10. Day 3 & 4: Gilman, IL to Sioux City, IA to Wall, SD

Let me start by saying that yes, I forgot my camera.  Then last night Steve realized he forgot the cable to hook his camera to the computer.  So pics will have to come from the phones for now and then we can update once we are home.

So on Day 3 our original intent was to end in Cody, NE.  We set out by 7:30-it helps when you pass into an earlier time zone.  We got 200 interstate miles out of the way in time for an early lunch.  We noticed that ran may be moving in and the # of cars/trucks was increasing on the highway so we decided to head to secondary roads and hopefully away from the rain.

It was this day that I first felt the open plains wind that our friend Jay mentioned.  You sort of have to ride leaned slightly to the left to counteract the wind, but if you pass a house that is blocking the wind you better straighten up or you're gonna have a bad time.

We kept finding then losing the Lincoln highway, but it was nice to be off the interstate.  We finally hit the rain in Cedar Rapids, but it only lasted about 50 miles.  I think we would up doing around 550 miles and ended up in Sioux City, IA.  We were making good time and we felt OK so we kept going. 

When you're seen you're safe!!

We also stopped in Sac City, IA for gas.  We noticed super was cheaper than regular.  We asked a local, he said it was always like that.  We are assuming something having to do with the ethanol.

Super for less, OK.

We rolled into Sioux City around 7ish, I think.  I don't like to judge anything by my limited experience but it was very off-putting when the first people who approach you in the parking lot are obviously under the influence of something and are trying to bum a smoke.  The hotel GM was right on their tail though and he called the police to try to make sure they didn't come back.  The GM was very nice and spoke with us repeatedly throughout the evening to assure us that the bikes would be safe.  We certainly did not want to be stranded there.  There was some massive rain overnight, which is fine by me.  I'll be happy if rains every night - except if we ever actually camp.

Since we went off route we had to come up with a new plan for Day 4.  I have to say when we do 12 hour riding days it's hard to work in anything other than riding, eating, and bathroom breaks.  By the time we got to the hotel it was shower, eat, try to come up with a new route and sleep.  We were not very successful with the new route but thanks to my early morning wakefulness genes and the extra hour of the central time zone I set something up the next morning.

It wound up being a great ride.  We had about 30 miles of rain right when we left. 

South Dakota is freaking gorgeous.  I wish I had come here sooner.  I was here in 1978 but memory fails me.  Plus at 5 I probably just wanted a snack.  The scenery is magnificent.  Badlands is super duper awesome.  One thing I noticed a lot is that the cows stare back.  When we ride in Vermont, the cows ignore us.  Here they seem just as interested in us as we are in them.

The cows stare back.

The little motel I found on the internet is also superb.  The Sunshine Inn in Wall, SD.  I called from Winning, SD to make sure we could get a room.  He blocked us a parking spot right in front of the room so we wouldn't have to carry our stuff.  Very friendly, very helpful and only $58!  Forget camping.

We are taking it easier today to do some touristy stuff.  Heading to Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse and Devils Tower.  Hoping to camp at Devil's Tower.  I know I keep saying that but really, we do want to camp.

Please note that re-reading of these posts is no longer happening.  I'm hungry and want breakfast.  I apologize for any errors.

Bad grammar be OK on vacation.

9. Day 2: Not as long of a ride. Mohican, Ohio through Indiana to Gilman, Illinois

Day 2 is in the books.  Yeah, not camping again.  We were going to, I promise, but the KAO in Kankakee, IL was booked.  I guess camping during a holiday weekend without reservations is not going to work.  We are supposed to be at the KAO in Guthrie, IA tomorrow.  I have to call them.  Although with the 30% chance of rain showers tomorrow afternoon in Guthrie, we may just go hotel again.  Can't beat Motel 6 for $60.

I guess the spot locator is working.

Today's ride was great.  Basically due west from Mohican, OH to Gilman, IL.  Indiana was great.  We did a mix of highway and secondary roads which is nicer than all interstates.  Some of the secondary roads were not part of the original route but we had to divert from the highway to find gas so then we decided to take any road that said west.  At another point the GPS got a bit confused to we did the same thing.  I find that we often have some of the best rides when we are winging it.  We spent some time on the Lincoln highway.  So many farms and windmills!! I saw signs upon entering Indiana saying "No Wind Farms" - I never realized that people could oppose wind farms.  I will have to google that.

