Is this a rugged male model from the Freeman's catalogue? Oh no, it's only Barry striking a pose!
Here we all are taking a breather at Bear Lake. Didn't they park nice & neatly?
Forked lightning & booming thunder greeted us at 5.30am, with lashings of rain for good measure. Oh, thanks very much, I thought, as I rolled my eyes heavenward. That's all we need. However, we weren't scheduled to leave until eight, & by the time we had breakfast the storm had passed & the roads were dry, with just the odd telltale puddle left here & there. As we pulled out of the hotel car park to begin the day's ride, I sneaked another glance heavenward & muttered a sheepish 'thank you'.
Big day today, riding through three states. Beginning in Utah, we cross into Idaho, & end up in Wyoming. All through beautiful countryside, much greener (that'll be thanks to all that rain), & comfortably cooler. Not cold at all, mind you, still on par with a hot summer's day at home, but not the oppressive, sticky, burn-your-eyeballs heat of Las Vegas & southern Utah. Very pleasant indeed, everything going wonderfully well. We stopped beside Bear Lake, a huge, deep turquoise blue picture-postcard kind of a lake, with a backdrop of mountains adding the finishing touch to the view. Bear Trapper Lodge had laid on a wonderful buffet lunch for us, with fresh salads, hot dishes, fruit, bread, jam & ice-cream made with delicious local raspberries. They really did us proud. Next door was a chocolate shop, & we even had time to call in & buy some goodies. Could things get any better than this?
Actually, no. But they could get worse. And they did. We stopped a couple of miles up the road at the Idaho sign, for a photo. Colin's bike had been playing up since our last petrol stop, losing power when he went to accelerate, & after the photo stop, it just gave up. We still had 120 miles to do, & there wasn't really anywhere nearby where we could get help. There was nothing for it but to load his bike into the van, & carry on to Jackson Hole, where we knew there was an EagleRider. Colin went on the back of Bob, who was riding solo, but he made Colin take photos from the bike for him as payment for his ride. Colin's wife, Janet, joined me in the van, & we soon forgot the broken bike as we had a good old natter & the miles just slipped away.
After a couple more photo/comfort stops, we arrived at aour hotel in Jackson Hole at 5.30pm, & John went straight up to EagleRider to report the problem, while I got us all checked in. EagleRider said John should take Colin's bike up there before they closed at 6pm, so I went up in the van with him.
As we stood in the evening sunshine discussing the possible diagnosis of the problem, I was leaning against the van when it started to rock gently. Not knowing the cause, I moved away from it, but felt the ground still moving strangely under my feet. Was it perhaps the effect of a large wagon passing by? No, it was an earthquake! We all felt it, John, me, & a couple of EagleRider guys. OMG! An actual earthquake! It lasted about five seconds, & it was really weird, & quite uncommon for the area. Whatever next!
They couldn't decide what the problem was at five-to-closing-time, it was a new bike, with nothing obviously wrong. Except, of course, it wouldn't go. Had diesel been put in by mistake? No, others had used the same pump. Well, it could have been bad gas (that's petrol, to you & me), according to the EagleRider guy, the tank should be drained, & that would probably fix it. But they were closing, so John said he would take it back to the hotel & do it. When we got back, Colin said that other bikes had used the same pump before & after him at the gas station, & they were OK, so it couldn't be that. John checked the oil filter, spark plugs (I'm guessing now, I went back to the room), & generally fiddled about with it a bit. But no joy, so we'll take it up to EagleRider to sort it out in the morning.
Just when you think the day is going well, you have a breakdown & then an earthquake to contend with. Ain't life wonderful!
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