After that, we went up the 101 a few more miles to exit east of Ventura to unload the Red One. I rode right through Ventura on Main street, probably on most of the same streets as C.K. rode back in 1919. One thing that made my trip a little more challenging was the fact the city has turned most of central Main Street into a pedestrian mall, but the signage on the detour does not tell you when it is possible to resume riding west on Main Street. As a result, we went up one road that had an extremely steep hill at the end and no access to Main Street. Willie dropped his truck into four wheel drive and climbed to the summit with the trailer! I, however, turned around and doubled back. From there, we were finally able to get back on Main Street a few blocks west where we rejoined Willie who was waiting for us in a shopping center parking lot. We continued west. After a bit of discussion of the pros and cons, I decided to brave a short merge onto the 101 northbound to the first exit. It was only ½ mile from onramp to offramp, but these drivers out here in California... well... let’s just say it would not take much. But I cranked it up to 55mph on the way up the ramp and ran the remaining ¼ mile flat out with Glen directing traffic away from me in front and Willie running interference behind me. We coasted down the offramp onto the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), California Route 1, at Emma Wood State Beach. Those of you who have seen the cover of my 2019 book, Across America by Motor-Cycle – Fully Annotated Centennial Edition, (the cover of which shows C.K.’s bike on the beach in California) might understand my dream of finding that exact spot. I wasn’t able to find the exact spot, but we quickly decided on one of many available to be take what I felt was almost a magical photo shown at the beginning of this newsletter.
Afterwards, we continued to where Route 1 joined the 101 and trailered the bike, hauling it to just north of Santa Barbara (Goleta) for the night. Glen wanted fish for dinner, so we went out and had a great meal at Nikka Fish Market and Grill about three miles away.
Tomorrow is our last full day. We’ll end up in Gilroy which is south of San Jose.
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Thanks again for all your support!
Mark
P.S. Will someone please tell my dog Gizmo that he may not have my pillow? |