We're just about one month away and the major items have been taken care of (luggage, seat, GPS, etc). I'm left with a plethora of small details that still need to be sorted out:
- Tool kit (mostly done)
- Water Repellent for my suit and luggage (in the mail as I type this)
- Bungee straps for my seat cover
- Base layer clothing (more Under Armor, wind proof pants and jacket, etc)
- Sort through the music for the trip (variety is key)
- Lock for our bikes
- Chat with friends with detailed info about the areas we'll be visiting
- Spares - headphones, tools, oil filters, etc (mostly done)
- Luggage liners so I don't need to take my luggage off each night (a real pain-in-the-ass)
I spent most of yesterday giving the bike a cleaning and good once over (brake pads, cable lube, cleaned the chain/sprocket, etc). Of course, this is kind of ridiculous since it's going to the mechanic in two weeks. I guess it's like brushing your teeth before you go to the dentist.
Anyway, I put on the larger top case (46L vs 37L) and it's a much better set up. It's Larger in every dimension, has a more stable bracket, and the locking mechanism just works better. I think I should put a few tie-down points on it just in case I need to strap something down. I also installed some factory handguards and the install was a snap. The only down side to the install is that I lost my weighted bar ends so I feel a bit more vibes through my hands. Only time will tell if this is an issue or not...
I just cleaned my helmet liner (truly disgusting) and washed my suit with a special treatment for Gore Tex. I'm slowly collecting my gear in a nice neat pile in the corner. I think I have everything but I can't seem to find my winter gloves -- I wonder if I lost them when I moved last year or loaned them to someone. Now that I don't commute year-round like I used to, I just don't ride when it's that cold so I haven't had the need for the gloves. They aren't cheap ($200), so I better keep looking. The heated vest will help as will the new hand-guards but I don't think a single layer of leather on the gloves will cut it in upstate NY in Oct (average for that time of year is low 50's).
I'm vain and lazy (a fun combo, for sure), so I decided I'll cut off most of my hair (down to 1/4") for the trip. Helmet head no more! I have a few presentations to give before I go, so I can't do it just yet, but a week before we leave, it's gone. My face is another story -- I haven't had enough time off work to grow a full beard so this seems like a good time to try! If nothing else, I'll figure out if I look rediculous or not. There should be plenty of pics and most of my friends are kind enough to tell me if it looks hideous....
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
"Hell is cooler than this!"
We're back from the pre-ride ride and we all had a blast - great roads, friends, laughs, and beers.
Things started off well leaving San Jose mostly on time. I knew the rendezvous Starbucks was in Alameda just off of the Tube but I don't go to Alameda often (never, really) and I missed the exit (that isn't marked). So, the idea of leaving alameda at 8:30am was severely missed by the ride organizer himself. Ooops. But we hit the road by 9:30am and made good time to Lake Berryessa via twisty Hwy 121.
A CalTrans worker stopped us as we entered the lake due to a fire and we quickly found shade and continued to sweat. This 15 minute stop was a blessing in disguise since it freed up the road ahead once we go going again. The goat trails made me, Brian, and Linda happy on our more off-road oriented bikes and made the rest of them cringe at each pothole and road ripple. But the smooth track-like section immediately after made it all worthwhile.
We stopped in Lower Lake to get some food and rehydrate. I packed some sandals and took the liberty of taking my boots off. Best idea of the day. 
With Red Bluff as our next stop, we then took Hwy 20 out to Hwy 5 for our long trek north. Hwy 20 was fun -- but not fun enough to make Hwy 5 fun. There is nothing on earth that makes Hwy 5 fun. Nothing. So we screwed around and took pics.
We stopped along the way to take a break from the oppressive heat and get us all in a group together again. However, stopping didn't help. It was hot. Real hot. I think this picture was the moment we started pouring water down our pants which, in hindsight, was a pretty bad idea. Note to self - pouring water down your pants and sitting on your ass all day do not mix. Comments about sore asses began at this point and only got worse. This does not bode well for a cross country trip...
Once arriving in Red Bluff, we gassed up and rehydrated and made our way to one of my favoritest roads anywhere - Hwy 36. This picture tells you what's in store for us just a few miles away.
The landscape was varied - from charred grassland, to recovering forests, to cold lush redwoods -- we saw it all on Hwy 36. And the road wasn't bad either. It's a fast and fantastic road - well maintained, good sight lines, very few cars, and very, very twisty with elevation changes. Most of the cagers were polite and got out of the way as they saw us approaching which makes the road awesome. However, semis should NOT be allowed on roads that twisty. Yet there we were, face-to-face with a large semi in the middle of a turn. These things happen more often than they should but we all escaped unscathed. Here are a few happier, semi-free moments from the east side of Hwy 36.
