Rice-a-Roni

Tony just checked in with me.

Not much to report today. they went to the observatory on a fun and twisty road. Alot of riders were there because the point value was 24, 000 for this bonus. Then they headed to Livermore to a firehouse to get a picture of the Longest Continuously Burning Lightbulb ( http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tips/getAttraction.php?tip_AttractionNo==174 ). Tony and his mom had to wait for a length of time at this bonus because the fire station was out on a call for a main gas line break. From there they headed into San Francisco for multiple bonus locations. With all of the stopping and going on hills Tony doesn't think that his clutch will ever be the same. Things were going good because the GPS said to turn down a good street.

Not much else to report now other than they are heading back to the firehouse. That is a story left for Karol to tell.

Tonight they are not going for anymore bonuses due to daylight restrictions. they will head out early in the morning to hit some of those daylight locations.

More to follow.

amy

News from Tony:

Tony was very discouraged because after crunching their points he realized that they may not have enough points to be considered a "finisher". So, last night they sat up, when they should have been sleeping to try and come up with a plan to get additional bonus points. They came up with a rough idea, but are still worried. Today was a very busy day as they tried to grab some of the larger points in Death Valley and Yosemite.

Karol was a trooper because as much as she hates heat they decided Death Valley was a must for the points. At noon, the temperature was 115 degrees, but the sign at the bonus location said "It's a dry heat" which didn't make it any better.

Karol and Tony split up so tony could grab some points on a mountain pass that was unmaintained and they were warned about the conditions. He went there with another rider that they had met along the way, but that rider turned around because the path was so bad. Tony was nervous when his fuel light went on. by the time that he got down the mountain his gauge read empty and he put 9.8 gallons into his 8.7 gallon tank.

Tony is now heading over to Yosemite to meet up with Karol at another bonus location. From there, they will drive until they can take their 6 hour sleep bonus starting as early as 12:01 AM on Tuesday. After their sleep bonus they will be headed to Lick Observatory in San Jose.

More updates later on.

amy

Pull out the heated gear

I Can't believe I'm doing that. After sweltering temps most of the time, we're now at 4500 feet, and heading for Independence Pass early in the AM. First a stop at o'dark thirty in Idaho Falls. Today was pretty much book west! We did stop at the Wizard of Oz Museum, and I will earn life credits for buying Lisa a Wicked Witch of the West trinket. We've been playing hopscotch with RV and Curt, and should have followed them off I-70 instead of following the instructions. We got off one exit later and got stopped by a train. Only 4 cars left, and they decided to stop to connect more cars. Time for a "u" turn, and through town to the Hole in the Wall, boogying to beat sunset. Lots of other bikes there, and I'll get the slowest time for traveling the dirt road. (6 miles, Mike....not 4......one-way) Actually not a bad road, but I'm a woos (sp). Tony left me to make sure he got there before sunset, but that's cool. (he came back). Lots of miles to cover in the next few days. So.....cio for now! (PS No Rain today!!!)

Off to the Left Coast

I just got off the phone with Tony and here is a ride update.

Like everybody expected the second leg is heading west. They are heading to California via Kansas (holy flat and straight state BATMAN). As I write this they are still in Kansas TOTO and just got done visiting the Wizard of Oz Museum/Gift Shop. They are making a mad dash to a hole in the wall for a bonus that they can only receive during daylight hours.

When they left the Oz museum the GPS said sunset was at 8:08 PM and they would arrive at 8:16 PM. Somehow the directionally challenged Tony remembered that the sun set in the West and figured that sunset would get later the closer that they got. Right now, sunset is at 8:19 PM and they should arrive at 8:11 PM according to the GPS. The tricky part will be that this bonus is down a 6 mile gravel road. They had just stopped for gas because they would be cutting it close by the time that they arrived at the bonus and Tony wanted to burn off a few gallons to lighten the load before they face the gravel road. This gas stop was the fastest that they have made during the whole rally at 3 minutes.

The temperature was in the mid to high 80's today with low humidity, so it was alot more comfortable to ride. Tony is also very happy that he is able to listen to his "angry music" (hard rock), which makes his ride much easier. The XM radio is still cutting out, but for now he still is able to listen to it.

