...get to San Diego in spite of everything.
On July 23, JC (Yodamaster) and I headed for San Diego, CA. We planned two days out and two days back, with three days in that foreign land.
As reported in
another thread, I had difficulties on day two, but had a deadline to meet in San Diego at 1000 on the 25th.
Day 1 was uneventful. We left Denton around 0600 and landed in Albuquerque, NM about 12 hours later.
Up in the panhandle, we found a longhorn steer out in the middle of nowhere. It's actually a huge metal sculpture, but there was nothing around for miles.
We also took the opportunity to take Old Route 66 through Adrian, TX, which happens to be the midpoint of US66 between Chicago and LA.
About the only business in town is a roadside diner. So we stopped for PIE.
On the second day, I got to enjoy some nice scenery before the mechanical troubles started. I might have mentioned once or three times that I love riding in the southwest.
The repairs on day 2 put us very much behind. We planned to be in SD by nine pm and instead arrived at one-thirty in the morning. I've got to hand it to JC for sticking with me. The last five hours of the day were in the dark on lonely roads; first straight and hypnotizing, then windblown, curvy, mountainous, and critter rich (at least according to the deer and bighorn sheep warning signs.)
So, why the need to get there by a certain time and date? Because my oldest son requested my presence, that's why.
He's a Captain in the Marines. Since shortly after returning from his second deployment, he has been the commanding officer of Headquarters Battery of the 5th battalion of the 11th Marine regiment at Camp Pendleton.
We were invited to his change of command ceremony. He was transferring command to another officer and preparing to move to a berth on the staff of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
The Captain before the ceremony.
2nd Platoon waiting for the ceremony to start.
Captain Barnett about to accept the battery guidon from his 1st Sgt...
...and then about to pass the guidon to his successor.
The outgoing commander gets the spotlight.
His fiancé and mother were honored with bouquets.
His current battalion commander (far right) and former battalion commander (second right) had their own CoC ceremony only 27 days before.
Very proud parents with the Captain and his wife-to-be.
As a Viet-era former Marine, JC was in his element. My son and I were glad to have him there.
I think he's doing well on all fronts. She's a Navy helo pilot stationed at North Island.
Following the ceremony, my son hosted a small reception (Del Taco burritos and beer). His staff presented him with a frame containing the actual guidon used in the ceremony and an appreciative plaque.
I helped him clean out his office and move into the battery Executive Officer's office. He was going to work in that role for a week before moving to 11th MEU. We stopped and picked up the throttle cables he'd ordered for me. He had to work on Friday, so I spent the morning installing the new cables and giving the bike a sponge bath in the parking garage of the hotel. (is having the tank off four times a record for a trip?)
They live downtown, with a view of North Island. We had a hotel a few blocks closer to the ocean.
Here's the view from the hotel room.
And this was the view at the Zoo.
On Sunday morning, we headed out bright and early intending to make El Paso before nightfall. We had to retrace the path ridden in the dark on Wednesday night.
It was easier in the daylight.
On this stretch Wednesday night, we were able to ride side by side for miles, illuminating the desert with over 300 watts light.
The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful. We lucked out, temperature wise, with the only really hot sections being between Yuma and Tuscon, and from Abilene to the barn. Most of the last two days had some overcast or showers that kept the heat at bay.
Was it worth the trouble and the effort to push on in spite of my mechanical problems? Absolutely.
As my riding companero shown below frequently states, "It's all part of the adventure."
