We are all still 'decompressing' from the ride.
Catching up on TV, stretching our legs and giving our butts a break.
We've got to get the bikes unloaded, cleaned, maintained (oil changes) and preped for sale.
Dan and Chris have laundry to do and plan on seeing family and some of the sites in S.D. before we head back to Michigan on Friday.
But, this is not the end of the blog. Far from it.
When I get back to Grand Rapids, and have access to better technology, I plan to post more details regarding the route. Daily starts, fuel stops, places visited, things seen, eaten and stops.
We've got some videos taken from Ray's handlebar cam that I need to experiment with.
We've all got thoughts, suggestions and ideas for the next trip, and I'll use this blog to preserve those comments.
Prior to leaving on the trip, I prepared several lists of stuff to take, what to see, routes... Now that we can sit back and analyze the adventure, I'll post any changes to the equipment I'd bring, or not bring, next time.
Yes there will be a 'next time'! We'll be looking for more riders, supporters and followers. So, start planning a couple of weeks sometime next year. We'll probably try to go a couple of weeks later, to avoid the cold, and definitely take a different route, but we are already talking about what to do, where to go, what to ride, what to see, where and how to spend the nights... cool stuff.
See you back on this blog in a couple of days.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Day 10
Day 10 – Monday – Memorial Day.
The Zumo tells us that we’re less than 400 miles from San Diego, so we decide there’s no reason to spend another night on the road so our destination tonight is Ray’s house. Since Ray can move much faster than Dan and Chris, he takes the map and abandons us in the middle of the desert (kidding). The map only gives us the ‘big picture’ of the country, the Garmin is what I’ve been relying on for navigation. So, we dissolve the fellowship and Ray is off.
Dan and I stop for breakfast at the Mile High Grill in Jerome, AZ. Jerome is kind of an ‘artsy’ community ‘bolted’ to the side of a mountain. Lots of steep inclines and switchbacks getting to the town. We have to wait about 5 minutes for the restaurant to open, but Dan and I agree this is the best breakfast of the trip.
The ride west from Jerome through Prescott, AZ and on toward California is probably the best motorcycle route we’ve been on. AZ 89A is constant switchbacks, beautiful views and great roads. We pass a lot of bikes heading into the area, probably to enjoy this cool road.
10:00 am, Prescott, AZ. 3507 ODO. 2.7 gals.
12:55 pm, Quartzsite, AZ 2.97 gals. 3648 ODO
1:30 – California state line.
Drove through the Glammis/Imperial Valley rec. area – huge sand dune ORV area
Border Patrol check point just before the split of
Ocotillo Wells, CA 3.5 gals. 3800 ODO.
6:15 pm. Rays house. 3882 ODO. Our last 400 mile day.
The Zumo tells us that we’re less than 400 miles from San Diego, so we decide there’s no reason to spend another night on the road so our destination tonight is Ray’s house. Since Ray can move much faster than Dan and Chris, he takes the map and abandons us in the middle of the desert (kidding). The map only gives us the ‘big picture’ of the country, the Garmin is what I’ve been relying on for navigation. So, we dissolve the fellowship and Ray is off.
Dan and I stop for breakfast at the Mile High Grill in Jerome, AZ. Jerome is kind of an ‘artsy’ community ‘bolted’ to the side of a mountain. Lots of steep inclines and switchbacks getting to the town. We have to wait about 5 minutes for the restaurant to open, but Dan and I agree this is the best breakfast of the trip.
The ride west from Jerome through Prescott, AZ and on toward California is probably the best motorcycle route we’ve been on. AZ 89A is constant switchbacks, beautiful views and great roads. We pass a lot of bikes heading into the area, probably to enjoy this cool road.
10:00 am, Prescott, AZ. 3507 ODO. 2.7 gals.
12:55 pm, Quartzsite, AZ 2.97 gals. 3648 ODO
1:30 – California state line.
Drove through the Glammis/Imperial Valley rec. area – huge sand dune ORV area
Border Patrol check point just before the split of
Ocotillo Wells, CA 3.5 gals. 3800 ODO.
6:15 pm. Rays house. 3882 ODO. Our last 400 mile day.
Day 9 – Sunday
Day 9 – Sunday
Out of the Rodeway motel in Cortez, CO by 9:00 am. We all agree that staying in a motel makes the departing much faster: no sleeping bags to rollup, not tents to breakdown and pack, no strapping down gear. It’s kind of difficult finding a ‘reasonably’ priced room for three, but some negotiation skills help. We’ve been able to get a better price almost everywhere we’ve been.
Temp is still pretty cool this morning. Back to wearing leather jackets, fleece and gloves. But, it definitely beats the heat, humidity and wind.
Breakfast at the Ute coffee shop. Food is good and portions are plentiful.
9:30 4-corners. Lots of native American outdoor merchants selling jewelry, blankets, pottery, sandstone art and ‘archery’ items.
We ride the bikes around the circle so we can say we were in all four states – Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico.
11:25 – Mexican Water Trading Post.
2.29 gals, 3142 ODO
1:50 Cameron, AZ. 3845 ODO. 3.09 gals.
Grand Canyon. Our original plan
was visit the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and then head toward Las Vegas. But with the cold weather in the area, we opt for the South Rim and then head toward Flagstaff, Phoenix and warmer nights. The temps during the day are in the 70’s to upper 80’s. I asked a park manager if there were available camp sites at the South Rim, he told me there were 50 sites and only ½ occupied. No reservations, first-come, first-served. He also told me the temp was expected to drop into the 30’s that night with the probability of snow. Phoenix is sounding better.
4:56 somewhere north of Flagstaff. 2.5 gals. 3393 on the ODO.
Ray has fallen a ways behind Dan and Chris. He told us that he was going to take some pictures with his handlebar mounted video camera, so don’t wait or turn back for him. It turns out that his tent came off the bike and he had to go back to get it and re-secure it to the bike.
Flagstaff is at an elevation of about 7,400 feet. We find out how much impact elevation has on temperature. 2,000 feet makes a difference of 10 to 15 degrees.
We change destinations and head toward Sedona, AZ. As we take the switchbacks and drop down into the canyon, the temp definitely rises. We get about 2 miles from the town and traffic comes to a standstill. Good thing is that we are heading downhill, so we can shut the bikes down and roll/coast into town. The only camping available
around Sedona is the State and National forest campgrounds. We decide to find dinner first and get our ‘ground crew’ to find us accommodations.
Dinner at the Cowboy Club restaurant. Probably the fanciest place we’ve been to on the trip. 20 minute wait, huge portions.
Karen makes us a reservation at the Little Daisy motel in Cottonwood, AZ, about 10 miles south of Sedona. Arrive at 9:30 pm. Room has one bed and a roll-away. Chris gets his air mattress out, Dan is on the roll-away and Ray gets the bed.
Out of the Rodeway motel in Cortez, CO by 9:00 am. We all agree that staying in a motel makes the departing much faster: no sleeping bags to rollup, not tents to breakdown and pack, no strapping down gear. It’s kind of difficult finding a ‘reasonably’ priced room for three, but some negotiation skills help. We’ve been able to get a better price almost everywhere we’ve been.
Temp is still pretty cool this morning. Back to wearing leather jackets, fleece and gloves. But, it definitely beats the heat, humidity and wind.
Breakfast at the Ute coffee shop. Food is good and portions are plentiful.
9:30 4-corners. Lots of native American outdoor merchants selling jewelry, blankets, pottery, sandstone art and ‘archery’ items.
We ride the bikes around the circle so we can say we were in all four states – Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico.
11:25 – Mexican Water Trading Post.
2.29 gals, 3142 ODO
1:50 Cameron, AZ. 3845 ODO. 3.09 gals.
Grand Canyon. Our original plan
was visit the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and then head toward Las Vegas. But with the cold weather in the area, we opt for the South Rim and then head toward Flagstaff, Phoenix and warmer nights. The temps during the day are in the 70’s to upper 80’s. I asked a park manager if there were available camp sites at the South Rim, he told me there were 50 sites and only ½ occupied. No reservations, first-come, first-served. He also told me the temp was expected to drop into the 30’s that night with the probability of snow. Phoenix is sounding better.
4:56 somewhere north of Flagstaff. 2.5 gals. 3393 on the ODO.Ray has fallen a ways behind Dan and Chris. He told us that he was going to take some pictures with his handlebar mounted video camera, so don’t wait or turn back for him. It turns out that his tent came off the bike and he had to go back to get it and re-secure it to the bike.
Flagstaff is at an elevation of about 7,400 feet. We find out how much impact elevation has on temperature. 2,000 feet makes a difference of 10 to 15 degrees.
We change destinations and head toward Sedona, AZ. As we take the switchbacks and drop down into the canyon, the temp definitely rises. We get about 2 miles from the town and traffic comes to a standstill. Good thing is that we are heading downhill, so we can shut the bikes down and roll/coast into town. The only camping available
around Sedona is the State and National forest campgrounds. We decide to find dinner first and get our ‘ground crew’ to find us accommodations.Dinner at the Cowboy Club restaurant. Probably the fanciest place we’ve been to on the trip. 20 minute wait, huge portions.
Karen makes us a reservation at the Little Daisy motel in Cottonwood, AZ, about 10 miles south of Sedona. Arrive at 9:30 pm. Room has one bed and a roll-away. Chris gets his air mattress out, Dan is on the roll-away and Ray gets the bed.
Day 8 - Saturday
Day 8 – Saturday.
Weather pretty cold and windy last night. Chris actually adds additional guy ropes to keep his tent from blowing away. All in their tents early.
Up at 7:00 am (Mtn time) showers, pack up camp and head into Tucumcari for breakfast. Our planned restaurant, Mels (where we had dinner last night), is not open; so, we head further west on the main drag through town and end up at Rubees diner. Probably the slowest service of the trip.
12:18 Clines Corners, NM. 2743 ODO. 3.9 gals @ $4.29/gal.
Wind is not as bad this morning but the temperature is the coldest we’ve driven in. Dan is back in his leather jacket and chaps. Chris has his fleece on under his leather jacket.
3:11 pm – Cuba NM. 2885 ODO. 3.25 gals @3.79/gal.
Temp is definitely dropping. To the east we can see there is snow on the tops of the mountains. The road here is excellent so Ray goes ahead to clean the carbon out of the cylinders, rather than being bogged down by the Goldwings.
Weather pretty cold and windy last night. Chris actually adds additional guy ropes to keep his tent from blowing away. All in their tents early.
Up at 7:00 am (Mtn time) showers, pack up camp and head into Tucumcari for breakfast. Our planned restaurant, Mels (where we had dinner last night), is not open; so, we head further west on the main drag through town and end up at Rubees diner. Probably the slowest service of the trip.
12:18 Clines Corners, NM. 2743 ODO. 3.9 gals @ $4.29/gal.
Wind is not as bad this morning but the temperature is the coldest we’ve driven in. Dan is back in his leather jacket and chaps. Chris has his fleece on under his leather jacket.
3:11 pm – Cuba NM. 2885 ODO. 3.25 gals @3.79/gal.
Temp is definitely dropping. To the east we can see there is snow on the tops of the mountains. The road here is excellent so Ray goes ahead to clean the carbon out of the cylinders, rather than being bogged down by the Goldwings.
4:00 pm – crossed the continental divide.
6:00 pm – Hesperus, CO. 3029 ODO. 3.25 gals.
Our original destination for today was to stay at Mesa Verde National Park. But with the snow on the roofs of the houses and on the sides of the roads, we all decide this is a good opportunity for a motel. The clerk at the Hesperus gas station recommends we head west to Cortez, CO; better selection of motels, restaurants and less chance of snow tonight.
Check into the Rodeway motel. Huge suite room.
