Snow

Here it is the 1st of June, and we are staying in a lodge with snow banks all over the place. It was only a 40 mile ride today, but a big hill at the end , actually the start of a pass over the Wind River range. We left Jackson at about 10 this morning, and it was cold, but clear. The ride past the Tetons was spectacular, they are snow covered and look like the Matterhorn. At about mile 20 we had a flat rear tire, bummer, and pulled over into the weeds to fix it. The repair went ok, and after a couple of bagels heisted from the motel, we were off. The lowlight of the morning was a nature stop. With all the coffee I drink in the morning, stops are mandatory, and there is nothing but sagebrush along the roads here. So as I was peeing behind some knee high brush at a turnoff, a car pulls up with a couple and two young girls in the back. There isn't much you can do but continue, when you gotta go you gotta go.
The last two hours of the ride were up a 6% grade for about 9 miles, so our legs are a little fried. Tomorrow we finish up the pass, which is another 8 miles of 6-8%. But only 40 miles total. The lodge we are staying at is the #1 snowmobile resort in the US, and they have the snow to prove it, even now. It's a dude ranch with horse riding in the summer. The bar has a collection of dollar bills with writing all over, and look close at the pic Lisa, it's all about you. No phone service here, but they have wireless. Tomorrow we will check in from DuBois.

Bling

The old west is alive and well here in Jackson, where we decided to spend a day without riding. We're a little ahead of schedule and would like to take a day off once a week to maintain our sanity. It was raining at 9 this morning, and rained on and off all day again, with the temp around 55. Too cold for my flip flops, so it came down to wearing bike shoes all day. It was basically a metrosexual type of day, with visits to the artsy furniture store, the art gallery, and I was even drug into a bead store to admire the beautiful inventory. Then decided to go to a movie, which was very good, called the Counterfeiters. The other movie at the theater was Sex and the City. Very interesting.
When we left our show, the line was about 30 women deep, with one guy thrown in, just to be the exception. The Thai restaurant we were eating at had a perfect view of the spectacle to come. Women started arriving and walking past our window seats on their way to the movie. They were all shapes and sizes. Starting from the top, the hair was done up, the big hanging earrings, some type of flashy necklace, some with Scarlet O'Hara hats on. Then came the low cut or spaghetti strap blouse or dress, some backless. These women had goose bumps. There were spray on jeans, miniskirts, waist bracelets or whatever those are called, sequins and beads. It was either black stockings or naked legs, at the end of which were high heeled shoes of every kind, some with no strap. Two women I saw had very athletic legs with a knee brace on,walking down a wooden sidewalk with all kinds of gaps and uneven knotholes. I guess they wanted a knee brace on the other leg. And yes, there was the odd gal with the tutu, long pants underneath, and cowboy boots. It is Jackson after all. The gal that was covered in tatoos was a strange combination of Popeye and a hooker.We drank our bottle of wine and enjoyed the scenery.
Tomorrow we'll be back on big O and I'll be back in the blue tights, cause it will be about 40 when we start. The plan is to get to a resort at the base of a pass west of Dubois, then on towards Casper after that. About 40 miles tomorrow. Happy birthday Nic, and get well bonecrusher.

Storm Chasers

For 2 days now we have been dodging clouds, rain, hail, and wind. When we left Idaho Falls two days ago in rain, we thought it might clear up. About an hour into the ride, we had to bail out and hide under a cattle truck to avoid getting drenched. We froze instead, then got back on the bike and got splashed on the road for awhile until it dried. We climbed a huge hill no one mentioned to us and got on a so called flat where there were vast fields of potatos starting to get green. After descending the "flat", it was lunch time, about 1:30. So we stopped at a grille and had a wonderful salad bar and hot soup to warm up, whereupon the perfect storm appeared. There was no way to ride in it, so we got a room at the inn. Then we rearranged plans with my brother Tim, who was coming up to visit from Salt Lake City. He got caught in the mud due to an ill advised shortcut, but eventually arrived at about 8:30. It was great to see him, and he even played photographer today.
After breakfast today we left at 9, and had a beautiful ride up the valley past a reservoir and through a totally green landscape. On a bike you can really see all the little things, like osprey flying around taking care of their chicks. Crossing into Wyoming involved nothing more than passing a sign, something about welcome to Cheney country. After lunch at a Chevron station, we tried to outrun another storm, and succeeded by arriving at motel/cabin operated by an 80 year old local cowboy, in a town called Hoback. He led us into a spare room where Laura helped him change the bed, and we talked to him for an hour or so while it rained and hailed. Seems he was a bronco rider and roper, and rodeo cowboy in this area in his heyday, or hayday. There wasn't any food or anything else in Hoback, and so we rode on, to Jackson. While trying to get a room, it rained like hell again, as we waited under a porch. After a pretty long day, the motel owner would not let us take the bike into the room, so after discussing this awhile we took off for the center of town and found a place that would. And here we are, in a nice warm room, while it is 45 degrees outside. We haven't had this much culture in a long time, while I was walking around town in my blue tights a gay male dancer hit on me. So we figured 60 miles today from Irwin to Jackson, with not much elevation change. My buttocks are quite sore, if anyone cares, and it's not something the butt butter will help. Looks like tomorrow may be a healing and rest day because we are ahead of schedule. Stay tuned, sorry this is so long but with no internet last night this is two days worth. Hasta manana.

