2011 — California Here We Come on Trip 1

Courtesy of Friggs, here's the tale of the other OFMC ride of 2011. Where it says "WHAT" this is Friggs's way of saying, "Hey you other guys, please fill in the blanks."

Saturday June 11th Denver to Green River, UT - 343 miles on I-70.

Randy and Friggs met John in Grand Junction. It was necessary to stock up on liquid refreshments there because of the lack of such in Utah. The first bit of excitement occurred with very strong head winds and an alarming consumption of fuel traveling into Utah. A stop was in order to discuss gas concerns and after proceeding, a service station was located just over the next hill. Mileage at the fill-up was less than 40 mpg.

The River Terrace was a boffo spot on the bank of the very full Green River (water was about 50 feet from the balcony). The now non-riders sat by the river, drank beer, and smoked cigars, which kept the mosquitos at bay. With the first coin toss of the trip, Randy won his choice of a bed and he chose the king bed in the private area of the suite. The next morning breakfast was served at a modified buffet and the riders headed out for Ely. Three riders consistently got on the road much earlier than ten, which was especially beneficial on 300-plus-mile days.

Sunday June 12th Green River to Ely, NV - 329 miles I-70 to US-50 to Ely.

Hotel Nevada The ride west wasn't as hot as the ride east, which made going 300-plus-mile days more enjoyable than those returning. Riding across Utah was pleasant, but rather uneventful. A rider from Texas was met at the Border Inn restaurant on the Nevada/Utah border and all four riders continued the rest of the way into Ely.

This was Friggs's first trip to the Hotel Nevada. He enjoyed the “Motorcycle Only Parking” and later that evening pictures were taken of the hot wheels lined up at the front door of the hotel.

The hotel is old, but well maintained and the pricey ($47) two room suite was enjoyed by all. Gambling was A OK, but there was no bragging about winnings, which suggested there were none.

The daring threesome met two lawyers out front of the casino who were riding from California and spoke to one while the other took off with one of the working girls to show her his something-or-other.

Monday June 13th Ely to Lake Tahoe - 345 miles US-50 (Loneliest Road In America) to South Lake Tahoe.

Lake Tahoe The next day's ride west followed the "Loneliest Road in America" into California. Friggs hadn't been this way before and expected an ugly ride, but it was just lonely, not ugly until approaching Carson City.

Then, it wasn't really ugly, it was just congested and through one stretch the road was covered with fresh tar. However, after the tar, it was a brag ride into Lake Tahoe where accommodations at Harvey's were nice with a view of the lake and into California.

John and Randy gambled and Friggs went for dinner with a friend. Friggs was aware his friend wrote software for video games, but he didn't realize until that evening it was for IGT video poker games. Friggs was given a tour of the casino and he got some playing advice, but as of this writing he has yet to acquire the deed to any gambling establishments.

The next morning the happy threesome headed west into the beautiful, but snowy Sierra Nevada mountains.

Tuesday June 14th Lake Tahoe to Napa, CA - 220 miles CA-4 over the Sierra Nevada range through The Calaveras Big Trees State Park, gold country, and the Sacramento River Delta on San Francisco Bay.

The ride thru the Sierra Nevadas was really cool. Partly because of the narrow twisty blacktop and partly because of 10-foot snow drifts on each side. During John’s research he found the road had been cleared of snow only a few days before the three traveled it. Prior to a wonderful lunch at Murphy's Grill, based on John’s advice, Big Trees State Park was visited. “Big Trees” is an understatement and a stop here would be unique and enjoyable for anyone traveling this way. For example, one destroyed by a brilliant entrepreneur in the late 1800s measured about 35 feet across at the base. Riding west after lunch traffic, the city of Napa were encountered.

The Wine Valley Lodge was nice, but it was also one of the pricier places on the trip. However, it had a nice pool that was shared (along with beers) with a nice young couple from Canada. Friggs and Randy don’t remember the guy, but his partially bikini-attired attractive young lady was a real hotty. After a few beers it was obvious she wanted Friggs’s body. Dinner that night was the biggest pizza any of the OFMC had ever seen and after its uncontrolled consumption, all three were half sick.

