06 ARKANSAS WEEKEND RUN


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July 30th 2006
Published: November 30th 2006
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Cindy & Effie in ARCindy & Effie in ARCindy & Effie in AR

AR has some great rides and views. It is my favorite state to ride in.
This is the continuing saga of my trips in 2006 on my 2005 883 LOW Harley Sportster. This trip was taken 28-30 July 2006.

This was my last free weekend in the KC area until NOV probably. With all my longer trips there were multiple ABC points sitting in AR that I had not had a chance to get yet. Seems every weekend I was heading the other 3 directions and had not made it to AR at all this year. I had missed my little day trips down there. I really enjoy a weekend in AR as the roads are twisty, shady and great views are frequent. Next week when I head for the east coast, I will go through the east side of AR picking up a bunch of my ABC’s, but this weekend it will be a trip through the west half of AR. This is a solo trip, just me and my bike Effie.

This trip will be the first one that I take a laptop on. I made a special foam sleeve that the laptop slides into, hoping this would protect it from the vibration and thumping it will take as it is transported
AR STATE LINEAR STATE LINEAR STATE LINE

This was my first trip to AR for the year. Man did I miss it. What great rides await in this state.
on my Harley. This will be a kind of a shake down cruise to see if it will be protected enough as I tote the company’s laptop along with me. After my vacation in AUG I will be staying on the east coast and doing lots of customer visits to upgrade some of our equipment. I told my company I would be happy to do this, but I wanted to use my bike as transportation. They didn’t have a problem with that. Is this a great company or what? Working for a guy that wouldn’t have a problem letting me ride the bike is one of the many reasons why I still work here after 23 years. 31 days paid off a year are many of the other reasons.

Friday 28 JULY 06
Friday afternoon found me taking off from work just a tad early to miss the rush hour parking lot at the Grandview triangle. Most of the day will be on US71 south. The weather started off pretty warm, the thermometer on the bike showed it reached up to103 while we were moving. But I wasn’t as uncomfortable as I usually am when it hits 100 on
Quitman ARQuitman ARQuitman AR

You know how hard it is to find a city and county with the same name that start with the letter "Q"?
that thermometer. I made good time all the way to Nevada MO. Stopping at the post office there I got not only my ABC picture, but also 40 postcard stamps for my upcoming vacation. 1 item checked off that long ‘to do’ list. After that brief stop it was off to Anderson MO for my ABCs city A. That was the end of the planned route for the first day, I had set the days route in the GPS for168 miles for Friday, but I knew I wanted to keep pushing until dark as the trip this weekend will be over 1300 miles and I wanted to spend a hunk of Sunday with my Aunt and Uncle on the way home. The route for Saturday ends in Shreveport LA, so any I can get done on Friday is better. So a quick selection of the next days route and away we head for Pea Ridge National Military Park. At the AR state line we stop for a quick ABC picture. We traveled through Bentonville on the way, hometown of Wal-Mart. I didn’t need Pea Ridge for my ABC’s, I just really like riding through the park. It has a lot
AR Barn AdvertisementAR Barn AdvertisementAR Barn Advertisement

You gotta love stuff like this. Anyone could put up a billboard.
of split rail fences and I can usually manage to take a picture of Effie in front of one of these sections of fence. But the park is closed as we come up on it so there is no need to stop. The next ABC stop is Boone County but I won’t get there before dark. Too soon we are in Eureka Springs, AR. This is a popular destination for bikers.

About 8:30pm I pull into the “Bikers Rest” motel. A nice little motel that says its for bikers only. The owners’ 03 sporty is parked out front, the only bike in view. As all the other guests are out riding or eating. She comes out to check out Effie and we talk sporties for a little while. $50 for the night, with Effie parking under cover right outside my window. I am checked into RM#3 the “Clark Gable” room. The atmosphere is great, with some great bike prints on the wall, the largest being a framed poster of Clark on an Indian (I believe) the poster is dated SEPT 1942. Each room is themed different. The motel owner recommends a biker’s restaurant down the road called “Roadhouse”, assuring
NEEDMORE, ARNEEDMORE, ARNEEDMORE, AR

Obviously the founders of NEEDMORE were not satisfied with what they had.
me it won’t be filled with a bunch of obnoxious drunks, as they don’t have a liquor license yet. The Roadhouse is neat, lots of bike stuff hanging on the walls and shop of t-shirts and stuff. I didn’t go in the shop, but bought a no whining button (for John) on the way out. A quick dinner and back to the motel for the MONK repeat on USA. I am a fan, what can I say. After downloading the day’s pictures in the laptop it is off to bed. The alarm is set for 6am.

