I wasn't laughing, that they did have handcuffs and I could be REQUIRED to sit in the back of one of the cop cars until the investigators arrived. Seeing the futility of refusing their invitation I graciously accepted. I did however agree to sit in the back seat of one of the cars when it started raining only under the conditions that they would leave the door open and I could leave one leg out with one foot on the ground. I stayed there only as long as it rained and used the excuse that I wanted to take a picture of the double rainbow as a ploy to escape from the car. So five hours later after everyone arrived and stood on the spot on the culvert and then the ones dressed in suits got to get down in the water a drag it out of the water since they were they ones that got paid the big bucks to do that sort of thing. I was set free to go my merry way. I could have stayed there and camped out but some of the officers had been talking about the big mountain lion that had been seen in the area and if this could possibly be a cougar kill. That seemed somewhat unlikely to me since by now they all had agree that the clothing I first saw now appearred to be a large sack tied up with rope. But, to be on the safe side I opted to ride off into the night and find a safe motel well away from any wild animal danger. Which I did some hours later in Las Vegas, NM.

Just got back from that trip total miles 6506 from Atlanta, Sturgis, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons via GA, TN, KY, IL, MS, KS, NE, SD, WY, MT, ID, UT, CO, NM, TX, AR, MI, AL, Back to ga in time for the rain from Hurrican Faye.

This trip has been a trip and adventure of a lifetime and I enjoyed every minute of it. Especially the time I spent in Texas.This was due in most part to the V.I.P. treatment i received from my guides and host. Jack aka the Silver Bullet and Brian aka tx2sturgis. I've met alot of great people on this trip ... but these guys were the bomb... If you every get a chance to get to Amarillo...... you gotta party with these guys. It was like I-40 was a giant red carpet they rolled out from the New Mexico/TX boarder to the Texas/ Oklahoma boarder just for me. When I finally landed in Tucumcari, NM with a rear Metzler showing thread all the way around, Jack offered to stop what he was doing to buy me a tire and bring it 150 miles to get me back on the road. That ended up not being necessary since I was able to find the only motorcycle tire to be found in Tucumcari which happened to fit even though it was a Harley Davidson emblazed Dunlap. The Tucumcari experience was a story in itself and I will tell that part under a different post. But none the less the next day Jack rode from Amarillo to the Stuckey's at the NM/TX boarder to meet me and escort me into Amarillo with lights and sirens blaring announcing my arrival. After a short visit at The Cadillac Ranch that actually is a local landmark of buried antique Cadillacs and not a house of illrepute as I had imagined. Which I probably could have used at that point in the trip. Once we arrived in Amarillo we caught up with Brian aka tx2sturgis and headed off to ride the Palo Duro Canyon area. My guides could not have been better or more knowledgeable of the Canyons sites and history if they had been employed by the park service. They even arranged for an after hours veiwing and private tour of the Canyon museum. At the point where we had completed the Canyon run it was decission time again and I needed to commit to if I was going to flip or fly..... stay in Amarillo for the night or continue my journey towards Atlanta. My options were to camp out in the canyon with the Rattlesnakes. That option would require unloading the trailer and settling up the tent which did not sound inviting at that time with the heat the way it was. Get back on the road and head for Oklahoma. Or, allow Jack to pull some strings for Luxury accomadations at a very fair price, adult libations, the promise of preatty girls waiting, and live classic rock music by a local band at one of Brians favorite watering holes. Brian knew all the right buttons to push so guess which option I choose. So after a short detour by the hotel to check in and drop some gear off Jack and I caught up with Brian at his favorite watering hole The BoonDocks to meet his Sturgis buddies and the lovely waitstaff who had cold Coronas and monster burgers waiting for our disposal. Our waitress Allison was a Librian in her day job and was very knowledgeable and friendly. Her repertouire of accumulated knowledge included just about every "Bob" joke I had ever heard. Her presentations , delivery and timing of which were flawless. After hearing some classic rock early George Strait.....and I still say Amarillo by Morning was a Glenn Cambell song.... come to think of it I really don't recall the band doing any Classic Rock as advertized, Jack started turning into a pumpkin and politely excussed himself. Evidently we were keeping him up past his bedtime so he rode off into the night. But, not before trying to arm wrestling me for the bar tab. My determination won out since Jack adamately insisted on picking up the tab for everthing so far and I agreed to let him leave the tip for Allison the "Bob" joke expert. But Brian wasn't finished showing me a good time yet so since BoonDoocks was now closing at the stroke of midnight he privately arranged for Jennifer the barmaid and Allison the waitress/Librian/"Bob" joke comedian to go with us to some of his other watering holes that would be open for a while longer. Our next stop was a place called "Running Wild Hogs". But evidently the the Wild hogs had done run off because by the time we got there it was last call. So we went next door to a place that I thought Brian said was a sports bar called Whiskers. I was somewhat confused when I did not see any TV sets and wondered how a sports bar could operate without TV sets hanging off the walls :confused24:until Brian explained that he didn't say it was a sports bar but a SPORTY bar. As I looked around a little closer I realized what I first thought was a target rich environment was actually a room full of Sporty Women talking to each other. :whistling:We then closed down one other place called Jomama's. The unofficial motto of Jomama's was Get your Drama At JoMama's. During the brief time that we were there before closing time I'm convinced that the bar got it's motto honestly. Having closed down the town Brian escorted me back to my hotel where we arranged to get in touch with each other the next day after I had checked out of the hotel. The next day I awoke to the sound of housekeeping wanting to get in and by a look on the clock it was five minutes before check out time. After a quick shower and packing up my gear I checked out and returned to BoonDocks to meet Brian for lunch. We spent the afternoon at Boondocks and then back to Running Wild Hogs where Brian introduced me to everyone he knew as if I was a traveling dignitary. It was obviouse to me that Brian was well liked and popular with all that he introduced me to and his ensthuastic introduction elevated my status from traveling stranger to V.I.P. guest. My time in Amarillo ended with a delitefull dinner with his friends at a mexican restuarant name Aculpoco serenanded by espanic versions of many early rock and roll songs including my favorite Bob Seger song Turn the Page, which I sing often at Karoke. But, Not in Spanish. We returned briefly to Boondocks where we filed out the start point paperwork for the Iron Butt saddleSore 1000 endurance ride I planned to complete where I would cover the 1,148 miles from Amarillo, Texas to Atlanta, Georgia in less than 24 hours. I pulled out at 10:30 P.M. Central time and completed the Iron Butt ride at 10:00 p.M. the next day with 30 minutes to spare.

