"San Jose to New York? Won't that hurt your ass?"

Trip Pics

2008-10-13T11:43:00.000-07:00

I'm glad to be home!

Thanks for all the feedback - I'm glad you enjoyed my write-ups. It's easy when you have a topic like this.

I've finally uploaded all my pics here: http://picasaweb.google.com/brandonjhuff

Enjoy!

Day 13 - New York City NY to San Jose CA

2008-10-09T07:53:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 0

Route: N/A

Another morning of sleeping in. This might work out well for me when I get back home. The time change, while slight, could wreak havoc with my insomnia. We'll see...

I grab breakfast downstairs and read the Times. I've caught the major headlines each day but I feel very detached from the financial crisis and the multitude of layoffs back home. Things aren't going well for many friends and I hope I'm able to make it the next 18-24 months unscathed. I have to remind myself that this is a cycle but we're seeing some unprecedented actions/reactions. I'd feel better with a couple hours reading online to get a better grasp of the latest happenings.

I catch a late shuttle and walk to Penn Station to catch a train to JFK. I pay $5 to get to Jamaica and another $5 to get to the airport. It was fast and easy. BART could learn a think or three...

It was almost 2pm byt the time I got through security and I see there's a sushi bar/ club in the middle of JFK. Weird. Cool. A beer and a few sashimi later I'm feeling much better and pass the time people watching. All I had to do was wait for my flight so I had a chance to reflect on what I've seen the last two weeks:

- I was reminded, once again, that I have a charmed life
- I was wrong - the rest of the US is beautiful. CA just has most of it a few hours away.
- People are people - assholes in San Francisco are assholes in Memphis are assholes in New York. Manners still exist but the generalizations didn't apply.
- I didn't check work email and it felt good. I do worry about opening my inbox over the weekend but I'll wait until then. But I need to get off the grid and get work out of my head. Mission accomplished.
- Despite spending almost 10 hours a day thinking, nothing is any clearer. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up and women/relationships still baffle me. Ah well, maybe expecting an epiphany was a bad expectation...
- I need to get away more. Short weekend trips would be good. I need to revisit NYC, Boston, and DC.
- This trip should be repeated but it needs a couple more people. And shorter days.
- Good planning goes a long way
- we got lucky with the weather - good planning didn't make that happen
- Make sure you know how to work your rain gear *before* it starts to rain.
- More cold and hot weather gear would have been nice.
- I'd do it again.

Next summer I ride to Alaska. Who's in?

Day 12 - New York City

2008-10-08T06:39:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 0

Route: N/A

By the numbers:
1 - srtipper to fall in love with
4 - minutes the shuttle left early

I decided to catch the later shuttle downtown to ship some of my motorcycle gear. Breakfast sounded good so I head down to the cafe downstairs. The shuttle driver was grabbing coffee and my watch said I had 15 minutes. No problem I thought. The waiter understood my rush and everything was quickly at my table.

I finish as fast as I could and rushed out to the shuttle only to see the tail lights as it drove away. I look at my watch and it says 9:26. I tell the guy outside that its early. "Not according to my watch", he says. I tell him its early and to look at my watch - it's atomic. It's met with a blank stare and I ask if its too late for him to stop them before they leave the parking lot.

He catches one of the drivers and I rush a quarter mile away with my motorcycle suit and boots under my arm. The driver opens the door and says, "You're late". I retort, "You left early, just look at my atomic...nevermind". I have a seat and think about what I want to see today.

A few minutes later and I was on Broadway and 42nd. The UPS shop was just steps away and $50 later my gear was boxed up and on its way back to San Jose. I wander out and staart looking for luggage for my flight home. I check my home to see that I had missed a call. I check my messages and learn that the shipping truck is a few hours away. So much for a 24 hour notice. This threw a wrench in my plans for the day. I hope I make it to see the Brooklyn Bridge.

Coffee sounded good so I stopped at a small cafe across from the Late Show. I call Travelocity to reschedule my flight. Ouch - $330 to move it forward and get a non-middle seat. Ah well...

I decide I should get some food before headed back to the hotel. "Street Meat" sounded good. I walk towards Times Square and find a chicken gyro. Delicious!! I hope I don't regret it.

There's another hour or so before I need to be on a bus, so I head down Madison towards the little park I saw yesterday. The weather was much nicer so the walk was nice.

I have a seat next to a gorgeous woman at the park. It was lunch time but hardly anyone was out yet. We start talking and I realize 30 minutes was quickly gone. It's easy talking with a woman who looks like Jessica Biel. Elizabeth was from St Paul and was as smart as she was good looking - studied in France as well. I had an instant infatuation.

I ask if she had to get back to work and she laughed and said, "I don't work until later this evening". Of course, I ask what she did. My heart sank as I learned that my dream girl is a stripper. Now would be the time to queue J Giels Band 'Angel is a Centerfold" as background music.

Simultaneously, I'm crushed and drawn to my muse now less than an arms length away. An interesting feeling, to be sure. We chat for a bit more and the realization hits me - strippers never share their real information. Too many stalkers out there. I wonder if anything she told me was true. Was she really as interested as it seemed? I've been to enough strip clubs to know better than to think that a stripper really likes me. They only like my wallet.

She invites me to come see her tonight and I make a non-commital comment about making it. She assures me I won't be disappointed. A stripper indeed.

I rush back to my hotel to put all the luggage back on my bike. The shipping truck shows up and we load it up. 15 minutes later my bike is back on its way back to San Jose. I won't be using this company again.

This trip has exhausted me. So I take nap for a bit and rest my feet. I wake up with a jolt and get my head on straight before heading back to the bus stop back into town. I really need some luggage if I'm going to get my crap home tomorrow. Off to negotiate with some touristy shop off of Times Square. I see nothing I want - at least nothing I was willing to pay for.

But all that's on my mind is that stripper. Damn her smooth talk, tight pants and sweet smell. Against my better judgement I head towards Rick's Cabaret.