Dinner across the street at J.Fargo’s. Kind of a
micro-brewery/sports bar place.
Day 7
Day 7 – Friday.
Hard to believe that we’ve been on the road for a whole week. The only time we go indoors deals with food; either taking it in our letting it out. But we still haven’t seen any rain or bad weather of any kind so all of our nights are still in the tents.
Our objective today is Albuquerque.
Since we got in to the campground late last night, we don’t get a very early start this morning. Ray and Dan go up to the office to pay for last nights stay and are very taken with the park managers. It seems that they belong to a group called ‘Campers for Christ’. Very nice people. One of the park residents (Buc, I think) stops by our site to socialize about our adventure. We tell him where we’re going and, like everybody else, thinks it is great. He asks if we’re doing any ‘sightseeing’ on the trip. I explain that we’re now at a point in the trip where we can start to slow down. He recommends the Palo
Duro canyon just south of Amarillo and the Cadillac ranch just west of the campground.
Across the interstate is a Gander Mtn store; we’re still looking for a campground directory and may need some camp supplies. Ray is still securing his gear, so Dan and Chris head over to check out the store. No luck on a campground directory but Chris finds a new pair of sunglasses; they’re getting pretty bent trying to get them under the helmet. Ray meets us at the Gander Mtn and we’re off for breakfast at Ruby’s Tequila restaurant; no breakfast but we get an early lunch (11:30). Head off to the Canyon. The park manager tells us that this is the second largest
canyon in the U.S. Kind of hard to believe since I’ve seen the Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon and a couple other un-remembered canyons. Entrance is $4 per bike. The park office and visitor center is about ½ mile from the entrance and I’m thinking we’ll stop there, look over the rim of the canyon and get back on the road. From the visitor center we can see that the road goes all the way to the bottom of the canyon. We all agree that this looks like a pretty cool ride. Down through the canyon we encounter some pretty aggressive switchbacks, water crossings and bunches of Roadrunners. Chris manages to get some pictures while riding of Dan and Ray (good experiment at 20 mph, but I wouldn’t want to attempt it any faster).
Next stop is the local hardware store to get some spray paint ???
Heading west on I40 the wind is again very strong out of the south; hard on our beam.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spot the Cadillac Ranch. Apparently some eccentric guy bought a Cadillac (used, new who knows) and buried it nose first in the dirt. Now there are about a dozen Cadillac’s buried nose first in the dirt in a nice straight row. People paint their names on the cars, take pictures… Disposal of the partially used spray paint cans is no problem: just give them to the next group of tourists.
3:30 pm. Gas, 2.9 gallons. 2509 on the ODO – West Amarillo. So far we’ve put about a hundred miles on the bikes but have only gone 5 productive miles into the trip. We can still see the campground from the gas station (but out here, you can see 3 days in every direction).
Wind extremely strong from the south. I feel I need to ‘hike out’ on the port side to counteract the healing.
5:00 pm, TX/NM border.
Very strange phenomenon; as soon as we cross the state line, the winds die down and change directions 180 degrees. Thank you to the people of New Mexico for such excellent weather control. The temperature is definitely decreasing.
4:30 (we’re now in Mountain Time). I decide to exit into Tucumcari, NM for fuel and to see if Dan wants to switch back into his warmer jacket; I’ve been pulling up my zippers, tightening my straps and buckling down.
ODO – 2610. 2.8 gals.
There is a guy in the gas station walking around with a 6 –
8 foot rattlesnake. That is one of the reasons I live in Michigan.
There are some pretty nasty looking clouds west of us and the weather predictions are not favorable. All agree that Tucumcari is a good place to spend the night. Our shortest day riding, but stopping is the smart thing to do – we’ve got lots of time.
Dan notes that there is a KOA campground about 1 mile east of the gas station, so that is our target. Very friendly camp staff and lots of tent sites.
Tent sites seem to be an anomaly in RV parks. Not sure why, but many of the parks prohibit tents.
Drive back into Tucumcari for dinner. Ray suggests that we cruise the main drag, scope out the restaurants and pick the best one on the way back. The town is full of motorcycles and lots of Valkyries (Chris’s personal bike back home). Seems there is a rally further north – Red River, and a lot of the bikers are coming an going.
Dinner at Del’s restaurant. Good salad bar, soup and generally good food. Our waitress is especially nice. Ray orders a lemonade and she tells him its not really that good, but will let him try it and if he doesn’t like it can order something else.
Talk to a Valkyrie rider that came from the west. Says the weather in Albuquerque is pouring rain and cold; staying in Tucumcari is looking like a better decision all the time.
Ray heads off to find a locksmith (still trying to get a spare key made) and Dan and Chris head back to the camp.
Wind is very strong ant the temp is dropping fast.
Ray arrives a little later – no key, but he’s got beer.
Couple of shots of Scotch and beer chasers to ward off the cold and then we’re all in our tents to get out of the wind. Still it’s pretty cold, but better with the wind off of us.
That’s about it for now. I’ve got to get to a better internet connection to post the pictures. Right now I’m on a picnic table plugged into an RV site power post.
Hard to believe that we’ve been on the road for a whole week. The only time we go indoors deals with food; either taking it in our letting it out. But we still haven’t seen any rain or bad weather of any kind so all of our nights are still in the tents.
Our objective today is Albuquerque.
Since we got in to the campground late last night, we don’t get a very early start this morning. Ray and Dan go up to the office to pay for last nights stay and are very taken with the park managers. It seems that they belong to a group called ‘Campers for Christ’. Very nice people. One of the park residents (Buc, I think) stops by our site to socialize about our adventure. We tell him where we’re going and, like everybody else, thinks it is great. He asks if we’re doing any ‘sightseeing’ on the trip. I explain that we’re now at a point in the trip where we can start to slow down. He recommends the Palo
Duro canyon just south of Amarillo and the Cadillac ranch just west of the campground.Across the interstate is a Gander Mtn store; we’re still looking for a campground directory and may need some camp supplies. Ray is still securing his gear, so Dan and Chris head over to check out the store. No luck on a campground directory but Chris finds a new pair of sunglasses; they’re getting pretty bent trying to get them under the helmet. Ray meets us at the Gander Mtn and we’re off for breakfast at Ruby’s Tequila restaurant; no breakfast but we get an early lunch (11:30). Head off to the Canyon. The park manager tells us that this is the second largest
canyon in the U.S. Kind of hard to believe since I’ve seen the Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon and a couple other un-remembered canyons. Entrance is $4 per bike. The park office and visitor center is about ½ mile from the entrance and I’m thinking we’ll stop there, look over the rim of the canyon and get back on the road. From the visitor center we can see that the road goes all the way to the bottom of the canyon. We all agree that this looks like a pretty cool ride. Down through the canyon we encounter some pretty aggressive switchbacks, water crossings and bunches of Roadrunners. Chris manages to get some pictures while riding of Dan and Ray (good experiment at 20 mph, but I wouldn’t want to attempt it any faster).Next stop is the local hardware store to get some spray paint ???
Heading west on I40 the wind is again very strong out of the south; hard on our beam.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spot the Cadillac Ranch. Apparently some eccentric guy bought a Cadillac (used, new who knows) and buried it nose first in the dirt. Now there are about a dozen Cadillac’s buried nose first in the dirt in a nice straight row. People paint their names on the cars, take pictures… Disposal of the partially used spray paint cans is no problem: just give them to the next group of tourists.
3:30 pm. Gas, 2.9 gallons. 2509 on the ODO – West Amarillo. So far we’ve put about a hundred miles on the bikes but have only gone 5 productive miles into the trip. We can still see the campground from the gas station (but out here, you can see 3 days in every direction).Wind extremely strong from the south. I feel I need to ‘hike out’ on the port side to counteract the healing.
5:00 pm, TX/NM border.
Very strange phenomenon; as soon as we cross the state line, the winds die down and change directions 180 degrees. Thank you to the people of New Mexico for such excellent weather control. The temperature is definitely decreasing.
4:30 (we’re now in Mountain Time). I decide to exit into Tucumcari, NM for fuel and to see if Dan wants to switch back into his warmer jacket; I’ve been pulling up my zippers, tightening my straps and buckling down.
ODO – 2610. 2.8 gals.
There is a guy in the gas station walking around with a 6 –
8 foot rattlesnake. That is one of the reasons I live in Michigan.There are some pretty nasty looking clouds west of us and the weather predictions are not favorable. All agree that Tucumcari is a good place to spend the night. Our shortest day riding, but stopping is the smart thing to do – we’ve got lots of time.
Dan notes that there is a KOA campground about 1 mile east of the gas station, so that is our target. Very friendly camp staff and lots of tent sites.
Tent sites seem to be an anomaly in RV parks. Not sure why, but many of the parks prohibit tents.
Drive back into Tucumcari for dinner. Ray suggests that we cruise the main drag, scope out the restaurants and pick the best one on the way back. The town is full of motorcycles and lots of Valkyries (Chris’s personal bike back home). Seems there is a rally further north – Red River, and a lot of the bikers are coming an going.
Dinner at Del’s restaurant. Good salad bar, soup and generally good food. Our waitress is especially nice. Ray orders a lemonade and she tells him its not really that good, but will let him try it and if he doesn’t like it can order something else.
Talk to a Valkyrie rider that came from the west. Says the weather in Albuquerque is pouring rain and cold; staying in Tucumcari is looking like a better decision all the time.
Ray heads off to find a locksmith (still trying to get a spare key made) and Dan and Chris head back to the camp.
Wind is very strong ant the temp is dropping fast.
Ray arrives a little later – no key, but he’s got beer.
Couple of shots of Scotch and beer chasers to ward off the cold and then we’re all in our tents to get out of the wind. Still it’s pretty cold, but better with the wind off of us.
That’s about it for now. I’ve got to get to a better internet connection to post the pictures. Right now I’m on a picnic table plugged into an RV site power post.
Day 6 – Thursday
We all agree that it is much better to get to be able to set up camp in the daylight. Even though we again rode over 400 miles yesterday, a little better planning and support from Karen and Kathy got us to the Hi-Ho campground before 6:00 pm. Got the camp set up, and following the managers recommendations have dinner at the Acapulcos Tex-Mex Restaurant. The park manager describes the portions as not ‘all you can eat’, but ‘all you want to eat’ – definitely true. Dan and Chris head back to the camp and Ray heads over to WalMart to get a bigger tent, some laundry detergent and a lantern. He liked the tent so much, he ‘misplaces’ it somewhere between WalMart and the Campground and has to go back and get another one; since there so cheap, he could probably get two or three as spares. Chris comments that Ray is Sam Walton’s target customer: everybody claims to hate them, but if you step into one of their evil stores, you come out with $100 worth of stuff. Ray now has a new ‘outfit’.
Laundry is done. There are three washers and three dryers, perfect; there’s three of us. Each of us take a machine and dump our clothes in; no separating colors, whites, towels; dirty is dirty. To wash and dry it costs me $2.00.
I make a couple of recommendations on approving places to stay: Campground needs to be secure, allow tents and bikes, reasonably priced, mostly quiet and not in a ‘dry’ county. Chris walks to a gas station about 100 yards from the camp to find they only sell sodas – no beer. Dan and Ray comment that this is the first day Chris hasn’t had any beer. Oh well, at least we’ve still got the Scotch.
First stop this morning is back to the Acapulcos restaurant for breakfast. Again, huge portions, great food and very friendly service (actually the same waitress from last night).
Next stop is a Yamaha dealer. Ray finds his cruise control and Dan buys a summer-weight riding jacket; good price and will be much cooler for the Texas and desert riding.
