One more Month!!! Then heading South!

I can't for the life of me figure out what happened to my pictures on last Wednesday's post. They wouldn't enlarge as they usually do. So, I'm running another one of Ms Mega2 and her favorite pastime. Sleeping!!  Hopefully, it will work this time.

Recently while hiking near the Stockade Lake Dam in Custer State Park, we ran upon what at first looked like a little black kitty. I quickly scrambled and tried to get a picture. After a closer look, we discovered it was a Mink. We've seen a few of these out here but not many. I zoomed in quite a ways but still didn't get very close. 

He is in this picture, I think!! You may have to enlarge it to find him....hope it works.

This is Grandaughter Shala and son Pat. Shala is in her junior year at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. She is out of the county for a couple months to attend a special Spanish language training session. We just got a message on Facebook that her plane landed and she is safe on the ground...in of all places... Argentina!  This will be quite an experience for her. We send her our prayers and will keep her in our thoughts. Please be careful Sweetie and have fun.

It is sure hard to believe that the Summer is almost gone! We have been here in the Black Hills for over 3 months. The time has gone so FAST!!  We have been really busy, yet I haven't gotten half the things done I wanted to. 

I'm doing a little work on the truck getting it ready for the trip south. It's a good thing I didn't build the garage big enough for it to go inside, cause there just isn't room for it!! But it sure is good to have a nice concrete floor to crawl around on to work on stuff. For the last 15 years, my workshop has been a Campsite, with gravel or rock to work on and if I'm lucky, a picnic table as a work bench.  Ah....it's the small things in life that count!!! Right?

We went on another nice ride on the Harley Softail yesterday. It was very enjoyable!!  It just seems to get better and better. In just 60 miles riding in the Black Hills, we rode through 2 BIG herds of Buffalo, saw several Antelope, Turkeys, Deer and of course the "Wild" Burros that eat out of your hand. (-:  We rode to Keystone and passed right in front of the Great Mt. Rushmore. WOW, what a glorious site. There is still a little traffic and lots of Motorcycles, but not as much as there has been. We will definitely do that trip again in September before we leave. The "pig tail" bridges and switchback roads of Iron Mountian Road, along with the tunnels, are something quite spectacular! One of the Tunnels is especially memorable. At the far end, as you are going through,  you can see the Presidents faces at Mt. Rushmore perfectly framed by the tunnel.  Beautiful!!  There was enough traffic this time that I didn't feel safe stopping for pictures, so we will go back and record that!

We had our Rv'ing  friends the "Hero Makers" roll in yesterday to spend a few days with us.  They have been on a "Mission", meeting with Missionary Groups across the country and into Canada. Rocky and Sherri Rhoades have just gotten a "new to them" Teton 5TH wheel and also a "new to them" Volvo 770 truck. The interesting thing about his truck is that it is an EXACT duplicate of mine. They came from the same freight hauling fleet. It is identical...I mean right down to everything. (Pictures later)  We got them all settled in just before we headed out on our Motorcycle ride. Meanwhile, they grabbed a much needed NAP! They have also been BUSY!!!  Seems to be the story of an RV'ers life!!! We LOVE it!!

This morning it's off to Church.  Rocky and Sherri will be going with us, Praise the Lord!!  I know they will enjoy our Cowboy, down home style Church. Then right after Church, we have some new friends that have been reading our Blog and want to stop by and say hello.....you'll hear more about them later.

It is a GREAT WEEK!!!!

Thanks for stopping by.  Please leave us some comments in the section marked "comments" below. We love to hear from you.  Remember.... we NEVER know you've been here if you don't say something.  We need some encouragement to either keep this nonsense up or shut it down.  Thanks to all of our loyal readers.

Hope your summer has been as pleasant as ours! God Bless you all....

Mike

This Blog is Published every Sunday and Wedenesday..

Remember that TRIP I had planned?

