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Day 21 Friday, May 7, 2010

My alarm went off at 6 AM. to my surprise, Bruce got up also. Not only did he get up, but he stayed up. We got dressed and packed our bags. We got our bags and took them outside to our Motors. A little later, the others started coming out to their Motors and getting them ready. We were all ready so we walked next door to Juicy's River Cafe for breakfast. We had a good breakfast and our waitress had a good sense of humor and a good personality. We talked about our ride and, at times, there was an uncomfortable silence. We all knew that our ride had come to an end. C.E. asked a question: "If you could go back, what part of the ride would you go back and do over?" There were several answers and they were all very memorable. Ken wished he could go back to Roswell and "go inside" the museum and possible pet one of the aliens in the zoo. I stated that I would like to go back to Virginia Beach to buy a t-shirt. Reality set in and it was time to go. We walked back to our rooms to make sure that we didn't leave anything behind. Jan and Bruce left before we did. They headed to Kingman, AZ to go to the Harley store. We would meet them in Kingman. Our Motors were packed, rooms empty and we left at 9:02 AM.

I led the remainder of the Group to Kingman. We were back on I-40 and speeding away. We crossed into Arizona and it felt good. We rode 71.0 miles and we arrived in Kingman, AZ at 10:02 AM. We gassed up and Chuck called Jan on the cell to tell him where we were at. They were at the Harley store and buying their t-shirts. The Harley store was about 1 1/2 miles away. A few minutes went by and Jan and Bruce arrived. We talked for a while. C.E. and I decided that we would leave the group when we got to US 93. Chuck led us out of Phoenix 21 days ago, so it was appropriate for Chuck lead on the final leg. We said our good-byes and we left at 10:23 AM.

Chuck led us eastbound on I-40. A few miles later, C.E. and I turned onto US 93 southbound. The rest of the guys waved at us as they continued eastbound. C.E. and I rode south and 53.7 miles later, we stopped in Wickiup, AZ at 11:07 AM. This was a quick stop. It was 82 degrees and we stopped quick enough to take off our jackets and pack them away. We left at 11:11 AM. I told you it was a quick stop.

We rode south and enjoyed the desert landscape. It sure is a lot different than what were were used to! What happened to all of the green! We rode for another 77.6 miles and rode into Wickenburg, AZ. We even rode through the new by-pass. The new road by-passes downtown. When we completed the by-pass, we were on US 60! Back to US 60 east. We stopped in Wickenburg at 12:16 PM. We made a quick pit stop and then we were off again. We left at 12:21 PM.

We continued on US 60 east and took the Morristown cut off through SR 74. As we rode on SR 74, we eventually got to Lake Pleasant Road. C.E. and I waved to each other and C.E. turned south. I continued on SR 74 headed for I-17. A few miles later, I turned onto I-17 and headed southbound. I felt anxious to get home. Traffic was flowing smoothly. I reached the 101 and headed east. I was getting closer to home and then the sign for the 7 Street exit was in sight. I took the exit and luck was with me. I had the green light at 7 Street. After riding 54.5 miles, I made it home at 1:10 PM. What a ride!

I rode 257 miles today. I am happy to be home with my family. What a ride! We rode a total of 7,088.0 miles. There are many memories. As Jan told me yesterday, Memories may fade, but the Blog lasts forever!

Next year, the ride will be to New Orleans, LA and then north to Wisconsin. We will ride towards Tennessee and do, "Tail of the Dragon." That is what was discussed for next year. We will see. Things may change.

I certainly hope that everyone who read my Blog enjoyed reading about our trip. I did not intend to hurt any ones feelings with what I wrote. If I did, too bad! Write your own blog! Seriously, I wrote what we did and what was said. There was no malice behind my writing. I hope you enjoyed. So, until next year...