Karen has found us a boot store, so I punch in the address and we’re off again. Short ride through Dallas (too much traffic and lane changing idiots), we find the store, but they are now a wholesaler. They recommend a store a few miles away and were off again to ‘Boot Town’. If we were looking for footwear to ‘Poke Cows’ and ‘Rope Goats’, this would be the place; very limited motorcycle boots. One of the clerks recommends another
Boot Town in the direction that we’re heading and off we go again. This store has a better selection of ‘work boots’ that will be good for riding. They also have ‘motorcycle’ boots, but they look like something Frankenstein’s monster would wear. Ray and Chris find acceptable boots and we’re off again. Across the freeway is a Home Depot; Ray has a spare key ‘blank’ for his bike that he needs to get cut. Their machine is not capable of doing his key. Chris finds a USB cable plus another card reader. So, I am now able to post pictures again.
1:38 pm Alvard, TX. 3.1 gals 2119 ODO. Strong winds from the south east; shouldn’t be a problem since our direction is northwest.
4:51 pm, Chillicothe, TX. 2251 ODO 2.7 gals.
Chris checks the weather in Amarillo with his cell phone and is alerted that there is a ‘Red Flag Wind Advisory’ for the area until 9:00 pm tonight. We are definitely feeling it. The riding is worse than coming down through Indiana; now we have semi-trucks going in the opposite direction, turbulence is ‘strong’. I’m squeezing the grips so hard I expect plastic puss to come shooting out of the handlebars. With the big fairings, the Goldwing’s are more affected by the wind than Ray’s FJR. Ray say’s he is actually drowsy riding and is going to stay at the gas station, take a nap and meet us at the Big Texan in Amarillo. So, Dan and I head north.
8:00 pm Claude, TX. 2384 ODO. 2.76 gals @ 3.93 per gallon. Gas prices are going up.
8:30 pm – Big Texan restaurant, Amarillo, TX – another milestone waypoint. 2400 miles on the ODO. Ray is already there, he must have overtaken us at a rest area. Our butts were sore. Nobody takes the challenge on the ‘free’ steak dinner.
The last time I was here, it was a 60 oz steak and you had to eat it in one sitting. Now it’s a 72 oz steak and you have 1 hour to finish the whole meal. There was one guy that attempted it while we were there, but he lost the challenge. If you loose the challenge the cost is $72.
Kathy has booked us a reservation at the Sundowner RV park about 12 miles from the Big Texan. We arrive about 10:30, the office is way closed. We find a piece of grass and set up camp. A couple of shots of medicinal Scotch to help us sleep. We’re now into our second fifth. Lauders and Grand McNish Scotch do the job of helping you sleep, but the taste is pretty strong. But we guess that Scotch in a plastic bottle is sketchy.
We plan to shorten our objective for today. Ray is putting on his cruise control, Dan is adjusting his gear, and I’m at the keyboard.
Love to all and ride easy.
Laundry is done. There are three washers and three dryers, perfect; there’s three of us. Each of us take a machine and dump our clothes in; no separating colors, whites, towels; dirty is dirty. To wash and dry it costs me $2.00.
I make a couple of recommendations on approving places to stay: Campground needs to be secure, allow tents and bikes, reasonably priced, mostly quiet and not in a ‘dry’ county. Chris walks to a gas station about 100 yards from the camp to find they only sell sodas – no beer. Dan and Ray comment that this is the first day Chris hasn’t had any beer. Oh well, at least we’ve still got the Scotch.
First stop this morning is back to the Acapulcos restaurant for breakfast. Again, huge portions, great food and very friendly service (actually the same waitress from last night).
Next stop is a Yamaha dealer. Ray finds his cruise control and Dan buys a summer-weight riding jacket; good price and will be much cooler for the Texas and desert riding.
Karen has found us a boot store, so I punch in the address and we’re off again. Short ride through Dallas (too much traffic and lane changing idiots), we find the store, but they are now a wholesaler. They recommend a store a few miles away and were off again to ‘Boot Town’. If we were looking for footwear to ‘Poke Cows’ and ‘Rope Goats’, this would be the place; very limited motorcycle boots. One of the clerks recommends another
Boot Town in the direction that we’re heading and off we go again. This store has a better selection of ‘work boots’ that will be good for riding. They also have ‘motorcycle’ boots, but they look like something Frankenstein’s monster would wear. Ray and Chris find acceptable boots and we’re off again. Across the freeway is a Home Depot; Ray has a spare key ‘blank’ for his bike that he needs to get cut. Their machine is not capable of doing his key. Chris finds a USB cable plus another card reader. So, I am now able to post pictures again.1:38 pm Alvard, TX. 3.1 gals 2119 ODO. Strong winds from the south east; shouldn’t be a problem since our direction is northwest.
4:51 pm, Chillicothe, TX. 2251 ODO 2.7 gals.
Chris checks the weather in Amarillo with his cell phone and is alerted that there is a ‘Red Flag Wind Advisory’ for the area until 9:00 pm tonight. We are definitely feeling it. The riding is worse than coming down through Indiana; now we have semi-trucks going in the opposite direction, turbulence is ‘strong’. I’m squeezing the grips so hard I expect plastic puss to come shooting out of the handlebars. With the big fairings, the Goldwing’s are more affected by the wind than Ray’s FJR. Ray say’s he is actually drowsy riding and is going to stay at the gas station, take a nap and meet us at the Big Texan in Amarillo. So, Dan and I head north.
8:00 pm Claude, TX. 2384 ODO. 2.76 gals @ 3.93 per gallon. Gas prices are going up.
8:30 pm – Big Texan restaurant, Amarillo, TX – another milestone waypoint. 2400 miles on the ODO. Ray is already there, he must have overtaken us at a rest area. Our butts were sore. Nobody takes the challenge on the ‘free’ steak dinner.
The last time I was here, it was a 60 oz steak and you had to eat it in one sitting. Now it’s a 72 oz steak and you have 1 hour to finish the whole meal. There was one guy that attempted it while we were there, but he lost the challenge. If you loose the challenge the cost is $72.
Kathy has booked us a reservation at the Sundowner RV park about 12 miles from the Big Texan. We arrive about 10:30, the office is way closed. We find a piece of grass and set up camp. A couple of shots of medicinal Scotch to help us sleep. We’re now into our second fifth. Lauders and Grand McNish Scotch do the job of helping you sleep, but the taste is pretty strong. But we guess that Scotch in a plastic bottle is sketchy.
We plan to shorten our objective for today. Ray is putting on his cruise control, Dan is adjusting his gear, and I’m at the keyboard.
Love to all and ride easy.
Day 5
Day 5 – Wednesday
Breakfast in Oberlin. My mom describes this kind of meal as ‘food’, it keeps your belly button from touching your backbone, but that is about it. Not bad, but just basic ‘food’.
10:00 DeRidder, LA. 1,710 miles on the ODO. 3.2 gals.
12:24 pm, Wells, TX. 2.8 gals. Stopped next door at the Dairy Queen to cool off and take a break. We all agree that we’re glad to be out of Louisiana; people there very unfriendly, almost grumpy. The roads aren’t great and the heat and humidity were very draining.
3:26 Crandall, TX 1,975 miles on the ODO. 2.74 gals
Ray calls Karen for direction to a boot store. Chris calls Kathy for directions to a campground. Again, thanks to our support crew at each end.
Hi-Ho Campground for the night. The manager tries to charge us each $12.00 per tent; for $36 we can almost justify a motel. We reason with the manager and she only charges us $24. Talking to her, I find out that she is originally from Flint, MI where my Dad’s family is from and she grew up about ½ a mile for my Grandparents house.
She recommends a restaurant and we get the camp set up prior to going to eat.
This is the earliest we’ve gotten camp set up. Every other night, we’re setting up in the dark. Tonight, we’ve got the bikes unloaded, tents set up and gear stowed before 5:00 pm.
Dinner at the Acapulco restaurant in Desoto, TX.
Chris and Dan go back to the campground and Ray is going over to WalMart to get a bigger tent, some laundry soap, a battery operated lantern…
Our plan tomorrow is to pack up, head over to a Cycle Shop (Dan still needs a tinted visor for his helmet, Ray wants a cruise control, and Chris is looking for a different pair of gloves – starting to develop a strange tan on the back of my hands)
We’re then heading for the Boot shop found by Karen and then heading toward Amarillo, TX and the Big Texan restaurant: that 60 oz. steak doesn’t stand a chance against us.
We’ve been very lucky with the weather; other than the heat and humidity it’s been completely dry the entire trip. As we approached Dallas this afternoon it looked like rain, but the clouds blew out by the time we set up camp. The humidity here in Dallas is way lower then Louisiana. Looks like a good sleeping night.
I can't seem to find my USB cable to transfer pictures. So, tomorrow I'll either find or buy one and post a blog mostly of the last couple of days of pictures.
Anybody that would like to add comments to the blog, send your e-mail address to cakanous@comcast.net. I'll grant access based on need and value.
Breakfast in Oberlin. My mom describes this kind of meal as ‘food’, it keeps your belly button from touching your backbone, but that is about it. Not bad, but just basic ‘food’.
10:00 DeRidder, LA. 1,710 miles on the ODO. 3.2 gals.
12:24 pm, Wells, TX. 2.8 gals. Stopped next door at the Dairy Queen to cool off and take a break. We all agree that we’re glad to be out of Louisiana; people there very unfriendly, almost grumpy. The roads aren’t great and the heat and humidity were very draining.
3:26 Crandall, TX 1,975 miles on the ODO. 2.74 gals
Ray calls Karen for direction to a boot store. Chris calls Kathy for directions to a campground. Again, thanks to our support crew at each end.
Hi-Ho Campground for the night. The manager tries to charge us each $12.00 per tent; for $36 we can almost justify a motel. We reason with the manager and she only charges us $24. Talking to her, I find out that she is originally from Flint, MI where my Dad’s family is from and she grew up about ½ a mile for my Grandparents house.
She recommends a restaurant and we get the camp set up prior to going to eat.
This is the earliest we’ve gotten camp set up. Every other night, we’re setting up in the dark. Tonight, we’ve got the bikes unloaded, tents set up and gear stowed before 5:00 pm.
Dinner at the Acapulco restaurant in Desoto, TX.
Chris and Dan go back to the campground and Ray is going over to WalMart to get a bigger tent, some laundry soap, a battery operated lantern…
Our plan tomorrow is to pack up, head over to a Cycle Shop (Dan still needs a tinted visor for his helmet, Ray wants a cruise control, and Chris is looking for a different pair of gloves – starting to develop a strange tan on the back of my hands)
We’re then heading for the Boot shop found by Karen and then heading toward Amarillo, TX and the Big Texan restaurant: that 60 oz. steak doesn’t stand a chance against us.
We’ve been very lucky with the weather; other than the heat and humidity it’s been completely dry the entire trip. As we approached Dallas this afternoon it looked like rain, but the clouds blew out by the time we set up camp. The humidity here in Dallas is way lower then Louisiana. Looks like a good sleeping night.
I can't seem to find my USB cable to transfer pictures. So, tomorrow I'll either find or buy one and post a blog mostly of the last couple of days of pictures.
Anybody that would like to add comments to the blog, send your e-mail address to cakanous@comcast.net. I'll grant access based on need and value.
Day 4
Day 4 – Tuesday
Spent last night at the Baton Rouge East KOA. When we called to see if they had tent sites available we were told that all of the tent sites were under construction. We got there after the office was closed, so there was nobody to tell us we couldn’t stay. We found an open RV site – lots available, parked the bikes on the concrete pad and set the tents up on the grass next to the pad. Lots of noise from the frogs next to the camp so Dan and I opted for earplugs – good idea.
Up at 7:00. Showers, update the blog and pack up the camp. Dan and Ray remove the ‘wings’ from my windshield; I’m hoping to get some more breeze to compensate for the heat.
