Monday, June 30, 2014
Long Riders Radio Podcast
Not posting much here these days but I have started a podcast called Long Riders Radio that I'd appreciate you checking out. I'll be posting other content there as well such as pics and commentary on riding.
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
What Is Motorcycling Competence?
A friend of mine and fellow long distance rider, Steve Bracken, wrote this post to the ldriders mailing list. I thought I'd share it here as it may be the best description I've ever read on what it means to be a competent motorcyclist. It strikes home for me because I had 3 near misses today in a ride of about 20 minutes. My awareness, a certain level of competence, luck, and my angel being on the job allowed me to miss all 3 drivers with their heads shoved up by their hemorrhoids. Here is what he posted:
With the current vogue for discussing "competence" I would like to share a
few thoughts that may amuse a few, entertain a few more, but hopefully
resonate.
My motorcycle license plate backer declares that the rider of this machine
is one of "The Worlds Toughest Riders". It is, not to put too fine a point
on it, complete bollocks.
I am not tough, not in flesh nor attitude. I am a slightly prickly, a bit
anal, but soft-centered, 54 year old husband and father. I bruise when I
fall and cry when emotionally distressed. I am typical of my breed.
If I have what could be described as "a quiet determination", then
generally I keep it to myself. No one but me knows what resources I bring
to bear to stay on a motorcycle for hour after hour. You probably do it too
if you are reading this, but what you do is personal to your own
circumstances, and no one else knows what they are. Sure we get together
occasionally to tell lies, drink beer and generally behave like teens at
Prom Night, but we all live in our personal spaces, and the lies are the
lies, and the Prom Queen is the Rally Master!
I have ridden motorcycles since I was 16 years old, legally, and a bit
before that without telling my Dad. As a teen and young man I admired my
friends, who lied about "getting their knee down", pulling wheelies and
other feats of daring-do that I never quite managed to master; and never
really tried that hard. Have I ever sullied a knee-slider? Well yes,
several times, including a couple of occasions where it wasn't actually
planned.
There was a time when I believed it reasonable to occasionally do stuff
like that on the public highway. Indeed, if you ask Troy Martin he will
tell you that I can still get the devil in me, if traffic on a Dallas
freeway is deliberately trying to keep me from a timely rally finish! But a
ten mile sprint, while it can be fun, is not the way I approach the tricky
business of keeping out of trouble on modern, cellphone plagued, roads.
"Approach the corner still accelerating on wide open throttle. Pick you
braking point, move to the outside then brake on the limit of adhesion.
Nail the apex, straighten up then hard back on the gas. Rinse and repeat".
This will get you around the track pretty quickly. If you do it better than
the others, for twenty laps, then you will win a Moto-GP. If you do it on
the road, you will likely die. So if you want a Track Day, then book one
and go play. It's fun.
On the road my only ambition is to get to my destination in one piece, and
in a timely manner. If I can do that without incident then I am happy. We
talk sometimes about speed, about techniques and styles, and those
conversations inform us all. We each bring what we can to make the next
journey, one of five miles or five thousand miles, as safe for our friends
as shared information can make it.
So on the road I go slow into corners, wait until I can see the exit,
straighten up and fast out. It reduces lean angles which, if you have seen
my bike, is a good thing. The dynamics of riding tell me that I could go
round faster, and do so easily. I could carry a little more speed in, lean
quite a lot further and the forces involved would take me through quite
safely until .....
Until my back, or heaven forbid, front wheel hits the patch of diesel,
thoughtfully left there by the last 18-wheeler with an over-filled tank
went around the bend before me ... or until I hit the patch of gravel
washed to the outside of the bend ... or until I get to the apex of a tight
turn then spot the stationary vehicle, cyclist, or deer and have completely
run out of safety margin. Well you get the drift.
Two weeks ago I left home for a two day ride that was scheduled to be just
short of two thousand miles. Not a particularly remarkable ride in this
company, but we should always keep a sense of perspective. That ride, to
everyone outwith our small group, is insane! Really? Two thousand miles on
a motorcycle in 42 hours? Are you fucking nuts??
I probably am nuts. We might all be nuts. Yet I am also a nut who is
painfully aware of his own mortality. That we do a dangerous thing, even if
the risks are calculated, is not lost on me. There is always a small part
of me that is a bit scared of the ride, at least beforehand. Those
butterflies of anticipation as you are about to embark upon an
extraordinary (at least to others) task.
Before every Long Distance Ride, a small part of me doesn't want to go.
It's that part, I believe, that brings me safely back to my family. It's
the collective and personal knowledge of the dangers and the risks that
ultimately means that I only use one of the dual compounds engineered into
my tires. I like that the softer compound is there, it's my safety margin,
but if the moulding nibs remain when the tire is worn out, then I am
pleased that I just rode ten thousand careful miles that mean I am still
around to ride ten thousand more.
I know it's not this simple. I am aware that many of the dangers can be
influenced by chance, or factors not within our direct control. But we do
what we can to improve the odds, we owe that much to those who love us.
This is simply one man's approach. I don't suggest that anyone else need
feel bound by it, nor even informed by it if that philosophy is not for
you. Just add it to the collective, and make it to the finish, wherever you
are going.
With the current vogue for discussing "competence" I would like to share a
few thoughts that may amuse a few, entertain a few more, but hopefully
resonate.
My motorcycle license plate backer declares that the rider of this machine
is one of "The Worlds Toughest Riders". It is, not to put too fine a point
on it, complete bollocks.
I am not tough, not in flesh nor attitude. I am a slightly prickly, a bit
anal, but soft-centered, 54 year old husband and father. I bruise when I
fall and cry when emotionally distressed. I am typical of my breed.
If I have what could be described as "a quiet determination", then
generally I keep it to myself. No one but me knows what resources I bring
to bear to stay on a motorcycle for hour after hour. You probably do it too
if you are reading this, but what you do is personal to your own
circumstances, and no one else knows what they are. Sure we get together
occasionally to tell lies, drink beer and generally behave like teens at
Prom Night, but we all live in our personal spaces, and the lies are the
lies, and the Prom Queen is the Rally Master!
