Day 2 - Daytona/Key West

Columbia SC to Sanford Florida - 384 miles.

Got up after a good nights sleep. The guys were already up and downstairs for coffee. Met them downstairs for breakfast and ate lots of good stuff. Starting the day like this will be a good thing for riding. Can't ride on an empty stomach.

Rolling down the highway we needed to stop for our second or third time today. Found a gas station along the road and left the interstate. Pulled into a convenience store and pulled up to a  gas pumps. I got off and pumped my gas. I thought it was very quiet at the station and wondered what happen to the guys.

Just doing my thing.

They were nowhere to be found. I looked around the area, we were out in the country and nothing much around. Suddenly I found them. Please look at this picture.

See the bikes across the lot!

I rode over and entered the building to fine the guys. The clerk said they were in the back. I went back to find them in the viewing booths. I was going to say "Hey! you perverts come out of there" but I was scared I would see more then my two relatives. I said nothing and all of a sudden the guys appeared out front. They were laughing cause they had setup me up with the clerk telling me to go into the back room. Anyway I gave them a little lip and we left and  they gassed up like good boys.

At our next stop we gassed up and  I saw a restaurant across the street that featured good old southern food. I pointed to the restaurant and the guys said yes. Parking out front we noticed to Sheriffs cars and the lot was pretty full.  Went in to sit down. I noticed they had a buffet up front. I walked up and  saw two old  guys sitting there with rather full plates. I asked if they had the buffet and  they said yes. I was impressed. I walked closer  to look at the food. I was convinced I was having the buffet. Sandwiches were some $8.00 and the buffet was the same cost. It did take a little prodding to get the guys to have the buffet too. But we all did and had several plates full. I  had four pieces of fried chicken and it was finger  licking good. Driving down the highway with all that good chicken sitting in the old stomach was  just one of those "sell my clothes I have gone to heaven" moments. Love southern food.

Ran into a four mile back up just shy of the Florida boarder. Seems two cars mixed it up on the highway just over the border into Florida.  Being stuck in traffic today was painful since it was very hot and the sweat was running down inside my helmet. Also the container trailer in front of me had a nest of bees of some sort buzzing all around us. I closed my helmet visor to keep any wayward bees from getting inside my helmet. That would be awful.

Finally got to Sanford Florida but I misunderstood what the GPS was showing because I could not hear the voice announce the instructions and I did not have my tri-focal glasses on since it was sunny. I could not read the printing on the screen. After missing the turn off I stopped to tell the guys and would proceed to follow the GPS to our hotel. It was a very round about route but we did get to the hotel. Got to the hotel around 6:00 pm after some 10 hours on the road.

Checked in to the Sanford Best Western. A nice looking place. Carried all our stuff up to the room since we would be here two nights and  the lock on my trailer fell off again. We walked to a 7-eleven for beer and I got a sandwich cause I was still full from lunch. The guys went out to the Wing House for something to eat. They will have to describe that experience.

I showered and hit the hay! Man I was beat. I slept like a stone. I never heard them come in close to mid night.

It was  a good day for all of us.

TTFN