The countdown has begun to the next trip, this time in October, and this time to New England. The miles will be about 400 fewer, and the time will be one day shorter. Once again, I'll be stopping off to see friends and co-workers at branches (both current and former) for the company where I work, as well as seeing some old friends who relocated to Long Island four years ago.
The details are still a little fluid, but I should be leaving on a Friday morning, and staying in Martinsburg, WV, that night. A branch manager there has two guest rooms, and I plan to take the non-pink one :) The next day, I'm heading up to Long Island, where I will spend Saturday and Sunday. Monday morning, head through Lakeville, MA, to see folks from work, and end that day in Manchester, NH.
Tuesday, I head up to Waterville, ME, and see more work friends, before finishing the day in Mariaville, ME, at a 'cabin' on an acre with 200 feet of river frontage. A two story, three bedroom, screened in porch 'cabin.' This will be courtesy of good old Charlie (good morning, Charlie!) at the branch, who has the property for sale, and if it's still on the market in October, I'll be able to bunk there gratis. Depending on the route, I'd like to end up at the coast at some point. Bar Harbor is less than an hour from the cabin, which puts Acadia National Park in close reach, too.
The next morning, Wednesday, I'll make my way over to Montpelier, VT, and have my second hotel night (the first being Manchester on Monday). Thursday I'll be winding across upstate New York and ending near Rochester to stay with a former co-worker, her husband, and the pet mouse. Not a tame mouse, actually, but protected, nonetheless.
Friday may find me swinging up to Niagara Falls, since I'm that close, perhaps dropping in to Canada, depending on my mood. End of the day should find me in Solon, OH, with yet another pair of accommodating friends from work. Saturday morning I will leave from there to head back home, for a rather long day...about 600 miles. The first day of the trip will be just under 500 miles, and the other days average in the 250 mile range, with one as long as 340 miles. Comparing the day by day miles to the last trip, this one is much more balanced, and should allow for some good leaf watching, picture taking and lollygagging, if I so choose.
Preparations to be done will very possibly include the purchase of heated gloves, and another rain suit. Now is the time to find good deals on high tech long underwear. The weather is extremely variable up there...I highly doubt I'll see any snow, but I could see some pretty chilly temps. However, I could also see some nice 60s and 70s with an Indian Summer. The bike still needs to the odometer cluster replaced, but I may have that shortly rectified. I've been toying with the idea of upgrading the bike, but I'm not sold on that yet. Test rode a couple different options last week, but neither floated my boat. An upgrade would take some pretty serious machinations, some of which are not even in place yet, so I'll hold off on saying too much there.
That's about all of an update for now. I'm still in the middle of waiting to get the chain issue resolved from Kansas City, although I made some good progress last week. I think it'll end up working out, but it's just going slowly.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Ride On!
Friday, I started crunching numbers and figuring what I'll need for the next trip I've got in mind. Part of that included revisiting my budget, and deciding I'm actually going to have to start sticking to said budget in order to have savings up to where they should be before I leave. Sticking to that budget will require me to ride the bike pretty much everywhere I can and retiring my truck for the most part this summer. All in all, not a bad problem to have. This morning I rode to church and it was lovely (both the ride and the service). First time to get the mesh jacket out this year, and it was one of the most comfortable rides for the temps (upper 80s) that I've had yet. The pants I bought for the trip are mesh, and they are cooler to wear than jeans, even though they are a sun-sucking black.
For the past several weeks we've had some old fashioned weather patterns going through, with almost daily thunderstorms in the late afternoon, and today turned out to be no different. I decided to stick to my plan, and loaded up rain gear on the back of the bike when I left the house to go to church tonight. At the house, it was overcast, but not ominous. A mile from my house, the ominosity started to kick in. The only light(er) patch in the sky was behind me, over my house, and I was heading 14 miles east and a little south. Over there...towards that slate blue patch of clouds. I thought about putting on the rain gear then, but figured I'd wait and see. About two miles from the house, the pavement was wet from recent rain, but drying off, as it was by the time I got onto I-385. The car in front of me was kicking back some spray, so I got into the next lane, watching oncoming traffic for signs of rain ahead, as well as watching the clouds and road. Shortly after the next bridge, the road was probably 50% dry, no oncoming cars had on wipers, but the sky still looked portentous although no rain was coming down more than a mist. Beyond the following exit, the road was looking very wet, and I started seeing some wiper activity in the northbound lanes. Now the question was not if, but when.
There were only two overpasses left...I was over three quarters of the way to church, but that last quarter had the potential to be soggy. I opted for the second overpass, pulled over and started doing the raingear shuffle. While I was putting on the layers, a cruiser went past. Neither the rider or his passenger had any riding gear (helmet, jacket, pants, boots), much less rain gear. She was wearing a halter top and trying to hunker down behind him as best she could. I've not experienced it, but have heard that riding in rain is extremely painful, and if you've got drops of water hitting your bare skin at 60 miles per hour, yeah, I can see where it would hurt.
