Relaxing and very nice day

I knew going into today’s ride that for the most part is was not going to be very strenuous. The planned 308 mile leg was very beautiful and well above 60 degrees most of the route. When I pulled into Anchorage, my bike was indicating 75 degrees and it felt like it. This puts my total mileage for the trip at 5,016 miles and it is time for work on the motorcycle. The engine oil and tires, specially the rear, needs to be replaced. So I went to the local BMW dealer and at first he told me 2 weeks, but when he figured out I was from out of state, he said come on back tomorrow at 10am and we’ll get her done. I told him I would help or take off the wheels and bring inside to shop and then reinstall. Then I also told him I could do the oil change as long as he let me dump the old oil there. I have all the tools to do the job. I think this information put it over the top, and he said relax, we’ll get it done. Then I ask one more question, could I tryout my new bead breaker tool before you use the real big machine to do it? Sure, why not! So hopefully tomorrow the will let me get my hands dirty, because I do really want to help. I don’t want to get in the way, but I am willing to help. So tomorrow at 10am, we will get her done.

I also had another mission and that was to figure out what was wrong with my Gerbing heated gear. Yes, riding through that rain and low temperature around Lake Superior exposed a big flaw. It just seemed the gloves, lower liner for the legs, and socks were not working. The vest was working correctly. So first stop this afternoon in Anchorage was The Alaskan Leather Shop. They are a dealer for Gerbing and even though they were busy, they let me use their equipment to test each piece of my gear and mix it with new gear until I figured out that the Lower Liner was not working. They also suggested to get the maximum use and flexibility that I get a dual controller. They gave me a new pair of liners and said they would take care of the warranty exchange with Gerbing since I was on the road and out of state visitor. Awesome!! So buying the dual controller was a bonus for me, so now I can put more juice on my toes than chest which is more exposed to the cold and wet. Mark is happy now. After I was all done at the Leather Shop, I let the clerk, a very nice, and very young woman with pink dyed hair, put one their little stickers on one of my panniers. A short website advertisement for their business but the little saying above it made it all ok, “Don’t Ride Naked.” It made her smile and to be honest, I had to smile at the sticker and the smile on her face when she placed it on the bike. She shook my hand and said, “It was great meeting you and have a very safe adventure.” It also didn’t go un-noticed by them that I had purchased a sheep Buttpad already installed on my bike.

I hope you guys enjoy the above picture with me posing with the bike because my wife will tell you, I hate posed pictures. I like to capture shots of people when they are acting natural and have no idea a camera is being used. So I just don’t pose often, so consider yourself lucky seeing me in this shot. Believe me having the motorcycle there made it seem natural. I did try to take a couple of others that are in the pictures of the day, but they just look posed!

So a little about today’s ride. I left Valdez this morning around 7:30ish and started the climb out from sea level to the peak of 2,685 and it was gorgeous. Going up west side of the ridge it was 60 degrees but as soon as I passed the peak and started down the eastside, temps drop to 48-51. It didn’t take long though and I was losing gear and temperatures just kept climbing. There are some amazing shot inside the pictures of the day climbing out, like a double waterfall, snow still 3 feet deep, and an old train tunnel chiseled out by hand. There is also some shots some boats docked and waiting for their owners. There is also one of a very small glacier.

 

The rest of the ride to Anchorage took me on some long straight boring roads but eventually some fantastic scenery. I took a photo of a typical Alaskan driveway which is a pontoon airplane. I also came cruising up on an old boy hauling his dog in the back of the pickup truck. Most dogs just lay there or walk back and forth doing whatever dogs do. But not this dog, once he notice me he started barking. No I couldn’t hear him but I could see him. I could also tell the owner was fussing at the dog, so I decided to go ahead and pass’em so the dog would calm down. You also gotta look close at some of the long range mountain pictures because there you will see some huge glaciers. Deeper into the photo’s you will see a close up of very well defined and very large and long glacier. They are pretty to point, but once they start mixing with the soil and rocks, they kind look like dirty snow that has been plowed by trucks after a snow storm. 

To all my FAA friends reading, we all know what a formation flight is because we work them all the time. Standard formation or non-standard formation that are 1 mile in trail or 2, 3, etc. So as I’m about 50 miles out of Anchorage I look up and see this.

So what do you think? Standard or non-standard. No they were not stacked on top of each other because they made the exact turns in the sky perfectly. Either way, it was the first I have seen that high in the sky. 

Ok, tomorrow is a no ride day as it stands right now. Possibility only, is if they get finished quick or by noonish, I may head to Seward early. Should be about a 4 to 5 hour round trip. I also may have a route issue coming up that might not be solved in time for me to ride that ride, and that is the Denali Highway. Apparently they are still plowing snow and repairing washouts from melt. So with that information, I may by-pass that ride and instead sprint to Coldfoot to begin my last northern route to Prudhoe Bay. Once I reach Prudhoe Bay and reverse course, I will swing by the eastside of the Denali Highway and see about running west until I get stopped, and reverse back. It just all depends on the opening time and the date it happens. I will not fret it either way and will make a decision on the fly. You can read about the issue, HERE.

Pictures of the Day