Dano, I assure you I got pleanty of motocross experience with the scoot and trailer on this trip total trip mileage 6,506 miles probably 1,000 of dirt, gravel and rough roads. I'm very proud of the fact that in all that time and distance I did not drop my bike once. Palo Duro Canyon was great and I had the best guides possible.

The only thing B****ing at me is those housekeeping wh***s and the scoot when shes's required to drag that trailer and my fat a** up 10 to 16% inclines 20 or 30 miles or so. and my piece of s**t camera that only works when it wants to. And this smoke detector that I just ripped out of the wall that goes off and won't stop set off by shower steam or mayby the front desk can operate it from there to blast me out evidently they are tired of banging on the door..... Gotta go

You got a date. Housekeeping is running me out again and I'm about to get on the road heading for Armadillo or is that Amarillo. My Cell is 404 694-1469 I call when I get closer. Look forward to meeting and riding with you Jack. Is there a decent campsite without housekeeping I could land at near the canyon?

Search Highway Ottamans on the web, that's what I have and they are the most comfortable ever made I quarantee it.

:doh:OH YEA......... What about the pond monsters?

Teletubbies???? aren't they gay according to Pat Robertson? Should we be talking about sexual orientations on this forums? I don't think I said anything contraversial except those few words that post as ******* like H*** or s**t or refering to my scoots current disposition as B***hy My bad? if so I'm sorry