Windmills in the distance.

Steve noted that he felt folks to be a bit friendlier in Indiana/Illinois than Ohio.  We are sure there are great people in Ohio, it is just a note from our piece of the journey.

I will say that people tend to be more open to just walking up to us to start talking about the bikes, the trip, the camelbaks, etc.

We met a charming Irish hitchhiker and her cute as can be dog.  She was hitching from Florida up to Michigan.  She said it took her about five days so far, but she really had no idea what day it was so that was a guess.  She said she got stuck in Atlanta for a day because "You know, it's hard to hitch out of the cities." Well, no, I was not aware that it was more difficult to hitch out of cities, but I will store that information for future reference.  She told us some great places to stop along the way.  She's a highway lurker, I guess because it's easier to get rides.  She highly recommends Nevada City, she's never met an unhappy person there.  Noted.  I've got a lot of respect for the Irish chick hitching around the country.  I would have loved to sit and have a cup of coffee with her, but the road called us all back.  She's headed to Maine after Michigan.  She wants to get a job for the summer so she can fly her and the dog back to Ireland in the fall.

The cute dog guarding the stuff.

Then a young man came up to talk to us as he was intrigued by the camelback water bladders that we wear.  He had just gotten his license and was taking his first "long ride" from Fort Wayne, IN to Akron, OH on his Yamaha V-Star 650.  Total mileage = 200.  Good for him.

Steve was also wondering how farmers pick that one tree in their field that they don't cut down.  Is it arbitrary or science?  We also determined that chickens smell worse than cows, but  we don't think cows smell bad.

Tomorrow we have a another 400 mile day much of which is GPS'd for interstate again as we make our big push west.  Even though we are in this luxurious Motel 6 I can already tell I might in for trouble tonight with the screaming infant next store and the half-hourly freight train.

8. Day 1: A long ride indeed

So we are officially underway.  I guess the chances are 100%.  As suspected in the last few days leading up to departure it felt like there were not enough hours in the day.  Early in the week I took to waking up between 3-4am to things done.  That caught up to me eventually and I was exhausted on Thursday. 

With just a few more things to do on the list, I was ready to go at 6:30AM Friday morning.  Steve, not so much.  He is not a morning person, never was, and sometimes you just have to give him the time he needs.

We took off around 8am, with the thought of however far we go is fine.  Our initial goal was 520 miles to Loudonville, OH.  Since it was our first day and we just wanted to get west we pretty much stuck to the highway.  The first lesson I reminded myself yesterday was just how much interstates suck.  The speeds, the wind, the tractor trailers, all yuck yuck yuck.  We should be avoiding that from here on out.  The second thing I learned is that Pennsylvania is doing a lot of work on their bridges, lots of construction zones.  Luckily in mid-day traffic wasn’t bad and I actually welcomed the slower speeds.

I listened to my music for some of the trip.  The third thing I learned is that if you listen to a quiet kind of music like Damien Rice or Brandi Carlile, at highway speeds it can sometimes just kind of sounds like ghosts making noise in your helmet.  It freaked me out a little bit at first.  I may have to consider adjusting the speakers in my helmet to see if that helps. 

We finally made it OH and my fourth lesson of the day, which is rush hour on Friday of a holiday weekend in Akron, OH has nothing on the West Side Highway in NYC.  The only traffic was due to a couple of crashes.  Once we finally left the dreary interstate for secondary roads I was reminded again how riding through farmland is still my favorite place to ride a motorcycle. It is so wide open that you can see for days, so that makes me feel safer than wondering what is lurking around the next turn or what is waiting to dart out of the woods.  We have ridden in the in the Alps which is beautiful and very dramatic to look at, but there a nice quiet riding through farmland. 

As you may suspect we decided that we really didn’t feel like camping on our first night  out.  So we made it to Loudonville, were cell service disappeared.  Steve looked up a hotel in his GPS and off we went.  Here I was again reminded that most of the country is not like the northeast.  We arrive at the hotel to see keys sitting out on the counter for people checking in and a note with a phone # to call if you have any questions.  It was 7:00pm on a Friday of a holiday weekend and the hotel was left unattended.  Of course, we had no cell service, but someone let us use their phone to call the number.  Unfortunately they were booked so we were off to the next location on the GPS. 

