Thanks

There was a lot of thought and dreaming involved with making this cross country adventure come true. I thought about what I wanted to see, what the weather going to be like as an average for the territory that I was going to be crossing. How many miles I could go in a day and still make it fun and get to where I needed to be in the amount of time that I had? Then I had to think about maintenance on the motorcycle and then what I needed for tires. As it turned out, tires were the biggest part of my entire ride. Some expected and some not expected, like that flat tire. What tools to bring? What is the best gear to have to wear to cover all riding situations? Since space is a valued commodity, you want to keep riding gear as simple as possible without sacrificing safety and comfort. I spent the better part of 2 months just laying out routes, hotels, restaurants, and what to see.

All the above would make most people scratch their head and ask why? But if you love riding motorcycles, I have to explain nothing. If you enjoy an adventure, then I have to explain nothing. If you live your life in doubt and fear, then all of the above would stop you in your tracks. I enjoy all of the above and would leave tomorrow if I could figure out how.

The one person that I really need to Thank above all else in this world is my wife. She allowed me to accomplish one of my dream adventures and she actually wanted to be part of it. Doing this trip by myself, would have been kind of empty without having her there to share it with. She has tolerated and been by my side for more than 30 years and I just can’t imagine her not being there. So thanks for putting up with my good days, bad days, so so days, and allowing this man who is still a little boy inside, do his thing. I hope at the end of my line, that I leave you with stories you can tell to all and when your done telling it, all have smiles.

I have two more folks I would to thank, first would be Gary Mace. He knew I was laying this trip out. He has always given me ideas on what to see and what routes to take and I thank him for that. It is always good when you know where to go and someone has already been there. Gary and I share GPS routes on anything we find that is important to us or just outstanding. That backrest that I asked Gary about before making the purchase was priceless. This is the first trip of any length that my back or neck did not bother me. It forced me to sit with the proper posture. Gary and I have different riding styles, but we both share the passion for tour riding.

I also wanted to thank Joy Tippens for meeting Lori and I for dinner in Houston. I have always enjoyed working with Joy in the past and I miss her presence at Washington Center and that laugh. Thanks for bringing Blair, Glenn, and his wife also because I haven’t seen them in quite a while.

There are also 4 businesses out there that help keep us on track when things were looking grim. All of you know I had a flat tire on Day 4 and Wood’s Fun Center Honda in Austin Texas put us ahead of some of their regular customers to get us back up and running. Then when we wore out our trailer tires, the folks at Bushtec were so easy to deal with and got those tires out next day air and had them waiting on me when I arrived in Dillion, Co. Then there was Silverthorne Power sports in Dillion. The service guy wasn’t to happy with the re-installation procedures for the trailer tires, but he came in early that morning just to make sure we got waited on quickly and back on the road. Then lastly the Honda dealer in Kansas City, Mo. We pulled into the parking lot without a call prior to showing up and one of the owners heard our story and made sure that we got pushed to the front of the line to get us back on the road. Ok, they maybe didn’t install the rear tire properly because it looks like it is not mounted centered in the trailing arm, but they got me home. Thanks again, Dell’s Motorsports. All of these companies did their best for us and we appreciate what they did in our time of need.

I wish I could remember all the names and places of the people we met on the road that came up to us to talk about our trip. We met some very friendly people out there and it helps restore your faith in the world that all is not evil out there. What a wonderful and diverse country we have and I would recommend that all take time out of your so called busy life and enjoy it.