Now, I don't like strip clubs. They reek of desparation and make me feel bad for the strippers (and humanity). At least in my experience (sorry, Mom). So as I walked in I had a bad feeling about it. But why not? I'm on vacation :-)

I grab a beer at the bar and I'm acosted by every stripper in the place. Interestingly, they too assured me I wouldn't be disappointed. Uncanny, huh? :-) I'm trying not to stare at the great looking half-naked women around me and I get a hug from behind me. Sure enough, Elizabeth is right behind me holding on tightly. Apparently this was a signal to the vultures to back off since they scattered immediately.

She wasn't "dressed" like the rest of the girls. Keep in mind, it wasn't something you wear to church but it wasn't the usual uniform. Classy - if that's possible in this joint. I'm smitten. With a stripper. Why am I here? What was I expecting? What am I thinking? Well, she answered those questions a few moments later. And she was right - I wasn't disappointed.

Time passed quickly and I'm headed out to get cheap luggage and make sure I catch the shuttle on-time. But, before I can get to the door, Elizabeth grabs me, hugs me tightly, and kisses me on the cheek. I was hoping to quietly escape and put all this behind me but she made sure I won't soon forget the stripper I met in Madison Square Park. The background music at this point should be "Private Dancer" by Tina Turner.

I now have 30 minutes to settle on some crappy luggage and get a very quick bite to eat. Pizza sounded good and I hadn't had a real "pie" since being in NYC. And boy do they know how to do a meat-lovers pizza. Yum!

I find some crappy tourist joint with $30 luggage and I talked him down to $22. Knowing the shuttle might show up early (again), I hustle to the rendezvous point.

I hadn't been at the bus stop long enough to put my headphones back on when it pulled up. Its packed and I end up next to a Brazillian woman and an old couple from Bathe UK. Nice folks.

I'm glad to be back in the hotel - I'm beat and my feet hurt. I'm going to bed.

Day 11 - New York City

2008-10-07T05:20:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 0

Route: N/A

By the numbers:
0 - smiles from any of the 3512 gorgeous women I saw
1 - guy with 1 eye
2 - NYPD cops that look like supermodels
3512 - gorgeous women

No riding today - too much trouble to get back on the bike. Besides, my ass hurts and, after briefly seeing the city last night, I can tell parking the bike will be too much trouble. Not to mention worrying about the luggage. I'm waiting for a call from the trucking company to narrow down the pick up time...

I barely make it down stairs for the 8am shuttle from the the hotel. This time it only took 20 minutes to get in.

I wonder if I'm wearing enough warm clothes since the jackets and scarves are on all the new yorkers. I start walking and think I'm gonna freeze. I again wander into Times Square and duck into the Starbucks. Ahh - warm coffee.

I pop back out on the street and head where ever the crowds go. I end up peering into the Good Morning America set where Sara Evans is getting ready to play. Its just me and three other people watching and Ms Evans looks out and locks eyes with me. She gives me a barely perceptible smile as I stare back wondering who she's looking at. I looka around and it had to have been me, right? At least that's my story. I'm sticking to it.

I wander on to the Fox news set and wonder what story they're spinning at the moment. But I couldn't focus - every third woman is gorgeous. Stunning. Beaufitful. I think back on my comment to Hillary the night before. I should live here at least once. What's the old saying? Live in Northern CA but leave before you get too soft. Live in New York City but leave before you get too hard. Or something like that...

I keep on walking down fifth before realizing I wasn't really going anyware. So, 15 blocks back to seventh so I can grab a tour bus. I choose the southern route and hop on. We head down broadway and before I know it were in Greenwich, then SoHo, then Tribeca. I hop off at tribeca - I freezing and hungry again.

I keep walking south and end up at Wall St. The place is a mad house with all recent market crash and talk of the bailout. I head to Bravo Cafe for some food. I'm shoulder to shoulder with brokers and all I can hear is, "that bullshit bailout".

I finish lunch and keep going south. I find the bronze ball from the WTC in Battery Park and I can smell the water. I walk through the park and see the amazing view - the statue of liberty is right in front of me as is Staten and Govenors Islands. Luckily, the weather was gorgeous.

I head back through Tribeca nd quickly realize I'm practically homeless compared to the folks in this neighborhood. The rich must live here. From Tibeca, I go east to the WTC site. As I approach it, the size hits you. The site is massive. I see a number of memorials - some official, some not. They're all so personal and sad. You can't help but be moved by the site.

I decide I need a break and grab a coffee and do a little people watching. I don't think I'll ever get sick of it in NYC.

Headed back towards SoHo for dinner plans I start noticing all the cool bars. So, I have to check them out. I'm on vacation so why not indulge a little? Four cool bars later I've made friends with most of the bartenders - one in particular. She had the same name as an ex and looked almost exactly like her. This uncanny realization leeps me from getting sober.

I finally check my watch and figure I better start walking. I have 20 blocks to go if I want to make it to dinner in SoHo on time. I stop mid-stride down Houston - "The Beer Store"? I thought this was Whole Foods? I quickly walk into beer mecca. This made BevMo look like a frat boys fridge. I start chatting with Maggie the manager to get the scoop. It was supposed to be a wine bar but they couldn't get the permit and The Beer Store was opened. It was such a hit that they plan on opening it up across the country.

I find a seat on the corner to wait for Natali and take in the scenery. This section reminds me of the Haight and the Mission districts in SF. I see Natali and we head into a cute little French restaurant. Nice. We catch up and laugh about high school. She's handling her semi-fame (Correspondant for CBS/CNET) about as well as a shy girl from CA could. She offered to bring me to a taping of Fox's Red Eye on Friday evening. I wonder if I'll be here...maybe I'll stay.

I catch the F Train uptown and try to find cheap luggage that will work for getting home. I guess its good I'll have (at least) one more day here to wander around. Looks like I'll need to get familiar with the subway...

The shuttle couldn't come soon enough - I'm beat.

