Trip Summary

Total Miles - 4252
Days - 11




States visited: 13 (Not including Texas)












Total States Ridden To Date: 40







Measured Gas Mileage: 37.21 mpg
To North Dakota: 40.33 mpg
N.Dak/S. Dak: 30.80 mpg (Plains Winds)

Thanks to friend Jim W. who emailed me relating the legend seen on a tee-shirt:
"YOU NEVER SAW A MOTORCYCLE PARKED IN FRONT OF A PSYCHIATRIST'S OFFICE"

Day 11 - Dodge City, KS to Spring, TX (Home)

708 Miles
Friday, October 5, 2007



Big day of riding today. Prior to this the most I've ever ridden was Day 29 of my Alaska trip, 599 miles ( Alaska Trip Blog ). I wanted to make my usual Saturday morning foursome so I had to ride 'em like they counted today. Certainly made me appreciate the stamina of the Iron Butt tourers. In order to be an Iron Butt you have to go at least 1,000 miles within 24 hours. I don't think I could have made another three hundred miles when I stopped last night. And I'm certain I couldn't have done it safely; one of the reasons I'm not sure that those who do that riding have adequately assessed the risk/reward of the situation.

Woke before sunrise and left the hotel by 6:30 a.m. Found a restaurant on the outskirts of town and, by the time I'd completed breakfast, the sun was over the horizon. It helped that the temperature was 69°, not the 40° of yesterday morning. Found US283S and headed for the Kansas/Oklahoma border.

Another local human kindness story
I didn't gas up before leaving Dodge City, having fueled up at Garden City the previous afternoon. Passing through the town of Englewood just before the border I calculated I had about 35 miles of fuel left. To my amazement the only source of fuel in town wasn't open. I pulled into the pumps to see a "Help Wanted" sign and a closed operation at about 8:15 a.m. on a Friday morning. Usually in these small towns such stores open early almost as a community service, folks in farming communities aren't known for sleeping in.

A bicyclist was parked at the station when I pulled in. He'd was on a bicycle tour from Colorado to St. Augustine, FL, showing a lot more stamina than I have. Unfortunately, he'd developed a problem with his rear rim and anticipated he would shortly be hitchhiking to Oklahoma City, guessing that would be the location of the closest full-service bike shop. He reported the neighbor next door had given him some water but didn't know when the store would open, but that he thought he'd probably open by 9:00 a.m. Given my desire to make time today, you can imagine my pleasure at this news.

We walked back over to the neighbor so the bicyclist could replenish his water and the neighbor confirmed the foregoing and relayed that the nearest gas would be in Laverne, OK, thirty-five miles away...right at the outside of my estimated capability.

The bicyclist and I returned to the station with me determining to wait out the store operator, hoping he'd not go past the 9:00 a.m. thing. A lady on a bike came by and stopped to say hello. She was extremely nice, commiserating with her fellow-biker and offering to take him back to Garden City where there was a bike shop. He gratefully declined saying he wanted to continue ahead but took her cell phone number in case he needed help and couldn't get a ride. From his statements he'd had this kind of problem in the past and found catching rides in farm country relatively easy since almost everyone drove a pickup.

When I explained my fuel problem she said, "No problem, I have plenty of gas at my house." So she led me around to her house where there were six to eight five-gallon gas containers. She explained that she performed well-service for a guy who owned about ten gas wells in the area, and that the local store had, in fact, only recently re-opened so she kept a gas cache because it wasn't readily available. She not only had the gas, she wouldn't accept payment for the gallon or so I poured into Betsy.

Having insured my continued progress Betsy and I took off for points south. But first I took a couple of pictures of the nice lady's old homestead. It was almost as neat and nice as its owner.




The home was built in 1907 and later expanded in about 1920. But the pièce de résistance was the original artwork the 1907 builder placed in the yard.

















You just meet so many nice folks traveling like this.


