When I first planned my original route, it looked like it was going to be about 5,100 miles, and I had figured that I had enough tread on my back tire to go the distance. Here at Zion, I'm already at 5,700 miles, and I still have another 500 to go.
My tread is about gone, and the back end had been feeling a little slippery for a while. One thing nice about Harley dealers is that, if you're from out of town and need some service, they will make a real effort to put you at the front of the line in shop. So, it was spa day for the bike - a new tire, an oil change, new brake-pads front and back, and a wash.
And since I'm in Vegas, maybe I can win enough money at the craps table to pay for all this stuff. In reality, it turns out that all I have is very expensive rear tire. Ha!
When we were all here for my 50th birthday, the O'Calaghan-Tillman bridge was still under construction. It cost $240 million to build, and at 900 feet above the river, is the 2nd highest bridge in the US (and the longest of its type in the Western hemisphere). Believe it or not, there's a pedestrian walkway along the top of it - yep, you can walk across it!. For scale, note the size of semi-truck crossing on the left side of the bridge.
Before the bridge, all traffic to and from Arizona had to go over the dam itself. And, since 9/11, there's been a security check-point on each side. The bridge has dramatically reduced the traffic on the dam itself, and made it a much better tourist experience.
Of course, you know the rules. I'd tell you more about my stay here in Vegas, but I'm afraid that I might lose my privileges.
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