Irwin, Idaho. Has a nice ring to it, no?

Hello...Tim here with an update. I'd try to imitate my dad's style, but it would be futile and I'd hate to flatter him anyway.

Apparently they are off the grid with no internet access. Or maybe they are tiring of their celebrity and I have unwittingly become their publicist. Either way, we didn't want to leave you guys hanging.

They were hoping to get into Wyoming, but ran into a nasty storm as they were coming up on Irwin, right near the border. They still made about 40 miles, and it turned out well in any case. As the storm advanced, they found (read: Laura forced Larry to stop at) a lodge type place with cabins for rent, and as of our conversation they were on the deck enjoying the sunshine and a couple of well-earned beers.

They sounded just peachy, and thankfully I wasn't given any information regarding my Dad's ass or any "butt butter" related updates. So there's your Tour de Homerpearl fix for the day.


P.S. I would be remiss if I didn't plug my lil' bro Nic. He's living and working in Paraguay right now, helping them develop a new national library system. Cool huh! His blog is Nomadic Librarian; he has some cool pics and deep thoughts. (Oh and...his birthday is May 30).

Idaho Falls

Glad to be out of Arco, we left at 8:45 this morning for Idaho Falls. It's a 70 mile ride, with no real hills to speak of. The wind has been in our face for 3 days due to some low pressure system over Utah. But calmer today. This is nuke country, and therefore extremely desolate. There isn't even a gas station for 70 miles, because the feds won't allow anything, they own all the property. That way no one can build on it and they can do all the nuke testing they want. There are test facilities all over, and we toured one today. It's the one that first provided nuke power to Arco, but for only 2 hours. Anyway, the tour guide gave us a glowing reception. In fact, he glowed. We arrived in Idaho Falls at about 5, and have contacted a great couple, who we are staying with Jason and Brittany. They work in the nuke field, like everyone else, and we got in their car (first time in a couple of weeks in a vehicle), and went to a great pizza place. So this has to be short, they need to crash and I'm on his computer. Tomorrow we aren't sure where we are going, check in tomorrow.

Screwtop Bottle

Mother nature won today. We did get our free breakfast, waffles and all, then left Hailey, without running into Demi, at 8:20. Things went fine and we even took the raincoats off for awhile, until we hit a big, unexpected hill climbing up to the Craters of the Moon national monument. The wind hit us in the face, and we inched our way up in the easiest gear we had, trying to stay on a wobbling bike at 3mph. Arriving at the visitor center in a rain, we wolfed down our stolen bagels with peanut butter(we disregarded the sign at the buffet that said do not take food), and spent about an hour warming up. It started raining right then, but that was just a preliminary to the wind later. As we hit the flat parts, it became the ride that a tornado chaser would run from. Smack in our face, at about 25mph, with gusts that knocked us sideways. Big O was starting to resemble a sail. At one point, a giant hay truck went by the other way and it felt like we had been hit with a fly swatter. With pieces of hay for missiles. There was a 5 mile straightaway that took us over an hour to get past, an airport went by, with no airplanes landing or taking off. Duh. The wind sock was as erect as it could get. Then there is this square mile of desert they call Arco. It was the very first town in the country to be powered by the atom. They hooked up nuclear power and turned it on. Too bad it didn't blow up. We weren't in a great mood when we got here, but Chernobyl had it better. They've got so much graffiti on the mountain above that it looks like there's a gang war. Totally covered, and gross. The wind blows, it's cold. The motel room is nice, and the owner who is a really nice gal, introduced us to her newly adopted daughter, Angelica, from Khazakstan. The girl is only 4, so she obviously didn't have a choice of locations in America. She'd still be Khazakstan if she had any idea. One final insult, the diner we ate dinner had an overweight, slovenly, unwashed waitress who brought out my beer, couldn't get it open with her meathooks, so she used the front of her grease stained shirt to open the screwtop. I drank it anyway.
Things are looking up, we are sitting here drinking beer and eating chocolate, and plan to ride 70 miles tomorrow to Idaho Falls. And the wind will be at our back to even things up.

