Getting our Bikes and Getting to Colorado:
We knew Mike and his Dad would probably be up for this type of trip as well, and it only took about one minute to convince them. We started looking for bikes to purchase late the yearbefore, and by April we all had purchased our steeds. Steve was the first to find his. He and Mike traveled to the Knoxville area to pick up his Yamaha XT350. I had located a Suzuki DR650, but at the last minute I made an offer I didn't think would fly on a Kawasaki KLX650 and the guy bit on it. The three of us went to Clarksville TN to pick up my bike. Mike and his Dad bought both of their bikes from the same person. A Yamaha XT225, and a Yamaha XT350 respectively. Some debate ensued over the following months as to which bike would perform the best. Mike graciously offered the use of his pick-up truck with a camper attached, and his Dad had a spacious trailer that would get all of our bikes there along with his Venture for an extended ride after our week long vacation (it must be nice to be retired). We set out on Friday afternoon at around 4:30. Ironman Mike drove the first three tanks full of gas. During his second tank somewhere in Missouri we had our first setback; a flat tire on the trailer. Fortunately we had a spare and the lost time was held to a minimum. At the start of his third and final tank, Steve yelled from the back to stop. After turning onto the ramp we discovered the door to the camper had not been properly shut, wedged against one of the bikes, and crumpled up. Eliminating the door we now had just a screen door. Once in Kansas and into the daylight we stopped at Lakin on U.S. 50 to get gas. Just down the road there was a tire store where stopped to have the spare replaced. There we lost the screen door in a similar episode; now there was no door on the camper at all. The rest of trip across U.S. 50 was uneventful, we arrived in Ouray 28 hours after we had left.
