Speedygg
Well-known member
It has taken me a week to defrost from my last day of riding through the rain soaked Pacific Northwest last Sunday as I finally experienced leakage on my Stich after 6 hours of steady rain. Finally got some time to register my ride with the group.
My contracting job ended during the second week of October, so I decided to take a break and go visit my 95 year old mother in NJ. Looking at the price of flights, I decided to explore alternative modes of transportation.
On October 8th, I decided to plan a cross country motorcycle trip to start on October 17 . My biggest fears were (1) weather in mid October (2) lack of experience doing multi-day road trips (3) FJR breaking down and having to call wife to pick me up.
First, I needed to cross off my fear list:
(1) weather reports all showed no snow forecasts on the north for next 10 days.
(2) I've done a SS1000 and have experience long distance bicycling so I felt butt was able to deal with it
(3) Bike was 26k young and I've self-serviced my FJR and have most all the gadgets needed for long distance.
As the date got closer, I did some final tune-ups on the bike: spark plugs, oil/filter, check tires (Mich Pilot 2 3k miles), tighten auxillary equipment wiring (gps, radio, heated controls.
Given my weather fears, my trip needed to be rather quick. So my plan was to cross in 4-5 days, visit family for 2 days, then head back home in 4-5 days. For the remote areas of North Dakota (I assumed there would be remote areas), I programmed waypoints for gas stations every 150 miles.
Here is my trip (spotwalla link):
Day 1 [10/17 6AM] Seattle - Billings,MT ~800miles
Temps: ~42F
I90
I started out with just my heated jacket and Aerostich, but decided to put on wind breaker jacket and pants after crossing the WA passes. After that I was fine temperature wise. This is pretty much what I wore till Duluth MN.
Billings was a nightmare as I rolled in around 8p (dark). I had scoped out a Motel 6 ahead of time, however decided not to make reservations given that my plans might change based on weather/bike. So when I get to the hotel they tell me they are all booked. It seems that Billings was hosting a Live Stock and Rodeo as well as a Teachers Education Conference.. All hotels in town are booked, and the temps were now around 38 deg and dropping. I road to a couple of other hotels, all had the same story. Found a cute hotel clerk (not that it mattered that she as cute, but she was). She started making calls for me and finally found one room available at Howard Johnsons...yes...'ll take it! $215 dollars later, I take a nice warm shower, and head out for drinks and food. Day one complete
Day 2 [10/18]: Billings MT - Fargo ND ~600miles
Temps: ~42F - 48F
I94
After a good night's rest and early morning breakfast, I checked my tire pressure and headed out. My original intent was to make it a long day and ride to Duluth, however those plans changed early afternoon. If you don't already know, North Dakota is f'ing flat! There is zero wind barriers. For most of the afternoon, I was fighing 30+ mph head winds. The highway department put out road signs warning of extreme wind warning in effect. So I'm thinking...ok, the minute I feel in danger, I will find the nearest hotel. If you looked at my bike from the front while traveling on a traight interstate, it would probably look like it was angled 45 degrees. Surprisingly, the bike felt quite stable once I got the angle right. Over time, I got a feel of the wind pattern. I appreciated passing trucks in that they provided some relief in the eye of the pass. About 2 hours prior to reaching Fargo, it started raining hard. For those remaining hours, I really should have pulled into the first town I passed, but for what ever reason I decided to push forward (schedule? adrenaline?). Got to Fargo and booked my first night at a Motel 6. Damn, the prices at this hotel are amazing., the room seemed clean (though quite basic), what's not to love? I found out in the middle of the night. It appears that it is a happening place for drug dealers, late night party'ers. Prior to going to bed, given the tremendous wind still going on, I decided to shore up my bike in one of the side door entrances. I took one of the ice buckets and wedged it under the foot peg (similar to securing for a ferry ride).
Day 2 complete with a sub-par dinner at Hooters (next door) and a very notable sore neck and shoulders due to fighting the wind all day. Based on bill boards, ND seems like a very republican state.
