The motel in Ely turned out to be a restful and quiet place to stay. The motel office hours are from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm, so no one was there to thank for the lovely stay. In fact, we were the only ones stirring... we almost felt bad starting up the engines, but we had places to go, and heat to beat.

We stopped on the way out of town to get a last look at Ely, and marvelled at how far we can see in this high country. We've been on these roads before, and know that today, like yesterday, it will be like riding in the old west. It is fun to imagine the outlaws hiding out in the rugged hills, looking out at the valleys, seeing if anyone is approaching from miles away. One valley we crossed was 15 miles wide. We're happy to be in the saddles we are in, sometimes reaching speeds of... well, faster than the outlaws ever dreamed. (Our mothers are reading this!)

Shirlene is having many interesting learning experiences with a pack on the back of her bike. Things ride differently, plus, there is the problem of getting on and off the bike. Without luggage, she can just swing one leg high over the rear fender, and all is well, but with luggage, she has to step over the seat. Yesterday, outside the Harley Dealer in Carson City, she got on the bike and burned her leg on the hot pipes. She was too proud to check the burn there and admit to all the burley, veteran bikers what she had done, so she didn't realize how badly it was burned until she was getting ready for bed in Ely. (It didn't hurt bad, and that leg didn't feel any hotter than the other.) It was too late to get gauze pads and tape, so she put Neosporin on the blister and surrounding areas and sewed one of Dick's clean tube socks around her leg... what do they say about the mother of invention??

Delta, Utah was a great place to take a lunch break. Though heat was threatening to break out any minute, it was still very pleasant, and the people in Delta were very nice. We found the shady side of gas pumps, and filled up. Then we noticed a Hoagi Yogi was part of the gas station. We wanted to eat, but didn't really want to move the bikes into the sun, so the young lady at the station told us to feel free to leave the bikes where they were while we had lunch. You have to love small town America!

We traveled through Eureka (yes, another Eureka), an old mining town, then on to Santaquin, where we turned onto the old highway north to Spanish Fork. Thereby avoiding the crazies on I15. We had, by that time, lost the feeling of the old west, and found ourselves in the middle of urban sprawl. Even though the storm clouds looked promising, we caught up with the heat, over 100 degrees in the shade! We were happy to be at today's destination. It is good to see Dick's mom, Millie, and her husband, Clyde. They are always the best hosts! Clyde's son's Harley is parked, covered, in their driveway, waiting his return. We are doing our best to resist the temptation to uncover the bike and take a good look, but one just doesn't do that sort of thing. We had dinner at Clyde's favorite eating place (Burger King) and look forward to a restful night and Sunday.

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