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"Ironman & Sugarlips" and introducing "One Lucky Baby" December 13-15 Las Vegas, Nevada
Miles Traveled: 300 Miles, 3 States This year our annual summer journey was postponed with the addition of Lily to our family on Friday, August 13th 2004. Several people asked, “Hey, are you still going to be taking your road trips now that you have a baby?” The Ironman’s response was, “We’ll see how it goes....”, which is his standard response when it comes to planning any road trip. With being so close to accomplishing our goal of riding all 50 states, we looked at our options and set a plan in place. We had ridden 45 states with Hawaii, Alaska, North Dakota, Utah, and Nevada left to ride. As mid-November approached we did some serious calculating to see if we could get a road trip in for 2004. Looking at the 5 remaining states and the time of year, we knew we had one of two choices: Hawaii or Nevada. The next part of the equation was, did we want to take a 4 month old baby on a 2 hour flight or a 7 hour flight. The choice was easy, and so we began looking for Internet deals on the “fly & ride” packages to Las Vegas. We found out that the most inexpensive time to go to Las Vegas is the week before Christmas and the temperature averages around 65°. With the rates practically begging us to go on a vacation, our next call was to Las Vegas Harley Davidson. The rental program was reasonable and they supply the bike along with the helmets, so we didn’t need to pack much gear. We were able to test drive a new Road King for the day, and take Lily to the worlds largest Harley Davidson Dealership for her first road trip. We made a quick call to Grandma Linda, and we were on our way. We stayed at the Mirage Hotel & Casino because the dealership provided a complimentary hourly shuttle for guests. Another selling point was that the hotel provided family attractions such as the white tiger exhibit, dolphin habitat, and atrium rain forest. We caught the shuttle and arrived at the shop with our 2004 Impact Blue Road King rental ready to go. The fly & ride program was a new experience for us. It turned out to be a great hassle free option to accomplish our annual road trip. As we headed out of town we both gave a thumbs up signal as we launched onto the freeway onramp headed for Utah. What a perfect day to ride with clear, crisp skies, coupled with 70°+, mild winds, and no rain. The sights along the way included Hoover Dam, Paradise Canyon, Lake Mead, The Valley of Fire, and Nellis Air Force Base. Flying down the freeway and looking up to see fighter jets and massive cargo planes on take off & landing gave us a feeling of patriotic freedom. The biggest highlight of the one-day excursion for the Ironman was the opportunity to cross 3 state lines and pick up Nevada & Utah, which we hadn’t ridden through. We were close to Zion National Park, but decided to return on another trip and make it an all day experience when the weather was warmer after sundown. We needed to have a reason to come back! On arrival into town we were greeted by a blazing desert sunset with the Las Vegas strip as a backdrop. What a great way to end the day. As we boarded the shuttle to return to the hotel we were already masterminding our 2005 road trip, so stay tuned! We decided our next bike will be a Road King with a side car for Lily with her own custom plates of “1 LKY BB” (One Lucky Baby). Thanks to the LVHD staff, Jilly & Sam and the rest of the crew for making the day such a memorable one!
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