Leaving La Junta

I turn the corner and turn my attention to the task at hand. Wondering where the part of the highway that I have to hold my breath so I don't smell the cattle. As we tick up the highway, I look, and look and look...there it is!

I take a deep breath and hold it.

It seems like an eternity, but we get past it. It's a huge cattle pen and it's usually full of cattle...ready for..um....well, you know. If you don't then Google is your friend!

I take a sneak peek in my rearview and I about fall off my motorcycle!! Goldwing Guy!

Geez, he must have broken all the rules--going around the platoons to pull up behind our group. I'm wondering if he will attempt to get in past the sweep.

Riding in the way back has its challenges. Especially on the highway. By the time a signal gets back to me...a day has practically passed!! Kidding, but in all seriousness, I'm feeling the rubber-band effect. Well, at least I don't have to worry about passing it back...since I AM in the back!!

It takes a lot of pressure off of me since I don't have to worry too much about keeping formation and timing. Now, I'm sure I will get fussed at if I let too much space open up between the rider in front of me, but the most part, it is pretty simple. The distance between La Junta and our next stop, Limon, is about 100 miles. So I kick back and enjoy the ride.

When we pull into Limon, I'm very good on fuel, so I decide to skip the fuel stop and immediately line up. Whooohoooo!! I get to ride behind the wing!!! My good friend Brett is riding wing, so I know it will be a nice little ride to Burlington.

I hear Goldwing Guy got a tongue lashing. And he should have, too. For the most part, rules are common sense and there for a reason. With that many motorcycles, it's just about safety.

We pull out of our fuel stop and head out to Burlington. I wish I could say it was an enjoyable ride, but it wasn't. It would have been except for the 40 mile an hour crosswind! Yikes!! That cold wind blowing up my nose was awful!!! Or the gusts that threw me out of my lane. Or the cold wind blowing up my nose! Gusts that threw me out of my lane.

Wash, rinse, repeat. Ad nauseum.......

Getting to Burlington, I am glad to be off the bike. The VFW post was the dinner stop, and it was nice to have the folks turn out and feed us. I know I was tired. I think we all were.

At this point, I knew I was glad to be going home the next day. I was done.

The next morning, I get up and load the bike up. We have a small group heading out--I take a leisurely breakfast while my friends are saying their goodbyes.

We meet up and pull out to head home. It is still pretty windy, so I'm glad that I'm in the direction of home.

It was a good ride altogether. I never did hear if Goldwing Guy ever got his act together. Hopefully he did and had a great time.

I know that there were a lot of FNGs on the ride--I think the economy was the main reason. Hopefully it won't be the case for 2010. We shall see.

This ride over--and on to the next.

Fast foward to October....and the Mountain Shadow Rider's Annual Breast Cancer Awareness Ride. It's a doozy...at least for me.

Until then,

Keep the Shiny Side Up!!

~The Rainbow Wahine