| Author | Message | ||
     Jerry_haughton |
25 days, 8103 miles, my longest road trip in number of days, second longest in terms of miles, tied firmly for first for passion, adventure and camaraderie. this, ladies and germs, is/was my version of BRATPAC II, "BRAT" being short for "Blue Ridge Adventure Tour," "PAC" being short for the above referenced "passion, adventure and camaraderie." and, in the title of this thread, "Matt" is none other than Matt Ware, a young man most of you know thru this board, a man battling with brain cancer for his very life. as this ride gelled, and it became apparent i'd be within a two-day ride of Matt (i.e. Grand Rapids, Michigan), i made the decision to pay Mr. Ware a visit. i know Matt thru Alex Prior - you all know who Alex is, right? - but wanted to put a face (and smile, and hug, and handshake) to the name. i'm glad i did, and Matt thus gets star billing in this thread, alongside equal amounts of "BRAT" and "PAC." my words may be a little down and dirty in this thread. i want to post this stuff while it's still fresh, but i also need to get back to w*rk in a $erious way, plus i have a good women to fall in love with all over again (lucky me!) as such, the words may be a little sparse at times, but i'm hoping the pix - as tragically "snapshotty" as some of them are - will tell the bulk of the story. it was an extreme pleasure to hang with the various players on this ride, and i hope we all get a chance to do this again some time. my friend Jim Corso, before i left on this trip, called it the "ride of a lifetime." indeed it was, but i'm already looking forward to the next one.  FB  day one, 8/28/06, pre-dawn at the 'Dome, locked, loaded, tongues out and panting. that's my new Road King in the background, and Gentleman Jim Attebery's new FJR nearest the lens. i've known Jim for a decade, from the halcyon days of PACBOG. we've ridden together before, but NOTHING like this. Jim had just ridden down from his home in western Washington, so already had a 1200-mile head start on the "Long Distance" trophy. two and a half thousand miles beyond the mountains in the distance is the Blue Ridge Parkway. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 Seligman, Arizona, birthplace (according to at least one local sign) of historic Route 66, the legendary Mother Road. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 and a sweet little chunk of Highway 66 that survived the construction of nearby Interstate 40. Gentleman Jim called our meander along this stretch "pleasant." i couldn't describe it any better. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 we spent our first night on the road at Ft. Tuthill, part of Luke Air Force Base's "holdings," in Flagstaff, AZ, in the yurt you see in the background. our yurt was a most righteous dwelling, with acres of floorspace, two queen beds, fridge, microwave, woodstove, a glass dome thru which to watch the stars, and more ambience than you could shake a beer glass at. all this coolness (including tax and an icy cold six-pack of Corona) cost a measly $32. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 two words: suck less. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 day two, dawn at the ThunderYurt, Gentleman Jim ready to roll. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 we hooked up with Bartimus in Albuquerque, NM for lunch, and altho he couldn't ride with us, he COULD run some fuel thru his company truck and hammer eastbound on I-40 with us for a ways. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 we were in MAJOR traffic on the interstate during this photo shoot, leading an 80-mph parade of perplexed tryin'-fervently-to-get-home-from-w*rk onlookers, and having a ball. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 22, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
here are several of Bart's pix from our little party:  | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 thanks for lunch, Bart!!! (ps: you KNOW the traffic is bad when a redi-mix truck is clogging the left lane...) (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Usroute66 |
Hey Ferris, you are such a good story teller and picture taker, I never have to leave home...I just wait for you to take another trip, LOL! I grew up on the Blue Ridge Parkway, but never got to do it on a bike. Have a great time, watch out for those back east cops...they all have radar detectors! Is "D" coming out to join you? Scott | ||
| Usroute66 |
Ferris, Never mind...just got caught up on the Storm Fronts thread. Hey, keeping up with BadWeb is a full time job. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
hey Scott, generating adventure stories for BADWEB is a full-time job! i think i've asked you before, but tell me again where exactly you grew up along the Parkway??? FB | ||
| Usroute66 |
Never lived "on" the Parkway, but, because my parents felt that there was never a need to leave the state of VA for anything, we spent almost every summer on the Parkway. My father never liked Interstate 81 either, so we would use it often, particularly in the fall, to go between Roanoke and I-64. I am from Richmond. Once I got my license, I ventured out of the state line and fell in love with Ashville and the Biltmore. Did you ride it to the end? | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
yep, did the Parkway from end to end, plus Skyline Drive, had a blast! please tell me more about living in Virginia, weather, etc. did you like it there??? i fell in love with an old brick farmhouse at milepost 190 on the Parkway (near Orchard Gap). can't afford it, but looking seriously at old houses further down out of the mountains, in the general area of Mount Airy. FB | ||
| Henrik |
Oh yeah - I could do with some VA living as well. Melissa and I visited Richmond and Charlottesville this spring. Charlottesville in particular looked very good to us. Henrik | ||
| Firemanjim |
If you boys are looking to buy a jumping off cabin somewere out along BRP count me in.Been thinking that for some time now,need a good vacation getaway haven.Retirement is approaching. And it's close to Maxton--- | ||
| Denisea |
Hey Scott! Nope, did not get even a weekend on this one - someone has to be getting the Dome ready for the market. Seriously, ping us off line if you like - more info re Virginia? Only see what the realtors want you to see on-line at their sites, etc so some first hand insight would be loverly. FMJ - sorry, a cabin would be awesome but will need something with electricity as retirement is a ways off. D | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 before we left, Bart had one last mission to accomplish. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 which was... (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 ...tagging my Road King. Semper Fly!!! (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 sunset on day two, in Tucumcari, NM, where we spent the night at a KOA campground. good thing we had our tents staked down tight that night, 'cause the wind absolutely howled. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 we tired of Interstate 40, and were able to find bits and pieces of old Route 66 still intact for diversion, including this delightful old filling station in Alanreed, TX. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 more Route 66. what a great escape from the interstate. too bad so much of this great highway is lost, but thank goodness portions still exist. to travel this road is a breath of fresh air. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
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| Jerry_haughton |
 i think this is the only "Welcome to..." pic i bagged on the trip. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
 perhaps the most entertaining section of Route 66 we rode, not the least of which were the entertaining traffic signs! (Message edited by jerry_haughton on September 23, 2006) |
