End of the year update

I haven't done too well keeping the blog current this year, something I intend to do better at in 2014.  I have had a good year motorcycling with just over 25, 000 miles on 2 wheels.  Shortly after the Big Texas Rally, I took my RT in for service at Tulsa BMW and took a liking to a new 2014 F800GS Adventure they had sitting on the showroom floor.  I'd been thinking about one for a while and just couldn't resist so I'm now a 2 bike owner again.  Here's my riding companion, Missy, on one of our morning rides around Lake Draper.

I've only got a couple of thousand miles on it so far but really like riding it....in warm weather.  There is no comparison between it and the RT for blocking wind and cold so I doubt I ride it much between now and spring.  I prefer the RT's big windscreen, heated seat, and grips for the cooler weather riding.  I ordered side cases or I guess the proper name is panniers for the GS and they took almost 6 weeks to arrive but here's a pic of them.

I haven't been on any other trips or rallies since Big Texas and it looks like my RT is going to end the year with just over 51,000 trouble free miles.  She is going to be 20 months old next week so I guess that's not too bad.  I turned in just over 22, 000 miles to the BMW MOA mileage contest this year which ran between April and October so we'll see how that ranks among other riders in the country.  Last year, I was the high mileage rider in Oklahoma but not even a top 25 finisher nation wide.  I use a  Spot GPS tracking device most of the time when I ride.  It allows me to track where I've been, send messages to those who might be worried about me, and send an SOS message if I should have an emergency.  Here's a screenshot of most of my trips made in 2013.

All in all, it's been a great riding year with some great scenery, no mishaps, and a fun time on the bike.  In 2014, I've got several plans made for rides I'd like to take.  The first will be in mid March when I plan to ride to San Diego, get an external fuel cell made, then ride a 50cc (coast to coast under 50 hours) to Jacksonville, FL for the Iron Butt Associations bike week meet up.  Later in the year, I plan to ride in the How The West Was Won rally in Colorado as well the Big Texas Rally again.  I might ride in a couple of others and I need to cover some of the eastern part of the country that I haven't ridden in yet.
I plan to update the blog more frequently as I enjoy riding the bikes and retirement.  Stay tuned for 2014, have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year.