Pulling into Englewood I noticed a flock of wild turkeys calmly feeding right in town. Any hunter with experience will tell you that wild turkey are among the most difficult of animals to successfully hunt. And here they are, safely gobbling up breakfast without threat from anyone or anything. Come hunting season, which should be very soon, you couldn't find them without major effort and stealth.












Continued southward on US283 catching US270E just south of Laverne. Gassed up in Woodward and took US183S out of Seiling, OK, to I-40E Spur out of Geary. Not wanting to fight OK City traffic I took US81S at El Reno to Chickasha, taking SR19 to Pauls Valley. From this point on it's I-slab home. Took I-35S to the split, taking 35E into Denton and Dallas. Murphy's Law was operative. I hit Denton about 4:30 p.m., along with almost every licensed driver in Oklahoma, all heading south for Saturday's Texas-Oklahoma football game. There are something like nine (9) Denton exits and everyone of them was backed up, creating a twenty-mile long parking lot with almost perceptible movement. I don't know why Denton, but there they were. Once through, traffic moved along pretty good into Dallas though slowing for, I'm sure, the usual Friday drive-time parking-practice. Slow for several exits, I won't complain since I have Houston traffic to gauge by. This was a piece of cake and, once I managed the connector over to I-45, it was due south at a good clip.

I don't normally ride at night, I just don't like the lack of visibility coupled with the movement of deer, which are plentiful in this area. Interstates are usually relatively safe because all the traffic tends to keep them off. But there are stretches between Dallas and Houston on I-45 which look like Bambi-heaven to me...but what're ya gonna do? I needed to get home and it was dark. I rode on. But not without stopping at Woody's for jerky. (A description of Woodys can be found on the last day of the Alaska trip blog.)

Pulled into the house about 9:30 p.m. well stuffed with jerky and ready to go again. I just can't get enough of this stuff.

Day 10 - Alliance, NE to Dodge City, KS

472 Miles


Left out of Alliance on US385S at 7:00 a.m. (MST). Temperature on leaving was 40° with the wind chill showing at 35°. That was with a 7 mph wind from the NW. At 70 mph it was a lot colder. Fortunately, everything worked as it should. My Tourmaster jacket with the insert in was warm and toasty. Of course, the long underwear underneath my riding shirt and pants didn’t hurt either.

I bought some wind-resistant gloves through the National Geographic store a couple of years ago which are pretty darn good. My hands stayed warm though I could feel the very tips of my fingers getting cold after about thirty minutes of riding. They didn’t get any worse so I kept going.

At Bridgeport I took US26E toward Ogallala, NE. Stopped for a full breakfast in Bridgeport to give the sun at least a modicum of opportunity to warm things up a little. That worked pretty well. At Ogallala I got on I-80E for about 50 miles to North Platte, taking US83S there. Stayed on that to Garden City, KS taking US50E to Dodge City.



Saw this huge radar on US83S about twenty miles south of North Platte. I suspect it's an FAA site used in air traffic control but don't know. Kind of strange though, usually these alphabet agencies like to stick signs up announcing their ownership/presence. No sign of any kind around this guy. But, no one came out and shot me for shooting it.






Saw these three machines "parked" out beside a corn field. These are not cheap machines, but they're just sitting out there to rot.








I have seen an enormous amount of farmland and farming operations on this trip through the "grain belt" of the United States. My overall observation is things are good out there on the farm. I really don't want to hear how the farmer is being driven out of business, and can't make a go of it. Almost every single farm I've seen have nice middle-class homes, new cars and great equipment. So...can we stop subsidizing these guys? Especially the really big ones?






Just short of Dodge City is the Cimarron cut-off of the famous Sante Fe Trail. The north route stayed westward and went through Bent's Fort in Colorado to get to Santa Fe. The Cimarron route turned south at this point going through west Texas.

For 50 years heavy wagons made the 12-16 week trip passing this point.





I don't know if these were the "official" Santa Fe Trail wagon tracks or not. I just knew I wasn't walking any further out in that damned field.










