July 27, Wednesday: Day 4 - Wickenburg, AZ to Scottsdale, AZ

Finally, a SHORT day! Only 60 miles between Wickenburg and Scottsdale, and we opted to get up mighty early (4:30 am) to get out and beat the heat. We actually started rolling down Highway 60 around 5:45, and it was a chilly 80 degrees. Not more than 10 minutes into the ride (with me driving Marasco's truck, Rob in the motorhome) do I get pulled over by Arizona Highway Patrol. "Driving 18 mph in the slow lane is not going to cut it here in the state of Arizona". "Yes, sir". "You are going to need to figure something else out if you plan to drive on this highway". "I understand sir". "You can drive on the shoulder with your hazards on, but you cannot hold up traffic in the slow lane". "Yes sir". Let's just review the situation. It's before 6 am, with about 2 other cars on the stretch of 10 miles of highway that I can see, one of them being the trooper's patrol car. Hambly rolls by and says, "Sorry sir, thanks, we're riding for 9-11". The day goes on.

It's a long downhill out of Wickenburg and the guys make excellent time. We stop to eat and regroup, the plan is to come into Scottsdale around 10:30 where we'll meet with ABC news affiliates at Scottsdale Fire Station 602, where we were again welcomed with open arms. After some mugging for the camera, and a lively discussion about our route again taking us down a potentially nonexistent road on the Navajo reservation (Navajo Service Road #74 didn't sound particularly legit) we head off to lunch at Stax for some burgers. We run into some ladies who were driving behind the trailer today and looked us up on Facebook. The power of social media.

We head to the hotel, the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Scottsdale. We're driving them motorhome now, for whatever reason the AC has decided to quit working, 104 degrees feels a lot hotter without AC. About one exit before we need to get off the freeway, some nice man flags Rob down, pointing to the motorhome. "Did we lose the Zico again??" (One of our outside cabinets keeps popping open, causing us to lose a precious cargo of coconut water somewhere on Camelback Drive). We pull over. We walk around the motorhome. No open cabinets. What do we find? The left tire of the trailer is literally shredded. Like, in shreds. On the rim. Awesome.

Rob manages to get our convoy off the freeway and into a parking lot, where we use a jack from Marasco's truck to change the tire on the trailer so we can at least get to Costco to get some new tires. It's hot. Like really hot. Jorge and Marv go to work, and the tire is changed out. Adventures with Ride for 9-11.

I'm looking forward to a day of rest, and I'm sure the guys are too. Scott Smith arranged for the guys to get massages and a chiropractic adjustment, which everyone is taking full advantage of. Next, Jorge wants me to post the Top Ten List of Why Not to Ride Your Bike Across the US. Stay tuned.