| Author | Message | ||
     Marc |
Wanted to share pictures from my recent trip from Chicago to Colorado Springs, CO. It has proven to me the incredible versatility of the Buell Ulysses. Pat and Marc sure look fresh...I wonder if they know what they've talked themselves into? 7 days on motorcycles...2700 mile round trip...they must be insane!  Ride Day One --> Chicago to Omaha, NE 460 miles on I-80 Day Two --> Omaha to Colorado Springs 560 miles on I-80 and a few quite highways in CO. No pics worth sharing for Day One or Two as there is little exciting to share on I-80 other than farmfields. The weather was in the 70s which was perfect for riding. Day Three Morning --> Road from Colorado Springs to the Royal Gorge Bridge near Canon City, CO. Fun twisties on HWY 115. Took some pictures on top of the Royal Gorge bridge. What a view! You can look straight down through the bridge planks into the river which is 1,053 feet below. And yes is does sway with the breeze or when traffic is moving across it. In the canyon, there is an active railroad line and white water rafters on the river.    Day Three Afternoon --> Ride up Pikes Peak. Pat's girlfriend Karin flew in to Denver on Day Two. Karin was smart enough to know that two days of riding across IL, IA, NE, and CO wasn't her idea of fun so she left the "superslab across the Midwest" portion of the trip up to the males.   We are a bit of an odd group as you can see. We had an absolute blast experiencing Pikes Peak together.  Day 4 --> Marc heads out on his own to enjoy some off-pavement adventures with the Uly. Scared up a rather large bear while on Rampart Range Road. Luckily he was more scared of my motorcycle then he was hungry for me.  Day 4 afternoon/evening --> We interrupt this motorcycle trip for the wedding of a college buddy in CO Springs. Lots of old friends, drinking, and telling of tall tales from our college days. Day 5 --> Marc takes off again for another offroad adventure. Pat is still quite hungover from the up till 3am festivities and it's best he does not try to balance on two wheels today. By far the coolest place I've ever been is Colorado Road 77 from Jefferson to Lake George. Absolutely gorgeous Tallyall Creek runs through the valley with rock formations on both side. I stopped a good 20 times to take photos and just absorb the beauty around me. If ever in the Rockies, add this one to your list of rides to experience.   Day 5 Afternoon --> Had a great burger at a "hole in the wall" in Jefferson which also served as gas station, post office, and convenient store. The Ladies were very nice and the burger and fries really hit the spot. Pulled out the maps and decided I had enough energy for a Mountain Pass. Headed up Boreas Pass. Almost went down the other side to Breckenridge, CO, but I was running out of daylight. Met a few dual sport bikers from Denver on the way down Boreas Pass.   Day 6 --> Superslab Denver to Omaha Day 7 --> Suberslab I-80 Omaha to Chicago We had the good fortune of staying with family members in both Omaha and Denver during our journey who fed us well. We were grateful for their hospitality. Returning back to work really sucked. This was by far the funnest vacation I've taken in a long time. I missed my wife and kids, but this was a great "daddy only" trip I'll do again when the opportunity presents itself. There is nothing like the freedom of a motorcycle trip in nature's playground. Interesting Uly Information: total trip distance = approx 2700 miles. oil burnt = about 1/2 quart mechanical issues = none Average MPG --> on I-80 we averaged 80-90mph and I got 43-46 MPG. In the mountains I once got 57 MPG which I attribute to the Fuel Injection compensating for the thin air and the slow speeds due to the terrain and all the wonderful sites which also slowed me way down. Tire wear = I'm at 5800 miles now, my front D616 is in great shape, by rear D616 is down to the wear bar and will be replaced shortly. Another picture showing the versatility of the Uly. About three weeks ago, I participated in Buell Track at the Autobahn Country Club, Joliet, IL. I had an absolute blast and was thoroughly impressed with the handling of the Uly. I was in lower of the two intermediate classes and performed quite well. As you can see in the pic, the track is a little wet at this time, but later on in the day the track dried up and we were really able to lean the bikes and push them hard. What an awesome motorcycle! Sport Touring, Long Distance cruising, Track Days, Off pavement Mountain escursions. I'm sold on the Uly as the only bike I'll need for the next few years.  Until my next trip, Marc | ||
| Stevenknapp |
Marc, Wonderful picts! I'm heading to CO end of this week. But trailering out there, seen I80 on two wheels a few times! | ||
| Daulyfreek |
Marc- great post! Good info on the stats too. I don't understand how you got over 5K on that rr tire-mine went @1500 mi! Your mileage is a little better- I averaged about 42mpg going from Mass to western NY this past weekend. | ||
| Bubabuell |
Great pics. Curious though...why do most Harley riders dress like pirates? | ||
| Bearly |
Great Trip and pictures. Thanks, reading stories like these really help build confidence for those of us who just bought our bikes! | ||
| Crusty |
I was just out in the garage looking at my tires. With 6,500 miles on, my rear 616 looks like it has another 1,000 miles left in it. I don't baby my tires, and I run 80 - 90 MPH on the slab, but I'm getting respectable life from them. I don't know what I'm doing right, but I hope I keep doing it! | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
If the company wants to sell these things, they simply need to copy your thread and print it out! Looks like a great deal of fun. I like all of your pictures that the bike fits in with the surroundings no matter where you happen to be. Almost as if it's a different bike each time. | ||
| Jon |
Marc, Wow...thanks for the story and the pictures. That ULY sounds more and more like my next new bike. | ||
| 2000m2 |
Making me want a Uly even more now! | ||
| Smcnamara |
You know Marc, I think I look faster.  Seriously, it was great to meet you, and it looks like you had a fantastic trip!  | ||
| 2old2bfast |
Awesome trip obviously, thanks for sharing it, and motivating those of us that haven't gone that far with our Uly's yet! Soon I hope, real soon! | ||
| 12x_infatuation |
What everyone else says!!! I just had a second look through the pics & realized theres some fantastic scenery! Kind of reminded me of an earlier post on slayers thread involving a waterfall & a beautiful foreground image!  | ||
| Blake |
Great report! Thanks for sharing Marc!  |
