Gender feminism sends me to south america

[WeazyBuddha]

Originally Posted by kramnamhoh

I camped close to border last night about 25 miles north of Nogales. In the middle of night...i get woken up by bright light. At first, I thought i had overslept and it was the sun. After a few delerious minutes, I realized it was a truck with the lights on bright pointed at my tent....and it sat there for a looooonnnnnggggg time and nobody came out....
then another truck did same thing

then another car

and another car...

Finally, I recognized that one of the cars was a police car, soon after that, the sheriff came out to talk to me. apparently, I had set up my camp right in the middle of where there was going to be a big border patrol operation that night. They said it was dangerous for me to stay but that it was my choice and i could stay if i wanted...

so...i stayed.... and all the rest of the night there were cars driving around me chasiing mexicans

Off and running on the adventure.

Subscribed and looking forward to the stories.

p.s. might want to use a more readable font color.

[kramnamhoh]

I got great directions to an ATM in magdelena, mexico from a motorcycle rider back in Nogales, Arizona. I barely had enough to pay the first toll road fee leaving Nogales, so it’s a great relief to get some pesos in hand.
The bonus to stopping off in Magdelena is that the traveling circus is in town., and you can walk right up to the animals cages. Obviously, there is not an overabundance of lawyers in Mexico, since I can walk right up to the tiger cage and stick my fingers in if I want. I like my fingers too much to try to scratch the tiger, but I could if I wanted too. The tiger was making weird growling noises as I took this photo.

The best part of stopping there was seeing the animal caretaker. Only in Mexico would the tiger caretaker have only one arm.

[kramnamhoh]

.

[kramnamhoh]

.

[kramnamhoh]

The day is going good…until Hermisillo. Somehow, I missed my turn and ended up in downtown Hermisillo and none of the signs match any of the town names that I recognize.
I do get a good reminder of something I read about while preparing for this trip. Watch out for missing manhole covers. And, how did I get this reminder? I am riding too close behind a car in road construction and I look down just in time to see that I’m on the path to go just inches to the right of a front tire size square manhole that is missing it’s cover. It was one of those moments where you have just enough time to see it coming, but no time to do anything about it.
I just keep heading south, hoping that I will find a sign that has a town name on it that I recognize, and eventually, after way too long of stop and go in the now very warm sunshine, I find a road sign for Cuidad Obregon

[kramnamhoh]

there were signs for the first couple of hundred miles indication that the area was a "no hassle zone." Not sure what that means, but it was directed at US drivers.

And then, the "no hassle zone" ended. They even posted a sign indicating that the no hassle zone is over.

Be prepared, foolish gringo, we are going to hassle you now. You have been warned.

Really, if they could make one area a 'no hassle zone', can't they just make the whole damn country a no hassle zone?

It's a comforting feeling to be entering an area with a circle with a line though it with USA written beneath a motorcycle and a car.

Bring on the hassle....

[kramnamhoh]

I stopped for gas not long after the no-hassle zone ends, and guess what?????

I get completely mobbed by kids and windshield washers while trying to get gas. I just try to keep my gear from being stolen while I get gas, while there is a small crowd trying to either wash my windshield with a dirty rag or sell me some bland mexican pastries or burritos or ????

The windshield washer won't stop grinding his dirty rag into my windshield. I can't think of the word for "stop motherf##ker", but I manage to get my point across with tone of voice. Isn't body language and tone 90% of communication?? He gets the message and slinks away..

I leave town in a huff and roll the thottle to get far away from the hassle gas station and...

I just get up to speed when I run into the largest tope (speed bump) i've seen yet....There isn't any time to scrub off any speed before I hit it, and I hit it hard. The bike seems to get airborne for a moment, and then slams back to earth way too hard for an overloaded KLR. All seems to be ok. I didn't crash and both wheels are still attached and rolling. Then I look down at my saddlebags.

The saddlebags are leaning way away from the motorcycle. The saddle bag frame is completely bent by the weight of the bags crashing down to earth after jumping off the giant tope. Sh%t!! Now what am I gonna do....

Fortunately, i had picked up a pack of giant heavy duty zip ties at home depot right before I left Prescott, Arizona. They come in very handy to hold the rack back in some usable shape.....

Looks like I'll be having the adventure of finding a mechanic/ welder/ something to straighten things up in the next few days....

good times....

