On Pause...sorta

SO, I say I'm 'on pause' because my husband has injured his leg. He hurt his leg on October 24th, climbing off of a truck and he severed the tendon that holds his patella in place. He had surgery to put it all back together and, in the meantime, I got my scooter back and found that another part was bad. So we took it back in and got it fixed-another week-long repair. So after he recovered for a few weeks, we decided to take a short ride. We went to Lake Havasu, AZ.It was a little bit chilly for some of the ride, but it was tolerable. We went down the Salome Highway (A small portion of the Salome Highway was dirt, but not much) and then on to Parker. Then, from Parker to Lake Havasu. We went to the London Bridge and then stayed the night in a hotel and returned home the next day. It was a fun ride. on December 7th, we decided to take a little trip on up to Oatman, AZ. I FINALLY got my M endorsement on my license, so I was able to ride down the I-10. It was REALLY cold, but I had my leather jacket and gloves and boots, and he had a new jacket-the fancy kind with the armor in the elbows and shoulders! So, although we were a little chilly, we were both excited to get out on the road! We got off in Vicksburg and went to Parker and then up to Needles. It was the first time I'd taken my scooter to another state! YAY! We then went down route 66 to Oatman. What FUN! It was a great, little road and the town was wonderful. We loved it so much, we decided that we would go back to Needles to sleep and then ride down the Oatman Highway from Topock. And that's just what we did. It was like being in a dream! I enjoyed it more than I can say. We spent a while in Oatman and then decided to head to Seligman via Route 66 and then return home through Ashfork, AZ, to Prescott, to Wickenburg. Unfortunately, we got a bit of a late start and the sun sets MUCH earlier in December. So by 6:00pm, it was nearly dark and VERY cold. We made it to Peach Springs, but we were rather cold. So We stopped in to have some hot chocolate and warm up. This was SUnday evening and I had to get to work Monday morning, so we needed to press on! We were in a bit over our heads, though. After warming up a bit, we headed toward Seligman. Typically, I can go about 80 miles on a tank of gas on my scooter. BUT, the high altitude, or the cold, or who knows what, make my gas mileage TERRIBLE! I ran out of gas about seven miles out of Seligman. So, we put the scooter on the side of the road and covered the reflectors so I wouldn't draw any attention. Then I got on Brian's bike and we rode to Seligman to get some gas. We had no gas cans and so we drank two gatorades and cleaned the bottles out and filled them with gas. We headed back to find the scooter and we couldn't see it. It was too dark and everything looked the same! Tall, yellow grass. So we rode up and down the road where we thought we had left it and, finally, after about twenty minutes of searching, we found it. It had fallen over on its side because the ground was so soft and moist. We put the gas in the scooter and it started up quickly. We headed into Seligman. It was around 7pm and my poor husband was much too cold to push forward- and we had a long, cold trip ahead of us. So I called into work and took the morning off and we got a room. It was a cute room, all decorated with a Route 66 theme. The next morning, we had breakfast at the Road Kill Cafe and then headed out. We were going to get on the I-40 and get off in Ashfork and head south. We got about a mile out of town and Brian suddenly decided to make a right turn to get on a road that he believed to be the road to get on the 40 and hit some gravel and fell onto his right side-the same side where his knee had been injured-and reinjured it. So, we had to have him taken to Flagstaff via ambulance and I had to get a towing company to move his bike four miles. I left his bike in storage in Seligman. I rode my scooter to Flagstaff, via the I-40, all by myself. Trucks and cars whizzed around me, but I didn't mind. It was very, very cold. If the sun had not been out, I don't know if I could have born it. I got to Flagstaff and they released Brian from the hospital. Fortunately, my daughter lived there and she drove Brian home. I decided to ride my scooter home from Flagstaff down the 89a. It was both horrible and wonderful at the same time. It was already getting dark by the time I made it to Sedona. I then headed down through Cottonwood, to Jerome and to Prescott Valley, Prescott, down the Yarnell hill to Wickenburg. I was beyond cold and I was physically miserable, but my spirits were soaring higher than I could ever remember. I felt amazing. A year ago, I would have never dreamed of doing something like this, and here I was, alone, in the dark, on a scooter, in December, riding home. And it was a beautiful ride. Curves galore! I enjoyed every, frozen minute of it! I arrived, at last, safely at home. And now I'm 'paused'. I do ride my scooter here and there, but the opportunities to ride are few and far between. It's cold if the sun isn't up, and when the sun IS up, I am at work or having to drive my husband or daughter some place. I can hardly wait for him to recuperate and for the warmth to return! I'm getting itchy to go!!!!