The camp office mangager, Opal, recommended either Shonney’s or IHOP for breakfast. We were looking for something more ‘local’ so we decided to head into New Orleans to eat. From the CG it was still about a 90 minute ride into the Big Easy. Nice ride with the Lake Pontchartrain on the side.
Out of the CG @ 9:00 $26.77 for the night. Opal had some difficulty registering us, but all worked out and were on our way.
Gas 3.1 gals $11.4
After another roundabout route into town (still fine tuning the Garmin) we ride the bikes down Bourbon Street. Ray asks for directions to an address that Karen gave us to get Beignet’s and Coffee and the restaurant manager also directed us to a place where we could park the bikes in a covered parking lot – Dauphine Hotel.
Had breakfast/lunch at Johnny’s Po Boy’s restaurant. Dan gets the Pork Sausage Po Boy, Ray the Shrimp Po Boy and Chris the fried Crawfish. They keep laughing at me for pronouncing it ‘Crayfish’ instead of ‘Crawfish’.
Walked around the French Quarter and found Café du Monde as recommend by Karen. Coffee au lait and Beignet’s; very tasty and lots of confectioners sugar. Can’t imagine why anybody could work here. Poor guy at the table next to us takes his sport jacket off and he’s completely covered in sweat; so are we, but we’re seasoned bikers.
Ray wants to look at some souvenirs and we all buy T-shirts that say ‘New Orleans Road Trip 2008’ how appropriate.
Head out of the French Quarter about 2:00 into construction traffic jams. Even though we didn’t
see any Katrina evidence, there is a lot of infrastructure construction.
6:00 pm, gas at Port Barre, LA. 2.7 gals 1,573 on the ODO
We decide to change the route from that recommended by Zumo, so we cross the Mississippi river and follow the river route on the west side. Very scenic ride. If you’ve got the time, take this route.
I need to recognize our ‘remote navigators’: Kathy and Karen. They are waiting and supporting the trip from opposite ends. We’ve been calling them several times a day for accommodation recommendations, store locations and restaurant suggestions.
Kathy Google’s us a campground in Kinder, LA. A slight backtrack from our location in Oberlin, LA, but only about 15 miles. An exciting ride from Oberlin to Kinder helps us set a policy of no riding after dark. Our experiences with the campgrounds is definitely getting worse. Wax Campground was still the best, Frog Hollow and Baton Rouge a toss up and Quiet Oaks in Kinder the worst (good thing Chris brought a roll of toilet paper) Since there was no restaurant nearby, dinner consisted of Corn Dogs, Chips and Beer from the gas station down the road.
Spent last night at the Baton Rouge East KOA. When we called to see if they had tent sites available we were told that all of the tent sites were under construction. We got there after the office was closed, so there was nobody to tell us we couldn’t stay. We found an open RV site – lots available, parked the bikes on the concrete pad and set the tents up on the grass next to the pad. Lots of noise from the frogs next to the camp so Dan and I opted for earplugs – good idea.
Up at 7:00. Showers, update the blog and pack up the camp. Dan and Ray remove the ‘wings’ from my windshield; I’m hoping to get some more breeze to compensate for the heat.
The camp office mangager, Opal, recommended either Shonney’s or IHOP for breakfast. We were looking for something more ‘local’ so we decided to head into New Orleans to eat. From the CG it was still about a 90 minute ride into the Big Easy. Nice ride with the Lake Pontchartrain on the side.
Out of the CG @ 9:00 $26.77 for the night. Opal had some difficulty registering us, but all worked out and were on our way.
Gas 3.1 gals $11.4
After another roundabout route into town (still fine tuning the Garmin) we ride the bikes down Bourbon Street. Ray asks for directions to an address that Karen gave us to get Beignet’s and Coffee and the restaurant manager also directed us to a place where we could park the bikes in a covered parking lot – Dauphine Hotel.
Had breakfast/lunch at Johnny’s Po Boy’s restaurant. Dan gets the Pork Sausage Po Boy, Ray the Shrimp Po Boy and Chris the fried Crawfish. They keep laughing at me for pronouncing it ‘Crayfish’ instead of ‘Crawfish’.
Walked around the French Quarter and found Café du Monde as recommend by Karen. Coffee au lait and Beignet’s; very tasty and lots of confectioners sugar. Can’t imagine why anybody could work here. Poor guy at the table next to us takes his sport jacket off and he’s completely covered in sweat; so are we, but we’re seasoned bikers.Ray wants to look at some souvenirs and we all buy T-shirts that say ‘New Orleans Road Trip 2008’ how appropriate.
Head out of the French Quarter about 2:00 into construction traffic jams. Even though we didn’t
see any Katrina evidence, there is a lot of infrastructure construction.6:00 pm, gas at Port Barre, LA. 2.7 gals 1,573 on the ODO
We decide to change the route from that recommended by Zumo, so we cross the Mississippi river and follow the river route on the west side. Very scenic ride. If you’ve got the time, take this route.
I need to recognize our ‘remote navigators’: Kathy and Karen. They are waiting and supporting the trip from opposite ends. We’ve been calling them several times a day for accommodation recommendations, store locations and restaurant suggestions.
Kathy Google’s us a campground in Kinder, LA. A slight backtrack from our location in Oberlin, LA, but only about 15 miles. An exciting ride from Oberlin to Kinder helps us set a policy of no riding after dark. Our experiences with the campgrounds is definitely getting worse. Wax Campground was still the best, Frog Hollow and Baton Rouge a toss up and Quiet Oaks in Kinder the worst (good thing Chris brought a roll of toilet paper) Since there was no restaurant nearby, dinner consisted of Corn Dogs, Chips and Beer from the gas station down the road.
Day 3 II
Frog Hollow Campground, Grenada, MS. Up at 7:00. Clear skies – no rain. Lots of dew and condensation; all of the tents and bikes are wet. By campground standards the shower facilities are OK, by Wax CG stds, they are not as nice; mostly painted particle board, clean and lots of hot water – our requirements are few.
I spent quite a bit of time this morning trying to post to the blog. Google kept telling me that the page couldn’t be found. Got a better connection in the park rec. room and was able to post the text and pictures. This is a lot easier from a Ethernet connection.
10:30 on the road. Gas 3.7 gals, 932 trim miles.
Breakfast at Shoney’s in Grenada. Very polite and courteous staff. Chris has the last of the B’fast bar, Dan and Ray order off the menu: country fried steak breakfast.
11:40 back on the road. Our direction is to head west toward the Mississippi river and then turn south to follow the river through Vicksburg, Natchez, Baton Rouge and towards the Big Easy.
1:30 pm Anguilla, MS. Gas 2.9 gals, ODO 1057.2.
Vicksburg, MS. Stopped to take some pictures of the riverboats and look at Old Man River.
For some reason, the Zumo kept trying to navigate us away from the Natchez Trace parkway. We made a couple of U-turns. Glad we did. This is a beautiful drive. Excellent road conditions, not traffic (I think we only passed 4 cars in the opposite direction), and only overtook one pickup about 4 miles before the end of the parkway.
5:28, Natchez, MS. Finally found some motorcycle shops; Ray is looking for a cruise control, Dan needs a tinted helmet visor, Chris looks at the gloves. I’m developing a weird tan: two spots on the back of my hands where the gloves are open. No luck on the cruise control, but Dan finds a replacement ‘Cramp Buster’ for the throttle.
Definitely have to compliment the folks of Mississippi – outstanding highways.
Just before the LA state line, Ray is leading, Chris has to make an ‘unscheduled’ rest stop in an abandoned rest area. Ray doesn’t see us turn in and drives into Louisiana before realizing he’s alone. He makes a U-turn, doesn’t see us, makes another U-turn and finds us. Advanced scouting tells us that the road conditions in Louisiana aren’t as nice as Mississippi; I guess they still must be spending all their money cleaning up from the storms.
Got slightly separated again looking for dinner and a campground – thank god for Cell Phones. Again, Ray’s advanced scouting finds us a great place for dinner.
9:15 – Baton Rouge, LA. Dinner at Burnetts Cajon. Got there 15 minutes before close, but the service was really friendly and the cook really liked our adventure.
10:15 – Baton Rouge East KOA for the night. Nobody in the office so we found an open RV site, parked the bikes and set up camp.
1300 miles on the trip ODO. 400 miles today.
I spent quite a bit of time this morning trying to post to the blog. Google kept telling me that the page couldn’t be found. Got a better connection in the park rec. room and was able to post the text and pictures. This is a lot easier from a Ethernet connection.
10:30 on the road. Gas 3.7 gals, 932 trim miles.
Breakfast at Shoney’s in Grenada. Very polite and courteous staff. Chris has the last of the B’fast bar, Dan and Ray order off the menu: country fried steak breakfast.
11:40 back on the road. Our direction is to head west toward the Mississippi river and then turn south to follow the river through Vicksburg, Natchez, Baton Rouge and towards the Big Easy.
1:30 pm Anguilla, MS. Gas 2.9 gals, ODO 1057.2.
Vicksburg, MS. Stopped to take some pictures of the riverboats and look at Old Man River.For some reason, the Zumo kept trying to navigate us away from the Natchez Trace parkway. We made a couple of U-turns. Glad we did. This is a beautiful drive. Excellent road conditions, not traffic (I think we only passed 4 cars in the opposite direction), and only overtook one pickup about 4 miles before the end of the parkway.
5:28, Natchez, MS. Finally found some motorcycle shops; Ray is looking for a cruise control, Dan needs a tinted helmet visor, Chris looks at the gloves. I’m developing a weird tan: two spots on the back of my hands where the gloves are open. No luck on the cruise control, but Dan finds a replacement ‘Cramp Buster’ for the throttle.
Definitely have to compliment the folks of Mississippi – outstanding highways.
Just before the LA state line, Ray is leading, Chris has to make an ‘unscheduled’ rest stop in an abandoned rest area. Ray doesn’t see us turn in and drives into Louisiana before realizing he’s alone. He makes a U-turn, doesn’t see us, makes another U-turn and finds us. Advanced scouting tells us that the road conditions in Louisiana aren’t as nice as Mississippi; I guess they still must be spending all their money cleaning up from the storms.
Got slightly separated again looking for dinner and a campground – thank god for Cell Phones. Again, Ray’s advanced scouting finds us a great place for dinner.
9:15 – Baton Rouge, LA. Dinner at Burnetts Cajon. Got there 15 minutes before close, but the service was really friendly and the cook really liked our adventure.
10:15 – Baton Rouge East KOA for the night. Nobody in the office so we found an open RV site, parked the bikes and set up camp.
1300 miles on the trip ODO. 400 miles today.
Day 2
Wax Campground, somewhere near Nolin Lake, KY, southwest of Louisville.Couple of sprinkles last night contrary to Bill (the Park Manager’s forecast). Dan and Chris both ended up putting the fly’s on their tent; not a big deal. Woke up around 7:00 to the sounds of lots of Bass boats running up the lake.
My complements to the Army Corps of Engineers (builders of the campground), the facilities were first rate – bathrooms, roads, sites… Only comment (no complaining), the camp sites are all gravel, kind of tough if you’re on a sleeping pad. Dan and Ray have Mattress envy.
I must have been snoring last night (how unusual) cause I needed a shot of medicinal scotch to dull the soar throat.
Out of CG at 9 am.
Gas @ 10. Very ‘old style’ pump, no ‘pay at the pump’ and you paid in the store. I didn’t get a receipt, so no fuel qty entry.
10:15 – Brownsville, KY. Breakfast at Laura’s Hilltop Restaurant – “Home of the Catfish”. None of us had Catfish, but the breakfast were large, coffee often and the cost was very affordable. Didn’t seem to be a ‘non-smoking’ section. Seems tobacco is pretty plentiful in KY.
11:30 (KY time) crossed into TN
12:43 Buchanan, TN. Trip Odo 660 miles, fuel 3.2 gals.
