Motorcycle Adventure, 2012
- Thread starter pru7536
- Start date
Day 26, June 27, 2012 Wednesday
After waking up at 0450, the coffee pot was put on and by first light we were all up and drinking it. We went to breakfast at a local eatery and I headed north from my sister’s house around 0855. I stopped by Greensboro Harley Davidson to see the salesman that sold me my bike back in October, 2010. He was aware of my trip and wanted to know how it went, but he wasn’t working today. After drinking some of their coffee I was ready to put the last 100+ miles behind me and get home. It felt as if I had anchors hanging off my eyelids and I made a few stops for water and try and shake of the fatigue that had not plagued me up to this point. I stopped at the Virginia welcome center in Danville for a drink. When I left out of there I missed my turnoff toward South Boston. Having been this route hundreds of times, I was in unfamiliar territory and had to go back a few miles and correct my mistake. Knowing accidents happen a few miles from home I was super cognizant of my clouded thinking and concentrated extra hard not to make a stupid mistake less than a hundred miles from home. I made several more stops for water, cleaning the windshield and anything else that would keep my mind from wandering. Finally I made it to my local corner store to top off the tank for the last time. Two miles later I made it to my ranch where the missus had done a magnificent job of sprucing the place up. It was 1325 when I pulled into my driveway and took the last official adventure photo. My four dogs all looked at me like “where have you been?” and it took them a while to figure it out. It was so nice to be back home and the missus got out of the salt mines a few hours later and it was great to see her too.
After waking up at 0450, the coffee pot was put on and by first light we were all up and drinking it. We went to breakfast at a local eatery and I headed north from my sister’s house around 0855. I stopped by Greensboro Harley Davidson to see the salesman that sold me my bike back in October, 2010. He was aware of my trip and wanted to know how it went, but he wasn’t working today. After drinking some of their coffee I was ready to put the last 100+ miles behind me and get home. It felt as if I had anchors hanging off my eyelids and I made a few stops for water and try and shake of the fatigue that had not plagued me up to this point. I stopped at the Virginia welcome center in Danville for a drink. When I left out of there I missed my turnoff toward South Boston. Having been this route hundreds of times, I was in unfamiliar territory and had to go back a few miles and correct my mistake. Knowing accidents happen a few miles from home I was super cognizant of my clouded thinking and concentrated extra hard not to make a stupid mistake less than a hundred miles from home. I made several more stops for water, cleaning the windshield and anything else that would keep my mind from wandering. Finally I made it to my local corner store to top off the tank for the last time. Two miles later I made it to my ranch where the missus had done a magnificent job of sprucing the place up. It was 1325 when I pulled into my driveway and took the last official adventure photo. My four dogs all looked at me like “where have you been?” and it took them a while to figure it out. It was so nice to be back home and the missus got out of the salt mines a few hours later and it was great to see her too.
.1325 June 27,2012
The last photo of the adventure, pulling into my driveway.
June 28, 2012, Motorcycle Adventure, 2012 + 1
Getting ready to get cleaned up after the adventure. Here's the before picture.
Here's the after picture.
That's what a Marine should look like! Really enjoyed following your trip and plan on doing something similar in the near future.
Fisherking
Active Member
I have been following your poasts , Man that was a great adventure. I cant wate to do something like that myself some time .
F.K.
F.K.
VMGR252Nav
Member
Enjoyed reading your thread and glad to hear you are home safe and sound. Semper Fi...
r_k_dragon
Active Member
Great read, thanks! Glad you're home safe.
Epilogue: Less than 96 hours after this adventure concluded I can look back on it and reflect. I need to put some time and effort into the quick daily updates that I tried to provide and expand on them. I don’t know how I was so fortunate to miss any bad weather or any of the major fires that are at various places near where I rode. I was never freezing cold; I was a little warmer than I would have liked on occasion, but it was never oppressive, though it got pretty close a couple of times. I met some wonderful strangers while on the road and had some great conversations with them. In virtually every town or city I stayed in someone would ask about the adventure. Most thought I was crazy and I’m not sure they were wrong. This is the second time I have traversed the width of the United States on a motorcycle by myself and again, I regret that I couldn’t share it with someone, especially my lovely bride who was so supportive of my madness. I will not do this again without taking her along. We will fly somewhere, rent a car and proceed from there. I didn’t see some people that I had planned on seeing, but the country is so vast it is not possible to cover it all in one trip and the weather plays a significant role when one is on a motorcycle. Chopper, Boots and Sue, Chopper’s wife, were on my must see list from the beginning, but it was not to be and I certainly hope I can get their way at some time in the future. Sue, Chopper’s wife was a great supporter of the adventure and I appreciate all her comments. I was fortunate to have met Tim Stubbe, a rider from California who set out on April 15 for a three month circumnavigation on the United States. He rode twice as far a I did and encountered some horrendous weather. He made it home the same day I did. A smart, hand-salute to him. There were others that provided technical guidance that proved invaluable: Hoople, on the Harley Talking Forum, is a recognized electronics wizard and he helped me with an electrical question that I couldn’t get a straight answer from a Harley dealership on. He responded to my email within minutes and explained in terms I could understand the question that I needed an answer to. Thanks again Hoop!
Larry Tank and his lovely wife Alice invited me into their beautiful home in Glendale, AZ and took me to dinner. We had never met in person, but corresponded through the Harley Talking website. It was a wonderful visit and I will be eternally grateful for their hospitality and accommodations.
I met up with some old Marine Corps buddies that I served with back in the ’74-’75 timeframe and as usual it was great to see them again. Both provided me a great place to stay and if we never see each other again, I will have great memories of them.
