I was up at 7:00 this morning. I set an alarm which is not typical on the road, but I want to have time to enjoy a cup of coffee and maybe breakfast before heading out. Coffee is simple and certainly better than starting the day with a beer. Breakfast took a minute to figure out especially since I don’t have anything to keep eggs from sticking to my pan. But all turned out well and the little bottle of mixed spices I picked up allowed me to add a little salt and pepper so that my eggs weren’t just plain.
I begin to break down camp while enjoying my coffee. I can easily have camp broke down and Laurelin loaded up in 15 minutes but I’m taking my time. Cooking and cleaning adds time to when we can head out but we still get out at a respectable 9:00. There’s a total of 9 stops on the schedule for today so we’ll be busy.
The first stop is in Joaquin which is right on the Louisiana border. It’s an overcast morning but cool, almost chilly. Leaving out is a couple miles of highway before turning onto unmarked twisty backroads that lead us to Highway 84, which takes us all the way into Joaquin. It’s nice two lane all the way to Timpson where it merges with Highway 59 and turns into split four lane. Lot of semis out on this stretch but traffic is fairly light. At Tenaha we switch back to two lanes into Joaquin.
The cloud cover has broken and the sun is shining. There’s not much to this part of town. From the outside the museum is certainly nice looking and I’d love to go in, I’m always willing to go into any establishment with a bunch of bikes in it. But it’s Labor Day so they aren’t open. Actually, Labor Day doesn’t matter, they’re only open on Friday and Saturday. Now, I’m not the luckiest of people, but every once in while I get a little nugget, and this morning is one of those times.
The owner pulls up as I’m writing my notes and asks if I’m on the tour. He then offers to let me use the restroom if I need, and I do, plus it’s an excuse to get inside. He also offers me a cold bottle of water. There’s about 30 bikes in this collection and everyone is part of his personal collection. He charges no admission. He tells me the building used to be an old hardware store and is located next door to his father’s old motorcycle shop, Leggett Cycle. I don’t know what he does for work but he’s definitely got some money. Thirty motorcycles, a building to show them in, charging zero admission and driving a CyberTruck. He’s certainly doing well.
Our next two stops are in Gladewater, just 60 miles away. More two lane roads but a really nice twisty run through the trees. We’re running a good speed and I’m having a great time leaning back and forth through the turns. Then, on a straight run, I’m suddenly walloped but something massive, right on the cheek bone. Not sure what it was but I’m alone out here so it had to be another insect. What I know for sure is that it hurt and I said some not safe for church words.
We lose the fun twisty two lane as we near Longview and get back to the four lanes. Then it’s onto I-20 for a few miles before cutting north to Gladewater. The oil derrick is in the center of a brick lined square. I’m unsure of it’s history but it looks like it was working at one point in time. It’s lunch time now and since I’ve missed lunch the first two days I decide to start looking for something to eat. Nothings catching my eye so I decide to just continue on, I’ll find something in Greenville, it’s only 80 miles away.
The next stop is close, very close. It’s the Gladewater Museum. I try to get to it but end up driving in a circle before finding it. It’s a stone’s throw away from the derrick, literally. Not only can you see it from the derrick, but you can actually throw a stone from the derrick and hit the museum. I didn’t see it though.
As I pull up to the museum I notice another rider pulling up. We shout a few words back and forth but neither can hear anything, loud bikes and I’ve got a radio on. He pulls up next to me and we both shut off our bikes and chat for a minute. He too is here because of the tour, my first meeting with a fellow tour rider. His wife and son both had to work today so he decided it was a good time to set out to knock off a couple of tour stops, I’d have done the same.
Our next stop is in Greenville, another 80 mile run and all four lane roads surrounded by trees. The trees are set back now though, several feet from the highway. This gives way to open fields dotted with trees. As I said, I decided to wait to get to Greenville to find food but in Emory I come across a place called Sidekick’s Bar & Grill and quickly turn in. Sidekick’s is huge, ton’s of tables, a stage for live music with a dance floor and pool tables. I could see this place absolutely jumping on a Friday or Saturday night. Lunch is just a club sandwich but it hits the spot and I’m happy to have a second meal in me.
Leaving out of Sidekick’s I get a sinking feeling in my stomach, not because of the food, but because of the dark clouds out front. They stay to my left as I continue on and evidence of rain on the road has me hopeful that these clouds have already done their work here. And apparently they did as I don’t see any rain getting into Greenville.