I have ridden motorcycles since I was 16 years old, legally, and a bit
before that without telling my Dad. As a teen and young man I admired my
friends, who lied about "getting their knee down", pulling wheelies and
other feats of daring-do that I never quite managed to master; and never
really tried that hard. Have I ever sullied a knee-slider? Well yes,
several times, including a couple of occasions where it wasn't actually
planned.
There was a time when I believed it reasonable to occasionally do stuff
like that on the public highway. Indeed, if you ask Troy Martin he will
tell you that I can still get the devil in me, if traffic on a Dallas
freeway is deliberately trying to keep me from a timely rally finish! But a
ten mile sprint, while it can be fun, is not the way I approach the tricky
business of keeping out of trouble on modern, cellphone plagued, roads.
"Approach the corner still accelerating on wide open throttle. Pick you
braking point, move to the outside then brake on the limit of adhesion.
Nail the apex, straighten up then hard back on the gas. Rinse and repeat".
This will get you around the track pretty quickly. If you do it better than
the others, for twenty laps, then you will win a Moto-GP. If you do it on
the road, you will likely die. So if you want a Track Day, then book one
and go play. It's fun.
On the road my only ambition is to get to my destination in one piece, and
in a timely manner. If I can do that without incident then I am happy. We
talk sometimes about speed, about techniques and styles, and those
conversations inform us all. We each bring what we can to make the next
journey, one of five miles or five thousand miles, as safe for our friends
as shared information can make it.
So on the road I go slow into corners, wait until I can see the exit,
straighten up and fast out. It reduces lean angles which, if you have seen
my bike, is a good thing. The dynamics of riding tell me that I could go
round faster, and do so easily. I could carry a little more speed in, lean
quite a lot further and the forces involved would take me through quite
safely until .....
Until my back, or heaven forbid, front wheel hits the patch of diesel,
thoughtfully left there by the last 18-wheeler with an over-filled tank
went around the bend before me ... or until I hit the patch of gravel
washed to the outside of the bend ... or until I get to the apex of a tight
turn then spot the stationary vehicle, cyclist, or deer and have completely
run out of safety margin. Well you get the drift.
Two weeks ago I left home for a two day ride that was scheduled to be just
short of two thousand miles. Not a particularly remarkable ride in this
company, but we should always keep a sense of perspective. That ride, to
everyone outwith our small group, is insane! Really? Two thousand miles on
a motorcycle in 42 hours? Are you fucking nuts??
I probably am nuts. We might all be nuts. Yet I am also a nut who is
painfully aware of his own mortality. That we do a dangerous thing, even if
the risks are calculated, is not lost on me. There is always a small part
of me that is a bit scared of the ride, at least beforehand. Those
butterflies of anticipation as you are about to embark upon an
extraordinary (at least to others) task.
Before every Long Distance Ride, a small part of me doesn't want to go.
It's that part, I believe, that brings me safely back to my family. It's
the collective and personal knowledge of the dangers and the risks that
ultimately means that I only use one of the dual compounds engineered into
my tires. I like that the softer compound is there, it's my safety margin,
but if the moulding nibs remain when the tire is worn out, then I am
pleased that I just rode ten thousand careful miles that mean I am still
around to ride ten thousand more.
I know it's not this simple. I am aware that many of the dangers can be
influenced by chance, or factors not within our direct control. But we do
what we can to improve the odds, we owe that much to those who love us.
This is simply one man's approach. I don't suggest that anyone else need
feel bound by it, nor even informed by it if that philosophy is not for
you. Just add it to the collective, and make it to the finish, wherever you
are going.
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Podcast launched
We posted our first episode of Long Riders Radio today at Long Riders Radio Hope you give it a listen and tell us what you think.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Happy Birthday to Bridget The Beemer
2 years ago today, on Friday the 13th of April, 2012, I purchased Bridget, my 2012 BMW R1200 RT motorcycle. Since then, we have taken some great roads to places I've never been before. Among those trips, Highway 1 and 101 in California along the pacific coast, Beartooth Pass (3 times), Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Big Bend National Park, and many others. We've also ridden countless 2 lane roads in Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas. We've also ridden to visit my daughter, son in law, and grandkids in Wyoming at least 4 times. My daughter won't let them ride yet but they got to set on the bike. Maybe when they're 40 or so. She has always performed great and been a lot of fun to ride. Here are a few of my favorite pics from our first 2 years together.
I've promised her we'll still be together when she hits 100K on her odometer, she just keeps getting better the longer I ride her. So Happy Birthday Bridget, let's go ride.
Thursday, April 3, 2014
More Tour Of Honor
I got up this morning and rode down to Ardmore for a Tour of Honor stop. There were some thunder storms dancing around in south Oklahoma but they all moved off to the east before my arrival. Here is the memorial in Ardmore.
After Ardmore, I rode over to Durant and had lunch with a retired postal friend of mine, Terry Brooks , who retired as the Postmaster of Ardmore. I enjoyed visiting with him and his wife, Renee, who was kind enough to bring us lunch. After the lunch stop in Durant, it was a short ride over to Atoka for a visit to the memorial there on Highway 75. Here's a pic of it.
The last stop on the list for Oklahoma this year is in Owasso and I started to ride on up there today but came on home instead. I'll visit it next week and stop in to visit a long distance riding friend, Steve Bracken. I'm going to interview him for a new podcast a friend and I are starting called Long Riders Radio, stay tuned for more info on our first episode.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
2014 Tour of Honor
The 2014 Tour of Honor began today and runs thru November 30th. I have ridden to the Oklahoma sites the last 2 years and was the 2nd person to ride to all 7 last year. I rode to 4 of the sites today. This is a great way to honor those who have served in our nation's defense and I have the honor of being the state sponsor for this year's sites. I rode to 11 different sites earlier this year and submitted pictures along with GPS coordinates for each location. Each state has 7 sites selected and those in Oklahoma are spread out enough to take a rider thru various parts of the state and some good riding.
I began the ride this morning with 2 friends, Mark and Tom at Veteran's Park in my hometown of Moore, OK. This park was heavily damaged last year by the tornado and while the memorial is back in place, there is still ongoing construction on the rest of the park. As you can see, the day dawned dark and gloomy with temperatures in the 40's and a strong north wind.
