rocketbunny

My First 5K Race - A Run Report

2009-06-20T22:09:00.002-06:00

To give some background, ever since I got Lucy, I've been casting around for ways to make sure that she gets enough exercise to keep her from bouncing off the walls of my apartment. Along the way, I decided to make a major push toward improving my own fitness levels.

In late April I discovered and began the Couch to 5K program. Over 9 weeks, I worked up from running very short intervals all the way to 40 minute training runs (5 minute warm up walk, 30 minute run, 5 minute cool down walk). To give myself even more motivation, I signed up to run in a 5K race that a couple of friends were also doing. Lucy has been running alongside me this entire time, but for some unfathomable reason, the race organizers do not permit dogs on the course.

This morning's Dad's Day 5K race in downtown Houston was my first 5K race and also my graduation run from the Couch to 5K program.

Results:

Chip Time: 40:35

Gun Time: 41:16

Overall Place: 630 / 725

Division Place: 33 /44 (F 30-34)

I met up with friends Michelle and Jesse at the race start under the Wortham Arch around 7:40 AM. We were standing towards the back of the crowd (past the 10 minute/mile pace sign) so we hadn't been able to make out what the announcer at the front was rambling on about. When the gun went off at 8 AM, it was a little unexpected.

As the crowd started to slowly edge forward, I quickly put my headphones in and started my music. My trusty Polar F11 HRM was queued up, requiring just a one button push as I crossed the start line about a minute later.

I emerged from under the arch and was immediately presented with brilliant sunshine and a fairly steep (compared to the few other hills I've covered during my training) climb up and over 6+ lanes of Interstate 45 through downtown Houston. I knew I would be slow compared to other runners, so I stayed to the side, but I will say I was a little surprised at how very many people were passing me on each side. Michelle and Jesse quickly disappeared into the crowd ahead.

The run had started over an hour later than my training runs. The sun was beating down and there was very little shade on Memorial Drive. I estimate that it was already in the high 80s or low 90s. I kept telling myself that just like my initial *long* runs, this would be a mind over matter experience. I was capable, I just had to keep my mind on running and off my aching legs.

Passing the first mile marker, I was shocked to see that I had run it in only 12:15. This was my fastest mile ever, at least two minutes faster than my training pace. My heart rate was also much higher than it has been during my training. I started to constantly remind myself to slow down and save my energy for the rest of the race. I finally gave myself permission to walk about 16 minutes into the run when I glanced down at the HRM and saw it in the 180s, higher than I've seen it since my first week of C25K.

I started paying a lot more attention to the HRM at that point. Even at a brisk walk, it was high, at running rates. During the rest of the race, I ran only in brief spurts. I'd set a goal: run to that water station, run to that overpass, etc. Once I made the goal, I'd walk for several minutes. Despite walking large portions of it, I took only 14 minutes to get through the 2nd mile.

Climbing back up the I-45 overpass, I spied the Wortham Arch in the distance and saw that my time was still under 40 minutes. I decided right there to make a big push at the end and try to come in under 42 minutes (14 minute/mile pace). A few moments after starting to run, I found myself getting chills, and thought "This can't be good". I ignored it and the feeling soon went away.

Michelle and Jesse were on the sidelines cheering me on as I approached the finish line. I'm still a little surprised that I had the presence of mind to hit the "end" button on my HRM as I crossed it. I didn't make it in under 40 minutes, but my chip/HRM time of 40:35 far surpassed my original pre-race estimate of 42 minutes minimum, 45 minutes probable.

After I'd cooled off a bit, I looked more closely at my HRM results and was slightly horrified to see that over the 40 minutes, I'd averaged 91% of my max heart rate and even hit 101% at some point during the race. To compare, my recent training runs have averaged 80% and maxed out at 89%. I know that none of this is where I *should* be running, but as my body continues to adjust, average HR is trending slowly downward.

Anyway, the 5k was a lot harder than I expected. I need to work on not getting excited about running in a group and keep my pace slower and more sustainable. I hate to make excuses, I but I feel the weather was a big factor in my inability to run as much of the race as I would have liked. Houston in summer is pretty brutal. The organizers might have done better to schedule the race an hour earlier.

Lucy and I will continue to run and plan for another 5k in July or August. I'd like to improve my time and aim for actually running more of the race.

For my readers who are more interested in motorcycle topics, I have not been riding much lately, but I do have a 9 day trip planned for late August. I will be heading toward the east coast this time.

Life With Lucy

2009-04-18T13:03:00.003-06:00

I've had Lucy for about 4 months now. She's mostly figured out how things work: where to "go", which toys are hers, don't chase the Cat, etc.

Some pics for the grandparents:

A typical evening nap on the couch (she steals pillows)

At work (she comes with me about once a week)

Taking a bath (poor little abused puppy)

On a hike

Playing Keep-Away

2009-02-17T19:44:00.009-06:00

Problem:
Dog likes to eat Cat Feces and Bunny Poop.

I've been yelling at Lucy for the past week or so for going scavenging in Sorscha's cage. It was a problem, but my family has had a long history of dogs going after the "delicacies" that rabbits leave behind. There's also the problem of Cali invading Sorscha's inner sanctum (cage 2nd floor).

This morning Lucy discovered Cali's litter box. I came out of the shower to find a trace amounts of litter on the living room carpet. The box didn't look hugely disturbed, but there wasn't any poop (in the accessible area) either. (I use a Scoop-Free Automatic litter box)

(Short-Term)Solution:

The first priority upon coming home from work today was to make the cat box inaccessible and to make it harder to get into the rabbit cage.

I found an old damaged plastic packing box in my garage and proceeded to cut a hole in the "top" with an old steak knife. The next step was to put Cali in the box and make sure he could climb out. YAY! That problem solved (hopefully).

Sorscha's cage was a little more difficult. I have visions of using my new set of xtra-large bolt-cutters (thanks BF!) to modify some of my old cube storage system grids (an old time-tested bunny-proofing product) to create a vestibule for the cage. For now I went with an old cardboard box with a hole cut in it by the same steak knife.

Sorscha will probably "remodel" it into uselessness soon (chomp chomp), but it should work until I get my act together.

30 Days of 30 (cont.)

2009-02-16T21:19:00.001-06:00

W1A3 (week 1, activity 3):
(Feb 6) My actual 30th birthday. Nice day at work, got some gifts from coworkers and boss. BF and I met up at Rice Village after work and went out to dinner at Bombay Brasserie, a yummy Indian place.

W2A1
(Feb 7) My "observed" 30th birthday. (if public figures can do it... :P ) I dragged BF over to my parent's place around 3pm. We spent 3-5 cooking furiously and then the next few hours after that being furiously social. It was a nice relaxed party with around 10 friends (mostly fellow riders) in attendance. Everyone raved about the food: Tri Tip (it's a California thing), roasted turkey breast, red potato salad, Dad's Special baked beans, garlic bread, shrimp nachos, salsa, and guac. We finished off the party with a home-baked cake (yellow cake filled with vanilla pudding and fresh bananas with chocolate frosting). I managed not to spit on it. (I think/hope)

W2A2
(Feb 11) BF and I decided to be adventurous. Most of my past home cooking Thai endeavors have involved lots and lots (and lots) of peanut butter. This time we tried for Thai-style red chicken curry. There was a hint of restaurant-grade taste to it, but we both agreed that something was missing. There will definitely be more attempts (we have 3/4 can of curry paste to go through).