Bruce and Demi

We decided on a 38 mile day today, because the next town with a motel is too far away to make. So we left Fairfield at 9:30 after a breakfast at the Sawtooth Cafe, another farmer magnet. They were there with me at 7 when it opened, and still there when we rode out of town. So were their pickups. We met two other cyclists on the road, actually we caught them!, and stopped to talk. The dude had done another trip from Alaska to Florida a few years back and the lady was on her first touring trip. They were going to South Dakota and doing it the hard way, camping out with cook stove and tent. But they were also about 30 years younger than we are, and we tried to educate them on the advantages of a shower and warm bed.
It was a flat ride and we arrived in Hailey at 1pm. It's the home of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore. At a rest stop along the way I saw A few good men, and since they were driving a moving van I made them an indecent proposal, and asked for a ride in the back to Casper. They had a sixth sense that I was kidding. The town is very quaint, no striptease joints, kind of touristy actually. We stopped at a brew pub to get a porter, and the waitress looked like one of Charlie's Angels,and when Danica Patrick got wreck in the Indy 500 she looked like she had seen a Ghost. Our hotel, the Wood River inn, has a working hot tub, when I heard that I thought the Apocalypse had come. The lobby has a lot of Pulp Fiction to read, and Die Hard is playing at the theater. We plan to leave early tomorrow, after the free breakfast, and ride about 75 miles to Arco. Gotta get out of this town before Ashton shows up.

Hail

This wasn't a real long day, but ended up being kind of rough. Started out at 9:20 after finishing off the peanut butter and bananas, with dry bread and cherries for breakfast. The leftovers from last night. The hill started right out of Mountain Home on US20, and didn't really stop until we reached Fairfield, at 5100 feet, up from 3100 this morning. With ups and downs in between. 50 miles, but to top it off we hit a storm just after a big hill. Laura had a minor meltdown at the base of the hill, just from looking up at what we had to climb, so at 4mph we made it up the hill. The temp dropped, so we put on everything we had. Then the rain started, then the snow pellets, more rain, then hail, which hurts. Laura gets to put her head in her lap for protection, I get to look up into it and get hammered. But it only lasted awhile, and other than getting soaked, there was no permanent damage.
We can't always pick our overnights, it depends on mileage, so we stopped in this town we otherwise would have just been irritated at the speed reduction on the highway. The Prarie Motel is nice, she made fresh choc chip cookies for us. Dinner at the Iron Mountain Cafe was tasty, the decor deserves mention. You walk in to two stuffed bears, then go into the main room, which we found out had been moved over as addition. They moved it on logs, the old fashioned way. The curtains are pink, the music is country, there are Indian pics and moccaisons on the walls, and a big wall air conditioner adds atmosphere. The tablecloths are green plastic , with a purple one thrown in for contrast. The real highlight is the red and black chairs to sit in, red velvet no less. They roll like office chairs, and squeak like a box spring being used by a honeymoon couple. The old boy next to us liked to tap his knee to the music, pretty much causing non stop squeaking. But the scotch was 2.75 per, and the spaghetti was good.
Tomorrow we are off to Bellevue or Hailey, home of Bruce and Demi and Ashton. No pics tonight because I couldn't use my computer with the pics in it, had to come into the lobby to use theirs. Thank you Tim for all the work on the blog, and Judy for keeping a map up. My helmet is not crooked.