Day 3 [10/19]: Fargo ND - Duluth MN - Janesville WI ~600 miles
Temps: 40F - 55F
US-10 / US-2 / US 53 / I-94
Compared to the first 2 days, this was a very relaxing day. It was nice to get off the major Interstates and get on roads with traffic lights and small towns. I looked forward to some traffic, seeing other people. Temperatures were warm enough for me to take off my wind breakers prior to arriving at Aerostich factory in Duluth MN and show off my grundgy yellow Stich. I spent about 2 hours in the factory, talking to a local customers and the store clerks. Nice people. Tried my hardest to find something to buy. However I packed really tight in my side bags and top case and did not have room left. Ended up buying a "I RODE THERE." tee shirt and was on my way feeling real happy about accomplishing my first goal to visit Aerostich. :yahoo: Off to someplace near Chicago for the next stop. Only other notable for this leg is the crap load of construction on US-53. A lot of political signs in favor of Obama. Day 3 complete with a nice relaxing stay at my second Motel 6 in Janesville, WI.
Day 4 [10/20]: Janesville WI - Donegal PA ~600 miles
Temps: ~50F +
I-90
My original plan was to ride from here to Somerset (~882 miles). Fortunately, my brother gave me an excuse for changing my plans. He was riding with his girl friend on his rebuilt BMW (see link) to Donegal PA to check out the Falling water house built by Frank Lloyd Wright. So I ended up meeting up with him in Pa at a Holiday Inn Express. It was great meeting up with him, enjoying a great dinner, and some quality time in the hotel lobby watching a re-run of Lost in Space. All we needed was some chocolate milk and ring dings to relive our childhood. It was awesome to sleep in a comfortable bed. BTW, the color of the foliage (leaves) was amazing...bad news is that I did not take any pictures.
Day 4 complete with a good family hug.
Day 5-7 [10/21-23]: Donegal PA - Somerset NJ ~300 miles
Temps: ~50F +
I-76 / I-78
It was nice to finally have some company riding with my brother and his GF in tow. Got to my sisters house in Somerset where a heart felt welcome party was waiting for me including my 2 sisters, brother in laws, mother, niece, and a visiting relative from Argentina. It was nice to have some good vino and meat dishes. Spent part of the rest days with my brother doing some pre-return trip maintenance on the bike:
Trip planning: weather pattern on the north looked bad. PNW was experiencing rain, read AuburnFJR(brian's) post on riding his new(to him) BMW in the mountains to check out snow. So changed my plans to return via the south: VA, NC, TN, AR, OK, TX, NM, AZ, CA . Started to hear some news about hurricane Sandy hitting some of the islands and probably heading out to the sea. Little did I know that Sandy would have such an impact on the east coast.
NOTE: Family survived the hurricane without any major issues other than being without power for a couple of days. Hard to believe the impact that storm had on other areas of the east coast. Prayers go out to everyone that has been affected.
Days 5-7 complete with an awesome visit with family. Time to head home.
Day 8[10/24]: Somerset NJ - Robbinsville NC ~750 miles
Temps: ~70F
I-81
I thank my brother for suggesting that I visit the Tail of the Dragon in NC. I booked ahead at the Microtel Hotel in Robbinsville. Very cool that they give discounts if you arrive on a motorcycle. Ride to there was uneventful, other than some awesome scenery through the mountains. Only down side, ROBBINSVILLE IS A DRY COUNTY!!! Speaking to some people at the hotel, you can ride up to Deals Gap for beer. Given that it was dark, decided to stay put and watch the world series while I ate Wendy's baked potato, baked beans, and salad.