File under good news: While standing out in the field my cell phone rang and it was Larrivee Guitars. For any who don't know the story, I broke my guitar on the Beartooth trip this summer ( See Day 7 of Beartooth Ride Blog ). To make a long story short, Larrivee has moved operations from British Columbia to Oxnard, California. I suspect, like most companies when they expand, they've had their growing pains, and quality, both in product and service, has suffered for it. They've been sitting on my guitar for about seven weeks without letting me know repair costs/scheduling, etc. I haven't said anything to them because 1) I've been traveling and wanted to be home whenever it shipped back to me, and 2) it's sort of like pissin' off the cook: you just don't want to do it. I really care about this instrument, and it's a special one, so I wanted them to work on it, though I'd have preferred one of the British Columbian specialists do the work. I've just sort of been biding my time hoping they'd wake up and contact me.

A couple of days before I sent an email requesting the exact status of the guitar. I tried to mask my disappointment and concern about their service and pointed out that I thought I'd demonstrated sufficient patience with this situation. They evidently agreed with me and, in the call in the middle of the field, they informed me they'd repaired the instrument and would ship it to me at no cost whatsoever. I can't wait to get it to see if the damage, or subsequent repair, had any effect on tonality.


Got into (not out of) Dodge about 6:00 p.m. After cleaning up I went downtown. Not much to see. They’ve “created” an old west town-like area around a “Boot Hill” I guess they’d like to charge me money to get in to see. It was closed when I got there and won’t be open when I leave in the morning so that ain’t gonna happen. Wouldn’t have happened if they’d been open either.


A little further down the street was this statue of Wyatt Earp.

Under the heading "Truth Sacrificed to Drama" notice that the gun he's drawing is the famous Buntline special. As if anyone could draw that monstrosity from anything but it's traveling case.







Also notice Betsy "had his back."












I have become a real fan of buffalo. I’ve always liked the buffalo burgers you can get out west, but tonight I had a buffalo sirloin steak. Tasted as good as good Nebraska beef steak but has less fat in it than a chicken breast. I know that Ted Turner has been on a tear trying to get the U.S. educated on eating buffalo, and owns several huge buffalo ranches, but it doesn’t seem to be working. It’s a good idea.

Major Betsy milestone passed upon pulling out of Alliance this morning: 40,000 miles.
And, as I've stated before, Betsy has been a great piece of machinery. I've had some problem with after-market add-ons, the exhaust breakdown in Ashville, NC on the Gettysburg Ride being the most major. But Kawasaki's part? No problems!! At all!! I love my Betsy. Now if I could just get Kawasaki to put that big motha-lovin' 2000cc engine in the Nomad package I'd be a happy boy.


My down day has put me in a bind for making it home in time for Saturday's tee time with the guys. But I can do it. Tomorrow: Home.

Day 9 - Murdo, SD to Alliance, NE

423 Miles





Got up to a C-O-L-D morning. Low reported was 47°, seemed colder by a lot to me. Pulled onto I-90 about 8:15 a.m. and within three minutes I was stopped and putting on the balacava (ski mask for those who don't know what this is). I believe in being prepared.


(Click on any pictures to enlarge)





For my buddy, Bobby J:
Saw a sign in the restaurant this morning that said:


Knowing you can relate!!!


Pretty, and lonely, country through here.
















I am constantly amazed at the tenacity of life. This guy isn't holding on, he's flourishing.

(I really like this picture. Looks more like a painting than a photograph. Click to enlarge.)






Finally got off the "slab!" Turned south at Cactus Flats (what a name, huh?) on SR240. This is a loop road which takes one by the northern section of the Badlands National Park.


Betsy in the Badlands

(Sounds like a song title, doesn't it?)
And what was Betsy doing in the Badlands?
She was being bad, bad, bad!)








Badlands National Park.
















A cat would have to pack a lunch to get through this place alive.










I tried my best to ignore the sign that said, "Watch out for Rattlesnakes."












Ah, the excitement! I've discovered another example of Lucy walking through the ages. I'll be as famous as the Leakey's of Olduvai Gorge. I'll never be able to wear a hat again!!! I'll be rich!! I'll be famous!!