W2A3
(Feb 14) (the Valentine's edition) A while back, one of BBFITW (bestest BF in the world)'s coworkers introduced me to a wine type that I could actually drink without making a face (Muscato D'Asti). BF got me a bottle of that wine for my birthday. After going out for sushi, we headed to Pier1 for some fun wine glasses. Then back to his place for a relaxing evening with wine (yummy), a movie, and Lucy.

30 Days of 30

2009-02-02T22:39:00.001-06:00

Last month I half-jokingly designated January 30th + February + March 1 as my "30 Days of 30".

I will turn 30 on the 6th of February, a date that is now fast approaching. Thinking further about it, and with the BF bringing it up again and taking it much more seriously than I originally did, I've made it a goal to do something neat and out of the usual rut for myself on a regular schedule during the 30 day period.

I think a daily activity is probably an unattainable goal (a bit too much like a grueling IBA ride) so I'll go with a number-riffic! THREE out-of-the-ordinary activities per week.

It's only Monday and I've already gotten two down.

W1A1 (week 1, activity 1):
(Jan 30 - Feb 1)Last weekend was spent in Austin, TX. BF, I, and some of BF's friends attended a showing of "Master Pancake Theater : The Matrix" at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown. We had dinner and drinks in the theater while 3 comedians spent some time mocking the movie but mostly focused on Keanu's acting skills (or lack thereof). Before heading back to Houston in the morning we stopped at Kerbey Lane, a cute local cafe. I had some of the best buttermilk pancakes ever (sorry Dad!).

W1A2:
(Feb 2) I attended a Bike Night! It's been FOREVER since I managed to get myself out for a ride after work. The GS accommodatingly roared to life after a night on the trickle charger. I was a good little rider and made sure to top off the tires before riding off to Sugarland and the Live Oak Grill. I only realized after I'd gotten on the freeway that the last time I'd worn my winter/touring jacket was in July and all the vents were open, streaming 50 degree plus a 70 mph windchill air onto my body. Brrrrrrr!

Overdue Update

2009-02-01T18:48:00.000-06:00

It's pretty bad, really.

None of my motorcycles have moved since Thanksgiving and while it did snow here once, "winter" isn't really a vaild excuse.

The ST badly needs an oil change and valve adjust. I briefly considered trying to ride the GS on Saturday, but the battery was dead. We'll try for take two tomorrow night (I removed the center "gas tank" panel to access the battery (six screws!) and put it on a trickle charger overnight.

So what HAVE I been doing all this time?

My last real motorcycle trip was in July. I took a long weekend (4-days) and played "tag" with Georgia and South Carolina. I had a grueling schedule on this trip and didn't stop to take many pictures other than the required "state welcome signs". I found some enjoyable roads in the north Georgia mountains and also rode the Natchez Trace again (in the southern direction). Weather-wise, it alternated between disgustingly humid/hot and rainy. During this trip, I came to prefer rainy.

The good news is that all I have left to fill in on my "states visited" map is the Northeast + WA and ND. Alaska will continue to wait on the back-burner.

Not long after my last post in early September, Hurricane Ike rampaged through Houston and seriously disrupted my life. There was no damage to my apartment, but I lost power for 13 days. I bounced around between my parents house and my boyfriend's house, stopping in at home daily to check on the power situation. Due to those same electrical issues, my office was closed for 4 days. We ended up missing some deadlines and I had to work long hours the next week getting things taken care of (all while dealing with crazy traffic and junk all over the roads). The motorcycles didn't move at all in the month of September. CSTN (Central ST.N meet) took place a week after Ike hit. Having missed the National ST.N meet, I really wanted to go to CSTN. I agonized over it for several days before ultimately canceling my hotel reservations, reasoning that I just couldn't take a long weekend after having had to use 4 days of vacation for the hurricane and with overdue deadlines.

My four-wheel-ed-ness during the rest of the year can be attributed to a glorious, wonderful, incredible rut I've been in, spending weekends (as much time as I can, really) with my non-riding boyfriend. I'm optimistic that this may soon change. As a Christmas present to me, he signed up to take the MSF (beginning motorcycle class). We'll see where that takes us.

As of the beginning of February, I'm celebrating NINE YEARS on motorcycles. I also figure that somewhere in there, I've managed to amass 100,000 miles on two-wheels.

(I haven't kept the best records, but with ~37k on the YZF and ~60k on the R12ST, I have to have hit it with mileage between the F650GS, GL650, CB350, and Elite80. And yeah, I was a slow-starter. The majority of my mileage has been in the last 5 years.)

My biggest news-to-report came to me in late December when I welcomed Lucy, a 1.5 year old beagle, into my life.

The rescue society that she came from told me that she ran around a Houston neighborhood for several months after Hurricane Ike before getting picked up by animal control.

Other than a few stray accidents in house training, she's been a wonderful addition to my household. Sorscha tolerates her and even Cali is starting to warm up. Lucy absolutely loves spending hours playing with the dogs (Sophie and Kelsey) at my parents house and just had her first sleepover there so that I could go out of town for a weekend. I'm happy to report that my dog-exploration post in September was largely spot-on.

Anyway, I haven't put much thought into riding plans for the year.

The ST.N national is in Colorado this year. I'm unsure yet as to whether I'm going. Colorado is very close and I'm not sure I want to take a full week for it. I'm thinking a 10 day trip into the Northeast in August is probable. There is some possibility of New Mexico or Arkansas in April. More to come as my plans shape up.

Thoughts on bringing a Dog into my Life

2008-09-01T23:39:00.000-06:00

Its never going to be the right time to get a dog. Living situation, an active life, and my highly developed sense of the responsibilities involved have kept me from it for years.

Its never going to be the right time to get a dog, so maybe I should just do it.

I'm not talking RIGHT NOW. In roughly 6 months I will be renewing my current lease or moving (undecided). I'll also be turning 30. I was a dog person growing up and, while I adore my rabbit Sori and my cat Cali, a dog of my own has always been part of my dreams... a part of my future self-image. Is it time to make that dream come true?

I've been mulling over this for the last several months...watching friends get dogs, playing with my parents dogs, and yet again dragging Cali outside for a few torturous leashed walks.

Some thoughts looking at the potential impacts of a dog on my life and others:

Typical Work Day:
AM: as I'm running out the door, give Cali a scoop of food, give Sori a handful of cranberries
After work: Let Sori out of her cage, give Cali a scoop of food, fresh water
Before bed: Entice Sori into her cage with washed greens, a scoop of pellets, fresh water, and a yogurt drop treat

Typical Work Day +DOG:
AM: Immediately take dog out, feed dog before shower/dressing routine. Take dog out again before leaving for work. (Crate at least initially) As I'm running out the door, give Cali a scoop of food, give Sori a handful of cranberries
After work: Immediately take dog out. Let Sori out of her cage, give Cali/Dog a scoop of food, fresh water
During Evening: Keep an eye on dog. Play.
Before bed: Take dog out. Entice Sori into her cage with washed greens, a scoop of pellets, fresh water, and a yogurt drop treat

Analysis:
I will need to be more organized in the morning, making sure to leave enough time for dog breakfast to digest a bit so the "take out" is effective. My evening will have to be a little less self centered, making sure dog gets enough attention. There are lots of opportunities here (walk/jogging in the morning or evening) but will I be able to drag myself out into the heat or cold?