Saturday 29 JULY 06
The alarm goes off, but this is a new alarm clock. It’s a small wind up clock that folds into its own plastic snap case, about the size of a bigger ring box when closed. The instructions said that the clock might need to be adjusted to keep the correct time. It does need to be adjusted. I should have checked it out sooner when I was at home. We are on the road by 8:15am. The riding temp is over 90 degrees by 8:30am. I know its going to be a hot day. The road heading south out
LA STATE LINELA STATE LINELA STATE LINE

One more state for my ABC's!
of ES isn’t as great as it is on the other side of the city. I run through one town and notice some state police cars. ½ down the road a group of kids (older teenagers) are getting out of a SUV. They have big fluorescent signs, one has something about GOD on it. For the next hour I am passing groups of bikes. Every group has at least one big US flag. Putting 2 and 2 together, I figure it must be the Patriot Guard going to honor a vet and his family. Thanks guys, you fight the good fight. The weather is great, the roads are good. I have missed the rain, some of the roads have puddles, but that is far better then riding in my rain gear, I am happy. Hoping the weather holds like this all day as the whole route for today is forecast for chance of thunderstorms. First stop is Boone Co, then off to Quitman for my city Q. Going is slow on these roads. It takes an hour to get the first 40 miles under my belt.

On the way to Quitman, I am following a truck. Looks like an
LA ROADSIDE VIEWLA ROADSIDE VIEWLA ROADSIDE VIEW

I love the way tree roots look in these swampy areas.
electrical truck, you know it has those panel compartments instead of a bed. Anyway it brakes and slows down so I am thinking its going to turn off, especially since its heading into the other lane. Come to find out it’s a limb down in the road. So he swerves one way (into the on coming lane) and I swerve to the outside of our lane. About half mile later, he pulls up to a stop. I am so lucky that I am following this truck. There is an electric line almost down. Its pole is to the north of the road and it is headed across the road to a house that’s way off the highway. The line is about 8 feet high on the west lane dropping to about 4 to 4.5 feet high in our east lane. I don’t think I would have seen this power line, I am very fortunate that truck did. Beside the obvious shock hazard, this thing could decapitate a biker. After Quitman the plan is to pick up Little Rock as an IBE (#38). Hungry, I see a Cracker Barrel sign “straight ahead”. 15 miles later I am still looking for it.
IBE #58 Shreveport, LAIBE #58 Shreveport, LAIBE #58 Shreveport, LA

This is as far south as I went this trip. The RC airfield was just a few miles north of this sign.
Oh well, on to I-40 and a stop at one of the HD dealers might bring a free lunch even better, hoping it won’t be hot dogs. Central South in KC has some great food on Saturday. Some of their steak Fajitas would hit the spot right now. Jones HD in West Little Rock does not even produce a free hotdog. Oh, well. A picture by the dealership I need this for my Little Rock IBE. I am looking for some Ax??? rain and cold weather outer mittens. They break the fingers into 2 areas instead of one like regular mittens…. Anyway I look but of course if there isn’t a HD logo on it, the dealer doesn’t stock it. Now I really am hungry, its getting hot and I am ready to sit and relax. An ice cold lemonade is sounding really good. A Cracker Barrel appears and I pull up. There is a 20 minute wait for a table, but I stay anyway. Usually I would not wait, but with no hope for a free lunch my taste buds are fixed on Cracker Barrel. The waitress fixes me up with multiple glasses of water and raspberry lemonade, sweet.
IBE #31 Texarkana, ARIBE #31 Texarkana, ARIBE #31 Texarkana, AR

Went through here going and coming from LA.
Effie has her parking spot in the shade. I have taken in the AR map to check on some locations I was not sure about. Lunch is ready before I am ready for it. After lunch it is on to Texarkana another IBE city (IBE#31). The best ride of the day was US71south to Shreveport LA (IBE#58). It wasn’t twisty or even swooping, but it was shady on one HOT day. I make it to Shreveport and as soon as I get the city limit sign I turn around, can’t wait for the return trip up US71.