The Big O

We woke up to a wet morning in Boise. That didn't bode well for our plans. So we took off to the Big City Coffee Boutique to discuss our options. The original plan involved dirt roads part of the way to Fairfield, and with the rain they would have been muddy. So we decided on riding to Mountain Home, which forced us onto I84 for 13 miles. It wasn't bad, and at one historic site/rest stop where the Oregon trail crossed, we met two army veterans raising money for Vietman War vets. One showed us his purple heart, and the wound on his neck that earned it for him. About a quarter inch from his jugular, and the same the other way from his spine.
The ride was 45 miles,we left Boise at 11:15 and arrived in Mountain Home at 4:30, sometimes in spitting rain. The exciting part was getting out of the city. There was a bumpy bike path, which feels like a U-Haul trailer bumping behind a Geo Metro. Then we get to the curb, no ramp, and on big O, It feels like the front end of a centipede that doesn't know what the back half wants to do. We try to communicate, but Laura can't see anything except the back of my seat. So it's up to me, but I can't decide if we can make the turn to the sidewalk or should stop. I waffle a bit, then pick stop. So I have to yell behind to stop, hoping she hears me and instantly takes her feet out, when I don't hear a click I think maybe we better go, and so on. We manage to stop, then walk down a narrow part because we can't start without weaving, and the street is full of cars. When we start again, not sure which lane to be in, the back half wants to know what to do, put her feet in, out, pedal, slow down, or push harder to get up the hill. Big O doesn't like to go slow, it wobbles, so the head needs to tell the tail what to do. We hit quite a few cracks and gaps, causing a reaction from the tail, but the head is too busy waffling to give any warning about jarring jolts. So we try to just stay out of traffic and weave in and out of the right lane or the sidewalk where it exists, and the tail really wants to know what to do. The tail is not happy. The head of has got lot's to do and doesn't really multitask well anyway. Every so often, I shift too hard and the chain comes off, mistake, but we have to notice instantly because the bike slows instantly. There's plenty of grease on my hands when that's fixed. Finally we get out of the maze of Boise downtown and I ask Laura what she's so nervous about. The joys of a recumbent tandem where the head of the centipede has his feet higher than his head. Anyway, tomorrow we head for Fairfield or maybe beyond. On a nice country road.

Different Grind

Today we took a day off big O, and hung around Boise. I started out at the coffee shop, walking there in 40 degree weather and 40mph winds. Ran into some culture shock when I got there. This wasn't the same old grind on the bike, but it was a new grind of coffee. There were yuppies on laptops, KBCO type music, magazines on coffee tables with couches to sit on. A pile full of current newspapers, and bike posters and autographed jerseys on the wall. Quite a change from the geezer diners with the bar stools and linoleum topped tables with pickup trucks outside. This was a modern coffee boutique, with coffee like Tanzanian, Kenyan, and Nigerian, the ranchers drank Folgers and Maxwell House. I had a scone, a few days ago the waitress would have asked me if I wanted sausage gravy on it. Yes, the can had handicap rails and a toilet that had been cleaned since last summer. I spent about 2hrs there while Laura had her massage, till I had the jitters. The lawn outside has a sign on the doggie poo glove dispensers that say "get a grip" and I thought that last week that would have meant to grab the closest udder.
We walked to the Idaho history museum and had a fine day overall. Tomorrow we plan to make it to Fairfield, Idaho, but the roads are a little sketchy. We may just get lost. All part of the adventure.

Snake River

Today was the crossing of the Snake River into Idaho. Like Washington crossing the Delaware only more important. We're out of Oregon. Figured 520 miles pedaled and about 10,000 feet of elevation gained. Downhills don't count, they go by so fast. I'm sitting here in a friends house in Boise, thank you so much Colleen and Steve (HQ) for setting it up for us. I'm also pretty trashed and tired, we ended up at Applebees up the street tonight for dinner and the tequila and beer tasted really good. It's not like you can get all over town, we only have a bike for transportation and we're not getting near it. So what do we see at the bar but another massage therapist who has been in business in Boise for 13 years and Laura sets up a trade with her for tomorrow, which we planned to take off anyway. So they'll trade, and I'm out of the loop. But we rode 70 miles today, with a big tailwind/crosswind, and left Vale at 8:45 to end up in Boise at 3:30 after eating lunch at a pizza place on the way in Middleton. Miserable ride into Boise for the last 5 miles on a busy road with no shoulder.
Tomorrow we'll see the sights of Boise, around the massages, and walk all we can around town. I plan on some coffee that isn't made in a mom and pop diner, maybe starbucks or something. Hello to all back at the tracon, try to figure out the internet and give a comment or two so I know you're still alive. Letti, thanks for the retirement flyer, I'll send it on. So long from the Aryan nation.

