Sharktrip 06 is finally here! Headed to SITM in Banner Elk, NC for another year.

We got the shark ready to go. Dan got some new S8000 Dunlops on the rear since the S03 Pole Positions on the summer wheels didn't survive the winter well and were leaking down. Got the iPod FM transmitter in and is working pretty good. We're setting the FM-2 presets on the head unit to unused freqs and that seems to be a good solution.

We rolled from Downers Grove around 11:30a

So what is it about a vacation that every single time you get that niggling feeling that you're forgetting something major. I'll figure it out sooner or later.

We stopped at Potbelly's for breakfast. It was my first time there. I got an Italian sub with everything. It’s a cute lil sammich. Not bad all in all but I have to say, the John Mayer wannabe playing to the lunch crowd was a little bit over the top. 

Trying a new route to avoid the traffic snarls on 80/94 by the Illinois/Indiana border. We're adding an extra 60mi or so but we'll see how it shakes down.

So the route for today is: 294E, 80W, 57S, 74E, 65S to Louisville, Ky, where we plan on stopping for the night.

Just passed Rantoul, Il, where the establishment is located where someone scammed my credit card for 5g's in services. We might take a run on the way back just to see what the place looks like, cause there's only a few places I know where you can charge that much in a few hours of 'serivces' and it ain't no hospital or law farm...

We made a stop off in Champaign to visit the legendary Hooters restaurant just to pick up colossal-wear but alas NO. THEY DON'T CARRY GROWN-UP SIZES. HELLO... To all of our Hooters friends out there... Stop discriminating against us and get some friggin 3X t's in. And that goes for all of you (yes Downers and Janesville Hooters, that goes for you too).

Finally made it to the Holiday Inn (the furthest East of all the 4 Holiday Inns that you can see from the highway). That sure does mess with the navigator... Well I can say, suburban Louisville looks a lot like Elmhurst, Il. It only took us 7 hours to get here.

Dinner at Ruby Tuesday's near the hotel. Great Smokehouse Bison Burger with all sorts of tasty junk on it and a side salad bar to mess with thing just a tad bit more. Add a couple strawberry lemonades and I was downright ready to... well, never mind that...  Tasty but hard to handle.

So, just a side comment about this part (east side) of Louisville... VERY NICE. What is it about that cute lil southern twang 'y'all' that can bring a grown yank to his knees? Anyone? Rick?

Oh... and the girls at the front desk of the HI Express... They dazzle easily. I guess Dan and I think too much alike... We started out the day dressed in identical clothes and logo wear. It wasn't on purpose and we never discussed it. Yellow logo-T, blue jeans, right down to the New Balances... The girls comment on it. So we check in, and again, independently, we go our own rooms to chill a bit then get ready to go out... and come out looking the same again. Of course it messed with them... "Uh, weren't you guys wearing identical yellow shirts earlier..." Now, we're dressed mostly the same again... but in black... DOH! Tomorrow? No. We're gonna coordinate so we DON'T.

The rest of the night was awesome and we rolled in at least before dawn hit. Only need to get up in, oh 4 hours...

Seeya in a few...