I told you all a few weeks ago that Ms Pat and I had "hitch itch"....which is common for a lot of us Rv'ers. I mentioned I had a NEAT trip planned for us. Well,,,for about the 10Th time.....IT HAS BEEN CANCELLED! We just get so involved and so busy up here in these beautiful Black Hills, plus time goes so fast we just can't seem to make the trip.

This is what I had planned. I was going to load the new Harley Softail into the Cargo Trailer we purchased and pull it with our big Volvo 770. We were going to head north up through North Dakota, leaving our Home(the 45' Teton) behind. The 1ST stop would be the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. We would explore it on our Harley for a couple days, then move on to Glacier National Park. We would also explore Glacier on the Harley for as long as needed..... camping all this time in out Volvo Motorhome....then truck it on back home. We planned on spending 10 days to 2 weeks, or what ever it took....coming home through Yellowstone Park or the Jackson Hole area.

I had it all planned out. I was so excited about it. We have been to Yellowstone and Jackson Hole, but never to Glacier. Like I said, we've been trying to get there for about 10 years. Plans are made to change and it's waited this long, it will wait until next year. So that's the "special" trip I was going to spring on you. But it will wait.

Meanwhile, we have some special Dr. appointments set up for Ms Pats Thyroid problem and our eye check ups and one more trip to the Dentist, before we leave for the winter,,,,in only 4 short weeks!!!! Yes, Time Flies!!!! But we are so thankful that we are able to enjoy it as much as we do. Praise the Lord!!!!!

Now to close my Blog with a few pictures of the young Lady that changed our lives. Most of you know the story of Ms Megabyte2. It is way back in my Blog: MegaByte2 It was in December of 2008 at our lot in Mission, TX that I met Mega2. Just 8 months ago..

Ms Mega has given us both a new lease on life. For 13-14 years of fulltiming we did not have a pet traveling with us. Then one early morning about 4:30am, as I was outside drinking my cup of hot coffee and checking out the weather and just doing my "think" time as I do every morning early, I heard a cat "meow". Out of the darkness, I saw this little grey and white kitten sitting back in the bushes behind our RV. I couldn't get close to her, so I didn't think much about it. Then the same thing the next morning, and again the next. I started looking forward to our meeting every morning.

That went on for about a week when I decided I would get some warm milk. I knew she must be hungry. I met a little resistance as I ask Ms Pat for "warm milk"!! She reluctantly gave in and I approached this little kitty with a small bowl of warm milk. She still wouldn't come near me or let me get close, so I put the milk down and stood back out of site and watched. Sure enough, she cautiously and slowly came far enough out of the darkness to reach the milk. WOW, she Loved it. That was the morning that started the relationship that has now grown beyond belief. Pat also fell in love with her and I can't tell you how much we both enjoy Megabyte2.

So we still continue our meetings, Megabyte2 and I still get up at 4:00am each morning as she jumps up on our bed and looks at me as if to say "I'm hungry". I pet her and tell her to come on and I'll get her breakfast. As my friend Kathy Detweiler told me...she is an "Angel Kitty"!! She loves to sleep,sleep and sleep some more!!! More times that not, as close to Ms Pat as she can get.....like on her lap, her chair, or
on her desk....helping her with bookwork! Ms Pat and Mega2 have a "special" relationship, second to none.

On the Bed................................or wherever she happens to be.
But still her favorite spot is watching the "Boids" out the back window. She recognizes when we say "Mega...there's a "BOID" and she runs to look at the bird feeder I have set up in the window. Sometimes she "sneaks" up on them, other times she jumps up on the back of the sofa so fast that she hits the window! :-)


This little Angel Kitty is fulfilling the job she was sent to do. We sure love her!! Thank you Scooter!


It is a GREAT WEEK!!!

Thanks for stopping by.



Mike



This Blog is Published every Wednesday and Sunday..

Oh NO!!!! Not another HOBBY!!!

