2011 Pikes Peak Trip

2011 Pikes Peak Trip

We were invited to visit Scott and Vickie in Colorado Springs, and ride up the Pikes Peak Highway. We were both excited at the idea as Yvette had never been up there and I hadn't been up there in a long time. I had to work so Yvette did all the packing and getting ready. I rode the bike in, and Yvette was planning on meeting me at work so we could leave from there. We left Glenwood Springs right at 4:00 and headed east on I-70. The afternoon was warm and the sky was blue. We had a great ride until we got over Floyd Hill, and could see the black clouds and rain hanging over Denver. Yvette said it was as black as Mordor... We headed south to Colorado Springs, and I just knew we were going to hit rain before Castle Rock, but we didn't. The was however a huge black cloud due south of us. By the time we had gassed up and suited up, the cloud had moved east. We chased rain clouds all the way to Scott and Vickie's house, but never got rained on... 

Packed and ready to go

Scott and Vickie

Warning,  Big Foot Crossing

The Colorado version of "Abbey Road'...

Scott and Vickie on the Pikes Peak Highway

Short section of road construction

Higher

and higher

Its getting chilly, so we stopped to add layers

Our friends Skid or Susan would appreciate this view!

And higher still

The view of Colorado Springs from the top

14,100 ft

Heading down

We were hungry by the time we got back to Colorado Springs, so we headed to the Bird Dog BBQ.

Not much to look at, but Scott and Vickie recommended it highly.

It looks really good...and it tasted even better! I would say this rivaled the BBQ we had in Kentucky.

Happy, and hungry riders. We had a fantastic day and this was the perfect end to it. Afterwards we headed back to the Dedeker Casa and had ice cream on the patio.

Skid and Sandy's visit

On their return trip from the Ableskiver rally, Skid and Sandy honored us with another visit. They arrived early in the evening and we set about chatting, blogging and eating! IIRC, there was even some wine flowing...

Early the next morning, we set out for Gateway, CO, home of the Gateway Auto Museum. The Gateway Canyons complex is owned by John Hendricks, of The Discovery Chanel fame. The museum is first rate and boasts of  owning the only Old's F-88.

The ride was a beautiful one. Blue skies, black and red rocks, and a gentle breeze made the day perfect. We did run into some road construction on Hwy-141. It was a pain, but not too bad. For more photo's see Skid and Sandy's blog: http://skid1850.blogspot.com/2011/06/silt-colorado-gateway-ride.html

Our arrival at Gateway Canyons

The Gateway Auto Museum

Yvette found and Indian

An original Indian

1906 Cadillac Model H Coupe

Skid called this 'The first Smart car"

1913 Pierce-Arrow Model 38C Brougham

1930 Duesenberg Model J – Transformable Cabriolet

1947 Chrysler Town & Country Convertible 2 Door Convertible

1953 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible

1954 Oldsmobile F-88 Convertible Concept Car

"The F-88 seen here is literally the only car left of its kind – and was sold to John and Maureen Hendricks at the prestigious Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction in Scottsdale, Arizona for an unbelievable $3,240,000."

1934 Ford Custom Coupe, In Excess

1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT 500 Fastback

1981 Pontiac Trans Am 'Bandit' Edition

1957 Ford Thunderbird Convertible

For someone nicknamed 'Corvette' she sure took a shine to this Thunderbird...

Ford Fairlane Stationwagon and Airstream trailer.

This was not one of the exhibits, it belonged to a couple who was travelling Colorado!

1956 Ford F100 Truck (Good Humor)

Skid doing what Skid does best... talking!

This is the couple that owned the stationwagon and Airstream trailer.

We stopped  at this diner in Gateway, the 141 Diner. It's a neat place with good food. 

Skid and Sandy

Skid really should try to not be so shy... here he's talking to a couple of HD riders who also stopped for lunch.

Two pretty ladies, an Drifter and a Pegasus

Scenery shot traveling Hwy 141 headed back towards Whitewater.

More scenery...

Heading into Clifton, Co.

Skid and Sandy in Debeque Canyon east of Grand Junction

More Debeque Canyon on I-70

Outside of Debeque on I-70

Skid getting ready to load the Wing into it's trailer.

Here he comes!

And he's in...

Skid and Sandy's W.H.O.R.E. house. 

We had a super fun day. There were tons more cars at the museum, I didn't even try to take pictures of all of them. This was my first trip, and it occurred to me that the next time Jazz is in town, he would most certainly enjoy it. 

It did get a bit warm coming home, near 100° in Grand Junction. It stayed warm all the way home, all of us craved an ice water as soon as we got into the house. Skid loaded up the Wing, and started to catch up on his blog. I had asked them what they wanted for dinner, and Skid wanted hot dogs. Yvette wanted some of my Texas chili to go with them, so Skid and I went to Wally World to get the necessary ingredients. I whipped up a batch of chili, grilled the dogs, heated up some fresh corn on the cob and we had a feast... 

Tomorrow I have to go back to work, and Skid and Sandy will resume their homeward trek. We are sure glad they stopped and spent some time with us, they sure are good people... 

We already look forward to their next visit...