| Author | Message | ||
     Jlnance |
Midlife crisises are way underrated. I didn't get everything done this summer that I intended, and I've got things I want to do that just aren't practical. But I just turned 40, and with that comes a realization that there aren't an infinite number of summers available for me to do these things. I've flip flopped back and forth on this several times. The timing sucks, but it's never going to be good. I'm afraid I won't have a good time, but how will I ever know if I don't try. So what the hell. The Girl is gonna be out there, and that gives me a reason to go.      Mon Oct 15 - Asheville, NC -> St. Louis, MO Tues Oct 16 - St. Louis, MO -> Limon, CO Wed Oct 17 - Limon, CO -> Woodruff, UT Thurs Oct 18 - Woodruff, UT -> Seattle, WA I don't need to be in Seattle until Friday, but it's nice to have an extra day built into the plans. I'm sure something will go wrong along the way.  I enjoy company. If anyone wants to ride with, dine with, or shelter me, the offer would be enthusastically accepted. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Very cool! | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
Jim, like i advised several times at Buelltoberfest this weekend, take good rain gear. when you depart Seattle, take I-5 south all the way to central Oregon (avoid the Seattle to Tacoma segment during morning or afternoon rush hours, ESPECIALLY Tacoma...), then cut over to the coast on OR Hwy 38 just south of Cottage Grove. this will bring you out on Highway 101 well south of most of the motorhomes and endless tourist trap towns. (btw, if you DO find some extra time in your schedule while in this part of Oregon, you'll be within striking distance of Crater Lake...) take 101 south into Cali (lovely, lovely riding, providing it's not raining...), find a minute to actually stop in the Redwoods (park the bike, walk into the trees far enough that you can't hear the highway, lie down flat on your back and look straight up, and take several long, deep, relaxing breaths. you're welcome!), then take a right on Highway 1 at Leggett, CA and enjoy one of the best riding roads in the entire nation. Highway 1 intimately hugs the California coastline and will take you all the way to San Francisco. you might consider pinging Sleez here on BadWeB if you do take Hwy 1. he's a good friend, and lives in Willits, just south of Leggett. if you're lucky, he might even show you his Thong... there are a TON of great roads on the West Coast, but i know you don't have much time to get from Seattle to SF, and the suggestions above are a good compromise between gettin' there and ENJOYING gettin' there. FB | ||
| Ulywife |
OK Jim - I'm seeing a personalized RAN for you including: Washington State Oregon Idaho Utah Wyoming Colorado Kansas Missouri Illinois Kentucky Tennessee North Carolina Did I miss anything? Have fun and be safe. You know we will expect lots of pictures and a full write up of your journey!  all the way! | ||
| Sleez |
i am happy to show my Thong to adoring fans!! | ||
| Sleez |
some maps to whet your appetite; some of my close favorite rides; nice road from legget over to the coast (NCA-1); http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=WILLITS,+C +A&ie=UTF8&t=h&om=1&ll=39.828313,-123.776779&spn=0 .069079,0.105057&z=13&iwloc=addr hwy 20 over to fort bragg, my favorite lunchtime excursion, half way to fort bragg and back in time to grab a bite! on weekends this is a nice way to get away from the heat in the summer, some wonderful 15mph curves and quite a few peg draggers! sometimes a lot of trucks/RVs though. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=WILLITS,+C +A&ie=UTF8&t=h&om=1&ll=39.380885,-123.494911&spn=0 .069527,0.105057&z=13&iwloc=addr boonville road, splendid weekend run over to boonville, grab a ice cream cone and up 128 to 1 to fort bragg and back to willits on 20! or just bomb the road and turn around and go back, seldom any traffic, and very few side roads to worry about. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=WILLITS,+C +A&ie=UTF8&t=h&om=1&ll=39.041453,-123.289776&spn=0 .069864,0.105057&z=13&iwloc=addr follow fort bragg/sherwood rd west to the coast, very rutted sometimes, great 4 wheeling road, possible on a uly if the road isn't too tore up! http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=WILLITS,+C +A&ie=UTF8&t=h&om=1&ll=39.513775,-123.503537&spn=0 .017349,0.026264&z=15&iwloc=addr | ||
| Jlnance |
Thanks Jerry. You've mentioned rain gear to me several times. I've got an HD rain suit somewhere, but I don't usually wear it. I have a firstgear jacket and pants set that I plan on traveling in. They are warm, armored, and water resistant. Are you thinking this won't be good enough? | ||