WOW, It's been a BUSY week up here in the Black Hills of South Dakota.... I can hardly keep up. Gosh, I can't seem to get anything done and I am sorry I don't get to read as many Blogs as I would like. I guess we are too involved in too many things. It's a good thing I don't have a real job. How did I ever find time for one? It's just too nice outdoors to stay in and punch on a computer keyboard.

We have recently gotten involved with a new hobby called GeoCaching. We been hearing a lot about it for several years now. I have heard my Buddy Nick Russell, editor of Gypsy Journal talk about it and earlier this summer Ellie Meacham showed us all about it while she and Jim were staying at Broken Arrow Campground. She got Ms Pat "hooked"..... soon Pat had a GPS and has us chasing all over this area looking for hidden Caches. Kind of a neat way to hike, looking for a hidden treasure.....Puts a new BANG in it! We've found several in this area.

We decided that we would set up and establish our own "personal" Cache out at our favorite Hike at Stockade Lake in Custer State Park. We love the Park so much and the Stockade hike is one we do almost every morning, In fact we hiked it every morning this week !! Six days in a row at 7:30 am....

Pat has the Cache and we are headed to the top to secure it in a hidden spot and record the exact coordinates. The first half of this hike is tough, it really makes the ole heart pump!

This is near the top, now to find a good place.

We found a neat place to put the hidden Cache.................placed it there in a hollow log, went home and advised the special website "Geocaching - The Official Global GPS Cache Hunt Site" and requested it be put on the public listing.

Can you see it???? Hidden in the hollow log in a green coffee can, just beneath where Pat is sitting....Look close!

We waited a couple days and received notice that we could not place a Cache on SD State Park Property. Hummm.... so we called the Superintendent in charge of the Park...an old friend. He promptly referred us to one of his people who politely told us "No", they do not allow the public to place caches on their property. Don't you just love it when the "head honcho" doesn't have enough fortitude to tell you NO... he has to have an employee do it...? Ya, that's the way he did it. OK, enough said... bite my tongue! So the next day we went back on our favorite Stockade Lake hike, found our own hidden cache and removed it...LOL. Oh well, I learned a long time ago that getting forgiveness is a lot easier than getting permission. ;-)

But "lo and behold", we found an even better place!!! Pat and I were out riding our 4 wheeler way back in the woods when we ran into this old Gold mine. It is neat!!!

The old fire road that I was following hadn't been traveled much and I suddenly came to a dead end. I looked up and saw this "opening" in the rock.

"This is interesting....lets take a look!" I wish our friends Roger and Susan Haddix from Florida could see this. Roger.....wait until you SEE IT!!!! Gotta be GOLD there somewhere...

Wow, it goes back a ways,,,,,they have removed a LOT of rock. They surely HIT a good vein of Gold here to remove this much rock!

You could tell this was a man-made hole.

As we were leaving, Ms Pat found a small rock that was "glistening" and she said " Now this IS GOLD, I just know it is"! " I said "Well, I doubt it, laying out here in the open, I don't think so!" She brought it home, anyway. We'll wait for Roger to get here to tell us if it is really gold. (-:

So we decided to hide our personal cache there. It's only a few miles from our place. Now we will wait approval on this one!!! We'll see!!!

Yesterday,Pat and I took a nice 75 mile trip out through the Custer State Park on the Harley. It was an extremely enjoyable trip...beautiful day, light traffic, wild animals all over the place, including 2 herds of buffalo. We are both getting more and more familiar with riding again and with this nice Big Beautiful Bike, it is OH, SO ENJOYABLE!! This is the first belt drive I have owned... all my other Harley's were Chain drive. This is so SMOOTH, and it is So POWERFUL at such Low Torque. I finally got it into SIXTH gear!!! Yes, "Scooter", it is a nice Scooter!!!

It was a GREAT WEEK!!!!!!

Thanks for stopping by, please come back! We enjoy your comments.....