Finally got my silver space suit on and headed up to the Woodruff Road exit. About 45 feet beyond the cover of the changing station overpass, the rain started coming down in earnest...no more of that weenie misting we'd been having (owie for the cruiser folks). I rode the last three miles (and nine stoplights) to church, very glad I had my rain gear on. Did learn an important object lesson tonight. While my gloves do have gauntlets (a cuff that comes over the top of the jacket sleeve), in stop and go traffic they will work better if the gauntlet is tucked under the sleeve cuff. The rain was running down the sleeves of the jacket and into the gauntlet right near the end of the ride. The only part of me that got wet was just the underside of my wrist where that happened. Good to know for future rainy rides. (And not an issue on road trips, since the wind keeps the rain blowing away from the gauntlet.)
The other rain suit issue I'm discovering is the fact that the pants in my suit are too stinking short! I bought the size small of the suit since it fit while walking around in the store, but once they are put on over riding pants (bulkier than jeans) they hike up just a little bit, and then when you have to sit on the bike with knees bent, they ride up a little more. The elastic cuff holds them firmly in place, so when you get off the bike, they are firmly held...hiked up to mid calf , with two inches of riding pants sticking out over the exposed riding boot. Paints a pretty picture, I tell ya. I don't think I can buy the pants separate from the suit, so I might have to go test out some mediums and see if they give me enough leg length so I don't impersonate Urkel after riding through the rain. The rain protection of the pants is superb other than the length. After church, flicked them once and they were dry. Happily, the rain had moved on and there was a lovely sunset, perfect for riding off into. So I did.
For the past several weeks we've had some old fashioned weather patterns going through, with almost daily thunderstorms in the late afternoon, and today turned out to be no different. I decided to stick to my plan, and loaded up rain gear on the back of the bike when I left the house to go to church tonight. At the house, it was overcast, but not ominous. A mile from my house, the ominosity started to kick in. The only light(er) patch in the sky was behind me, over my house, and I was heading 14 miles east and a little south. Over there...towards that slate blue patch of clouds. I thought about putting on the rain gear then, but figured I'd wait and see. About two miles from the house, the pavement was wet from recent rain, but drying off, as it was by the time I got onto I-385. The car in front of me was kicking back some spray, so I got into the next lane, watching oncoming traffic for signs of rain ahead, as well as watching the clouds and road. Shortly after the next bridge, the road was probably 50% dry, no oncoming cars had on wipers, but the sky still looked portentous although no rain was coming down more than a mist. Beyond the following exit, the road was looking very wet, and I started seeing some wiper activity in the northbound lanes. Now the question was not if, but when.
There were only two overpasses left...I was over three quarters of the way to church, but that last quarter had the potential to be soggy. I opted for the second overpass, pulled over and started doing the raingear shuffle. While I was putting on the layers, a cruiser went past. Neither the rider or his passenger had any riding gear (helmet, jacket, pants, boots), much less rain gear. She was wearing a halter top and trying to hunker down behind him as best she could. I've not experienced it, but have heard that riding in rain is extremely painful, and if you've got drops of water hitting your bare skin at 60 miles per hour, yeah, I can see where it would hurt.
Finally got my silver space suit on and headed up to the Woodruff Road exit. About 45 feet beyond the cover of the changing station overpass, the rain started coming down in earnest...no more of that weenie misting we'd been having (owie for the cruiser folks). I rode the last three miles (and nine stoplights) to church, very glad I had my rain gear on. Did learn an important object lesson tonight. While my gloves do have gauntlets (a cuff that comes over the top of the jacket sleeve), in stop and go traffic they will work better if the gauntlet is tucked under the sleeve cuff. The rain was running down the sleeves of the jacket and into the gauntlet right near the end of the ride. The only part of me that got wet was just the underside of my wrist where that happened. Good to know for future rainy rides. (And not an issue on road trips, since the wind keeps the rain blowing away from the gauntlet.)
The other rain suit issue I'm discovering is the fact that the pants in my suit are too stinking short! I bought the size small of the suit since it fit while walking around in the store, but once they are put on over riding pants (bulkier than jeans) they hike up just a little bit, and then when you have to sit on the bike with knees bent, they ride up a little more. The elastic cuff holds them firmly in place, so when you get off the bike, they are firmly held...hiked up to mid calf , with two inches of riding pants sticking out over the exposed riding boot. Paints a pretty picture, I tell ya. I don't think I can buy the pants separate from the suit, so I might have to go test out some mediums and see if they give me enough leg length so I don't impersonate Urkel after riding through the rain. The rain protection of the pants is superb other than the length. After church, flicked them once and they were dry. Happily, the rain had moved on and there was a lovely sunset, perfect for riding off into. So I did.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Mountain Ride
Today I went for a ride up in the NC mountains with a fellow-rider from work named Martin. He was on a Suzuki DR-Z 400 SM (pretty sure) which is much more nimble in the mountain twisties than my bike. We headed up US276 to Caesar's Head, which is normally a pretty intense ride, but today there were lots of bicycles, slow cars, and even an emergency crew cutting up a tree that had fallen across the road, so not much time to get zippy. Once we regrouped at the top, we rode into Brevard, NC, behind some rather...um...SLOW riders (for lack of a better word). There were five in the group, mixing up everything from a Goldwing to a scooter to a Harley. Once we headed west on 64 and got to a decent passing zone, it was a relief to get past them.
