Bret was sleeping in over at the Branson KOA in his tent, and the other five guys left without us to go see the tornado damage in Joplin, MO. We were up early to make it to the Harley-Davidson plant tour in Kansas City. Bret again miraculously caught up with us about 30 minutes into our ride. We made it half way to Kansas City (about 120 miles) without stopping.
That's pretty good considering we usually can't go more than five minutes without stopping. We then went the other 120 miles, again without stopping, and arrived at the H-D plant in north Kansas City, MO.
We got there around 11:15am, and booked a spot in the noon tour. After the dude gave us our tickets, he says "you guys can have a seat on those motorcycles behind you." I replied, "No, thanks. We've been sitting on motorcycles for 2,200 miles."
It was good we got up as early as we did since they close at 1. I don't have any pictures of the actual tour--they were hardcore about no photography/cell phone use. But it was fascinating to see the various processes involved in building a bike.
After the tour, we were sitting near the gift shop when I get this text:
John (Joe Shaffer's Oregon friend) was going around 5mph around some curve--lost control of his bike which fell on his leg. Last I heard, it was his two lower leg bones in his right leg that were broken, not his ankle. Thank goodness Blair had the common sense to take pictures (after he called 911):
We met up with them for lunch near the hospital in downtown Kansas City, MO, which looked like a very lovely town. I found this place on my GPS' list of Diners, Drive-Inns, & Dives.
Each table had a display of art inside. Ours was made of Sweet 'n Low packets.
We ordered a little of everything and shared.
Nachos:
Chili cheese fries:
"Funky Dough":
Philly:
Great warning on the menu:
We only had the "molten" flavor. All good food here.
Now is where things really get confusing. I left KC on my own to get to the Topeka, KS dealership to fix my cruise control issue. Bret stayed behind to go to some art museum. Tim went to his employer's national HQ in Kansas City to get a picture. The other four (formerly the other five) headed for Independence, MO.
Doug followed them but never never caught up. I made it to the Topeka, KS Harley dealership, which was a fantastic place. They had their own little mini city: a restaurant, a coffee shop, a salon, and a museum of old bikes:
Waiting in the service department:
Diagnosed and a temporary fix took about 20 minutes and $35. Cruise control is back!
Tim caught up with me here, and we went another 80 miles to Abilene, Kansas. My dad got to the HIE right after we did.
Abilene is a cute little town. President Eisenhower was from here. His library was closed.
For dinner went to Kuntz's drive-inn. Exactly what you'd imagine a small town drive-in to be like.
I had a corn dog kid's meal. Possibly the least nutritious meal of the trip so far. That's fried cheese on the left.
Tim & Doug had the "fat lady", which I think was a chili cheeseburger. Fried mushrooms...
Fried cauliflower...
Fried cheese with cheese sauce.
Can't say I'm real proud of this meal! Homemade root beer was good though.
Back at the hotel, I did a couple loads of laundry while watching several people try to use the broken coke machine, then ask me if it worked. I should have made a sign.
We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Probably not much scenery to see either. Until then...
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