God Bless you all!!

Mike

This Blog is Published every Sunday and Wednesday..

Here is the ANSWER,,,,,,,,,

Sunday was a Glorious and Wonderful day!!! I told you Ms Pat and I were doing something "Special" and asked if anyone could guess what it was. I gave a few hints, but still no one guessed it. I mentioned the Church and that we would no doubt get "Wet". We most certainly did get wet, along with a few others.

Ms Pat and I were Re-Baptised. We were both raised as Christians and Baptised as young children and decided we wanted to do it again as an adult. We love this area so much and wanted to reconfirm and further strengthen our commitment to our saviour Jesus Christ. We have so much to be thankful for. It's just a small way to show where we place our trust.

(Pastor Neal Hughes and wife Deb)

We are so thankful we found this Church, with all its wonderful people, in this wonderful place we so adore. Pastor Neal Hughes is such a down to earth guy and carries a message that is so powerful and easily understood. I just knew that this was a message from God!!

Our place in the Hills is just so indescribably wonderful and is near where I was born and raised. When I return here every summer, I feel like I have returned home. It's so calming and relaxing....these are "my people". We all understand one another.

I had long ago picked the spot out in the Park where I told Ms Pat that I wish to have my ashes spread when I die. This is one of our favorite hikes in the Park.

Here we are at the top of "Lovers Leap". It's about a 3 mile Hike and a rather strenuous climb but Oh, what a Superb View!! We have brought many of our visiting friends up here. This is where I want my ashes to flow...on top of the world...my world!!!

These are pictures of the Baptism last Sunday at Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park , taken by my good friend, neighbor and fellow Custer State Park worker Bob Stewart. Thanks again Bob, Good Job!!!

The water was COLD, the Spirits were WARM and it was a Glorious day!!!!!

It is a GREAT WEEK!!!!

Thanks for stopping by...

Mike

This Blog is Published every Wednesday and Sunday..

Are You Ready for some FOOTBALL!!!!!!

Yep, it's getting that time of the year again. My next door neighbor at our old house in Tallahassee, Chuck Roper, tells me that FSU and Miami play their opener on Labor Day. That's just 3 weeks away. I can smell it in the air! My Cornhuskers first game is Sat Sept 5TH. Summer 2009 is just about history!

This summer in the Black Hills has been SUPERB!!! Nice cool weather almost every day. Every day this week, except one, it was in the 40's when we got up......this morning it was 41*. I love that Heat Pump... just touch a button, it comes on and takes the chill off in short order. Great Heat Pump weather!!! We love it!

My friend, Chuck, asked me which Bike Rally was the biggest, the Sturgis Rally or Bike Week in Daytona. Well, it depends on WHO you ask. Ask Sturgis and they say they are. Ask Daytona and according to them they are biggest. So who knows. I've been to both. In fact, I went to Daytona Beach Bike week for about 8 years in a row. I think it's a toss up. It's all a "numbers game". Here is a "play" on the numbers that was in the local paper : Rapid City Journal

These are the visitors we had last week that I didn't get to mention. It sure was GREAT to see old friends and working partners out in Custer State Park, Jim and Janet McNabb. We hadn't seen them for a few years.....Jim had a tough bout with throat Cancer and was real sick for quite a spell...rough Chemo and the works. But he sure looks SUPER now and presently remains Cancer FREE!! Way to go Jim!! God Bless you. They are from St. Augustine, FL and really a FUN couple to know. Thanks for stopping by Jim and Janet!!!!

Staying so busy must make the time go by quickly because it is flying by and we have really been busy. Last week we went on a Hike in the Park every morning about 7:30 am. What a great way to get your exercise. Most of these hikes are about 3-4 mile and quite an uphill challenge. Gets the ole' heart pumping!!