Our next stop was the small town of Minco, OK. I submitted this site not only for the memorial but for Minco police officer Mycal Prince who was killed while serving in the Army National Guard. His police dog was later adopted by his family. The flags weren't up yet today when we made our stop.
After Minco, we hit Highway 152 west and Hwy 6 north to Elk City, OK. This memorial was recently completed in the cemetery just north of town. To my disappointment, the BBQ restaurant was closed so we settled for one of the most poorly managed, filthiest McDonalds I have ever been in. The north wind was sweeping down the plains in western Oklahoma today.
Mark had to leave us at Elk City so Tom and I continued on to our last stop at Seiling, OK where we ran into 2 other riders on 3 wheelers who were also riding the Tour of Honor. I really like the memorial in Seiling. It's almost a full city block with a mural and some surplus military equipment. Almost dropped the bike getting it into place on the sidewalk but managed to save it.
After Seiling, we rode back east and I parted ways with Tom in Watonga. It wasn't the best riding day weather wise but I've ridden in a lot worse, at least it was dry. Of course when I pulled in my driveway, the sun came out. 4 of the 7 Oklahoma sites have been visited and the pictures submitted, I'll get the other 3, Ardmore, Atoka, and Owasso, later this week. If you haven't signed up for the Tour of Honor, it's not too late and it's for a good cause. Here is a little map of today's ride taken from Spotwalla with my iPhone app SWConnect.
I began the ride this morning with 2 friends, Mark and Tom at Veteran's Park in my hometown of Moore, OK. This park was heavily damaged last year by the tornado and while the memorial is back in place, there is still ongoing construction on the rest of the park. As you can see, the day dawned dark and gloomy with temperatures in the 40's and a strong north wind.
Our next stop was the small town of Minco, OK. I submitted this site not only for the memorial but for Minco police officer Mycal Prince who was killed while serving in the Army National Guard. His police dog was later adopted by his family. The flags weren't up yet today when we made our stop.
Friday, March 14, 2014
Looks Like Spring Has Sprung
We've had several good days the last couple of weeks and in my opinion, not that tough of a winter here in Oklahoma. Sure, we had some cold weather and some freezing stuff fall once in a while but no major snowstorms and even in the coldest of weeks, an occasional warmer day appeared.
It's amazing how my 2012 R1200 RT is pretty comfortable to ride in colder weather. As long as the roads don't have any slick stuff on them, you can can ride it and while it may not be pleasant, you can stay warm enough not to suffer if you dress right. It also has heated grips and seat that are nice to have. Speaking of the RT, she's coming up on her 2nd birthday and rapidly approaching the 53, 000 mile mark. I've got a service appointment on the 22nd to get new tires and oil change. I was going to start doing my own basic maintenance but since she needs tires too, I'll get all of it done at the dealer this time. The more I ride this bike, the more I like it, if they make a more comfortable touring bike that is as fun to ride as it is, I don't know what it would be. The new 2014 model RT is water cooled and pretty tempting but I promised myself I would try to ride this one for at least 100K miles before getting another one.
Speaking of other ones, my 2014 F800 GS Adventure is for sale. I've listed it a couple of places and am in no big hurry to sell it but I've realized that my style of riding is better suited by the RT and I'll probably never use the GS to it's fullest potential anyway. I like the bike and it is fun to ride, especially since I put a California Scientific wind screen on it that solved by buffeting problem. My loss will be someone's gain since I'm taking quite a hit on it versus what I paid for it 2405 miles ago. Here is a pic of how it's set up and it's priced at $14,750, if you know anyone looking for one, I'd appreciate it if you send them my way.
I've managed to get it quite a bit of riding the last couple of weeks and making several of the bonus locations for the Big Money Rally . As I mentioned last post, the first list of locations includes a list of libraries and courthouses. The courthouses are those where the county name is the same as a former President. Here I am in front of the Garfield county one in Enid, OK.
Motorcycle riding in Oklahoma, as well as a lot of other places, involves a lot of riding in strong wind. This week's rides have been no exception with winds ranging from 10 mph or so and gusting up to 40 mph. Ron, Mark, Tom, Chris and I rode Tuesday and the wind was really tough riding west across to Medford from Perry. I can usually just lean the bike into it a bit and ride but when it starts jerking your head around that ceases to be fun pretty quickly. But the good news is I've gotten pretty used to riding in the wind and if I waited for a calm day, I'd get about 10 rides in a year.
It won't be long before March rides out like a lamb and hopefully we'll have some April showers to end the drought here in Oklahoma. With my new Michelin PR3 tires I'm getting next week and good rain gear, I'll be ready to ride. There's no better smell on a motorcycle than just after a rain on a ride in the country.
As I've mentioned before, I am somewhat of a gadget geek. One new thing I've been using lately is an iPhone app called SWConnect . This app allows you to track the route you ride and then review or share it from Spotwalla . It also allows you to post different messages along the route so someone can follow along and see how you're doing. It doesn't offer the emergency help message sending like a Spot device does but it's a pretty nice way to track your rides and it's free in the app store. As an example, here is a 306 mile ride that Ron and I took yesterday.
So it looks like spring has sprung and I hope you get some good riding in, I certainly plan to take advantage of the warmer weather.
It's amazing how my 2012 R1200 RT is pretty comfortable to ride in colder weather. As long as the roads don't have any slick stuff on them, you can can ride it and while it may not be pleasant, you can stay warm enough not to suffer if you dress right. It also has heated grips and seat that are nice to have. Speaking of the RT, she's coming up on her 2nd birthday and rapidly approaching the 53, 000 mile mark. I've got a service appointment on the 22nd to get new tires and oil change. I was going to start doing my own basic maintenance but since she needs tires too, I'll get all of it done at the dealer this time. The more I ride this bike, the more I like it, if they make a more comfortable touring bike that is as fun to ride as it is, I don't know what it would be. The new 2014 model RT is water cooled and pretty tempting but I promised myself I would try to ride this one for at least 100K miles before getting another one.
