100 Days 48 States - The Journey

"Clay lies till, but blood’s a rover;
Breath’s a ware that will not keep.
Up, lad: when the journey’s over
There’ll be time enough to sleep"
- A.E. Housman

"Time has come today"
- The Chambers Brothers

TODAY’S ROUTE:
Raton, NM to Alamogordo, NM: US-64 East to SR-325 North to Capulin Volcano National Monument, South on SR-325 then West on US-64 back to Raton, South on I-25 South past Springer, Wagon Mound to SR-161 North to Fort Union National Monument, South on SR-161 to I-25 South through Las Vegas, to SR-63 West to Pecos National Historic Park, continuing on SR-63 West to I-25 South to US-285 South to SR-41 South through Stanley, Moriarty, McIntosh, Estancia, to US-60 West to Mountainair to SR-55 South to Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument at Gran Quivira, continuing south to US-54 through Carrizozo, Tularosa, to Alamogordo. (MAP)

THE DETAILS:
Time is everything. And everything is in the details. On a day like today, it’s the timing and details that matter most. I’ve got almost 500 miles to cover, and 4 stamps to get in the process. I need to reach four different National Park sites, with the first one opening at 8:00 AM and the last one closing at 5:00 PM. How much time I spend at each site, and how long it takes to get from Point A to Point B to Point C, will determine my fate today.

So what follows is a day in the life of my life, on day 70 of this odyssey.

7:20 AM - Wake up and watch the market open on CNBC, as it’s 9:20 AM on Wall Street. I love it when they cut off Maria Bartiromo with a commercial. I set two alarms today, with my beeper and my cell phone, as waking up early was vital. But I didn’t need either. The phone in the room next door has been ringing off the hook for an hour.
8:00 AM - Out of bed and in the shower. I should be on the road by now, but it’s cold out there and I’m a lazy bum.
8:30 AM - The bike is packed and rolling. Houston, we have lift-off.
8:40 AM - Ten miles out of Raton and I’m sitting at a construction site, waiting for the follow car to turn around and make its trip back here.
8:50 AM - Finally through the construction site, but I’ll be riding back here after my first stop, and I’ll have to go through it again.
9:05 AM - Turn down the entrance road to Capulin Volcano National Monument. There are cows on the road here. Lots and Lots of COWS. They freak out when I ride by, frightened by the motorcycle.
9:11 AM - 31.4 Miles on the GPS and I’m at the Visitor Center. The first stamp of the day is mine. The park here centers on a cinder cone left from a volcanic eruption that occurred around 60,000 years ago.
9:15 AM - I driving up the two-mile road that spirals around the volcano. Hey, it’s not every day you can drive up a volcano and walk inside.
9:23 AM - 7,944 Feet above sea level at the crater rim parking lot. The view spins around 100 miles in every direction along the Raton-Clayton volcanic field, with dozens of volcanoes popping out of the plains. I can see the snow covered peaks of the Rockies along the horizon.
9:35 AM - I hike up around the crater rim to get some better pictures. But it’s very cold and I’m out of breath at this elevation. I get half way around the rim and turn back.
9:43 AM - Getting back on the bike and heading down.
9:50 AM - Along route 325 I stop to take some shots of a lonely house, seemingly abandoned along the range. There are some horses in the field and I wait for them to move closer for a better shot.
10:05 AM - I’ve spent 15 minutes trying to get the horses to go where I want them to, but it’s hopeless. They’re just not listening to me. You can’t find good talent anymore.
10:15 AM - Heading back towards Raton, I pass a herd of 50 antelope. It’s amazing what you can see on the same road when you’re traveling in the opposite direction.
10:18 AM - Back in the construction site, waiting for that follow car again. COME ON. LET’S GO.
10:37 AM - Get on the interstate, heading south on I-25 from Raton. This is where I would have started the day if I had made it to Capulin yesterday. And now it’s after 10:30. I’ve got to lay down some miles and get moving. NOW!
11:23 AM - Fuel warning light goes on, 204 miles since my last fill-up. But I’ve probably still got a gallon and a half left.
11:37 AM - Off the interstate, heading towards Fort Union. I’ve nailed down 150 miles so far with an average speed of 69.8 MPH. The interstate did the job, and it wasn’t that bad. No cops, and very few trucks.
11:45 AM - Arrive at the Fort Union National Monument. A fort here served as headquarters for the Military Department of New Mexico. All that remains are some ruins. I get the stamp and BONUS! They’ve got a stamp here for the Sante Fe National Historic Trail that runs along the site. YEAH BABY!
12:08 PM - Back on the bike. I took the hour tour of the fort in about 15 minutes. It’s time to start looking for some gas.
12:33 PM - Stop for gas at the Texaco Station in Las Vegas with 259.4 Miles on the tank. 5.4 Gallons of 90 Octane at $1.50 a shot.
1:13 PM - Some more Interstate and I’m at Pecos National Historic Park with 229.5 GPS miles on the clock. Gimme the stamp, please.
1:30 PM - Preserved in this park are the ruins of a 15^th century Pueblo and two Spanish missions. But I don’t really care. I’m leaving. I’d rather get lunch than see another Indian ruin right now.
1:38 PM - Having lunch at the Dairy Queen in Pecos. Burger, fries and a shake. Real good healthy food. Yeah, I know, but there weren’t any other restaurants open in Pecos and I was hungry.
2:11 PM - Leaving Dairy Queen. What the hell took me so long?
2:18 PM - I stop to put in my earplugs before I get back on the highway again. I knew something didn’t feel quite right.
2:34 PM -Turn off to Route 41, and this smaller road looks like it might get slower from here. My average speed so far is 70 MPH and I’ve traveled 253.3 GPS Miles.
3:24 PM - Just past Estancia I drive by the largest pumpkin farm I’ve ever seen. Bright orange dots fill the view for miles
3:38 PM - I reach the Visitor Center for the Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument in Mountainair. The GPS read 327.2 miles with an average speed of 69.9 MPH. That’s not bad at all.
4:04 PM - I’ve watched part of the film about how Spaniards tried to force Christianity on the native Pueblo Indians during the 1600s. It didn’t go very well for either side. I got the stamp, but I’ve still got to visit one of the three Mission sites that make up the monument. I turn south on Route 55. I’ve got a long way to go till I reach my final destination for the night.
4:28 PM - Gran Quivira is the stop and I take a quick hike around the ruins. I made it with a half-hour to spare. The only other people here are a still photo crew from Japan, with a model, a photographer, makeup people, wardrobe, and a couple assistants. They look just slightly out of place here in the middle of nowhere.
4:55 PM - On the road again.
5:17 PM - 200 Miles on the tank, and the reserve light goes on again. Time for some more gas.
5:32 PM - Route 55 ends into US-54. The road I just ran looks like a staircase on the map, and it only had 15 turns over 55 miles. There were only 4 other vehicles the entire length of the road. WOW.
5:42 PM - Another Texaco. This one in Carrizozo. 411.1 GPS Miles, and 231 Miles on the tank. The damn pay at the pump doesn’t work and I have to go inside the station, twice. I hate when that happens.
6:21 PM - The sun sets, but it’s not nice enough to stop for pictures. I have to take my sunglasses off while moving and put them in my pocket. You try doing that.
6:40 PM - Reach Alamogorda and take a swing through town. I like to ride down the main street of my evening destination and scope out the motels. I’m looking for something cheap but clean, within close proximity to dinner.
6:50 PM - I’ve decided on the Western Motel, right next to the Best Western and surrounded by a bunch of dinner choices. The room is about 30 bucks.
6:55 PM - In room 19, and it’s not bad. Looks like a good cable system too.
7:00 PM - The bike is unloaded, and I’m doing the most important thing I do every day. I’m calling Mom. Time to get some grub, and then write some journals. The day is done.
At 10:24 PM this evening, Jena Allee gave birth to a 7 pound 14 ounce son, John "Jack" Gabarino Allee Jr. The proud father, John, is resting comfortably, as are the mother and child. Congratulations guys. I still think that Daniel would have been a good name choice. Either that or Alamogordo.