1:00 stopped at Lakewood Elementary to utilize their picnic tables, stretch our legs, drink a soda and Dan adjusts his Hwy pegs.
Saw a Harley on the road a couple of miles back, looked like he slid out making a U-turn and was trying to stand the bike back up. (Imagine dropping you bike (inside joke)).
4:00 Fuel north of Memphis – 2.9 gals. Trip Odo 794 mi.
5:30 Graceland. Chris had to make a ‘sudden’ U-turn, much excitement for those following. Still getting used to setting destinations on the Zumo, we ended up going into MS then back into TN to find Graceland.
Our goal was to have dinner at Neelys BBQ, no problem navigating to it but it was closed on Sunday contrary to the sign on the door.Headed south on I-55 to the MS/KY stateline – dinner at Tops BBQ. Saw a police car in the restaurant and my Grandmother told me to eat where the Police eat – they’re supposed to know the good places. Food was pretty good. We’ll have to hit Neely’s or Corky’s on another trip.
Called Kathy to do a google for a place to stay for the night. She called back – Frog Hollow, Grenada, MS, about 78 miles south.
We’re starting to develop a pattern: get to where we plan to spend the night, then drive another 100 miles.
I called Beth (the park manager) to make sure they had camp sites. She told me it was raining in Grenada now; we were in bright sunshine in Memphis, but you could see thunderheads to the south.
8:30 pm. Made Frog’s Hollow in just over an hour. Exit ramp completely fogged in. Dan thought is was smoke, I thought is was a lake. No rain.
Set up camp in the back of the CG. Ground wet. Too close to the Interstate. Glad I have ear plugs; lots of truck traffic on I-55.
I crawled into the tent around 9;30 (after a couple of shots of medicinal scotch). Didn’t hear much after that.
Day 1
We got out of G.R at about 12:30 pm. A little of my target of 10:00, but still not bad.
Stopped at the Mobil station on Alden Nash rd. prior to getting on I-96.
Planned route was I-96 east to I-69 south toward Indianapolis.
Couple of sprinkles just south of Lansing.
2:30 – Indiana State Line.
Ray needed to adjust his gear, so we stopped on the entrance ramp. Dan noted that his fuel gauge was reading on the reserve. Chris popped up the Zumo and it told us there was a gas station 2 miles south.
Angola, IN. All topped up their tanks. Chris’s was reading about 3/5 full, Dan’s about ¼ remaining. But all put in about 3-4 gal of fuel. We’re moving pretty fast, so I expect the fuel consumption to not be optimal.
The weatherman predicted dry conditions, but windy. He was right on both items. The wind is very strong and out of the west; directly on our right side. You’ve got to keep the bike leaned pretty good to the right to stay up. Passing trucks is ‘exciting’ – lots of turbulence. We haven’t had much experience with anybody passing us; we’re in the left lane most of the time.
5:00 – Anderson, IN. Trip Odometer – 260 miles. Aspencade – 3.1 gals. Chris realizes in all the excitement of getting underway, he forgot his riding boots. Oh well, Ray needs a pair, so a new shoes are in Chris’s future.
Made the loop around Indy on the east side. Wind is starting to diminish, and air temp is increasing.
6:50 – Henryville, IN. Trip Odo. 388 miles. Wind is pretty much died down to a tolerable level.
7:30 crossed the Ohio River into Kentucky. Dan commented that this would have been a great photo op, but I couldn’t find a safe place to set up the camera at 70 mph.
8:15 – Fort Knox. Stopped to take pictures from the Highway of the bullion repository. It’s amazing how close to the highway it is and unpretentious.
8:30 – Elizabethtown, KY. Dinner at Los Chalupas. Taking our order was slow, but the food arrived quickly with large portions and was pretty good. Chris orders a Dos Equis – large. You could have served the entire table from that one volume. Discretion dictated that he not finish it.
Called a couple of campground in the E-Town area: no vacancies. So, we kept heading south and considered finding a quiet woody area to stay for the night. After about 45 minutes with no good prospects we consulted Zumo and she directed us to Wax Campground. Not sure about the name, but after calling the manager, Bill, we were told there were 36 available sites. Zumo told us it was about 40 minutes away across some very back roads. I think I’ve got the preferences set to use too scenic of roads since we ended up turning onto a gravel road that took us into the middle of a field. After some backtracking, we got to Wax Campground around 11:00 pm., set up camp, had a couple shots of medicinal Scotch and hit the sleeping bags.
Stopped at the Mobil station on Alden Nash rd. prior to getting on I-96.
Planned route was I-96 east to I-69 south toward Indianapolis.
Couple of sprinkles just south of Lansing.
2:30 – Indiana State Line.
Ray needed to adjust his gear, so we stopped on the entrance ramp. Dan noted that his fuel gauge was reading on the reserve. Chris popped up the Zumo and it told us there was a gas station 2 miles south.
Angola, IN. All topped up their tanks. Chris’s was reading about 3/5 full, Dan’s about ¼ remaining. But all put in about 3-4 gal of fuel. We’re moving pretty fast, so I expect the fuel consumption to not be optimal.
The weatherman predicted dry conditions, but windy. He was right on both items. The wind is very strong and out of the west; directly on our right side. You’ve got to keep the bike leaned pretty good to the right to stay up. Passing trucks is ‘exciting’ – lots of turbulence. We haven’t had much experience with anybody passing us; we’re in the left lane most of the time.
5:00 – Anderson, IN. Trip Odometer – 260 miles. Aspencade – 3.1 gals. Chris realizes in all the excitement of getting underway, he forgot his riding boots. Oh well, Ray needs a pair, so a new shoes are in Chris’s future.
Made the loop around Indy on the east side. Wind is starting to diminish, and air temp is increasing.
6:50 – Henryville, IN. Trip Odo. 388 miles. Wind is pretty much died down to a tolerable level.
7:30 crossed the Ohio River into Kentucky. Dan commented that this would have been a great photo op, but I couldn’t find a safe place to set up the camera at 70 mph.
8:15 – Fort Knox. Stopped to take pictures from the Highway of the bullion repository. It’s amazing how close to the highway it is and unpretentious.
8:30 – Elizabethtown, KY. Dinner at Los Chalupas. Taking our order was slow, but the food arrived quickly with large portions and was pretty good. Chris orders a Dos Equis – large. You could have served the entire table from that one volume. Discretion dictated that he not finish it.
Called a couple of campground in the E-Town area: no vacancies. So, we kept heading south and considered finding a quiet woody area to stay for the night. After about 45 minutes with no good prospects we consulted Zumo and she directed us to Wax Campground. Not sure about the name, but after calling the manager, Bill, we were told there were 36 available sites. Zumo told us it was about 40 minutes away across some very back roads. I think I’ve got the preferences set to use too scenic of roads since we ended up turning onto a gravel road that took us into the middle of a field. After some backtracking, we got to Wax Campground around 11:00 pm., set up camp, had a couple shots of medicinal Scotch and hit the sleeping bags.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
This is Kathy again, updating the blog at Chris's phone request.At about 11:30 pm EDT the road warriors were setting up tents in a campground about 30 miles south of Fort Knox, KY. There's no internet access, so Chris won't be adding any trip highlights tonight (beside the fact that they've got to be beat after a long day of riding.) The phone signal was not strong and we didn't talk for very long, but they're safe and sound for the night.
In all the hubbub of departure, which included a fair amount of vehicle repositioning, Chris forgot an important item of motorcycle apparel. Around Indianapolis he looked down and realized that he was still wearing his tennis shoes. Looks like Ray is not the only one who'll be looking for boots in Tennessee.
So they rolled down the driveway and on their way at 12:35 EDT. This is Kathy updating the blog at Chris's request. Last minute issues with their bike-to-bike communication caused another short delay. Ray and Dan can talk to each other, but Chris's system won't cooperate. They'll work on it later, down the road. Since Chris has the route, map and GPS they won't let him get too far away anyway.
From my perspective, the last few months have been a real roller coaster ride. Chris's mind has been wrapped around this trip for some time now, and the UPS man is a regular visitor to our house as items were purchased in anticipation. My feelings have varied from; wanting to kill my brother for ever suggesting they undertake such an aggressive trip, to envy for all the things they'll get to see and do. Although I don't have an endorsement myself, I enjoy "passengering" when Chris rides. Right up to the last minute Chris kept suggesting that I ride along with him, but I know the guys will have a great time doing their "macho thing" (a la "Wild Hogs") without the feminine voice of reason tagging along. In fact, it's a funny coincidence that I developed a viral throat infection yesterday that gave me a severe case of laryngitis, which the doctor thinks will last for 4 -5 days. Chris thinks that's great since I won't be able to yell at him when he calls each night to relate the day's adventures ;-)
I think they're as prepared as possible and have taken a variety of potential situations into account. I purchased a full fledged first-aid kit containing everything imaginable that fit in a case the size of a tiny laptop and feel more secure knowing it's with them (though I hope it's like the insurance you never need unless you don't have it.) They're all competent and safe riders, plus there's safety in numbers, and they'll be more noticeable to other drivers when traveling in a group.
It's a very strange thing to see two cars in my garage. All winter and spring one side was filled with 4 or 5 motorcycles. It looks too normal now. Chris's Valkyrie even looks a little lonesome...
So Rylee (the black lab "guard dog" in an earlier picture) and I will hold down the fort and wait for the daily updates from the traveling trio. We might have to think about getting a dog-sized side car, then maybe next time...
From my perspective, the last few months have been a real roller coaster ride. Chris's mind has been wrapped around this trip for some time now, and the UPS man is a regular visitor to our house as items were purchased in anticipation. My feelings have varied from; wanting to kill my brother for ever suggesting they undertake such an aggressive trip, to envy for all the things they'll get to see and do. Although I don't have an endorsement myself, I enjoy "passengering" when Chris rides. Right up to the last minute Chris kept suggesting that I ride along with him, but I know the guys will have a great time doing their "macho thing" (a la "Wild Hogs") without the feminine voice of reason tagging along. In fact, it's a funny coincidence that I developed a viral throat infection yesterday that gave me a severe case of laryngitis, which the doctor thinks will last for 4 -5 days. Chris thinks that's great since I won't be able to yell at him when he calls each night to relate the day's adventures ;-)
I think they're as prepared as possible and have taken a variety of potential situations into account. I purchased a full fledged first-aid kit containing everything imaginable that fit in a case the size of a tiny laptop and feel more secure knowing it's with them (though I hope it's like the insurance you never need unless you don't have it.) They're all competent and safe riders, plus there's safety in numbers, and they'll be more noticeable to other drivers when traveling in a group.
It's a very strange thing to see two cars in my garage. All winter and spring one side was filled with 4 or 5 motorcycles. It looks too normal now. Chris's Valkyrie even looks a little lonesome...
So Rylee (the black lab "guard dog" in an earlier picture) and I will hold down the fort and wait for the daily updates from the traveling trio. We might have to think about getting a dog-sized side car, then maybe next time...
Here's the crew about ready to go. Last night my target was to get on the road by 10:00 am. I knew that wouldn't be feasible, but you have to set goals. We needed to make a trip to the shoe store; Ray was still looking for a pair of riding boots. We looked at 4 stores and didn't find anything he liked. The route that we will be taking goes past a whole bunch of boot stores in Tennessee, so he should be good as long as it doesn't rain.
We had some rain here last night, but so far the skies are mostly clear and the only rain in our path is on the MI, IN border. But that should be gone by the time we get there.
Anyhow, we've got a few more last minute details to attend to, so I'm heading upstairs to get going.
Friday, May 16, 2008
FJR
Well, Beth, Dan and Ray aren't here yet so I can get another post in.
Here is Ray's 2005 Yamaha FJR1300.
