# The Last Ride



## RoadKing

The last ride, I have been trying to plan a bike ride for three years now and this year I'm going. When I turned 60 I figured my riding days were limited. For two years I've been trying to find one or two people to take a trip with no luck. 

I'm going alone!  I'll be leaving from Western PA then Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Misouri, Kansas and Colorado.

I need sites to visit. I want to avoid highways, I prefer 2 lane roads if possible.

Any suggestions for places to visit would be greatly appreciated.

I like historic places, odd stuff, and small towns. 

Thanks in advance for any help. RK


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## mak2

I have never ridden on national highway, US 40, but I have heard it is a nice ride.  I am thinking abuot Indianapolis to Richmond this summer.  Lots of history and wide road.


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## RoadKing

mak2 said:


> I have never ridden on national highway, US 40, but I have heard it is a nice ride.  I am thinking abuot Indianapolis to Richmond this summer.  Lots of history and wide road.



_f you're going to be on I40 Go a little south and hit eastern Tennessee the Great Smokey Mountains and contunue over to western NC. Maggie Valley, the Dragon and Cherokee this is some of the best riding on the East Coast_


Tail of the Dragon

Cherohala Skyway


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## Big Dog

US 40 through Kansas is a boring ride, been there done that. If you enjoy fence post have a ball!


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## mak2

Sorry I thought you meant bicycles.


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## BigAl RIP

Last rides .... Man you brought back some great memories for me . 

I still remember my last one . 

It was a perfect clear summer day . 
I had been riding for about 30 minutes with a short break in between . Suddenly I noticed this gorgeous young girl crossing in front of me .Being distracted , I never saw the car coming in front of me, until it was too late  . I laid it down .The girl screamed and I hunched up ready for the worst . 
About that time my Mom came out of Kmart and asked what the hell I was doing and unplugged my ride from the wall . The little ride kiddee car in front of my motorcycle was no where to be seen . I had a tough time explaining as Mom hauled my ass to the car .
Thanks for the memories .....I was 10 years old .


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## JEV

BigAl said:


> Last rides .... Man you brought back some great memories for me .
> 
> I still remember my last one .
> 
> It was a perfect clear summer day .
> I had been riding for about 30 minutes with a short break in between . Suddenly I noticed this gorgeous young girl crossing in front of me .Being distracted , I never saw the car coming in front of me, until it was too late  . I laid it down .The girl screamed and I hunched up ready for the worst .
> About that time my Mom came out of Kmart and asked what the hell I was doing and unplugged my ride from the wall . The little ride kiddee car in front of my motorcycle was no where to be seen . I had a tough time explaining as Mom hauled my ass to the car .
> Thanks for the memories .....I was 10 years old .


That was outstanding. I'm going to make a Lady Bligh & Diet Coke and lift it to your sense of humor. Reps coming as well.

Damn! It won't let me rep you. I owe you one.


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## pirate_girl

RoadKing said:


> The last ride, I have been trying to plan a bike ride for three years now and this year I'm going. When I turned 60 I figured my riding days were limited. For two years I've been trying to find one or two people to take a trip with no luck.
> 
> I'm going alone!  I'll be leaving from Western PA then Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Misouri, Kansas and Colorado.
> 
> I need sites to visit. I want to avoid highways, I prefer 2 lane roads if possible.
> 
> Any suggestions for places to visit would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> I like historic places, odd stuff, and small towns.
> 
> Thanks in advance for any help. RK



Sorry for the thread going so badly off topic RK.. (you goons)

Ohio?
Let me see..
You may want to travel, the old Lincoln Highway, you might want to go toward the Defiance Ohio area along the river (St. Rt 424 is beautiful) the scenic drive-- there are bald eagles nesting there.
You might want to travel 66 into my town so I can buy you lunch at The Grind, and have a nice chat.


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## BigAl RIP

pirate_girl said:


> Sorry for the thread going so badly off topic RK.. (you goons)
> 
> Ohio?
> Let me see..
> You may want to travel, the old Lincoln Highway, you might want to go toward the Defiance Ohio area along the river (St. Rt 424 is beautiful) the scenic drive-- there are bald eagles nesting there.
> You might want to travel 66 into my town so I can buy you lunch at The Grind, and have a nice chat.


 

Yes I am sorry , But on another note I have taken old 40 and it was a great ride through the mountains  . I wish I could remember the little Cafe that had a Rams horns stuck in the fork of a tree they had cut off and had on display . They figured the Ram had got his horns stuck in the tree and died about the time frame that Columbus discovered America. pretty neat


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## RoadKing

Countdown 5 days to D-(departure) day. I think I'll go west on Rt36 thru Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Misouri, and Kansas to Colorado and I'll come by US Rt 40 or 50.

Any suggestions on places to stop?


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## bczoom

RoadKing said:


> Any suggestions on places to stop?


A gas station...

You said you're leaving from W. PA.  Where?  My schedule is really AFU but would like to send you off with a cup of coffee.


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## pirate_girl

PM me RK if you are in the area at all, and we'll figure something out as far as a lunchtime meet.