Speaking of other ones, my 2014 F800 GS Adventure is for sale. I've listed it a couple of places and am in no big hurry to sell it but I've realized that my style of riding is better suited by the RT and I'll probably never use the GS to it's fullest potential anyway. I like the bike and it is fun to ride, especially since I put a California Scientific wind screen on it that solved by buffeting problem. My loss will be someone's gain since I'm taking quite a hit on it versus what I paid for it 2405 miles ago. Here is a pic of how it's set up and it's priced at $14,750, if you know anyone looking for one, I'd appreciate it if you send them my way.
It won't be long before March rides out like a lamb and hopefully we'll have some April showers to end the drought here in Oklahoma. With my new Michelin PR3 tires I'm getting next week and good rain gear, I'll be ready to ride. There's no better smell on a motorcycle than just after a rain on a ride in the country.
As I've mentioned before, I am somewhat of a gadget geek. One new thing I've been using lately is an iPhone app called SWConnect . This app allows you to track the route you ride and then review or share it from Spotwalla . It also allows you to post different messages along the route so someone can follow along and see how you're doing. It doesn't offer the emergency help message sending like a Spot device does but it's a pretty nice way to track your rides and it's free in the app store. As an example, here is a 306 mile ride that Ron and I took yesterday.
So it looks like spring has sprung and I hope you get some good riding in, I certainly plan to take advantage of the warmer weather.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
January Riding
The weather in Oklahoma can be iffy at best. For example, Oklahoma City schools were closed Friday due to extremely cold temperatures of 5 degrees with sub zero wind chills. Saturday, it was sunshine and highs in the middle 60's. I've been able to ride quite a bit and have been spending most of my riding time on my BMW F800 GS Adventure I bought back in October. You're definitely out in the wind a lot more on this bike than my RT but that's been helped some with the addition of a Laminar Lip . The lip helps solve the buffeting problem and moves the air flow higher up as I ride. I wish it was a couple of inches taller but it definitely helps. Here is a pic of it installed on the bike. 
Missy has given it her seal of approval as well. Speaking of Missy, this is just her 2nd ride this year. She had her right eye pop out of the socket on December 11 and had to have surgery to fix it. Fortunately, she's back to her normal self now and seems to have full sight in it. We're taking it easy so far with just short rides around Lake Draper or down to Starbucks.
I've never been too thrilled with group rides but this year I've been on a couple of rides with some fellow BMW owners, Tom, Mark, and Ron. We started the year off right with a New Year's day ride and have ridden 3 or 4 other rides so far. We all seem to have similar riding styles and it's nice to talk motorcycles with fellow riders. One of our recent rides was to Medicine Park and Mt Scott, 2 of my favorite places to ride in Oklahoma. Here's a pic of Tom on top of Mt Scott.
He's holding my placard for the 2014 2014 Big Money Rally . The rally is all done online by submitting photos from various bonus locations around the country. Some locations include designated libraries, county courthouses with former president's names, and other places. It's been fun so far and a good reason to ride to places I might not visit otherwise.
I had the misfortune of having my 2nd flat tire of the year on the GS yesterday. I was riding with Tom, Mark, and Steve and we had just gotten to El Reno. As I turned a corner, the bead broke on the rear tire and I almost lost it. Fortunately, a nice retired Marine lived right across from where I had the flat. He let me park the bike at his place so I could take the wheel off and go get a new tube put in. Tubed tires are a real pain to repair. When I finally got the bike home, I ordered the stuff I need to be able to make a roadside repair in the future from Best Rest Products along with a couple of spare tubes. Maybe if I carry this stuff with me all the time, it will ward off any more flat tires and if not, at least I'll be able to fix it myself.
Winter weather is supposed to blow back in tonight with a high tomorrow in the 20's so it looks like the bikes will stay parked most of this week. I'm not complaining though, any chance to ride in January is good and we've had several nice days this year.
Missy has given it her seal of approval as well. Speaking of Missy, this is just her 2nd ride this year. She had her right eye pop out of the socket on December 11 and had to have surgery to fix it. Fortunately, she's back to her normal self now and seems to have full sight in it. We're taking it easy so far with just short rides around Lake Draper or down to Starbucks.
I've never been too thrilled with group rides but this year I've been on a couple of rides with some fellow BMW owners, Tom, Mark, and Ron. We started the year off right with a New Year's day ride and have ridden 3 or 4 other rides so far. We all seem to have similar riding styles and it's nice to talk motorcycles with fellow riders. One of our recent rides was to Medicine Park and Mt Scott, 2 of my favorite places to ride in Oklahoma. Here's a pic of Tom on top of Mt Scott.
I had the misfortune of having my 2nd flat tire of the year on the GS yesterday. I was riding with Tom, Mark, and Steve and we had just gotten to El Reno. As I turned a corner, the bead broke on the rear tire and I almost lost it. Fortunately, a nice retired Marine lived right across from where I had the flat. He let me park the bike at his place so I could take the wheel off and go get a new tube put in. Tubed tires are a real pain to repair. When I finally got the bike home, I ordered the stuff I need to be able to make a roadside repair in the future from Best Rest Products along with a couple of spare tubes. Maybe if I carry this stuff with me all the time, it will ward off any more flat tires and if not, at least I'll be able to fix it myself.
Winter weather is supposed to blow back in tonight with a high tomorrow in the 20's so it looks like the bikes will stay parked most of this week. I'm not complaining though, any chance to ride in January is good and we've had several nice days this year.
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Gadget and Toys
I've always been a gadget geek, from a transistor radio as a kid, to the high tech stuff of today, trying the latest and greatest is a passion of mine. As I expand my motorcycling into long distance riding, of course it's only natural that I include as many high tech gizmos as possible. Now that winter is here, most days you'll find me right here by the fire in my comfy Ekornes Stressless Recliner with laptop table .
I've been an Apple fanboy for a while now because they make great stuff and it just works but lately I've been branching out some. Most of the long distance rally info seems better suited for using windows devices for routing and planning. Garmin Basecamp has versions for both MAC and PC and my new BMW Navigator V connects to my MAC just fine but other tools such as ezBake and Microsoft Streets and Trips run much better on a PC. I've been looking for a while, and picked up an ASUS Transformer Book T100 yesterday. This little windows 8.1 machine has a detachable tablet and keyboard combo that should work nicely as a routing computer. I played around some with it yesterday and here's how it looks in action.