Work Day with afterwork activity (no visit home):
AM: as I'm running out the door, give Cali a scoop of food almost sufficient for dinner also, give Sori a handful of cranberries
Before bed: Give Cali half a scoop of food. Give Sori washed greens, a scoop of pellets, fresh water, and a yogurt drop treat.

Work Day with afterwork activity +DOG:
AM: Immediately take dog out, feed dog before shower/dressing routine. Take dog out again before leaving for work. (Crate at least initially) As I'm running out the door, give Cali a scoop of food, give Sori a handful of cranberries
After work: Go home. Immediately take dog out. Give Cali/Dog a scoop of food, fresh water. Wait half hour minimum while playing, giving attention. Take dog out. (Crate.)
Before bed: Take dog out. Give Sori washed greens, a scoop of pellets, fresh water, and a yogurt drop treat

Anaylsis:
With a dog, I will not be able to skip a visit home on days that I have something to do after work. This scenario happens at least once a week. In some cases I may be able to bring dog with me to afterwork activity (although this may or may not negate riding - see below). In others, it will have to stay home, initially crated for the majority of the day. On some occasions I may be able to bring a well-behaved dog with me to work so at least it is out of the crate for most of the day, but I shouldn't make a habit of this.

Weekend Day (at home or only gone for short times):
AM: Give Cali a scoop of food. Let Sori out, give Sori a handful of cranberries
Evening: give Cali a scoop of food, fresh water
Before bed: Entice Sori into her cage with washed greens, a scoop of pellets, fresh water, and a yogurt drop treat

Weekend Day (at home or only gone for short times) + DOG:
AM: Take dog out. Give Dog/Cali a scoop of food. Let Sori out, give Sori a handful of cranberries. Watch dog for signs of needing to go out again.
During day: Keep an eye on dog, play. If possible, bring dog with on trips away from house.
Evening: give Dog/Cali a scoop of food, fresh water
Before bed: Take dog out. Entice Sori into her cage with washed greens, a scoop of pellets, fresh water, and a yogurt drop treat

Analysis:
Not much added hardship here, and again, many opportunities.

Overnight Trip (1-2 Nights):
Cali on timed food dishes and just give Sori extra food + greens before leaving. Sori forgoes her daily greens, but Cali should see no difference.

Overnight Trip + DOG (1-2 Nights):
Dog will need a sitter or be dropped off at parents house. Cali and Sori can go with to parents house (likely) or share in sitter. 2nd option is continuing the previously established pattern with Cali and Sori and bringing Dog with me.

Anaylsis:
The scenario of business/motorcycle trips currently happens roughly 6 times a year. I like not dumping the pets on my Mom (and like even more not spending the gas and time to drive 70 miles roundtrip before and after a trip), but if I'm going to have to bring a dog over anyway, it may make sense to just bring everybody. The other factor here is overnight visits at my BF's house (very frequent). In this case, I would leave Cali and Sori at home and bring the dog with me - see Impacts below. A pet sitter option is more expensive and requires some major planning and trust of a stranger.

Major Tour or Multi-day trip (2-3 times a year):
Drop Cali and Sori at parents house.

Major Tour or Multi-day trip + DOG (2-3 times a year):
Drop Dog, Cali, and Sori at parents house.

Analysis:
This is added work on Mom, but no big change for me. See Impacts below.

Impacts on other people:
Mom has been a real trooper through the years. She is a pet person in the first place, but its really gotten out of control at times. Besides her own 1-2 dogs, she's cared for a multitude of rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, fish, Sophie the bloodhound, and now Cali, not to mention the short visits from various critters my sister Amy brings home from the zoo she works at.

I always feel slightly guilty dumping my pets on Mom when I have a trip. An added pet will need to be discussed with her before acquiring. The current situation also works well because my sister Amy lives with them and is often available even when Mom and Dad are away, but this will not last forever. Will the addition of a dog make it time to find a regular pet sitter?

There will be an even bigger impact on my BF. "Date me, date my pets." There has been little pet impact on my current relationship. BF isn't a big pet person (that is, he doesn't have one, and doesn't appear hugely interested in acquiring one anytime in the future), but appears to easily tolerate and even sometimes enjoy Sorscha's antics and Cali's everpresent floating hair. A potential dog will have to be extensively discussed with him. Will it visit his house when I stay overnight? Will it come with on outings? Will it mean more time spent at my house? Will I need to arrange a regular sitter to minimize impact on him? How will it impact the future of the relationship that was established without a dog?

I understand that my situation can and will change over the life of the dog. I'm not the type to abandon my pets when times get rough or I experience some inconvenience. If I'm in it, I'm in for the long haul.

Adult vs Puppy:
I am very inclined toward an adult dog: (1-2) years old, probably a rescue. I don't think I have time to put into the care and training of a puppy. Mom strongly feels that bringing an adult dog into my house would endanger Sorscha, my rabbit. I like to think that most dogs could be trained to respect the bunny and leave it alone (Sophie, for example was not yet a year old when she came into a 2-rabbit house, but far from being a puppy. The rabbits are safe with her.)

Comments? Thoughts? Am I being realistic here?

April 08 Trip - Day 11

2008-07-22T19:11:00.000-06:00

Day 11
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Alpine, TX - Houston, TX
578 miles

I'm used to being the last person out of the parking lot at these events, so I was surprised to find that there were still a few riders hanging around when I opened the door to my motel room. I packed the bike, said my goodbyes, and headed out for the now-familiar grind on I10.

The ride was uneventful. Warm temperatures and humidity welcomed me home.

My day was not over when I pulled into the garage and stripped out of my riding clothing. I took a shower and got into the truck for a 70 mile round-trip drive to my parents house to retrieve the grand-pets.

Finally in for the night, I relaxed on my couch, perused my pictures, and petted my cat.

Trip Costs:

Gas: $385.93
Lodging: $224.25
Food: $98.09
Petty Cash: $125.23 (includes ATM withdrawals and misc purchases)

Total Cost of 11 days on the road: $833.50

Not bad.

April 08 Trip - Day 10

2008-07-22T19:07:00.000-06:00

Day 10
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Alpine, TX
319 miles

We had a big group for breakfast this morning at a diner just down the street from the meet motel. Afterwards, many of the riders split up for day rides on their own.

I found myself roped into leading a small group up through the Davis Mountains to McDonald Observatory. From there, Rich (a fellow Texan who I've gotten familiar with over several pie runs and past STN events) led us down to Presidio for lunch at El Patio and then east on 170 for a roller coaster ride along the Rio Grande.

The funny thing is that many of these photos are duplicates of shots I took in December 2006. I guess I need to ride this route the other direction...

We got back to the hotel with plenty of time to relax before supper. For the "official* meet dinner, I had booked a group room at the Edelweiss Brewery & Restaurant in the historic Holland Hotel. I'd been looking forward to schnitzel all day... and the food did not disappoint.

April 08 Trip - Day 9

2008-07-22T18:35:00.001-06:00

Day 09
Friday, April 11, 2008
Socorro, NM to Alpine, TX
411 miles

"Screw that!" was my immediate thought this morning when the GPS presented me with an ETA of ~9 PM.

I threw out my original highly optimistic route that was going to take me over some scenic NM backroads and past Carlsbad Caverns NP for a quick stop.

