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[punkynlew@hotmail.com]

Hi Mark & List: We are in Fairbanks, AK in time to meet Jim Clark his son and four other riders who met at Deadhorse (Prudhoe Bay), AK on July 12. We'll tackle the infamous muddy, dusty, dirt Dalton Highway and head up to Deadhorse day after tomorrow. Four other KLR riders from Louisiana, whom I had met at the Georgia Mountain Rally in May and told them about the Deadhorse Meet, were in Deadhorse a little ahead of Jim and left their birthday greetings for him. Ten out of twelve who said they would be there were there. Mariola, Punky and I were the only ones who didn't show or couldn't be there. All is well. We've been lucky only getting light rain and moderately cold. Jim says it was colder and windy closer to Deadhorse. Probably will have to use the heated vest for the first time. Punky has, so far been snug as a bug in a rug with his fleece jacket, rain slicker/windbreaker and stuffed into his pouch if the weather is wet and/or cold. Critter still running great. Phil did a heck of a job preparing it. More incredibly nice people, mountains, lakes, pine trees and mind boggling scenery. Later. Punky & Lew

[punkynlew@hotmail.com]

Hi Mark & List: My body clock is totally messed up with the daylight even in the middle of the night. Didn't go to bed until 3:30 AM last night. Four nights in a row I've pitched the tent at midnight. Met Peter and Kay Forwood. They and Greg Frasier are the first experienced round the world riders I've met personally. They've been everywhere. Peter and Kay are riding two up on a Harley Electra Glide loaded to the hilt. They did the Dalton Hwy. to Prudhoe and back and have pix of their travels through Africa on roads that make the Dalton Hwy. look tame by comparison. We're camping in Fairbanks with a mix of people from Israel, Spain, Australia and the states. Some are riders and others not. Bikes represented are a Harley, a BMW 1100 GS, and a KTM. Of course, Jim Clark and his son Jim are in a motel and riding KLR's. We've camped across Alberta, BC, the Yukon and Alaska at private campgrounds, government campgrounds, a Royal Canadian Mountie's yard, behind a baseball field in Whitehorse (where little league kids started playing baseball in the cold rain at 6:30 am), on public property on a grassy hill where dirt bikes played and behind a gas station. Met two guys and a woman riding incredibly loaded bicycles from Halifax to Alaska. Envied their energy and stamina. Critter is like a Timex that takes a licking and keeps on ticking, despite the flogging and abuse I heap on it. Punky is fairing well and seems to be handling the cold and rain. Still the star of the show, as always. I have a heated vest for the ride to Deadhorse, but Punky doesn't. I'll watch closely to see that he doesn't get too cold. The covered, wind and rainproof pouch for the pooch seems to work well. Not paying close attentin to miles/day, but guesstimate we're averaging around 300 miles. Punky's card is getting him in 99% of restaurants. I have to keep Punky away from Bear, a 135 lb. Malmute dog where we are camping now. Punky growls and barks menacingly at Bear. Bear in turn wants a snack. Bear gets along fine with another small dog that doesn't give him a ration of shit. The only way Punky could hurt Bear is if Bear ate Punky and choked on his bones. Enough for now. Mark, thanks for handling everthing with the website, pix, donations, etc. Sorry for the screw-up with the film. I'm learning to tell the difference between used and unused film and to advance an unfinished roll before removing it from the camera. Everything we are doing is a learning experience. It seems I have been very conservative with time and distance estimates. We'll move faster than I thought, which is a good thing to get us to Ushuaia by Christmas. But, we may have to deal with the rainy/hurricane season, which goes into November in the zone between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator. Heavy rains cause road and bridge washouts and detours onto mudddy dirt roads, etc. Later. Punky & Lew

[Lew Waterman]

Hi Mariola & List: If anyone has contact with Mariola when she is in Fairbanks, tell her Punky and Lew are trying to wait for her at North Woods Lodge, Chena Hills Dr., Fairbanks, AK, Phone: 1-800-478-5305. Ask Tom, the owner, for directions. It's hard to find. The place is like a hostel with kitchen, rooms, camping ($12), showers, laundry, internet, etc. I got word along the road that Mariola and Punky/Lew passed each other about 120 miles south of Deadhorse and waved without realizing until too late who the rider was. I was going lickety split, as usual. We did most of the lower Dalton at 70 mph and the upper I gave a little more respect at 60 mph. Hope you (Mariola) can meet us at North Woods Lodge. Critter needs a front tire and the bike is a mess so we'll probably be here at least a couple of days. Mariola is only one day behind us. Later. Punky & Lew _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp

[Jsherlockholmz@aol.com]

In a message dated 7/24/01 10:40:10 PM Central Daylight Time, DSN_klr650@yahoogroups.com writes: > AMEN.