Just north of Shreveport is an RC airfield. Prairie Home Companion is on NPR, so I pull up at the airfield and watch them do stunts as I listen to the gang on the radio. Its amazing what some people can do with those planes. The scale of the ones flying were rather large, I am sure they had to remove wings or something to get these in the cars to take home. These planes had 5, 6 ft wingspans. My Dad had always wanted to learn how to fly these things, but its an expensive hobby. He is the saying “A
"Y" City in Arkansas"Y" City in Arkansas"Y" City in Arkansas

I was on an ABC's run into AR, it was too funny to find "Y" city, I had to stop and take a picture.
father is someone who has pictures where his money used to be.” A few years ago I bought him a complete set-up (used but in perfect working order) from a local flyer, Dad found someone to teach him how to fly it, but I don’t think he stuck with it for more that a few times to the airfield. That usually isn’t my Dads style, it must not have been what he hoped it would be like, or he crashed the plane. Anyway, I hang around for about a half hour then take to the road again its around 7 pm. The highway is bordered by farmland most of the way. Lot of corn, and it appears the corn has dried on the stalk, almost like they had sprayed the fields with a defoliator but never harvested the corn. Must be for grain? There are lots of puddles in the fields.

Any miles I travel past Shreveport will put me ahead of the plan, so I need to zip along now as the sun is nearing the end of its day. About 4 miles short of Texarkana I run over a huge piece of lost tire tread that spans most of my lane. ½ mile farther down the road is the trailer that lost the tire. In Texarkana I pull over and check out my tires pretty good, at least as good as one person can. I didn’t see or feel any steel belt pieces sticking out of my tires, but tomorrow morning will be a better determination. I have my tire fix it kit (w/pump) I bought from a fellow lister through eBay, but I am hoping I don’t have to use it. I pull up for the night at De Queen AR. The Scottish Inn boasts a cheap room and indeed they are. At $36 dollars (tax included), I find a soft bed, warm shower & cable TV. I also have wireless hi-speed internet. How can these places pay their bills? Well its going to be an early morning tomorrow I have 7.5 hours of riding before I meet up with my uncle and cousin. I will try the 6am thing again….the hotel has a clock radio.

Sunday 30 JULY 06
The air is fresh and crisp leaving De Queen bright and early Sunday. Heading north on US71 toward Fort Smith, it was a great ride. As we approached the ‘mountains’ a large bold yellow sign warned of a winding, steep road for the next few miles. I was giddy with excitement. AWESOME ride and views. It was over much too soon. This section is on the list for a repeat trip next year. This road is part of the Arkansas Scenic Byway and it was a joy to ride on. Along the route 71 junctions with another Highway and shows a city of Booneville east on the other road. So I quickly debated then decided to just head down there and see how far out of the way it was going to be. I would rather have a Boone than a Booneville, but if it’s an easy pick-up then a bird in the hand is worth more than the bird in the bush…. I turn around and head east, the scenic byway was also routed this way. Again, what an awesome ride. Booneville was 16 miles east, but there is another highway that cuts the new diagonal to Ft Smith so its not a 32 mile detour.

By the time I get to Ft Smith, its hot. I stopped and called my Uncle and drank lots of water. Drenching my shirt with water before I headed out found some relief for a few minutes. The heat is a major factor the rest of the day. It is kicking my butt. I am stopping frequently and drinking lots, but its still winning. My stops and rests add an additional 1.5 hours to my time getting to Cherokee KS, even though I have picked up my pace considerably into the “Officer I didn’t think I was speeding, I must have been looking at the tachometer”. When I get to my uncles, its 3:30 pm I look and feel like a beat down dog. His smile and excitement soon rejuvenates me and we are off to my cousins to gab. It was this uncle and his Indian Chief motorcycle that first introduced me to motorcycles when I in elementary school. I leave the family around 6pm for KC. I needed to make a couple stops on the way home to cool off and grab some water. It was uneventful.

The total trip was 1287 miles. I traveled parts of AR I had not traveled before and found some awesome roads. As usual all the people I came in contact with were great, I gotta get out of the city. With this trip I am at 100 pts for the ABC's, where I ended up last year. I have not yet traveled east of IL.

Cindy Dietz
05 883 Low - Effie- 48.5K miles.


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10th October 2009

IBE
How did you make out on the IBE tour .... is this another HOG ride or is it a cert from some other group? Alec
10th October 2009

I've Been Everywhere Tour
I got 67 of the 91 (I think) locations. That was top for our group. Some of the locations are not available in the US. It was a local HOG Group challenge. We all got t-shirts with all the locations listed on the back. I think Terry got the idea from the internet. When I googled IBE I found the original game site, although it had not been updated for a couple years even back then.

Tot: 0.065s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 14; qc: 33; dbt: 0.0282s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.1mb