Instead, I punched in a direct route to Alpine for a much more comfortable ~4ish arrival time. I spent the day racing along I-25 and I-10. The last hundred miles was on US-90, but the speed limit was still at interstate speeds.

The only bright spot worthy of mention flashed by with a double take. I didn't turn around for pictures, but I looked up the Prada Boutique in the middle of nowhere that night in my motel room. (It's "art")

I had made excellent time and really hoped to arrive at the motel in time to nap for an hour or two before having to put effort into being social. Instead, I found half the parking lot already filled with sport-touring bikes. Fortunately, the smiles came easily to my face and I happily greeted old and new friends.

At the appointed time, we strolled across the street to a steakhouse. My black and blue steak was excellent, although I think some of the other attendees were a bit put off by the idea of meat with a cool center (yum!). The accompanying (and also yummy) portobello mushrooms got a few sidelong glances: "Those look like cow ****!"

No photos today. I was insufficiently inspired and reluctant to stop on the side of the interstate.

April 08 Trip - Day 8

2008-07-22T18:30:00.000-06:00

Day 08
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Flagstaff, AZ to Socorro, NM
432 miles

In a way, the snow encounter in Utah, while unwelcome at the time, actually simplified and removed some potential stress from my trip.

From the first days of planning, I'd looked skeptically at the road options between Moab, UT and the Texas border. The good roads were in the mountains and it was still very early in the season. The safer roads, on the plains of NM, were likely to be fraught with hair-raising gusts of wind. These worries were now moot.

I had two days to get to the STN Region 2 Meet. The base (interstate) route between Flagstaff, AZ and Alpine, TX is about 800 miles. I always figure that adding interesting roads will add at least another 100 miles. My days are further lengthened by stops for attractions along the way.

Sitting in my motel room with Mapsource running on my laptop, I decided that the only thing to do was shortcut Arizona on I40 (after all, I had just ridden in the region a year ago) and try to make it to some new (to me) roads in NM.

Just cuz, I stopped for gas (and breakfast) in Winslow, AZ. It wasn't much of a corner.

To break up the interstate dash, I took some time to ride through Petrified Forest National Park.

The ranger at the entrance station swiped my parks pass, and then told me to be sure and have my camera out for the first six miles. Riding away, I looked at my gloved hands and shrugged internally. Riiiiiiiight.

Instead of attempting to take pictures while moving (yeah, I know some riders do it) I stopped at several of the Painted Desert vista points to take in the view.

The park road commemorates it's crossing of Rt 66 with a nice informational plaque and blatant photo op.

Having seen some geology and history, I was ready for the main attraction: petrified wood (yeah, I know it's stone).

Jasper Forest was once filled with logs fallen away from the eroding cliffs that once encased them. Around the turn of the century (the 19th/20th one, that is) the valley was plundered and many of the logs were dragged away to be ground down for minerals or sold to tourists.

The park was created to protect the remaining logs, but in it's early years, tourists often didn't follow the rules against collecting rocks. I couldn't help but think of all the times my parents hammered into us the rules against picking things up in National Parks.

Reaching Gallup, NM, I headed south on fairly straight state highways through a large indian reservation. The area appeared to be fairly depressed, so when I saw what appeared to be a bunch of junked trucks spread out in the valley ahead of me, I didn't give them much scrutiny...

...until ten miles later when I hadn't yet passed them and they had slowly resolved into satellite dishes. The gravel paving in the turnout couldn't stop me from pulling over to read about the VLA (Very Large Array).

About an hour later I reached I25 and decided that I'd had it for the day. I found an inexpensive motel on the strip in Socorro, NM.

Monday night bike meet

2008-07-07T18:58:00.001-06:00

Bunday

2008-06-29T21:39:00.001-06:00

I got a message the other day from one of Sorscha’s fans, disappointed that she hasn’t been on the blog for a while.

Sorscha is completely recovered from her illness last December. She’s been enjoying the (supervised) run of my apartment and has become very bold in her interactions with Cali.

I occasionally take her out onto my patio to wander around. It’s also the best place to release the clouds of white fur that occur whenever she gets brushed.

And while I’m at it…. I walked into my bedroom this morning to find Cali taking a nap by the closet…with his head sweetly pillowed on a book that I threw at him last week, when he was keeping me up by scratching on the mirror.

April 08 Trip - Day 7

2008-06-19T18:29:00.001-06:00

Day 07
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Zion NP, UT to Flagstaff, AZ
288 miles

The day dawned breezy and cool with patches of gray clouds rolling over. While packing my camping gear, I continuously switched between jacket and jacket-less. I’d get just cold enough to need the warmth, but quickly start sweating. Once I was off and moving, jacket with liner was just about perfect.

Some shots that don’t really capture the full glory of Zion: (I’m convinced that there is no good time to photograph this end of the canyon… I’ve been here in evening and now morning. The lighting sucks!)

I stopped at an overlook to read about the Zion Park Tunnel. Back in the 1920s this end of the canyon was seen as a dead end. There was only one way into the remote park and it was poorly paved.

In 1927, the NPS started the ambitious project of building a series of switchback up the side of the canyon and then boring a tunnel through solid rock. At the time of completion in 1930, it was the longest tunnel in the United States. The road made Zion more accessible to tourist from the Grand Canyon and Bryce, leading to an explosion in the number of visitors to the barely a decade old park.

Thinking about the history, I felt shivers looking up at the tunnel *windows*, which provide ventilation and were the means to remove excavated rock. I do love seeing and thinking about the debris of history.

Past the tunnel, I swooped along the Zion-Mt Carmel Road, stopping briefly to look at the various rock formations. I told myself that I would be seeing nothing but rock formations this day and promised to put effort into not becoming indifferent to their beauty.

As I approached Mt Carmel Junction and my turn north, the skies started to become worrying. I hadn’t seen a weather report in days, so it felt prudent to stop, get some gas, and figure out the situation.

I sat down to a very unhealthy breakfast at the Thunderbird Lodge and heard that there was a good chance of snow that day.

I find it interesting that 20 miles later, even as the first barely perceptible flakes were swirling around me, I wasn’t cold, I had my heated vest running in the background, my heated grips on, balaclava in place, and all liners in. All I was really thinking about was that sickening out-of-control feeling from September 2006 when I felt my bike slide out from under me in the snow.

I told myself that I would be fine as long as I had good visibility and the snow didn’t accumulate on the road. I drove serenely into the storm.

For the first few miles, the snow wasn’t sticking to the road. The lanes were clear and I felt good about traction. Then it got to the point where there were two distinct tire tracks on the asphalt, soon followed by two tracks in the snow. Road conditions were strongly reminding me of the last time I’d stupidly ridden into snow. With my visor starting to fog up and the constant wiping no longer working, I decided it was time to turn around and find a place to hole up until the storm was over. I put on my emergency flashers and, after checking carefully for oncoming traffic, got myself turned around.

I remembered seeing a gas station not far back. It seemed an attainable goal, but my logical reasoning about visibility and traction had failed to account for the idea that snow would also accumulate where I had been. Instead of quickly finding clearer roads, I continued through my frozen nightmare.

Somewhere in there I passed 2 bicyclists…doggedly pedaling along through the storm. I remember marveling at their determination.

