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Simmons1
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Linda and I have participated in the Grand Tour of Texas the last three years hitting all 50 stops each year. This event has kind of become a right of Spring for us.
motorcyclegrandtouroftexas.com
When I was still working, we did the tour in long weekends and around holidays to best use my vacation time. Last year was my first year being retired and we decided to do the tour in a couple big loops so that the tour felt more like real road trip. It worked out great so that is the plan again this year.
Linda is currently out of town helping a close friend that just had some surgery. With her blessing, I did the Western Loop solo. When she returns home, we will do the Eastern Loop together.
Day 1 Fort Worth to Shamrock, 496 Miles
With the Spring weather forecasting late week severe storms again I was a little hesitant about going this week. The forecast in West Texas looked more promising if I made it out there to get behind the front so that was the direction I went. I also decided that the it would be best to ride my loop counter clockwise due to the weather forecast.
My original goal was to get to Childress for the day. The day started out warm and humid. The First stop was not far from home.
The next stop was one of the Alternate Stops. This year for the first time there were 3 Alternate Stops which allowed for a extra flexibility in planning routes.
Next up in little old Cisco is Conrad Hilton’s first Hotel.
Heading back North for a bit is this gem in Albany.
Then back South West to Abilene.
Then back North again. Are you getting dizzy yet?
The old Knox County vault in Benjamin.
Still heading North.
I was still feeling pretty good and on the spur of the moment decided to make Shamrock for the day. In my haste I made slight tactical error by taking what looked like a short cut to avoid going through Childress. 15 miles out a fun back road the road to turned to dirt. I have done lots of miles of dirt roads on the Wing so I continued on the dirt. After a mile or so the road got really rough with some deep sand and I had another 10 miles to go. Being by myself I back tracked and followed my original planned route so Shamrock.
This should look familiar to anyone that has watched the movie Cars.
Spent the night at the Route 66 Motel.
Day 2 Shamrock to Pecos, 455 miles.
I had great night’s sleep and woke at the usual 5 am. It was chilly out this morning. The Conoco Station looked great all lit up.
The first stop today was just 20 miles West in Mclean. McLean is a real life example of town that an Interstate left behind in the dust. What looked like was once a thriving town is now in very rough shape. It was very sad to see for me.
The next stop was 175 miles away down in Lubbock. Lots of fast country roads across vast farm land. There was one little section of road near Cap Rock Canyon that was very scenic and very out of place considering the flat landscape.
The stop in Lubbock is a substitute for Motorcyclegear.com which was in the process of moving to Plano.
65 miles later I was in Seagraves. It was getting pretty warm out so I stripped off a bunch of layers gassed up and had a $1 gas station hot link for lunch.
Another 100 miles down the road and I was in Midland at the Petroleum Museum. After a starting temperature of 48 it was now 91 degrees. Getting in and out of the museum was pretty challenging because of a huge road construction project going on. I highly recommend visiting the museum.
After figuring out how to get rolling again the next stop was a quick jaunt to Odessa.
Looking at my route and the time of day, I figured I could squeeze out one more stop an hour down the road in Pecos.
Another long day in the books.
Day 3 Pecos to San Angelo, 407 Miles.
Woke up to my phone ringing at 5:21 am. It was a severe weather alert for back home Fort Weather. Firing up the computer revealed this at home.
The local forecast was interesting for West Texas today. Winds from the West at 40 mph with gusts to 60. Seeing the forecast my goal was to get my first three stops in early and get to where I would be headed east with the wind at my back.
First stop was in the Davis Mountains. It was in the mid 40’s leaving Pecos and I would see 34 degrees in the mountains. The change of scenery is very dramatic when going from blasting down I-10 with the cruise control set at 85 exiting to heading South on 118. Usually while on the tour I bump into another rider now and then doing the Tour. This was the only stop I met another person on the tour. A guy and his wife on a BMW GS.
My office when I stopped to zip up a couple vents I inadvertently left open.
Didn’t see any Marfa lights today.
Looks like a pretty interesting place to stay in Alpine.
I made it to Fort Stockton about noon right when the wind from the West was really starting to pick up. Good thing I was headed East. Next stop was 235 miles away where I would be stopping for the day.
I usually take 385 to 67 towards San Angelo when driving home from Terlingua. Today because of the wind I stayed on I-10 a little longer and got off at 190 headed towards Iraan. 190 was a pleasant surprise compared to 67. I enjoyed the scenery and the road very much. I turned off on 163 and headed North to get back to 67. The road was due North and I got hammered by the wind until East on 67.
Another great ride day in the books.
Day 4 San Angelo to Home, 293 Miles
Same old same old. Woke up at a little after 5 and heated up my leftover Olive Garden Lasagna for breakfast. It was a short day so I left a little earlier than normal to pick up my new glasses before getting home. It proved to be a mistake. I pulled out a about 10 minutes before sun up. Heading East the first 40 minutes after sun up felt like I had laser aimed at my face. It was really tough to see the road and would have been near impossible to see any wildlife in the road. It would have much better to start a little later. Lesson learned.
First stop of the day in Eden.
64 miles later I was in Coleman.
Three more stops to go for this loop.
This is a cool little museum in Weatherford. It only takes an hour to go through and best of all admission is free. Sheps next door is great place to eat if you are hungry.
Most events need some sponsors. The Grand Tour no exception. My last stop for this loop is just a few miles from my house.
But wait there is more…
Tomorrow I am headed to the monthly meeting of the NTNOA. There a couple sponsor stops that general direction so I grabbed those on the way to the meeting.
24 stops + 2
High Temp 91
Low Temp 34
Was a great 4 days of riding around our great state.
Looking forward to riding the Eastern Loop in a few weeks.
