Back home safe and sound

I got back home around 10:30pm last night. It was a long, hot day and I was just so tired of riding at that point, every mile seemed harder and harder. I slept well though, and quite late this morning. It felt good to wake up and not have to ride.

I am working on a trip report but it will take a while. My first goal is to get the paperwork completed and submitted to the Iron Butt Association for the 48-10 certification. Then I can start collecting my thoughts and writing them up in some understandable manner. However, for now here is a take-away from this ride: 13,600+ miles in 20 days! Not bad, huh?

Back in the USA

I am staying the night in the Red Roof Inn in Hamburg, NY. Nice room with a big bed. I am sure I will sleep well. I was listening to the weather radio and there is a front moving in that is going to be intense but not last long. They are calling for 35 knot winds, heavy rain, lightning strikes and possibly hail. I didn't think I could get south fast enough and, really, not in any shape to try. One more day of riding. Can't wait to get home. Seems like I have been gone forever.

Today was relatively uneventful except the oncoming semi (on a two lane road) that decided to put his right side off on the dirt shoulder just as he was getting to me. I am always scared the oncoming driver will over-correct into my lane. He didn't but sent up a big dirt cloud that I had to ride through as he was going by me. He's on the "fecal head" list for now.

Speaking of semis, I found the Canadian drivers to be well behaved and professional. If you were caught behind them for any length of time at all, they would throw their left blinker on to let you know it was safe to pass. The first time this happened I thought the driver was passing something in front of him so I held back until I realized what he was doing.

It was slow going coming south on the east side of the Great Lakes on route 11. Once I reached North Bay the rode opened up to two lanes divided all the way into Toronto. It started raining in Toronto and has been raining since. Not heavy, just enough to be annoying.

I caused another border crossing incident. I was expecting the border gates to be backed up but they weren't. In fact there seemed to be like 15 lanes open with hardly any traffic so I had to pull off to the side (with my four-way flashers on) and dig my passport out of the zip lock back in the fairing pocket. An Agent came towards me with his flashlight and wasn't happy. Sheesh.... He's just doing his job so I have no complaints.

Well, as I type this I hear thunder so this was probably a wise decision. Off to bed now.

In Hearst, Ontario

I am in the Queen's Motel in Hearst for the evening. The Night Manager who checked me in was very pleasant. We had a nice long chat about what I was doing. I gave him the URL to this blog so maybe be reading this now.

I left Kenora this morning and headed to Thunder Bay. It took much longer then expected due to road construction and road conditions. Sometimes the roads were good for a long ways but then other times there were miles of crappy road that were just fatiguing.

In Thunder Bay, I stopped at the Harley Davidson shop and picked up a t-shirt for Joe (if he wants it - kinda expensive). While there I had a conversation with a Harley rider. Turns out he was American and in the Air Force. I think he said he left from Indiana and had camping gear and a fishing pole. He was on his way back home.

The ride from Thunder Bay to here on 11 was both good and bad. Lots of construction and bad sections of road but with a very nice view of Lake Superior and other lakes along the way. The road winded and twisted along the lakes and it was quite a nice view. I enjoyed it, when I wasn't being beaten to death. Cars and trucks seemed to fare better then me, of course they have four or more wheels with independent suspension. There were several parts (transition - old road to new pavement) with little to no warning that I thought would blow the seals out of the forks.

Dale called but I wasn't able to talk long because I had just pulled in for gas and needed to pay for it but I appreciated his phone call and advice about upcoming lodging and fuel locations. Sorry Dale. I also heard from my parents and it was good to hear from them.

