No Thru Traffic

If I had to name three things I learned from popular music they would be, that you can’t always get what you want,  that all we are is dust in the wind and that Heaven is a halfpipe. If I had to name three things I learned from this trip so far, they would be, that Interstates are pure hell, the front brake of a motorcycle is the devils doing, and that KOA’s are a weary travelers Ritz Carlton.

Last night we spent our first night at a KOA Kampground near the Wyoming Utah boarder.  We both were hesitant about camping at a KOA because well…

We just did not plan on playing petting zoo and miniature golf this trip.  After a long day of traveling the last thing we wanted to do was pet a donkey or tee up a short 9. We wanted rugged camping, something that we believed the KOA had never heard of.

It turns out our perceptions of KOA were all wrong.  We had the best camping experience all trip. So tonight we are spending another night at a KOA in Fillmore Utah. We are the only tent campers yet again so its quiet and we have the whole side of the park to ourselves. Not to mention its nice to have electricity and running water.  Having a shower is well worth the extra few dollars, especially after spending all day in the heat.

Our day started with a nice ride into the town of Logan, Utah where Alex had an appointment to have a new chain installed. To make a long story short, it was the right chain, but it was not long enough. After much deliberation and no luck finding the right chain within 100 miles it was decided to take a few links out of the stretched out chain allowing for Alex to make it somewhere where he can replace the sprockets and chain at the same time. (Note to all Nighthawk riders, NO ONE caries the size chain you require, order a chain at your local dealer and carry it with you on long tours)  The dealer was incredibly helpful and called every shop within 200 miles to see if they had the right chain. They even let us change our own oil in their lot behind the service department.  Something most dealers would never allow. We hit the local K (short for K Mart) and picked up $8 dollars worth of pasta and $30 worth of bandaids. We always buy way more stuff then we have room for on our bikes so packing it always becomes a giggle fest.  There is a reason why people are hesitant to follow behind us.

Then we hit the interstate.

We had 4 hours of interstate riding ahead of us. Straight through Salt Lake City at rush hour.  There is a lot that goes on inside your helmet when you are all alone for 4 hours on the interstate with no one to talk to to and nothing really to do.  My favorite is trying to get my visor to fog all the way up by blowing hot air onto it. Or singing the same lyric over and over until it blends with another song I start singing to create an awesome hybrid song. Sometimes I try and come up with clever ways to start a blog post, like relating it to popular culture but then I never figure out how to bring it full circle.

Leaving Wyoming Yesterday

Tomorrow we get up at 6 and head to Zion. They wont take reservations this short in advance so we are hoping to get there earlier enough to get a spot for the weekend.

-Ryan