[R Bizarro]

Gone on a well deserved holiday. Please unsubscribe me from the list. I'm gone to see some of that BC beauty. I'll watch out for those speed traps on 4 legs jumping out of the trees when they see speeders. I'll watch out for your tent Punky & Lew. I have a funny feeling that was a mushroom picker going to pick mushrooms. The season will be starting soon. Take Care, Ride Safe! Rick Bizarro Northern BC. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Rich Kickbush]

Guys, Punky and Lew just took off to Seattle from Vancouver. I'd read all Lew's posts like all of you, but meeting them in person was something else again. Punky is one tough little bastard for getting through what he has, and Lew is not far behind. When I first read of Lew's plans from Florida, I thought he was a little nuts, and I don't think I was the only one. Yeah, he's crazy, but he has a quiet determination and the smarts to make this work. Those of you who've met him so far will know what I mean. Lew had the balls to imagine this journey, with no previous experience in any of this, the balls to begin it, and now he's making it true. I would recommend making the time to catch up with him as he heads south if you've got the chance. Meeting people like Lew is good for the soul - don't be surprised if you learn a lesson about the power of believing in yourself. Lew doesn't preach a thing - his actions speak louder than words ever could. If somehow I manage to live to Lew's age, I hope to hell I have half the spirit and courage he has. Punky, if you're reading this, take care of that old fucker, wish him a happy birthday on the 3rd, and for God's sake keep him away from the vodka. Take care of yourself, too - he gets into far too much trouble when you're not around. Rich [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[monahanwb@yahoo.com]

--- In DSN_klr650@y..., "Rich Kickbush" wrote:

> Guys, > Punky and Lew just took off to Seattle from Vancouver.

I'd read all Lew's posts like all of you, but meeting them in person was something else again. Lew says they are going to be stopping at my little hovel for a day or two; I'm looking forward to it. I am expecting to hear from him about Thursday the 23rd.

[TLrydr@aol.com]

Don't we all kinda dream and wish we could someday do what Lew and Punky are doing, I know i do and someday i will, Mike In a message dated 8/18/01 8:55:38 PM EST, richardk@... writes: << Punky, if you're reading this, take care of that old fucker, wish him a happy birthday on the 3rd, and for God's sake keep him away from the vodka. Take care of yourself, too - he gets into far too much trouble when you're not around. Rich >>

[gyb@sprynet.com]

>Lew says they are going to be stopping at my little hovel for a day >or two; I'm looking forward to it. I am expecting to hear from him >about Thursday the 23rd.

Where is your hovel, and does somebody (Rich?) have an idea of where he's going on the way? BTW, I did go up to Windy Ridge yesterday. I saw one early '90's vintage KLR parked by the side of the road with another bike and small truck. Anybody here? Gustavo

[nookie@telus.net]

From your (previous) DSN_klr650 list owner: Okay... I think I've got this all sorted out. I pressed a button in the administration section of my membership section and PRESTO- CHANGO. Since I can no longer "see" the member list, Toby must be the new owner... I hope. Ahem... (clearing my throat) "Hear ye, hear ye"... (imagine a booming, resonant echo right about now) In light of Toby's recent DSN acquisitions/responsibilities/huge undertakings (and because he's one hell of a nice guy), instead of owning a list that I am not heavily involved with anymore - as Kurt did with me many moons ago - I am passing list ownership over to Toby. I know I don't need to encourage anyone here to give him your support as he already has that and more. Having said this, I sincerely DO encourage all here to give him your support. Taking on 3 lists AND the editorial responsibilities of the DSN magazine are HUGE! With so many members, this list can be an absolute blessing. With so many members, this list can be a curse. When everything is running smoothly, things are excellent. When the waters get rough, the list Owner/Moderator can take things rather personally and feel as though they are barely able to keep their head above water. I KNOW that Toby will do an excellent job, but I also know that even though he knows the ropes better than most, once the responsibility of EVERYTHING falls on his shoulders, some learning curve mysteriously appears, seemingly out of nowhere. While I doubt he will have any problems at all, if necessary, allow him time to ride this out. Support him. Encourage him. And offer your assistance if you feel so inclined. So... in the eternal words of Porky Pig. "Bdeep, bdeep, bdeep... that's all folks". Arne Larsen -just a regular guy