[opaque_machete]

As a female, I think her behavior was reprehensible and just plain bitchy! She's an embarrassment to the female gender. Please don't paint us all with the same brush. We're not all like that. I was backed into a corner by a boss and was told that he bet I was a real tiger in bed, to which I replied, "Why don't you ask my husband that question and see what he says?" He backed off, but I was ready to slug him if he didn't. End of problem. Nothing more was said and I was never asked that question or anything like it ever again. I could have cried harassment, but I didn't. I like to think I'm woman enough to take care of the situation by myself without having to involve others.

Either way, you have taken the opportunity to really do some great things with your life. One has to respect a person who can turn a misfortune into a great life altering adventure. You da man!

Ride safe and have fun. And keep us posted. I'm looking forward to more.

[ThomasVolomitz]

Zip ties and gorilla tape are essential touring tools, especially with a KLR! All part of the grand adventure.

[Mazaev]

Haha, those topes can be infuriating, especially when you come around slow traffic and hit one that bangs into your belly pan while a guy with a machine gun gives you a dirty look.

Biggest lesson I learned so far is to just be chill at all times. My New Yorker training is coming in handy at times here.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk

[olegeezer]

Originally Posted by kramnamhoh

The KLR is waaay overloaded. I've got to get rid of some of this stuff before I resume trip into Mexico. Poor KLR slows down to 60ish over a mountain pass at 6000+ ft. I'm starting to wonder how it's going to do at 15,000 ft through the Andes.

I head south into a strong headwind and the KLR struggles along. This is my first trip fully loaded with the givi bags on the side. Headwinds really bog it down. I was getting around 50mpg before this, and now am thinking that the back way through north Nevada may not have been the best idea.

The highway turns east so I'm not fighting the headwind, but the KLR is still struggling. WTF??? All of sudden, there is a vibration from the rear tire, and it dawns on me why the KLR is struggling. I've got my first flat!! I've made it all of 79 miles before it's flat.

I stop and check my phone. No cell coverage, so no rescue from AAA. I have a spare tube, and I need the practice, so I decide to change the tire myself. I'm not too excited about the idea, because I don't know what I'm doing, and I screwed it up last time and pinched the tube.


A few hours later, i find out that my patch over the previously pinched tube had failed. I get the new one in and....find out that I've pinched tube #2 also. I suck at this tire change thing. Fortunately, it's a slow leak. I can make it about an hour at a time before I have to stop and air up the tire.

The people of north Nevada are so nice. Almost everyone stops to see if I am ok. I got multiple offers of help, rides into town, and one family was going to come by after dark to see if I was still there. They offered a place to stay and dinner!!

So...off I go again....

Thats one of the best on road repair pics I've ever seen!! Good on ya! I'm hope to go your direction after new years, but my bike has tubeless tars May not be the best for off road but they're a hell of lot easier to fix.
Ride Safe

[ykrweb]

Corporate lawyers know you (white males) have no chance in court when it comes to an harassment complaint so they usually fire you to protect the company. I've worked in high tech for 25 years and seen it happen a few times. We use to joke with each other about our FQ's (Firing Quotients). A white male having the highest firing quotient and a handicapped african american lesbian having the lowest firing quotient. Good luck on your ride and be careful.

[kramnamhoh]

I stop in N town because it’s getting dark. I didn’t catch the name of the town other than it starts with an N. Riding at night is supposedly more dangerous because that is when the bad people come out to play. It’s also more dangerous because of the crap that is left in the roadway. I have already seen several large rocks left in the road. The trucks use them to block there wheels when parked and then leave them there. It’s extra dangerous for me because my headlight shines way up in the air with all the weight on the back. I get a great view of the bottom of overpasses and overhead road signs, and the top half of semi-trailers. Must find out how to adjust that….

[kramnamhoh]

I stay at the cheapest motel I can find. Bonus is that the parking lot also doubles as the local policia station parking lot too. I guess the security of it makes up for the fact that you have to bring your own toilet paper. That amenity is not included in the price. I’m thinking about laying out my tent over the bed and sleeping on top of that in my sleeping bag.
I put a chair in front of my door for security purposes. At least I can hear someone coming in, and maybe wake up before they get there. Funny thing is in the morning, I find that I forgot to lock the door before I went to sleep.

[kramnamhoh]

I’m so happy I bought the extra strength zip ties before I left Arizona. They are coming in handy for straightening out my saddlebag mounts. I’ll fix things up somehow at home depot in Puerto Vallarta.