Day 10 - Boston MA to New York NY

2008-10-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Total miles:278

Route: all over the place - too much to list

By the numbers:
0 - motorcyclists on the road in MA and RI
1 - WTF are you talking about
moment
48 - temperature for most of the day

I slept in again this morning but got ready quickly. I hit the road and chatted with the bell hop about how best to get to Harvard Square. It was only a few miles away so I figured I didn't need to put all my cold weather gear on. I hit the road with the bell hops directions clear in my head. Three turns later I'm on the freeway headed south out of Boston. Damn it!

I figure I'd just suck it up and keep riding a bit but 10 miles later I'm freezing and staving. I start looking for a place to eat. I pull off and end up at another McDonald's. Oh well - at least I know what I want.

The two black ladies behind the counter are a riot! "Hey sugar - how you doing? Yes, I'm flirting with you." I order my usual with a few extra hashbowns (how I love them so) and try to warm up.

I'm almost done eating and I'm enjoying the live act from Lois and Kim when I notice a guy outside checking out my bike. Not the first time. He's probably never seen anything like it.

I get all my gear on and head out. To my right I hear a thick Boston accent, "Hey! Nice fucking bike!". I laugh at the comment and he gets out of his truck and we start chatting. I comment that its been a long ride and motion towards my license plate. "Holy shit I you rode all the way!?!? You got balls man!". I laugh and say, "Nope - just a sore ass."

I hit the road to Hyannis and appreciate every ray of sunshine that shines through. I'm glad I brought all my gear but I curse that heated vest for not working.

Hyannis was only an hour or so away and it was fairly uneventful. I expected to be in an area like Sausalito - Senatorshave vacation houses in Cape Cod right? It looked like a beach town with nicer beat up homes. Nothing like I expected - no tourist value, just a small town to get away to.

I punch in the GPS coordinates for my hotel in Union City NJ (North Bergen really) and realize I have 232 miles to go. I better ha ass if I want to beat traffic. I got a hold of a motorcycling buddy who lives in Manhattan and we were meeting at 6:30 near the Port Authority. Ok - time to show 95 south to a little 101 south driving.

First up on 95 S is Providence RI - I think I should check it out when I'm out here next. New Haven and Bridgeport CT fly by as I pass most everything in sight. I keep a close eye on my rearview for any Troopers.

I make it to the outskirts of NYC and 30 story buildings start popping up like weeds. I must be getting close. Sure enough ~15 miles out I can see the famous skyline...and I hit traffic. It's stop and go for 5 miles before opening up as I pass the usual turn off (George Washington Bridge). A few minutes later I'm at my crappy hotel in New Jersey.

I quickly check in and hit the shower hoping to not be late for drinks. At the front desk, I ask again where the bus stop is, what bus I should take, and how much it costs. Check, check, and check. I wait at the bus stop only a few moments before a suitable bus arrives.

Then I the bus waits in traffic getting to the Lincoln Tunnel. We wait. And wait. And wait some more 45 mintues to make it through the tunnel and into Port Authority. Fortunately, I snapped a few choice pics of the skyline as we slowly passed by.

I get off in Hells Kitchen which is not the slum it used to be. I quickly lose my orientation and head towards 7th Ave instead of 9th. Hmm - this could take some getting used to. I quickly make it past the mass of people and meet Hillary. She recommends the Irish Rogue as we pass up another crowded bar. We grab a drink and quickly catch up while realizing we needed some dinner. She suggests a sushi joint and I quickly agree.

We head to Haru and we have to go through times square. Wow - impressive but it looks bigger on TV. It reminds me of the Shibuya in Tokyo. I grab a few pics before we hit Haru.

We order and the sushi us great. Some of the best I've ever had. Even in the Tsukiji fish market. Impressive. We continue to catch up and I ask where I should go. She recommends Hogs 'N Heifers ro blocks away. I pay the $200 bill and we hug goodbye. I'm off to the famous bar. I grab a cab and I'm there.

I wander to the door and I'm greeted as expected - a blonde in a bra and tight jeans says, "what the fuck are you looking at?!?" Welcome to New York. As I get my I'd checked, the two bartenders start dancing on the bar. A nice sight, for sure.

I pull up a seat and have a black and tan. Erin and I start chatting and she drops the Dick's Last Resort act. Turns out she lived in the Oakland Hills for a year and we make small talk between her insults to the recent patrons. I have another beer and enjoy the free shows.

I turn around for a moment and survey the hundreds of bars of unique bar "art". I turn back and see a third black and tan... I may not be from NYC but I can tell when I'm being worked by scantilly clad women. I might as well have been at a strip club.

I push the beer to the side and head out the door. I head some commotion but I dont look back. I start walking up 9th Ave intending to hail a cab since it was 30 blocks to the Port Authority. I snap a few pics every couple blocks and take in the sights, sounds, and smells of New York.

I look up after one pic and I'm at the Port Authority. Cool - way less than a cab. Once out of the tunnel I walk the 6 blocks back to the hotel and call it a night. I'll be back in the morning NYC...

Day 9 - Haverford PA to Boston MA

2008-10-05T07:08:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 379

Route: too complicated to list

By the numbers:
FF1 - the license plate of the Boston Fire Chief.
31 - the cost of parking my motorcycle overnight in Boston
45 - wait in minutes to get into any bar or restaurant near Fenway

I slept in a bit this morning and I'm glad I did. It looked cold out but it was nice in Haverford. Tim, his Aunt and Uncle see me off and I hit the road with only coffee in my stomach.

I pass by Villanova and realize its colder than I thought. Thank God for heated vests. I'll just turn the knob up a little more. Hmmm - thay doesn't seem to do anything. Oh well, only one more day after this...

A buddy I used to work with at PayPal went to MIT and he made a number of recommendations for my route but, when I added them up, it was over 650 miles! I made a few adjustments and brought the total to ~375.

Northern PA is very pretty as I approached NY. But while it was sunny out, I noticed water on the road and fog in the distance. At least it wasn't rain. But I rode into the fog and the temp dropped like a rock. It became very clear that the lack of a heated vest would be a major problem despite the low mileage for the day.

