Retired and Trippin

What a great day for a ride.  After church, it was cloudy and approaching 60 degrees.  The forecasted high for the day was 65 degrees with no rain.  Chris and I could not pass up the opportunity and decided to ride to Paola for lunch.  We had no idea where we would eat but figured there had to be dining options in Paola. We rode south on I-35 and K-7 Highway to Paola.  It was 64 when we left and 69 under mostly clear skies when we arrived.  After checking out all the eateries we chose the Los Portales Mexican Cafe located on the corner of Baptiste Dr. and North Pearl St. The food was very good and reasonably priced.  I had a chicken fajita burrito and Chris had flautas.  All lunches came with rice and your choice of 3 types of beans; refried, black, or barrachos.  We both had the barrachos and they were excellent.  The chips were fresh, thin, light and tasty.  Along with the chips they provided salsa, which most restaurants do, ...

On Thursday, November 11, 2010, five friends (Gary, Bill, Rod, Larry, and Carl) and I departed on a trip south. Ride Master Gary was leading the ride. The tentative goal was Natchez, MS. Originally this trip was suggested by Mel but his plan was to ride to Brownsville, TX and back in four days. None of us were crazy about going to Brownsville and we were not sure we could get there and back in four days without doing a lot of interstate riding. When Mel ended up being unable to go, Gary took over the planning and the destination was changed. We departed south Overland Park at 8:15 am. It was cloudy and 50 degrees. We went south on Hwy 69 for a while and then east into Missouri to south 71 Highway. As we rode into Missouri the roads were wet from recent rain. As we approached Clinton, MO it started to drizzle and the temperature dropped to 48 degrees. We endured the cold and drizzle to around Collins, MO when the drizzle stopped. We stopped for gas south of Bolivar, MO.  As you ca...