Dublin Sights Pictures From Our Second Day in Ireland Tuesday, since we were still recovering from the flight over, we decided to spend the day in Dublin. The first course of business was to find a hostel to spend the evening and a place to dump our luggage. Once that was accomplished we headed out. Dublin is a great little town, with many friendly people. I have to give Guinness credit for being the great unifier. It crosses all boundaries.
Flight From Amsterdam to Dublin Photos From Our First Day In Ireland It was early Monday morning when we arrived in Amsterdam. We only had a couple of hours between flights, so we spent it at the airport dealing with airport security and getting to our gate for the connecting flight. Time flew, so in no time it felt as if we were airborne again, on our way to Dublin. A good friend of mine is from Dublin and he still has family there. His mother, a sister and her daughter met us at the airport in Dublin and took …
Photos From 35,000 Feet The flight from Chicago to Amsterdam Sunday, Tanya and I packed up and headed to Cracker Barrel for one last meal before boarding our flight to Amsterdam. We flew KLM because we like their service and we know where the good seats are. The flight was a little over seven hours long, and we got no sleep, but we arrived in great spirits. Next stop, Dublin.
Valparaiso Kiwanis 20th Annual Hot Air BalloonFest Valparaiso, IN – September 11, 2010 I flew into Chicago yesterday as the first leg of my Euro Tour 2010, as Tanya is coming with me and it was faster than having her come to LA. It turns out that Valparaiso, IN was a hotbed of activity this weekend. One event I wanted to attend was the popcorn festival, but time was tight. Instead we headed over to the Porter County Fairgrounds for the Valparaiso Kiwanis 20th Annual Hot Air BalloonFest. I was told that they would have tethered balloon rides, but no …
Petrified Forest, Piedmont, SD Photos From the Petrified Forest of the Black Hills When I first arrived at the campground in Piedmont, SD I noticed there was a sign for a petrified forest that seemed to be located somewhere on the grounds that our cabin was located. After spending the day in Spearfish Canyon, Deadwood and the motocross races we decided to spend a little time back at the cabin. I spoke with one of the girls that worked there and she told me that the petrified forest was just over the hill that was behind the cabin. We decided …
Motocross Races At Sturgis Sponsored By the Jackpine Gypsies What many people seem to forget is that the Black Hills Rally and Races was first conceived by the Jackpine Gypsies motorcycle club in 1938 and it was about the races. Well, to be accurate, the first time had just one racing event with nine participants. One might suggest that after 70 years of rallies (they missed a couple due to WWII) that the event has grown substantially. When I first started riding motorcycles around 1968, it was on the dirt and motocross was my thing. When Tanya and I were …
Photos from Deadwood Bike Week, Black Hills Rally After riding through Spearfish Canyon, you are dropped off in Lead followed by Deadwood. Lead does not really have a lot to offer and as Tanya had never been to Deadwood before it was decided that we would stop there for lunch and to check out the hot bikes. Deadwood has really changed a lot since my first visit in 1986. I guess the combination of bikers and casinos has paid off for them. I am not really sure why Sturgis does not have any casinos, or if they do have them, …
Photos of Our Ride Through Spearfish Canyon 70th Annual Black Hills Rally & Races 2010 On Saturday, I decided to take Tanya on a ride through Spearfish Canyon. The Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway is billed as one of the most beautiful rides in the country. We started off in Spearfish, then rode it to Deadwood, Boulder Canyon and back into Sturgis. It was kind of rainy, so I did not make as many stops as I would have if it was dry, but we enjoyed the ride thoroughly.
Sturgis and Rapid City, SD 70th Annual Black Hills Rally and Races, August 2010 We woke up to an absolutely gorgeous day in South Dakota. Not too hot, not too cold. Well rested and a great latte prepared by Tanya (yes, she brought her latte machine and special blend of coffee with her), and we were ready to roll. I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of traffic. I had spoken to a few people on their way home from Sturgis and had been led to believe that there were more than 1.250 million attendees. Well, if there were that …
Photos from Wyoming and South Dakota The Final Leg of the Ride to the Black Hills Rally Thursday did not quite go as planned. I started off in Cheyenne, WY and should have been able to make it to Piedmont, SD (my destination) in five hours. Unfortunately, within minutes of leaving Cheyenne I knew there was something physically wrong with me as I had very little muscle control. Unfortunately, as I mentioned the other day, once you leave civilization in Wyoming you are pretty much committed to continuing on until you reach another big town. It just so happens that …