I got a shiver and immediately looked for a place to grab some food and gas. Unfortunately, all I found in the aptly named twon Wind Gap was a McDonalds. But it sounded like an oasis of warmth at the moment.

After warming up I hit the road again with the New York stateline as my goal. As I ride, I convince myself that The Beach Boys are actually warming me up with their sunny lyrics. They were not. The road the GPS put me on way pretty but not fast. At least I got some good pics. Fortunately, my stubborness is an asset in this sort of situation and I made it to NY anyway.

With the sun gone, things went from bad to worse. Turns out that fog was actually rain and I was riding straight into it. Damn that heated vest!

I finally make it to CT and realize I still have a long way to go. Time for another stop at an East Coast joint - Dunkin Donuts. The coffee is good.

Alone I-95 the views are picture purfect. The more North I rode, the more the colors had changed. Add to that some lakes and rivers and my pics are unbelievable.As I approach Boston, I stop one last time to warm up and hit the road again.

I ride into Boston and and wonder if there's a Sox game tonight. No traffic so I must be OK. I ride past my second well known college of the day - MIT.

Boston is gorgeous. I was told to take an earlier exit to ride through the area and I'm glad I did. The buildings and trees are stunning - unlike anything I've seen before. Its proabably most similar to older, nicer parts of SF like Nob Hill or Russian Hill. And equally expensive from what I'm told.

I arrive at my hotel and gasp when I learn that parking will cost $31 for the night. Yikes.

I head out after a shower to run an errand for a friend (drop off some pics at a local bar for some regulars). As soon as I get in the cab I realize there is a game and this will not be a short (or cheap) cab ride. We wander through traffic as best we could and we end up next to a black goverment sedan with the a custom fire fighter license plate that reads "FF 1". The ruddy Irish man next to us was the fire captain for all of Boston. We exchanged feigned smiles as the light turned green and we zoomed off to sit in more traffic.

I could see Fenway in the distance and our cab came to a stop gridlocked 30 before the game. I pay the total and hop our a few blocks before and wandered into complete chaos. The streets were swarmed with Red Sox fans. I contempated going to the game but the only tickets left were from scalpers and they wanted $150 each.

I hit the bar as intended and drop off "the package" and quickly get out of the Fenway area. The wait at any restaurant was 45 minutes or more. I wandered around and happened to stumble onto Cross Roads Irish bar -- one of the places my buddy had recommended. The bar was practically deserted and I saddled up to the bar and tried a local brew.

The place quickly filled up and two guys sat next to me and chatted about phones. I couldn't help but chime in with a few key points and they laughed. Jeff and Jeremy were from Minesota and Jeff was getting married next weekend. His fiancee is from Boston and Jeremy will be his best man. We chatted about my trip, their jobs, and the game on the big screen directly in front of us as I tried not to stare at the barkeep - she was cute.

One nacho plate and a few beers later I'm off to Cheers for another beer. I meet two Russian women on vacation. You couldn't help but notice one of them - a red, skin tight dress way above the knee, knee high zebra striped boots, and hair as red as katsup. What a look. Fortunately, Boston seems to have lot of good looking women so this didn't phase me.

Exhausted and full of beer, I wander back to the hotel to get some sleep. I want to get up a bit early and checkout Harvard Square...

Day 8 - Durham NC to Haverford PA

2008-10-04T17:28:00.000-07:00

**No pics until I get home and upload them all**

Total miles: 403

Route: 95 to 295 to 495 to...does every Interstate end with 95?!??

By the numbers:
1 - overly delicious cheese steak
2 - sore asses
859 - good looking women whizzing by us in traffic

We left early again and it was cold - 46 degrees cold. On goes the heated vest, balaclava, and the winter gloves. They all worked OK but I'm not looking forward to the ride tomorrow. Free coffee was downstairs so we downed some as we got ready to face the cold. We decided to skip breakfast for a hundred miles or so and just hit the road.

NC is pretty too - we're in a very lush part of the country. Some of the trees are just starting to change colors but it seems I'm a few weeks early. Next time I'll have to start a bit later in the fall...

The highway is different than anything I saw in the rest of the country. You can't see any of the businesses from the freeway and the signs are right at the off-ramp so you better act quickly if you decides you need to get off. The upside is that the freeway is uncluttered and pretty.

The cafe in Virginia we stumble upon was new compared with the old places in the area. Rumorz Cafe is a bar, a nightclub, and a cafe. The waitress offered up the daily specials but I stopped her short when she offered a breakfast buffet. I felt cheated visiting Vegas without engorging myself with a buffet but I wanted to make sure I made up for that mistake. I asked where the buffet was and she corrected me and said they just make me whatever I want. A broad smile crept across my face and I ordered one of everything. She laughed and went in the back. Yet minutes later I had a few plates of great breakfast food.

We hit the road again and start rolling through the states - Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, Delaware, and finally Pennsylvania. Our asses weren't pleased with us by the end but we made it to Tim's aunts house with time to spare. The area is gorgeous - like each house could be it's own Kinkaid painting. It has a small town feel with kids playing outside, police officers that wave as you ride by, and friendly folks at the supermarket. A real change of pace from CA where you don't know your neighbors...

His Aunt had ordered us some Cheese Steaks and I was in heaven after the first bite. Nothing in CA tastes like this. Nothing. I'll be back from more (with Tasty Kakes) as dessert.

To account for the shipping gaffe, I've decided to skip upstate New York and go straight to Boston. A buddy that went to school there concurred. I'm looking forward to it! So, I'm off to bed to grab some much needed sleep. As it turns out, sitting on your ass for 10 hours a day is hard work...

