Utah Road Run with the Atomic Shovel: Day 14

Posted byKaran AndreaPosted inUncategorized

Day 14

Joplin, MO to St. Louis, MO

I was thinking today was an 8+ hour day – they have all blurred together – but when I checked last night, it was just at 7 hours and about 340 miles. I did stop myself from thinking, oh, this will be an easy day, because well… Things.
I checked radar and there was yet another bunch of rain in my flight path, so accepting the inevitable, I geared up this morning before I left. I figured either A) if I gear up, it won’t rain a drop (preferable) or B) I at least won’t have to stop midflight to do so. So I rode in my black and orange ooompa loompa outfit. Very fashion forward.
About 65 miles from St. Louis, I did finally hit the rain and rode in and out of it the rest of the way. However, it was just a normal summer rain. Like a watering can in the garden. No violent winds, no lightning, no blinding downpours. Just a nice, steady rain for a change! It was almost pleasant…
The bike was so well behaved today, I barely recognized her. Not a single protest. Not once. It took me a while before I really trusted her, but eventually I was leaning into curves and finally relaxing and completely enjoying the ride. When she is bucking and stalling, I don’t trust her in curves. If I am in a hard lean in a curve and she bucks, I am going down. So a lot of the days, riding has been more stressful because of that. But today was wonderful! Missouri is beautiful – rolling hills and beautiful roads with just enough curves to make them fun, but not tedious.
Apparently today was another wildlife day. I saw several box turtles crossing the road in front of me. Very cute little guys. And over the span of this trip I have seen maybe 3-4 cranes. Super cool.
But today was rescue day. I was stopped at an intersection in Cuba, MO. Something caught my attention on the road just in front of me. It was a little black kitten lying in the road. I think it had hurt its back leg maybe, but it was reaching out with both front paws, and had its head and neck stretched up mewing. Poor little thing. It was terrified.
I looked around and there was a restaurant to my right, with a patio, and a guy was standing there. I called out to him, and he came and picked up the little kitten and took it inside. I can only hope that it will be ok. Poor sweet thing. I am glad it was me who was first in line at that light. A car may not have even seen it.
All in all, it was a good day. Easy ride, no snakes, and a kitten rescue. Calling it a win.
Dayton tomorrow!

My poor bike after sooooo many days of rain, waiting for tomorrow in the parking deck, and the view from my room in St. Louis.

Published by Karan Andrea

I ride motorcycles, I live motorcycles, and I write about motorcycles. Both of my blogs are written for motorcyclists: atomicshovel.blog tells the never-ending story of my 1974 Harley-Davidson FLH, which I have named the Atomic Shovel. My other blog coachk.home.blog is written for riders of all skill levels, but is primarily aimed toward the rider who is transitioning from the riding range where they learned basic skills, to the open road. This blog address the most common questions I see in the online groups and forums: dealing with anxiety - yes, that is the number one question, navigating traffic, parking, holding your bike on an incline, just to mention a few. Much of what I write is simply drawn from my own experiences - successes, failures, do-overs. Nothing in either blog should be construed as the absolute one and only approach; rather, look at them as a starting point for your own discovery process.

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