Ah...the disappointment. After careful analysis I determined, using the pattern, they were Bruno Maglis. That damned O.J. gets everywhere. He'll probably have some lame-assed alibi like, "Aw, man, I was in Las Vegas !"






Left the park but didn't take the loop back to I-90. Veered onto SR44W just west of the park exit and headed toward Rapid City.

Did I mention it was lonely out here? Did I mention that I love this kind of riding?



















Some pictures just scream to be taken!











At Rapid City I took SR79S to SR16S to SR16A.



I must relate at this point that my sources have lied to me. My image is NOT up there as promised. I'm considering legal action.

What was the name of that lawyer who sued the Oriental cleaners in Washington, D.C. for millions of $$s for messing up a pair of trousers? I'll contact him, he seemed to know what he was doing.






Beautiful work, but I must confess a little disappointment that my Senior National Park Pass didn't mean a thing. They still clipped me for $8 for a parking pass. But, the guy said, it's good for a year. Yeah, like I'm going to leave my bike there for a whole year.




















Oh, and Kilroy was here.










Retreated back down SR16A to SR16 turning south for Custer.


Some local folks came out to see me and wish me a safe trip.

In Custer I took SR385 south heading for Nebraska and the scenic by-way on the north shore of the Platte. I have to report it wasn't all that "scenic." The road runs between 1/2 and 2 miles from the Platte River so the scenery is the pretty trees which line such a water way. I prefer being in the movie as opposed to watching it.





Oops, in Oelrichs I did the music by lane thing again and took the wrong turn, missing where SR18 and SR385 split. This took me east through Oglala and the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation before I realized I'd "done it again."






Have you figured out that I think tenacity a virtue of the first magnitude?

Yet another solidary survivor in SR87S near Pine Ridge.








I took SR87S out of Pine Ridge through Rushville to Alliance, NE. Sort of neat I screwed up, otherwise I'd never have caught Carhenge just outside of Alliance.






Carhenge - 3 1/2 m. north of Alliance, NE









A guy in town told me the town was in an uproar when this local eccentric decided to do this. That is, until the tourists started coming through to see it.

Now ain't that just the American way?





I guess I "understood" the Carhenge thing, but it appears he had some creative juices left over.











Pulled into Alliance, got a hotel room and a great shower. One of these days I'll talk about motorcycle ride showers. They are really special things after a day of riding. But not today.

Found a nice restaurant with required bar and got a great Walleye filet. My absolute favorite domestic fish (Overall favorite is Dover Sole). I like to eat in the bar in these restaurants. Met a couple of electricians in town for a job and we had a good old time talking Nebraska football and arguing who were the best athletes, baseball or football players (it's baseball players hands down). Experienced one of my truly terrifying scenarios when I stood up to pay my tab (including a couple of rounds bought for the "boys" in reciprocation) and discovered I'd left my wallet and money in my riding pants at the hotel. I have absolutely NOTHING on me.

The young lady tending bar and handling my order was rather new at this business, so she didn't hesitate when I told her I was sans wallet and I'd have to go to my hotel and be right back. She just said, "Sure, no problem." I know she was new because anyone who'd been doing this for any length of time would have had some walk-outs by now, and have been at least a little dubious about some guy saying he'd forgotten his wallet and would be right back. I expected the guys at the bar had an over-under on whether I came back or not. I did, within ten minutes, and gave her a whopping tip for her kindness and trust.

Tomorrow: East and south into Kansas. No, I don't give a damn about Dorothy and her fancy shoes, but I might see if I can visit Bat, Wyatt, and Doc.

Day 8 - Chamberlain, SD to Murdo, SD

72 Miles

Didn't make it very far today. Got up and pulled out of Chamberlain around 8:30 a.m. An hour-and-a-half later I pulled into Murdo and checked into a Best Western for the day. Reason? Safety stand-down. My turn westward yesterday fortunately brought me north and west of the major weather threats to this area. As I write the Sioux Falls area just 200 miles east of me is under a severe weather alert and had tornadoes touch down last night.