I wish there was an IOS version of Basecamp that I could run on my Apple iPad Mini Retina. There a couple of apps that are nice, Motion X GPS Drive and Motion X-GPS . I use both of them on the mini and my iPhone 5s to navigate, store bonus information, etc. What's really nice about Motion X-GPS is you can associate a picture of the bonus location with the coordinates as well as a note about what is expected to claim the bonus points. It's very handy to pull up at the bonus location to review quickly.
I'm entered in the 2014 Big Money Rally and it looks like it will be a lot fun. As you ride to each bonus location, you submit a picture from your phone at that location. I like that they've included the use of smartphones into the rally. From the old days of Polaroid cameras, to the modern times of digital cameras, the next logical step is smartphone use. I know my iPhone 5s takes better pics than the digital camera I have. Most of the time, great apps come to IOS before there's an Android version. That's not the case with Bubbler GPS , a tracking program that also includes the ability to send quick OK messages to those who might be concerned about your ride. Joel Tolbert has also developed an app for the Big Money Rally for android, BMR App that allows easy check in from each bonus location as well as picture submission. Maybe I need an Android phone to try out. Hmmm.
As you can see, I'm definitely a gadgetholic, it's cheaper than crack.....maybe.
Sunday, December 8, 2013
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.
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.
Monday, October 21, 2013
Big Texas 36 Hour Rally Ride Report
This past weekend I rode the Big Texas Rally, my first attempt at an Iron Butt type rally. If you're not familiar with how these work, you're provided a list of bonii with each being worth a different number of points. Then you're provided a check in or rally end location and the time you must be there. You're task is to select the number of bonii you can ride to, do whatever the rally book calls for at this location, and get to the end location on time.
The Big Texas rally book had about 90 potential bonus locations and several locations you could start from. I chose to start in Childress, Texas. The night before the rally start, Mark and Eric had reserved a room at Maxey's Steak House for us to have dinner if we wanted to. I went, had a good meal, and heard some good discussion about the rally. As a newbie, I just sat and listened to those who had done several rallies.
The rally start was at 6 am on Friday, I was there early, got my starting receipt, and was anxious to get started. About 20 riders were starting at Childress, here's a pic of some of them.
We got started at 6 am, I don't think anyone but me noticed me stalling the bike as I started out of the lot, something I've done on the RT about 3 times the entire time I've owned it. My planned route was to ride over to Amarillo, get the Cadillac Ranch first, then head to Palo Duro Canyon. It was pretty chilly and dark on the way over, I was watching for deer but didn't see any. I got to Cadillac Ranch ok and walked down to take the required picture. The rally book stated we must paint our first and last name as well as rider number on the roof or trunk of any car, then take a pic of ourselves including all. I had an issue with my flag blowing around and obscuring my number so I had to make 3 attempts at it before I got this. You have to look real close to see my info because I tried to use a paint pen instead of the spray paint that would have been much better. I should have researched it better online and I would have known this.
I jumped back on the bike and headed for Palo Duro Canyon. If you haven't been there before, it's really a pretty place and fun ride to the bottom. I got passed by the eventual rally winner, Erik on the way down but that's ok, he was in it to win it, I was in it to finish. Nice job Erik. He was at the plaque when I arrived and was gracious enough to take the pic for me.
Rally Master Wayne had a great idea that changed things considerably for me and several other riders as well. Originally, there was a list of 12 Texas icons worth 150 points each if you took a pic of them along the way. At the start, it was announced that these icons would be worth 1500 points each instead. Suddenly, I went from worrying about getting the required 25,000 points to be considered a finisher to knowing that I could relax a bit and have plenty of points just by picking up a few of these. Anyone collecting 10 or more would also get an extra 5,000 points. I managed to get 5 of the icons, a windmill, a pump jack, a posted sign, a cactus, and a rodeo grounds. Here are the pics of those.
I won't bore you with every single bonus I picked up but I rode my plan pretty well Friday but made the mistake of a newbie by not hydrating very well and I waited too long to grab anything to eat. By 5 pm I had a thumping headache and at least 3 hours left to ride. I made it to Sonora, Texas right at 9 pm after a harrowing ride on I10 where I just knew I'd have a close call with Bambi's daddy. We were warned about I10 just after dark and just before dawn being very bad for deer in the road. My route planned for me to be on it for both, not a great idea but I was lucky enough to avoid any mishaps.
The rally book called for a minimum rest bonus of 4 hours and 15 points per minute up to 8 hours. I checked in to the motel, took some tylenol, and laid down with a cold wash cloth to try and get rid of my headache.
The alarm went off early on Saturday and I was feeling quite a bit better. I got my rest bonus end receipt and a cup of coffee to start the day. I already had enough points from Friday to be a finisher so I decided to take an easier route and make it safely to the finish on time. I grabbed some great BBQ at Kreuz Market in Lockhart and headed to Austin for a noon picture bonus at the Stevie Ray Vaughn statue. Parking here was bad so I parked about half a mile away and looked like a strange sight walking among all the joggers and walkers in my riding gear. Just about everybody in the rally showed up at this bonus. The rally book said that at exactly noon, 1 picture would be taken and for 2,000 points we had to be clearly visible in it with our rally flag as well.
After this picture, I hot footed it back to the bike and head for the next bonus, a pistol shoot near Killeen. Here, we had to place our rally flag about 10 yards away, then shoot at it 3 times with either our pistol or one provided by the rally. I opted to shoot a Ruger 9mm and managed to perforate my flag 3 times. 1 of the 3 was a flesh wound, just on the edge but a hit is a hit.
I had originally planned to get several more bonii after the pistol shoot but I was dragging and that nagging headache was starting to come back so I headed towards the rally check in location. I had heard that I35 north was shut down due to an accident so I meandered north up highway 317 a while. This turned into a nice winding road and I was able to just relax and enjoy the ride. At the start of the rally, our driver's license and insurance cards were sealed in an envelope. At the end, if the envelope was still sealed, it was worth 5,000 points. I only saw 3 or 4 troopers my entire ride and rode no more than 5 miles over the limit, so I had these points in the bag.
