The auction raised $15,854 and to date, $12,751 has been raised for the ride portion.

Thank you for your support, your contributions and the significant work you’ve done to make the world a better place.

A cold start led to a hot day, as the group headed towards Death Valley.  Some confusion over the speed limits in “the park” led to the group getting a little disjointed with half heading one way, while the other half  (with the map) went the correct way.  By midday we arrived at our destination: Badwater, the lowest point in the US at -282 feet.  This was definitely a highlight of the trip, and lots of photos were taken by the group and tourists who found the bikes to be an interesting photo op.  At over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, the heat was on, but the journey was worth it.  Now it required a final 150 miles push to Bishop, California.  Some of the best riding and curves (not as plentiful as the curves in Tonopah, but that’s a whole other story), ensured everyone had a great motorcycle riding experience.

Safely arrived, the pool and the hot tub became the focal point and we eventually moved on to the Whiskey Creek for a wonderful dinner and [more] alcohol.  This was the last night the complete group would be together, as Turtle Mama, The Pirate and Scott (CHiPs) would be heading home tomorrow.

The Incline group got up and ready to leave at 8:43 with Pamela’s egg shots for breakfast with Tom’s Tomatoes!!

By 10:30 the group were united in Reno.  Ready for the start of the big ride.  Unfortunately, it took an hour to find the PRISMgives T-Shirts.  Finally found the group were ready to leave… and Ian’s (The Boss) bike wouldn’t start!!  While he worked on the solution (new battery for the security system) Dennis (Duracell) led the group to get fuel… except Tom (The Toddler), who struggled to understand the simple instructions!!  OK…  eventually the group re-united at the gas station (still in Reno) and the ride was on.  Midday the group was finally pounding miles towards the first nights stop at Tonopah.

The first stop was in [Ian to add] where we stopped for fuel and lunch.  A local delicacy (Subway) was consumed by all, while Janice (Turtle Mama) was becoming the local star at the hardware store (getting The Boss’s security battery).  Onwards to the exciting night’s stop and Gary (Big Red) was kind enough to point out where Turtle Mama lost her highway peg,  but not quite kind enough to stop and pick it up!!  Fuel in the smallest gas station in the world and another 60 miles to the longest straight road in the world (16.5 miles) and we arrived safely in Tonopah.

The Ramada, Tonopah comes highly recommended (by the sign posts heading in) and included a “3 of a kind Dice Roll” for a free room, which “The Toddler” didn’t win (despite two threes and a two)!!  Two hours later, we were all successfully checked in (not the most efficient check-in we have experienced).

Despite this inconvenience, Tonopah proved to be an exciting and memorable stop.  As the “star gazing” capital of the US we were excited to see the Milky Way… unfortunately the only Milky Way we saw was in the grocery store. Big Red did allegedly see one star… and that was the Cat Man from Ripley’s Believe it or not.  Big Red has still not recovered… but he will. Maybe!!

Dinner proved interesting as our resident Canadian debated the merits of clubbing seal cubs (a local pass time in Canada) with Turquoise hunting in Tonopah, which is carried out humanely… according to the locals.   The Toddler still disputes this and is thinking of setting up a foundation.

The rest of us are still trying to recover from “The Toddlers” duet with Jeremy (the local Karaoke King) of The Proclaimers (I can walk 500 miles… and we wish they had) and Daryl (The Dirty Pirate) singing Teddy Bear… the scariest Teddy Bear we have ever seen, or heard!!  The highlight of the Karaoke evening was the locals singing “I like big butts”, which was convenient as most had one. I cannot lie… which was the truth.

After significant amounts of alcohol Duracell decided to take first watch (Big Red was nervous after watching Deliverance earlier this year)  and we finally all got a good night’s sleep.

All the riders are in motion to reach Reno by plane and bike today. The Ireland crew flies in to SFU to meet the San Francisco group joined there by the Chicago team. The LA team is already on the road and experienced extremely windy conditions in the mountains yesterday. I’m in flight from San Diego.

Months of planning now move into action. Final charity auction items now solidified. We are ready.

We’ll post updates along the way.

Thanks for your support.

Tom

Preparing for the charity ride involves checking the routes and ensuring that everything is Ok.  Imagine my surprise today when I found parts of our planned route are currently closed due to snow!!  All should be clear by next Friday, which is the start of the ride, but I think we all better check that we have our cold-weather gear handy.

1. A townhome in Telluride for a week.  This 5 bedroom home rents for $1500 per night in the low season and $2500/night high season.  This is an incredible opportunity for your family.  This item is provided by Elaine and Norm Brodsky.
2. A 6 month subscription to the Gold Medal Wine Club which  ships 2 bottles of wine each month. This item is provided Vanguard Archives.
3. A brand new Apple iPad. This item provided by Cintas.
4. A Seattle Experience.  Airfare for 2 to Seattle, 2 nights at the Crown Plaza Hotel, 2 excellent seats to a weekend Mariners game at Safeco Field, dinner for 2 at one of Seattle’s best restaurants  and even more. Provided by DataSite
5. A San Francisco Experience. Much like Seattle.  Provided by Access Information Management

And I have at least 10 more coming that haven’t been disclosed yet.  Keep checking back often.  It is getting exciting.

• One week rental of family cabin in Sierra Nevada’s, 10 minutes from Donner lake, 15 minutes from Squaw Valley, 20 minutes from Lake Tahoe. Beautiful, 4 bedrooms, spa, pool table and more. Great for family gatherings. Rental value, $2000/week.
• 4 Red Sox tickets
• San Francisco Giants Tickets

Also, if you have any great items you wish to donate to the cause, please contact Tom Adams via the sponsorship page form.

We’ll start in Reno and head south to Tonopah, Nevada on Friday. Saturday morning we’ll ride from Tonopah to Badwater. Then finish the day Saturday in Bishop, CA.  Sunday morning we’ll ride from Bishop, through Mammoth back to Reno.

For more detailed information, please visit the PRISMgives Ride Route page.