update...
Since I didn't turn the light out until 2:30 a.m. (3:30 to my EST accustomed body), I didn't set any alarm clock for the morning. I knew I only had about 400 miles to ride, and could afford the sleep. At 7:30, I woke up, feeling pretty decent, overall, and decided to get up and get things together. There was a little continental breakfast in the lobby area that I visited, and was back in my room shortly after 9.
I didn't have any plans in place for where I was staying when in OKC, and last week had asked my pastor's wife if she thought she knew anyone from there who might offer a spare bedroom or couch, since they were from this area. I called her Saturday morning to see if she'd found any takers, but everyone she'd tried was either going to be out of town for the long weekend, or hadn't gotten back to her email or call. For a church, she recommended Heritage Presbyterian Church, so I looked for motels in that area, and settled on the Super 8 closest to it. I called ahead for reservations, and once those were lined up, I started the whole 'haul the luggage downstairs' fun. There's not a lot (any) spare room in my luggage right now, so there's no room for sloppy packing and everything has a specific place it must belong. Once the beast of burden was loaded again, I lubed the chain, hit the body with some Plexus and headed back onto the interstate.
This time, the weather decided to play nice, and it was sunny with puffy clouds sailing around. Nothing looked rainy or tornadic in any shape or form. Whew! I was only about 65 miles west of Little Rock when I started,
so that was too early for a lunch stop. If I'd had my camera out, though, I'd have snapped a shot of the hugely ornate First Pentecostal Church when I rode by (and since I didn't, I just linked the church name to some photoblog shots of it). Another 75 miles up the road was Russellville, which had my first Cracker Barrel stop of the trip. I was feeling the wear of the previous day's trip, combined with a five hour night of sleep, so the chance to sit down at a restaurant was very nice. Their parking lot was
kind enough to have a shady spot for the bike to wait for me, and I went in to eat my standard BLT and fries on grilled sourdough bread. Once fortified, I then fed the bike at a Shell station before getting back on I-40.Further west, and I started to see some rolling hills in the distance, as the Ozarks were getting closer. I saw a sign for the Pig Trail Scenic Byway, and wished I'd had time to explore, since that is supposed to be some fun motorcycle pavement. If I'd known it was only 19 miles, as
I now do, I probably would have jumped off for the short trip! Ah well. I did end up taking one side excursion 100 miles down the road when I saw the sign for Sallisaw, OK. There is a picture at work in our department known as the 'Sallisaw Man.' He's on the side of a building, and when I saw the exit for Sallisaw, and knew the nature of the picture, I thought I'd make a quick search to see if I could find him. It was a sweet feeling of success when I saw him waving at me just before I was going to turn around and go back to the interstate. I had to get a picture of the bike with him, since this truly was a once in a lifetime event. Here you go Greg and Andrea...this one's for you!
My last fuel stop was 90 miles out from Oklahoma City in Henryetta, and the Shell station was adjacent to Huckleberry's Pig Out Palace (sounds like your kind of place, Greg!) I did not stop in to eat, but did have to take a quick pic of the drum piggies outside. At the gas station, a guy in a minivan on a family trip asked me if I hit any bugs with the helmet when I ride. I handed him my helmet to inspect the encrusted face shield and asked him what he thought. He was grousing about riding in the van with his little brother, and I told him he should enjoy the luxury of stretching his legs and getting to lean back on a seat. The family was from Page, AZ, and the dad commented on how humid it was, wondering if it made riding any tougher. I told him it felt about like home, since I was used to humidity in SC. It was about to make them mop up, though.
I left Huckleberry behind, knowing and glad that I was on the last of the road before a nice break. I got to the Super 8 right around 6 p.m., and this time got a ground floor room, with parking for the bike right outside
my door (hooray!). The a/c is positively polar, although the shower is somewhat anemic. After I emptied the bike, I went back out for a quick trip to Target for some Gold Bond powder...the armor in my pants makes my knees sweat and chafe somewhat, and then to the Cracker Barrel (twice in one day!) just up the way from the motel for supper. Sourdough bread topped with mashed potatoes, pot roast and gravy? That's what I'm talkin' 'bout! I was back in my room by about 7:45, took a shower, and got settled for the night. When I went to do the blog update, I found out the internet was acting up on my computer so I called it a night and was asleep by 9:36, welcoming the oblivion.
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