Last Sunday after Church, Reed and Beth Haug stopped by for a visit. Reed was our old Boss in Law Enforcement out in Custer State Park. In fact, it was Reed that invented our law enforcement position in the first place. We were campground Hosts at Blue Bell Campground the first year we were there. I didn't care for that work. It was too confining. I don't like to be tied down to one spot. I convinced the seasonal ranger that they needed some help. I told him of my past Law Enforcement and Investigation background and ask him to talk to his boss about it. A few days later Reed came to our Campground and that was the beginning of our position of Seasonal Law Enforcement Rangers. Thanks so much Reed! We will be forever indebted to you. We enjoyed 9 years of the best job either of us ever had. We loved it!!!

After about 100 miles under my belt on the New Harley solo, I told Ms Pat that I thought I was confident and familiar enough to take on a passenger. I ask her if she would like a "short" ride. "Are you sure??" she asked, still being a little reluctant. "Yep, I'm ready!!!" So we got all our Leathers and Helmets on (what a job!) and looked at the sky. WOW, afternoon clouds had begun to build. It looked like rain, I sure didn't want to get caught in a downpour! After considerable study, it looked as if it was moving to the East. So we went North up to Sylvan Lake, then West back out to Hwy 385 and back into Custer. It was a nice "short" 25 mile ride. I didn't want to overdo Pat's first ride, plus those rain clouds looked as if they were heading back right for us. I rode right back into the TOY BARN,,,,,and by the time we had gotten all our gear off, it was raining. How lucky can you get!!!

I was particularly interested in trying out our NEW Intercom system we just installed on our helmets.... Boy, is it NEAT and it works! These new electronic gadgets simply amaze me!!! These 2 headsets are "Bluetooth" and totally wireless and are VOX (voice activated). Harley sells these and told us they were the BEST. I found a set for about HALF of what Harley sells them for and they are great! They are CARDO by Cardo Systems, Inc. We got the Scala Rider Teamset. It is a Cellphone and Intercom Wireless Headset for Riders. If we're riding and Pat gets a cell Phone call, she just answers it. If she wants to conference me in on the call, she presses a button and there I am....Unbelievable!!! Plus they are MP3 compatible if you want to listen to your favorite tunes as you ride!!! What a deal!

Today is going to be a GLORIOUS day. Most of the day will be spent with the Church. I'll tell you about it next time....but believe me its going to be a Memorial occasion! I'm truly excited!! I can tell you, we will no doubt get WET. Now lets see if you can guess what we are going to do this afternoon. Leave your guess in the comments section. You'll never guess!

It was a GREAT WEEK!!!!!

Thanks for stopping by.....and remember what I always say... "Don't forget to tell you kids, wife, family and good friends that you love them". They may not be around forever!

Mike

This Blog is Published every Sunday and Wednesday..

Wahoo,,,,the Hills are quiet again!!

Yep, just what I've been waiting for...we have our Hills back!!! There is just the normal Bike traffic here in the Black Hills again. There are always quite a few Motorcycles around since this is such a popular place to ride. More local folks have Motorcycles here than anywhere else in the world that I have ever seen. Our Dentist, Insurance Agent, Doctor, friends and neighbors, all have a Bike...they love to ride these Hills! That's what I've been looking forward to. Yesterday I decided to make my first short trip and took off shortly after lunch.
(click on all pictures to enlarge)

Pat came out with the camera just as I was leaving.
Here we go,,,,,,,Off, Off and away!!!

I gave a wave as I headed out into Custer State Park. I had about a 50 mile course plotted out. I wasn't quite ready to take a passenger yet. I want to be SURE I'm familiar and comfortable on the Bike before I add another 130 lbs.

We chugged smoothly down the driveway, out on the road and into the Hills. As I said before, I had forgotten how low torque these Harley's are. This baby is smooth and comfortable. It's kinda like towing with a Volvo compared to a pickup truck.. If you have a class 7-8 tow truck, you know what I mean!! It feels GOOD!!! The more I ride it, the more I like it...WOW!