Day 9 [10/25]: Robbinsville NC - Clarksville AR ~700 miles
Temps: ~80F - 42F
I-40
Decided to hit Tail of the Dragon early before all the hot shots get on (and so I can stay on schedule). Sunrise was around 7, by 8 there was good light so decided to go. It felt good to start wearing out the side rubber of the tires after so many hours of driving interstates. The dragon ride was around 60 miles of twisties, with some really sharp ones. I would have liked to spend all day there and ride it a couple of times, but my schedule got in the way. Glad I did it, however I hope to revisit sometime in the future for a longer period of time.
Got a lot of "Hi Darliin" from clerks at the gas stations throughout TN and AR. One looked at me (near the end of the day) and said "Darlin, y'all don't look to good". This was after going through a small rain storm in Little Rock and my hair was a bit wild. Originally planned on staying in LIttle Rock, but decided to ride past the storm a bit further.
Day 10 [10/26]: Clarksville AR - Albuquerque NM ~800 miles
Temps: ~45
I-40
Like North Dakota, Arkansa-Oklahoma was pretty darn flat with some mild winds (compared to ND). Friend emailed me regarding where to eat in Amarillo TX. Got there, and it looked like a big tourist trap (The Big Texan). Decided to search my GPS (I was getting pretty darn hungry) and found this place:
Really good brisquette sandwiches and beans. I thought I would be getting baked beans, but the beans were in more of a soupie substance with...I think...some bacon bits. Really good.
Day 11 [10/27]: Albuquerque NM - Tehachapi CA ~800 miles
Temps: ~80F - 33F
I-40
Albuquerque got its first freeze of the season over night. Ice warnings were in effect till 9am Decided to wait it out till 8:30. Warmed up quickly. I love New Mexico. Visited Santa Fe years ago and really felt comfortable in the scenery and laid back attitude. Probably need some good money to live there, but damn it is a relaxing environment. Got to visit my first desert on a motorcycle (Mojave). Thank god it was in the winter where temperatures were a mild 84F rather than over 100F in the summer. I was a bit nervous about not finding gas stations, however there appeared to be plenty of towns within an acceptable distance apart. Out of all the stated I traveled through, California is the only one that has a border inspection between Arizona and CA. The officer did not give me a hard time when I told him what I was doing. Due to the time change (in my favor) made it to my hotel while there was still a little daylight left.
Note: I have moved up in my hotels: Super 8, and La Quinta. Bar next door was having a holloween party. Good time with strangers.
Day 12 [10/27]: Tehachapi CA - Woodinville WA 1095 miles...Saddle Sore 1K
Temps: ~80F - 42F
I-5
Woke up looking at the weather report and noticed rain in the PNW. Figured I would ride down to Eugene, then rest up for one more day of riding. Riding through Shasta mountain area was nice, however later on before reaching the end of the mountains, it started raining. Made it to Eugene (I think around 8pm). Put a nearby hotel on gps and headed over. Umm, neighborhood does not look too good so decided to keep going. Rain let down a bit and started feeling re-energized. Heck, lets make it to Portland. Rain coming down extremely heavy in portland. I take a look at the miles left....200m. One fillup and I am home! Decided to keep going. Could have been a big mistake as the rains were coming down really heavy and I was getting worried about flooding on the roadways at night time. The worst area was around Olympia, Tacoma where the party'ers were out (around midnight). Once I got to 405, I got more at ease and did my final fill up in woodinville. It helped throughout the ride to get (mostly warm) thoughts from my wife via my bluethooth headset.
Figured I'll submit this final day SaddleSore1k ride to IronButt for memory sake.
Sorry, no pictures this final day....it was miserable in the PNW!
All in all, I couldn't be happier having completed this trip in October. Next time though, I think I may take it slower with my wife in tow, in the summer time. I can only imagine what fun the Iron Butt Rally would be!
My contracting job ended during the second week of October, so I decided to take a break and go visit my 95 year old mother in NJ. Looking at the price of flights, I decided to explore alternative modes of transportation.
On October 8th, I decided to plan a cross country motorcycle trip to start on October 17 . My biggest fears were (1) weather in mid October (2) lack of experience doing multi-day road trips (3) FJR breaking down and having to call wife to pick me up.
