Del Rio

Day 5
Destination: Del Rio, Texas
Miles: 469    Total Miles:  1,928
Route: Highway 10, east to 90, then south

Points of Interest:

• Judge Roy Bean's Museum

Del Rio is a small town along the border with Mexico. To get there from El Paso, one spends 40 minutes or so on Highway 10, and the balance of their lives on Highway 90, a two lane highway which seems to run almost forever. This may be an exaggeration, but only a small one. You travel through many, many small towns, some on the map, some not on the map. The distances between gas stations is great, and often GPS reports a station or other supplier of gas which has long since (LONG SINCE) been closed. Most of the buildings along the route are unoccupied and dilapidated, and it is obvious that the Obama stimulus money never got this far south. There are few farms, and most of the land is brush. There is no shortage of border patrol officers, however, and we got stopped several times at check points. I know...we got stopped without any probable cause. We didn't look like illegals. We didn't act like illegals. We weren't violating any laws, but they stopped us anyway! But really, we didn't complain, whine, cry, bellyache, or act like a better-than-thou democrat about the conduct of these brave men and women.  Instead, we thanked them for their service and went about our business.

The last two hundred miles was a challenge, since it was hot, sultry, and we were running out of gas. We found the Judge Roy Bean Museum, and spent some time there in the town of Langtry. Turns out the town was not named after Lilly Langtry, the actress, but some dude. Who knew? Our first taste of rain didn't help, but it didn't dampen our spirits and made the trip more memorable and the lightening off to the west was also cool.

El Paso

Day 4
Destination:  El Paso, TX

Miles Ridden:  358    Total Miles:  1,458

Points Of Interest:

• Tombstone (O.K. Corral)
• Corando National Forest (along Highway 9)
• Monument where Geronimo surrendered, ending the Indian conflicts

We were joined earlier in the day by Tony Garcia, who rode in this morning from Phoenix.  We arrived at Tombstone, the site of one of the most famous gun battles in the so-called "Wild West."  We went to the O.K. Corral, where the gun battle took place.  We ate lunch at Big Nose Kates, and had the "Town Marshall" photograph us behind the bar.  This was the saloon where Morgan Earp was shot and killed.  We also spent some time at the courthouse, now a museum, and then headed south and east.   We rode for 250 miles or so through the beautiful, rolling hills with the foothills in the background on both sides.  The temperature was warm, the sky blue, with only white puffy clouds over the foothills.  There was no shortage of border patrol, and twice we were stopped.  And no, we didn't whine, cry, whimper, complain or object to these unwarranted intrusions on our freedom.  Instead, we thanked them for their service and went about our business.

Arizona is rich in history, and we also stopped at the monument commemorating the final surrender of Geronimo.  An outstanding day!

Tucson

Day 3

Miles today: 486 miles

Total Miles: Approximately 1,100
Route: Highway 5 to San Ysidro, Highway 8 to 10, eastbound, to Tucson.

Points of interest:

• Pacific Ocean
• Gas light District
• Old Downtown, San Diego
• Beautiful rock formations and desert along Highway 8 (4,100 foot elevation)

Day 3 was indeed interesting. It began with our traveling from Old town San Diego to San Ysidro, the southernmost town in California. Other than those coming into the US (presumably legal), and those leaving the US, there wasn't much to see. But we did our Five Corners dance for YouTube, and we hit the road. A long road trip is not without its mishaps. Mike left a gas cap, and Bud lost his chaps and helmet. But we finally arrived in Tucson almost 500 miles later, despite the heat and the wind. Sunscreen is a must.

We got stopped twice by the Border Patrol, and met a Minuteman. A very interesting man who was only concerned about protecting Arizona from the threat from the south. I thanked them for their service, and was not concerned for a moment that we were being stopped. It's easy to talk about "freedom" when you get on a motorcycle to travel through 30 states. But true "freedom" is not experienced simply because one can travel from one state to another. Freedom doesn't exist simply because one can vote a socialist into office if the majority is of a mind to do so. True freedom is in the heart. To ensure freedom, people must be willing to risk it all to stand up against enemies, whether outside or inside the government. That spirit exists today in Arizona. Rather than blame the people of Arizona, how about blaming those truly responsible: (1) the Mexican citizens who enter this country illegally, regardless of their reason; (2) the American employers who provide the incentive for them to ignore our laws; (3) the safe harbor cities, such as San Francisco, who ignore the law and encourage the illegals to come here; (4) Western Union, which makes huge profits from the transferring of money from the US and Mexico; and (5) an administration which has no desire to stop the flood of illegals into this country. Arizona is only the start.

First Thousand Miles

Toasting the First Thousand Miles

San Diego

Today was one of those days that reminds you that you are "on the road." Out by 8:00 a.m., but not at the hotel in San Diego until 8:30 p.m. Cool in the morning, but very warm in the afternoon. 12 miles of 5 mph traffic in the heat due to an accident. But, the highlight of the day was visiting the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. It was an honor to be there and visit his grave site. A truly great man, who did much more than people remember. This country could certainly use that kind of insite and political astuteness today.

Tomorrow, we are off to Tucson, Arizona. We are really looking forward to talking to people who know, and who are suffering every day, because of the administration's refusal to deal with the illegals in this country. The dems are more concerned about future votes than the fact that illegals are destroying the economies of California and Arizona.

Along the beach in Santa Barbara.

First "Corner", San Diego

First Corner "Dance" (We'll use the term lightly!)

Blastoff

We were met by a nice group before leaving Danville at 8:30 this morning. It's not easy for our wives to say goodbye to us for such a long time. But we promised to be careful and send back photos and our stories of the road.

We had breakfast at the infamous Buena Vista, the birthplace of the Irish Coffee, and then our trip began through Fisherman's Wharf, the Presidio, and south along the Great Highway through Moss Landing, Santa Cruz, Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur, and ultimately San Luis Obispo. A great day, although cool and very windy. Tomorrow...San Diego.

San Francisco, CA

Countdown Ends at 7:30 a.m. Tomorrow!

The boyz will be meeting tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. at Starbucks in Danville, California.  We will be meeting to say goodbye to those unfortunates who can't make the trip, and to give farewell kisses to our loved ones, and then mount the silver eagles to begin our trip south along the Pacific Ocean.  Tomorrow's ride will take us to San Francisco for a brief stop at the Buena Vista, then on to Santa Cruz, Carmel, Big Sur, and eventually San Luis Obispo.  We are promised good weather for the first several days, and some of the most spectacular scenary in the world

"Every day is a great day to ride...some are just better than others!"

Ready to Go!

Only 9 days left, and da boyz will be blasting off to all points south...and east, and north, and west...  Three years of planning come down to a single date of departure, and we can see that date when we bring up the 10-day weather forecast  (which, incidently, is supposed to be excellant along the Pacific coast).   Ralph, Bud and Bob have had their bikes serviced, and their respective GPS devices have been tested and found in good working order.  The iPods have been loaded with a boatload of songs (not to mention the podcasts for our favorite conservative talk radio).    We said we were leaving the watches behind.  We never said we weren't going to take every other piece of high tech electronic equipment known to man. 

Our goal remains the same, and that is to meet and speak with as many Americans as we can along this 12,000 mile route. Check in with us every now and then.  You can read about our trip on this blog, and you can leave your comments.  Or you can watch the YouTube films we plan to take along the way.  Or, you can read about this great adventure in Dawn to Dusk...Our 12,000 Mile Conversation with America. We hope you enjoy the ride!