2023 Tour Stops
The purpose of the tour is to explore Texas on your bike and have a fun and safe time doing so. This is a Grand Tour, not a race. Make tour stops, see cool stuff, learn about some Texas and local h…
motorcyclegrandtouroftexas.com
When I was still working, we did the tour in long weekends and around holidays to best use my vacation time. Last year was my first year being retired and we decided to do the tour in a couple big loops so that the tour felt more like real road trip. It worked out great so that is the plan again this year.
Linda is currently out of town helping a close friend that just had some surgery. With her blessing, I did the Western Loop solo. When she returns home, we will do the Eastern Loop together.
Day 1 Fort Worth to Shamrock, 496 Miles
With the Spring weather forecasting late week severe storms again I was a little hesitant about going this week. The forecast in West Texas looked more promising if I made it out there to get behind the front so that was the direction I went. I also decided that the it would be best to ride my loop counter clockwise due to the weather forecast.
My original goal was to get to Childress for the day. The day started out warm and humid. The First stop was not far from home.
The next stop was one of the Alternate Stops. This year for the first time there were 3 Alternate Stops which allowed for a extra flexibility in planning routes.
Next up in little old Cisco is Conrad Hilton’s first Hotel.
Heading back North for a bit is this gem in Albany.
Then back South West to Abilene.
Then back North again. Are you getting dizzy yet?
The old Knox County vault in Benjamin.
Still heading North.
I was still feeling pretty good and on the spur of the moment decided to make Shamrock for the day. In my haste I made slight tactical error by taking what looked like a short cut to avoid going through Childress. 15 miles out a fun back road the road to turned to dirt. I have done lots of miles of dirt roads on the Wing so I continued on the dirt. After a mile or so the road got really rough with some deep sand and I had another 10 miles to go. Being by myself I back tracked and followed my original planned route so Shamrock.
This should look familiar to anyone that has watched the movie Cars.
Spent the night at the Route 66 Motel.
Day 2 Shamrock to Pecos, 455 miles.
I had great night’s sleep and woke at the usual 5 am. It was chilly out this morning. The Conoco Station looked great all lit up.
The first stop today was just 20 miles West in Mclean. McLean is a real life example of town that an Interstate left behind in the dust. What looked like was once a thriving town is now in very rough shape. It was very sad to see for me.
The next stop was 175 miles away down in Lubbock. Lots of fast country roads across vast farm land. There was one little section of road near Cap Rock Canyon that was very scenic and very out of place considering the flat landscape.
The stop in Lubbock is a substitute for Motorcyclegear.com which was in the process of moving to Plano.
65 miles later I was in Seagraves. It was getting pretty warm out so I stripped off a bunch of layers gassed up and had a $1 gas station hot link for lunch.
Another 100 miles down the road and I was in Midland at the Petroleum Museum. After a starting temperature of 48 it was now 91 degrees. Getting in and out of the museum was pretty challenging because of a huge road construction project going on. I highly recommend visiting the museum.
After figuring out how to get rolling again the next stop was a quick jaunt to Odessa.
Looking at my route and the time of day, I figured I could squeeze out one more stop an hour down the road in Pecos.
Another long day in the books.
Day 3 Pecos to San Angelo, 407 Miles.
Woke up to my phone ringing at 5:21 am. It was a severe weather alert for back home Fort Weather. Firing up the computer revealed this at home.
The local forecast was interesting for West Texas today. Winds from the West at 40 mph with gusts to 60. Seeing the forecast my goal was to get my first three stops in early and get to where I would be headed east with the wind at my back.
First stop was in the Davis Mountains. It was in the mid 40’s leaving Pecos and I would see 34 degrees in the mountains. The change of scenery is very dramatic when going from blasting down I-10 with the cruise control set at 85 exiting to heading South on 118. Usually while on the tour I bump into another rider now and then doing the Tour. This was the only stop I met another person on the tour. A guy and his wife on a BMW GS.
My office when I stopped to zip up a couple vents I inadvertently left open.
Didn’t see any Marfa lights today.
Looks like a pretty interesting place to stay in Alpine.
I made it to Fort Stockton about noon right when the wind from the West was really starting to pick up. Good thing I was headed East. Next stop was 235 miles away where I would be stopping for the day.
I usually take 385 to 67 towards San Angelo when driving home from Terlingua. Today because of the wind I stayed on I-10 a little longer and got off at 190 headed towards Iraan. 190 was a pleasant surprise compared to 67. I enjoyed the scenery and the road very much. I turned off on 163 and headed North to get back to 67. The road was due North and I got hammered by the wind until East on 67.
Another great ride day in the books.
Day 4 San Angelo to Home, 293 Miles
Same old same old. Woke up at a little after 5 and heated up my leftover Olive Garden Lasagna for breakfast. It was a short day so I left a little earlier than normal to pick up my new glasses before getting home. It proved to be a mistake. I pulled out a about 10 minutes before sun up. Heading East the first 40 minutes after sun up felt like I had laser aimed at my face. It was really tough to see the road and would have been near impossible to see any wildlife in the road. It would have much better to start a little later. Lesson learned.
First stop of the day in Eden.
64 miles later I was in Coleman.
Three more stops to go for this loop.
This is a cool little museum in Weatherford. It only takes an hour to go through and best of all admission is free. Sheps next door is great place to eat if you are hungry.
Most events need some sponsors. The Grand Tour no exception. My last stop for this loop is just a few miles from my house.
But wait there is more…
Tomorrow I am headed to the monthly meeting of the NTNOA. There a couple sponsor stops that general direction so I grabbed those on the way to the meeting.
24 stops + 2
High Temp 91
Low Temp 34
Was a great 4 days of riding around our great state.
Looking forward to riding the Eastern Loop in a few weeks.
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