Summer 2005 Motorcycle Tour

Checkin' in from the road-day 11.. >>

Posted By: Ricky Lee McBroom
Date: Thursday, 30 June 2005, at 12:20 a.m.

Day 11 (June 28); Tucson, AZ > El Paso, TX

We stayed at the Ramada Ltd. at I-10 exit 257 in Tucson, and this was without a doubt the trip's best deal on lodging. Clean, huge room, king bed, microwave / 'fridge / coffee in the room, great Wi-Fi, killer complimentary Continental breakfast, and 'twas only $45 with a coupon from one of those 'traveler's guides'. for the Ramada Limited!

Ramada Limited, Tucson, AZ

We'd planned on hittin' the road by 05:00, in the hope of making El Paso in the cool of the morning. But alas, due to staying up later than planned, and lingering over breakfast, it was actually 06:45 before we rolled. Ah well, best laid plans and a' that. We still needed the jackets, for the first leg of the trip.

Desert view, west of Las Cruces, NM

It wasn't 'til we hit Las Cruces, at about 10:30, that it warmed up to the point where we had to shed the jackets.

Desert view, east of Las Cruces, NM

Then it was onwards to.. more desert. To be perfectly honest, Pam & I were both gettin' a little sick of the desert. Pam's view on a summer motorcycle crossing of the desert can be summed up in two words; "Never again!"

If you ever travel this stretch of I-8 / I-10, I recommend checkin' out Bowlin's Trading posts for the best in Southwestern Tourist Knickknacks. The dolls caught Pam's fancy;

Bowlin's Trading Post, NM

Luckily, these dolls were too big to pack out on a motorcycle. My attention was drawn more to the solid-silver Olangapo-style watch bands w/ turquise inlays. A little loud, perhaps, but the workmanship was super. The $375 price was the deal-breaker there...

The last Bowlin's we stopped at touted "Ratlesnakes, Scorpions, Tarantulas, and Other Desert Critters". But the wildlife they didn't advertise captivated us so much that we never made it around back to pony up our $3 for a peek at the star attractions;

Desert swallow, Bowlin's Trading Post, NM

These little fellas had lined the entire 100+ foot expanse of the store's porch with their nests. Dozens of nests! They're superb flyers, too, and their aerial antics kept us entertained while we cooled off.

The last 60 miles were brutally hot, almost as hot as the day before. But we soldiered on, with a cool-off stop in the middle, and soon arrived at my son's home.

Gaining entrance to Fort Bliss was a minor adventure in itself. Had to show a-drivers license b-vehicle registration and c-proof of insurance to get a pass. And to ride motorcycle on an Army base, Army regs require a-long sleeves, b-boots, c-gloves, d-helmet, e-reflective vest, and f-proof of completion of the MSF. I had all but e and f, my daughter-in-law came through with e, and I convinced the officer in charge of the gate to waive f 'cause I was a visitor. {sheesh}

Anyway, we got 'er done, and I was soon bench-racing with my grand-daughters. Olivia took particular pride in showing me her bike;

Olivia McBroom - 'racing' Grandpa

We opened some presents;

Mikaela McBroom - Grandparents R 4 presents

Did a little more bench-racing;

Mikaela & Olivia, 'riding' Grandpa's bike

Surely the two most gorgeous little girls in the known universe. I might be biased..

Didn't get to see Bobby yet, as our Uncle Sam saw fit to send him out on a field mission. But he's due back on Thursday.. And my daughter, Dana, is flying in tomorrow. Yippee!

We'll be laying over in El Paso for 5 days, maybe 6.. we'll be cramming 6 months of catching up into a week, basically. So I won't be checkin' in for a few days..

Later!

-Ricky