Leaving Key West, it was shortly after sunrise, traffic headed to Key West was getting heavy but getting out wasn’t too bad, the SINGLE road in and out of there is enough to drive me nuts! Not sure how anyone could live there, a fairly short trip to the next bonus location, stopping at the Dolphin Research Center on Grassy Key where there is a big dolphin statue out front, this was a quick stop for a photo.
After that it is back on the ONE road out of the keys as I headed for Homestead, FL. This is another time when my rally practices saved me some time, I had for some reason thought that the bonus in Homestead was the speedway, but earlier in the trip I had read a bonus or two ahead, so I was able to head to the Coral Castle, another weird tourist attraction, probably won’t go out of my way to get to, some confusion about what sign to take a photo of, and after calling the rally master I still was confused and erred on the safe side and took photos of both, this is one of the most frustrating parts of rallies like this. Read bonus, do bonus, re-read bonus, review photo/info, re-read bonus, review photo/info, re-do bonus, review multiple photos, re-read bonus, finally put away bonus material, get on the bike get rolling, then re-think bonus, stop, pull Ziploc baggie of photos out, double check that all pertinent info is logged correctly, anyway you get the idea....
After that it was back to the Florida Autoba…oops I mean turnpike, I joke about it but the FL turnpike has to have some of the fastest drivers in the USA in my experience, I have never been passed more and high rates of speed (on the highways) than on the FL turnpike! If I was running a bike that could run supra-legal speeds would be a bonus, but the Sporty is not what I would call a high speed motorcycle. Anyway onto Kissimmee to a store called Orange world, IMAGINE THAT! A store in Florida for oranges! I must say that this one was kind of unique, shaped like a giant orange… Made me think of the 05 IBR when on our way out of FL we stopped at a rest stop and had dinosaur egg plums, wow were they good, never did find them again… Probably should have eaten a orange or two, but I have a heck of a time peeling them with gloves on, especially while riding…
From there to Gainesville to a giant sink hole called devil’s mill hopper, still experiencing lots of heat, although I am starting to cope with the heat much better than the cold of MN. Arriving at Devil’s Mill Hopper I was hot sweaty and close to the end of their business day. I made it in time before they closed, which I was pretty stoked about, I stripped my stitch off and was wearing my LD longs and moisture wicking long sleeve shirt, which looks like tights and a goofy long underwear shirt, and my boots! Not real attractive outfit, but I am not in a fashion show or even do I care at this time, then there was a tourist Asian family part way down the path that was not real sure about me, at least they did not start snapping a whole bunch of photos. That would have been creepy.
Hike down a whole pile of stairs into the Mill Hopper, 5-6 photos to make sure the plaque was readable and back to the bike, UP all those stairs, at least there was shade, not that it helped much with the humid heat of Florida. As I head out they are locking the gate… but it’s a daylight bonus?!?! Crap if I would have been a half hour later I could have just taken a picture of the gate and not had to HIKE!!! CRAP!!! Then on my way out I see Rebecca Vaughn on her way in and realize that she will get the bonus without the hike! Grumble to myself for a while then a thought came to me, hmmm… do I remember reading that there was another entrance that made the hike longer, yeah that’s it she will have to hike longer… I convinced myself of that so I wouldn’t think about it anymore. From there I head north, from Gainesville around the gulf to Mobile AL where I stopped for some rest. Some much needed rest…
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INDY CARS ROAR TO LIFE AGAIN
 Denver, CO; Speedway Driver Search in association with John Sandy Productions of Denver Colorado is holding a press event to announce the upcoming air dates for season one of Speedway Drivers Search. Read More
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