Day 7 - Knoxville TN to Durham NC

2008-10-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

Total Miles: 458

Route: 129S,28S, 74E, 19S, 40E

By the numbers:
1 - lying shipping company
1 - instance of me hitting on a woman with a prosthetic leg
2 - perfect, tan legs on a gorgeous coed at UT Knoxville
2 - CA beers on tap

We woke up before the sun was up again. As we wandered, bleary eyed, downstairs to the Starbucks we wondered how cold it would be when we hit the road. By the time we got upstairs the sun was up and we suspected we knew the answer as the mist hang in the fall air of Knoxville. We both got out our cold weather gear and got our bikes ready for the fabled "Tail of the Dragon". More here: http://www.tailofthedragon.com/

Sure enough, it was cold as we hit every light on our way to 129S. Fortunately, my spirits were lifted as we passed UT Knoxville and the most perfect pair of tan legs walked past us in the cross-walk. I think I might need to spend some more time in Knoxville. So far, the majority of the women in Knoxville have been very good looking...

We approach the dragon and it's cold. I assume I'll warm up with a little adrenaline and the lower speeds and take a few pics before it gets too twisty.

The Dragon was impecibly maintained so it was easy to see the road blemishes caused by crashed bikers. I guess the "Tree of Shame" claims far more bikers than I suspected. We take a moderate pace aware of the danger and we realize we have the road to ourselves. Nice. Moments later we see a few bikers pass the other direction and they tap the top of their helmet which means there's a cop up ahead. Our already moderate pace dropped even lower.

The similarities with the Dragon and our local roads were apparent. Why go 2000 miles away when I can ride the same roads in the Santa Cruz mountains? Or beat them with HWY 36 in Northen CA?

We noticed two other bikes approached us at the end of the road so we let them pass.
We crossed the NC state line and the Dragon is over. 318 turns went by so quickly.

As we pull into the main parking lot we see the two guys that passed us walking by. Anthony and Randy were nice guys from Atlanta and we chatted over coffee discussing the intricacies of our bikes and the local roads. They encouraged us to ride the Blue Ridge Parkway and that there were many great roads in the area with far less traffic and photographers. No doubt.

We head off down 28S and think that this is a great idea. The scenery is gorgeous.

But 45 minutes later we find ourselves in a maze of connected roads with little progress towards our hotel room in Durham. I reprogram the GPS and we follow the circuituitous route finally making our way back to 40E. We stop for food - breakfast for lunch again!

The remaining 200 miles to Durham seemed very long. My ass protested every 10 minutes anf I couldn't find a decent position. Ah well...only 6 more days left.

We finally made it to the Marriott and check my messages. It was the shipping company and they said they would be in NYC in the middle of next week - not 10/10 as I had requested. I call them back and find out that they can't pick up on a specific day. Naturally, I'm not pleased because this throws a wrench into my precious schedule. Turns out, the guy who took the order (and my money) was fired for making promises the company couldn't deliver. The offer to refund my money didn't mean much. We'll talk on Monday and figure it out. So, now I have to stay on schedule if I want my bike picked up. I have options, I just font like them too much. All part of the trip, right?

We ask the doorman for recommendations for beer and some semblance of nightlife (we hadn't seem much to this point) and he grabs the shuttle keys and says, "Let's go!"

We end up maybe 7 blocks away at Brightleaf Square but wandered around deciding what our stomachs wanted for dinner. We settle on The Federal which is crawling with Duke students (as was every other place we walked by). We pull up a seat to the bar and look at the beers on tap - two were CA brews. Good ones too (Stone smoked porter and the Lagunitas IPA). We had ridden 3200 miles at this point and I'm having a CA beer since I've never seen it on tap. We even scored a Young's Double Chocolate Stout before calling it a night.

We headed to the sound of the music to Devine's Sports Bar and saw a live band outside. Then we noticed that there was music next door too. We grudgingly paid the $5 cover and headed in. Like The Federal, Devine's was filled with Duke students and Tim and I watched them come and go. I head in for our last whiskey and I'm next to a cute blonde next to me whom I noticed had a bit of a limp and couldn't bend her right knee. I've seen this before in dozens of knee surgeries so I decide I'll make some small talk and start with her knee. Bad idea. I ask her about her knee and she looks at me and says, "My knee is fine other than it not being there." I have a puzzled look on my face. She quickly continues, "I have a prosthetic leg." and smiles. I instantly blush and start apologizing. She was very gracious and said it happens all the time and it's not a big deal. I head back out to tell Tim and, yet again, he laughs at how smooth I am with the ladies. No wonder I'm single. Maybe I need that "Wife Hunting" book after all...

All of today's pics can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pacifisticuffs/sets/72157607712280044/

Day 6 - Memphis TN to Knoxville TN

2008-10-02T05:21:00.001-07:00

Total miles: 394

Route: 40E again

By the numbers:
1 - trailer with pissing pigs
1 - token asian woman at the brewery
9 - people in the Gaelic band at Patrick Sullivan's
142 - highway patrol officers

We got another early start which affords us some slack time at each stop and lunch. And I needed it - my ass seems to get sore earlier each day and my neck is pretty sore from fighting the wind 10 hours a day. I'm sure I'll get used to it...

One thing is for sure - we're certainly not travelling through a blue state. We saw plenty of "Nobama", "McCain/Palin", and "GW Bush" bumper stickers. From what I could tell from the billboards, Jesus loves us all regardless of political affiliation.

A few pics as we approached and passed Nashville:

We stopped for lunch at the Cracker Barrel an apparent southern staple. I had breakfast for lunch yet again and was floored by their "hashbrown caserole". Never before had potatoes, onions, and cheese been combined so deliciously. I *must* have more...

People seem mesmerized by our bikes with the phrase, "I ain't never seen something like THAT!" Not only are we in Marlboro country, but Harley country as well.

As we approached Knoxville there was a trailer with 6 pigs in it. It was right in front of us when the pig in the back starting pissing. This wasn't a piddly piss - this was a fire hose of pig urine. We immediately pull into the next lane as the pig continues his business on the cars now next to us. Needless to say, the stench was impressive. The worst part was that the truck and trailer was doing 85 so we couldn't really pass him. We were relieved when the trucked pulled off with a State Trooper behind him. I hope he got a ticket...

The Smokey Mountains are very pretty. I can't wait to see their pinnacle - Deals Gap/Tail of the Dragon tomorrow. I'm almost giddy :-)

I finally had enough with growing my facial hair out. After the first week it looked OK but it itched and drove me crazy under my chin strap. So, now it's almost all gone...just a small patch is left.