I had planned on making my trip to Sturgis an adventure to remember, and I weren't lying. I've been on the road since 7/29 and since leaving home I've covered 5051 miles which lands me in Las Vegas, New Mexico at this time. Trying to get reliable internet access on the road has been near impossible so I have not been able to describe what has happened on this trip so far. There is so much to tell I don't know where to start and I'm sure it all can't be covered in one post so I'll have to tell ya'll this story in installments. Trying to summerize will be fruitless. Each day has been a minute to minute amazing , wonderfull, overwhelming, adventurouse journey. I have seen so much that I'm am sure that a book will be the end result of this trip. When posting before leaving on this trip many of you asked for pictures, so there are hundreds of those. In addition there is about thirty hours of video. A notebook full of hand written notes. Dozens of interesting people with stories of thier own. Places full of magic, beauty indescribable, history of our country's past. I only hope that I can be articulate enough to describe the range of emotions I have experienced in such a way to stir your emotions the way mine have been. I suppose the best way to cover the whole trip will probably best be segmented by each day or by each state that I've covered. So far on this trip I have visited 14 states, (in order visited): Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinoise, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Colorada, New Mexico.... To date Before I get back home to Atlanta I will add Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama to the above list. Although starting with yesterdays travels (New Mexico) Is kinda starting in the middle of the trip, yesterday was a prime example of what an adventure each day has been. So I'm gonna cover yesterday as a teaser to peak ya'lls interest. 8/20/08 New Mexico Part 1 I started the day in Trinidad, Colorado with housekeeping banging on my motel room door telling me that I have worn out my welcome by still being there after check out time.A condition that has been repeated each time I opted for a room rather than sleeping out under the stars. When I do finally drag up my gear and reload the bike, do my morning safety check, grab a cup of coffee, gas up and hit the road I start todays ride on I-25 heading south into New Mexico. By this time I had told myself and others waiting on my return in Atlanta that I was definetly on the way home by the shortest and most direct route possible. But as soon as I crossed the state line it became obviouse that I had lied once again. You see I had said the same thing in SD, WY, ID, UT and CO. The problem has been that the road atlas I have been using have these green dots along side certain roadways that indicate a scenic route and these green dotted roads almost never seem to be heading in the general direction of Atlanta. I had planned to cross into NM for a short distance and pick up 64/87 heading in a southeasternly direction toward Amarillo, TX. But when I got to that point I noticed on the map that there was a longer green dotted road going in a south westernly direction headed toward Sante Fe marked the Santa Fe Trail. So off I go following the Sante Fe Trail. Mostly because I had heard of the Sante Fe Trail before and had never seen it, but, I had never heard of 64/87. After all this route will only detour me by a few hundred miles from what I could tell looking on the map. The first part of that route was wide flat priarie on both sides of the road with high Rocky mountains on the horizon on both sides. Even though the road was long, straight and flat the monotany was broken up by sitings of herds of Antelope, deer and an occasional Elk. Until I come across this large mission style building sitting off the in distance off the road with this huge front entrance sign which read NRA Whittington Center. So I turn in and proceed down the long driveway lined with flags to see what this is all about. It turned out the structure was the new National Rifle Association facilty that included a firearms museam, gift shop and museam of the NRA. So I spent some time looking around. Turns out that this new facility was located out in the middle of 36,000 acreas owned by the NRA devoted to the shooting sports where they offered guided hunts and all manner of shooting ranges and competition settings for every type of caliber and shooting skills and sports. See pictures below. From there, I soon found myself entering the mountains into an area called the Cimarron Canyon where the Cimarron river follows the twisties, switchbacks and clover leafs that snake through the rock cliffs and hugh rock formations. It was quite a beautifull ride even though there seemed to be thunder and lightning storms all aroiund me except for the sunny patch that followed me all the way through the canyon. Evidently I'm limited on how many photos I can include in one post and I need to get some sleep before housekeeping kicks me out again so I'm gonna post the rest of NM later. But, to keep your interest I will tell you that NM part 2 will include the National Vietnam War Memorial in Angel Fire, NM Being detained by the NM State Police as part of a murder investigation and Madrais, NM where the movie Wild Hogs was filmed.

I'm sorry, I told many of you but I probably should have posted it as well. But the Parting out project is on hold till I return from Sturgis.

I'm coming and am on the way but I'm running a little bit late. It looks like I'll be pulling in today. I'm about to leave Grand Island, Nebraska for the last leg. I made slow progress yesterday making my way through Kansas with the worst heat I have ever felt 125 degree heat index. It was so hot it took your breath and felt like flame against you skin. I could only ride about thirty minutes at a time before having to find shade and liquids to keep from getting heat stroke. The scoot didn't lik e it very much either. The other problem was the scout has been a little *****y. Showing sudden vacume leaks, carbs rev to high, float sticking in # 4, and possible spark plug wire failure, resulting in plumeting MPG, AS WELL AS IRRATIC AND INTERMITTEN AIR SUSPENSION CONTROLLER. Did anyone bring a carb sync gauge? iF SO i WOULD REALLY REALLY REALLY LIKE TO HOOK UP.

