July 17 & 18, 2018
Preparations
The preparations needed for a ride like this...not much different that a couple of other really long rides I've done in the past. So, why am I struggling with some of this??
Fresh front tire? Yep, that task is done. Fought with that yesterday, along with an oil change. The list should be done, but as I write, I think of another item or two that could be done fairly easily.
Communications improvements were checked out on a ride late last week today; sounds good.
I've partially got routing data in the motorcycle GPS. That GPS is recording track data, so I'll need to verify that it'll save the data. If not, another function my phone will be doing is recording that information.
Routing Sanity Check
I've been looking over the routing that's been done. I think this is a ride that will be done in three unique segments. Each segment has its own difficulty scale - and for different reasons.
The first four days will be simply slogging thru the majority of the West and the northern and central plains.
Day 1: Eight stops, six unique states (AZ, CA, NV, UT, ID, OR)
Day 2: Eight stops, three unique states (WA, MT, ND)
Day 3: Ten stops, seven unique states (WY, SD, NE, CO, IA, KS, MO)
Day 4: Nine stops, six unique states (MN, WI, IL, IN, MI, OH)
35 stops, across 22 unique states. Yes, many states I need to stop in more than once.
Plotting that on a map, it looks like this:
Do-able? I'm just not sure how miserable I'm gonna be there in Ohio.
The second ride segment begins with Day 5 an intended 'recovery' day, yet I'll still ride 600 miles. This gives me the opportunity to stage an early departure for Day 6 - the lower-half of the New England region, as well as much of the northern mid-Atlantic region.
Day 5: Seven stops, four unique states (PA, NY, VT, NH)
Day 6: Ten stops, nine unique states & DC (ME, MA, RI, CT, NJ, DE, DC, MD, WV)
Another 17 stops, another 13 states, and DC. There are some that claim this really isn't part of the ride. I do - I'm right there! Two-thirds of the trip in six days!
As day 6 ends, the bike will be pointed generally-speaking, toward home. The final three-day segment is collect the remaining 14 states.
Day 7: Eight stops, six unique states (VA, KY, TN, NC, SC, GA)
Day 8: Seven stops, four unique states (AL, FL, MS, LA)
Day 9: Six stops, four unique states (AR, OK, TX, NM)
The whole trip animated, state by state, looks like:
A daunting challenge? The long distance endurance motorcyclist motto is "Plan the Ride, then Ride the Plan!"
Ten days...
The preparations needed for a ride like this...not much different that a couple of other really long rides I've done in the past. So, why am I struggling with some of this??
Fresh front tire? Yep, that task is done. Fought with that yesterday, along with an oil change. The list should be done, but as I write, I think of another item or two that could be done fairly easily.
Communications improvements were checked out on a ride late last week today; sounds good.
I've partially got routing data in the motorcycle GPS. That GPS is recording track data, so I'll need to verify that it'll save the data. If not, another function my phone will be doing is recording that information.
Routing Sanity Check
I've been looking over the routing that's been done. I think this is a ride that will be done in three unique segments. Each segment has its own difficulty scale - and for different reasons.
The first four days will be simply slogging thru the majority of the West and the northern and central plains.
Day 1: Eight stops, six unique states (AZ, CA, NV, UT, ID, OR)
Day 2: Eight stops, three unique states (WA, MT, ND)
Day 3: Ten stops, seven unique states (WY, SD, NE, CO, IA, KS, MO)
Day 4: Nine stops, six unique states (MN, WI, IL, IN, MI, OH)
35 stops, across 22 unique states. Yes, many states I need to stop in more than once.
Plotting that on a map, it looks like this:
The second ride segment begins with Day 5 an intended 'recovery' day, yet I'll still ride 600 miles. This gives me the opportunity to stage an early departure for Day 6 - the lower-half of the New England region, as well as much of the northern mid-Atlantic region.
Day 5: Seven stops, four unique states (PA, NY, VT, NH)
Day 6: Ten stops, nine unique states & DC (ME, MA, RI, CT, NJ, DE, DC, MD, WV)
Another 17 stops, another 13 states, and DC. There are some that claim this really isn't part of the ride. I do - I'm right there! Two-thirds of the trip in six days!
As day 6 ends, the bike will be pointed generally-speaking, toward home. The final three-day segment is collect the remaining 14 states.
Day 7: Eight stops, six unique states (VA, KY, TN, NC, SC, GA)
Day 8: Seven stops, four unique states (AL, FL, MS, LA)
Day 9: Six stops, four unique states (AR, OK, TX, NM)
The whole trip animated, state by state, looks like:
A daunting challenge? The long distance endurance motorcyclist motto is "Plan the Ride, then Ride the Plan!"
Ten days...
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