| Jlnance |
Ah, you've got a Fort Bragg out there too? | ||
| Ulywife |
Jim - Carlos rode back with his First Gear pants/jacket with HD rain gear over that from the Smokeout last year. Even with rain gear he was soaked. Take the extra rain gear. There was a thread a while back on good rain gear. I think the Frog Toggs won out. The HD rain gear Carlos has isn't as good as the First Gear he had in the past. It will take up very little space in your tank bag versus you being in wet clothes and gear for a length of time. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
i am happy to show my Thong to adoring fans!! don't let the SLeeZ fool you - he's happy to show his Thong to ANYBODY! Are you thinking this won't be good enough? Jim, you MIGHT get lucky out there and not hit any rain, but you SHOULD be prepared to ride in the stuff all day, every day without getting wet under your gear. this includes your hands and your feet, too, of course. you've got a very aggressive itinerary, fairly late in the season, and if you don't leave home truly prepared for the absolute worst possible weather you may encounter, this may be a ride to remember but for all the wrong reasons. you want to stay dry, and you want to stay warm. if you get wet underneath, you'll also get cold, and hammering out the kind of days you've got planned will then become an exercise in survival. i know you already know this, of course. to answer your question: if the gear you've got will keep you dry and warm ALL day, EVERY day in the kind of weather the Northwest is justifiably famous for, you're gold. if not, you're not. FB | ||
| Spiderman |
are those the new Conti trail attacks? | ||
| Mikej |
I've seen ice and snow in the Rockies in October, I've also seen ice and snow in the Cascades in October (mountains, real mountains, not like those east coast foothills ) .   I used my H-D rain gear riding east to west, got a little wet in various places. Bring dry extra gear in ziplocks. Aerostich makes some neat Lobster style overgloves that work great for wet weather and for when it gets a bit cold, unless you've got heated gear and are wired for it. Ride later, sleep in later, morning dew gets slick out west when it gets cold. Instead of riding diagonal across Washington try a ride along the Columbia river gorge area. Lots of nice meandering routes out there, and lots of ways to detour around weather patterns. Sometimes 60 miles parallel makes a lot of difference. Have fun, post pics when you're done, and stay between the ditches. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
ps: i've had TERRIBLE luck in the past with H-D raingear. i like the company, their motorcycles, their heritage and all that, but based on prior experience i prefer to stay away from their riding gear in general, and ESPECIALLY their raingear. i also don't like raingear in general because it slows you down having to put it on and take it off. ain't such a big deal on a day ride, but can be an issue when you're covering the kind of ground you'll be covering. the Iron Butt types (of which i'm not, but i sure value their advice) say one of the keys to successfully logging consecutive high-mile days is simply to keep moving, thus anything you can do to safely accomplish this is a Good Thing. does your raingear breathe? | ||
| Ulywife |
Zip lock baggies for any electronics. Carlos fried his cell phone on that trip from the Smokeout. FB is right, their HD rain gear isn't impressive. | ||
| Pa47 |
Looks like a great trip Jim. I agree raingear is a top priority. My H-D rainsuit ($150.00) works WAY better than my Frog Toggs ($49.00). In general I still believe you get what you pay for. I also strongly recommend my REI WINDSTOPPER fleece vest. It's lightweight, easy to pack, and still warms you even if wet. Good luck and I look forward to reading your updates. Paul | ||
| Unibear12r |
Good luck, looks like fun. It is unseasonably warm and clear here in central Cali right now but it's supposed to light rain in just two days. WARM and dry! The guys I rode to DC with navigated by coin-op hand car washes. Great place to park out of the rain and not bother anybody. Under bridges does not work nearly as well. Esp. during a (what seemed like!) Tornado or it's like. We wound up having to run full tilt after a riderless Goldwing in Ohio because of that. I thought that I had overpacked warm clothes but Montana mountains in May on a Uly proved me quite wrong! And I'm nutts enough to plan on doing it again next year. I might be able to drop by the new digs then Ferris. | ||