In hopes of clearing the ice, I stopped briefly on the side of the road to spray my visor down with defogger. Unable to manage to cleaning more than the bottom half of the interior of the visor, I ended up forced to ride with it cracked open. My head was tilted up to look through the cleared portion and snow flakes, feeling just like small pebbles, continuously battered my neck and chin.

The parking lot at the gas station was seeing a lot of traffic. Every spot in front was taken, so I carefully parked the ST in the front corner and grabbed my tank bag. Chunks of snow dropping off my shoulders, I geared down under cover, just outside the entry. The attendant didn’t have much information about the storm, and I *needed* to know what was happening on radar, so I put my stuff down on a table and called Rebecca.

Cell signal was bad enough that I had to stand outside for most of the call. Rebecca was able to pull up some animated radar. Once I was able to make clear to her exactly where I was, she was able to tell me where the storm was and where it was going.

Bad news. The storm was headed north and east, just like me.

That pretty much clinched it. My red rocks excursion was over. I couldn’t risk running into snow at high altitudes in Bryce or on Utah 12 through the Grand Staircase area.

The storm was moving on at this point and the snow starting to melt. I went out to the bike to dig up my big US road atlas and to document (in a very melted state) the snow coverage on the R1200ST.

Feeling defeated, I headed south. The rest of the day was cold. Temperatures never rose out of the low 50s. I went through a few areas with light flakes, but no more snow like the morning. Constantly eyeing the sky with trepidation, the road seemed less fun and the scenery dull.

In Jacob Lake, AZ, with the skies once again threatening, I stopped for an early dinner. Walking into the bathroom in my geared down state of spandex-ey Underarmour shirt, biker shorts, and knee-high soccer socks with boots, I think my appearance shocked 2 women clad in pioneer style dresses. We eyed each other while waiting for a similarly dressed child to finish in the one stall.

Attempting to tear myself out of my funk of disappointment, I stopped several times for photos in the Vermilion Cliffs area. It was very windy, making for several scary moments wrestling the R1200ST off the side stand.

The wind was still a concern later in the day when I stopped at Navaho Bridge, but I ALWAYS brake for history!

Built in 1929, the Navajo Bridge is one of only 2 crossings of the Colorado River within 600 miles. At the time it was built, the only other way across the river between Utah and Arizona was an unreliable ferry a few miles down river.

In the early 90s it was determined the that bridge couldn’t withstand the increasingly heavy traffic. A new, similarly styled but more modern bridge (shown on the left) was completed in 1995. The original Navajo Bridge (on the right) is a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and open only to pedestrian traffic.

I approached Flagstaff on US89, eyeing the clouds cloaking the tops of the San Francisco Peaks, the highest mountain range in Arizona. Light snowflakes began to fall as I entered the city, making my decision to pass by the local KOA very easy.

I was aiming for my Old Reliable, a Motel 6, but the newish looking Travelodge next door was advertising free wifi, a guest laundry, and comparable prices.

Intermission

2008-06-10T15:29:00.002-06:00

Got an email today:

"You are receiving this e-mail because of your application for a ride
certification. This note is to let you know that your ride has been
approved and although your ride documents may take a few more weeks to
arrive, your membership has also been approved and entered into the
Iron Butt Association's member database.

Welcome to the Iron Butt Association!"

Woohooo!!!

The ride documentation (from January 2007) was finally mailed sometime last month, so the good news is that the IBA seems to be getting really fast with turnaround.

Of course, this can't be encouraging for all of you waiting for the rest of my trip report. Yeah, I procrastinate sometimes.

//I'm working on the whole trip report thing. Really!

///IBA #33634

////dances off in glee

April 08 Trip - Day 06

2008-04-10T23:33:00.000-06:00

Day 06
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Death Valley NP, CA to Zion NP, UT
294 miles

I only had two waypoints in my route for today: start and end. I wanted to get to Zion National Park as fast as possible to have time to ride the shuttle into Zion canyon (something I missed last time I was there).

With no showers available in the campground, I had little reason to linger. My tent was down and the R1200ST packed in record time. Breakfast was a granola bar washed down with some water from my Camelbak.

My desire to move quickly warred with the draw of the spectacular scenery I was passing by. Between vista points and desert flowers, I stopped several times on the way out of Death Valley.

A panoramic shot from one of the vista points is here(2.6mb): http://www.rocketbunny.net/uploads/april08/DVpanos.jpg

Reaching the border, I realized that I didn’t have a Nevada state line sign in my collection. That situation rectified, I suddenly realized that (odd as it was) I didn’t have a California sign either.

I rolled into Las Vegas on US-95 around lunchtime. An exit services sign advertised a favorite western fast food chain but didn’t give any further direction. I went up the road about a mile before turning around and trying the other direction. Just when I was about to give up and go find something else…. There it was!

Lunch was a cheeseburger with grilled onions, vanilla milkshake, and French fries that actually looked like they were some relation to potatoes.

When I walked outside after lunch, a woman (probably about my age) was gearing down by a sport bike parked next to the R1200ST. She stopped short, “Now why did I assume that it wouldn’t be another woman?”

I laughed and we chatted for a few minutes before she went in to start her lunch break. It’s rare to find another female motorcyclist riding alone.

I-15 surprised me with a rather fun ride through the Virgin River Gorge.

I reached Zion National Park around 2:30 pm.

Several years ago the Park Service closed Zion Canyon to automobile traffic (at least during the busy months) and instituted a shuttle system. The shuttles are free and make several stops at vista points and trailheads in the canyon. I came through Zion in July 2005 but didn’t have time to ride the shuttles into the canyon. I didn’t want to miss it this time!

I also didn’t want the R1200ST sitting unattended in a parking lot with all my gear on it for several hours. Upon arriving at Zion I checked into the campground and set up my tent. I pulled as much as I could off the bike and tossed it into the tent. Unfortunately, since there was no way that I was leaving my laptop and other electronics in an unattended tent, I had room only for my helmet in the bags. I boarded the shuttle in full gear (sans helmet) carrying my Camelbak and tank bag.

The canyon is an out-and-back trip. I decided to ride the shuttle to the end of the line to scope out the most promising stops.

I had expected the shuttle to be an ordeal. Instead I found knowledgeable operators who announced quirks of the canyon, quipped anecdotes about the various hiking trails, and pointed out rock climbers on the rock faces. While I would certainly have liked to be in control of my own vehicle, I think I learned much more about the canyon on the shuttle.

This deer was grazing beside the road and barely flinched when the shuttle rolled to a stop about 8 feet away.

Some shots taken through the open window of the shuttle:

In my bug splattered riding suit, tank bag swinging from the chest strap of my Camelbak, camera in hand, I must have looked like quite a character to the other hikers on the Riverside trail.

The shuttles run every 6-8 minutes. I got off at the Big Bend stop just for the overlook. By the time the next shuttle arrived, I had taken several pictures, soaked in the scenery, and was ready to move on.

At Weeping Rock, I took the half mile roundtrip hike up a steep trail to the main attraction. Water percolates through the porous rock from the cliffs above and then rains out where the river carved an overhang long ago. The moisture is constant year-round, so a “hanging garden” of lush plant life has taken root.

It was getting late when I reboarded the shuttle. I decided that I was about “Zioned-out” for the day. Reaching the visitor’s center, I walked over to the market for some bottled water and iced tea to go with my backpacking food supper.