Hwy 36 dumps us right into Hwy 1 just south of Fortuna and we just wanted to get our sore asses off the bikes. We make it to the hotel to shower and get ready for some food at the Eel River Brewery (the 1st Cerified Organic Brewery). Organic, shmorganic - they make some damn good beer. Especially the Hazelnut Porter. How I love it so...
I must warn you about the beer "sampler" -- it's chock full o' alcohol. A few locals warned me and I scoffed at their remarks. Little did I know they were right. Which brings me to locals: the beer boys and Dustin (the local pot grower and former bomb squad member). The beer boys gave us a free pitcher of beer. Score! It wasn't what I wanted but I'm not about to turn down free beer. At least until that pitcher of Hazelnut Porter makes it way to our table. We retired to the bar before calling it a night. Dustin told us stories of his hybrid pot plants and blowing stuff up. "If you see me running, try to keep up!"
The night before, we agreed to meet for breakfast downstairs at our hotel at 8am the next morning. This time, I didn't get lost and show up late. I wasn't sure how that gravy from the biscuits'n'gravy would treat me later in the day but I decided to risk it all and treat myself to the heavy cream sauce with meat in it...I mean gravy.
We headed down Hwy 1 with Fort Bragg and the North Coast Brewery our lunch destination. Dave and Correne had taken this route before so they lead us through Avenue of the Giants. I had never been before and neither had Brian or Linda. We all had the same comment after stopping before hitting 101S, "I almost crashed because I kept looking at the trees!" I just wondered how old and how tall they were. It was exactly like being on Endor (for you Star Wars fans).
The scenery and twisty bits on Hwy 1 are legendary. I'm now convinced that most of those yellow signs warning us of the appropriate speed for each turn are just guidelines. Just like those funny yellow lines on the road :-) We stopped briefly to rest our asses, watch Tim do the world’s most pathetic burn out, and snap a few pics.
We continue on Hwy 1 with beer and food on our minds until we got to North Coast Brewery. That's right, our second brewery of the trip! We take over a corner of the bar and order up our preferred beverage of choice (which is Old Rasputin Stout if you have any taste at all). We're all beer snobs (except Linda, pfft) and our waitress couldn't help but overhear us talking about a few of their other beers. So, she poured us all some samplers of the discussed brews. Free beer, yet again!
Now full of food and beer, we head down Hwy 1 to Hwy 128 where we know there's fun to be had. Unfortunately, some asshole in a silver Corolla had other plans and tailgated me almost the entire trip. I don't mind a car keeping pace but I do mind if you endanger our safety. I mind very much. So, I took it upon myself to make him keep his distance from the rest of the pack. It took some of the fun away but Hwy 128 is a fun way to pass the time...
Unfortunately, we hit heavy traffic in Santa Rosa and Sonoma as we head down 101 for some dinner. We arrive at Moylans Brewery in Novato and all we want is a beer and some waters since North Coast Brewery filled us up. For those of you counting, this is our third (and final) brewery of the trip. If only every trip could have this many breweries. Tim took off for home at this point which only meant more beer for me!
We take off from the brewery down a cold and overcast stretch of 580 home. A few waves from the friends as they peel off and it's just me and 880 the rest of the way home...
More pictures here (in no particular order): http://www.flickr.com/photos/uhmeebuh/
Total miles - ~600 (I really need to learn how to use that GPS thingy). We'll need some ass calluses if we're going to go the distance to NYC.
Gear - everything worked great except my iPod remote. Tims iPod outright died so I guess I can't complain. The seat was better than stock (which ain't saying much) and the AirHawk literally saved my ass. The tires are on the wear bars and I have a larger top case on its way to me as I type this. My bike rocks.
Things started off well leaving San Jose mostly on time. I knew the rendezvous Starbucks was in Alameda just off of the Tube but I don't go to Alameda often (never, really) and I missed the exit (that isn't marked). So, the idea of leaving alameda at 8:30am was severely missed by the ride organizer himself. Ooops. But we hit the road by 9:30am and made good time to Lake Berryessa via twisty Hwy 121.
We all knew it would be a hot one but none of us were prepared for exactly how hot it would be later in the day. Linda has since called the ride "To Hell and Back" if that gives you any indication of how hot it really was. We took a brief break just before heading towards Lake Berryessa.
We stopped in Lower Lake to get some food and rehydrate. I packed some sandals and took the liberty of taking my boots off. Best idea of the day.