First, I needed to cross off my fear list:
(1) weather reports all showed no snow forecasts on the north for next 10 days.
(2) I've done a SS1000 and have experience long distance bicycling so I felt butt was able to deal with it
(3) Bike was 26k young and I've self-serviced my FJR and have most all the gadgets needed for long distance.
As the date got closer, I did some final tune-ups on the bike: spark plugs, oil/filter, check tires (Mich Pilot 2 3k miles), tighten auxillary equipment wiring (gps, radio, heated controls.
Given my weather fears, my trip needed to be rather quick. So my plan was to cross in 4-5 days, visit family for 2 days, then head back home in 4-5 days. For the remote areas of North Dakota (I assumed there would be remote areas), I programmed waypoints for gas stations every 150 miles.
Here is my trip (spotwalla link):
Day 1 [10/17 6AM] Seattle - Billings,MT ~800miles
Temps: ~42F
I90
I started out with just my heated jacket and Aerostich, but decided to put on wind breaker jacket and pants after crossing the WA passes. After that I was fine temperature wise. This is pretty much what I wore till Duluth MN.
Billings was a nightmare as I rolled in around 8p (dark). I had scoped out a Motel 6 ahead of time, however decided not to make reservations given that my plans might change based on weather/bike. So when I get to the hotel they tell me they are all booked. It seems that Billings was hosting a Live Stock and Rodeo as well as a Teachers Education Conference.. All hotels in town are booked, and the temps were now around 38 deg and dropping. I road to a couple of other hotels, all had the same story. Found a cute hotel clerk (not that it mattered that she as cute, but she was). She started making calls for me and finally found one room available at Howard Johnsons...yes...'ll take it! $215 dollars later, I take a nice warm shower, and head out for drinks and food. Day one complete
Day 2 [10/18]: Billings MT - Fargo ND ~600miles
Temps: ~42F - 48F
I94
After a good night's rest and early morning breakfast, I checked my tire pressure and headed out. My original intent was to make it a long day and ride to Duluth, however those plans changed early afternoon. If you don't already know, North Dakota is f'ing flat! There is zero wind barriers. For most of the afternoon, I was fighing 30+ mph head winds. The highway department put out road signs warning of extreme wind warning in effect. So I'm thinking...ok, the minute I feel in danger, I will find the nearest hotel. If you looked at my bike from the front while traveling on a traight interstate, it would probably look like it was angled 45 degrees. Surprisingly, the bike felt quite stable once I got the angle right. Over time, I got a feel of the wind pattern. I appreciated passing trucks in that they provided some relief in the eye of the pass. About 2 hours prior to reaching Fargo, it started raining hard. For those remaining hours, I really should have pulled into the first town I passed, but for what ever reason I decided to push forward (schedule? adrenaline?). Got to Fargo and booked my first night at a Motel 6. Damn, the prices at this hotel are amazing., the room seemed clean (though quite basic), what's not to love? I found out in the middle of the night. It appears that it is a happening place for drug dealers, late night party'ers. Prior to going to bed, given the tremendous wind still going on, I decided to shore up my bike in one of the side door entrances. I took one of the ice buckets and wedged it under the foot peg (similar to securing for a ferry ride).
Day 2 complete with a sub-par dinner at Hooters (next door) and a very notable sore neck and shoulders due to fighting the wind all day. Based on bill boards, ND seems like a very republican state.
