Cave Creek Motorcycle Ride, Day 3

Pulling into Cave Creek, AZ, April 23, 2014

Mom always told me that a big motorcycle ride always started with a big breakfast. Well, OK, she didn't actually say that. But she did try to get me to finish my plate every morning.

Cave Creek has been a popular destination for motorcycle riders around the central Arizona area, what with all the touristy western shops, the biker bars, and the beautiful riding. On the weekends, it's slammed with bikes. But today, on a Wednesday afternoon, it was peaceful easy sailing for the three of us.

That third person happens to be Paul, otherwise known as Arizona Harley Dude among motorcycle bloggers. We met Paul just about a year to the day last year in Tucson when he rode down to meet us during Road Pickle. This time around, we were in his neighborhood, and he suggested we meet at "The Place", apparently one of the better breakfast choices in the Valley.

After Sash and I threw down plates of chicken fried steak and eggs with hash browns swimming in a pool of country grave, enough to fuel for her to raise Hell like a rude biker chick with an axe to grind, Paul led us on our ride to Cave Creek plus a side trip to Bartlett Lake.

Not having ridden out Cave Creek before, I must say I was impressed with the amount of money that's been spent on the real estate out there.  Now I know where all the golf shirts and Dockers pants ended up at.  And while I did love the yellowy Palo Verde trees in blossom along the Cave Creek Rd, I swear some of the Saguaro cactus I saw on the street corners were impressing-looking fakes.

But otherwise, Cave Creek is a great little afternoon destination on a warm beautiful Maricopa day like today.  Sash opted to stop at Cartwright's Sonoran Ranch House just because her maiden name is Cartwright.  Apparently, the restaurant was named after Reddick Jasper Cartwright, who had operated one of the largest cattle ranches in the Cave Creek area.


Paul wanted to show us one of his longtime favorite places.  Bartlett Lake.

We continued up Cave Creek Rd and took a right at Bartlett Dam Rd.  The road takes us into the Tonto National Forest, and offers up some entertaining twisties and great views of Saguaro cactus and Palo Verde Trees.  At the end of the road is Bartlett Lake, where Paul used to go fishing in his younger days.  Except these days, the lake looked to be half the size it's supposed to be due to drought.

On the way back, Sash led the way back into Cave Creek with a itchy throttle hand and put her 20,000+ miles of riding experience to good use.  Where signs posted curves at 35mph, it seemed she did well to round them at 50mph or perhaps more.

Back in Cave Creek, we took one last stop at Tap Haus for another beer and appetizers before calling it a day.

But for Sash and I, the day didn't end there.

We ended up meeting her old high school friend Kelly for dinner at Z'Tejas, a mexican restaurant chain local to the south west area.  Sash and Kelly seemed to hit it off as if they were still at Fontana High, talking about gossip and guys.

Day 4, we're heading north for higher ground.

Paul and Sash after a huge breakfast at "The Place" in Glendale, AZ

Paul leading with Sash behind, along Cave Creek Rd

Sash saw a sign for "Cartwright's" and had to stop here because it's her maiden name.

The three of us hanging at the bar inside Cartwright's

Paul leading us to Bartlett Lake, with Sash and I following behind

Sash leading us back to Cave Creek from Bartlett Lake, with Paul and I behind

Stopping in at Tap Haus in Cave Creek for another refresher

Hop Shock IPA from SanTan Brewing, on tap at Tap Haus

Sash and Kelly, with Kelly's daughter in the middle, at Z'Tejas in Phoenix

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Monkey Butt Radio, Day 2

Day 2 of our 3-week motorcycle road trip to Denver had us spending a full day in Phoenix by going on air live with the crew at Monkey Butt Radio.

Monkey Butt Radio is three guys, all of whom named Mike, who talk about motorcycles.

The day actually started with Sash and I working out of our hotel room getting our normal work done. I had some website development to continue with, and Sash had some marketing stuff to work on.

But the day was really about getting on Monkey Butt Nation.

I had to loosen myself up by getting a beer at Skeptical Chymist, an Irish Pub with a decent selection of craft beer. I say that because in the United States, Irish Pubs are purveyors of your typical garbage-variety brews. We threw some buffalo wings and chicken tenders into our stomachs, and then finally showed up at the Monkey Butt Studios.