While looking for bikes for the trip, Ray figured he could still get a better price for a bike here in Michigan, ride it to CA and keep it as his personal bike. Based on the 'blue book' value of this bike and what the previous owner owed on it, he definitely got a great deal.
The only maintenance I did on this bike (beyond winterizing it) was to change the oil and filter. The filter is the only easy maintenance on this machine. Just getting the batter out required disassembly of most of the right side fairing. Adding coolant requires the left side fairing be mostly removed. I'm not sure what they were thinking of when they designed the maintainability of this bike. I think the engineers were Detroit rejects. Why would you put the battery up under the fairing by the handle bars? Why have that much weight up there? Every other bike puts the battery under the seat. Get the center of gravity lower and improve the handling. Even changing the spark plugs requires you to pull the gas tank off (as well as the seat and side panels). Oh well, enough of my rant. It has been a good education. I'll be hard pressd to buy a bike with this much plastic around the vitals. God bless the Valkyrie.
Here is a shot of the 'command center' on the FJR. Ray has added a 12 volt outlet to run an XM radio, MP3 player, Intercom and FMRS radio.
You can almost see the tint to the new windshield that has been added. The original windshield, even though electronically adjustable, doesn't have enough area to keep the wind off the driver. Ray got this windshield and it looks pretty cool from the drivers seat.
We don't have the tank protector installed yet - still need to wax the bodywork.
Gettng at the fuse box to wire in all the goodies was another excercise in electronical gymnastics. It's got a really cool electrically protected glove box, but the access to the fuse box is miserable.
The prior owner made an adaptor to move the top trunk back about 2 inches to give the passenger a little more room. Can't hardly tell that it isn't 'stock', so it's a pretty good concept and job.
With all of the stuff I've been ordering for this trip, every time a box shows up on the porch (daily) Kathy questions my investing skills. The other day a huge box was delivered and I couldn't remember ordering anything that big. It turns out the Ray had ordered new tires for the FJR. Life expectency for the original tires was getting near and he didn't want to risk replacing them in the middle of nowhere. Since Ray's billing address is California, and the tires were bought in Michigan and even shipped to a Michigan address, he didn't have to pay any sales tax. Kind of an interesting loophole; have somebody out of state order the item for you but have it shipped to your address. Kathy and Ray looked for a place to get the tires mounted. The dealer that I use mainly said they'd be able to get his bike in sometime after memorial day - we'll be somewhere in New Mexico or Arizona then. They found a shop in Ionia, about 30 miles from here, and got them installed in under 3 hours.
Here's the other 'mod' Ray has added to his bike - a butt cushion. Both of the Goldwing's have gel seats and since the FJR is basically a 'cafe' style, the seat is not that cushy. Should be a good seat for the next couple of weeks.
Here's the other 'mod' Ray has added to his bike - a butt cushion. Both of the Goldwing's have gel seats and since the FJR is basically a 'cafe' style, the seat is not that cushy. Should be a good seat for the next couple of weeks.You can kind of see sticking out in the left side of the picture a 'cramp buster' on the throttle. I've added these to both of the Goldwings. These things are outstanding on a long cruise. You only need to rest your palm on the lever to maintain your speed. Not quite as sophisticated as a cruise control, but better than gripping the grip for hours at a time.
Apparently this bike has an aftermarket exhaust. Not obtrusive, but I've got nothing to compare it to. Both of the Goldwings are pretty loud by Goldwing standards, but nowhere near some of the V-Twins you hear going down the highway. Oh well - 'Loud Pipes Save Lives'.
Well, Beth, Dan and Ray just got here (plus their crazy dog) so, I'm going to head up for dinner. I'll keep the computer on in case we have some interesting developments during the final preparations.
Here is a picture of the cake Kathy got for the trip:
I sure wish she was going to be on my back seat for the next two weeks!
'84 Aspencade
This is the next bike that we acquired.
It is a 1984 Honda Goldwing Aspencade. In the Goldwing lineup, the Aspencades are the premium of the group. The '82 has an 1100 cc horizontal four cylinder engine. The '84 has a 1200 cc horizontal four. The horizontally opposed engines are very smoth with almost no vibration. Very different from a Twin, Triple or V-Twin.
Acquisition of this bike was the same as the prior two: Ray did the research and negotions and I did the grunt work and transportation.
This bike was much closer to Grand Rapids that the other two. It was in Grand Ledge which is only about 40 miles from Grand Rapids. So, rather than renting a trailer, I figured I'd ride it home provided it was acceptable. Almost all of my communications with the owners was via e-mail. The owner of the '84 described the bike as 'cold-blooded'. This can mean a lot of things, but he assued me that the ride to G.R. would not be a problem and it would probably be good for the bike to get some highway miles on it.
Compared to my Valkyrie and my previous Yamaha, this Goldwing is total luxury. The seat is very cushy, there is even a drivers backrest and backpad and armrests for the passenter. The handlebars are at a very comfortable angle and you almost sit below the windshield with just the top of your helmet sticking out. With the full fairing there is almost no wind unless you open the vents in the dash. People describe the Goldwing as a two-wheeled car, but if you are going to travel any distance (such as 3,500 miles) this is the way to go.
The owner said he had the bike gone over by the local Honda dealership and I looked well cared for. We haggled about the price a little and he settled for a lower price if I didn't take the helmets with the intercom equipment. Not a problem for me, I'm not big on wearing somebody elses helmet anyway.
The temperature was a 'brisk' 45 degrees as I pulled out of his driveway.
I figured out quickly what he meant by 'cold blooded'. You couldn't idle the bike, even when warm, without having about 1/4 choke at all times. Even at cruising speed the bike stumbled and sputtered without choke. My first stop was a Meijer gas station to top up the tank and put some fuel conditioner in. I was hoping that having been recently 'gone over' by the Honda dealer all that would be required was a clean out of the carb jets; oh foolish me.
Beyond the carb issues, the bike ran very well. When I got home I comented to my wife that I couldn't rely on the digital speedometer; it said I was going over 80 mph many times on the trip home. Kathy confirmed that no, I had really been going around 83 - 84 mph for much of the ride. This bike is so smooth and with no wind blowing on you, you have no idea how fast you're going.
After getting home, I ordered new batteries for the '80 Yamaha and both of the Goldwings. Both of the Goldwings has reasonably new batteries, but this small investment seemed a good decision faced with the trip.
I knew I was in for a carb rebuild for the '84, so I ordered rebuild kits for both of the Goldwings. As it turned out, I only needed to rebuild the carbs on the '84; the '82 was solid. One interesting thing I found out in rebuilding the carbs; if the float needle valves are not worn, don't replace them. The new ones in the rebuild kit were slightly larger in diameter than the originals causing them to 'stick' closed and not allow any fuel into the bowls. This I did not discover until after the carbs had been installed and I tried to start the engine. The good thing is that the second time you remove the carbs, you are much faster than the first time. I had read on another forum where you should leave an entire weekend to rebuild the carbs; for me, this was about the right amount of time. I could probably get it done in 1/2 a day now, but lesson learned. I was glad I hadn't put the fairing back on prior to test starting the engine. It seems that any work you do on these bikes requires removing the trunk, seat, false tank, fairing and glove boxes.
I also replaced the timing belts, spark plugs and synched the carbs. I'd always thought that synching the carbs was a hoax. I'd done it on my '67 MGB and it never seemed to make a difference. But on this Goldwing it was amazing how much more power you seem to have and how much smoother it runs now after synching. I got a fluid synchronizer from MotionPro, and it works excellent. There was very little calibrating required and the flud was easy to read and very stable. The only challenge was getting the vacuum ports out so I could connect the hoses to them. I kind of used my phillips screw driver like an impact driver, tapping on the end with a plastic mallet while I turned the screw to keep from stripping the heads.
On other 'enhancement' I made to both of the Goldwings was to add a spin-on oil filter adapter.
These bike originally have a filter that looks like a car air filter and is a pain to service. The
adapter just spins into the filter bolt hole, and you just put an automotive oil filter just like changing the oil filter on a car. I order two of the adapters from Randakks and was very happy with the quality of the item, service, quick shipping and overall good experience. I could have put a 'plain' oil filter on the bikes, but the chrome item looks pretty cool. Anyhow, here is a close up shot of the filter and adapter.Another 'mod' I had to make to the bike was to remove the drivers floorboards. The bike came with floorboards and a heel/toe shifter. On the initial ride home, I kept getting my toe caught between the shifter and left cylinder. I figure if I'm going to spend many days on this bike, the floorboards had to go. I ordered a set of original foot pegs on e-bay (somebody probably doing the opposite of what I was doing) and threw the floorboards in the shit-can. I probably could have put them on e-bay or craigslist, but I couldnt, in good conscience, be party to anybody having these things on their bike. Dan said that floorboards on a bike look like orthopedic shoes; very profound.
Here is a shot of my helmet and intercom. Since this will be coming of the Goldwing and on my Valk, I wanted what I found to be the best: a Chatterbox GMRS X1 with Bluetooth. This thing will synch with my phone, MP3 player, GPS, allow me to talk to other bikes via the Family Radio frequency and talk to Kathy on the rear seat. I've got to take the manual with me to utilize and configure all of the features - quite a device.
This is the other piece of 'cool' technology that I put on the bike. (again, this will come off and go onto my Valk or in one of the cars).
It is a Garmin Zumo 500 GPS. This unit is specificaly designed for motorcycles. It is waterproof, vibration proof, receives XM radio (optional), XM weather (optional), XM trafic (optional) plays MP3's and will synch via bluetooth with both my phone and helmet. 
I won't transmit the XM radio to the helmet so I've got a cable hooked to the audio out on the Zumo and the Aux in on the Chatterbox. I opted for the XM radio even though I've got over 60 CD's worth of music on an 8GB SD card. Getting support from Garmin on configuring the XM radio was quite a challenge. I spent the better part of an evening directing their tech support guy to where on their site the install instructins were to connect the XM antenna to the Zumo. But, once it was set up, the performance has been outstanding. I can hear audible prompts as to the direction to go while listening to either the MP3's or XM radio. One gotcha to be aware of is that the Zumo only supports MP3 format. So, if you've got any WMA or iTunes music, you need to convert them to MP3.
On my Valk I've go Avon Venoms for tires. This Goldwing has Dunlops. Good looking tires with a good tread pattern, but for my riding style, I definitely prefer the Avon's.
As you can see from the first picture, I've got my duffle bag strapped onto the passenger seat. I loaded the trunk and saddlebags with all of the gear that I'm taking and took it out for a spin this afternoon to see how it handled fully loaded. I rode over to top up the tank - $4.05 a gallon for midgrade - gag. We're figuring 3,500 miles at an average 35 mpg. That's 100 gallons of gas - $400 bucks. Oh well, I'm still expecting to turn a profit. Maybe small, but a few bucks.
Fully loaded the bike handles fine. With all the stuff in the trunks it seems to take some of the weight off the front end; easier to steer. Braking and exceleration are fine. These are pretty heavy bikes to begin with, so not much change with a couple hundred pounds of stuff.
That's pretty much the extent of the mods, enhancements and additions I've made to this bike. There seems to be a slight batter drain (not unusual for these bikes) so I'm bring a batter charger, extension cord and a solar trickle charger for when we're viewing the sites 'off-bike'.
So, I'll end this post. Beth, Dan and Ray are due any time, then the fun really begins.
'82 Goldwing Interstate
Sorry about not posting anything last night, but since we leave in less that 16 hours, things have been getting busier.
Ray has been in Grand Rapids since Tuesday getting the FJR ready for the trip. After working on the Goldwings, we both agree that the Yamaha is Japan's revenge on the American bike rider. They must make maintenance intentionaly difficult to motivate you to use their service people.