After going up a windy, rain rutted dirt driveway we made our way to the Mohican River Inn.   They had rooms, and we were not picky, so it was a perfect fit.  By this time it was 7:30ish so we were off to McDonalds for dinner, since they were the only place around with wifi.  I have to say McDonalds has some darn good salads.

The fries were pretty good also.

The view from our hotel.

When we returned to the motel we wanted to buy some bottled water but they also left!!  Is leaving a motel office unattended on a holiday weekend the norm?

So I am typing this blog from the hotel in Word since I cannot get online to post anything.  Hopefully AT&T will come through when we make it to Kanakee, IL today.  Today’s plan is 320 miles.  We also realized we may have to reevaluate camping on a holiday weekend.  We are not interested in the bonfire, party scene right now.

I certainly won’t object to another hotel stay.  A lumpy bed is still a bed.  And heat is heat.

I’ve also learned that only bringing my mesh jacket may not have been the best choice.  It’s cold.  I wore a long sleeve T-shirt, two fleece jackets, my mesh jacket and my rain coat and it was still a bit chilly yesterday.  I figured the rain coat would block the wind.  But it was also overcast yesterday, so hopefully a sunny day will change that.

On to day 2!!!

7. Only a short time to the long ride!!!!

Less than a week!!!!  All still looks like a go.  I think I'll increase the odds of the trip happening to 70%.  I want to be cautious.  As I said before it's not 100% until I pull out of the driveway.  Perhaps I need to get three states away before it will really be real.  Although it may feel like an eternity just trying to get through the very wide state of Pennsylvania on the first day.  Now is the time when it feels like there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done.  I anticipated this.

We have also moved into last stage panic shopping!  The money is flying everywhere.  The new Sena communicators we wanted have been delayed to June so just yesterday we set up our new Sena SMH10 Communicators.  No one would answer the phone when I called from my helmet.  I finally had to call a work person from my helmet just to try it out.  It is superb.  "Siri, play my play list called Riding."  Yes, yesterday I set up a play list called Riding.  After I spent $24.99 to send my entire iTunes playlist into the cloud. "Siri, call Mom." Voicemail. "Siri text Mom."  "Why aren't you answering my call? I'm trying to call you from my helmet."  I certainly see the appeal of these.

Portable solar charger, because you never know when you may wind up in the desert with cell service but limited battery life, right? An extra fuel bottle to carry our camp stove fuel.  Practical (obviously a Steve purchase).  A couple more wicking shirts, so now I own 6 even though I'm only supposed to be bringing three.  Rush order of HVMP T-shirts now that we have our awesome logo thanks to Kendra from COG.  Check out the wonderful banner design Kendra did for us.  We won't see the actual banner until we get to Johnson City, TN but I really like the artwork.

The 6' long banner will meet us in TN after our long ride.

Just this morning I woke up to an e-mail from Amazon from midnight last night (I was already asleep) that apparently I ordered 2 Klymit Inertia X Frame Camping mattress in chartreuse yellow/green.  I have a feeling Steve is concerned our sleep pads are too big, and they probably are.  I wonder if it was the chartreuse that sold him on these specific ones.  I'm not even sure I could identify that that color.

I must be sleep shopping again.

Finally, at the urging of my 7 year old nephew we got my Mom an i-Phone for Mother's Day.  So not really for me but still kind of for me.  Facetime from the Grand Canyon!  Heck yes!  She's been talking about it for a while and it will be nice for her to see my Spot locator tracking & check-in e-mails on her phone rather than having to sit down at the computer.  Facetime is nice.  That is really why my nephew wants her to have it.  He wants to Facetime Grandma.

Last weekend was all about bike maintenance.  We changed the oil, put a new battery in the Versys, cleaned and lubed the chains.  We both put new pro grip grips on and I gave myself a snazzy new pair of shiny black extra heavy HVMP bar ends.  I had the stainless heavy before.  I'm trying these out for the trip.


New squishier grips!