I made it to the rally check in just before 5 pm, completed my scoring paperwork, and was scored. I had ridden just over 1200 miles, scored just over 30,000 points, and completed my first rally. After a shower, the bar was open, we had some good food, and I met more riders. The scoring took a while and the winners were announced just after 11 pm. Congrats again to Erik and all of the riders who participated in the rally. A special thanks to Steve B for giving me some rally routing pointers prior to the rally. Texas is really very scenic and I'd encourage anyone to take a drive around to see it. I'd like to thank Wayne and all the others for putting on the rally. I think I'm hooked, it's cheaper than crack....barely.
The Big Texas rally book had about 90 potential bonus locations and several locations you could start from. I chose to start in Childress, Texas. The night before the rally start, Mark and Eric had reserved a room at Maxey's Steak House for us to have dinner if we wanted to. I went, had a good meal, and heard some good discussion about the rally. As a newbie, I just sat and listened to those who had done several rallies.
The rally start was at 6 am on Friday, I was there early, got my starting receipt, and was anxious to get started. About 20 riders were starting at Childress, here's a pic of some of them.
The rally book called for a minimum rest bonus of 4 hours and 15 points per minute up to 8 hours. I checked in to the motel, took some tylenol, and laid down with a cold wash cloth to try and get rid of my headache.
The alarm went off early on Saturday and I was feeling quite a bit better. I got my rest bonus end receipt and a cup of coffee to start the day. I already had enough points from Friday to be a finisher so I decided to take an easier route and make it safely to the finish on time. I grabbed some great BBQ at Kreuz Market in Lockhart and headed to Austin for a noon picture bonus at the Stevie Ray Vaughn statue. Parking here was bad so I parked about half a mile away and looked like a strange sight walking among all the joggers and walkers in my riding gear. Just about everybody in the rally showed up at this bonus. The rally book said that at exactly noon, 1 picture would be taken and for 2,000 points we had to be clearly visible in it with our rally flag as well.
After this picture, I hot footed it back to the bike and head for the next bonus, a pistol shoot near Killeen. Here, we had to place our rally flag about 10 yards away, then shoot at it 3 times with either our pistol or one provided by the rally. I opted to shoot a Ruger 9mm and managed to perforate my flag 3 times. 1 of the 3 was a flesh wound, just on the edge but a hit is a hit.
I had originally planned to get several more bonii after the pistol shoot but I was dragging and that nagging headache was starting to come back so I headed towards the rally check in location. I had heard that I35 north was shut down due to an accident so I meandered north up highway 317 a while. This turned into a nice winding road and I was able to just relax and enjoy the ride. At the start of the rally, our driver's license and insurance cards were sealed in an envelope. At the end, if the envelope was still sealed, it was worth 5,000 points. I only saw 3 or 4 troopers my entire ride and rode no more than 5 miles over the limit, so I had these points in the bag.
I made it to the rally check in just before 5 pm, completed my scoring paperwork, and was scored. I had ridden just over 1200 miles, scored just over 30,000 points, and completed my first rally. After a shower, the bar was open, we had some good food, and I met more riders. The scoring took a while and the winners were announced just after 11 pm. Congrats again to Erik and all of the riders who participated in the rally. A special thanks to Steve B for giving me some rally routing pointers prior to the rally. Texas is really very scenic and I'd encourage anyone to take a drive around to see it. I'd like to thank Wayne and all the others for putting on the rally. I think I'm hooked, it's cheaper than crack....barely.
Monday, October 14, 2013
A Long Distance Riding Legend Is Gone
John Ryan, the man who would stop at nothing, is gone. I'm sitting here this morning, unable to sleep, still thinking it's all a bad dream. John was killed yesterday in a motorcycle accident. While I hadn't known known John very long or really all that well, I feel like a void has been created in my life. I didn't meet John until this year's Very Boring Rally in Minnesota. I had read about him and his long distance riding accomplishments including his record time of just over 86 hours from Alaska to Florida. So why is a usually non-sentimental guy like me at such a loss?
I just started riding motorcycles in late 2010 and did not discover long distance riding until mid 2011. I started posting some of my accomplishments on Facebook and mentioned John in a couple of those. One day I logged in and had a friend request from The John Ryan, I was thrilled. I accepted the request and before too long, when I would post something about riding, a rant about liberals, or how a good guy shot a bad guy, I'd get a "like" from John. Maybe stupid to some, but to me, it was exciting every single time. His posts were always entertaining, even during that time he thought about quitting Facebook. I loved reading the stories about Fubar Farms or how he thought Obama was the worst President ever. It seemed we shared a bond that was hard to explain. That's how John was to me, a legend but a guy who didn't act like it and took the time to make you feel like you belonged.
I met John briefly at the Aerostich Very Boring Rally this year and heard him speak. I remember wanting to get there early in case the room filled up so I could sit close. When I walked in the room, John was asleep on the stage, just sacked out in his Stich, not moving a muscle. He woke up right at the starting time but was having some issues with his blood sugar level and ate some fruit before he started talking. I could tell he wasn't comfortable in front of a crowd and would probably prefer to be out riding somewhere on his bike instead of speaking. He talked for a while, then answered every question anyone had. I remember how good natured he was with the ventriloquist when I'm sure he would have preferred to strangle the guy but there were too many witnesses. I was so awestruck, I took a picture of his Yamaha parked just outside the front door. It looked...well.....ridden. John didn't care about the latest technology or a clean shiny bike, he liked to ride. No bluetooth helmet, smartphone, or any other contraption, just him, the bike, and the road.
John and I were gong to share a room at the end of this month at the Iron Butt Association party in Dallas. I was looking forward to it, but now I'm not sure I want to go. I can hear John now though when he sees all of us mourning his loss and he'd probably say something like this "F it, I zigged when I should have zagged and that f-ing cager nailed me. You guys don't sit around feeling sorry me, get off your ass and go ride." I'll go ride, but I'll be a little less excited about knowing John's not here to "like" my post when I write about it.