Dorothy and Toto

Booty mo better. Easier day today on the bike, about 70 miles but mostly downhill and mucho tailwind. Left Unity at 9, and arrived here in Vale at about 3. We were doing about 24mph for the last 1 hour on flat terrain, and looking for drafting partners. And hit 44mph coming down off a hill called Brogan Hill. Laura is getting much more used to top speeds now and egging me on. When we hit town, after much discussion about whether to stay here or go on to Ontario, a storm system hit that came right out of the Wizard of Oz. We were looking for the wicked witch riding her bike about 20 feet over town. Didn't see her but about the time we could't stand still and hold the bike up, a guy named Russ came running out of his office to the rescue. Let us in his office, even big O, and let me use his computer to blog, which is where I now sit. We found a motel in town, but no internet, so we'll be out of touch, phone service is erratic. Appreciate all the comments, we'll try to make Boise tomorrow. When I get an Idaho map we'll plan the route to Wyoming. I'd better wrap up, he probably pays for this by the minute.

Unity

The day started out in John Day, by the John Day river, down the road from Dayville, a day that had it's ups and downs. We left John Day at 11am after oatmeal and a haircut, arrived in Unity at 5pm, with no stops except sightseeing. Yeah, that's 6hrs of riding over hill and dale, or is it hell and day. The scenery is wonderful, but what makes it so nice are the hills,giving you lots of views and lots of pain. Two of the major hills required a distraction, so we fired up the ipod and played name that tune, a game which requires one person to guess what's playing on the ipod by what's being sung to the music by the other. I could always guess what Laura was singing, she didn't have a chance at some songs I sang. I'm pretty bad. No, I'm real bad. Blame it on being out of breath, How do you match Celine when your huffing and puffing up a hill? We haven't figured the total elevation for the day, but it has to be about 4000 feet. On a six mile hill at 4mph, it takes 1.5hrs just for the one hill. That's lots of songs.
Upon arrival in Unity, it doesn't take long to realize that it's not a tourist destination. One store with gas station, 2 saloon/cafes, and a couple of occupied houses, with many more unoccupied. Trailers everywhere, most of them junk. Our motel? is a row of rooms/hovels that are about 10 by 10, with the paint peeling off, no tv or radio, with a window facing a corral filled with braying donkeys and barking dogs. It does have hot water. We showered a walked to the saloon/cafe, worried about the dinner. It actually was good, served in a bar with 5 or 6 locals drinking beer. They didn't even raise an eyebrow when I told them we were riding cross country. Just commented on the sunburns. The owner/cook/waitress/grandma had her hair pulled back in a severe bun, but I couldn't help noticing the one long gray hair sticking out of her jaw. One of the locals gave us each a quarter so we could play their game of dice for the pot they run up, but of course we lost to their amusement. So back to the room/hovel and silence, except for the corral noises. Tomorrow we go to Vale, about 70 miles but thankfully downhill. My ass is sore again, rough day, and this place is lacking handicap railing in the bathroom so I can't sit. Onward.

Chinamen

It was a glorious Sunday morning. Christine, I thought about those bagels you bring and was really craving one, or two, or three. Instead had coffee and muffins and left at 6:45 for John Day, Oregon. Climbed a 7% grade for 6 miles right out of town, then mostly downhill for 70 miles total to town. Arrived at 2:15 and went straight to Dairy Queen for a banana split. Had an absolutely great ride with a tailwind that felt like a hand pushing me in the back. Maybe that was the stoker. Low speed was 4mph on the hill, for about 1.5 hours, then got up to 32 for awhile on the way down. Bike is running better, I have been tweaking the shifting and it's improving. I'm starting to take a bath in sunscreen in the morning, do they make 80spf? We stopped for breakfast in Dayville, and met Tyra and Missie, operators of a diner. I have sworn to get Nic out here or Tyra out to him. I love freckles, and she has just enough. Is a 35 year age difference any problem? If we really do get a divorce lawyer on the east coast, I need some backups. ( just kidding!) As for pics, I'm trying to get Laura in more-keep after her. We are going to call Colleen and try to stay with her in Boise on Wed and Thurs night. Bonecrusher, welcome home.
We went to a hugely interesting museum about two chinamen in the early days of town, still talking about it. Great tour of their house and business, totally authentic. Tomorrow is about 50 miles, but over two small passes to a little town called Unity. Polygamist I think.
Love all the comments, let me know if these are too long, too boring, or anything else, I'll try to acommodate. Pics are of two strangers, and then in front of a tree full of shoes and boots out on the road. Hasta manana.