Day 3 [10/19]: Fargo ND - Duluth MN - Janesville WI ~600 miles
Temps: 40F - 55F
US-10 / US-2 / US 53 / I-94
Compared to the first 2 days, this was a very relaxing day. It was nice to get off the major Interstates and get on roads with traffic lights and small towns. I looked forward to some traffic, seeing other people. Temperatures were warm enough for me to take off my wind breakers prior to arriving at Aerostich factory in Duluth MN and show off my grundgy yellow Stich. I spent about 2 hours in the factory, talking to a local customers and the store clerks. Nice people. Tried my hardest to find something to buy. However I packed really tight in my side bags and top case and did not have room left. Ended up buying a "I RODE THERE." tee shirt and was on my way feeling real happy about accomplishing my first goal to visit Aerostich. :yahoo: Off to someplace near Chicago for the next stop. Only other notable for this leg is the crap load of construction on US-53. A lot of political signs in favor of Obama. Day 3 complete with a nice relaxing stay at my second Motel 6 in Janesville, WI.
Day 4 [10/20]: Janesville WI - Donegal PA ~600 miles
Temps: ~50F +
I-90
My original plan was to ride from here to Somerset (~882 miles). Fortunately, my brother gave me an excuse for changing my plans. He was riding with his girl friend on his rebuilt BMW (see link) to Donegal PA to check out the Falling water house built by Frank Lloyd Wright. So I ended up meeting up with him in Pa at a Holiday Inn Express. It was great meeting up with him, enjoying a great dinner, and some quality time in the hotel lobby watching a re-run of Lost in Space. All we needed was some chocolate milk and ring dings to relive our childhood. It was awesome to sleep in a comfortable bed. BTW, the color of the foliage (leaves) was amazing...bad news is that I did not take any pictures.
Day 4 complete with a good family hug.
Day 5-7 [10/21-23]: Donegal PA - Somerset NJ ~300 miles
Temps: ~50F +
I-76 / I-78
It was nice to finally have some company riding with my brother and his GF in tow. Got to my sisters house in Somerset where a heart felt welcome party was waiting for me including my 2 sisters, brother in laws, mother, niece, and a visiting relative from Argentina. It was nice to have some good vino and meat dishes. Spent part of the rest days with my brother doing some pre-return trip maintenance on the bike:
- Change oil and filter
- Fix Datel volt meter. Throughout the ride, I noticed that my volt meter was displaying erratic data (12.2 - 13.9). However, I noticed that when bike is at idle, meter registered properly. So my guess was a loose screw. Did not want to risk opening things up during the trip (and lose/break stuff), so waited till got to NJ. Yay,, it WAS a loose screw!
- Headlights. At the NAFO ride this summer, Fontanaman (Jim) noticed that one of my headlights was not as bright. We re-aligned it and called it good. My brother noticed the same thing while riding from PA to NJ. So I decided not to risk anything and replace the bulbs. I bought the "Extreme..80% brighter bulbs" from PepBoys. Read the instructions on the forum for replacing without removing hardware. Left bulb was pretty easy. Right bulb was a bit tighter, but eventually got it in. What a freakin difference in brightness!!!
- Check tires. After 4k miles cross country, tires still looked pretty good,
Trip planning: weather pattern on the north looked bad. PNW was experiencing rain, read AuburnFJR(brian's) post on riding his new(to him) BMW in the mountains to check out snow. So changed my plans to return via the south: VA, NC, TN, AR, OK, TX, NM, AZ, CA . Started to hear some news about hurricane Sandy hitting some of the islands and probably heading out to the sea. Little did I know that Sandy would have such an impact on the east coast.
NOTE: Family survived the hurricane without any major issues other than being without power for a couple of days. Hard to believe the impact that storm had on other areas of the east coast. Prayers go out to everyone that has been affected.
Days 5-7 complete with an awesome visit with family. Time to head home.
Day 8[10/24]: Somerset NJ - Robbinsville NC ~750 miles
Temps: ~70F
I-81
I thank my brother for suggesting that I visit the Tail of the Dragon in NC. I booked ahead at the Microtel Hotel in Robbinsville. Very cool that they give discounts if you arrive on a motorcycle. Ride to there was uneventful, other than some awesome scenery through the mountains. Only down side, ROBBINSVILLE IS A DRY COUNTY!!! Speaking to some people at the hotel, you can ride up to Deals Gap for beer. Given that it was dark, decided to stay put and watch the world series while I ate Wendy's baked potato, baked beans, and salad.