Wednesday June 15th Napa to Point Arena, CA - 135 miles - CA-128 Through Napa Valley and Alexander Valley Wine country to Mendocino coast.

The ride through the Napa Valley was phat and the wineries were first-class. The planned destination was Mendocino, but some local advice suggested a detour through Boonville would be supernal (Friggs showing off his vocabulary). It was underrated. The road from there was two-lane, very twisty blacktop that went by at least one barbed wire enclosed farm whose agricultural product was left to one’s imagination. The road could have been one of the best because of the twisties, but it was not in great condition and it was heavily shaded, which made sweeps and tight corners challenging.

Golden Gate Bridge When the last hill was peaked, the view of the ocean was awesome. Point Area was splendid, but a decision was made against the Wharfmasters Inn and the ride continued south. That night’s lodging was in Gualala at a great place called Gualala Country Inn and afternoon refreshments were taken in a rad bar near the beach, the Bones Roadhouse. Again, after a few beers it appeared the waitress also wanted in Friggs’s pants.

Thursday June 16th Point Arena to San Francisco - 120 miles CA-1 Pacific Coast Highway over Golden Gate Bridge to Fisherman's Wharf. Short days ride gives us time to explore SF.

The ride south was cool but terrific, and the view of San Fran from Sausalito over the Golden Gate Bridge was fantabulous and one which Friggs had never experienced. After checking in at the Wharf Inn, at Randy’s suggestion, a double-decker bus tour of the city was undertaken. It’s the best way to see major sites in a short time, but the upper deck was chilly by the time the tour finished.

This day ended with a superlative Fisherman’s Wharf Italian dinner at Alioto's. The room at The Wharf Inn was OK, but the heat couldn’t be turned down so the door to the second floor balcony was opened. While enjoying the fresh air, drug transactions could be observed below and in the park across the street.

For reasons unknown to HD riders, some non-HD bikers tend not to be very interested in HD paraphernalia, so next morning Friggs bought a HD sweat shirt and some souvenirs and the OFMC contingent headed across town and then continued south along the coast.

Friday June 17th San Francisco to Monterey Bay - 124 miles CA-1 along coastline to Monterey. The Pacific Coast Highway is open north of Monterey.

Big Sur It’s been written that California has 1.06 horse’s asses for each horse and the OFMC encountered many of them headed south along the Pacific Coast Highway.

The California Highway Department could save money and labor dollars by not painting yellow center lines on Route 1 since no one pays attention to them. Cars and motorcycles were passing on the left and bicycles were passing on the right so this day’s ride didn’t lack for excitement.

Occasionally there were construction stops to repair rain-damaged sections of the road that had washed into the ocean. At one point John smoked his rear tire stopping for one of these. The lodging decision was for the Otter Inn and then the group headed for Cannery Row.

Shops were checked out and at Bubba Shrimp’s, a meal of … surprise … shrimp was eaten. It was exquisite! After dinner, a trip to the local liquor store to replenish dwindling supplies was in order. The evening was rounded out in the hot tub ensuring no beer would be left to spoil.

Saturday June 18th Monterey to Morro Bay - 124 miles CA-1 (if open?) through the Carmel and Big Sur central coastline or 140 miles on County road G-16 through the Carmel River valley to Morro Bay.

Sea lions Saturday’s journey provided more wonderful sights and sounds. One of the most notable was a sea lion colony that was examined and of which many pictures were taken.

According to the description, these animals were once on the verge of extinction and were thought to only exist in one other location in the world. A few years ago a very small colony was discovered near this spot on the California coast and it has now grown to about 1,500. That’s kind of thing has been known to happen with too much time on your hands.

The ride continued south and arrived in Morro Bay with time to scout for lodging. The three travelers checked prices and facilities and agreed on Randy’s suggestion of the Best Western. Other excitement that day included a ride out to Morro Rock, dinner at a The Outrigger, and drinks at the Otter Rock Cafe with a good band, attractive women, and a code for the bathroom door that initially only Friggs knew.

As a sign of camaraderie, Randy bought Friggs and John “Old Guys” in memory of “School House” basketball enjoyed on a previous OFMC trip.

Sunday June 19th Morro Bay to Bakersfield - 125 miles on CA-58 (one of the top ten best motorcycle roads in America) to Bakersfield. Really nice Hilton hotel for very good price with palm tree-lined pool.