Mayberry

Ah, the blog. Nice to get out. This wasn't a big day on the bike, but gave us alot of why we went on the trip. Started out at 6am with breakfast at the Tastee Freeze in Prineville, trying to beat the heat out of town. Ate with the town geezers, about 6 of them around the counter. I have always loved guys like them, ever since I worked with a couple when I was 18. They go down every morning, the waitress tries to ignore them. Laura was the sole female customer. Left town at 7:30 to ride 50 miles over one 2000 foot pass. And so we arrive in Mitchell. Reminds one of Dodge City from Gunsmoke. We checked out and checked into the only hotel in town, built in 1936, seems like the long branch saloon without the bar. The room is only $29, just a squeaky bed with the shower down the hall. Hot water. We ventured out to see the main street , and ran into an elderly, very eccentric (loco)lady sitting on her porch with a border collie and guinea chicken running around the front yard. She regaled us with stories of her ex-boss being murdered across the street by his son, and so many animal stories: we had to beg a hasty goodbye. Down to the guy who builds juniper furniture, then back uptown to the bar. Met two ladies, Kat and Theresa, from Seattle. They were as fascinated with this place as we were. The longer we stayed the more it's not like Dodge City, but Mayberry. They all know everything about everyone else. We even saw Barney Fife in the diner for dinner, which consisted of the meat loaf special. Cooked by a lady we talked to earlier. We're celebrities by now. And wonder of wonders, there is a live bear in a pen smack in the middle of town. He was very hot, with all that fur on a 98 degree day. Rolled into the water bin after awhile. Kids playing in the hose, everyone sitting on the porch in the shade, just like on TV.
Tomorrow will be a tough day, about 70 miles to John Day, with one big pass right out of town. Plan to leave at 6:30 to beat the heat. The propriater of our little inn has told us she'll have muffins and coffee ready, so that will be breakfast. Bike is still shifting a little erratically, but the steering is a little better, and we can make it up any hill, even though it is an exercise in patience. We get down to 3mph at times, but coming down we hit 40 today, before Laura begged for brakes. I acted like I put them on. Pic problems again, but we're getting a system, trouble is it's late and bed time. So we try again tomorrow.

Pig Out

The ass is improving. I can finally sit down to sh__. And starting to look like J'Los'. But a different color. Anyway, today was 50 miles from Suttle Lake to Prineville, Oregon. No passes, just hot. 97 when we got to town. So we went to the bike shop and had the mechanic adjust the shifting, we'll see tomorrow what kind of mechanic he is. Then checked into the City Center Motel, of course in the center of the city, only it's a small town like Glenwood Springs maybe. Hot water on demand, which I needed to shave the old legs, which are looking like Foghorn Leghorn's, only burned. The shorts I ride in blow up around my waist, and that area is lily white. Or was. We stopped for lunch in Redmond, at an all you can eat salad and pizza and everything else place. As anyone knows who has ever gone to an all you can eat place with me when I'm starving (Dora), I can get my money's worth. So I embarrassed Laura, and did myself proud. We make quite a scene when we pull up on Big O, so all the staff always wants to know everything. We get offers of maps, more local advice than we can use, and try to ask about stories of the local area. After lunch, we stopped for water at a house along the way, and spent about 30 min. talking to the O'Learys, who have been married 66 years. They brought us in the house and talked the way old folks can. We're getting alot of pleasure on this trip talking to the locals, who of course think we're nuts. Bone crusher, I want lessons on the crutches when I get back, we both need some upper body work, riding this recumbent doesn't do much for it. I'll probably try the Ipod tomorrow, maybe with just one ear in-but what about the stereo? Laura is holding up well, hip better, and she isn't whining at all about the stifling heat and long road miles. She does mention having to listen to me as painful. I'm sure you all understand after reading these posts. Next blog from down the road tomorrow, hopefully from Mitchell. Adios.
Pics are lame so far, we are still working out bugs in the laptop. One is Ocean from stoker's seat, one rain forest, Moab, and bike in the ditch along the narrow road. Not us.

