|
|
Prescott,
Sedona, and the Arizona Moto Guzzi Rally
May 2009
My friend Jim and I both
admire Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and when he suggested we take a ride to the
2009 Moto Guzzi rally in Prescott, Arizona, I was ready to go. We
had a great ride out there. Jim planned a route that minimized our
time on the freeways. We picked up Highway 62 near Palm Springs, and
we rolled across the Mojave straight into Arizona.
|
|
| My first photo of this
trip.
Jim and I were honking along at about 80
mph on Highway 62 when I spotted Myrtle the Turtle on the side of the
road. She's a desert tortoise. And a very cooperative model.
After we crossed the Colorado River into
Parker, California's Highway 62 became Arizona Highway 95, and after a
couple of quick turns onto AZ 60 and AZ 72, we hit 89 north. Wow, is
that ever a great road! |
 |
 |
My friend Jim with his Darth
Vader R1150R on Highway 89. We stopped for a break on our way up to
Prescott. |
 |
This is a great looking
motorcycle. |
 |
Of course, so is this one... |
| We found a room at the Marriott
in downtown Prescott, and I got up early the next morning to wander around
and snap a few photos. |
 |
| Prescott is a very cool town. |
 |
| This is the park and the
courthouse in the center of town. |
 |
 |
This town goes back a few
years...way before 1912. |
 |
A shot in front of the
courthouse.
Prescott, if properly pronounced, sounds
like press-kit. |
 |
A Prescott motor officer on a
Kawasaki. The town was hosting a marathon, and I showed up
just as the runners were arriving. |
| Artwork in a Prescott gallery. |
 |
 |
They're slow, and they don't
handle too well, but they sure look good. |
| One of my obligatory artsy
shots. |
 |
 |
The next morning we wanted to
head up to Sedona. We thought it was due north on 89 (more on
this later). We passed this lake just north of Prescott before
stopping at the Moto Guzzi rally. |
 |
A 1955 500cc Guzzi single (see
below). |
 |
Wayne, the original owner of the
above motorcycle. Yep, he bought it in 1955 for the then-princely
sum of $862. And 28 cents. |
| Quite a few people camped at the
rally. |
 |
| The location for the rally was a
great one. |
 |
 |
A Moto Guzzi Centauro, one of
the best looking motorcycles of all time. |
 |
Another Moto Guzzi single.
There were quite a few of these at the rally. I saw more of these
1950s Guzzi singles during the time I spent at the rally then I had
collectively seen in my entire life. |
| Another Guzzi camper. |
 |
 |
More singles. |
| These things just sound
awesome. They sounded more British than an old British
single. And they seemed alive just sitting there idling. The
whole bike shook with each stroke. It was really cool. |
 |
| The Jackal. |
 |
|
Tom Short, Arizona Guzzi
Emperor, in full combat regalia. His bike is an honest,
unrestored, well-running Ambassador. These are majestic machines. |
|
Guzzista arrivals at the
Arizona Moto Guzzi National Owners Club rally. |
 |
Check out this happy couple with
an immaculate 850 El Dorado. |
| The speedo on Wayne's 500cc
single. It reminds me of the Cadet speedometer I had on my Schwinn
in the 1950s. |
 |
 |
Wayne's front fender has been
repainted; all the rest is original |
| Impressive.
Fins, wires, cables, oil lines, nuts,
bolts, chains. Mechanical stuff.
You can see the engine.
This is what a motorcycle is supposed to
look like. |
 |
 |
More Guzzi rally scenes. |
 |
A few non Guzzis snuck
in. High end stuff. |
| Another classic Guzzi. |
 |
|
These motorcycles and their
riders are just cool. |
 |
Guzzi in motion. |
 |
The old.... |
| And the new...
(A Guzzi Norge, their latest model...a
direct competitor to the BMW RT.)
|
 |
 |
And the custom....a flamed Guzzi
1000SP. |
| So, back to my story about
Arizona 89...
As it turns out, Arizona has a Hwy 89, a
Hwy 89A, and an Historic Hwy 89.
They are not the same thing.
They do not go the same places.
We took 89 north after visiting with the
Guzzista. Sedona was supposed appear about 60 or 70 miles up the
road. When we went that far and didn't see any signs for Sedona, we
stopped and checked the silly little MapQuest directions we were relying
on...
Well, we should have been on 89A.
But, this was a good thing. We turned east on I-40 and boogied
toward Flagstaff, we grabbed 17 south for a couple of miles, and then we
picked up 89A. And what a great road it was! |
 |
We rolled through some beautiful
areas on 89A, and then we were in the Coconino National Forest. |
| We stopped at a scenic overlook,
and the views were stunning. |
 |
| Native Americans were there
selling their creations. |
 |
 |
Dreamcatchers. |
| A shot of 89A.
This is a great motorcycle road.
After passing through Slide Rock Park
(prepare to be amazed; the bright pink rock formations are unbelievable),
we entered Sedona from the north. |
 |
| A few views heading into Sedona. |
 |
 |
More... |
| and more... |
 |
| A lone cactus growing out of the
rocks just north of Sedona. |
 |
 |
My obligatory "Yep, we were
there" photo... |
| The town of Sedona was kind of,
well, touristy.
It was okay.
The real beauty is in the
surrounding areas.
|
 |
 |
A view looking east from Sedona. |
 |
More Sedona kitsch.
After having a good lunch in Sedona, we
continued south on 89A.
When we saw a sign for Historic 89, we had
to take it... |
| And that was a good thing,
too.
We climbed up into what I think was the
coolest town of the entire trip - Jerome, Arizona. I had heard of
it, but I never knew just how cool this old mining town was. It's
built into the side of a mountain, and the streets through it are narrow
and full of 180-degree switch backs.
I liked it and it's a place I will visit
again.
This is the view after climbing up and out of
Jerome, looking north. |
 |
| We spent our last night in
Prescott just walking around.
Here's Jim after a great meal at
Genovese's. We asked for the best Italian restaurant in town,
and it met the specification. It was great. |
 |
 |
We then, as the kids say, went
clubbing. This was a great jazz band. |
| And finally, a couple of night shots playing around with the D200 and using lampposts as
an impromptu tripod. We had a great two days in Arizona, and we put
a quick 1000 miles on the motorcycles. Arizona has great roads
and great scenery, and Prescott was a surprisingly fun city to visit. |
|