Men at work!

We also took a ride to test out the Spot Locator.  I had to meet a potential customer so I stuck the spot in my pocket.  When we arrived I took off my jacket and I think the lack of motion made it stop tracking.  I recall checking it before we left and I thought the tracker button was blinking, but it did not seem to record. 

I thought I would include some pictures from our 2005 Nova Scotia trip.  Back then I was riding the Ninja 500 with soft bags and Steve had the Concours.  I would definitely put that on my "to do again" list.  Although these days I don't think there is any boat transportation out of Maine into Yarmoth.. 

One of my favorite riding days ever was in Nova Scotia.  It was somewhere heading north out of Halifax on our way to the Cabot Trail.  There were no other vehicles and all I could smell was Christmas trees.  It was a very peaceful day.

 Well I better get packing!!! So much to do.

6. Tick tock...long ride coming soon.

The past couple of weeks have been long ride uneventful as we were just waiting patiently.  With just over two weeks before our scheduled leave date I feel things are ramping up and before long I will feel completely unprepared and frazzled.  So far we are on track to make this happen.  My fingers are still crossed.  Steve has spent a lot of time fine-tuning the route to keep things scenic.  I know things are going to get hectic in the next couple of weeks but we will just ride it out.  Once we leave things will just have to figure themselves out.

Last weekend we did a test run of tent set up, to make sure all the pieces were there.  I'm not crawling in it until I have to though.  We also did some hiking/snake hunting with our nephew.  We were successful in the hike but not in the snake hunt.  Bring on the great outdoors!!



Comfy looking, right?

There's got to be a snake here somewhere.

Just today I activated the spot locator.  I tried the check in option to my very short list of people who would tolerate a pre-programmed message from me and it worked.  I'm still learning.  I'm having some issues with the route tracking, but I'll get there.

This upcoming weekend we are doing our pre-trip oil changing, chain cleaning and Steve's Versys needs a new battery.  Steve also purchased some mushy new hand grips from Pro Grip.  So this weekend is all about bike prep.  Oh, and Mother's Day of course.

The weekend after next, which will be our final weekend before we leave, is all about packing.  I want the bikes packed by Sunday night so all we are doing is tying up loose ends during the week.

On the HVMP front, a friend of ours recommended that we sell our bar ends at the Concours Owners Group (COG) national rally we are attending in Johnson City, TN.  This entire journey was born because of the planned trip to Johnson City.  He was also kind enough to offer to transport our product for us since he will be trailering his bike down to TN.  Of course, I then decided we needed a HVMP banner for our table, which means we needed a logo update.  Luckily for me, another lovely COG member is handling the logo stuff, so I can get my banner printed up in time.  Those COGger's are a really helpful bunch.  I guess that's why their motto is Join for the Bike, stay for the people.

I've also decided to place a last minute order with our machine shop to stock up on inventory.  Leave it to me to leave HVMP unmanned during our busy sales month of the year.  I'm sure my back-up will do a great job since the business used to be his!!!

I also decided to get a PayPal card reader for my i-phone so we can accept payments at the rally.  Another thing to add to the technology list.

Want to give me money?? I am prepared to accept!!

Since it's currently Thursday, how about a TBT?  This is my first touring bike, the Buell Blast.  This was taken in Sugarbush, Vermont around 10 years ago.  Both my safety gear and my luggage have improved dramatically since then.


This was a loud, loud motorcycle.

Finally, what's a blog without cats?  We hope these two won't miss us too much.  We have a team of regulars who will be feeding and tending to them and a lot of people on call. 

So as the clock winds down I will continue to wind myself up until the moment when we pull out of the driveway and begin heading west.  I will continue to worry about preparation until that moment, but when we are underway everything will just fall into place.

Thanks for reading!!!

5. Wait, I've done this long ride before...

I recently realized that I've done this trip before.  One month, NY to CA and back.  It was 1978.  I would have turned five during the trip.  My father reminded me the other day that he turned 40 in 1978. Now I'm 40 and planning a similar excursion.  He thinks it's some sort of mid-life crisis.

In 1978 my family of five piled into the brand new two-tone brown Ford Econoline van and basically lived in it for a month.  Camping our way out west and back.  I don't recall the trip given my age.  My brother Eric was 11 and John was 7 so they remember more.

