21 months to go...

Hey Guys,
I realize that we are still a ways out but here are some dates to consider...

If we are going in June instead of the Fall, we have approx. 21 months to go.
That leaves those without a licence 9 months to get one or you will not be able to rent a motorcycle.
(Remember, the rental places want you to be a licenced motorcycle operator for 12 months before you can rent a bike).
Now, that is not a problem for those of you that might be thinking about purchasing a bike between now and the ride but those of you that can't, you have to plan.

The other factor is that many areas will not be doing the motorcycle safety courses past Oct.1.
You have to check!
That may only leave you with 3 moths to get your course in and the spring is the hardest time to get into the classes. They fill up quick.
Plan, Plan, Plan!!!

The other issue is the funds for the trip.
If you are like me, you will need to be putting money aside each month.
The rough estimate for the trip was about 3,000.00
That included the rental, airfair, hotels, food and very little else.

3,000 divided by 21 = HOLY CRAP! , 142.86 per month between now and the trip!!
That also does not account for all the other stuff you will end up buying when you get your bike or you become a rental rider. Leathers, helmet, gloves, glasses, tatoo, all the things that make you a biker.

I am not trying to insult your intelligence.
Just helping think through and remind you of the facts when I know that the busyness of life will distract you from what is really important. THE TRIP OF A LIFETIME!!

I do want to address one issue in this post.

Warm/Hot weather riding
This summer I made it a point to ride on a few 90 + degree days.
One of the days topped out at 98 Baltimore degrees!
I was in the seat for about 8 hours.
That equated to about 300 very hot miles.
It was ignorant.
I tried to ride with very light clothing, riding with light colored clothing, special " wick" shirts and in heavy leathers.
Here is what I found...
For me, light colors worked pretty well.
Heavy leathers did not make me very comfortable but they did make me feel less tired, later in the evening, after the ride.
It appears that I was still loosing an amazing amount of fluids (Sweat and peeing till it was crystal clear) but the fatigue was less after the ride with the heavy leathers.
I realize that riding in the humidity capital had a lot to do with the discomfort and riding in Arizona will feel all together different. It is a dry heat , you know.

You are going to have to find what is comfortable to you.
I have become a wimp when it comes to heat.
It makes me all grumpy and stuff.

I found this and many others like it.
This will be a strong consideration for me.

Cool Shirt

These are "cool" because they use a small can of cold , not water.

 

To find your comfort, you have to RIDE in the heat.
You only have one more summer to experiment.

O.K. now for the visual stimulation to keep the readers attention.
I gave the bike a face lift this spring.
Had to get new tires so I took the time to get new rims and paint the bike too.
Jeremy was a big help and I think it turned out beautiful.

This was a prototype design that did not make the cut.

 

My shed became a paint shop

 

 

 

 

It is hard to see the paint is now a beautiful candy red with more flakes than a bowl of Saturday morning cereal.

Love it.

 

I also participated in a cancer ride this year.

Very cool experience.

This was with my new, 39.00 HD video camera.

Don't judge.