Day Seventeen

Santa Rosa to Denver, Colorado

Mileage: 392

This was Batman's trip back to Denver.

Since this Best Western's breakfast wasn't much to brag about, we went to the Denny's next door. All of us had a taste for a Grand Slam breakfast. It was going to be a long day for us.

We were saddled up and ready to ride a few minutes after 10am. Our horses were a thirsty, so we stopped at the the "fillin' station" on the way out of town. This is where Sludge and I were going to say our goodbyes to Batman. Batman would be leaving I-40 at the exit for New Mexico State Route 84 north. Hand shaking and bear hugs for all. It was an emotional time for us. We had just ridden 15 days together and it was tough to see the group split up.

A short 16 miles west on I-40 was exit number 256, Batman's exit. Ironically, there was no traffic in sight behind us so I pulled into the left lane and slowed down. Sludge followed my lead and we were able to give Batman and Bailey a last wave. That was difficult.

Just so we know, we agreed to send each other a text message when we reached home. According to the time stamp on his text, Batman arrived at his home in Devner about 7:30pm local time. Sludge and I were 70 miles east of Flagstaff, Arizona at that time...hiding from the weather in a highway underpass.


Santa Rosa, New Mexico to Litchfield Park, Arizona.

Mileage: 592

This was my trip to Litchfield Park.

Sludge and I continued down I-40 toward Albuquerque, New Mexico. Albuquerque (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque,_New_Mexico) was a two-hour drive and we would need fuel on the western outskirts of the city. Good thing that we pulled in for fuel when we did because a group of a dozen motorcyclists arrived mere minutes after we finished filling up. We're not in a hurry, but we've got our homes in sight.

Albuquerque is in a valley and west of the city, I-40 makes a steep climb to above 6, 000 feet and the temperature dropped twenty degrees. We knew of this, so we dressed in our leathers before we left Santa Rosa. The weather was changing too. Ominous clouds were looming in the distance.

Gallup, New Mexico, was 250 miles away and that's where we'd fill the bikes and have lunch. Twenty miles from Gallup, the storm we were watching for the last 30 minutes has caught up with us. Or did we catch up with it? You could feel a couple of drops and then all of a sudden, it sarted coming down. This time, it wasn't all rain. There was tiny raindrop-sized pieces of hail! Let me tell you, with an half helmet, like Batman's and mine, rain can sting your face. But when there is hail in the mix, it feels like shards of glass hitting your face. We were through this event in fifteen minutes, but it felt much longer. Aside from getting pelted with hail, the spray from other vehicles, especially the 18-wheelers, makes for a hairy ride. It's hard to see and the road can become slick. The best thing to do is slow down to a comfortable and safe speed.

After lunch, we continued toward Flagstaff, Arizona. Only 75 miles from Flagstaff, we could see more storms brewing on the horizon. This time, lighting was also included. This was bad. Riding a motorcycle on a flat plain, without much traffic around, made us the highest point. Similar to being on a golf course in lighting, the odds of being struck are slim, but still possible. Just as the rain...and hail started to hit us, I spotted an exit ramp and hoped that there was a place to hide under the interstate. As luck would have it, there was. Lighting is usually on the back side of a storm. We were going to be here for a while. Nearly an hour and a half to be exact. After the lighting passed, there was still a little rain falling. We decided to don our rain gear and make tracks to Flagstaff. It was cold, really cold. This was the coldest part of the ride, but not much more than the panhandle of Florida. I still cannot get a grip on how cold that stretch of ride was. For cyring out loud, it was Florida!

We reached Flagstaff about 6:30pm. This is where Sludge and I would part ways. I was heading down Interstate 17 south for the 150 mile trip to my house. Sludge would continue for another 145 miles to Kingman, Arizona where he'd stop for the night.

It was time to head our own directions. It's been a blast riding with Sludge and Vger. Sludge rode the middle spot and since this was his first ride in a group, did extremely well. We all rode in a staggered formation, with Batman and me on the left side of the lane, and Sludge on the right. I'll miss seeing him in my right mirror. Since it was cold and raining, (I swear the water was turning to ice on my ridng glasses!), we said our goodbyes at a gas station and headed back onto I-40. My exit was two miles down the road and I slowed so that we could wave and give a heart felt "thumbs-up". I was heading into warmer weather, but Sludge still had an hour of cooler temperatures. I'll miss him as well.

I pulled into my driveway about 9pm. After unloading Maleficent, I turned on my cell phone and saw a text message waiting. It was Batman and he was home safe. Minutes later, he called me.


Santa Rosa, New Mexico to Kingman, Arizona.

Mileage: 582

This is Sludge's trip.

Sludge continued to Kingman, Arizona to rest for the night. Apparently, he had reached Kingman a little later than when I got home. I also sent a text but decided to call him too. Sludge was stuck in stopped traffic after a fatal accident on the interstate. Trucker's offered him coffee and gave him news on what had happened up ahead. Realizing that since he was on a motorcycle, he could sneak up to the head of the traffic using the emergency lane. At the head of the line was a gathering of fellow riders. This is what we (motorcyclists) do, especially if we have air-cooled bikes. He reached Kingman safely an hour later.