| Firemanjim |
You should pace your days more evenly,you have a 550 mile day followed by an 860 day. You have 4- 700 mile days. Remember to eat regularly because you can/will nod off if your blood sugar dips. You are going to see some cold temps across the plains and Rockies so have some good gear--got heated grips and/or vest? Let us know when you hit CA,like to meet up with you. Skaggs Creek/Stewarts Point Rd off of Hiway 1 is heaven. Lots more in northbay area. (Message edited by firemanjim on October 10, 2007) | ||
| M2nc |
I wish I could come. Have a great time. Kristi is right, the HD gear did not do the job. The First Gear was much better but it did not pack up as tightly. A good textile jacket though should be water proof. Both my First Gear Kilimanjaro Jacket, Olympia Jackets and Tour Master Pants are water proof. The First Gear was perfect until it saved me on the Ice. After that it did not do so well. With this drought, I have not had a chance to test the Olympia in the rain. That rain we hit on GA348 was the first and only time I had it in the rain and after closing the vents in that drizzle it did great. My Buell hard bags were water proof. I hit a heck of a rain storm in Indiana on one trip. Poured down for an hour and the stuff in the bags stayed dry. Even so packing plastic zip-lock bags is a great way to make sure the electronic gadgets you take stay dry. I jealous - Have fun - Be safe - and take FJ advice, eat regularly. | ||
| Rasta_dog |
Jim, I don't know if it struck anyone else as such, but I think your thoughts that began this thread, along with the visualization provided by the maps, is pure poetry. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
I might be able to drop by the new digs then Ferris. that'd be cool, we've got a VERY large hurl deck... EDIT: Jim, what Rasta said. good on ya for havin' the courage and conviction to dream in color. can't wait to see your pix and ride report. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 11, 2007) | ||
| Jlnance |
You should pace your days more evenly,you have a 550 mile day followed by an 860 day. You have 4- 700 mile days. Remember to eat regularly because you can/will nod off if your blood sugar dips. You are going to see some cold temps across the plains and Rockies so have some good gear--got heated grips and/or vest? Thanks for the advice. I'm pretty careful about eating. It's fun, what can I say, but also because I'm diabetic. I used to skip meals, but that isn't an option anymore. I do have some heated gear: grip wrappers and pants liners. I'll spend some time today getting the electrical connections worked out. What I have currently is hacked (It was put together in a PA dealership at 7:00 pm on a 23 degree night so I could ride my new Cyclone to Washington, DC.) The mileage/days I've posted are just approximate. I've got an extra day built into the schedule, which I'll probably use to break up that last 800+ mile leg. But if I'm feeling good when I get up into Utah I might just keep going. | ||
| Jlnance |
Thanks for the kind words Rasta. | ||
| Jlnance |
A new rear.  It sure must be nice to own one of those stands that let you take both tires off the bike at the same time.  But eventually it all comes back together.  | ||
| Dbird29 |
Ugh, Limon, CO is the pits. Oh well have fun! If you come thru Salt Lake I will buy you lunch or dinner. D Bird | ||
| Dbird29 |
I don't think Woodruff, UT has any hotels or motels. Evanston, Wy or Park City, UT would be the closest to Woodruff. | ||
| Jlnance |
It's been a good day. Flynuly mailed me this morning and offered to loan me some spare parts he accumulated for his Alaska trip. I just returned from Angier with a clutch cable and a Gerbings heated suit. That suit is gonna save my ass. Then Dbird29 offered me a place to stay in Utah, plus tools if I need them. Thats going to be great. He also sent me some weather maps. I'm gonna get wet. Ezblast is going to let me change the oil in his garage. It will need it by the time I get down to CA. I get to try out the latest incarnations of his bikes while I'm there too. Thank you all. I really appreciate it. | ||
| Unibear12r |
If you are going by my place and need a hand or have time to kill give me a ring. I'm in the RAN. | ||
| Jlnance |
Ugh, Limon, CO is the pits. I'm not wedded to Limon. I was just looking for someplace to stop before I got into the mountains. I don't want to cross the rockies at night. I'd actually like to enjoy seeing them. | ||
| Jlnance |
Unibear - Thanks! | ||
| Dbird29 |
I've heard Denver is a nice place.  |
