Fun road today! We’re taking the Talimena Scenic Drive between Talihina, OK and Mena, AR. But first: my heated gear was acting up last night, and my radar detector would turn off every time I hit the brakes, so I had to chase down some electrical gremlins…
It turned out I had run the wire to my USB charger too close to the engine’s exhaust headers.
Time to do some roadside soldering with my handy Radio Shack butane soldering iron!
Long ride ahead: catching up from yesterday, we’re riding 663 miles from Santa Fe to McAlester, NM. The day started out nice enough, 50°F and sunny and looking like it was going to warm up. I was second-guessing myself about the heated gear and heavier suit I had put on, as I was sweating in the desert sun loading up the bike, but soon enough I was grateful I had it: as we headed south from Santa Fe, the clouds came in and the temperatures started dropping down into the high 30s.
After only a few hours of sleep last night, we needed an easy day. Our original plan had been to leave early, stop in Santa Fe for lunch and a visit to Meow Wolf , then continue on to Palo Duro Canyon to set up camp. Instead, we took the short ride to Santa Fe, with a stop in Albuquerque for a delicious Persian lunch at the Chello Grill: koobideh kebab, grilled vegetables, and adasi (lentil stew).
Woke up this morning to a beautifully sunny, cool day in Oak Creek. We couldn’t get a table at the Red Rock Cafe across the street from the hotel, so we rode up to Sedona to the Creekside Bistro. No regrets: it was a gorgeous ride, and the food was fantastic — with a glorious view to boot.
We stopped to take a few pictures before heading south towards Camp Verde…
After a much-needed great night of sleep, we got in our first real twisty ride today! But before we hit the twisties, lunch at the Onery Hog in Wickenburg, AZ. This was one of those local BBQ joints where the owner (who’s also the cook!) will sit down at a table and chat up his customers. They’ve also got a lot of quirky art and tchotchkes on the wall.
I woke up to a beautiful sunrise in Joshua Tree and made a quick breakfast of eggs, bacon, and coffee amidst the breathtaking desert backdrop.
From there, we set our sights on Sedona, so we packed up and hit the road. We had a blast riding east on California 62, a two-lane, mostly straight stretch of highway with visibility as far as the eye can see. We pulled over for a quick stop somewhere around Rice, CA, to see the shoe fence , a weird collective art piece composed of thousands of shoes and other articles of clothing left by travelers.
Tuesday morning, we were finally, finally (almost) ready to actually start our trek! While Clo figured out all the bells and whistles and secret compartments on her new BMW, I swapped the wheels, then set off to FedEx to ship home the old wheel along with the bonus parts for my other Futura.
We got the bikes loaded up and hit the road!
First, a few local stops in LA.
Monday started with a visit to Nina’s , around the corner from our hotel, for a super tasty Mexican breakfast.
Once we were fueled up, it was time to play mechanic. I needed a new tire to replace my thrice-puncture one. I remembered on my ride down yesterday that back in January, I had reached out to a used bike parts dealer in LA about a rear wheel bearing I needed for my other Futura.
April 11: Picking up the bike Arrived in San Jose at Liz and Sanlı’s last night! After Ayla made us some French toast for breakfast, Liz drove me up to Napa to pick up the Futura (but not before stopping to visit some horses on the way).
Dinner at Bistro Jeanty to celebrate!
April 12: Preparing the bike, and a few hiccups I put my assistant to work right away taking the fairings off to get ready for an oil change.