Anyhow, this post is about the '82 Interstate.
Of the bikes that made the cut to go to California, this was the first one acquired. Ray had done all of the research and negotiations on all of the bikes. I was just the money man and transport service. I had rented a motorcycle trailer from U-haul (perfect for hauling one bike) and was on my way to the nortern suburbs of Detroit from Grand Rapids to look at the first bike. About three quarters of the way to Macomb, MI, Ray call and told me there was another bike to look at in Dearborn; fewer miles, more upgraded parts and about half the price. So, I altered my course slightly and headed for Dearborn.
This is the bike I bought. The owner only had it for about 1 year. Then witnessed a fatal motorcycle accident and was no longer comfortable riding. 
When I got to his house, he had the bike warmed up in the garage, but he looked totally disgusted. He said the bike started right up, but would not start again. He apparently let it warm up at idle and that doesn't run the RPM's high enough to charge the battery. I put my hand down next to the pipes, and they were hot enough to indicate that the bike had truly been running. He went over the history of the bike, as he knew it, and showed me a huge box of parts that he had replaced; the timing belts, all of the cables, all of the hoses, filters and even the hand grips. Even the stereo had been upgraded to one with a CD instead of the cassette deck. He said that the only know issue was that the right hand trunk lid had blown off on the highway ( he admitted to not fastening the latches ) and by the time he got back to it, somebody had run over it and it was trashed. He found a replacement on e-bay, but it was not an exact color match. You couldn't tell it in the garage. In bright sunlight the replacement lid is a shade darker. But overall, the bike was in outstanding condition. I agreed that the price Ray negotiated was very fair and the bike should be in capable condition for a 3,500 mile trip.
He helped me roll it onto the trailer, strap it down, then gave me the huge box of old parts. I'm not sure what you're supposed to do with old hoses, cables, radiators, mirrors and such. Most of the old parts got shit-canned. I kept a few 'high-maintenance' parts and the Honda emblems.
I got away from his house at about 8:00 pm, went around the corner to re-adjust the straps and called Ray to tell him of our good fortune and that the plan was truly coming together.
Here is a shot of the new Radio and instrument panel.
So far, this has been the least maintenance bike we've acquired. The prior owner really did an excellent job of updating the parts and keeping it in ridable condition.
Dan is taking a little different tack on com. equipment than Ray or I. Since Ray plans on keeping the FJR after we get to CA, all of the equipment he is adding will be 'permanent'. On the '84 Goldwing that I will be riding, all of the equipment that I'm adding will be removed and put on my Valkyrie after the trip. What Dan is doing is putting his music and intercom on his 'smart phone'. He has a connection to the 12 volt outlet and keeps the phone inside his jacket. He basically unplugs, gets off the bike and walks away. I've got a couple of hours of disconnecting the GPS and my Chatterbox intercom. (more about those in another blog).
I replace the mirrors on this bike. I tried to tighten the bolts inside the housings, but they were pretty much at their limits of service. Whenever you rode this bike, after about 10 minutes the mirrors would point in and you'd be looking at your crotch for the rest of the trip. I can only speak from personal experience, but my groin area is not that interesting. Looking there for 12 days would really dampen the trip. Anyhow, I ordered a pair of mirrors from J.C.Whitney for less that 40 bucks and they hold their position much better.
The prior owner had upgraded the tires to Avon Venoms, the same tires I have on the Valk, and it rides and holds the road excellent.
One kind of funny aside came from a short trip that Dan and I made to a local Syrup festival in central Michigan. Dan noted that at highway speed a warning light would come on indicating an air suspension problem. It wouldn't stay on, so I just passed it off as a 'curiosity'. A couple of days later I thought about the suspension and decided to look at the service manual ( I had ordered Chiltons and/or Haynes manuals for all of the bikes except the FJR). The '82 suspension is slightly different from the '84 Goldwing. Both of them have air-shocks, but the '84 has an on-board compressor that you can adjust the ride during operation. The '82 has shrader valves (tire inflaters) on the front and rear. The owners manual says the rear should be around 45 psi and the fronts 15 psi. Both were zero. When I put air in the rears, the bike stood up almost 4 inches taller. No wonder the side stand was almost useless. We'll have make a note to monitor the inflation during the trip. Especially once the bike is loaded.
Beth, Dan and Ray should be here in G.R. in a couple of hours, then the frenzy of getting the last minute adjustments begins. My goal is to be out of here by 10:00 am tomorrow and make Fort Knox, KY by the end of the day. Pretty aggressive first day, but we don't plan on stopping anywhere in Indiana and want to get south as quick as possible. The weather for tomorrow is calling for windy conditions with a 40% chance of rain. If we get the rain, the wind could make for some interesting riding. The weather map indicates that once we get south of Indiana we should have dry riding the rest of the trip. But, I only trust the weather man about 3 days out.
Enough for know, more to come.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
The Bikes
Here is a shot of the three bikes (and the guard dog Rylee) that will be making the trip to San Diego.They are from left a 1982 Honda Goldwing Interstate. Next is a 1984 Honda Goldwing Aspencade. On the far right is a 2005 Yamaha FJR 1300.
We will probably be swithching off who is riding which throughout the trip, but the bikes are initially assigned as: the Interstate to Dan, the Aspencade to Chris, and the FJR to Ray.
There actually are two more bikes that figure into the story. In the garage is my 1997 Honda Valkyrie. If there had been a fourth rider for the trip, I had considered riding the Valk to CA with the crew and then hauling butt back to Grand Rapids by my self. Since we are less than three days from departure, it doesn't look like I'll be taking it.
The other bike is a 1980 Yamaha XS850. The 850 was actually the first bike purchased as the plan was developing. In it's day, an 850 was advertised by Yamaha as a 'touring' bike. But, comparing it to the Goldwings, it is pretty primative as far a 'creature comforts'. When Dan saw this bike, he said that it was exactly what he was looking for as his personal bike. So, we decided to pull it from the trip, and I hung on to it until Dan and Beth got settled in their new house.
Here is a picture of Dan, Me, the Aspencade and Dan's 850:
Dan and Beth had come up to Grand Rapids from Southfield for the weekend primarily to get some practice riding time in. Here in Michigan they say we have two seasons: winter and bad sledding season. So, you have to ride when you can. The temperature that day was around 48 degrees max. But the sun was out and the roads were dry. There still was some snow on the sides of the driveway and roads. We never got very far from the house, but had a great time riding anyway. With his limitted time on a bike, Dan is already a competent rider, and I have no concerns about his involvement in the trip.Another set of posts will elaborate more of the acquisition of all of the bikes, but that is for another night. I've got a couple more nights to add content before we head out and I plan on taking my laptop, digital camera and card reader so I can add to the blog from the road.
At this time NOAA is predicting a 60 % chance of scattered rain for Michigan and Indiana for Saturday - our departure date. If we make it to Kentucky Saturday night, the rest of the trip should be dry.
Enough for now.
Monday, May 12, 2008
The 'New' Route
Ray called the other day to talk about lots of stuff related to the trip.
He asked if I had come up with a route yet or had any strong preferences as to any 'waypoints'.
Other than seeing the Grand Canyon again, and riding our bikes down the Las Vegas Strip, I'm still pretty open to where we go.
So, Ray asked if I'd ever been to New Orleans, and what would I think about kind of retracing the Easy Rider trip from L.A. to N.O., only in reverse?
This is what that route might look like:
He asked if I had come up with a route yet or had any strong preferences as to any 'waypoints'.
Other than seeing the Grand Canyon again, and riding our bikes down the Las Vegas Strip, I'm still pretty open to where we go.
So, Ray asked if I'd ever been to New Orleans, and what would I think about kind of retracing the Easy Rider trip from L.A. to N.O., only in reverse?
This is what that route might look like:
Well, this route adds about an additional 1,000 miles to the trip, but we end up going through some pretty cool parts of the country.
So, I figure we head south from Grand Rapids and try to make Knoxville, KY, the first day (pretty aggressive riding for the first day out, but we're going to try to ride hard the first few days. Besides, there's not much to see in Indianna until you get to the southern half. (my opinion)).
The second day we'd try to make Memphis. There are some great barbecue places - Corky's and Neelys that I'd like to stop at. Dan's mom suggested that we'd probably loose weight on this trip. My intention is to eat in every cool restaurant we can. As long as the bikes can hold us, keep bring the food.
Depending on how much time we spend in Memphis pigging out, the third or fourth day, we could make New Orleans. Kathy and I have a friend from high school that live in the big easy, I may try to track her down.
From N.O. we'd head through the Bayou towar Texas. Diagonal up toward Amarillo. There's a restaurant there called the Big Texan. They've got a 60 ounce steak and the meal is free if you can eat the whole thing. There's no way I could eat that size of steak, but just to look at is is an adventure. Plus, the rest of the food there is outstanding.
From Amarillo we'd head into northern New Mexico toward the 'four corners' area, into Arizona and head for the Grand Canyon. Next stop, Las Vegas. I'm not a big gambler, but the lights on the Strip are pretty amazing.
From Las Vegas, head south to the Mexico border then west to San Diego.
Pretty simple - right?
The Route
Since I've been typing a bit tonight, I thought I'd try to post a picture of 'a' route from Grand Rapids to San Diego.
Much thanks to Google for having such great mapping tools. I plan to use the map tools to document the trip.
Now, this is the 'direct route' between G.R and S.D., not our 'intended' route.
One of my preferences on this trip is to stay off the interstates as much as possible. As a former truck driver, I've seen all of these expressways many times. I'd like to get onto the State highways and back roads and see the rest of America. Possibly trace the old Route 66. Also, the 'direct route' goes through some pretty boring landscapes. Nothing against the people living in Nebraska, but there is only so much 'nothing' that I can stand looking at. Iowa, I know much of your economy revolves around livestock, but them pigs are offensive to my nose (but I do like ham).
Based on the weather, I figure there are probably three potential routes.
Much thanks to Google for having such great mapping tools. I plan to use the map tools to document the trip.
Now, this is the 'direct route' between G.R and S.D., not our 'intended' route.One of my preferences on this trip is to stay off the interstates as much as possible. As a former truck driver, I've seen all of these expressways many times. I'd like to get onto the State highways and back roads and see the rest of America. Possibly trace the old Route 66. Also, the 'direct route' goes through some pretty boring landscapes. Nothing against the people living in Nebraska, but there is only so much 'nothing' that I can stand looking at. Iowa, I know much of your economy revolves around livestock, but them pigs are offensive to my nose (but I do like ham).
Based on the weather, I figure there are probably three potential routes.
- If we get an early spring with warm dry weather, I figured we could cut up through Michigan's upper peninsula, head toward Minneapolis, down through South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada and into California.
- If the weather is cold (like it is now in Michigan), we'd head straight south through Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and whenever it started getting warm, turn west through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and into California.
- If the weather is in the middle somewhere, we'd go through the middle of the country. Kind of like Google suggests.
The Characters
Me - My name is Chris Kanous. As of the writing of this I'm 54 years old, married and have two grown children (Alex and Beth). I'm originally from the Detroit suburbs (Sterling Heights specifically) but have been living in Grand Rapids, Michigan for the last 12+ years.
My Wife - Kathy and I actually met in junior high school, but didn't start going out until our senior year in high school. We both have college and master's degrees; hers in science, mine in business. I have to say that she has been terifically supportive of this project, even though, I can get pretty carried away whenever I get involved in something.
My son Alex - Alex is currently in Wasington D.C. doing a fellowship sponsored by Google and working for Public Knowledge. Alex has an undergrad Journalism degree, a Law degree from Michigan State University, and has recently completed a masters degree from the University of Michigan. I don't want to put words in anybody's mouth with this blog, but Alex will always be a Spartan fan, but recognizes that UofM is an outstanding academic institution. In the original formation of the plans for the trip, Alex was a 'strong' possible member of the group. As we got closer to the time of the trip, too many schedule conflicts and commitments required Alex to step out.