Back at the campsite, I plugged in my camera and phone for some needed charging. I’ve discovered recently that RV campsites have outlets that can be very useful for tent campers in the age of electronics. I had reserved a riverside campsite for a short RV and set up my tent right next to the power so that I‘d be able to feed wires in through a side door. After dinner I shimmied into my sleeping bag and worked on my laptop late into the night.

April 08 Trip - Day 05

2008-04-10T00:14:00.000-06:00

Day 05
Monday, April 7, 2008
Cupertino, CA to Death Valley, CA
475 miles

It was a parade of the Beemers as Carolyn led me out of her subdivision this morning. She was on her way to work. I was on my way to motorcycle paradise.

As I visualize it, there are three valleys heading south toward the Central Coast. US101 is the western-most, for those with destinations along the coast. I-5 traverses the Central Valley, with the lion’s share of travelers. Running down an incredibly scenic and rural valley between them, CA-25 is an almost deserted road that sees only local traffic…. And motorcyclists/sports cars.

In the 60 miles between Hollister and CA-198, it is not uncommon to pass only 15 other vehicles. Cell service is very spotty. It’s just you, your motorcycle, throttle-tempting straights, vertigo inducing curves, and scenic California country-side.

I’ll let the photos speak for themselves.

CA-25 terminates at CA-198, a busy thoroughfare between US101 and I-5. (CA-198 later continues on to climb into Sequoia Kings Canyon NP, an incredibly steep switchback-fest)

I turned east onto CA-198, immediately gaining serious altitude climbing over a pass. This road is a roller coaster! Unfortunately there is always so much traffic that it’s hard to find good places to stop.

Reaching the Central Valley, I got on I-5 for the grind south toward Bakersfield and CA-178 (Walker Pass).

Early spring conditions limited my choices for crossing the Sierras. Most of the really fun passes will still be choked with snow for a few more months. Walker Pass is the first open pass south of I-80 (Donner Pass).

The pass follows the Kern River up to Lake Isabella. I’ve never taken this road, so my first inkling that it was going to be fun was the view of the huge opening in the Sierra foothills.

The Kern River canyon was a typical river canyon, with curves hugging the hillside and great views of the water rushing over the rocky riverbed.

Like many Sierra passes, the flora changed noticeably as I crossed. Lush and grassy on the western slopes, desert plant-life took over on the eastern side.

Crossing the Panamint Mountains, I started to feel hot. I‘d been wearing my liners all day, but with very few miles to go and the sun getting low in the sky, I didn‘t want to take the time to pull them out.

I stopped at the park entrance to add another sign to my growing collection.

With my destination for the night so close, I had a hard time stopping to see the attractions. This was exacerbated by the park service’s frequent use of signs reminding travelers to “park off pavement.” Yeah. Fat chance. I don’t THINK so!

Very ready to call it a night, I stopped at the Furnace Creek Market for some bottled water, peach iced tea, and a sticker for the R1200ST before setting up camp. My Jetboil made short work of the water for my backpacking food. I was soon sleeping comfortably in my tent.

April 08 Trip - Day 4

2008-04-09T21:37:00.000-06:00

Day 04
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Santa Barbara, CA to Cupertino, CA
341 miles

Waving goodbye to my parents, my first attempt to leave the hotel parking lot resulted in a stalled bike and a sheepish grin.

I started (successfully) the day’s ride by heading up and away from the coast on San Marcos pass (CA 154), a badly-kept secret shortcut of US101. It had been foggy and overcast on the coast, but as soon as I got on the other side of the first set of mountains, sunny blue skies greeted me.

California’s famous golden hills are green this time of year, but there were lots of patches of golden poppies, bright yellow mustard flowers, and waving blue lupine.

Coming down off the pass, I followed US101 to Pismo Beach. Just a few blocks from the ocean in “downtown” Pismo, Splash Café makes the tastiest, most wonderful clam chowder in the world (in my opinion).

My college town, San Luis Obispo, is just 15 miles up US101. Price Canyon Road, an alternate route from San Luis Obispo, runs inland through rolling hills. Back in college, when I had my Honda 80cc scooter, I would pack a bag with textbooks and ride down to the coast for an afternoon of studying on the beach, always punctuated with a sourdough bread bowl of clam chowder with seafood topping.

At just 11:30, the line was already out the door.

My plan for the day was to hug the coast all the way up to Santa Cruz. Back in college I would do this run as a weekend lunch ride, so I knew that Highway 1 from San Luis Obispo to Cambria was fairly boring. I had planned to liven up the route with a short trip inland to a couple of very special Central Coast roads.

I headed north to Santa Margarita. CA58 always makes it onto lists of the “Best Roads” in California. I’ve run it many times, but it’s always nice to revisit, even if only for a short distance. I like to think that the engineer who designed this road liked motorcycles.

Turning north onto CA227, I swooped and curved through rolling green hills. This road is unique in that it is one of very few numbered California state highways with no center line. Care must be taken in the many blind curves to stay to the right. This undulating, twisting road is a roller coaster. Due to the narrowness, there were very few spots where I felt comfortable pulling over.

I finally headed back toward the ocean on CA46. It was definitely wildflower season along this road.

I don’t think I’ve ever taken so many pictures along Highway 1. When I was in college nearby, it was a regular weekend ride for me, nothing hugely special. Many of the curves and distinct sections were like old friends. I vividly remember all the times I stopped for coffee at Ragged Point, gas at Gorda, and lunch in Big Sur.

The elephant seals were out in force north of San Simeon.

The fun really begins north of Ragged Point. The coastal mountains fall steeply into the Pacific Ocean, making for a thrilling ride hugging the slopes.

The vista point turnout overlooking Big Creek Bridge is a traditional stop for me. I always park the bike in the same place and take the same shot. I’ve got photographs of all my bikes (except for the scooter and the new GS of course) at this exact spot.

I’ve actually already got this shot of the ST, but I just had to grab another. I love this bridge. Really, I love all the 1930’s coastal bridges. The arches are so graceful and beautiful.

I slowed to pass through Big Sur and then crossed the Bixby Bridge (another delicious ‘30s structure). I’ve always considered this the end of the fun part of the coast road until you get north of San Francisco. The traffic between Big Sur and Carmel makes this stretch either a “passing fest” or a 2nd gear “hope the bike doesn’t stall following this RV” ordeal. I opted for a little bit of passing, a little bit of following.

From Carmel to Half Moon Bay, Highway 1 is mostly straight with a few stretches of freeway. I had been considering running all the way up to Santa Cruz and taking CA9 over into Saratoga, but I decided in the end to cross via Soquel-San Jose Road. This less well-known road through the redwoods has long been one of my favorites.

I would be staying the night with my friend (and motorcycling idol!) Carolyn (“Bluepoof” on several motorcycle forums). I arrived at her house around 6pm. After unpacking the bike and changing into “street” clothes, we chatted about cats and moto-camping gear until it was time to go to dinner.

We met about 12 members of Sport-Touring.Net at the “New Saffron Club” in Mountain View. All of us opted for the buffet, enjoying various curries, vindaloo, and other Indian dishes.

Carolyn, her husband Peter, and I finished off the outing with a trip to a local Asian supermarket. There, next to durian and taro popsicles, just down the aisle from the fish balls (yummy?), Carolyn stocked up to satisfy her sudden mochi craving.

April 08 Trip - Day 3

2008-04-09T21:36:00.000-06:00

Day 03
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Santa Barbara, CA
50 miles

Today was a much needed day of rest (at least from the bike). My parents and I got up early and had breakfast in the restaurant at the Doubletree resort we were staying at.

