| Nelson-Rigg USA, Inc. - Page 1 |
|
| |
|
Nope, no golden arches, no neon signs can be found... just wide open space. It might even seem more odd that
less than an hour to the east of this exact exit is the 5th most populated city in the US (Phoenix):
Another shot of the entry ramp with I-10 westbound in the background.
Not exactly a place you'd want to find yourself with any type of “situation”, huh?
 Yeah, 5 Apache helicopters right over my head! Freakin' scared the crap out of me!
I was so relieved that nothing was wrong with my motorcycle that I did what I will simply call the “V-Strom victory
dance” in the Chevron parking lot (no, I don't have any pics of this event, but this is a good representation:
More shots of Hwy 74 and overlooking the Palm Springs area:
 
In Mountain Center, CA Hwy 74 meets Hwy 243, which is officially the “Pine” part of the “Palms to Pine Highway”. There
is a reason the road is named “Palms to Pines” and is a National Scenic Byway ya know:
Not exactly a view you'd associate with Southern California, huh?
I decided to stop and enjoy the fresh 5,500' mountain air and my lunch atop this big rock...
...while soaking in this view:
I kinda prefer my map:
Just after I restarted the bike I looked at my GPS to once again consult my time and distance to LA, and found myself
starring at a black screen.
Ok, so I didn't really cry (I think I was too stunned to cry!), but I did call my friend (and Webmaster Extraordinare)
Scott for roadside support and to get directions from him to my destination in LA (I'll add he's way better than
OnStar). I think Scott quipped “Welcome to the 19th century!” to my comment about not recalling the last time I
wrote down directions by hand. We decided the best troubleshooting given my location and situation would be to go
find an electrical outlet since I was carrying the AC wall cable for the GPS unit. We deduced that if I plugged
the unit in and it worked then the problem had to do with the bike, and if the unit wouldn't turn on that meant the
unit was DOA. Before saddling back up, I took these next photos looking to the east (or “right” depending on how your
brain processes directions) of the bike's location in the photo above. San Gorgonio Pass and the wind turbines:
City of Cabazon in the bottom left (tall white tower), which is where I was headed:
I found a gas station just off I-10 and went inside with my GPS and the AC cable to do my testing. I walked up and
asked the cashier if I could borrow an electrical outlet for literally a few seconds to determine if my GPS unit was
dead. She walked around the counter and started hunting in the store for an outlet, finally determining the best
location which involved displacing a dozen or more 2 liter soda bottles and then unplugging the ATM machine.
....which turned up this:
Little did I know that of the myriad of fuses that I carry as spares (never need a single one) that the very dang fuse
I needed was the spare I didn't have! Thankfully, Scott was able to direct me to a nearby Radio Shack, which
provided me with a new fuse. Once replaced, the GPS powered up as normal. Victorious dance in parking lot,
Part II!
An uneventful ride into LA and I called it day...certainly an eventful 400 mile day! Here is a recap of my route today:
 | |
|
|
The phrase “wide open spaces” can mean different things to different people, especially when some of those people
have never been west of the Mississippi. Out here, long stretches of interstate exist without exits (50+ miles),
and sometimes those exits are nothing more than the actual exit/entry ramp themselves. Nope, no services,
no buildings, no structures of any kind, not even a road that continues on deeper into nowhereville.
As Phoenix was disappearing in my rear view mirrors this morning I thought about a recent conversation I had about
this very topic with an East Coast friend of mine, so I decided to stop and take a few photos of what “nothing” looks
like. In the right side of the photo is the end of the exit ramp, to the left is the beginning of the entry
ramp back onto I-10 westbound:
While rolling towards the California state line this lovely April morning, I had the same thought I always do when
passing through this area: it wouldn't be much fun to find myself in a weather situation out here since there
is no shelter whatsoever. Sure, blazing triple digit heat in the summer with no shade to seek refuge is one
thing, but something like a wicked tornado would certainly define that “no fun” part. I was certainly thankful
for today's glorious mid-70 degree weather and clear skies.
Last week I was scheduled to make this very ride over to California but an unfortunate (and surprising) issue with
the motorcycle I'm riding (a Suzuki V-Strom DL1000 aka “Strom”) delayed my departure until today. I wrote a
report about that experience called “Zero Mile Journey Report” for those interested in understanding more about
what happened and why, that report can be found:
Indeed it was great to be back in the saddle heading west towards the Golden State, specifically Santa Ana, CA. The
purpose of my visit being to see the folks at
“
My feeling absolutely freakin' relieved to have the Strom successfully repaired was abruptly interrupted as I was
approaching Palms Springs, CA when the bike started making wild noises.
I can't exactly describe the noises except to say that there was no doubt something was wrong. I could tell
it wasn't tire related, but it seemed like an overall vibration that was loud and getting louder. This bike
has never left me stranded or required mechanical attention roadside, so I was in complete shock! My heart
raced and I had visions of oil pouring out from beneath the bike's newly repaired oil drain plug. Luckily
this happened as I was approaching a REAL exit (with actual services!) and I quickly exited and pulled into the
corner gas station parking lot. I turned off the bike but the unidentified noise continued, ratcheting up
my confusion a notch. Just as I was taking off my helmet and preparing to get off the bike, the source of
the “problem” was identified:
). Once my celebration
concluded and while preparing to re-embark on my journey, I consulted my GPS for an update on my expected arrival time
to the LA area. It said I was ahead of scheduled and also showed a waypoint nearby that I had previously marked
as “scenic”. Anyone who knows me can predict what is coming next: DETOUR. Yup, Highway 74 and the
“
Nothing like ditching the interstate for the twisties on a beautiful day! The Palms to Pines has an elevation
gain of over 4,000 feet in less than 12 miles. Riding this road during a weekday afforded me an uninterrupted
climb from bottom to top! Kinda sweet, huh?
A nearby sign showed a map of the path I'd just taken:
The GPS unit is non-switched (meaning it doesn't require the bike to be running to have power). I turned the unit
on and off several times and checked the cable connection, all with the same results: a black screen. None of my
problem solving was changing the fact that my GPS was AWOL and that I was in a rural area heading for the last place
I'd ever want to be without a GPS: Los Angeles, CA!
To say I was riding along feeling completely disconnected would be an understatement. In hundreds of thousands of
miles I've NEVER had a disabling issue with one of my GPS units and certainly not while heading to one of the most
congested places on earth. Wow, if you want to be reminded how dependent you are on technology, simply power
down your electronic device for a while! I rode until I could see I-10 and reached cell phone coverage again,
then I pulled over to cry:
I walked out to the bike knowing where to look for the problem....
|
Copyright © 2006-2009, All Rights Reserved. |