Daughter Beth - Beth and her husband Dan (lots more about him later) live in the Detroit suburb of Southfield. I tried to keep her on the 'sunny side' of Michigan, but she had to go where the jobs are. (not that Detroit is a great employment mecca). Beth is also a lawyer. I know there are tons of jokes about lawyers, but I am truly blessed to have both of my childeren with so much education and are doing so much good for society.
Brother-in-Law Ray - Ray lives in San Diego, California. He is originally from the Detroit area and relocated to California about 25 years ago. Ray is one of those brother-in-laws that make you wish he was your 'real' brother. I've always had a great relationship with him, and consider him an added bonus to taking his sister away from their parents. Anyhow, most of the credit for this trip needs to be given to Ray. He came up with the original concept of buying bikes in Michigan and selling them in California, and then enhanced the plan to include riding the bikes from here to San Diego. I can't speculate if this will end up being a good plan, but at this point, all participants in the trip, are excited and anxious. I'll admit to having a little 'nervous anxiety', but that should only be normal considering what we are planning to do.
Son-in-Law Dan. Again, like my Brother-in-Law Ray, Dan is one of those guys that you would like for your own son. Fitting in to our family is quite a challenge. I know I've scared away a few of my kids boyfriends and girlfriends, but that is what dad's are supposed to do - aren't they? Dan has fit in perfectly. My daughter can be pretty strong willed, and she has a carreer that is based around arguing (lawyer), but Dan seems to take it all in stride. This past weekend Dan, Beth, Kathy and I put 350 feet of fence around Beth and Dan's backyard, and you couldn't have picked a better crew to do that much work. Anyhow, Dan had taken a motorcycle safety course last fall with the intention of getting a bike 'sometime'. When Ray and I first started considering the trip, Dan was one of the first to comit. Dan has his motorcycle endorcement and has recently acquired a 'vintage' Yamaha (more about that later).
Ken - Ken is one of Ray's oldest friends. Even though they live 2,500 miles apart, they still act as if they see each other every day. Ken was with us last fall when we were deer hunting in northern Michigan. He had been one of the original riders considering going on the trip. I don't know if Ken had ever really been seriously considering actually going. When I was talking about bikes with him a few months ago, he related several 'unpleasant' experiences involving motorcycles. One of them involved riding on the back of a bike with Ray driving at very high speeds and the other (much worse) had a truck driver clearing his throat and Ken believing he got some in his mouth (gross, but that's the way I heard it).
These are the major players in the project.
Driving long distances on a bike is fatiguing enough. Adding a passenger to the back of the bike adds significant amount of additional stress on the ride. So, I didn't really consider taking passengers along on the trip. One rider - One bike.
Kathy loves to ride on the back of my 'permanent' bike, but has no interest (yet) in getting her endorsement. So, she's out.
Beth has way too many commitments as a lawer to be able to take the 2+ weeks off to go galavanting across the country. So, she's out.
Alex is consumed with his fellowship program and all of the post graduation responsibilities to be involved in this foolisness, he can't even find time to take a motorcycle class. So, he's out.
Ken is probably the most rational of the group. He decided early in the process that this wasn't for him and said so. He's out.
So that leaves Ray, Dan and Me as the group.
My Wife - Kathy and I actually met in junior high school, but didn't start going out until our senior year in high school. We both have college and master's degrees; hers in science, mine in business. I have to say that she has been terifically supportive of this project, even though, I can get pretty carried away whenever I get involved in something.
My son Alex - Alex is currently in Wasington D.C. doing a fellowship sponsored by Google and working for Public Knowledge. Alex has an undergrad Journalism degree, a Law degree from Michigan State University, and has recently completed a masters degree from the University of Michigan. I don't want to put words in anybody's mouth with this blog, but Alex will always be a Spartan fan, but recognizes that UofM is an outstanding academic institution. In the original formation of the plans for the trip, Alex was a 'strong' possible member of the group. As we got closer to the time of the trip, too many schedule conflicts and commitments required Alex to step out.
Daughter Beth - Beth and her husband Dan (lots more about him later) live in the Detroit suburb of Southfield. I tried to keep her on the 'sunny side' of Michigan, but she had to go where the jobs are. (not that Detroit is a great employment mecca). Beth is also a lawyer. I know there are tons of jokes about lawyers, but I am truly blessed to have both of my childeren with so much education and are doing so much good for society.
Brother-in-Law Ray - Ray lives in San Diego, California. He is originally from the Detroit area and relocated to California about 25 years ago. Ray is one of those brother-in-laws that make you wish he was your 'real' brother. I've always had a great relationship with him, and consider him an added bonus to taking his sister away from their parents. Anyhow, most of the credit for this trip needs to be given to Ray. He came up with the original concept of buying bikes in Michigan and selling them in California, and then enhanced the plan to include riding the bikes from here to San Diego. I can't speculate if this will end up being a good plan, but at this point, all participants in the trip, are excited and anxious. I'll admit to having a little 'nervous anxiety', but that should only be normal considering what we are planning to do.
Son-in-Law Dan. Again, like my Brother-in-Law Ray, Dan is one of those guys that you would like for your own son. Fitting in to our family is quite a challenge. I know I've scared away a few of my kids boyfriends and girlfriends, but that is what dad's are supposed to do - aren't they? Dan has fit in perfectly. My daughter can be pretty strong willed, and she has a carreer that is based around arguing (lawyer), but Dan seems to take it all in stride. This past weekend Dan, Beth, Kathy and I put 350 feet of fence around Beth and Dan's backyard, and you couldn't have picked a better crew to do that much work. Anyhow, Dan had taken a motorcycle safety course last fall with the intention of getting a bike 'sometime'. When Ray and I first started considering the trip, Dan was one of the first to comit. Dan has his motorcycle endorcement and has recently acquired a 'vintage' Yamaha (more about that later).
Ken - Ken is one of Ray's oldest friends. Even though they live 2,500 miles apart, they still act as if they see each other every day. Ken was with us last fall when we were deer hunting in northern Michigan. He had been one of the original riders considering going on the trip. I don't know if Ken had ever really been seriously considering actually going. When I was talking about bikes with him a few months ago, he related several 'unpleasant' experiences involving motorcycles. One of them involved riding on the back of a bike with Ray driving at very high speeds and the other (much worse) had a truck driver clearing his throat and Ken believing he got some in his mouth (gross, but that's the way I heard it).
These are the major players in the project.
Driving long distances on a bike is fatiguing enough. Adding a passenger to the back of the bike adds significant amount of additional stress on the ride. So, I didn't really consider taking passengers along on the trip. One rider - One bike.
Kathy loves to ride on the back of my 'permanent' bike, but has no interest (yet) in getting her endorsement. So, she's out.
Beth has way too many commitments as a lawer to be able to take the 2+ weeks off to go galavanting across the country. So, she's out.
Alex is consumed with his fellowship program and all of the post graduation responsibilities to be involved in this foolisness, he can't even find time to take a motorcycle class. So, he's out.
Ken is probably the most rational of the group. He decided early in the process that this wasn't for him and said so. He's out.
So that leaves Ray, Dan and Me as the group.
Possible Routes
Prior to getting into my current profession as an Information Technology Director, I worked for a moving and storage company to pay for college. In that position I have driven semi's across the country and have been in almost all of the 48 states. (the only ones I've yet to get to are the far northwest). So, I've seen most of the country and have some ideas of areas that are cool to see and would be good waypoints for the trip.
When people have asked me if I have a route planned, I usually tell them that we're going to wait until a few days before we leave, look at the weather map, and plan a 'loose' route based on dry riding conditions.
I originally didn't even plan on taking any maps. Just a compass - maybe.
I figured we'd head basically west. If we heard people speaking spanish, we were too far south. I we saw polar bears, we were too far north. And, when we hit salt water, we'd turn left and follow the coast to San Diego.
Pretty simple.
As further posts develop I'll refine our initial route. However, since there are about 2,500 miles between Grand Rapids, Michigan and San Diego, California, the route will develop and change as we go.
This is probably a good time to clarify the name of the blog. Ray is flying in tonight to Detroit, and we had considered starting the trip in Detroit - the Motor City. Thus "Motor City to Surf City". But, since its about 150 miles in the wrong direction from Grand Rapids (where I live, and where the bikes are all at) there doesn't make any sense in starting there. But, the blog name is still valid since most of the bikes were purchased in the Detroit area.
When people have asked me if I have a route planned, I usually tell them that we're going to wait until a few days before we leave, look at the weather map, and plan a 'loose' route based on dry riding conditions.
I originally didn't even plan on taking any maps. Just a compass - maybe.
I figured we'd head basically west. If we heard people speaking spanish, we were too far south. I we saw polar bears, we were too far north. And, when we hit salt water, we'd turn left and follow the coast to San Diego.
Pretty simple.
As further posts develop I'll refine our initial route. However, since there are about 2,500 miles between Grand Rapids, Michigan and San Diego, California, the route will develop and change as we go.
This is probably a good time to clarify the name of the blog. Ray is flying in tonight to Detroit, and we had considered starting the trip in Detroit - the Motor City. Thus "Motor City to Surf City". But, since its about 150 miles in the wrong direction from Grand Rapids (where I live, and where the bikes are all at) there doesn't make any sense in starting there. But, the blog name is still valid since most of the bikes were purchased in the Detroit area.
The Plan
I have to give credit, responsibility, accountability... to my brother-in-law Ray for this scheme.
This all started in October of 2007 when we were bow hunting in northern Michigan.
Ray is originally from Michigan but moved to San Diego, California about 25 years ago.
While he was back in MI, he noted that you can find older Michigan motorcycles, with few miles and in reasonably decent shape as compared to similar vintage bikes in California. A large part of the reason for this is because here in Michigan, we only have riding weather for about 4 to 5 month out of the year, then the bike owners have to winterize their bikes and prepare them for storage. So what Ray figured was that we could buy older bikes in Michigan and ship them to California and sell them for a profit. The more we talked about this concept we eventually thought that it would be neat to buy the first round of bikes and ride them out to San Diego, and if we made at least enough profit to pay for the gas, flights, maintenance and road expenses, it would be a worthwile venture. The 'adventure' of the trip was also probably a significant factor of this project.
What I plan to do with this blog is to document the bikes purchased, the various characters involved in the project and post daily updates and pictures during the trip.
I should have started this blog several months ago, but I'll have to claim ignorance as to how easy this may be. I've got to give credit to my son Alex for directing me to Google's blogger site and getting this thing off the ground.
This all started in October of 2007 when we were bow hunting in northern Michigan.
Ray is originally from Michigan but moved to San Diego, California about 25 years ago.
While he was back in MI, he noted that you can find older Michigan motorcycles, with few miles and in reasonably decent shape as compared to similar vintage bikes in California. A large part of the reason for this is because here in Michigan, we only have riding weather for about 4 to 5 month out of the year, then the bike owners have to winterize their bikes and prepare them for storage. So what Ray figured was that we could buy older bikes in Michigan and ship them to California and sell them for a profit. The more we talked about this concept we eventually thought that it would be neat to buy the first round of bikes and ride them out to San Diego, and if we made at least enough profit to pay for the gas, flights, maintenance and road expenses, it would be a worthwile venture. The 'adventure' of the trip was also probably a significant factor of this project.
What I plan to do with this blog is to document the bikes purchased, the various characters involved in the project and post daily updates and pictures during the trip.
I should have started this blog several months ago, but I'll have to claim ignorance as to how easy this may be. I've got to give credit to my son Alex for directing me to Google's blogger site and getting this thing off the ground.
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