From my house to the top of Caesar's Head, it's roughly 35 miles. I was surprised when I looked at my trip meter (reset with a fresh tank of gas this morning) and noticed I'd only gone 34 miles by the time I was well past Brevard. I looked again when passing Sapphire, NC. Still 34 miles. Hmm. Reset the meter and kept glancing down. Nada. My speedo and tach work fine, but the odometer (main and two trip meters) have all died. Since the speedometer is still working, it's not a cable issue, but likely to be an internal gizmo working issue, and from what TJ says, not many places will repair the gizmo parts. I've got to do some research to see what to get. We headed in to Cashiers, NC, to eat at a barbecue place that, evidently, many riders frequent. When we pulled into the parking lot, there might have been five other bikes there. When we left, there were well over 20.
No pics today, but here is a map of the route we took. Coming back down 288 to 130 was lovely: great sweeping curves and no traffic. Stopped for gas and bathroom break, and then on to 188 through Pumpkintown (yes), over to 276, hopped onto 414, and then Martin took 25 North and I went 25 South to our respective homes. Total for the day (my best guess) is about 140 miles. (I took a nap when I got home...yawrn!)
I've also got my sights on some of these for the upcoming, potential, might-happen, hope-so trip in October. (You know...it's just one more thing...)
From my house to the top of Caesar's Head, it's roughly 35 miles. I was surprised when I looked at my trip meter (reset with a fresh tank of gas this morning) and noticed I'd only gone 34 miles by the time I was well past Brevard. I looked again when passing Sapphire, NC. Still 34 miles. Hmm. Reset the meter and kept glancing down. Nada. My speedo and tach work fine, but the odometer (main and two trip meters) have all died. Since the speedometer is still working, it's not a cable issue, but likely to be an internal gizmo working issue, and from what TJ says, not many places will repair the gizmo parts. I've got to do some research to see what to get. We headed in to Cashiers, NC, to eat at a barbecue place that, evidently, many riders frequent. When we pulled into the parking lot, there might have been five other bikes there. When we left, there were well over 20.
No pics today, but here is a map of the route we took. Coming back down 288 to 130 was lovely: great sweeping curves and no traffic. Stopped for gas and bathroom break, and then on to 188 through Pumpkintown (yes), over to 276, hopped onto 414, and then Martin took 25 North and I went 25 South to our respective homes. Total for the day (my best guess) is about 140 miles. (I took a nap when I got home...yawrn!)
I've also got my sights on some of these for the upcoming, potential, might-happen, hope-so trip in October. (You know...it's just one more thing...)
Thursday, June 4, 2009
I've got this itch...
Tentatively, there are now plans for a fall excursion, heading up into New England. I've got to check with folks along the route, to see if I can do some more mooching for overnight stays, but it's looking pretty good. Details will follow as arrangements solidify.
I'm still waiting to hear back from the folks in Kansas City. They weren't overly anxious to refund money, and are supposedly checking with the chain manufacturer to see if there will be a warranty they can claim on it. I did pick the bike back up from TJ's shop after work today...when he wrote up the ticket, he charged for installing the new chain and checking a couple of items. Nothing on there for coming out to pick me up north of the next town on a Saturday (and taking me home). Not only is he a good mechanic, he's a good friend.
Tonight was the first ride since Saturday, and it was just the mile and a half it took to get home. Once I was home, I changed clothes and headed back out with the Riley dog to walk back to the shop and pick up the truck. Had to go through a little bit of a ghetto section, but with the 125 pound dog with me, the worst I got was someone calling across the street that, "That sure is a big dog!" I agreed and kept walking. Made it to the shop in 25 minutes. The rain's come in earnest for the evening, and is supposed to linger through tomorrow. However, Saturday is looking pretty good, and a co-worker is planning on riding up to the mountains for some barbecue on Saturday, and I think I'll be joining him :)
I'm still waiting to hear back from the folks in Kansas City. They weren't overly anxious to refund money, and are supposedly checking with the chain manufacturer to see if there will be a warranty they can claim on it. I did pick the bike back up from TJ's shop after work today...when he wrote up the ticket, he charged for installing the new chain and checking a couple of items. Nothing on there for coming out to pick me up north of the next town on a Saturday (and taking me home). Not only is he a good mechanic, he's a good friend.
Tonight was the first ride since Saturday, and it was just the mile and a half it took to get home. Once I was home, I changed clothes and headed back out with the Riley dog to walk back to the shop and pick up the truck. Had to go through a little bit of a ghetto section, but with the 125 pound dog with me, the worst I got was someone calling across the street that, "That sure is a big dog!" I agreed and kept walking. Made it to the shop in 25 minutes. The rain's come in earnest for the evening, and is supposed to linger through tomorrow. However, Saturday is looking pretty good, and a co-worker is planning on riding up to the mountains for some barbecue on Saturday, and I think I'll be joining him :)
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