I went out into Custer State Park, over Mt. Coolidge and on south into Wind Cave National Park. In Wind Cave, I encountered 2 herds of Buffalo on the roadway. I easily maneuvered right on through them and the tourists stopped to take pictures. They were out of their cars and getting way too close to them but I had other things on my mind. I was really enjoying myself!

I continued on south and turned West on Hwy 385 and traveled on to Pringle and back into Custer. When I idled back into the yard, I had 49 miles on the clock and had been gone just over an hour..... Wow, what a beautiful ride. I enjoy it when things all finally come together!!!

For those of you that have never seen a Peace Officers Special Edition Harley, this is a close-up of the Badge on the Front Fender. I finally got badge # 1. Badge numbers with the Police are a big deal. It ends up being your name. Nobody calls you by name, it's always by Badge #. On the State Police, my Badge # was 117. I hardly remembered my name, but when I heard "Grand Island 117" blare over my radio, I came to attention. In Custer State Park, it was 120.

This is my "Scooter".

It is a GREAT WEEK!!!!

God Bless you all, thanks for stopping by.

Mike

This Blog is Published every Wednesday and Sunday..

Sturgis Motorcycle Rally 2009, is OVER!

The 69th annual Motorcycle Rally held in Sturgis, SD ends today. Yesterday was the last full day so Pat and I decided to give it a look. Since we both highly believe in riding with the protection of "Leathers" and had gotten rid of our old set, we hoped we could find some good prices. Besides, although we have been in the area for the last 15 summers, 1995 was the last time we actually went to the Rally in the town of Sturgis. That was the first year we came out here from our home in Tallahassee, FL. and we brought our Harley "Hugger" with us. We rode that Harley up and down the streets of Sturgis. I said NEVER again would I do that... I experienced it once and THAT was enough for me. It's just too crowded.
(click on all pictures to enlarge)

Here is Pat standing in front of a Video Screen at State Farm's Booth with Main Street Sturgis showing in the background. That's the 'easy" way to see it.

Here is the REAL picture. Enlarge this picture and see how heavy the traffic is. This was taken about 1:30 pm yesterday. There are 4-5 solid blocks just like this. The sidewalks were packed with people and it got thicker and thicker. Soon you could hardly walk. 2 blocks of it and we both decided that was enough. I told Pat "lets get outta here" and she replied "good idea"! Neither of us do crowds very well.

Pat is standing on the sidewalk in front of the Hot Leather Shop that we found to have the best quality and priced "leathers" around. They actually have 4 big shops like this in Sturgis, one of them stays there year around and is open 7 days a week. Lots of neat stuff! Pat found herself a nice new outfit and I got some great chaps.

Now to pay the "ouch" bill......she even paid for mine!!! As I mentioned, after we walked and elbowed our way down the streets for a couple blocks, we hi-tailed it to our ride. Oh, we didn't ride the Softail. We brought the Honda...the 4 wheel one...the CRV. I know, I know, we're chicken! What do they say, 'a little older, a little wiser"... ya that's it!! Plus, "been there, done that"!
As we were headed out of town, Pat spotted this "Stretch" Limo. I had to get a picture. It said "Sturgis Rally Scenic Tours". It's a JEEP, first jeep limo I've seen!
There was a full lot of TRIKES and a large Semi truck and trailer selling and servicing nothing but Trikes. Here is a sharp one! The amount of Trikes we saw this year in the Hills is simply amazing. They are sure becoming popular. Pat would like to have one. However, we just don't have room to haul it. I do admit, they would be somewhat safer. Anyway, I LOVE my Softail Classic. We loaded it on the Volvo the other day and found it fits JUST FINE!!! I was worried it wouldn't, because it's quite a bit wider than the Marauder was.

Lots of other things happened this week and we had some wonderful surprise guests, but I'll have to wait until next time. These Blogs have a tendency to get too long.