Santiam Pass

Good evening all bloggers, thanks for all the comments and for viewing, it means alot to us and keeps us in touch. This was a great day on the bike, if you really, really, love to ride a bike. I guess we do. Woke up with a sore ass, but better. I know I have all the women thinking of my butt, can't argue with that. We left the resort at 7:30, rode to breakfast in Vida, Oregon. Left there at 9, climbed 4000 feet in 72 miles, had a stiff wind on top of the pass and made it to a place called Sutter Lake Resort at 6:30. I've got sunburned hands, and some crotch issues(a little butt butter took care of that), but we both really enjoyed the challenge. Had a big dinner by the lake tonight and we're staying in a cabin with no shower. Shower's in the bath house. On the pass and below it we were down to 3mph at times, but the big O kept rolling. Lisa H., hope you're home by now and jumping rope. Tomorrow we want to go to Prineville, about 50 miles I think. For Judy, it's on highway 126 east of Redmond. Chris, Tammy, Lisa, Letti, Dora, Tim, JJ, Tom, and everyone else following us, a hot shower is worth alot, but all of you friends are priceless! I might try the ipod tomorrow but I'm still a little leery about not hearing a huge logging truck coming up behind. We're big enough, a collision might hurt him more than us.

Hi all, stoker here. Well it was a haul up the pass but we made it! This place is really nice, not quite as gorgeous as last night but close. I was so happy to get here!!! Larry is doing great on the bike, I guess steering when you are doing 4 mph is a little rough. The shoulder again today was very narrow in most spots, mostly because of the leftover gravel from winter road treatment. thankfully?!!? there were lots of passing lanes for the cars so we had a little extra room then. The weather has been wonderful-it was a CO sky today and really not much wind till the end.
Lisa , I hope you are doing OK-you and I will be out there again before you know it. I'm thinking of you every day....My hip is really not that bad, good today actually,I guess it likes hills! I had a martini at dinner tonight so you know that helps! (tequila would help too Letti)
Congrats to you Camille-thanks for saying hello!
Carrie-I feel so great knowing you are there with my Helen and I'm glad the kids are settling in. I hope we get to see them.
Hey Cruiser Doc! talk to you all tomorrow.

Late

Oh, my aching ass. Whatever muscles are used to ride an ordinary bike, they aren't the same ones I've been using for the last couple of days. Can't sit down anymore. But we made it from Corvallis to a resort that is right out of a movie. The grounds look like the Masters golf course, only with redwood trees. We left this morning at 9, after taking a shower with some hot water, and travelled 68 miles to Vida, arriving at 4:15. Then an extra 4 miles to this resort in the forest. Back uphill in the morning. We needed a plumber last night at the super 8, where were you Copp? Laura's back is better, my ass worse. No disasters on the bike today though, but once I couldn't get my feet out at an intersection and almost ran into a little old lady. She was amused, we weren't.
It's all about farming up here, from xmas trees to grass for seed, We stopped and talked to Ma Kettle, some farmer's wife, about her grass farm. She filled us in on all the ins and outs of farming in Oregon. And thought we were nuts for riding the monstrosity across the country. Now that we're sitting over a bottle of wine in this forest by the river all seems well, even my ass. Big day tomorrow over a pass, but there are some hot springs on the way we may stop at, they say clothing mandatory, we'll see about that. Comments welcome any time, we miss you all.
This entry is late because we had no internet service last night. Next entry may have the same problem.