The radio show crew was there with boxes of pizza and six-packs of Kilt Lifter Scottish Ale waiting for us.

More important than Sash and I, they had another guest, Aaron Cutrano, who's organizing the AZ Troop Run, a benefit run for the children of fallen soldiers, which is taking place in the Phoeniz area this Saturday, April 26.

"I've been on a lot of radio shows", Cutrano said to us after the show. "But this was by far the most entertaining show I've been on."


Monkey Butt Radio really takes on the soul and spirit three guys, each of whom are veterans, who just talk bikes, throw down beers, and what one of the Mikes says, "We care take of our own", meaning they support local causes and promote their guests and sponsors. They do have a staff that keeps everything running, and they know ahead of time what they're going to be talking about, but overall it's really just guys hanging out and having fun.

They're also looking for sponsors. With 4,500 listeners who tune in live or catch it on YouTube each week, they're interested in mentioning your name on the broadcast. Get in touch with them at http://www.monkeybuttradio.com/

Having a beer at Skeptical Chymist in Scottsdale, before the show

Me & Sash on the right, and the Monkey Butt Radio crew, minus Big Mike, who had to leave right away.

Aaron Cutrano display his bike run t-shirt. Learn about it at http://cutranoaztrooprun.org/

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San Diego, CA to Phoenix, AZ

Three weeks of being on the road is a long road trip, considering most folks only take a week off from work at a time. But then again, when your last road trip was 6 months long, three weeks seems like a weekend getaway.

The destination? Denver, CO.

The reason? Many.

The road from San Diego to Phoenix is a four-lane stretch of desert scrub and tumbleweed generating a monotony of empty looks and blank stares some 350 miles long. There are certainly ways to make it more interesting, like practicing riding without hands, or experimenting with the coolest camera angles at 80mph. But this time around we have more of an itinerary to keep schedule of.

By the time we dropped into the Imperial Valley, temperatures reached 97 degree F. That's 36 degrees C if you're on the new math. But once we got east of Yuma, it managed to rise up a few ticks to 100 degrees F. Not bad. I've ridden in hotter.

But this time of the year the scenery is more colorful, about as colorful as it gets for the desert. There's a stretch of Highway 85 that runs from Gila Bend to Buckeye with swashes of yellow Smoke Trees against Pipe Organ Cactus and reddish-brown hills that reminds me why I tolerate the long stretches of dull superslabbery.

And why take the Interstate?  Why not take the back roads?  First, there are not a lot of choices getting from San Diego to Phoenix.  Two, when it's 100+ degrees out, you want to get there fast as you can.


Phoenix is said to be the "Valley of the Sun", but these days it seems to be the Valley of Freeway Construction. The town just keeps on growing, ever sprawling further out and drowning in the stop-and-go rhythms of a inch-worm on a cholla cactus.  And there's no lane-splitting in Arizona.  So when the traffic slows to a crawl under the late afternoon broil, the misery-meter starts to rise.

When we pulled into our hotel room around 6:30pm, all I could think of was a shower and a cold drink. And then Sash discovered that we were supposed to meet the Monkey Butt Radio guys for an evening barbecue around that time. So we showered and got dressed got right back on the road.

Monkey Butt Radio is three guys, each of whom named Mike, who talk about motorcycles and everything within a degree or two. We're going to be in the studio with them to do a show.

The big reason why Sash and I are headed to Denver is so that she could take part in the first annual Steel Horse Sisterhood Summit, where a bunch of motorcycle riding women are getting together to pat each other on their backs.  But my brother lives there, so I'm going to see him.  We also have a client there, Thanasi Foods, who advertises on my beef jerky blog, so we'll be visiting them.

As it turned out, we had a great time. I mean, we got to ride motorcycles all day and then partied till midnight. I guess it was quite a day on the first of our three week trip.

Interstate 8 has some fun riding along the Imperial / San Diego County Line

Me taking a shot along Interstate 8 on the Imperial / San Diego County Line

Having lunch at Johnny's Burritos, El Centro, CA

Me trying to find a creative photo shot while cruising some long straights in the desert.

The guys of Monkey Butt Radio

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