Back to camping in the wilderness after our days in Redondo Beach, CA.
Joshua Tree served as a perfect way to jump back into dark night skies and desert scenery. Although this video was not taken in the park, it was a cool Joshua Tree forest we drove through in our journey to Las Vegas.
You may wonder how the Joshua Tree got its name, well wonder no further! As the
Mormons were moving westward, they considered the limbs of the Joshua trees to resemble the upstretched arms of Joshua, leading them to the promised land. Although there are other more technical names for the tree, Joshua tree has stuck!
The sunset and stargazing at the fire that night were simply stunning.
It was a hint of the natural beauty that we would see the next day on our trip to Lake Havasu. Sheephole Valley Wilderness and the roadway up from Parker towards Havasu astonished even Eric!
Lake Havasu city is a booming town of snowbirds driving fancy ATVs on the boarder between California and Nevada. I can see why so many people would want to winter here, 80 degrees and sunny all weekend!
The reason we are here is to see our nephew, Cole Zeller, race in professional Motocross. Most of you know the ying and yang between Eric and I on the subject of motorcycles. Needless to say, Eric's anticipation for the experience was far higher than mine! But it was time with family that we had not seen in a few years, our camp spot at the State Park on the shores of Lake Havasu was quite lovely and did I mention the weather?? Incredible.
In case any of you are unaware of how race weekends go, I'll give you a quick overview. I can equate it to a large 2 day swim meet or cross country event, with different age groups, bike types and abilities racing the same track at different times. The grounds inundated with campers, e-bikes and dirt bikes of all sizes and origins. And then there was the dust. The track is dirt, the grounds are dirt. The spray of the water truck tries unsuccessfully to keep the dust in check. Here at Lake Havasu, the Motocross campus situates on the shores of the Havasu Island with a impressive backdrop of the lake and mountains.
Cole rides his Kawasaki KX250 through early Saturday morning which we could hear 1.5 miles away at our camp ground. Eric's brother, Barry, invited us to the Pro Pit until Cole's practice run later in the day. It's apparent that these folks spend a lot of time together. Competitors, vendors, bike companies all stop by Cole's race team tent. The riders go watch the 20 foot water jump on the track while Barry tweaks his son's chain on the race bike.
It's finally time for Cole to run through the practice run. Fifty minutes of six different ability classes racing for a variety of reasons. The professionals such as Cole, it is a practice for the two hour race on Sunday. For the lower classes, it's the championship race. For the Armature class, they are racing to get into the ProAm the following day. Although there was a great deal of chatter on how the team did not like this configuration, off they went to line up at the start line.
I got some great shots of Cole at different spots on the track, then we noticed other racers passing by but no Cole #39. Ut oh! Back to the tent where we heard the tale of the terrible mid-air crash where a class C rider crossed into Cole. A rookie move that brought Cole down hard on his left hand and a bit concussed. Barry assures us that with some ice, Tylenol and a night of sleep Cole will be ready to podium tomorrow in his pursuit of the championship this season. The bike will need further work; straighten the handle bars and forks, and repairing the exhaust. We head back to Grover while they repair the damage done to the bike and body.
After a great start from Cole on the Sunday race, his hand was too wrecked and he called it before the second lap. Disappointed in the day, I was impressed with the attitude of my 20 year old nephew. Motocross is a sport with inherent risks and injuries are inevitable. The championship may be out of reach this season but he continues to look forward to victories in his future. Anyone with interest can follow him on instagram https://www.instagram.com/colezeller39/
We head out over London Bridge off Grass Island and head northward in our journey to see our son and daughter-in-law at the end of the week.
See you on the road!
PS. Have I intrigued you with the London Bridge reference above?? As an extra, here's some fun facts about how the London Bridge ended up in Lake Havasu, NV!
Fun Fact #1: London Bridge was sinking, not "falling down" and needed repair. Rebuilding was preferable to repairing, so the old bridge went up for sale in 1968.
Fun Fact #2: An American businessman, bought it from England for $2.46 Million. It took 3 years to bring the bridge piece by piece across the Atlantic to Lake Havasu as a tourist attraction. Each brick was numbered so it could be exactly reassembled at it's new home.
Fun Fact #3: Once the bridge was in place, the city dredged a channel under the bridge and flooded it to create Grass Island where the motocross races were held.
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