I just started riding motorcycles in late 2010 and did not discover long distance riding until mid 2011. I started posting some of my accomplishments on Facebook and mentioned John in a couple of those. One day I logged in and had a friend request from The John Ryan, I was thrilled. I accepted the request and before too long, when I would post something about riding, a rant about liberals, or how a good guy shot a bad guy, I'd get a "like" from John. Maybe stupid to some, but to me, it was exciting every single time. His posts were always entertaining, even during that time he thought about quitting Facebook. I loved reading the stories about Fubar Farms or how he thought Obama was the worst President ever. It seemed we shared a bond that was hard to explain. That's how John was to me, a legend but a guy who didn't act like it and took the time to make you feel like you belonged.
I met John briefly at the Aerostich Very Boring Rally this year and heard him speak. I remember wanting to get there early in case the room filled up so I could sit close. When I walked in the room, John was asleep on the stage, just sacked out in his Stich, not moving a muscle. He woke up right at the starting time but was having some issues with his blood sugar level and ate some fruit before he started talking. I could tell he wasn't comfortable in front of a crowd and would probably prefer to be out riding somewhere on his bike instead of speaking. He talked for a while, then answered every question anyone had. I remember how good natured he was with the ventriloquist when I'm sure he would have preferred to strangle the guy but there were too many witnesses. I was so awestruck, I took a picture of his Yamaha parked just outside the front door. It looked...well.....ridden. John didn't care about the latest technology or a clean shiny bike, he liked to ride. No bluetooth helmet, smartphone, or any other contraption, just him, the bike, and the road.
John and I were gong to share a room at the end of this month at the Iron Butt Association party in Dallas. I was looking forward to it, but now I'm not sure I want to go. I can hear John now though when he sees all of us mourning his loss and he'd probably say something like this "F it, I zigged when I should have zagged and that f-ing cager nailed me. You guys don't sit around feeling sorry me, get off your ass and go ride." I'll go ride, but I'll be a little less excited about knowing John's not here to "like" my post when I write about it.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
The Great Salt Plains
As I've mentioned before, the Tulsa BMW store has a summer adventure contest going on until the end of September. They've picked several sites around the state, some with locations, and some you have to determine where they are based on the picture they've provided. I've visited all but 4 of the sites and today it was the Great Salt Plains just west of Jet, OK. I've lived in Oklahoma most of my 57 years and have never seen this area of the state.
My friend Tom and I rode up there this afternoon and stopped to enjoy some Eichen's chicken along the way in Okarche at the oldest bar in Oklahoma. Tom had never been and didn't know quite what to expect but once he got past the no menu and chicken delivered with some wax paper to eat it off of, he liked it.
Tom used to live in this area and we took a short cut that led us down a gravel road that quickly turned to sand. A bit of slipping and sliding but we made it without dropping the bikes and I have to say, it's pretty vast area of salt plains, in fact, I'd say great even. Here's a pic of today's big adventure.
My friend Tom and I rode up there this afternoon and stopped to enjoy some Eichen's chicken along the way in Okarche at the oldest bar in Oklahoma. Tom had never been and didn't know quite what to expect but once he got past the no menu and chicken delivered with some wax paper to eat it off of, he liked it.
Tom used to live in this area and we took a short cut that led us down a gravel road that quickly turned to sand. A bit of slipping and sliding but we made it without dropping the bikes and I have to say, it's pretty vast area of salt plains, in fact, I'd say great even. Here's a pic of today's big adventure.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Rides between the rides
I've been back from my northwest ride a few weeks now and have mostly been just riding around locally and to a few more of the Tulsa BMW Summer Adventure tour locations. I made runs last week NE to the Blue Whale at Catoosa, the big oil guy at Expo Center in Tulsa, Bartlesvile, Great Salt Plains Lake, and Ponca City. Well...Ponca City was a screw up on my part, the correct item I'm supposed to photograph is The Pioneer Museum in Woodward, not the Pioneer Woman Museum in Ponca City. Oh well, it was a nice week for riding, sure can't complain about highs in the 80's in August.
Later this week I'm headed north to the Very Boring Rally, The Aerostich company is putting on in Duluth, Minnesota. http://www.boringrally.com/ Long distance riding legend, John Ryan will be speaking on Saturday as well as several other seminars and some nice riding. I'll be able to add Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin to my states ridden in map when I get back.
I'm also getting into a new game, long distance rallying. My first attempt will be at the Big Texas Rally in October http://bigtexrally.com/BigTexRally/BTR-HOME.html I've been thinking about this ever since the Iron Butt Rally in July. This rally is 36 hours in length and most of us will ride between 900 and 1800 miles. Basically, you get a rally packet with multiple locations called bonuses, each worth a certain number of points. Some of these require a picture of you and your rally flag or bike, require you to take some other action, or answer a question about that location. Your job is to take the packet, look at the locations, figure out how many you can safely ride to and still make it to the check in location on time. There is a required rest bonus in this rally as well as at least one mandatory bonus stop. It's not a race, more like a scavenger hunt on wheels. I'm looking forward to giving it a try so be watching for my rally report after I ride in it. That's it for today's update, I'll clue you in to all the excitement from this weekend's Very Boring Rally when I get back next Monday. Here's a few pics of some summer adventure locations in Ok.
Later this week I'm headed north to the Very Boring Rally, The Aerostich company is putting on in Duluth, Minnesota. http://www.boringrally.com/ Long distance riding legend, John Ryan will be speaking on Saturday as well as several other seminars and some nice riding. I'll be able to add Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin to my states ridden in map when I get back.
