Day 3, I got lucky continued

So anyway, I made it across the great plains.  As I mentioned before they really are not that great but they are greatly expansive.  Builds character.  I re-hydrate in a McDonalds and pick Cripple Creek as my next destination.

I ride into the mountains on a two lane road past red rocks and boulders.  Very pretty.

I made a modification to the motorcycle before I left Cincinnati.  I wanted a tank bag.  No one seems to make them for a Goldwing as the gas tanks are not metal and really are not gas tanks.  The gas goes somewhere into the bowels of the machine.  My seemingly clever solution was to duct tape some large metal washers to the plastic panel on the tank, and  walla  the magnetic tank bag sticks to the panel.  I used black duct tape and made some X’s to hold them on.

That worked pretty well for the first 200 miles or so.  Then it got too damned hot and the washers kept sliding around and coming off.  Now I needed a fix.  I hit a Walmart and bought a roll of duct tape.   

I fixed that sucker.  Much more duct tape.  It was not pretty but functional.  Improvising on the road, I like that.  However, I still have tape residue on my bike.  Anyway I digress.

The road to Cripple Creek is one way in and one way out.  It is a beautiful ride.  This is what  I came for.

On the way up I saw a strange animal.  It looked like a big deer but had horns like a goat.  It was feeding by the side of the road.

The elevation in Cripple Creek was over 8000 feet.  I think the elevation was impacting me as I felt a little under the weather or perhaps I was just tired.  I decided to spend the night there.

Cripple Creek is a cool old town with lots of neat old buildings.  Most of them have been converted to casinos, which is probably not a good thing.  All around are old mines and scars in the mountains.  While I admire the hard work and ingenuity required of the miners who put their heart and soul into the work, they certainly have left many scars.  There is a huge industrial mine nearby.

They have a pretty good museum coming into town with lots of history.  It is also free.  They also provide some hotel recommendations.  They had a Monday night special at one of the casinos.

Here is where it is advantage getting old.  There does not seem to be that many advantages.  The casino had a deal if you are over 50 you can join their frequent gambler program.  For a mere 150 points they will comp your room.

I got lucky.  I am not a big gambler.  I think that gambling is generally for people who are bad at math.  I was not sure if I wanted to pay the $120 bucks for the room or take my chances.  I picked out a prominent $1machine ( I have this theory that the odds are better if it is in a busy location) and stuck in my $20.  I immediately started winning.  Up $20.  Time to increase the bet to $5 a pop.  I felt like a high roller.  I kept winning.  The points started racking up.  Got it up to $148 and my 150 points.  Spent another $20 bucks then cashed in and got my free room.  Not a bad deal.

I wandered around town and picked a place to eat at the bar.  Listened to the locals, some were miners, and watched some car racing show on the TV.  Some interesting conversations.  They were drinking shots.  I had a couple of beers and a spicy green chili burrito.

Headed back to my room, which had a great view of an old mine/museum.  It was a good day.