Saturday, April 30, 2011

Some final tweaks

Well, we are down to 2 weeks till departure and I guess I will never feel completely ready but I’m starting to get pumped up for the adventure. Lori and I took the Valkyrie and Trailer out for a short test run Friday of about 90 miles and all is good. Lights work, tires all look good and all I have todo is throw a little lube on the suspension joints under the trailer. I got my new headset for my new helmet and it is giving me a few fits, but I’ll figure it out in due time. I also cut almost 5 inches off the top of my windshield so I can see over it during rain and fog sessions that we may encounter on the road. The last time we went on a long trip, this scenario almost caused me to blow through a corner that I did not see coming. I may still take another 1 to 1.5 inches off if I do not like the new height. The cut and finish work turned out remarkably well consider I did the job.

Plan B? What could I possibly mean by this question? Well in my last post I provided a link to the webcams at Crater Lake in Oregon and I’m really starting to get concerned that all that snow will not melt. Look at the cams close and you will see that there is still 20 to 25 feet of snow on the ground and the last snow was a late as just last week. So, once we get half way up the coast of California, if the snow is still there and still falling or forecast, I will stay a extra day in Crescent City, Ca. and then do a beeline to Reno, Nv. and skip Crater Lake.

The only other thing that has me concerned is the drought and fires in Texas. You can click this LINK and see a current map of what is going on there. Worst case that I see is that some roads will be closed and I will have to circumnavigate those spots in my built in or planned routes.

I plan on leaving the Valkyrie parked from this point until departure to save the rubber on the tires for the trip. I’m going to hate the fact that I might have to put a rear tire on the bike for the last legs of this trip. 12,000 miles pulling a trailer on this big bike is asking a lot. I will know if I can make it by the time I hit Colorado, the last week of the trip.

Friday, April 22, 2011

You Nervous yet?

We are down to 20 days before we leave for our 12000 mile motorcycle trip. Thursday we got new tires put on the Valkyrie and Friday we went an picked up Lori’s new riding jacket. So the only thing that I can think that I have left to do is get my windshield cut down so I can see over it when it rains. I put a new windshield on the bike two years ago and it is taller. That helps with buffeting when behind a 18 wheeler, but it sucks big time when it’s rainy an foggy. I also will need to get the trailer out and pull it a few hundred miles to make sure that we are good. I will do that this week pulling it back an forth to work which is 90 miles round trip.

The one place that concerns me the most is Crater Lake in Oregon with all the snow. They average 53’ a year. Click this LINK for a webcam view of the lake.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Month left till go time.

Time is flying and before you know it, we will be on the road. This week I took Ms. Lori over to the Yamaha shop to try on a small riding jacket but before we purchase this one, we will wait until the medium comes in just to make sure. Also I backed the Valkyrie off of the trailer so I can start riding it back and forth to work to make sure all is good to go. Well to my surprise, the battery was fully charged but had a short inside and would “NOT” start that big Flat 6, 1500cc motor. Also of note and a decision maker is the front tire has a small air leak, so where I was leaning of changing tires in California, I will now put on a new set before I leave and worry about the last 2000 miles on the way home. I will likely just carry my rear tire with me and use it as a spare.

My reserve fuel tanks are here so Lori is at peace as far as distance that I will be able to cover. With those tanks, I should be able to cover 350 miles on one leg. I also ordered a new tire gauge that is special in that it allows air to pass through it as I pump air into the tires.

The only thing that I have on my list to do, it lubricate the joints on my trailer and check lights. Come on may 12th.