They graciously drove me to a nearby OSH (hardware store) where I bought an assortment of torx bits (I could NOT remember what size the valve cover bolts were). Deciding that dirty fingernails and weddings do not mix, I held off on actually pulling the cover until that evening.

Steven and Allison’s wedding was casual and comfortable. I saw a few friends that I hadn’t seen in several years. After a short ceremony, we mingled on the lawn of the park. Dinner was a tri-tip, rib, and chicken BBQ (in CA that means grilled :P ) with traditional Santa Maria fixing’s (potato salad, green salad, beans, garlic bread).

Back at the hotel, I sat next to the R1200ST in the dark. With the light of an LED headlamp, I pulled the left valve cover off. As I suspected, the “donut seal” around the spark plug shaft was misaligned. It was now slightly malformed. I cleaned it and reinstalled it, hoping that it would at least slow the leak.

April 08 Trip - Day 02

2008-04-04T22:48:00.001-06:00

Day 02
Friday, April 4, 2008
Lordsburg, NM to Santa Barbara, CA
788 miles

I watched the sun rise in my mirrors as I jetted across New Mexico.

The desert was cold at dawn. My flaky thermometer (which can usually be trusted below 80 degrees) told me that it was in the mid 40s. I pulled over on the side of I-10 to close jacket vents, insert liner, and swap my summer gloves for the lightly lined Racers. As I was pressing the right side case closed, a NM highway patrol car pulled in behind me. I gave him a thumbs up, but he got out of the car to ask if I was ok.

“Yup! Just freezing!”

He nodded and continued on his way. I saw him again about a mile down the road, twinkling away behind an SUV.

Feeling a little more relaxed this morning, I got off the highway at the Texas Canyon rest area in Arizona for some pictures of the spectacular rock formations in the area.

Having breakfasted early on a granola bar and gas station cappuccino, I was starving when I reached Gila Bend at the turning point of the I-8 Phoenix bypass. For the last 20 miles I had been fantasizing about a McDonalds Filet-o-fish sandwich (guilty pleasure). Unfortunately, I had neglected to take Arizona’s inobservance of DST into account and it was only 10:30. The restaurant was still serving breakfast. I did not feel like breakfast. I settled for a chicken biscuit and a hazelnut iced coffee, eating my “lunch” outside on a sunny patio in view of the R1200ST, which had also just eaten.

While gearing back up, a fellow traveler stopped to chat about bikes, traveling, and sunny Arizona days. Walking away, he said “Be careful. There are a lot of crazy people out there.”

“Yeah. I think I might be one of them.”

There were several slow construction zones on the state highway leg of the bypass. I started to wonder if I would have done better to just ride through Phoenix.

An attendant waved me through the agricultural stop at the California state line. While doing all those family road trips growing up, Mom always pressed us to finish the apples and oranges before reentering California. I remember the last day of our trips as being an orgy of fruit-eating. I don’t remember the check stations being staffed the last several times I crossed the state line inbound.

I passed the 1500 mile mark at 5pm Central time (1.5 hours to spare) near the San Bernardino county line. Having achieved 1500 miles in 36 hours, I moved on to my next challenge: Los Angeles area Friday afternoon traffic.

I’ve long maintained that learning to commute in the Bay Area made me a better, more aware rider/driver. I got to put that statement to the test today. Nearing Redlands, traffic rolled to a standstill. I took a breath, dropped some gears, and dove for the dashed line. I was only moving about 10-15 mph, but risks were coming at me faster than they do at any speed in twisties. Every single car had to seen, evaluated, and monitored as I passed. I watched for gaps that a car might dive into. I watched for fluctuations in the width between cars.

I’ve never liked lane sharing the BMW with side bags on. The bike defines “Wide ass.” I had to be very careful in evaluating what gaps I could safely make it through. I pulled into the lane several times to let narrower sport bikes pass by.

I think I understand why riders who live in areas that don’t allow lane sharing are so skeptical of it’s safety. Having not split in over 2 years, *I* found it very scary. It was hard to believe that there was a time when I did it daily without stressing.

After about 2-3 miles of splitting, I passed the burnt out hulk of a passenger van that had been slowing traffic. The freeway sped up and the HOV lane started a few miles later. It was mostly continuous all the way to Pasadena. It was *so* nice to have HOV lanes actually worth the pavement they’re made of.

Traffic slowed again through Ventura, but not enough to try more lane sharing. I had already ridden over 700 miles that day and I just wanted to avoid the stress.

The characteristic scent of eucalyptus welcomed me to the coast. With 20 miles to go, I had to pull over for gas (beyond empty on the gauge). I inserted my liner and swapped gloves after paying $3.95/gallon for premium.

Dad waved me into the parking lot of the resort we were staying at. He and Mom had been tracking me on the SPOT and knew when I would arrive.

Today was Mom’s birthday. I had carried her birthday present (from her three lovely daughters) all the way from Texas. She seemed very happy!

After taking a quick shower and changing out of riding clothes, Mom, Dad, and I went down to the Santa Barbara harbor to have a seafood dinner and gaze at the Pacific Ocean.

April 08 Trip - Day 01

2008-04-03T21:21:00.001-06:00

Day 01
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Houston, TX to Lordsburg, NM
918 miles

The skies were still dark as I made my departure. The R1200ST and I hummed down I-10, making good time yet very aware of speed limits. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many highway patrol as I did this morning between Houston and San Antonio. LEOs were everywhere! Camped out in ditches, hiding by on-ramps, or just twinkling away as they made someone ELSE’s morning a little more miserable.

I zoomed through the San Antonio area on Loop 1604 just after 9. Morning rush hour was almost over, barely checking my progress.

At my second gas stop’n’snack in Junction, TX (around 11 AM!), I noticed some oil seepage on the left valve cover. During my third stop (in Ft Stockton, TX) it had made itself known with light oil splatters on my boots, pants leg, and sidecase. Analyzing the trail, I decided that the “donut seal” (as Jim VanBaden calls it) had not sealed properly when I reinstalled the valve cover after I did the valve adjust last weekend. I always carry spare oil, so for now I’m watching the oil level. I’ll try to get a chance to pull the cover and reinstall it either in Santa Barbara or at a friend’s house in the Bay Area. I’m assuming that the “donut seal” may easily be ruined at this point. I’m thinking it might be a good idea to call a BMW shop in Santa Barbara (?) or Las Vegas (assuming they’ll be open on Tuesday) to see if I can get a replacement. I can install it…. I just need the part.

The weather had been mostly cool all day. I caught a few sprinkles in the Hill Country, but nothing that inspired me to swap my summer gloves for the waterproof ones. The skies cleared in the afternoon and the temperature rose into the 90s (according to my temperature guage, which can’t always be trusted).

Somewhere in west Texas it occurred to me that an undocumented Saddlesore 1000 (1000 miles in 24hours) was very attainable, or if not that, a Bunburner (1500 miles in 36 hours). I just need to make 1500 miles by something around 4pm Pacific time tomorrow and *I* at least will know that I’m capable.

El Paso was as polluted as ever. I was a little concerned because I was going through around 5pm. It turned out that my only delay was a 5 minute backup as my side of the freeway rubbernecked a particularly spectacular accident that had shut down the other side.