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## Kwiens

Check out my hometown, Hutchinson, KS.  We're the home of the Kansas Cosmosphere and the Underground Salt museum.  Six mile south of Hutchinson in Yoder, KS there's plenty of Amish buggies to miss and great food to eat.

K


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## RoadKing

PG, I'm going across on Rt 36 and coming home on US50.

Kweins, Hutchinson is on the list of towns I'm going through.


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## Doc

Hey RK, I'm close to US50 close to the Ohio WV border.  Let me know when you'll be passing through.

Black Water falls is right off 50 on the eastern part of WV.  Beautiful.  Worth stop for sure.  Lots of other stuff in the area also. 

Bellefontaine Ohio (south of PG a ways, has a couple cool old castles.  The stones were shipped over here and the castles reassembled.  They give tours.

Blennerhassett Island is on the Ohio River at Parkersburg WV.  They have cool riverboat tours that go to the island and relive the early 1800's.  Tour the Blennerhassett Manson, take a ride via horse drawn carriage which is scenic and historic.

Nelsonville Ohio has a Rocky Boot Outlet.  Some good buys for sure, plus a huge taxidermied Grizzly Bear.  It is HUGE.  Nelsonville is on 33 rather than 50 though but within 10 miles of 50 from Athens Ohio which is right on 50

Nelsonville also has a train ride that takes you to an old village where folks live as they did in the mid 1800's.  The train ride is neat and the villiage is entertaining.  Not positive they are still doing this though, so check before making plans.

Someplace on 50 close to Cincinatti you should see Skiline Chili as an option for eating.  Try it.  Get a 3 way and add some of their hot sauce.  It is awesome!!!!!!!

The Rock and Roll hall of fame is in Cleveland, and you could see Browns Stadium.  Downtown Cleveland has this cool Mall that used to be (or is still part of) and old train station.  Really neat.  I can't think of the name of the mall but if you are interested I'm sure I can find out the name for you.

Enough ideas for now, if I think of others I'll let you know.  Have a GREAT trip.  Sounds like fun for sure.


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## Big Dog

RK made it to the Dawg house, we're heading out as soon as RK freshens up. Destination Uhrichville, OH.


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## muleman RIP

Wishing you a safe and enjoyable ride! Glad the storms are over for a while and you should have great cooler weather!


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## thcri RIP

Big Dog said:


> RK made to the Dawg house, we're heading out as soon as RK freshens up. Destination Uhrichville, OH.




Pictures of you two would be great along with the bikes.  Have a safe trip guys.


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## Big Dog

Here's half Murph ......... This is RK just out of Stuebenville, OH. We rode to his destination of Uhrichville, OH where he bought me lunch (he also got me a T-shirt from his HD dealer) and got checked into his hotel. I'm sure he's fast asleep right now. He left Lowell, CT at 9PM yesterday evening and got to my place at 10AM today. He should get plenty of rest to continue his trek tomorrow bright and early. He's a heck of a nice guy! I got 325 miles on my butt and I'll tell you I ain't ready for the Ironman.


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## pirate_girl

Cool beans!


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## Doc

good pic.  We had heavy rains this morning, hope you guys didn't get caught in those.  He's supposed to be stopping by my way but I thought that was a few days away.  I never did pin him down on a time.


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## Big Dog

Doc said:


> good pic.  We had heavy rains this morning, hope you guys didn't get caught in those.  He's supposed to be stopping by my way but I thought that was a few days away.  I never did pin him down on a time.



We dodged the rain the whole way over and I only ran into a couple wet roads on my return. He'll be hitting you on his return hopefully, late next week.


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## pirate_girl

It appears that RK isn't going to be anywhere near me, but it would have been nice to meet him today, or tomorrow for lunch!


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## rback33

RoadKing said:


> PG, I'm going across on Rt 36 and coming home on US50.
> 
> Kweins, Hutchinson is on the list of towns I'm going through.



Then we expect a "hello" from you. My GF plans to buy her own Harley as soon as she gets some other things in order... at any rate, since I am late to the thread... Dawg, do you have his digits or can you get mine to him? I would love to meet him when he gets to Hutchinson. Maybe we can talk Kwiens into joining us....


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## Big Dog

RK is spending the night in Springfield, IL. He did his sight seeing (Anything thing to do with honest Abe) today. Heads out tomorrow and the goal is somewhere in KS off 36.


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## Big Dog

Tonight he's spending the night in Marysville, KS home of the Pony Express Museum. Good riding weather and he proved that helmets aren't always the way to go. A bee got up in his helmet today and he got him a stinger, ouch and kept her on the road! He ate dinner at Shirley's in Wathena, KS and was amused by the signs behind the counter, proof below ............


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## rback33

He is just west of Norton, Kansas now.. got off the phone with him about 15 minutes ago. With any luck, we will be meeting up when he comes back across southern Kansas on US 50.


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## Big Dog

Great! ........ he's been calling me everyday about 3:30PM EST, I think that's about the time his ass gives out ............ 