Beavers

We made it to Corvallis today, home of the Oregon State Beavers. Left Newport at about 10, arrived in Corvallis at around 4. Very green, logs and trucks everywhere. I'm still pretty uneasy on the bike, so nervewracking for me. Laura is in bliss on the back. Eating, drinking and being merry. All while pedaling. Big hills, some shifting problems and one flat tire. Had to change it on the road, which wasn't bad really. Laura's hip is a real bother, couldn't hardly walk to dinner, so we'll have to see how that develops. Breakfast by the ocean at a place in Newport was great, and all the bike shop people we've talked to have been really helpful.
For the map, we took highway 20 from the coast to Corvallis, 54 miles. Tomorrow we are going to try to get to Vida, to stage the big day over the cascade range the next day. Oh yeah, the super 8 we're in still doesn't have hot water, the plumber is in the building trying to fix it but as of yet no shower or hot tub. Dinner was great at a hippie type place with veggie food.it is called Nearly Normal and if you are ever in Corvallis you should stop there. great people too. We, or maybe just me, have had a few moments of what have we got ourselves into,mostly because of uneasiness on the road. Pics are of the tire change and two you have already seen cause I can't figure out the picture thing still.
Bed without a shower. Goodnight.

Oregon Coast

Judy, for your map, we left Lincoln City, Oregon today at about 4pm, and rode 24 miles down the coast to spend the night in Newport, where I sit as I write. Turned in the rental Toyota and waited for Manson DeGraw to give us a ride to the coast from Portland, which his wife ended up doing, with their 2 year old Joe in the back seat of the suburban with me. Then we assembled the bike, and took off in 55 degree cloudy weather. I can't really operate the bike worth a shit, so we walked up one hill and had problems shifting on others, plus the stress of missing cars while having no confidence steering.
So we found a room that was described as ocean view, but when we got up here it's like having a mountain view from Nebraska. The asian guy at the desk recommended a seafood restaurant that was decent, clam chowder night. We are a little nervous about the road tomorrow to Corvallis, it's about 54 miles, hopefully not too many logging trucks. Oregon really is beautiful, green as Ireland. We could use a few more warm things(like down parkas), but alas, have limited space. Laura took lots of pics, so tomorrow or so we will deal with getting them out. Adios hasta manana.

Portland

We spent all day on wheels today, only it was 4 wheels and in a car. 12 hours of driving from Salt Lake City to Portland. The wind was howling all the way, but from the west so maybe a good omen. 3 fillups on gas, at 3.69/per gallon. When you factor in the cost of the car, it may have been cheaper to fly. Tomorrow we have a ride arranged to the coast, about 1.5 hrs away. Thanks to Bob for arranging, and his cousin Manson for driving us. Hopefully we'll be on the road by about noon, plannning to ride about 40 miles from Tillamook to Lincoln City along the Oregon coast. Check tomorrow's post to see if the plan went well. Weather is cold here, windy and humid, the last part of the drive along the Columbia River Gorge is beautiful. We are staying next to the airport, getting a good deal on the room from Carrie. I'll include prices as we go just for historical interest. We called Lisa in the hospital and she is fine except broken up. Gets out on Tues or Wednesday. Staying next to this airport is giving me nightmares. Until tomorrow.

Salt Lake City

I'm sitting in my brother Tim's house in SLC drinking Don Julio tequila, left over from the trip to the white rim outside Moab. I really feel the need to talk to an airplane!!! Just hope I get over it. Best wishes and ouch to Lisa, who crashed and burned on the trail and broke her pelvis twice, cracked her hip, and tailbone once. Get well soon. The bike is in half in the rented SUV, along with all our things, which are in a box the size of a microwave. We're going to visit here tomorrow, then take off Sun. for Portland. 12 hours. Looks like we have a ride to the coast, thanks to Bob DeGraw-mucho appreciation. We're having pic issues, so none now but mucho later. The only interesting strangers we have met have been the ranger in Canyonlands, who was one step away from an axe murderer. Hovered around a little too much. Met a raven called Murphy also. Great group in Moab- Silke, Maree, I'll call for riding or coffee.

Imminent departure

May has finally come around, and departure time is around the corner.  Happy birthday Tammy.  JJ is coming over this afternoon to pick up Big O, which is now in half.  In Moab we will switch it over the rented SUV, and after the white rim ride we will be off for Portland, then to the coast.  Route is still little uncertain, just because we need a ride to the coast and not sure yet how or which way to get there.  But the tire has to go in the Pacific.  Laura's in Dallas, to return Sunday, then we are out of town Monday.  All coming up fast now, as is my last day at work, which is Sunday-seems bizarre to me.  Next post will probably be from on the road-by the way Mary, thanks for the St. Cristopher medal, we'll need all the luck it can bring.