Day 9 - Reaching Our Oasis

 This leg of the trip was most pleasant indeed.  The previous day had ended so hot, it was decided we should again get an early start to beat the heat.  Everything was readied by the crew at 6:30 am.  By sunrise, we were rolling. 

I am just going to show a whole slew of pictures I was able to take from the truck.

The Train

Just before Deadwood, we rolled into Sturgis for lunch at the famous Knuckle Saloon.  This was a good long stay to enjoy their fare.  We were in great shape to get to Deadwood early.

We ended up setting up shop in a covered parking area of the Four Points Sheraton hotel.  This is a wild crazy casino and resort place with a crowded Main Street full of souvenir shops. 

There was a flurry of maintenance and repairs on the bikes.  Jeff McCoy, an experienced machinist had picked up a suitable reamer and bushing material on route to repair the damaged axle hole on Ian's Rapide.  The operation was a success.  I will test-ride the result in the morning.  Then there were brakes to adjust, some tuning on Greg McBride's Shadow, and a whole effort to put away the tools for the night.  It was awkward in this hotel.  But, we will do what we can.  The crew wrapped up after 9:00 pm and we joined the party at Mustang Sally's to celebrate one of our most beloved characters, Charley "The Greek".  It was also a chance to bid farewell and thanks to Ryan.  He flies out tomorrow morning and we are on our own. Needless to say, this was a big blowout!