With Red Bluff as our next stop, we then took Hwy 20 out to Hwy 5 for our long trek north. Hwy 20 was fun -- but not fun enough to make Hwy 5 fun. There is nothing on earth that makes Hwy 5 fun. Nothing. So we screwed around and took pics.
We stopped along the way to take a break from the oppressive heat and get us all in a group together again. However, stopping didn't help. It was hot. Real hot. I think this picture was the moment we started pouring water down our pants which, in hindsight, was a pretty bad idea. Note to self - pouring water down your pants and sitting on your ass all day do not mix. Comments about sore asses began at this point and only got worse. This does not bode well for a cross country trip...
Once arriving in Red Bluff, we gassed up and rehydrated and made our way to one of my favoritest roads anywhere - Hwy 36. This picture tells you what's in store for us just a few miles away.
The landscape was varied - from charred grassland, to recovering forests, to cold lush redwoods -- we saw it all on Hwy 36. And the road wasn't bad either. It's a fast and fantastic road - well maintained, good sight lines, very few cars, and very, very twisty with elevation changes. Most of the cagers were polite and got out of the way as they saw us approaching which makes the road awesome. However, semis should NOT be allowed on roads that twisty. Yet there we were, face-to-face with a large semi in the middle of a turn. These things happen more often than they should but we all escaped unscathed. Here are a few happier, semi-free moments from the east side of Hwy 36.
Hwy 36 dumps us right into Hwy 1 just south of Fortuna and we just wanted to get our sore asses off the bikes. We make it to the hotel to shower and get ready for some food at the Eel River Brewery (the 1st Cerified Organic Brewery). Organic, shmorganic - they make some damn good beer. Especially the Hazelnut Porter. How I love it so...
I must warn you about the beer "sampler" -- it's chock full o' alcohol. A few locals warned me and I scoffed at their remarks. Little did I know they were right. Which brings me to locals: the beer boys and Dustin (the local pot grower and former bomb squad member). The beer boys gave us a free pitcher of beer. Score! It wasn't what I wanted but I'm not about to turn down free beer. At least until that pitcher of Hazelnut Porter makes it way to our table. We retired to the bar before calling it a night. Dustin told us stories of his hybrid pot plants and blowing stuff up. "If you see me running, try to keep up!"
The night before, we agreed to meet for breakfast downstairs at our hotel at 8am the next morning. This time, I didn't get lost and show up late. I wasn't sure how that gravy from the biscuits'n'gravy would treat me later in the day but I decided to risk it all and treat myself to the heavy cream sauce with meat in it...I mean gravy.
We headed down Hwy 1 with Fort Bragg and the North Coast Brewery our lunch destination. Dave and Correne had taken this route before so they lead us through Avenue of the Giants. I had never been before and neither had Brian or Linda. We all had the same comment after stopping before hitting 101S, "I almost crashed because I kept looking at the trees!" I just wondered how old and how tall they were. It was exactly like being on Endor (for you Star Wars fans).
The scenery and twisty bits on Hwy 1 are legendary. I'm now convinced that most of those yellow signs warning us of the appropriate speed for each turn are just guidelines. Just like those funny yellow lines on the road :-) We stopped briefly to rest our asses, watch Tim do the world’s most pathetic burn out, and snap a few pics.
We continue on Hwy 1 with beer and food on our minds until we got to North Coast Brewery. That's right, our second brewery of the trip! We take over a corner of the bar and order up our preferred beverage of choice (which is Old Rasputin Stout if you have any taste at all). We're all beer snobs (except Linda, pfft) and our waitress couldn't help but overhear us talking about a few of their other beers. So, she poured us all some samplers of the discussed brews. Free beer, yet again!
Now full of food and beer, we head down Hwy 1 to Hwy 128 where we know there's fun to be had. Unfortunately, some asshole in a silver Corolla had other plans and tailgated me almost the entire trip. I don't mind a car keeping pace but I do mind if you endanger our safety. I mind very much. So, I took it upon myself to make him keep his distance from the rest of the pack. It took some of the fun away but Hwy 128 is a fun way to pass the time...
Unfortunately, we hit heavy traffic in Santa Rosa and Sonoma as we head down 101 for some dinner. We arrive at Moylans Brewery in Novato and all we want is a beer and some waters since North Coast Brewery filled us up. For those of you counting, this is our third (and final) brewery of the trip. If only every trip could have this many breweries. Tim took off for home at this point which only meant more beer for me!
We take off from the brewery down a cold and overcast stretch of 580 home. A few waves from the friends as they peel off and it's just me and 880 the rest of the way home...
