Sept 24/08 - What kind of ninnies ???

Wednesday, Sept 24th/08

Spent the morning getting all packed up in preparation for getting Rod’s bike and getting back on the road. We have looked and looked but are unable to find the gel-filled bandanas we wear around our necks in hot weather. They are an absolute ‘life-saver’ in the hot desert and we were wearing them when we came in on Friday. Seems like so long ago now. Rod takes a trip down to the bike shop to see if they are on the Wing. No luck. I make a number of calls around town to see if anyone sells them but no such luck.

A funny thing happened about my left arm. On Friday shortly after we arrived I was shutting a door in the hotel with the flat of my forearm and felt a really sharp pain. Soon after my fingers were tingly and by Saturday it only felt somewhat comfortable if I held it up in the “How” position or “Will you raise your left hand and swear…” Too weird. I was very concerned I would not be able to shift my bike. When we rented the car on Sunday/Monday I could only drive with the right – not even open the car door with the left. I was getting a little ‘jittery’ about it. By Tuesday feeling a lot better and by the time we left Wednesday ‘almost’ back to normal – no problem riding. Whew! I’ll put it down to sympathy pain for Rod’s bike being in the hospital.

Paul, the service manager at Route 66 Motorsports calls with the news that Rod’s bike is ready. Yippee!!! Or maybe not… the bill is exactly twice the first quote. Gulp! Combine that with our hotel bill for 5 nights and it takes a very big bite out of the budget.

We pick up Rod’s bike and are out of the shop by 11:00 a.m., then back to the hotel to load our gear. Once again I really want to give Rod a million kudos – looking at the pile of ‘stuff’ to load I kept thinking – “there is absolutely NO WAY that is all going to fit on the bikes”. One of the challenging things in doing this type of motorcycle trip is the array of clothing you need for the changing weather. We have had from ‘all clothes on’ when we were close to snow in Colorado to trying to wear as little as possible in the 100+ temperatures. Add to that a couple quarts of oil, windshield cleaner, emergency kit... the space gets pretty jammed. I often think about our friend Daryl who said he had an ingenious way to make the laundry last. First day underwear on as per normal, second day on backwards, third day, inside out and fourth day, inside out and backwards. Today is supposed to be a ‘cooker’ and we are headed in the direction of Las Vegas and beyond. We leave the hotel just after noon and I can’t help but think “what kind of ninnies head into the desert in the absolute heat of the day”? We are anxious to be underway however and head out towards Las Vegas after mailing the last of my postcards as we leave Kingman. As we make the descent into the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead area the heat is so intense that it absolutely takes your breath away. The water of Lake Mead is like an apparition after this desert wasteland – I wish we had time to run over and jump in with all our clothes on and then keep riding. It does not matter how fast you’re riding (and believe me we tried) it is just like a blast furnace blowing HOT air straight at you. As much as I like to be warm – I do have to agree with you Lyn – 100+ is just too darn hot.

We breeze through Las Vegas without so much as laying a single bet on the tables and fuel on the outskirts of town. We’ve had to make a number of freeway changes to pick up our routing to the destination for today. There are a lot of flashy and exotic cars in Las Vegas and they all seem to drive very fast. We are doing close to 80MPH and being passed on all sides. Reminds me of being on the autobahn in Europe.

It is well over 100F now and like the wicked witch of the east from “The Wizard of Oz” I think “I’m melting, I’m melting”. An error in judgement today - I decided to ride in shorts and runners thinking it would be cooler... NOT! The heat blows off the engine directly onto my shins and had I not shaved this morning would have singed all the little stubblies right off. Back to my boots and chaps for tomorrow - a lesson in how much protection they provide.

The end of our day lands us in a town called Pahrump, Nevada. Sounds to me like the refrain for “The Little Drummer Boy”. It was discovered and slowly inhabited by American settlers in the late 19th century. They reportedly chose the name for the valley which Pahrump is named after from the original indigenous name Pah-Rimpi, or "Water Rock," so named because of the abundant artesian wells in the valley. The water does taste excellent here. We are in a Best Western that has a pool to cool off in and boy does it EVER! They obviously haven’t heated it since about March and it is CHILLY! One lap is all I can manage – Rod wades in to his waist and gets out – quickly.

Very little for restaurants here so we wander up the road to Terrible Town Casino where we have a truly terrible meal. The casino is so smokey we are not inclined to spend any time there so walk back to our ‘home for the night’. There are no street lights and not much for ambient light so the stars are truly wondrous.