I'm also getting into a new game, long distance rallying. My first attempt will be at the Big Texas Rally in October http://bigtexrally.com/BigTexRally/BTR-HOME.html I've been thinking about this ever since the Iron Butt Rally in July. This rally is 36 hours in length and most of us will ride between 900 and 1800 miles. Basically, you get a rally packet with multiple locations called bonuses, each worth a certain number of points. Some of these require a picture of you and your rally flag or bike, require you to take some other action, or answer a question about that location. Your job is to take the packet, look at the locations, figure out how many you can safely ride to and still make it to the check in location on time. There is a required rest bonus in this rally as well as at least one mandatory bonus stop. It's not a race, more like a scavenger hunt on wheels. I'm looking forward to giving it a try so be watching for my rally report after I ride in it. That's it for today's update, I'll clue you in to all the excitement from this weekend's Very Boring Rally when I get back next Monday. Here's a few pics of some summer adventure locations in Ok.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Northwest Ride Week 2 Report
After riding the twisting Highway 12 over to Missoula, Montana, I got a room, walked next door to Five Guys and just hung out the rest of the evening. On Monday morning I got up, ate some breakfast and headed out southeast on I90 briefly before branching out on Highway 12 again. This road is 2 lane blacktop for most of it and the speed limit is 70 mph, quite unlike Oregon. While Montana is pretty scenic, it's a different, dryer landscape than Oregon. After riding Highway 12, I jumped back on I90 for a while and then Hwy 78 down into Red Lodge for the night. Red Lodge is a nice little town and I walked down to a local bar for a couple of glasses of locally brewed amber beer. Good stuff! There was also a stream flowing nicely right beside the motel I stayed at. I'd like to spend more time there at some point in the future.
Tuesday morning I got up early, loaded up the bike and headed south for Beartooth Pass, one of my favorite motorcycle roads in America. I had ridden there last year with Shannon on the back on our way to Yellowstone but wanted to ride it again by myself to hit the curves a little faster. I had a great time riding it and saw some more great scenery along the way as you can see in this video.
Not quite as extreme as Beartooth Pass but still a great ride is the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway from the south end of Beartooth over to Cody, Wyoming. I took one picture of my bike near a curve that had some lens flare that actually looks pretty cool.
I also used the GoPro Hero 2 to record some video. I got a little too confident on some of the curves and a tar snake almost bit me, causing me to drift slightly over the yellow line. Fortunately, no other vehicle was coming so I got away with it.
After Beartooth and Chief Joseph, I stopped in Cody for lunch at Irma's, an old restaurant and hotel. This mirror on the bar serves as a reminder how great a country we live in.
After lunch, I left Cody and rode on down to Casper, WY where my daughter, son in law, and grandkids are living. I spent a couple of nights there and hung out with them. Walker is 6 and Raegan is 4, they are both growing up very fast. Michelle is a great mom too. She took me to Rotary Park in Casper where they have a cool little waterfall where the kids and I posed for a pic.
After staying with them a couple of days, I took off early Friday morning and headed on down to Paonia, Colorado for the Top Of The Rockies Rally. My friend Ron has a cabin not too far from there and met me. We spent most of the day Saturday riding highway 550 down to Durango and back. It was the first time I've ridden in this area and it is some of the best roads I've ever ridden. Unfortunately, I uploaded the video straight to facebook instead of my computer first so you'll have to check them out there if you want to watch them.
Ron and I left early Sunday morning, he headed to the cabin and I headed 780 miles back to Moore. The first hour of our trip was pretty scary riding down Hwy 92 in the rain, fog, and local deer convention. Maybe it was my new lights, but I saw more deer in that 1 hour trip down the mountain, than I've seen in all my other riding combined. That, combined with rain, fog, and 20 mph curves, made for some tense riding.
Once we hit Highway 50 though things got easier, still some nice curves and scenery but no rain or fog. Ron followed me over to I25 and left it to me to ride the rest of the way home. It was nice riding weather until I got to flat, hot, windy Oklahoma. I made the mistake of coming thru the panhandle and that has to be some of the most boring riding in all the land.
I got home around 9:30 Sunday night, about 14 1/2 hours of riding that day. I was definitely ready for a cold beer and sleeping in a real bed.
I rode a total of 5605 miles on this little 2 week jaunt and saw some great scenery along the way. I'd never been to Oregon, Washington, or Idaho before and all 3 states were great to ride in. The bike ran great, I had no problems, and I'm ready to go again. I washed the 10 states of dirt off my bike Monday and added 3 states to the little map on back of it to show the states I've ridden in. The bike has just over 38,000 miles on it now, is out of warranty, and is resting up this week before she gets fresh oil next week. I hope you enjoyed reading about my little trip, I sure enjoyed taking it.
Tuesday morning I got up early, loaded up the bike and headed south for Beartooth Pass, one of my favorite motorcycle roads in America. I had ridden there last year with Shannon on the back on our way to Yellowstone but wanted to ride it again by myself to hit the curves a little faster. I had a great time riding it and saw some more great scenery along the way as you can see in this video.
Not quite as extreme as Beartooth Pass but still a great ride is the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway from the south end of Beartooth over to Cody, Wyoming. I took one picture of my bike near a curve that had some lens flare that actually looks pretty cool.
Ron and I left early Sunday morning, he headed to the cabin and I headed 780 miles back to Moore. The first hour of our trip was pretty scary riding down Hwy 92 in the rain, fog, and local deer convention. Maybe it was my new lights, but I saw more deer in that 1 hour trip down the mountain, than I've seen in all my other riding combined. That, combined with rain, fog, and 20 mph curves, made for some tense riding.
Once we hit Highway 50 though things got easier, still some nice curves and scenery but no rain or fog. Ron followed me over to I25 and left it to me to ride the rest of the way home. It was nice riding weather until I got to flat, hot, windy Oklahoma. I made the mistake of coming thru the panhandle and that has to be some of the most boring riding in all the land.
I got home around 9:30 Sunday night, about 14 1/2 hours of riding that day. I was definitely ready for a cold beer and sleeping in a real bed.
I rode a total of 5605 miles on this little 2 week jaunt and saw some great scenery along the way. I'd never been to Oregon, Washington, or Idaho before and all 3 states were great to ride in. The bike ran great, I had no problems, and I'm ready to go again. I washed the 10 states of dirt off my bike Monday and added 3 states to the little map on back of it to show the states I've ridden in. The bike has just over 38,000 miles on it now, is out of warranty, and is resting up this week before she gets fresh oil next week. I hope you enjoyed reading about my little trip, I sure enjoyed taking it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)