Busy Day – Nebraska to Iowa – 29 June 2018

29 June 2018 – I arose at 5:30 a.m. slowly. I still hate getting out of bed early and even worse I hate to hear that cell phone alarm go off. I put my clothes on and went outside to remove the cover from my bike and bag it up. Several other men were out there walking around smoking and talking to each other. They are the early riser crowd. I only rise early when I need to, have to, but never because I want to. I loaded all my bags, computer and shaving kit. I programed Omaha Nebraska, Des Moines Iowa, Iowa City Iowa, and Anamosa Iowa into my GPS. I like to watch the miles click off as I travel toward my destination. My destination today is Anamosa, Iowa. I want to get there before the sun goes down.

I went into the hotel room, put on my riding clothes, checked the room that I left nothing behind and dropped my key off with the reception desk. My trusty steed has a big day ahead of her and it’s time to get rolling.

I’m out on Interstate I 80 and I will keep my speed at 60/65 mph / 100/105 kph. I should have no problem with that because the temperature probably won’t exceed 80/85 F / 27/ 29 C degrees. The only reasons to stop is to take on fuel, potty breaks and food. So, I’m rolling down highway looking for adventure. I see mostly farm land and beef cattle. Occasionally I would ride by one of those large feed lots. Oh my, do they smell. I reached Omaha, Nebraska before 12:00 and it’s time for my 2nd break, dinner, and to take on fuel. I just rode 281.0 miles / 452.0 Kilometers. I love that 10 gallon / 38 liter gas tank. I am going to take a break for about an hour and let my food digest some before I go back on the road.

It’s time to get rolling again. Next stop: anywhere East of Des Moines, Iowa. The old bike is just humming along and before you know it, I’ve passed by Des Moines. I stopped in a Rest Area somewhere East of Des Moines. A potty break was in order. I was pulling out to get back on the Interstate when I rode by a woman riding a Black Honda Rebel 250cc. I stopped and talked with her some. She said she had just started riding motorcycle and was out for the day. It was a new shiny motorcycle. I told her that I just got back from South America and told her not to put any boundaries on how far she can ride. I went on about my trip and gave her my blog cards for South America and my 2009 Around the World trip I took. I wished her good luck and said good bye. 

In another second or two I was back on Interstate I 70 again. In another 50 miles / 81 kilometers I will take another break for gasoline, food and another break. My butt is beginning to talk to me. Screaming more like it, I hurt get off this XXXX motorcycle. I walked around some trying to get some blood flowing in my butt. I know that in 20 miles / 32 kilometers down the road my butt will be hurting just as bad as now. My next stop is Anamosa, Iowa so I best get on my way. I have just reached Iowa City and will pick up Interstate 380 North to Grand Rapids, Iowa. I will then pick up Hwy 30 East and in a short distance I will pick up Hwy 151 North and East to Anamosa, Iowa. 

Roughly speaking, I arrive in Anamosa, Iowa at about 5:00 p.m. I found a Super 8 Motel near the National Motorcycle Museum. I immediately pulled in and purchased a room for the night. I unloaded all my gear and drove over to the National Motorcycle Museum. I found out the museum would be closing in 2 hours. So, I had hustle to get thru it before the museum closed doors on me and locked me in. There was a Kawasaki KLR650 in the museum that had done some international travel. I’m thinking Mexico and Central America maybe even South America. I can’t remember for sure right now. I bought a souvenir hat pin from the souvenir shop before I left. 

As I was walking out, I took several pictures of a concrete H-D Softail Twin Cam. That was an excellent replica of a H-D Softail cast in concrete. I sure would like to know how the guy / artist cast it. I had one other thing I had to do yet before I went back to the motel. I want to look up the “Front Range Gear” RV Dealership in Anamosa, Iowa. Mary and I have been talking about purchasing a small teardrop travel trailer to travel in. She had heard about the “Little Guy Max Teardrop Trailer” at Front Range Gear RV Dealership. On my way home I was suppose to stop in Anamosa and check out this trailer. To night I want to find the dealership and then Saturday morning I’ll stop in and visit with the sales people. I also want to check out the inside of the Little Guy Trailer. I typed in the address of Front Range Gear into my GPS. Amazingly it wasn’t more than 3 miles / 5 kilometers away. Excelente!! I will drive over there tonight and find it. Then tomorrow morning I will stop in and visit with them.

After I found the dealership I stopped in at McDonald's for a hamburger and fries. I then returned to the hotel for the night. I went back to my hotel room and opened the door. It smelled horribly of mold and the motel tried to mask it with some type of fragrance. I opened the window to get some fresh air in the room. All thru Mexico, Central and South American I never smelled mold like that. I can tell you I stayed in some pretty dumpy hotels / motels and never smelled mold like this. I will never forget the smell or ever let this happen again.