March 2008 - Posts

Monday, March 31, 2008 4:32 PM

RR's Got a Brand New Ride

RoadRunner has a brand new ride!  This past week,  he made his debut Supper Run on a 2008 GL1800 with a Hannigan trike conversion.  From the wide-eyed look of terror on the mascot's face, I'd say that bird's never travelled at highway speeds before! 

When we took off for the Windy Gap Grill in Paxton, Nebraska, it was cloudy but in the 40's.  By the time we passed the Sutherland Powerplant heading home, the temps were well below freezing.  The I-80 truckers had a blast commenting on our sanity and choice of transportation. 

Thank goodness for the heated suits.  We were snug and cozy the entire ride.  I love being able to adjust the temperature on the pants separately from the jacket and gloves.  The gloves will take a little getting used to... my hands are small and tough to fit... but with each ride I get a little more comfortable with my mitts.  Still it's a show to watch me get suited up... One thing I have learned is to make ALL my connections and adjust ALL my straps before RR helps me with my gloves.  There is nothing worse than getting all suited up and finding that I forgot to plug in my communications!  Still, the delays of suiting up are a very small price to pay if it gets us out of the garage and extends our riding season.  With more practice, I'll get the hang of it.

One final note for Nebraska history buffs:  The Windy Gap Grill (across the street from the famous Ole's) took its name from a historical pass that slices through the craggy hills between the North and South Platte River valleys.  It was created by the wagon wheels of the sandhill settlers north of Paxton in the early 1900's.  Several times a year, the Kinkaiders made the two-to-three-day trek to town to sell their goods and buy supplies.  Their wheels cut deeper and deeper into the sand and the endless wind blew through the gulch.  It was an exhausting trip.  Eventually, the sandhillers gave it up.  In 1935, a WPA project turned the trail into a road.  Cool!  (Taken from the Windy Gap Grill's menu.)
posted by U2Farmer with 0 Comments
Monday, March 17, 2008 4:34 PM

Spring Has Arrived... In My Mailbox!


Warning:  This is a test!  For the next 60 seconds (or more), you will be subjected to our first official attempt at blogging.  Thanks, Jereomy, for your patience with our questions and your help with this work in progress....  RR, U2, & Hammy.

Every year, RR and I go on-line and request a new Nebraska Travel Guide (It's free.) from the Nebraska Travel and Tourism Division.  Today, the 2008 packet showed up in our mailbox and marked the un-official start of a new riding season.  I love thumbing through the guidebook and discovering places and events that I didn't know existed in our state, some of them
even in my own back yard.  Each packet includes a clean, neatly folded state map just waiting to be covered in various highlighter colors.  I'll choose one color for the Grand Tour, one color for the Scavenger Hunt, another color for places Hammy would like to see, and another color for whatever places or travel routes grab our fancy.  This year's map may even include a new color for Nebraska's winery tours -- a fast-growing tourism trend across the nation.  Oh, the places we will go!

One of the most useful things about the Nebraska Travel Guide is the contact info.  Places, parks, campgrounds, and events are listed with opening/closing dates, fees, phone numbers, and web sites -- all in one neatly packaged resource.  Their web site even offers a free weekly e-newsletter, Destination Nebraska, to remind me of seasonal events and attractions.  Give me my Travel Guide and a copy of Nebraska Life magazine, and I can fill up a calendar with penciled-in travel dates faster than a society debutante at the beginning of her coming-out season!  (I can say that -- proudly!  I was raised in the South by a much-loved, true Carolina belle!)  [;)]

So, as I look out my window and ponder the new snow covering our lawn, I can sip my cocoa in peace.  Give us a break in the weather, a day without pivots to monitor, no fields to plant or harvest, and we're ready to ride.  Our park permits are printed and in the mail.  Nebraska, here we come!!!
posted by U2Farmer with 0 Comments