We ended up on Gay St at the Downtown Grill and Brewery. The place instantly had a CA feel - stylishly dressed people, couples playing pool, in the back, and a waitress that flirted just enough to make us think she liked us. Mackenzie was nice (and a bit nervous around us CA types) and recommended we head to "Old Town" Knoxville to check out the strip. We head down there and walked into Patrick Sullivans (there's been an Irish bar in every town so far).

We grab a beer and notice there's live Gaelic music up stairs. Check it out:

Due to the lack of people in Old Town, we headed back to the Downtown Brewery and played foose ball to pass the time being ignored by the local women. Turns out, I need to tuck in my t-shirt to be found attractive in these parts.

More downtown:

Day 6 pics are here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pacifisticuffs/sets/72157607685834083/

Day 5 - Oklahoma City OK to Memphis TN

2008-09-30T21:31:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 462

Route: 40E

By the numbers:
1 - very short red dress on a hooker at our hotel in OKC
1 - very cute hotel clerk in Memphis
2 - instances of legal drinking in public
6284 - semis passed

Our morning started with a hooker in a red dress walking past us in the hotel. I think her dress was originally intended to be a long shirt. Yet she wore it as a dress with nothing else. She was very good looking -- like she had just come from a club in LA. The other working girls we had seen in OKC and ABQ made it very clear that prostitution is alive and well in middle america.

It seems the bible belt isn't so chaste after all...not that I really thought that. I found this at our first stop in OK and I use it to protect my iPod from the sun during the day. But maybe I too can find a good wife with this service :-)

Eastern OK is very pretty - rolling hills, green, and a few lakes scattered on either side of the road.

We ran into a MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) instructor from NM on his way to Little Rock. Nice guy.

But I was really taken with AR. The Ozarks are gorgeous and Little Rock seemed like a nice place. We made a wrong turn at lunch and ended up in a neighbor hood we shouldn't have been it. Yet, a little girl waved at us as we rode by. We just hoped it was ok to wave back...

There was a 50 mile section of 40E approaching Memphis that was FULL of semi trucks. Full doesn't begin to descibe it. They took up both lanes sometimes 15 deep. The cars darted around them and we just treated it like another commute day on 101.

Approaching Memphis

We made it to Memphis before sun down and went to grab a beer by the mighty Mississippi.

We wandered to Beale St after a couple beers and realized it was bike night. Cool.

We ate dinner at BB Kings because Tim said it had a fried PB&J sandwich. Turns out they don't offer that anymore but their pulled pork is fantastic. We looked everywhere for Elvis's favorite snack with no luck. We ended up at a gift store for Tim as I made chit chat with the best looking woman we had seen. Too bad MA is so far from CA.

With no fried PB&J we settled on a skillet fried apple pie with ice cream. Yum.

We can't believe the road signs. First, let's start with restaurants. Would you eat at the "Rib Crib" or the "Pig-Out Palace"?!? Or how about the "Posessing land in the name of Chist" sign. Or the signs about not beating you kid. They never cease to amaze...

Day 5 pics here: http://flickr.com/photos/pacifisticuffs/sets/72157607656487417/

Day 4 - Albuquerque NM to Oklahoma City OK

2008-09-29T23:17:00.000-07:00

Total miles:544

Route:40E

By the numbers:
1 - missed state sign
2.99 - price per gallon of gas in OKC
59 - price for a set of bull horns at a truck stop in Adrian TX

We got off to an early start since we had a long way to ride. Peggy made us some coffee and that served as breakfast for a 150 miles. The coffee was hot but not hot enough for morning in the high desert. We made it to Santa Rosa NM at 9:30-ish and found a little diner on route 66. The green chile cheese omlette seemed like the best omlette I've ever had.

We get back on the road and had to get used to the sights. All we saw was straight road for a hundred miles at a time. Every couple hours the road would turn ever so slightly in one direction. I snapped a few pics of NM and TX. And it was generally flat with a few slight hills.

Everything IS bigger in Texas - the flys, the cows, and especially the people. I can see why after all the fat-inducing food. I've had I need some fiber... Brisket has fiber in it, right?

I want to make a recommendation to the OK DOT - please put a sign in TX that warns me about the small welcome sign coming up. We completely flew past it and the next road was 8 miles up. Ooops.

OK was prettier than I had expected. The rolling hills, scattered rocks, and green grass were a pleasant change of scenery from TX. The landscape is so expansive that I thought a set of far away hills (50 miles) was water because it was so dark in contrast with the light colored hils.

A few sunset shots.

We finally make it into OKC and head downtown. We pull into the Sheraton and learn that a room is $185 a night. Too much for OKC we surmise and Tim pulls out his laptop. CJ the dor man comes out and chats with us since we're the only guys in the driveway. He asks us why we havet checked-in and we explain our money situation. We chat for a bit while the laptop tries to connect to the Internet and CJ recommends the Bricktown Hotel. Turns out it's $89 a night with free breakfast, 24 hour shuttle,and it feet from 40 for a fast take off in the morning. Perfect!

We park our bikes out front, clean up a bit and head to Bricktown for dinner and beers at The Bricktown Brewery. For the record, CA makes better beer.

We wandered the Bricktown canal area and I'm sure it's a fun place on a weekend. I wish I had my camera to snap a few pics of the canal, the bad cover band, and all the old brick architecture. The real gas maps on the street were a nice touch.

Sleep can't come soon enough since we have another 450 miles to Memphis tomorrow...

So far, we're holding up OK. We're both tired and my mid-back is stiff and sore from staying in the same position all day. Tim said, "Your the most fidgety person I've ever met!!". True - it keeps me moving on the bike and makes the time pass but it's also a distraction from riding so I need to focus a bit more...