We expect to be getting there Sunday night. Give me a call and let's try to hook up. My cell phone is 404 694-1469

Everyone is eating well

We have reservations 20 minutes north of Sturgis for $15.00 per person per night at Wyatt's Hideway Campground.

I just got goose bumps reading your sentiment. Well put. Ever since I became involved in this group I have never felt alone wheather dealing with technical issues of my antique high tech VR, the comraderie of riding buddies on the meet and eats and the felowship and friendly chatter of the threads. I truly feel that this Venture Rider never rides alone. Thanks to all of the great people in this group. I would love to catch up with as many of you as possible on this trip. To that end, he is my itinary so far. Today I'm in Johnson City, TN it's raining so I'm going shopping for a GPS. Spend the night here in the Best Western. Tomorrow morning I'll be hooking up with my Harley Travel companions in Nashville, TN around noon. Then we'll be heading to Sturgis via.... St Louis, Mo to Kansas City then to Omaha, NE At Omaha we'll get off interstate and cross Nebraska on back Roads to Rapid City to Sturgis We have reservations at Wyatt's Hideway Campground north of Sturgis 20 minutes away. My Cell phone number is 404 694-1469. Any one able and interested in hooking up and riding :7_6_3[1]:Please call.

I made Atl To Johnson City, Tn last night and will be spending the day here. Tomorrow morning I'll be hooking up with my two Harley buddies in Nashville arouind lunch time. Then the three of us will be headed to Sturgis. Plan on arriving sometime Sunday night. We have reservations at Wyatt's Hideaway Campground North of Sturgis. I would love to Hook up with Venture Rider members while out there.

I've been wanting to do this trip for the past five years. But, every year when the time came I didn't have all my ducks in a row so I couldn't go. Who ever made up the "ducks in a row" rule was really starting to get my goat. I even started believing that getting ducks in a row was an excercise in futility . I just knew it was an impossible task to complete. Like stacking BBs, Programing the VCR, getting the C clip out of the end of the clutch master cylinder, logging more miles ridden or states visited than Wildhair39, understanding what really goes on in the mind of a woman, perpetual motion, staying ahead of the current technology cutting edge. But before I could carve it in stone that it just simply couldn't be done those ding dang ducks marched right up and stood in a row. My real estate projects all got finished sold and closed, all my promises and commitments got satisfied, the scoot is ready after spending the last two weeks tearing her apart and putting her back together.....AGAIN, the trailer is packed, time, money and inclination, check, check, check. I guess those silly ducks just wanted to humble me further by proving me wrong,,,,,AGAIN. So the only thing I can do now is humbly get on the scoot and head out for Sturgis. Which is exactly what I'll be doing before sunrise menyanna. STURGIS, SOUTH DAKOTA 2008 OR BUST

Oh yea, just one more thing. Read my post on on 1st Gen tech talk titled Right Side Lean Stand Modification if you plan on continueing to mount your ride from the right hand side with it on the left side lean stand.

Condor, Sorry to hear about your fall. I hope you are not seriously hurt. I don't wish to add salt to an injury but I feel compelled to offer a few tidbits of advice :backinmyday:that may help you avoid a similar incident in the future. 1. Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when they're gone. 2. Safety gear, better to have it and not need it then need it and not have it. 3. Always be mindfull of Mr. Gravity, he can be a badass when we ignore his presence. 4. Avoid the cheap chips, they always short you on volumn so bag collapse easily. 5. Get one of those emergency alert thingys that notifies emergency response if you ever get in a situation where you have fallen and can't get up and no neighbors are close by. 6. Seek medical attention for head trauma if you hear your bike calling you names and it starts sprouting hands. No matter how much you love and respect her. 7. WALK IT OFF :dancefool:THEN RIDE IT OFF. Hope it don't hurt much or for very long.

Yes we need some more bells, I don't have one yet and it is constantly on my mind when I ride.

Lowell, Getting ready for ATLANTA to STURGIS run 1,572 miles one way. Atlanta to Chattanooga to Nashville to St Louis to Kansas City to Omaha to Bassett, NE to Rapid City/Sturgis SD. Why don't you catch up with me and ride, ride, ride.