Playing catch-up

This one is going to be a quick update to get things back on pace.  Spent the day with Team Torg and crew. First Dan gave me a tour of Schweitzer mountain, their local ski area.  Looked like a really fun place to ski, lots of steeps and more moderate trails.  After that we meet up with the rest of the crew at City Beach.  Pretty much as the name says, a beach in the city with crystal clear water and a huge park.  

After lunch we headed back to the house, playing games and hanging out while we waited for the wind to die down so we could head out on the boat. Following an early dinner, the wind had calmed and it was time to hit the water.  

Starting out with getting a couple smaller kids up on wakeboards, and finishing up with getting a couple of us bigger kids up on a wake surf board.  It was a blast, I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks. 

The next morning I packed up and thanked Team Torg for an awesome visit to their really cool area, then headed west to my last destination in the 48.  Riding through Eastern Washington, there were familiar clouds of dust rising up.  I had caught up with the wheat harvest and I must say, it was really tempting to go see if I could catch a ride in the latest greatest offerings from John Deere. But I wanted to get to Stoney and Nicole's house before too late, and I'm still perfectly content with my current 34 year old combine.

The air cooled down to a very comfortable upper 70s as I crossed the Columbia River gorge and headed towards the mountains.  Soon caught a glimpse of Mt Rainier, and knew I was getting close.  While crossing Snoqualmie Pass, the temps dropped even more, and I started zipping up any open vents I had.  Traffic greeted me as I dropped down the pass into the Seattle area, slowing down progress, and making me thankful for the quieter rural area I live in.

Eventually I made it to my destination and was greeted with drinks and snacks.  There was a new set of tires sitting in the garage, and I have been debating if I should install then now, or carry them further north and have it done there. But before I leave here, there will certainly be an oil change, and maybe some bugs scraped off.   We went over Jason and Amanda's house for a cookout last night. Jason works in excavation, and is also a BMW motorcycle mechanic at his home shop, so we had no problem finding things to talk about.  It was later when we came back to Stoney's, but I couldn't resist installing the new tankbag on my bike that Marybeth bought me for my birthday. Thanks Honey! 

If all goes well, Chip will arrive here today, then the "real journey" begins. Really looking forward to traveling with Chip again, together over the years we've literally ridden around the world, and from Virginia to the bottom to of South America.  33 countries ridden through so far. This trip will complete my top to bottom journey of this continent.   

So, all caught up for now, and it's time for another cup of coffee.

KS