The stop in Greenville is the Audie Murphy statue. The statue is located off of the I-30 frontage road which is one way. But the gate is closed and locked, I can’t get in. My only option is to get my photo from the road, which has a six inch shoulder. I’ve got two options, drive down the road and come back or drive the wrong way down the road and u-turn. I opted for the shorter option, there’s absolutely no traffic on this road right now. I park pretty much on the edge of the roadway and very quickly get my photo. I see zero cars during all of this and move back into the driveway of the statue to make my notes. May have broken a traffic law but all was safe.
The first of our next three stops is in Plano which brings us into the Dallas/Fort Wroth Metroplex. It’s a few more small two lane roads, a couple that are really bad and one that is under construction and reduced to bumpy dirt and gravel for a couple of very slow miles. Traffic gets very busy once I near the big city, though I don’t run into any slow downs.
The first top in Plano is the MotorcycleGear.com store situated amongst a group of shopping centers. Getting here is simple enough but the dark clouds have returned and I can’t tell what’s going to happen. They loom in the close distance as I arrive and gather my photos and notes. All is calm still when I arrive but as it sit there the wind begins to pick up, not a good sign. I check the weather radar and it looks like I’m gonna get wet. I decide to cover my bag which takes some time. I also decide that taking the time to suit up is pointless. All I do is empty my pockets into the trunk and carry on. If it comes hard I’m going to get wet regardless. I just don’t need my wallet or cash to get soaked again, my wallet is still fat due to yesterday’s water.
The rain soon comes but thankfully it’s not heavy and the wind isn’t bad. However, I am riding on inner city roads. Some drivers don’t care about wet roads and zip in and out of traffic and follow far too close to others. The rain is enough but worrying about the actions of others makes it worse. It’s only 15 miles to the second stop but it takes a good 30. By the time we get there the rain has stopped, but the dark clouds are still close. I don’t know if I’m in for more. This stop is the Moto Liberty Motorcycle Gear store in Addison.
Leaving here we run right next to the end of the regional airstrip and single engine prop plane passes just a few feet above us as it comes in to land. The orientation was wrong but I got the image from the movie Top Gun when Tom Cruise was racing his bike with the fighter jet taking off. The third stop is in Lewisville and another 13 miles and 30 minutes away.
The rain doesn’t return and the clouds have definitely moved out of my path when we reach our seventh stop for the day, Riders Biker Supply. It’s getting late in the day now, for riding at least. It’s close to 5:00 and I still have two stops. A quick distance and time check tells me my next stop is two hours away, no way I can get both in. I’ve got two choices, stop now and try to make it up or keep pushing. I like to be off the road soon enough to get situated at camp or a hotel and get some food before dark. I decide to push on. Another 100 miles.
Our next stop is in Graham and is an alternate stop on the tour. We’re her because we missed our stop in Rockport back on day one. Getting here is quite the ride though. The clouds dark clouds are gone. We’re back on four lane highway and moving fast. The evening sun is sitting just perfectly in the sky which is perfectly dotted with white puffy clouds. Running through ranch lands, the sight is perfect for a painting.
It’s a long 100 miles into Graham and it’s been a long day. We arrive just before 7:00 which is late in the day. The stop here is a memorial in front of the Young County Courthouse. The memorial pays tribute to all the live lost in battle from Young County. These range from WWI to the peace time era. There are hundreds of names on this wall. It’s a sad moment as I stand and and look at them all.
I decide that this is our last stop for the day which puts us behind schedule for just one stop. I also decide to get dinner and then find a room for the night, today has been fun but a lot more than I anticipated. Just across the street is place called Brickhouse Pizza Ristorante. It’s another large restaurant with an automatic front door which is new to me, I think. It’s got plenty of seating, a piano that clearly gets used and an absolutely beautiful wood carved bar.
They’ve got steak and the like on the menu but too expensive for me. They’ve also got a 56oz steak challenge, finish the steak and half a dozen sides in an hour and get the meal for free. Not doing that. Pizza for me. It’s good. Cooked in a wood fired, rotating brick oven. The crust is uneven which isn’t a bad thing. The sauce has a heavy tomato flavor that reminds me of Italy. Very good. I spend some time chatting with the bartender and by then time I am about ready to leave realize that my beer glass has rubber on the bottom. They fill they’re pint glasses by simply pressing the glass down on the tap, the glass fills from the bottom up. Really cool and I’ve seen this online before but never in the wild. And me, in my simpleton moment, decides to push against the rubber plug and proceed to spill beer onto my leg. It was an immediate “You’re an idiot” moment.
I’m supposed to get into the Texas panhandle tomorrow and end up in Kansas. I’ll look at it in the morning and see if we can push to make that happen. It’s already after midnight now so it’s off to bed for me. I’m beat.
The Motorcycle Diaries of an Easy Rider 