Thanks for stopping by. See ya Wednesday. Hope you all are having a wonderful summer!!

It was a GREAT WEEK!!!

Mike



This Blog is Published every Sunday and Wednesday..

Nifty PressurePro Monitor Mount....

I've seen a lot of different ways to mount the PressurePro Tire Pressure Monitor, but this is by far the BEST!!! Our friends Mel and Nina Harrison, who were just here visiting, had this outstanding Mount on the dash of their beautiful Kountry Star motorhome. Since dozens of our customers read this Blog, I wanted to show it to you.

(click on all pictures to enlarge)

Isn't it sharp? They had just come from the Newmar Factory and one of the guys from Nappanee, IN built this for them. As I said, I have seen dozens of mounts for the Monitor. This one takes TOP honors in my book. It matches the wood interior of their Kountry Star. Interestingly, the craftsman that made this piece of "art" is only 17 YEARS OLD!!!

This is a top view. It is held in place with Velcro..

Rear view....

This is the drivers view as they travel down the road. It accomplishes several things. First it is right in sight and easy to see. A low pressure warning would get your attention even if you didn't hear the BEEP! Also, importantly, it is up high on the dash and near the center. This helps it receive a signal from all the Sensors on both sides of the Motorhome and Toad. Mel never misses a Signal with this set up, even though his Coach is 40+ ft long.

The only improvement I suggested to Mel was that he replace that lighter plug cord with one of our "hard wire" cords and run it behind the dash. That would get rid of the rather distractive cord hanging down in front as it does. Plus, as I've mentioned, a "hard wire" is a lot more secure and dependable connection.

PressurePro Tip:

We get quite a few calls from customers that tell us they get a light from one of their wheel positions. Then when they "scroll" to that position with the "up" or "down" button, they get 3 dashes "---". Some get this light only occasionally and others get it more often. For some, it goes away and for others it doesn't. This definitely should be dealt with as it should not be happening.

If this happens to you, the first thing you should do at your first opportunity is stop and remove the Sensor. NOW,,,take that Sensor in your hand up to the Monitor. Your Monitor should be getting Flashing "00"s and beeping FAST!

If it is giving you the above described signal of "00"s, then the Sensor is working, and you have a "reception" problem. Something is blocking the signal......there are several things you can try to alleviate the problem. One thing you can do is change the position of the monitor and put it in a different location. (always wait 5 minutes or more for it to report in) If that doesn't help, delete the Sensor and reinstall it, preferably in a different location. Always listen for the tell-tail signal of a "hiss" of air as you screw it on. This will confirm that the seal is hitting the Dill valve properly. If it still isn't getting a signal through to your Monitor, you obviously need a Repeater. Check one out on our web site and give us a call.

If you don't get the "00"s when you carry the Sensor up to the Monitor, the best thing to do is check the seal and then again "Delete" the Sensor and reinstall it. If it doesn't report in during the first ONE MINUTE of the reinstall, then you may have a dead Sensor or a damaged seal.

For any of these problems and others questions that you might have, give us a call. We are normally available 7 days a week, from 7am to 7pm. We are on a cell phone and they can be unreliable at times, so if you don't get us or we don't call you back within an hour, try us again. We have gotten messages that are several hours or even days old before we get them.

When you call, we will need you to have your Monitor ON and in a position that we can have you do some troubleshooting with it. We WILL get it working for you. If we can't, we know someone that can and we will send you to the TOP!!! There are THOUSANDS of people using this great system and never experience a problem. That is the way it is designed to work and believe me it WILL do just that!!!

We have thousands of Motorcycles everywhere in the Hills right now. It is WALL to WALL! I'm enjoying riding the new Harley around locally and never get out on the main highways amongst all that traffic. I want to get used to the bike a little before I do that or take on a Passenger. I went down to the empty High School parking lot a couple times and rode in slow circles, figure eights etc. I'm getting brushed up and feeling out the bike and will soon be ready to hit the ROAD! Oops that doesn't sound to good, I don't want to hit the road, just ride the road!! Many thanks to all of you that have written and ask me to "Please be Careful". I appreciate it very much. I will... I promise!!! Plus Ms Pat will keep her eye on me...very close!