Day 9 [10/25]: Robbinsville NC - Clarksville AR ~700 miles
Temps: ~80F - 42F
I-40
Decided to hit Tail of the Dragon early before all the hot shots get on (and so I can stay on schedule). Sunrise was around 7, by 8 there was good light so decided to go. It felt good to start wearing out the side rubber of the tires after so many hours of driving interstates. The dragon ride was around 60 miles of twisties, with some really sharp ones. I would have liked to spend all day there and ride it a couple of times, but my schedule got in the way. Glad I did it, however I hope to revisit sometime in the future for a longer period of time.
Got a lot of "Hi Darliin" from clerks at the gas stations throughout TN and AR. One looked at me (near the end of the day) and said "Darlin, y'all don't look to good". This was after going through a small rain storm in Little Rock and my hair was a bit wild. Originally planned on staying in LIttle Rock, but decided to ride past the storm a bit further.
Day 10 [10/26]: Clarksville AR - Albuquerque NM ~800 miles
Temps: ~45
I-40
Like North Dakota, Arkansa-Oklahoma was pretty darn flat with some mild winds (compared to ND). Friend emailed me regarding where to eat in Amarillo TX. Got there, and it looked like a big tourist trap (The Big Texan). Decided to search my GPS (I was getting pretty darn hungry) and found this place:
Really good brisquette sandwiches and beans. I thought I would be getting baked beans, but the beans were in more of a soupie substance with...I think...some bacon bits. Really good.
Day 11 [10/27]: Albuquerque NM - Tehachapi CA ~800 miles
Temps: ~80F - 33F
I-40
Albuquerque got its first freeze of the season over night. Ice warnings were in effect till 9am Decided to wait it out till 8:30. Warmed up quickly. I love New Mexico. Visited Santa Fe years ago and really felt comfortable in the scenery and laid back attitude. Probably need some good money to live there, but damn it is a relaxing environment. Got to visit my first desert on a motorcycle (Mojave). Thank god it was in the winter where temperatures were a mild 84F rather than over 100F in the summer. I was a bit nervous about not finding gas stations, however there appeared to be plenty of towns within an acceptable distance apart. Out of all the stated I traveled through, California is the only one that has a border inspection between Arizona and CA. The officer did not give me a hard time when I told him what I was doing. Due to the time change (in my favor) made it to my hotel while there was still a little daylight left.
Note: I have moved up in my hotels: Super 8, and La Quinta.
Bar next door was having a holloween party. Good time with strangers.
Day 12 [10/27]: Tehachapi CA - Woodinville WA 1095 miles...Saddle Sore 1K
Temps: ~80F - 42F
I-5
Woke up looking at the weather report and noticed rain in the PNW. Figured I would ride down to Eugene, then rest up for one more day of riding. Riding through Shasta mountain area was nice, however later on before reaching the end of the mountains, it started raining. Made it to Eugene (I think around 8pm). Put a nearby hotel on gps and headed over. Umm, neighborhood does not look too good so decided to keep going. Rain let down a bit and started feeling re-energized. Heck, lets make it to Portland. Rain coming down extremely heavy in portland. I take a look at the miles left....200m. One fillup and I am home! Decided to keep going. Could have been a big mistake as the rains were coming down really heavy and I was getting worried about flooding on the roadways at night time. The worst area was around Olympia, Tacoma where the party'ers were out (around midnight). Once I got to 405, I got more at ease and did my final fill up in woodinville. It helped throughout the ride to get (mostly warm) thoughts from my wife via my bluethooth headset.
Figured I'll submit this final day SaddleSore1k ride to IronButt for memory sake.
Sorry, no pictures this final day....it was miserable in the PNW!
All in all, I couldn't be happier having completed this trip in October. Next time though, I think I may take it slower with my wife in tow, in the summer time. I can only imagine what fun the Iron Butt Rally would be!
