That Arizona is Hot

I guess this one begins a week ago last Saturday.. The wife and I mounted
the Green One and headed west on IH 20 . The sun was to our backs and the
ride was pleasant enough.. the humidity was pretty bad, though..

Running two up with an out of condition partner, I had to take it easy and
stop often so that she wasn't in too bad a shape.. 1100 miles is a pretty
nice run, if you ask me.. Ran all day without major events and we crossed
the mountains at Van Horn and Sierra Blanca about three in the PM.. Coming
down on the west side.. was a bear.. That sun was beating us directly in the
face..

Somewhere about twenty miles east of El Paso, I commenced to hear a noise
and decided the Vulcan was about to start chunkin' chain.. About the time I
got on the shoulder, away she went.. Ah Well.. that little motorcycle hasn't
left me on the side of the road in 7 1/2 years .. but here we were..

A Nomad running eastbound turned around and came back to see if we needed
help, which we sure did.. Another dude on a super sharp Road Star came back
also and we commenced the cellphone thing.. The guy on the Star finally went
home and hooked up a trailer and hauled us into The Pass to a local
LaQuinta, close to Barnett Harley Davidson.. (The biggest and the best)..
Service Dept. didn't work on Sunday so we were stuck in El Paso until
Monday..

Those guys knocked their lights out, finding a metric chain for the Vulcan
and hey.. that little tech sure did a good job..

Wouldn't you know, while I was hanging out at Barnett, one of the old TMRA
II buds, spotted me and called a few of the Bandidos to come over to keep us
company for a while.. We had a mix of TMRA II and Bandido meetings, while we
waited for the Vulcan.. Never had so many invites to spend the night,
anywhere..

Barnett comped my room for me and when I got the bill, it was $177.00..
Pretty good deal for "on the road repair"..

We got out of El Paso about 4 PM and I nailed that 800 all the way across
New Mexico.. One more night in a motel in Benson, Arizona to sit out some
sandstorms and heavy rain.. Next morning, we made a easy little ride into
Casa Grande, between Tucson and Phoenix..

Buddy Helscel and his lovely wife Clara, made us welcome and we kinda laid
up during the heat of the day..Sheesh.. that heat fries you when you get
out.. A/C makes life just a little more bearable, but not much..

Next morning, real early.. we bailed out to Tombstone and Bizbee.. Too much
to see and not nearly enough time.. Walking those streets in Tombstone,
where the Earps walked was awesome.. The tourist factor is always present,
but it became very real when we looked the historical documents over with
the original pictures of that time..

We got back up to Phoenix in time to have a real good dinner and a
margarita.. back to Casa Grande and the nap time..

Next day was breakfast at the Golf Clubhouse and we spent a little time in
Harrah's .. (damn.. those indian dealers are tough).. The rains came every
day.. not just a sprinkle, but a downpour.. Some of the locals told me, it
was monsoon season or something.. Seemed to me like, if it wasn't raining,
the sandstorms were blowing all over the place..

The bride and I got started back to Texas Saturday morning and made sort of
a power run back to Pecos.. We spent the night and Sunday morning finished
our ride into Irving..

Kinda tough on the old man, but hey, that's what it's all about.. huh ? The
next one up is the 3rd of August, when we leave for Guadalajara.. Gives me a
couple of weeks to recuperate and at least clean up the Vulcan.. One of the
little nieces is going to be fifteen years old and the quincinera is an
important event in her life.. We'll celebrate with her and the family,
there.. Sounds as though half of Mexico will attend .. LOL.. I wouldn't
miss it for anything..

Your friend in Irving
Bill Walker

 

Hey guy! Nice to have you back! Looks like you had a good run,
there....with the exception of the whole chain thing. At least you
weren't put out too bad from it.

Did you get some cool, dry air at all in the evenings?


--Fullstate

Me and Mah 'Priller!

 

You got it, amigo.. I don't see any reason why you, the IceLady .. Jim and
his bride , don't just hook up and go to Mexico with us.. Austin will be
safe for a few days while we enjoy the good life, south of the border...
don't you think ? Ain't I "somethin" ??

Your friend in Irving
Bill Walker

 

Sorry that happened bill, but it shows that there are still a bunch of good
people around who are willing to help a fellow biker.

I have never been there, I enjoyed watching those tombstone tv westerns in
the 50's and I may get up there one of these days. Did the put on a gun
fight show for the tourists?

Thanks for the trip report Bill, I enjoyed reading it. I got the same
problem here in Fort Sumner NM since I arrived sunday. You see about 5-6
thunderstorms every afternoon starting about 3pm, and the rain continues
thru the evening with the dust & sand the worst part of the storm. They do
call it the monsoon season and it extends into Arizona. I was unable to
bring my motorcycle like I thought I could, but there were some honda ATV's
here that I got to ride. One of the guys here is a pilot who commutes from
Flagstaff to here on his harley and we had an interesting conversation about
the bikers who trailer their harley to rally's. I put a few pictures here
http://tinyurl.com/6e7bq and will be back in san antonio saturday.

 

We should be in your area sometime on the 3rd of August.. I'll be in touch,
for sure.. Thanks for the invite to dinner.. Maybe you guys can, at least
ride toward SA with us..

We did enjoy the two days in El Paso, considering the circumstances.. It was
good to see all the old friends there, as well as meeting all the new ones..
If you are ever in that area, be sure to stop by Barnett's.. That is one
"cool" dealership..

I always enjoy the visits I have made to Wood's, in Austin.. No comparison,
but the folks at Wood's have always treated me well and I enjoy dropping
by.. There is a good deal of difference in the atmosphere at Wood's and
Barnett's .. LOL.. but, both are good places to browse and visit..

Your friend in Irving
Bill Walker

 

LOL.. You might say that it was my own fault.. I have been suspicious about
that particular chain, since I put it on the bike, last year.. Rather than
changing it, I just kept telling myself that I was imagining things.. Ah
well.. sometimes instinct is more reliable than logic..

As a general rule, the brothers on two wheels are inclined to not pass
another, when they see them on the side of the road.. The wife was a little
desperate when she realized that we were definitely stranded.. I kept
reassuring her that another biker would come along soon and we'd be
alright.. Sure enough.. the first two bikers who saw us, stopped and we were
"rescued".. Quite a contrast between bikers and the many cagers who whizzed
by without a second glance.. huh ??

I think they mostly do that on the weekends and we were there on Wednesday..
LOL.. Sorry I missed it, but Tombstone is quite the showplace.. I'd
recommend a visit there, to anyone who is interested in "old west" history..

They've got some real "bikers" in that area.. We rode with quite a few of
them at different times.. They'd run with us for a ways and drop off.. Some
of them just enjoyed our company and some were curious about that Texas
bike, loaded to the gills.. LOL.. you know how these women are, about
taking all their foo foo and "stuff".. Have a good one.. Beemer..

Your friend in Irving
Bill Walker

 

Lawd haf mercy.. I have to admit.. I had "foo foo" AND "stuff" on my bike..
Damn.. pard.. you know how these women are, when they decide to go
someplace.. I even had to buy some motorcycle luggage to fit over the sissy
bar.. Sheesh.. what's the world coming to.. As if those saddlebags aren't
big enough..

Hmmmm... Do you think that might be what caused that thing to rebel and
throw the chain.. Maybe the load was too much.. huh ? Ah well.. I'm not
going to tell that to the wife... LOL

Your friend in Irving
Bill Walker