All of the day 4 uploaded pics can be found here: http://flickr.com/photos/pacifisticuffs/sets/72157607624953579/

Day 3 - Tuba City AZ to Albuquerque NM

2008-09-29T22:22:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 336

Route: 264E, 491S, 40E, 25S

By the numbers:
1 - massively disappoint Continental Divide marker
2 -number of Indian Reservations ridden through - Navajo & Hopi
7713 - highest elevation reached today by motorcycle

We got a good night sleep and headed to the breakfast joint in the same parking lot as the hotel. It seemed odd that, much like the night before, all we saw were Native Americans and European tourists. I can understand the Native Americans but why would a European end up in Tuba City off all places?!? I think they need to fire their travel agent. Our breakfast was delicious (heuvos rancheros with green chile sauce on top) and we packed and hit the road. It sure was much easier than dealing with the luggage shenanigans at the Monte Carlo.

The road out of Tuba City was boring at first then stunning. In hindsight, I'm glad we got stuck in Tuba City so we didn't have to take Hwy 40. We got a much better view of AZ and NM...

Riding through the reservations really made me appreciate the fact that I'm able to be on this trip. It's hard to see the "have-nots" when you're on a trip of excess like this...

We made it to Gallup NM for lunch and were disappointed that neither of us saw a "Welcome to New Mexico" sign. I guess we're not welcome here. We'll make up for it by taking a picture of it when we leave NM and head into TX.

Tim and I are trying hard to avoid any chain restaurants so we can enjoy a little local flavor. Well, lunch didn't let me down. We ended up on Route 66 heading back West when we settled on a restaurant aptly named "Mexican Restaurant". We head in and we're the only guys in the place. Maybe this whole "local flavor" thing isn't such a good idea. But we were hungry and needed some food. I actually settled on the buffet which luckily was a great idea. I had multiple servings of the spicy carne adovada, green chile enciladas, and rice. Yum.

We truck on to ABQ and make it to my Mom's cousins (does that make her my cousin??) house where she graciously offered to let us stay the night. We chatted for a bit, had a beer, and cleaned up a little before hitting the road. She had made resevations for the restaurant at the top of Sandia Peak so we headed out to see what the fuss about this mountain was all about.

Well, there's a tram that goes to the top of Sandia Peak at 10,378 feet. I'm afraid of heights so, I was happy I couldn't see below as we rose 20 feet per second. The views were stunning. You can see in every direction from up there. I could see Sante Fe which was 44 miles away. I'm sure the views during the day are amazing...

Dinner at High Finance was great but we rushed home to get some laundry done and get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day...

You can see all of the days uploaded pics, go here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pacifisticuffs/sets/72157607590362438/

PS - I have about 100 pics per day that I'll upload when I get home.

Day 2 - Las Vegas NV to ummm...where are we?

2008-09-28T22:59:00.000-07:00

Total miles: 366

Route: 147, 166, 93, 40, 64, 89, 160

By the numbers:
0 - fees paid to get into the National Parks (good luck)
1/2 - size in inches of the hail that pelted us today (bad luck)
1 - 80 square mile power outage (bad luck)
2 - rain storms
2106 - calories in my chicken fried steak lunch
7508 - elevation in feet at our highest point
??? - number of people who fall to their death trying to get a good photo at the Grand Canyon

So, we drank too much last night. Big deal - it's vacation. Bit it did mean we didn't leave the motorcyclist hating Monte Carlo until 10am. No big deal we thought...

We decided to head over to Lake Mead on our way to the Hoover Dam. We lucked out that there was a triathlon in progress so there was no gate fee. This was a good start to our day! Or so we thought. The views were a surprise - it was gorgeous:

Just 20 miles later we hit the Hoover Dam. It was hot by this point and we were not pleased with the long wait to get across. Looks like the state has heard this complaint before and they're completing a new road to by pass the dam directly for those who just need to get to the other side.

Obligatory state sign shot

We figured we had an easy day but we were wrong. We were on I40 towards the Grand Canyon and we noticed this ominous cloud with lightening shooting out of it.

We ride on because...well, we have no other way to get there. I'm a California kid so a "bad" storm drops 1/2 an inch and lasts 30 whole minutes. This was not one of those storms. I thought we might just miss it but moments later the wind picked up to 40mph, the temperature dropped 20 degrees, and the deluge began. All of this happened in about 1 minute. We pull over to try to put our rain covers on but that was an exercise in futility for me (note to self - buy trash bags in ABQ). There's at least an inch of standing water and I notice the rain drops hurt. Time to duck behind my tank bag. Turns out it was hail about a 1/2 inch in size. Fortunately, it was over in about 20 minutes and we enjoyed the warm weather.

This set up back a bit and the late start made me concerned about getting to the Grand Canyon in time. But we continued on and finally made to to the Grand Canyon. We pull up to the gate and the gorgeous blonde ranger gave us some good news - the normal $25 fee is free today! Twice in one day?!? Maybe our good luck has returned...

On the way to "The Canyon" as the locals like to say

Stupid? You bet - and totally worth it.

We left the park as the sun was setting and quickly snapped a few more pics so we could hit the road before it got too dark.

It got dark quickly as the sun dipped behind the clouds and we made it out of the park and onto Route 64 to Cameron AZ for gas. It was hard to tell where the dark clouds ended and the dark night sky began. Again, the wind whipped up and it dumped on us for a few minutes. We contemplated pulling over but decided to ride it out and got lucky. It ended shortly there after and the skys cleared. I was able to clearly see the big dipper way out in the middle of nowhere. The desert at night has an ominous feeling to it. And it got worse once we got to Cameron to fill up our almost empty tanks.

We pull into the dark gas station in Cameron and realize we're SOL. The lights are out and it's pitch black everywhere. This means we can't get gas. Before panicking, I pull up the nearest fuel stop on the GPS and see that it's either 20 miles north to Tuba City or 40 miles south to our destination in Flagstaff. We decide to not test the limits of our tanks and ride to Tuba City. Its dark out there and it didn't get better as we pull into Tuba City. The entire city is dark. Pitch black. Oh shit - we're not gonna get any gas here, either. We pull into the Sonic and try to figure out what to do.

