After a very light breakfast, and a quick request for some ziploc bags (Jon was unable to finish his dozen cookies so we had to pack them) we loaded up the bikes. We decided to take a more direct route back to Green Valley this time, but hopefully still catch some scenery. We took 79 which wasn’t too scenic but was still a nice ride. We stopped at a little Mexican place on th eside of the road where we saw a few other Harley’s parked. We got some drinks to rehydrate and cool off and ate the complimentary chips and salsa they brought us. We sat in the booth next to the other riders, so before we all hit the road I struck up a conversation with them. They all had shirts or jackets that said “The Dave’s” on them. So I asked them what it meant. The leader who I later found out was the president of their club that has no rules, informed it is short for the “Harley-Davidson’s” and that they all ride Harley. He went on to explain their group and shared that they are a drinking group with a Harley problem and that they like to ride a lot and ride fast…sounds like my kind of group! We chatted some more and I told them if they ever made it to Alaska to stop by the House of Harley and say hello.

We paid our bill and headed south. We wanted to stop by Harley-Davidson of Tucson on our way back to see if I could store my bike there until the next time I make it down here. When we got there I wandered around the store for awhile then asked if the GM was in. Unfortunately they all seem to work my schedule and were off on Monday. The service manager was out too, so I talked to a nice guy Roello at the service counter. I introduced myself (when I tell people I am the HD dealer in AK it usually doesn’t sink in until they read it on my card). and asked if they could store my bike. At first he explained why they don’t really do that “liability, bla bla bla” but as I handed him my card and asked him to ask his manager or the GM tomorrow he read the “Owner” part and started to say “well maybe we could work something out…” I don’t blame him, I wouldn’t really believe that I was a dealer either. I explained that I was leaving in a couple days and would really appreciate an answer early the next day. In the mean time I worked on plan 2 which was to ask Tom and Anne if they could keep it, I recalled they had mentioned having a lot of garage space. They were very kind to offer me some free storage immediately after I sent the message, so I was pretty set either way. Jon and I found a small local bar/restaurant near the dealership to grab some lunch before we rode the final stretch. We made it back to Green Valley and Barry and Jerry were going to cook steaks and fish for dinner but Jon and I had already made plans to rest in GV for awhile then head back to Tucson to go to the mall and eat at the Cheesecake Factory. For those of you that know me personally, you know I hate chain restaurants but that place is outrageous and Jon had never been before.

We shopped for a bit and then went to dinner. Neither one of us was that hungry so we ordered appetizers from their calorie conscious small menu. Of course we ordered the obligatory cheesecake to go. We were both pretty worn out and tired from all the heat and riding. Barry met us back at our hotel for a drink, with Larry who is another fried of Jerry’s that was in town staying at the same hotel. We had met by the bikes earlier when he pulled up in his Mustang behind us. As I was unloading my bike he asked “You wouldn’t happen to be related to a guy named Barry would you?” I laughed and said I was his daughter. He then explained he was an old friend of Jerry’s and was camping his way down from Washington. So after he and Barry had dinner at Jerry’s they met us for a drink at the hotel. We chatted for awhile then hit the hay.