On two occasions I encountered people that found out that I was a United States Marine and retired police officer and paid for my meal. The didn’t know me from the man in the moon and I sure didn’t look like either (intentionally) on this adventure. One couple in their eighties, told me to get my money back from the motel that I had checked into and stay at their house in Bullhead City, AZ. I asked the lady how she knew I wasn’t an escaped axe murderer, but she was pretty sure I wasn’t. I declined the offer, but intend on sending them a postcard in the near future.
My brother in laws brother, Brantley, invited me to his beautiful home in Nipomo, California as he did in 2010. This time I stayed a little longer and it was an exceptional visit. From Nipomo the only direction was to head east. I knew the trip was winding down, but my stopover provided some much needed rest and recuperation.
I wasn’t sure if I was going to get near Atlanta, GA, but I did. I called my uncle from Alabama and asked him if he was up for a visitor and fortunately he was. It was great to see him after so many years. He lives in an in-law suite in my cousin’s beautiful house in Peachtree City, Georgia. It was great to see her and her husband again and they fixed a wonderful meal and provided me with my private bedroom and bathroom.
The last stop before I was to get home was my sister’s house in Lexington, NC. Jenny and David are always a pleasure to be with and as usual I had a great, but short visit with them. The last leg of the trip was a measly 200+ miles and by early afternoon I was home and the adventure concluded.
The next day I got the bike all cleaned up and got all the bugs out of all the nooks and crannies. The geezer glide performed flawlessly for the entire trip. With the exception of replacing one passing lamp bulb, she didn’t so much as hiccup for the 7419 miles. The bike had 7101 miles on it when I started the trip and the rear tire still has some life left in it. I consider 14.5K miles on a tire pretty good. She is a little overdue for an oil change, but didn’t burn a drop on this adventure.
The one place that I absolutely, positively had to get to was Sonoma, California. When I went through Petaluma, in 2010 I didn’t know a long lost relative was living less than 15 miles away. I was determined to go and see her on this adventure. Unfortunately she was hospitalized, but lit up like a Christmas tree when her daughter, Susan, took me to see her. I will always remember the sparkle in her eye and I am extremely grateful to Susan, for showing me the sights and providing me a place to stay at her mother’s cottage. This write-up is not in chronological order, but as things popped into my brain housing group.
I’m pretty sure I will not try to do another adventure like this again. It was a wonderful experience, but I don’t want to leave my missus to fend for herself, although she is perfectly capable. I want to take her with me and share the wonderful scenery that can only be appreciated when one sees it with their own eyes. For those that followed the adventure on the web, I certainly appreciate all the invitations, assistance, friendships and comments. For anyone that dreams of undertaking such an adventure, all I can say is “Go For It”. You will never regret it.
Larry Tank and his lovely wife Alice invited me into their beautiful home in Glendale, AZ and took me to dinner. We had never met in person, but corresponded through the Harley Talking website. It was a wonderful visit and I will be eternally grateful for their hospitality and accommodations.
I met up with some old Marine Corps buddies that I served with back in the ’74-’75 timeframe and as usual it was great to see them again. Both provided me a great place to stay and if we never see each other again, I will have great memories of them.
On two occasions I encountered people that found out that I was a United States Marine and retired police officer and paid for my meal. The didn’t know me from the man in the moon and I sure didn’t look like either (intentionally) on this adventure. One couple in their eighties, told me to get my money back from the motel that I had checked into and stay at their house in Bullhead City, AZ. I asked the lady how she knew I wasn’t an escaped axe murderer, but she was pretty sure I wasn’t. I declined the offer, but intend on sending them a postcard in the near future.
My brother in laws brother, Brantley, invited me to his beautiful home in Nipomo, California as he did in 2010. This time I stayed a little longer and it was an exceptional visit. From Nipomo the only direction was to head east. I knew the trip was winding down, but my stopover provided some much needed rest and recuperation.
I wasn’t sure if I was going to get near Atlanta, GA, but I did. I called my uncle from Alabama and asked him if he was up for a visitor and fortunately he was. It was great to see him after so many years. He lives in an in-law suite in my cousin’s beautiful house in Peachtree City, Georgia. It was great to see her and her husband again and they fixed a wonderful meal and provided me with my private bedroom and bathroom.
The last stop before I was to get home was my sister’s house in Lexington, NC. Jenny and David are always a pleasure to be with and as usual I had a great, but short visit with them. The last leg of the trip was a measly 200+ miles and by early afternoon I was home and the adventure concluded.
The next day I got the bike all cleaned up and got all the bugs out of all the nooks and crannies. The geezer glide performed flawlessly for the entire trip. With the exception of replacing one passing lamp bulb, she didn’t so much as hiccup for the 7419 miles. The bike had 7101 miles on it when I started the trip and the rear tire still has some life left in it. I consider 14.5K miles on a tire pretty good. She is a little overdue for an oil change, but didn’t burn a drop on this adventure.
The one place that I absolutely, positively had to get to was Sonoma, California. When I went through Petaluma, in 2010 I didn’t know a long lost relative was living less than 15 miles away. I was determined to go and see her on this adventure. Unfortunately she was hospitalized, but lit up like a Christmas tree when her daughter, Susan, took me to see her. I will always remember the sparkle in her eye and I am extremely grateful to Susan, for showing me the sights and providing me a place to stay at her mother’s cottage. This write-up is not in chronological order, but as things popped into my brain housing group.
I’m pretty sure I will not try to do another adventure like this again. It was a wonderful experience, but I don’t want to leave my missus to fend for herself, although she is perfectly capable. I want to take her with me and share the wonderful scenery that can only be appreciated when one sees it with their own eyes. For those that followed the adventure on the web, I certainly appreciate all the invitations, assistance, friendships and comments. For anyone that dreams of undertaking such an adventure, all I can say is “Go For It”. You will never regret it.