Should get later as he crosses time zones ...........


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## rback33

One of my Coworkers did one of those super rides Memorial weekend... They went over 1000 miles in one day.. left Great Bend, Kansas at 3 am Saturday morning and arrived in Cadillac, Michigan about 10 pm. 2 guys on two bikes.... The two wives had flown up.. They took three days coming back later in the week and the other guy had is wife then... It made my ass hurt thinking about that...


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## Big Dog

Guy is in Colorado although eventful. Driving in from KS he said he had to lean the bike into the wind to stay upright. He got his bike serviced ASA he got in yesterday......... new rear, fluids, and several adjustments. Started raining after he left the dealership while looking for a hotel ......... no rooms on the first few stops. Ended up calling several on the side of the road in the rain until he found one. Today he's on to Buffalo Bill Museum, he thinking about heading back tomorrow.


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## rback33

Big Dog said:


> Guy is in Colorado although eventful. Driving in from KS he said he had to lean the bike into the wind to stay upright. He got his bike serviced ASA he got in yesterday......... new rear, fluids, and several adjustments. Started raining after he left the dealership while looking for a hotel ......... no rooms on the first few stops. Ended up calling several on the side of the road in the rain until he found one. Today he's on to Buffalo Bill Museum, he thinking about heading back tomorrow.



Yeah.. he commented on the wind yesterday when I was talking to him... That's pretty typical of Kansas so.... Not fun to ride/drive across at all.


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## Doc

Guy was in Parkersburg WV.  We had breakfast at the Mountaineer Restaurant (THANKS Guy!!!!!).  I met with Guy and George (a friend of Guy's from Maine, who recently moved back to WV).  We had a good chat.    
Both Guy and George are on 50 heading east.  Then they will jump on I-79N for a ways and then take side roads up past east Pittsburgh to miss the city traffic.  
Dawg he's heading your way!!!!  
Hopefully it will stay dry today for their ride.

Nice meeting you Guy; thanks for breakfast!


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## Big Dog

Doc said:


> Guy was in Parkersburg WV.  We had breakfast at the Mountaineer Restaurant (THANKS Guy!!!!!).  I met with Guy and George (a friend of Guy's from Maine, who recently moved back to WV).  We had a good chat.
> Both Guy and George are on 50 heading east.  Then they will jump on I-79N for a ways and then take side roads up past east Pittsburgh to miss the city traffic.
> Dawg he's heading your way!!!!
> Hopefully it will stay dry today for their ride.
> 
> Nice meeting you Guy; thanks for breakfast!



Yeah he called yesterday letting me know when he'll get in. I'll be looking for him to help load him up and see him off towards home this evening.


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## rback33

Sadly, I missed him on Sunday... weather and bad timing made it tough... sounds like he is having a heck of a trip though!


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## jwstewar

I missed this thread earlier. Too bad. If he was on 50, he went through Chillicothe. He could have gone to see Tecumseh and he also went right by my house. He could have stopped and said Hello. Hope he at least waived as he went by.


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## RNE228

Interesting how close some of you are to US50. I am about 3 miles by road, and maybe a mile as a crow flies. 

There is a sign at the start of US50 in Sacramento, "Ocean City Md 3xxx miles".

I am 35 miles east of Sacramento, off US50. I have only traveled east of Lake Tahoe on it once, while returning from Wyoming. That time, we came down Wind River Canyon and SouthPass, then crossed I80 at Rawlins and dropped south along Flaming Gorge. Caught US 50 near Provo. It is a pretty lonely highway thru Nevada.


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## Big Dog

Guy planned it perfect ...... Colt and him had his bike loaded just as I pulled in to the drive ..... 

He's on his way home, he should be on I80 (Dubois, PA) in about a half hour!


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## RoadKing

Well, I made it home in one piece. I pulled in at 4:30 AM Beat but happy.It was a great ride, a little damp but good,
i want to send a big thanks to the "Big Dawg" for all the help to make my trip a success.Here are a few pics of what i saw.


1 The Dawg in uniform

2 Lincoln's House

3 Lincoln monument Springfield Ill.

4 Lincoln Law office

5 Lincoln tomb

6 one thing I did right was pick the right roads US 36 going and US 50 coming back


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## RoadKing

1 new friends in Ohio

2 Last but not least RK and "The Man" it was good meeting you Doc.


I have some photos of Bufalo Bill's grave and Lookout Mt but they have to be developed. Som dummy forgot his camera in the motel and had to buy a disposable.


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## Doc

Good meeting you Guy!   You sure made good time getting back home.  I think you were ready for home and your own bed.   

Good pics so far and I look forward to more from your trip.


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## muleman RIP

Good experience to enjoy. Have you noticed Doc is starting to resemble his avatar more?


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## pirate_girl

Doggie sure looks hot aside that bike, you big hunka man ya! 

Nice pics RK, you look like a very kind man, and Bill of course Doc resembles his avatar, why do you think I chose that one for him? lol

 just kiddin' boss, I wuv ya..


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