Day 11 (9/16/11)

Last night I stopped in Klamath, OR which is just north of the California border. A small local motel had nice clean rooms for $42 so I decided to treat myself to a soft bed for a change. I hit the pillow at 10:00 and did not hear another sound until 8:00 a.m. I guess my body needed the rest. Actually, I am feeling pretty good and looked forward to the ride today. I headed south on Oregon Rte 39 which changes to California 139. The route passes several beautiful lakes in the valleys and as soon as the road begins to climb the scenery transitions to tall stands of Pondersoa Pine trees. These are majestic trees that reach approximately 150 feet or more into the sky. The bases of the larger ones are 4 and 5 feet in diameter. I always feel like I am in the real "west" when I am riding among them. My mind wanders to boyhood dreams of riding a horse through country like this. Remember, I grew up in the day of Roy Rogers, Dale Evans and the Lone Ranger. Bonanza was a regular evening TV staple.
As I neared Reno, I began to drop in altitude into the high desert. Temperatures bean to rise, but not to uncomfortable levels. I was greeted to the Reno Air Races with a display by the Navy's Blue Angels. They always bring goose bumps to my skin whenever I see, hear and feel their power. I particularly remember the display during comissioning week when David graduated from the Naval Academy. We had font and center seats on one of the soccer fields and the show took place almost within reach of us. What a thrill. Well... where to stay in Reno? I expected to get a motel here, but instead learned that St. Michael's Catholic Church right at the entrance to the airport opens up their land to RV's tents and parking. They have showers, ice, bathrooms and serve meals in the church. I assume this is their big fund raising event for the year. I found myself a nice grassy spot within close reach of electricity for my CPAP machine. I am in heaven. Well I hope not yet, but I am within easy walking distance of the airport entrance and show central. Sice I arrived here near the end of the show for the day, I will take more pictures tomorrow of the event. I did catch a shot of a U-2 fly over. You don't see many of these spy planes as they are usually at extreme high altitudes, but he buzzed the field then disappeared into the sky. Really cool. Dinner this evening is going to be at the church and traditional Mexican is the fare. The priest's name is Father Babu. I think the church has a large hispanic population, so I expect the food will be excellent. I guess I will head over to the airshow to see the qualifying races scheduled for late this afternoon. I met some folks in a motorhome camped nearby that are part of the pit crew for Vodoo which is one of the really fast (500 mph) unlimited class planes. Those guys have to be brave to strap on one of those high performance racing machines and race wing to wing at low altitudes around the pilons at 500 mph. Not for the faint of Heart! Tomorrow I plan to spend most of the morning at the show and then head to Lake Tahoe to rest up for the big day to Las Vegas.