We chat with the manager at the Sonic to learn that the storm we road through blew out a transformer to the entire area and we should have power back in 3-5 hours. 3-5 hours?!?! Well, at least we have some beef jerky and water to serve as our dinner. He recommends we stay at the Quality Inn just up the street so we head over. They have a generator going but it doesn't do much. We rent a room and try to fumble around with my headlamp. Just as we start to take our luggage off the power comes back on. Oh well, we'll stay in Tuba City tonight and cancel my reservation in Flagstaff. The only "restaurant" open was McDonalds so we head over for a crappy burger and some fries.

The map shows that we can get down to ABQ through the reservations and we should have some great sights tomorrow...

Day 1 - San Jose CA to Las Vegas NV

2008-09-27T05:57:00.000-07:00

Day 1 total: 577 miles

Route: 101S, 152E, 99S, 58E, 15N

By the numbers:
0 - times Tim has been to Las Vegas (!)
1 - dropped iPod (luckily, it still works)
1 - comped meal because the Monte Carlo hates motorcyclists
4 - biscuits covered in delicious gravy
11 - dollars spent on a single whiskey
3885 - suicidal bugs

Tim and I met at 6:30 at the Starbucks down the street to grab a coffee and a bite to eat. His girlfriend (Hi Vlatka!) saw us off and we hit the road about 7:15. We were both worried about the heat but, because we left early, we mostly beat it. The central valley quickly passed by andI plugged along the familiar scenery with my iPod blaring.

We stopped in Mojave for some gas and lunch at Mike's Roadhouse Cafe. Luckily, Tim and I have impeccable taste and had breakfast for lunch. I enjoyed some delicious biscuits and gravy with my "hobo" skillet. I hope I don't regret it. We didn't push it since we have two more week of this so we took a few minute break at each stop.

Basically, the ride to Vegas was uneventful. It was straight. Then it was straight some more. Then it got hot. And we got more straight after that. I suspect that I'll appreciate the variety of California landscape after I visit some less fortunate states. We can easily make it back to any of these parts so we got out of town as quickly as possible.

On the way to Vegas. We intent to continue taking pics of state signs.

30 miles out of Las Vegas

Tim hadn't been to Vegas before so I took us down the strip. Bad idea on a Saturday night. It was hot and we hit every light. But that gave me a chance to grab a few shots of capitalism in action...err, man-made marvels of bad architecture.

We finally make it to the Monte Carlo only to learn that the Monte Carlo hates motorcyclists. They don't allow motorcyclists to pull up to the lobby due to construction. Instead, we had to use the parking lot across the street and drag our gear around. Needless to say, we were not pleased. Luckily, I was able to get them to comp us dinner. I have to say, free filet mignon tastes better!

After dinner, we wandered around a few local casinos (MGM, New York New York, etc) and finally settled on Diablo Cantina back at the Monte Carlo. Well...I'll just let the pics do the talking.

Happy birthday, Brian! Sorry we missed your party...hopefully these ladies will help you forgive us.

We didn't get in until 1am - I'm sure we'll be *fine* tomorrow....

You can find all of our day 1 pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pacifisticuffs/sets/72157607556560245/

The Final Count Down

2008-09-24T09:15:00.000-07:00

The saddle bags are packed, the clothes are laid out, and the bike is ready. It's going to be three long days before I can hit the road. Six months ago I started planning this trip and it feels like the last weeek of school - I'm almost giddy. Almost. There have been a few hiccups here and there (like losing my winter gloves) but that's the sort of thing that always happens. No big deal.

I have a few work items to take care of before I go but everything is taken care of. I hope. I made a bet last night that I won't check my work email/voicemail on this trip. It'll be hard but I sure could use the $5. I need to disconnect from work for a bit and I think this trip will allow me to finally take a break and get my head on straight. It's about time too - my last vacation was 8 years ago.

Speaking of work, I walked in this morning to find a small item on my desk with s sticky note on it. The note said, "A little going away present". I'm flattered that someone thought of me before I go but then I open the bag and find a nice tube of Preparation H. At least they bought the Preparation H *with Aloe*. How thoughtful.

Tim and I are planning on hitting the road at 7am on Sat morning. Looks like only day 1 will be hot down to Las Vegas (highs in the upper-90's). Otherwise, the weather looks great - highs in the mid-70's and lows in the mid-40's and -50's. Looks like we might get lucky....

Anticipation

2008-09-16T13:40:00.001-07:00

So, I'm less than two weeks away and everything is ready to go! New tires, new clutch slave cylinder (the old one was just about to break), a fresh oil change, and a thumbs up from the mechanic. Looks like all my planning has paid off. :-)

There are, of course, a few loose ends that are more a matter of convenience than necessity. I need to update the music play lists, get another set of headphones, and think through what I *really* need and what will just add weight. I couldn't find my winter gloves and based on the weather shenanigans I might want to take this one seriously. I do need to take the fully loaded bike for a spin to get the tire mold off (very slippery) and see if the suspension can really handle the extra 40 pounds of luggage. But both are non-issues and I could leave tomorrow without a worry.

I tried to get some contacts so my current glasses would be a backup but I couldn't seem to figure out how to get the contacts in my eyes - again. About 10 years ago I tried and failed miserably - turns out my eyes close when I try to touch them. Go figure. At the end, my eyes looked like I had just gone on a Hunter S Thompson weekend in Vegas. Time to start saving up for Lasik.

I still have a lot of work related items to take care of (both client and consulting company) before I go but most have been addressed. My short-timer syndrome is worse than I had anticipated...

So, 11 more days to go - but who's counting?

It's the little things

2008-08-24T19:39:00.001-07:00

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....

"Hell is cooler than this!"

2008-08-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

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.

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.

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.

Best Idea Yet

2008-08-18T15:27:00.000-07:00

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...

The Pre-ride Ride

2008-08-15T09:46:00.001-07:00

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

The Bike

2008-08-14T16:55:00.001-07:00

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...

Planning and Prep

2008-08-14T16:21:00.000-07:00

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.