A mini-whirlwind rocked us hard near Deming, causing me to reevaluate my plan. It was starting to get cold and dark clouds hovered over the horizon.

Somewhere between Deming and Lordsburg I abandoned the SS1K idea. The main factor here was that I didn’t want to have to find a motel in Tucson in the dark (I hate staying in large cities). The sun was still in the sky when I checked into a motel in Lordsburg, NM.

Westbound Flight

2008-04-03T04:41:00.000-06:00

Lately I've had my share of being crammed into a coach class airplane seat with headphones jammed into my ears playing loud tunes to drown out the noise of rushing engines. I've jetted over the country, staring wistfully out the window at puffy clouds, colorful terrain, and twinkling cities dotting the horizon.

When I heard that my long-time friend Steven (fellow super-involved 4-Her, fellow dorm resident advisor, college roommate, and at one point in my life almost like a brother) was getting married in early April, my first thought was to look at airplane ticket prices. After looking at my calendar, my next thought was a long and considered "Hmmm."

The wedding was to be in Santa Barbara, CA. The following weekend was the Sport-Touring.Net Region 2 meet in Alpine, TX (almost halfway to California). The wheels turned (swooped through curves?) in my head as I contemplated my available vacation time and probable early spring conditions (negating the really good stuff in the Sierras and Rockies).

I finally decided to skip the flight in favor of loading up the R1200ST for an 11-day western US excursion.

In a few minutes I'll buckle up and take off on a grueling 1600 mile 2-day interstate blast to California. The return trip will be a little more relaxed. I'm going to drift up the coast and visit some friends in the San Francisco Bay Area before heading east into Utah and New Mexico. I just need to land myself in Alpine by next Friday.

I'll try to post updates nightly... but I can't guarantee nightly internet access. Enjoy the flight!

42k Service, Tires, & Pre-trip update

2008-03-31T09:50:00.003-06:00

I broke all the rules by doing the 42,000 mile service on the R1200ST over the weekend (@42500 miles). I leave on an 11 day tour this Thursday.

I started Saturday morning by reinstalling the wheels (new rear tire and remounted a spare front tire).

Sidenote: Big Thanks to Patrick at Motorcycles Unlimited. He'd reserved a Z6 for me when I called on the previous Tuesday morning, but when I got there Tuesday afternoon, he asked me if I'd like a just delivered Pilot Road 2 instead. These are the first PR2s that he's recieved, so he asked for a review after I'd put some miles on them. I was sad to report that they would see 1600 miles of I-10 before they ever see twisty roads.

After a quick breakfast, I pulled the valve covers and did a valve adjust following Jim VanBaden's excellent tutorial. I finished by changing the engine and transmission oil. The bike was buttoned back up by 1:30.

On Sunday I packed all my camping gear into a large tail bag and dropped it off at my parents house. They'll carry it to Santa Barbara for me, simplifying my load for the 2-day I-10 run from Houston to Santa Barbara.

Steven, a very good friend from 4-H and also one of my college roommates, is getting married this Saturday. I plan to attend the very casual wedding (Santa Maria style Tri-Tip BBQ, anyone?) and then embark on a California and Southwest US (mostly Utah) tour. I'll end the trip with 2 nights in Alpine, TX for the Sport-Touring.Net Region 2 meet.

Keep an eye on this blog starting Thursday!

Ponder Pie Run

2008-02-04T13:00:00.000-06:00

This day-ride report is a little late, but I have a few pictures to show and several gear comments that tie-in nicely:

The sun had not yet risen when I left my garage for the Ponder, TX Pie Run. At 277 miles each way, it was an ambitious ride for a late January day in Central Texas.

Route-wise, I spent the majority of the ride on I-45, switching over to US287 in Waxahatchie (love that name) to avoid going through the Dallas side of the DFW Metroplex.

Some people who attended the pie run said that it was the worst fog they'd ever experienced. Having ridden in Tule fog in central California, I couldn't agree, but it was certainly thick.

It was also cold. The temp gauges I passed said it was in the 40s (F). My Widder vest got it's first workout of the year and the grip heaters were on high.

My first stop was around the 200 mile mark to get gas. I let my fingers defrost briefly in the gas station while I sipped some cappuccino. I probably should have been wearing the Tourmaster Coldfront Carbon gloves instead of my Racer Multi-Tops. The Racers were warm enough with the addition of grip heaters, but having to grip tightly was making my fingers cramp up uncomfortably.

The Widder vest performed perfectly, but I still wish a little that I'd purchased something with sleeves. I've had this setup for around 5 years at this point and never regretted spending the money. Widder is going out of business at the end of this year (retirement). I need to snap up some $80 arm-chaps while they're still available.

I arrived at the Ranchman's Cafe, aka The Ponder Steakhouse, right on time at 11am. Lunch was a quarter pound "kid" cheeseburger followed by a slice of buttermilk pie.

The sun had come out by the time I was ready to point the R1200ST home. Dwayneinfo tried to tempt me into going to Motoliberty (fantastic Dallas moto-gear store), but I really wanted to be home (or at least close) by dark.

I had my SPOT in tracking mode for the entire trip. Looking at the log, it appears to have missed a few reports while going through Dallas, but still performed adequately as far as I'm concerned.

Farkling the F650GS - Round 2

2008-01-29T23:52:00.000-06:00

Today was like an early birthday! The F650GS and I got presents!

My ZTechnik windshield arrived from A&S Motorcycles around noon. A few hours later, the Quest RAM cradle and Widder battery hookup showed up from Whitehorse Press. I stayed late at work helping a coworker with a project, but hit the garage as soon as I got home.

The windshield install was super easy.

The unmolested GS with my long-ignored CB350 in the background (yeah, I need to sweep the leaves out):

The windshield kit'o'parts: sheld, u-shaped plastic spacer, screws, washers, and simply! good instructions:

GS sans stock fly-shield (3 screws removed):

New windshield installed. Easy Cheezy!

Sitting on the bike, this windshield is fairly tall. At 5'-4", I'm definitely going to need to keep the windshield clean, but I can easily see over it. I don't think I've had a shield this high since I sold the GL650. I have high hopes for it's effectiveness battling wind at higher speeds.

Next on deck was the RAM cradle for my Quest2 GPS. I'd been toying with the idea of fitting it with conduit hangers (like I did on the R1200ST). In the heat of the moment, I decided to simplify my install (and avoid scrounging through my *boxes of stuff*) by pulling one of the RAM balls off the ST and installing it onto the mirror of the GS. I found a diamond shaped plate with a ball attached in one of my spares boxes, along with a short RAM arm to connect it all to the bike.

Visible in this picture on the left side handlebar is my old Formotion glow-in-the-dark thermometer. I got pissed off at it's unerring inaccuracy last year and removed it from the R1200ST. I've decided to give it another chance.

You can also see the switch for the heated handgrips duct-taped (silver) to the left side of the cockpit. I still haven't made it over to my parent's house for a larger drill bit.

Finally, I connected the Widder vest battery connection to the BlueSea fuse box (clear cover, yellow latch, colorful fuses) that got installed two weeks ago. The F650GS now has full cold-weather capability.

The red line running along the subframe toward the rear of the bike (top-right side of the pic) is the switched wire from the tailight. I'm really trying to keep this install tidy.

If I can get my act together tomorrow morning, I'll give the new windshield a whirl. Watch for a review in the next few weeks.