Viva Las Vegas and happy 4th

I'm typing here from my hotel in Las Vegas.....that's right, after a busy and fun week in the Big Easy, I have now driven 1500 miles just to get to Arizona....then hoped on the bike yesterday to begin my western US bike adventure...... I'm now in Las vegas, am leaving in a few minutes for Yosemite....staying the night in a tent cabin in the high sierra mountains, and then spend three days in San Francisco....I'm excited and tired already. I got on the road around 12pm yesterday (about 5 hours later than I wanted) I was making good time, even in the 110+ temps, but then I got to the hoover dam....5 miles and 1 1/2 hours of bumper to bumper traffic in 115 degree heat!!! Needless to say, on a bike out and exposed to the elements, it was rough, one of the rougher riding situations I've been in I think. At one point, people were taking pity on me...the RV in front of me threw his rig into park and ran back and gave me a bottle of CokaCola....a bald-headed blessing he was. And then of course my bike overheated too....the bike is fine when you're moving.....but standing still is not good for and AIR cooled engine. When I finally got to the dam I was dehydrated and a little shaky...I had brought water with me in my camel back water thing.....but there was such a strong and dry breeze, that everything I drank when in and right out through my pores. Got to love it......today I'm riding across the desert along the old missile range where the US tested all of their nuclear bombs up to Tonopah, and then head west to my tent cabin in Yosemite park in the high sierras where it's projected to be 44F tonight....whew....now I'll to bundle up...oh yeah, and there's no electricity in the tent thing....so pending no problems in the desert today, you'll probably hear from me on Sun. till then......