| Summary: - Trip - Plano TX to Memphis TN Plano TX - Pack - Runt/X to PA, YellowBelly/Dollar & Harge/Stoney to New England - Date - Wed 06/21 @ 1:00 PM till Mon 07/03 @ 8:30 PM => 12.5 days - Miles - 5098 = ~400 per day - Claw report - Claw started showing her age on this trip. 3 quarts of oil added and a flat spot in steering bearing made slow speed S curves 'interesting'. Mystery of 30 MPG on return trip was solved when it was noted that the bug splat was was even with outer edge of filter. Had to shovel off the driveway. Wed: - Plano to Memphis TN - 75 N, 380 E, 30 E, 440 E, 40 E - 1:00 PM to 8:15 PM - 490 miles - Blast the interstate, weave around the idiots who sit in the left lane. - Runt's first bike trip back through Arkansas since 2001. - Warm, brief sprinkle for 3 miles - Arrive hotel, realize the easybracket key is back in Plano. Sigh. Call Shadow, $26 later it will be in Somerset Fri. - Good start to vacation. Thurs - Memphis TN to Morgontown WV - 40 E 265 N, 65 N, Blue Grass Pkwy, 60 E, 64 E, 77 N, 79 N - 6:50 AM to 7:40 PM (lost an hour for eastern time) - 785 miles - More interstate, 79 was actually good. Big sweepers and X was singing (luckily Runt could not hear him.) - Sky opens and it pours as we get under the hotel roof Fri - Morgontown WV to Somerset PA - 68 E, 26 N, 281 NE - 7:50 AM to 9:15 AM - 70 miles, 1345 to get there - Good decision not to push in, 281 was a goat trail at southern tip. - Meet and greet with family, give niece/nephew a bike ride. - Run down to Thunder in the Valley. - Determine Billy has failed to procure tire. Call Vince and get informed no Bridgestone. Metlzer goes in the mail. Sat/Sun - Hang in Somerset - ~420 miles of run around, Thunder in Valley and run down 250 into West Virginia - 250 was very pleasing. - Interviewed Jerimiah the mechanic who would be replacing rear tire. The custom Harley he built/was riding was good resume. The Rocket got smoked. - Thunder was okay, Runt got a shirt that proved popular with X.
Mon - Somerset PA to Bainbridge NY - 219 N, 120 E, 144 N, 6 E, 220 N, 17 E, something close to 8 N - 8:00 AM to 7:30 PM - 455 miles - Wet roads most of the day, 75 miles of rain. - 120/144 were pleasing, possibly outstanding if dry. - Disturbing pattern of empty wet roads and dry roads packed with people incapable of depressing the gas pedal more than a quarter inch. People drive slow up north. - Pack leader Billy gives us bonus tour of a parking lot instead of turning onto 144 and gives us a view of 7 in Binghamton. Yellowbelly did a fine job keeping pack inline. - Stopped at Little Grand Canyon. Cute but Little is appropriate. - X's "There will be a hotel outside Binghamton" proves true but the Algonkin Motel was "rustic'. Vinny & Joes Pizza delivered dinner while refreshments were trucked back from gas station. (All this occurred in a nice rain.) Construction workers seemed overly interested in talking to Runt. - Pleasing day but pack is waterlogged by day's end..
- Bainbridge NY to Glen NH - 88 E to 7 to wrong 9 uturn 9 100 N 2 E, 302 E - 8:15 AM to 7 PM - 427 miles - Pack revolts and changes route. New plan is to run east on interstae tro get out of rain. Plan actually works but at cost of 90 miles of solid rain to get to sunshine. - Picture above does not capture the magical look achieved by Stoney in her bib rainsuit. Quick calculation confirmed she could have fit 3 Stones in the outfit. - 100 through Vermont is pleasing but too many towns and cars. - 302 is big sweepers on some sections, slog through town on others. - Washington Motel is big. - Good steak/beer at local pub. X makes good choice on local ale, tasted like Bass. Harge made questionable choice on local ale, tasted like blackberries (first hint was that it was called something something BlackBerry Ale).
- Glen NH to Lakeville CT - 302 E to 1 S, 495, 16, 146, 102, 44 - 7:45 AM to 7:45 PM - 373 miles - Into Portland, down the coast. 'Eat lobster at small shack' proved expensive as they gave us the outofstater price. $71 for 2 2.2 lb lobsters. One of pack members cracked the tail a little high and got to see more of the lobster than is recommended. - Down to the ocean, stick a finger in the water and then run back to get rain gear as skys opened. - Downtown Hartford is a scary place. Not recommended for night riding, Brinks Truck would be appropriate. - Hotel adventures included being ignored (at a place we probably could not afford), being sent to InterLaken (where $259 a night confirmed we could not afford) to Inn at Ironmasters where they grasiously gave us a room for $165. - X/Penny position that rivers flow North and that New Jersey was flooded was rejected by the pack. Pack then proved X/Penny correct by riding to floods.
- Lakeville CT to Chambersburg PA to Somerset PA - Route not recorded - Around 500 for the 2 days - Pack consisted on a Triumph Rocket (Billy) , Claw, and a new Nomad (Harge). Harge broke out the whip to get up some of the mountains. Power is a goooooood thing. - Flooding closed roads. 'Follow those bikes' got us safely out of Port Jervis even though cop did not know where we were going. - Final sprint to hotel Thurs night was some of the best riding on trip. Threat of rain was great motivater. - Weatherman announced 'ponding on the roads'. Search for ponds failed, lakes were discovered. - Trip tradition of excessive eating continued. Pack was diverted around some small bridges due to weight limits. - Ride in Fri was good. Should have stayed in PA for the whole week.
Sat - Hang in Somerset - Rode up to Clem's BBQ. Very pleasing - Whatever routes we took was good. Very pleasing. Continued tradition of only going through yellow lights, don't think we went through a green the whole trip. - Pack joined by Butch/Bobbi Jo. - More family time (Sis has a castle for a house, Aunt Evelyn was looking good, Izzy's graduation party was over by the time X arrived.)
- Somerset PA to Knoxsville TN - 219 S, 460 W, 77 S, 81 W, 40 W - 9:10 (after family (that would be 3 X's and ~14 Runt's) breakfast) to 7:30 PM - 535 miles - Pack plus David/Peggy rode 100 miles out with us. Eyes watered as parting occurred. - 219 had sections that were simply outstanding but it was a slow 300 miles. - Did I mention that 219 had some simply outstanding sections? - Runt finally admitted she boo booed when she ignored X's instruction on T-Bag mods. Overly large custom pocket (vs requested velco straps) had t_bag laying horizonally vs preferred vertical orientation.
Mon - Knoxsville TN to Plano TX - 40 W, 30 W, 380 75 - 8:05 AM to 8:30 PM (we gained an hour, long day) - 860 miles, 1395 to get back. - Departure found Runt in shorts, anticipating warmth. First reachback for a leg pat left X with a bloody hand due to large goosebumps and excessive shaking. Warmth came quickly and the ever present electric vest saved the day. - "Let's stop at Loretta Lynn's Kitchen' was greeted with silence. Tactic of acting deaf did not work and we had a lovely visit with bonus of buying 12 magnets. Breakfast buffet ham tasted remarkably like hot dog. - Multiple cops out, Claw's stealth mode worked again. - Plan was to stage in but Runt got the vision of sleeping in so we hammered home.
Email me at x.arden@verizon.net |