That is it for now.

Amy

Now that that's done.

Hey guess what, yea we got rained on again. In talking to other riders the weather has really taken a lot out of people. On our way here from Kansas city the weather went from 90' and sunny to 70' and a downpour in about 10miles.

Well we are in, scored and packing for the second leg. Both of us shipped a box here with a change of clothes and more food. It's a good thing too because my current stuff is wet and staaanky. By the time I get home I'll be SOOOO ready to enjoy something other than Cliff Bars, Almonds, and tuna at night. I will however have to talk to my boss because I'm getting really comfortable wearing bicycle shorts every day. Maybe I can get them classified as "Corporate Casual"

It's amazing how fast thing change. Wednesday I was dissapointed because when I added our points up we were going to be about 4,500 below where I wanted to be going onto the second leg. Today we grabbed the second of the two bonus location that we had intended on dropping (this time management stuff is next to impossible). By doing that we ended up 500 OVER. It doesn't sound like a lot but any little bit helps.

Luckily both of us walked away from the scoring table without leaving any points on it. What that means is we went to the scoring table with X-number of points documented and we walked away with X given to us. You get points taken away for things like not having an odometer number on your points sheet, having a bad picture, losing a receipt (you get the idea).

Right now the bikes are prepped and waiting for whatever comes next. Mine had a new rear tire put on it and the oil changed and Karol's had the oil changed and her broken mount fixed (thanks to Ryan Manley). Actually my rear tire is still in great shape but I don't know what the next leg will bring so I'll be carting the one they just took off back home with me.

We have to be down at a riders meeting at 4am where they will give us our packets for the next leg and go over any rule changes or notes. After that everyone will make a mad dash to their rooms, flip on the Do Not Disturb signs, and star planning. I'm guessing housekeeping isn't going to be happy about 100 rooms with DND signs on the doors until 9 or 10.

I don't know if I updated the fact that the EASY button is now working but unfortunately my XM radio is still dead. Evidently when Garmin says that the GPS is waterproof they don't include the connectors. Right now mine is very corroded and I'm guessing it's just a contact thing but after cleaning it twice already I'm not getting any farther.

Time to get back to prep and get some shut eye before the wakeup call comes in. Tomorrow could be a very long day.

Leg 1 is complete

Tony and Karol-

Congrats on completing the first leg of the IBR 2007. I can't wait to see how your scoring goes and to read your upcoming posts.

Get some well needed sleep tonight and plan strategically for leg 2.

I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed for better weather during leg 2.

Keep up the great work.

amy

Iron Butt....maybe.....but everything else is falling apart!

Equipment malfunctions!!! In our 2 days of rain, the GPS 2610 got so wet, the screen de-laminated. No problem, after it dried, it flaked away. Now it's extremely difficult to select things on the screen. The old GPS worked fine until today, when the ball broke on the mount. Technical difficulties. Between the heat and the rain, it's tough on bodies and machines. (Tony's holding up great! I'm not handling the 104 degree temps well, especially when sitting in traffic on interstates!

News tonight from Bentonville, AR (the bonus we were going to scrap, but didn't). As Amy reported we set up in Memphis this morning, and decided to forestall the Fayetteville, AR and Wal-Mart Visitor Center (we all know how Tony feels about Wal-Mart) :^) We picked up Superman and Paducah for more points. After heading to Mammoth Springs, we realized that we had a good chance of gettting the Fayetteville (razorback mascot) after all. According to the rules we had 1 hr after sunset. Sun Set at 7:54 PM, and we could make it in at 8:04. Piece of cake.......couldn't find the correct parking lot or Big Red. Heat makes me grouchy, which means I've been VERY grouchy. Tony's trying to be patient. Anyhow after numerous stops and asking students that had no clue, we finally found the statue hidden in a litte park on the Univ of AR campus. Took the pic, and dashed over to the gas station with minutes to spare (Phew!) So looks like we're going for the scrapped bonii after all.

I think the next leg I'll go to Alaska. Maybe it's cool there!!! Cio for now....wish us luck tomorrow.