I've carried on long enough. We have been extremely busy, which makes the time fly by....but we're havin' fun!!!

It's a GREAT WEEK!!!

Travel Safe!!! Thanks for stopping by.....

Mike

This Blog is Published every Wednesday and Sunday..

The BAD GUYS are in town!!!

"Two men sought in early morning hold up of Custer motel"
By The Associated Press Sunday, August 02, 2009

Sturgis Bike weeks officially starts tomorrow and the town is already nearly running over with bikers. They start pouring in a week in advance and don't all get gone until a week after. Of course, there are a lot of GOOD people here and we have to take the BAD with the good. There was some talk that due to the economy it wasn't going to be a very good turn out this year, but now I'm reading that it sounds as if it will surpass last year.

We were in Rapid City Thursday and decided to drop by the local Harley dealer. WOW, we couldn't get near the place. The parking lot and all around was full of vendors and exhibits. They stopped us about a block away and told us we would have to park in the gravel parking lot and walk to the dealership. So we made a "U" turn and decided we will wait a few weeks for what we wanted. In and around Rapid there were Bikers everywhere!!! We realize it's GREAT for the local economy, but believe me most of the locals (including us) are glad when they are gone and we get our Hills back!!

While we were in the Big City, the driver that was bringing my Harley up from Florida called. He was about 400 miles away and would be here by 7-8pm. WOW, A day early!!! Hot DOG!!!

(click on all pictures to enlarge)

Here he is backed into my driveway preparing to unload the bike. Mine was his first delivery and we were right on the back.

His trailer was FULL of Bikes. Two were big V-8 Trikes!

The driver unloads it and we are checking it over....

It's FINALLY here!! I've been waiting a LONG time for this..... It is NICE!! My friend JRoger took excellent care of it, just as I knew!!!

My first RIDE was into the Garage. It's getting dark or I'd go for a little spin. It's hard to resist but it's been a long day. I'm relieved and Happy it's finally here ! I'll be out here at the crack of dawn polishing and shining it up. I've been reading the manual for over a month.... now I'm looking forward to getting familiar with this "jewel".

note*Ms Pat took the above photo's with my new camera. Did a good job didn't she? That's with just a few of my quick directions. That GAL never ceases to amaze me,,,,she is another "jewel".

Thursday was a BIG day!!! Also, shortly after we got home from the city, our good friends Mel and Nina Harrison stopped by for a couple nights. We met this great couple at the Gypsy Journal Rally in Casa Grande, Az a couple years ago. It was great spending some time with them. Next time I hope they can stay a little longer. They had no idea Bike week was going on, so they are gonna get outta town FAST. They don't want any part of it! Mel is retired from the Air Force and also from the Las Vegas Police dept. We have a lot of fun together.

They have a beautiful new NEWMAR Kountry Star Motorhome. Man it is NICE!! I tried to swap Mel a nice Volvo and a 45' Teton, but I didn't get the job done.. Have safe travels you guys and we will see you again this winter......somewhere south!!

Well, that's about it for this morning. We had lots of other interesting and exciting things going on Friday and yesterday. We are headed out for early Church and then a big Church cook out and Motorcycle Ride with the Activities group this afternoon. BOY, this retired life will WEAR you OUT!!!!LOL

It was a GREAT WEEK!!!!!

This weather has been just WONDERFUL!!! Last several nights were nice and cool and 38* when we got up, then quickly warmed to to high 60's to mid 70's during the day. This morning it was 43*. Its a little cooler than normal, but we LOVE it!!! Praise the LORD!!!

God Bless you all,,,,,,and remember, tell your kids you love them. They may not be around forever.

Mike

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