Day 1 Complete

Today went off without a hitch. The weather in Virginia was overcast an a bit cool at speed, but we were dry and that is always good. Once we got to Bristol Va/Tn, the clouds parted and the sun came bearing down on us and we started shedding the riding layers. Going through most of Tennessee it was a very balmy 88 degrees for the entire ride. We left Stephens City about 8:30am and arrived at our hotel in Chattanooga Tn. about 6pm. 519 miles and all is good for now.

Tomorrow will be a repeat of today in that we have another day of Interstate riding, which I hate, but we have a lot of ground to cover. My plan was to basically sprint to Houston Texas and then start my normal off the main road riding. I have another 527 mile day planned for leg 2 and we should end up in New Orleans, La. Like most of my stops, this will only be a one night stay, so we will try an get a Cajun meal, take a few pictures and that is about all for New Orleans.

The highlights for tomorrow ride will be Lake Pontchartrain, which is a 24 mile crossing, and then a meal at Coquette’s. One thing we might see from the Interstate is the damage that was done by the tornado in Tuscaloosa, AL which happen April 27, 2011. Do not hold me to the date.

The first leg of our trip and I’m ready!!

This afternoon I pulled the Valkyrie out of the garage and connected the trailer, so now she is ready. I unloaded all the saddle bags and trunk and only put back what we needed for the trip. This time I packed a rear spare tire into the trailer as well as tools to allow me to do an oil change and a small repair job if something broke or breaks. I also placed my two, two gallon containers into the trailer and now all it needs is baggage. My bag, less toiletries, is packed an in the trailer. All my gadgets are charged and ready to go, I just have to bag them up and throw them in the trailer. Tomorrows weather from here to Chattanooga, TN. looks good and we should have a nice day to ride. All that is left is to get a good nights rest and get my wife and all her fluff in the trailer. That in itself will be a major accomplishment.

We leave Thursday morning, May 12th and our first leg will be 519 miles from Stephens City, Va. to Chattanooga, Tn.. This leg is only intended to get us moving in the direction of our real entry point of this trip, Houston Tx.. I have no plans to see anything but Interstate.

Cool advertisment video on my Communications

I put a fair amount of money into the connivence of communications on my motorcycle to make sure that I can do it safely while in motion. Most of the functions are hands free once setup and it allows me to focus on traffic while it gives me direction in my ear. It also allows me to listen to music and the required Wifey chatter. You see she, (wife), comes with 5000 built in words a day that she must use, so now I will not miss a one of them. Yeah!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9YfCJmLnLA[/youtube]

One more week!

Today was another test day for a few items and I re-trimmed of my Windshield. Like I said in the last post, I was just not happy with the height, even after I cut it and today, I trimmed another 1 7/8 inches off. After taking the Valkyrie for ride, I think I got where I want it. Not sure how Lori will like it because she might be taking a bit more wind with that last cut down on the shield. Once again, thanks to the video below, the cut an finish turned out fantastic.

 

This is how I did it, but it is not me in the video.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While I was out riding I also did a test of my new headset connected via bluetooth with my Garmin GPS and that all worked perfectly. This headset also has a built radio which makes it nice when I’m riding the BMW that has no radio on it at all. The last thing I did was to test the portable gas containers while bouncing down the road to make sure they do not leak. Loaded them into the side bags of the F650GS Dakar dual sport and went bouncing through the woods and they passed the test. These containers are used by Rescue Squads, Police, an Fire for many different uses. These containers are called Rotopax and they’re a little bit expensive but they are suppose to be leak proof in all kinds of conditions.

Tomorrow I will finish up with lubing the trailer joints and I think that I’m done. I told Lori today that I can’t think of nothing to be checked, tested, or bought. We are ready for launch.

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.

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.

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.