I think that van may have been the first new vehicle my father ever bought (and the last for some time after).  He finally sold it 1997.  It was an integral part of every vacation as I grew up.  That van took us on innumerable camping excursions in the summer and Disney World trips during mid-winter break.  It eventually took us all off to college.

I wish I had a picture of the interior.  My father set it up himself.  My brother Eric picked the van color, brown, but it had a tan roof so it would not get as hot.  It had a bench seat about two-thirds of the way back.  We added brown paneling to the walls, orange carpet to the floor and orange curtains on the windows since we would be sleeping in there some nights.

I fondly remember the wars my brother and I had when he crossed over the seam into my portion of the bench seat.

Behind the bench seat, at about the same height as the top of the seat my father put in a piece of plywood (orange carpeted of course) which acted as a bed on the nights when the five of slept in the van.  All of our stuff was underneath.  We even had a porta-potty.  It was also brown.  I guess with three kids my father didn't want to stop every time one of us had to go.

It was a lovely shade of brown.

Home sweet home rolling through Sequoia.

From what I'm told we went from NY and took a more southern route to the west coat then came back via a northern route.  That is the opposite of what we are doing this time around.

The photo album my Mom had starts in Colorado with Pikes Peak and Mesa Verde (or Mesa Verdi as my Mom spells it).

Air Force Academy in Colorado (that's what the pic said)

Eric in Mesa Verde.

Next up was the Grand Canyon followed Sequoia National Park. Then we hit California. I'm not sure exactly where the picture by the Pacific is taken, although I do see pictures of the San Francisco Zoo and the National Forest in California.  You will see in the picture below that we are all backing away from the Pacific.  I believe the threat was that if any of us got wet it would be peanut butter and jelly for dinner again.  If we stayed dry, we got McDonald's.

Grand Canyon.  I think we all had the same haircut.

Stay dry!  No more PB&J!!

After a sweep through Utah to visit family we were off to Yellowstone, Devils Tower and Mount Rushmore.

Dad & John at Devils Tower.  The only pic that had both people and tower.

I just realized I still have that same haircut.

Then finally, what was probably the highlight of the trip for me was Bedrock City in South Dakota.  I even got to shake hands with Fred!!  I haven't washed that hand since, it's actually kind of gross, but I always want to carry a piece of Fred with me.

Yabba Dabba Doo to you.  I kept it professional.

The only picture where the three of us are smiling at the same time!

Now on to current time.  We are six weeks away from leaving.  I'm still giving the trip a 40% chance of actually happening.  I'm siding with pessimism so I can be pleasantly surprised if/when we actually pull this off.  I did figure out how to link the blog to HVMP's website and it is now available at both hvmprides.blogspot.com and blog.hvmp.com

I've definitely been riding more.  I took a 45 mile route to the post office that is three miles away last week.  I tested out the wireless hot spot and it works well.  Our newest purchases in advance of the trip include a Stubby tire changing tool, a valve replacement tool and white LED lights to mount on the front of the bikes.  Those were all purchased by my husband.  I went to Walmart and bought a compact mess kit.  Different priorities I guess.  I also bought a couple more freeze dried food packages. We tried to find them cheaper on the internet but by the time shipping was added it made more sense just to go and buy it at Walmart.

So 35 years later it feels like I'm due for this trip again.  Slightly different mode of transportation and altered route.  Still camping (we'll see about that).  So I guess as my father shakes his head in disbelief at my endeavor it is really all his fault.  He started it.

4. The Long Rides 3rd Companion: Technology

I'm not sure if I should worry that we are leaving in 7 weeks and I've only ridden my motorcycle once.  I took it out to the post office and to visit my parents late last week.  We are planning on riding a bit later today as well.  Time to get back into the swing of things.

Steve bought some sheepskin and put in some grommets so we can secure it to the bike, so there will be some extra cushion on my seat.  I find that my backside often has the most difficulty acclimating to many hours of saddle time.  Yesterday he also installed supplemental LED brake lights on both bikes.  Pictures of both are below.

My fluffy seat cover...oh and my HVMP bar ends!

The added LED's are on the back fender.