The problem where I am is wind AND rain. The wind has been terrible all morning, blowing steadily at 25 or so mph with gusts to at least 45 mph. That was marginally tolerable, though a couple of times I thought I was going to be blown off the road. It was especially bad whenever crossing a highway overpass bridge. The concrete walls of the bridge would create a wind tunnel effect suddenly redirecting the wind 90° causing it to come in from the left at a 45° angle. The first couple of times this happened really got my attention.

As I pulled adjacent to the town of Murdo the forecasted rain began to fall lightly. At this point I decided if I hit one of those bridges on a rain-slicked road at the same time one of the wind gusts hit it could easily break my traction and pile me into the bridge abutment. That seemed a rather unpleasant thought compared to the excellent mystery I've been reading on this trip so I decided to stand down. So here I am, updating the blog and getting ready to read and relax. I suspect, after this blows through later in the day I'll regret the loss of "miles," but it's the right thing to do.


Did get a couple of pics pulling out of Chamberlain this morning.





The mighty Missouri. Lewis and Clark passed this way.











Note the flags in front of the building. South Dakota wind.










1:30 p.m. update
The downside of such a stop is the lost time on the road...but, then, I had no set schedule to miss. Murphy's Law is prevailing, the light rain that fell has finished felling, I guess. Wind is still very high, but what the hey, I don't read tea leaves.

Went down to the Triple-H Truck Stop, apparently the major business in this town, and caught up on the local news via the Rapid City Journal. Wish I'd have been there yesterday. They had the annual buffalo roundup at the Custer State Park; something on the order of 14,000 people came out to watch volunteers herd about 1,000 buffalo. Looked pretty neat. As the article pointed out, "cows are boring," buffalo ain't. One volunteer reported the "cows are unusually cranky this year," and have been chasing people a lot.

Further in the news is a report from Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin that someone too cheap to buy his own toilet paper has been stealing a lot of it from public bathrooms. According to officials the thefts haven't been a big loss because "We don't buy the best toilet paper." Haven't caught the guy yet...he's obviously still on a roll.

Not in the paper this morning, but when Iranian President Ahmadinejad announced the other day that they had no homosexuals in Iran, the thought that sprang immediately to my mind was, "Have you checked your Senate Cloak room?"

Watched a segment of Christiane Amanpour's report on God's Warriors dealing with Islamic fundamentalists. Couldn't get over the similarity between their complaints against our American (western) society and those of our own Christian fundamentalists and evangelicals. As Tom Russell notes in his latest, 'Who's Going To Build Your Wall,' Islamic, Jewish, and Christian fundamentalist are all willing to blow us up for our own good. A child of the Cold War, Leonid Brezhnev never scared me for a moment. But Jerry Falwell scared the crap outta me.
(Ol' Jerry died a couple of months ago. I can't help but wonder who was most surprised the next morning: him or the devil?)

Day 7 - Fargo, ND to Chamberlain, SD

390 Miles



(Click to enlarge)



Pulled out of Fargo on I-29 at about 9:15 a.m. Why so late? Because it was colder than a divorce lawyer's heart. Low this morning was 42°. When I pulled out on the road, a bank display board said the temperature was 57°. 57°my rear end! Maybe around 11:00 o'clock. Even later this afternoon there is a nip in the air you feel even above 70°.

It didn't dawn on me until I'd already crossed into South Dakota that I'd taken no pictures in North Dakota. To be honest about it, I saw nothing which caught my attention. It was just miles and miles of fields filled with corn, wheat, and soy beans. Further, it has a kind of brownish, dull coloration whereever you look. And a cue ball struck firmly will probably roll about a mile in any direction on the highway...it's that flat.

South Dakota started showing some changes in scenery and land elevations. You can see the start of large hills to the west.


And there was some green to the grass and the corn. I've decided that corn still green means it's not ready for harvest.
















Pretty empty highway. Some find this boring. I find it great!