THE DAILY TAKE:
Miles Today: 471.9
Total Miles: 21,226
Time on Motorcycle: 6 Hours 45 Minutes
Average Speed: 69.7 MPH
States Visited today: 1 (NM)
Total States Visited: 32
National Park Service Passport Stamps: 5
NPS Stamp Totals: 159 Stamps, 29 States
Weather: Started chilly, turned mild, Paper Thin Clouds, replaced by Sun
Number of Texaco stations I’ve stopped at to date: 20

SEEN ON THE ROAD:
"I Love Aliens. They Taste Just Like Chicken" - Bumper Sticker on the back of early 80's White Ford Gran Turimo, heading south on route 41, just past Moriarty.

RANDOM PASSINGS:
One of the most important pieces of gear I have is also one of the smallest. Earplugs. If you’re going to ride a motorcycle for a significant distance over a significant period of time, you must have earplugs. Endurance riders wear them all the time. every time they ride. It’s not the noise from the motorcycle that you’re trying to block. It’s the wind noise inside your helmet.

Try riding 300 miles without earplugs and see how you feel at the end of the day. You’ll be fatigued, and you’ll probably be working on a big headache. But if you use the plugs you’ll be a different person. I’ve gotten so used to wearing them that I feel strange when they’re not in. I’ve tried a bunch of different types, but the ones I like best are the bell shaped orange foam jobbies. The Howard Leight Company calls them the MAX-1 and they’re the best 50 cents I’ve ever spent. Some vendors make custom plugs, using a personal mold to create the pieces. But I’m not sure I want to spend good money on something so easy to lose. I can wash the MAX-1 a couple of times, and when they get nasty, I break out a new pair.

Earplugs. Don’t leave home without them.