The idea of getting out on the open road is quite romantic  Just leave all your worries behind and enjoy the ride.  Nope.  Not going to happen.  I'm not there yet.  I'm bound to my technology and it is one of the main areas we are investing in prior to this trip. 

First, it started with the spot locator which arrived this week and Mom kindly offered to pay for.  Yes, I'm 40 and can pay for it myself, but what she is really buying is her own peace of mind. I did not grow up in a motorcycling family, so when I started riding in my 20's my Mom was very accepting, but that doesn't mean she's thrilled about it.  So, we have a deal.  No matter where I am, at the end of every day I call her and let her know we are safe and we are off the bikes for the rest of the day.  Whether it's a call after a quick ride to lunch or from the hotel near the Matterhorn in Zermatt, Switzerland, she appreciates it.  I've even called her after a ride that she didn't know I was going on.  It's just a thing we do now.  It's never my goal in life to cause her stress, so if a quick phone call will put her mind at ease, I'm all for it.

Now for a ride of this scope, there is obviously an intensified sense of worry.  The spot locator will allow me to send her a message via satellite that will basically tell her that we are safe but we have no cell service.  It will also allow her to track our progress as we make our way across the country.  Anything to keep in touch with not only her youngest but her only daughter....and I'd like to think favorite child.

It also has this nifty feature where if we get in real serious trouble we can hit a button and the spot locator will call for emergency services to come to our aid.   Hopefully, we will never have to use it but I think we will feel better having it.

Second, came talk of the communicators.  Our new helmets are set up to hold the blue tooth communicators.  So the idea of being able to speak to one another is appealing, although it may get old fast.  In the past I did not think it was necessary.  If I wanted to pull over I either passed Steve and stopped, or I would just stop and eventually he would figure it out and turn around.  But I guess it will be nice to be able to chat.

Steve will also be able to hear his GPS and music (I'm not really the music listening type while riding).  I like the ability to receive phone calls, although I wouldn't make a habit out of it.  I think we are going with a Sena, but unfortunately the newest model won't be available until May 12th...so that is going to be a late arrival. 

Third, was the laptop.  We have a cheapy, clunker of a laptop.  It does what it's supposed to do, but is not all that compact.  My home desktop runs Windows XP which will soon no longer be serviced by Microsoft, so I was planning on getting a new desktop.  But I have recently (like literally just last week) started working full time from home so my previous office desktop is now in my home office.  So instead of replacing my personal desktop we decided to replace the laptop.  I can hopefully log onto my day job if need be.  It will also allow us to log on and print out the HVMP shipping labels so my trusty bro-in-law can run the business while we party.

We bought this very lovely Lenovo Yoga which has a solid state hard drive (Steve says that is more better) and is kind of half tablet, half computer.  I have all of my Microsoft Office programs that I may need for work stuff, but it can be folded and is touch screen and has apps and is super light and I'm trying to figure it all out along with Windows 8.1.  I will say the Microsoft version of the Blogger app is crap.  You can only read blogs not edit your own.  I have to go on the internet to do that.  On my I-phone Blogger app I can write new blogs (which is also more better).

OK, so now we can talk and message Mom, call an ambulance and fire truck, listen to tunes, get directions, have conference calls, create spreadsheets, argue with one another and keep up with Orange is the New Black on Netflix.  Not very Easy Rider of us.  There was still one missing piece.

Fourth, and hopefully last, is today's latest purchase.  My own wifi hot spot doodad widget.  This contraption can supposedly connect to 2G, 3G, 4G, etc. and then make a wireless haven for up to 10 devices.  I have no idea how it will work, but I'll report back once I know.  It was a simple add to my wireless plan.

Steve is in charge of making sure everything can be charged on the bikes while we ride (except the laptop, that will wait for hotel time).

My feelings are mixed on remaining so connected.  I do hold on to this fanciful notion of life on the road.  The idea of feeling free spirited, wind blowing through my hair, grit in my teeth and maybe even little smelly is wholly appealing.  But, as a product of a responsible family I have been generally well-behaved and stayed on a path of being both dependable and accountable.  Going on a month long motorcycle trip is as bad-ass as I get. 

Although, who am I kidding?  I'm writing a freaking blog.