More pictures here (in no particular order): http://www.flickr.com/photos/uhmeebuh/
Total miles - ~600 (I really need to learn how to use that GPS thingy). We'll need some ass calluses if we're going to go the distance to NYC.
Gear - everything worked great except my iPod remote. Tims iPod outright died so I guess I can't complain. The seat was better than stock (which ain't saying much) and the AirHawk literally saved my ass. The tires are on the wear bars and I have a larger top case on its way to me as I type this. My bike rocks.
Best Idea Yet
This blog has received a variety of responses from everyone. But Dan had the best response so far, "Too bad I can't make this trip. Wanna ride to Alaska?"
Hell yes I do! August 2009. Dan and Brandon ride to Alaska. Time to start planning...
Hell yes I do! August 2009. Dan and Brandon ride to Alaska. Time to start planning...
Friday, August 15, 2008
The Pre-ride Ride
Since my longest trip hasn't been much more than 1000 miles at a time, we decided a little test ride was in order. We have some of the best roads in the world a few hours north of us, so we planned to ride to Fortuna CA (just south of Eureka) and ride home the following day. Like all good trips, we'll be having dinner at a brewery (Eel River Brewery) with my riding partners. I've never had their beer so we'll see if my discerning palate matches up with their (reportedly) discerning beer. We leave tomorrow AM so I'll need to avoid tequila hangovers tonight...
Day 1 - 372 mi to Fortuna (via Berryessa, Clear Lake, and 36)
http://tinyurl.com/6z9uup
Day 2 - 288 mi to Alameda (36, Lunch at Fort Bragg Brewery, Clear Lake)
http://tinyurl.com/64ccjy
Pics to come!
Edit - updated route
Day 1 - 372 mi to Fortuna (via Berryessa, Clear Lake, and 36)
http://tinyurl.com/6z9uup
Day 2 - 288 mi to Alameda (36, Lunch at Fort Bragg Brewery, Clear Lake)
http://tinyurl.com/64ccjy
Pics to come!
Edit - updated route
Thursday, August 14, 2008
The Bike
Most folks are shocked when they find out I'm riding a sport bike for this trip but I couldn't find a bike that would be much better that didn't break the bank (or I would have purchased a BMW 1200 GS). I'm riding a 2006 KTM 950 SuperMoto all the way:
I happen to love this bike and I don't know of any one else that's ridden one across the US but I'm sure someone has before (please contact me if you have!). Sure, it needs a little encouragement for long distance touring but I think I have it all sorted out:
- Custom Corbin seat
- Airhawk seat cover
- Hand guards to protect from the wind/cold/rain/snow
- Sport touring tires (Pirelli Diablo Stradas will be going on in a couple weeks)
- KTM tanks bag, saddle bags, and givi top case
- Garmin 60CX GPS for finding the nearest gas station, hotel, and hooters (for the wings, of course).
- 80GB iPod with RF remote to keep me from listening to the voices in my head
- Ass numbing powder (just kidding, but that would be helpful).
Here it is all geared up:
I'm SOL should something break -- getting parts form Austria is hard. But all the best stories happen when things go wrong and this should be a fun adventure...
I happen to love this bike and I don't know of any one else that's ridden one across the US but I'm sure someone has before (please contact me if you have!). Sure, it needs a little encouragement for long distance touring but I think I have it all sorted out:
- Custom Corbin seat
- Airhawk seat cover
- Hand guards to protect from the wind/cold/rain/snow
- Sport touring tires (Pirelli Diablo Stradas will be going on in a couple weeks)
- KTM tanks bag, saddle bags, and givi top case
- Garmin 60CX GPS for finding the nearest gas station, hotel, and hooters (for the wings, of course).
- 80GB iPod with RF remote to keep me from listening to the voices in my head
- Ass numbing powder (just kidding, but that would be helpful).
Here it is all geared up:
I'm SOL should something break -- getting parts form Austria is hard. But all the best stories happen when things go wrong and this should be a fun adventure...
Planning and Prep
The most common response I received when they heard I planned on riding to New York from San Jose was, "Won't that hurt your ass?" You bet it will. But bucket lists don't care about my sensitive ass or available time off work. They're meant to be hard, memorable, and fun. I don't think I'll be disappointed...
I'm a project manager and a type-A personality. I know it's an odd career for someone with that type of personality but it's helped me attempt to plan this trip. Fortunately, I'm riding with a buddy with a better attitude. Tim said, "F-it - we'll figure it out as we go along". But, try as I may, I can't not plan. So, we came up with a route. A route that I doubt we'll stick to past day 3. But we'll try anyway. We built some slack time in so we can take a day off here or there to recover from a hard night in Vegas, notthatwe'deverdothat.