Nearing the small town of Baltic, SD I saw a road sign announcing "U.S. Geological Survey - EROS Facility" and indicating the next exit.

One of my heroes is Major John Wesley Powell, famous for being the first to run and survey the mighty Colorado River. Almost everyone knows he lost an arm in the civil war and later ran the Colorado. What few know is that he was the second Director of the U.S. Geological Survey and it is this role for which Americans truly owe him a debt of gratitude. For thirty years he ran the Survey and pleaded and cajoled and fought for the arid lands that are today's west. He understood better than anyone else that once west of the 100th meridian all bets were off in terms of land use and distribution.

Land-use and policy decisions were made in those days in eastern-centric Washington, D.C. (Ah...so little has changed, huh?) The people making the decisions were used to vast amounts of handy water, if not in a river or lake, available by digging shallow wells. Consequently, for example, 640 acres of land (the standard "homestead" by policy) generally had access to water for farming and livestock. This is not the case out west. One plot of 640 acres with a water source could conceivably control 50-75,000 acres in area around it. This meant, to Powell and his enlightened scientifically inclined supporters, homesteading policy needed to be different and allow for access to water.

My buddy, Bobby J., was the one who introduced me to Powell by giving me Wallace Stegner's 'Beyond the Hundredth Meridian.' I highly recommend that book and Mr. Powell to anyone truly interested in the west and the early history of this nation. It convinced me that any list of the ten greatest Americans would be woefully incomplete without John Wesley Powell on it.

So...given this penchant for the U.S. Geological Survey I had to check it out. And "out" is the correct term. This place is out in the middle of no-damn-where-America.

I turned off the interstate at Baltic and found the site ten (10) miles out in the middle of a corn field.







(Click to enlarge)

This is no chicken-feed operation. The ARMED guard at the gate told me there were over 650 people employed here. The "EROS" refers to Earth Resources Observation Systems, and not the Greek God of Lust, as I'm sure some of you thought. (Nah, probably not...I'm the only one who would think of that.)

The facility uses earth satellites to study natural hazards, global environmental change, and economic development and conservation issues. Only about 15% of the employees are federal civil servants, the vast majority are under contract with companies and other users of such data.

This area was selected because of its central location in the United States. While Sioux Falls is about 15 miles away and has about 150,000 people, this is still South Dakota, again proving that professionals (about 50% of the employees are degreed in earth sciences, remote sensing, or computer technology) will go where the work is.

In any event, I didn't get shot by the guard. He said I could go in and catch the 4:00 p.m. tour, but that I'd probably be the only one on it. I settled for a few pictures and back on the road.




Betsy-the-Kaw on the road to the U.S. Geological Survey EROS facility.

I told you there was nothing out here.








Took I-90W just north of Sioux Falls after having to detour around because the freeway entry and exit on this side of the city were under repair.

This caused me to pass these guys calmly filling up on grass and water.
















Good thing these guys didn't ride down the road another half-mile with me. There was a big sign announcing "Fresh Buffalo Meat." I could figure out where it was coming from.

Pulled into Chamberlain, SD about 5:00 p.m. and checked into a Best Western located adjacent to the mighty Missouri River. I'd like to say something more exciting about that, but, actually, I couldn't put it off any more so I found the local laundromat and did clothes.

NOTE: Riding was very tough today. A big low front coming in from the Pacific coast is sucking air (wind) into this area like a giant vacuum cleaner. Wind was constant at about 20-25 mph with gusts blowing to at least 45 mph at times.

Tomorrow: Further west to see if my carving has been completed. Last I checked they were out of dynamite and unable to blast out enough material to uncover my nose and moustache.

Day 6 - Rochester, MN to Fargo, ND

330 Miles

Left Rochester about 8:15 a.m. on US52N. Took SR19W at Cannon Falls to Northfield.