Morro Bay Saturday was the OFMC’s last day on the coast and on Sunday the guys headed east, found CA-58, and crossed California farm country.

It was agreed that CA-58 is one of the best and after passing a lot of green growing stuff (including avocado trees) along the route the day on the road ended in Bakersfield. Again, there was time to shop for the best rate and John’s selection of Holiday Inn and Suites was chosen.

The hotel was very nice and nearly empty as this was Sunday. Because of the limited number of patrons there was just the OFMC hitting on the female bartender. Yep! Again, after a few martinis it appeared she too wanted in Friggs’s pants.

Two minor mishaps occurred at this stop. Friggs adjusted the thermostat incorrectly so it was hot at night and he thought the premium water in the bathroom was complementary (I wonder if John was ever charged for that).

Monday June 20th Bakersfield to Bishop, 270 miles on CA-178 passing north of Mojave and west of Death Valley and US-395 passing Mt. Whitney (highest point in lower 48 states) through Big Pine and Bishop to the west entrance to Yosemite.

Monday was another remarkable day on the road. However, that’s mostly because of the afternoon heat. (Did I say it was hot?) Thirty or so hours of really hot (did I say it was hot?) riding that afternoon along the base of Mt. Whitney (about 14,000 feet high) is still difficult to comprehend. Lodging prices were checked and a decent two bedroom suite at the Rodeway Inn was selected. It was soon determined that care was necessary when touching the west side of the building (did I say it was hot?) and gloves were used to open the door, but the air was cranked way up and it soon became tolerable. At least it was tolerable in Friggs’s room on the east side of the building.

Cleaning up was in order for the bedraggled explorers and a walk next door to McDonald’s for that evening’s culinary delight was in order. That may have been a mistake because after the addition of beer for dessert all three experienced indigestion that night. It’s probably safe to say that Lee Vining can now be removed from three “bucket lists.”

Tuesday June 21st Bishop to Ely, NV on CA-120 (Randy and I vote this road the best we have ever been on) to US-6 through Tonopah to Ely.

Friggs rode the loneliest road Tuesday was another long day across hot dry country, but it was not as hot as Monday. Riding east was much the same as riding west with one notable exception across this stretch. No gas for 170 miles which is at the limit of John’s range.

John’s advance research determined the service station that was previously along this section of US-6 had closed so the lack of gas, although pretty important, wasn’t a surprise.

The simple solution, bring extra gas, but how? John purchased, as planned, a one-gallon gas can in Tonopah, and after some repacking filled it and strapped it to the back of Friggs’s scooter.

With crossed fingers the arduous journey again continued east. John lead at about 60 mph, Friggs followed with the gas, and Randy was third.

This day’s adventure ended happily upon arrival in Ely with John just having switched to reserve. The same room reserved on the westward leg of the trip was again reserved and with anticipated gambling donations out of the way another great day was brought to a close.

Wednesday June 22nd Ely to Green River UT, 329 miles on US-50 to I-70 to Green River.

This was mostly a good day for riding, but it did get warm again towards the later part of the day. At Green River the decision was made for lodging at the Ramada Inn and the scooters were parked on the west side in anticipation of a hot sun early in the morning.

The pool was inviting and after chilling the Nevada beer the hot tired riders decided on a dip. It was splendid! Once fully recuperated, dinner was in order and what better place in Green River could there be than the Ray's Tavern restaurant? Superlative food and drink were enjoy by all before retirement to the room where final repacking was accomplished for the final leg of the journey that would take the travelers home on Thursday.

Thursday June 23rd Green River to Denver 343 miles on I-70, with John peeling off in Grand Junction.

With breakfast and loading complete the OFMC was ready for their last day on the road for this trip. However, with time not of the essence, socializing commenced with a hot rod club that had come in the night before and who were about ready to head out themselves. They were from California and were driving through some western states themselves. The happy bikes then headed into Grand Junction and gassed up for the final leg home. John headed south to Montrose and Friggs and Randy headed east to Denver on I-70. Although riding on interstates is normally avoided, I-70 east across the Rockies in June is a trip not to be missed.

THAT’S MA STORY UN UM STICKN TO IT!

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