The route looks like this:
Day 1 – Sat - 9/27/08 - SJ to Las Vegas NV – 547 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5tnhp9
Day 2 – Sun - 9/28/08 - Las Vegas NV to Flagstaff AZ – 385 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6na3yf
Day 3 – Mon - 9/29/08 – Flagstaff AZ to Albuquerque NM – 421 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5evzca
Day 4 – Tues - 9/30/08 – Albuquerque NM to OK City OK – 548 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5oo8sj
Day 5 – Wed - 10/1/08 – OK City Ok to Memphis TN – 466 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6nc9tt
Day 6 – Thursday - 10/2/08 – Memphis TN to Knoxville TN - 391 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6n6swd
Day 7 – Friday - 10/3/08 – Knoxville TN to Raleigh NC – Tail of the Dragon! – 413 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6nz53t
Day 8 – Sat - 10/4/08 – Raleigh NC to Philadelphia PA – 425 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6dxha6
Day 9 – Sun -10/5/08 – Philly PA to Syracuse NY – Catskill Park – 328 miles
http://tinyurl.com/5ahpn4
Day 10 – Mon -10/6/08 – Syracuse NY to Boston – 388 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5b59nv
Day 11 – Tues - 10/7/08 – Boston MA to NY NY – Cape Cod NY – 397 mi
http://tinyurl.com/68zk9f
I'm shipping my bike back on Friday 10/10 and flying home on Saturday 10/11. Speaking of shipping, let's talk a bit about (the rediculous) costs.
- Shipping - $850
- Flight home - $250
- Luggage for the bike - $750
- New tires - $300
- Pre-ride Maintenance - $150
- Misc parts that might be needed on the road - $250
- Gas - $600 (150 gallons * $4.00/gal)
- Hotel - $720 ($60/night * 12 nights)
- Electronic gizmos - $500 (GPS unit and iPod)
- Total = $4370
Fortunately, I burn money to keep my apartment warm in the winter so I'll just use wood this season and spend the rest on this trip.
I'm a project manager and a type-A personality. I know it's an odd career for someone with that type of personality but it's helped me attempt to plan this trip. Fortunately, I'm riding with a buddy with a better attitude. Tim said, "F-it - we'll figure it out as we go along". But, try as I may, I can't not plan. So, we came up with a route. A route that I doubt we'll stick to past day 3. But we'll try anyway. We built some slack time in so we can take a day off here or there to recover from a hard night in Vegas, notthatwe'deverdothat.
The route looks like this:
Day 1 – Sat - 9/27/08 - SJ to Las Vegas NV – 547 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5tnhp9
Day 2 – Sun - 9/28/08 - Las Vegas NV to Flagstaff AZ – 385 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6na3yf
Day 3 – Mon - 9/29/08 – Flagstaff AZ to Albuquerque NM – 421 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5evzca
Day 4 – Tues - 9/30/08 – Albuquerque NM to OK City OK – 548 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5oo8sj
Day 5 – Wed - 10/1/08 – OK City Ok to Memphis TN – 466 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6nc9tt
Day 6 – Thursday - 10/2/08 – Memphis TN to Knoxville TN - 391 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6n6swd
Day 7 – Friday - 10/3/08 – Knoxville TN to Raleigh NC – Tail of the Dragon! – 413 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6nz53t
Day 8 – Sat - 10/4/08 – Raleigh NC to Philadelphia PA – 425 mi
http://tinyurl.com/6dxha6
Day 9 – Sun -10/5/08 – Philly PA to Syracuse NY – Catskill Park – 328 miles
http://tinyurl.com/5ahpn4
Day 10 – Mon -10/6/08 – Syracuse NY to Boston – 388 mi
http://tinyurl.com/5b59nv
Day 11 – Tues - 10/7/08 – Boston MA to NY NY – Cape Cod NY – 397 mi
http://tinyurl.com/68zk9f
I'm shipping my bike back on Friday 10/10 and flying home on Saturday 10/11. Speaking of shipping, let's talk a bit about (the rediculous) costs.
- Shipping - $850
- Flight home - $250
- Luggage for the bike - $750
- New tires - $300
- Pre-ride Maintenance - $150
- Misc parts that might be needed on the road - $250
- Gas - $600 (150 gallons * $4.00/gal)
- Hotel - $720 ($60/night * 12 nights)
- Electronic gizmos - $500 (GPS unit and iPod)
- Total = $4370
Fortunately, I burn money to keep my apartment warm in the winter so I'll just use wood this season and spend the rest on this trip.
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