Voyages on Two Wheels – Arizona September 2011 – Day 2 – Prescott to Jerome and Back

So, the trip down was a nice, fun ride and dinner was good.  Steak is always good

Mom cooked up a great breakfast Sunday morning – blueberry pancakes and bacon   I wanted to spend time with my family on this trip, but I also wanted to get out and ride a bit, too.  Jerome, AZ has always been a favorite destination of mine.  I remember going through when I was much younger and the town really looked like a ghost town with a very small population.  These days it’s become an art center and tourist destination.

The road to Jerome after Mingus West is about the twistiest bit of asphalt I’ve ever traveled on – click here for a map.  The speed limit is posted at 35 MPH and I rarely went that fast.  Some of the corners are 180° with posted entry speeds of 10 MPH and they mean it!  I swear some of the corners were tighter than a U-turn in traffic and there was no shortage of traffic on the opposing side of that two lane road.  It was fun, entertaining, and completely demanding of every bit of attention on the bike

4 September 2011 - A bunch of riders in Jerome, AZ preparing to get out of town

4 September 2011 - An old Indian Scout in Jerome, AZ

 The entire town was packed as it was a holiday weekend, but I didn’t expect it to be that crowded   I’ve seen less crowded holidays on the Strip   I was truly glad they have dedicated motorcycle parking in Jerome

4 September 2011 - New FIAT 500 in Jerome, AZ

 I also saw this new FIAT 500 while wandering the streets of Jerome.  I suppose you could say it’s cute, but it’s definitely not for me.  Mom and Dad saw this picture and immediately said they thought it would be rather impractical for people living the rural lifestyle in the southwest U.S.  Sure, some kid in the city might like it so they can fit into small parking spaces, but I’d much rather have my motorcycle – I have better visibility, acceleration, and maneuverability on the bike   Also, the 500 coupe ranges in price from $15,500 to $19,500 while the convertible goes for $19,500 to $23,500   I could have a fairly nice, brand new adventure bike for that price

4 September 2011 - I immediately thought of Larry Correia when I saw these

 Larry Correia is one of my all-time favorite authors and this just seemed to fit in with some of his stories   He’s a New York Times best selling author, but that’s his night job.  By day he’s actually an accountant working for a defense contractor   You can find Larry’s blog here, his novels here, and sample chapters here.  I got to meet him at SHOT 2011 and he’s one of the most down to earth, nicest guys you could ever hope to meet   I highly recommend his books – all of them

4 September 2011 - Ruins of an old building in Jerome, AZ

4 September 2011 - Ruins of an old building in Jerome, AZ

 I couldn’t decide which of these pictures I liked better, so I posted ‘em both

One of the things I think I like best about Jerome is that it’s real   Disneyland and Las Vegas are OK, but it’s just not the same.  No matter how good they make it look, it still feels noticeably fake.  That building facade wasn’t built that way and it wasn’t placed where it is for maximum visual impact.  It has an actual history and you can’t really get that any other way than for the building to mostly fall down

4 September 2011 - Motorcycles lining the street in front of the Connor Hotel in Jerome, AZ

4 September 2011 - Mine museum in Jerome, AZ

4 September 2011 - The old Liberty Theater in Jerome, AZ is now a retail store

 I didn’t take all that many pictures in town this trip.  I really just wanted to ride and try to find two things.  I wanted a 3XL shirt that I’d seen before and a sticker for the bike that said “Jerome, AZ.”  Unfortunately, I couldn’t find either one of those so I enjoyed the ride, didn’t spend too much time in town, and headed back to Prescott for time with the family   I’ll be back again before too long

4 September 2011 - This bike belongs to a fellow ADV forum member

 I’ve found a great website for motorcycles and riders over at Adventure Rider – advrider.com.  I figured the guy who showed up on this beautiful BMW R1200 GS Adventure might just be a member (also known as an inmate ) and it turns out he is   Hey there, Dirtjet

4 September 2011 - Panorama - Scenic overlook just west of Jerome, AZ

 Sadly this picture once again doesn’t do justice to the scenery.  You’ve just got to go there for yourself

4 September 2011 - The Courthouse Square in Prescott, AZ

 I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – the courthouse square in Prescott always reminds me of Back to the Future   They had an art fair going on over the holiday weekend, so I met up with Mom and we checked everything out.  There was plenty of cool stuff for sale, but nothing we were really too interested in so we didn’t actually buy anything.  Still, it’s always nice to go see stuff with Mom

4 September 2011 - Custom chopper on Whiskey Row in Prescott, AZ

4 September 2011 - A couple of the many Harley Davidsons on Whiskey Row in Prescott, AZ

 I only took a few pictures of the bikes on the courthouse square because I was out enjoying time with Mom, but they were everywhere

4 September 2011 - OK, I want one of these

 I would love to have one of these and I seriously thought about looking into paying for one of their tours, but then I remembered that my brother just got a Kawasaki Teryx a little while back   I figure we can go exploring in that sometime, but I also thought you’d like to see this

4 September 2011 - You've gotta love Matt's Saloon on Whiskey Row in Prescott, AZ

 The sign over Matt’s Saloon on Whiskey Row has always been one of the things I remembered best about Whiskey Row.  Sure, the Palace has been there longer and all, but there’s just something special about that old time sign with the light over the cow skull   Oh yeah, you can’t miss those bright, red eyes

4 September 2011 - My V-Star at my family's place with the flagpole

I’d gassed up the bike when I got back from Jerome, but Mom still had to fill up the truck with some diesel after we left the town square.  I’d followed Mom to the gas station, but took the lead about half way back to the house.  She says I look good on the bike and she thinks it’s great as long as I don’t get hurt

I’d wanted to get this picture for a while now – I always love the way that flag looks with the tree   If the tree looks like it’s shorter than it should be, that’s because it is.  The top six feet or so were removed by a wind storm a while back   I still think the pic came out OK

That’s it for this post.  I’ll have the final installment with the trip home soon

Have a great day everyone