High Plains Rider

7/5/02 - Rode to Idaho Falls, Idaho on the ZRX. This was a 2 day ride. Weather was mostly sunny and very hot. On the 2nd day, I visited the Craters of the Moon National Monument. Ash from volcanos that were active up to 2000 years ago gave the area a moonscape-like appearance. It was a really cool place. Mileage from home to Idaho Falls was 595.2. From Idaho Falls to Craters of the Moon was 89.3. Total mileage for the trip was 1369.3 miles. The ZRX held up very well.

5/25/02 - During Memorial Day weekend, I rode the ZRX out to Dodge City, Kansas. To get there, I rode East on hwy 52, South on hwy 79, I-70 to Limon, get off at exit 363 and on to hwy 287 and 40, rode past Eads, then East on hwy 50 and 400 at Lamar, into Kansas, past Garden City, and on to Dodge City. Mileage on Saturday was 403.2. Stayed overnight at the cheapest motel I could find that had running water. Spent the next morning at the Boot Hill Museum (no website). It was a really nice ride and the weather was near perfect. Below are some pictures. Also visited Meade, Kansas to check out the Dalton Gang (cattle rustlers, horse thieves, bank robbers, etc.) Hideout. Meade is 54.7 miles South of Dodge City. Went past a huge windmill farm - about 5 miles long. Got home Sunday evening. 868.3 miles for the whole trip.

5/5/02 - Rode the ZRX to a historical landmark called, "Summit Springs Battlefield". It was about 110 miles from where I live. To get there, I rode east on highway 52, exited onto I-76, got off at exit 115, then rode a few miles south on highway 63. There were signs saying, "historic points of interest - 5 miles". That is - 5 miles on a dirt road. This was written on one of the markers:

'Fleeing after a series of bloody raids on the Kansas frontier, a band of 450 marauding Cheyenne Dog soldiers led by Tall Bull (Tatonka Haska) camped here. On the afternoon of July 11, 1869, 350 men of the 5th calvary and Pawnee scouts under General E. A. Carr made a successful surprise attack on the camp. Chief Tall Bull was among the 52 Indians killed in the battle; 418 horses and mules were captured, and 84 lodges were put to the torch. Fifth Calvary Scout Buffalo Bill Cody later made this last Plains Indian battle in Colorado a regular feature of his wild west show.'

So, that pretty much tells the story.

From there, I rode through Sterling, CO, before going home.

8/20/01 - Well, finally a road trip for 2001. The destination: Provo, Utah. Utah, as we all know, is home to those crazy Mormons. Start a conversation with any Mormon, and you're going to end up one yourself. Ah, polygamy! Ooooh-kay, but seriously folks. I started off on Saturday the 18th at 10:45 am (late), and arrived in Provo at 9:30 pm (dark). Rode the scenic route, highway 14, to Steamboat Springs, where it connects to highway 40. Highway 40 leads through Craig, Dinosaur, and into Utah, where it continues past Vernal, Roosevelt, and ends at Heber City. From there, Highway 189 took me to Provo. Provo sure is one pretty town, and clean, too. Real spic & span. The whole city is surrounded by these tall hills and looks really cool. I think it's one of those "college towns" because Brigham Young University has a really big campus there. Students were all over. Stayed at a cheap motel called "The Traveler's". The air conditioner worked! The room cost $42. Started off the next morning at 8:30 and took route 6 & 191 to I-70. 6 & 191 was the most scenic part of the trip. I-70 of course, leads all the way to Denver. One word of advice, I-70 sucks. The traffic is always really heavy, as bad as L.A.. Made it home at 6:30 pm. The trip was good for 1044 miles. As for my Kawasaki EX500, the damn thing held up quite well.

8/04/01 - Went on that ride to Walden and Laramie. The round trip was good for 313 miles. It sure is a whole lot cooler in the mountains. Laramie, WY is at an altitude of 7200'. On the way home, I stopped off at Twin Peaks Powersports, Longmont, CO. On display they had the new 2002 Aprilia Futura. This is Aprilia's new sport-touring model featuring their 998cc, 60 degree V-twin. It looks better in person than in the pictures. This would be my kind of bike if it didn't cost $12,999 (Harley territory).