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We packed up our bags after a short rest at our hotel in Quartzsite. We spent over three hours
just trying to upload on the website using a dial-up speed of only 24k baud. It was pretty painful and we gave up even trying
to load any pictures!
We started off headed for Sedona under perfect skies and temperatures in the mid-70’s.
As
the bikes made their way, Mike’s wife Brenda would be happy to find that we stopped by to see her namesake. The town
of Brenda is not even on the map of Arizona that we have with us but as many of the towns we have passed over the miles so
far, it is populated by a very small number of people. There are many hamlets such as this along the roads that we have chosen
to ride on.
We made our way up Yarnell hill, which is a very popular ride for all sorts of motorcyclists
from sport bikes to large tourers, and stopped in Mountainaire AZ for gas. Our bikes were almost immediately surrounded by
folks asking us what we were up to! We met with a gentleman that was a Honda dealer for 30 years, sold the SuperHawks and
had plenty of good things to say about them. I asked him where he was a dealer from and told me Davenport Iowa. I told him
that I had Davenport as part of one of my Districts when I was a District Service Manager when I first came to work for American
Honda. When I told him that I knew the dealer there, Joel Reno, he told me that Joel was the person that bought his dealership!
Who would have thought that I would meet someone in Arizona that hailed from one of my old districts! Wayne Jugenheimer was
a dealer in Davenport and solid the dealership to Joel who was the Service Manager of the store while Wayne owned it. I remember
Joel well and was happy to see a service manager buy a store. Than ensures that the store is service oriented!
After we talked old Hondas with the folks at the country store, I noticed something a bit
disturbing. I noticed that my chain master link clip was no longer a part of the bike! It is amazing that I could have parked
the bike in a place where the chain master link was right in site! I remember cursing when I had to use a pair of pliers to
get the chain link on but now am happy as the link stayed together even without the clip. Mike and I made up a makeshift clip
with two small pieces of wire that we got off of all things, a stainless steel chain from a toilet flapper valve! After we
were satisfied that the chain would stay intact we traveled on to Prescott Arizona and then up Mingus Mountain to an elevation
of 7023 feet above sea level. We kept an eye open for a dealership open but today was Memorial Day and every store that would
have a link clip was closed. We stopped in Jerome Arizona and spent a couple of hours at the Gold King Ghost Town and Mine.
This is a 100-year-old gold mining town that is filled with antique engines, trucks and just
about anything you can imagine. If you like to tinker with engines, this place is for you!
We got to see “Big Bertha”, a 10,000 cubic inch engine run. This three-cylinder
engine runs on Propane fuel and just to get the critter started is a piece of work! The noise was pretty incredible as the
14-inch pistons pushed out the exhaust gas with a 22-inch stroke. It looked like the valves would be better served if you
used a ruler to measure the clearances instead of feeler gauges!
The proprietor of the mine, Don Robertson saw our bikes and came looking for us to talk motorcycles!
HE took us into his shop where he unveiled a brand of bike that neither mike or I had ever seen or heard of, a Lilac. This
was a Transverse V twin 250cc four-stroke that had the appearance of a Moto-Guzzi as far as the engine but looked a bit like
an old Honda as far as the fuel tank.
Don then proceeded to show us an old Rokon and started and rode it around the yard.
We spent about two hours at the Ghost Town and had a ball. We noticed that there was a Help
Wanted sign for a mechanic/jack of all trades, and thought about asking about it, but after we came to our senses, we decided
that it was time to get going. We stopped for lunch at a spot that claims to be the oldest Restaurant in Arizona; The English
Kitchen was originally built in 1899.
When we returned to the bikes, they were surrounded
by a bunch of folks and overhead heard one gentleman talking to another about how the Superhawk had a 180-degree crankshaft
instead of a 360-degree crank of the 305 Dream to reduce vibration at high speeds. Well, our bikes vibrate a bit I can tell
you; I can only imagine them with a 360 crank! There were about 20 motorcycles lined up on the street and everyone was standing
around our bikes admiring them. We have seen this to be pretty much the standard anywhere we have stopped so far.
We left Jerome and finished our ride in the Red Rock country of Sedona. A beautiful place
indeed. We got settled in the hotel and as we were cleaning the bikes we spotted the first real concern of the trip….
A crack has started on my left side exhaust pipe. It appears that the sidestand had, over the years, made a dent in the pipe
and the long rides have caused enough fatigue to crack the pipe. We can’t do much now but try to get our way down to
Phoenix tomorrow where we will meet the folks at Motorcycle Mechanics Institute. We will take care of the pipe there if it
is savable, otherwise we will need to get a part that is virtually impossible to find in a hurry!
Our travels for the day took us 212 miles and we’re still fresh except for the late
nights keeping the site updated. We may make some changes to allow for more rest, but for now, we’ll continue on. Mikes
latest words on the heat: “Bring it on, the hotter the better!” Our overall travels now total a scant 622 miles.
Tomorrow is a short trip down the hill to MMI in Phoenix.
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