Arrived in Northfield about 9:30 to no visible evidence of the Great Northfield Raid of the James and Younger gang. This was a little surprising given how quickly every town in America can tourist-up the most remote rumor connected to history or crime. And here we are with both history and crime covered ,and no big signs, “Get your Northfield Raid souvenirs here today.” There is a local history museum downtown but it had no signs of life this early on a Sunday morning. I’m sure they have something on it, but…hey, what the heck…they were here, and now I was here. A connection of sorts.

You can readily see why they wanted to get at the bank here. It was supposedly a very prosperous farming town in the 1880s, and still is today. The town now has something like 17,000 residents and is obviously prosperous and upbeat. I liked the looks of the place.

Neat old Post Office in Northfield.

Nice little square in the old, downtown section. I suspect the bank was in this area.

River directly behind the little square above.

I took SR19W to I-35N and headed toward Minneapolis. Weather forecast is for rain today throughout my intended route. Sure enough, Murphy’s Law was in effect. The rain hit as I was going through, or better stated…around this large city. I took I494W around and, fortunately, it was Sunday morning traffic, i.e., not too thick. But thick enough to get your attention when visibility is reduced through rain-soaked goggles. West of town I-494 turned into I-94W. At this time the rain started coming down heavier and I decided I wanted a coffee break and a break from the rain. I pulled off the highway and into a McDonald’s. I figure if the coffee was hot enough to get an old lady a couple of million bucks in a lawsuit it would meet my purposes. It did. I took my book, and two large coffees and an hour-and-a-half later the rain stopped and I rode north toward Fargo, ND.

Spotted the spires from the highway and just had to stop and see this.

St. Mary's Catholic Church - Melrose, MN

The brick pattern is distorted I think because of the digital picture process. Like showing a stripped shirt on TV, the TV digital "painting" of the pixels has to line up exactly or you get a wavy pattern.

This picture accurately reflects the brick-work on the building.

Got to Fargo about 5:00p.m. and checked in to a Super8.

So…not much of a report, but I’ve got some fill-in complaint and information stuff.

Interesting Sports Event

While stopping for breakfast yesterday in Ashland, IL, I read in the local paper where the local quarterback, senior Wil Lunt almost broke the Illinois-state passing record in their game against Bloomington Central Catholic High. He was 34 for 52 attempts and 573 YARDS, only 16 yards short of the state record. I would expect we may hear that name in a couple of years. By the way, they LOST 42-37.

Soon-to-be Official Complaint to Sony

Last trip I left my big camera behind. The good news was it was at my friends Claye and Sylvia’s house, so I got it back. This time I left my small camera (Sony Cyber-Shot) charger behind in West Plains, Mo on the second night out. This is a nuisance because it’s the one I can use while riding, or on a moment’s notice. The big one just isn’t that flexible.

Problem: Sony, as is usually the case with them, uses a special connector and one can’t just use any charger, it has to be made for this camera. But can one find it conveniently? Of course not. I stopped in at Best Buy here in Fargo because I discovered on-line the other day that they carry a lot of Sony camera equipment. No connector. In fact, the guy told me I could probably only get one from Sony.

Now, that works doesn’t it? I have to order through Sony and wait until I get home because Sony in all their concern for their customer can’t see that if I lose it I’m probably NOT GOING TO BE AT HOME!! And I’ll probably WANT ONE WHERE I AM!! Not WHERE I’M GOING TO BE!! Hello!!! Any of you slant-eyed customer-lovers out there??

My choices are to either purchase a stand-alone battery-charger (~$60) so I can continue to use this camera on this trip, or wait until I get home and try to buy one from Sony. I looked briefly at their website and didn’t see where I could get one. I really like having the smaller camera “on the ready,” so we’ll see. I may be forced to spend the additional money. The good news about that approach is 1) Sony would probably charge me ~$30 for the charger, meaning I would only pay $30 for the convenience of having this camera NOW, and 2) Sony wouldn’t get another dime from me…a concept I really like to think about. We’ll see.

Weather’s looking pretty sloppy for this coming week as I turn for home. I may get through tomorrow without significant rainfall, but after that it’s looking really bad back toward the west…and heading this way. I’ll have to figure out how to make some lemonade with it.