On the way from Longlac (Long Lake) to Hearst, the sun started to set and I was worried about big wildlife in the roads so I got behind a flat-bed 18-wheeler for quite a ways. Then it started to get cold and I couldn't take it any more so I had to pull off and put on my heated vest. I did my best to catch up to the flatbed but he was quite a ways ahead. While trying to catch the truck, a big female moose came from the other side of the road and crossed in front of me. It was still dusk so it wasn't hard to see her but I had to get on the brakes pretty hard. She seemed unconcerned. Man, she was a big girl. I eventually caught up to a SUV and then we both caught up to the flat-bed about 20 miles outside of Hearst. I didn't see any more moose. Frankly one was one too many.

I will be continuing on Route 11 with a brief stop in Quebec on the way south. It will feel good to make it to the border, cross over and then continue south to Virginia Beach. This has been on long trip.

Oh, before I forget - I need to clarify yesterday's post about the cost of the room. I called four hotels in the Kenora area and one had no vacancies and the other's were even more expensive. So, the Comfort Inn while expensive (yes I am cheap and I also think a good night's sleep can be found on top of a picnic table in a rest stop) was the best value I could find. As I was leaving this morning, Pamela (I hope I remembered your name correctly) approached me in the parking lot and wanted to know if I was the guy that blogged about the cost of the room. Evidently she can see what websites people go to. Not sure how that works exactly but since they are an open wireless hot spot they must be practicing a modicum of due diligence on illegal activity on their Internet connection. Anyway, Pamela was very nice and we had a great chat in the parking lot about this ride. She wanted to know a lot about it and had been reading some of this blog and said she would read the rest of it. So, Pamela, if you are reading this - my thanks to you and your staff. I had a very pleasant stay and hope that I have atoned for the comment posted yesterday.

Night all. Off to bed.

At the Comfort Inn, Kenora, Ontario

Today was a long day. I am beat. Sleep will be welcomed tonight. The room is nice but very expensive (relative to what I have been paying).

Coming across Saskatchewan, there were critters all over the place. They looked like big rats, or small squirrels but with a rat-like tail with a bit of bushy fur on the end. They hopped like squirrels but would stand up on their bag legs to look around. I was thinking they were prairie dogs; however I thought that prairie dogs were lager. Can anybody help me out on this one? They were a nuisance!

Roads were mostly good, except the stretch from Moose Jaw into Regina. I think a couple of my fillings came loose. The roads in Alberta are far superior to Saskatchewan.

After crossing into Ontario and before getting here, there was a 20 or so mile stretch that I counted 14 deer close to the road, but not so close as to be an issue. Joe LaGrave, I will show you on a map where that section is and you can come up next year and hunt them. The locals aren't doing a good job of keeping the numbers down. I WON'T even chide you about shooting Bambi's father!

Off to bed. Thunder Bay in the morning and then North Bay after that. I think I am going to pass on Quebec and get that some other time, so I may be crossing at Toronto/Buffalo and then working my way down through PA (close to State College) and keep dropping south.

In Medicine Hat, Alberta for the night

Slow day today in terms of forward progress. I came down through the Jasper National Park and I could barely go 10 miles before I had to stop and take pictures. The scenery was unbelievable. The Canadian Rockies are something to behold including the wildlife. I saw a bear, female moose, 3 mountain goats/sheep (the ones with the curled horns). One let us spectators get close enough to take a picture. He seemed very unconcerned by our presence. In a place called Bow Lake, I was at an elevation of 2050 meters (I have my GPS set to metric measurements just because it is easier so you do the math on this one) and there was snow along the roads. Bow Lake itself was covered with ice. That was pretty interesting to still see that on the first day of June, at least for me.

I am just west of Saskatchewan and then Manitoba after that. I would like to reach Thunder Bay, Ontario if possible tomorrow. That would be a SaddleSore 1000 within Canada (more then 1,000 miles in 24 hours). The land is very flat here, much like Montana and North Dakota. Lots of farm land and cattle. At least I am now on two lane roads with a divided highway and a 110KPH speed limit so I feel like I can make decent time. We shall see how tomorrow goes, although right now it looks like rain tonight. Hopefully not.

Once in Thunder Bay, I will most likely take Highway 11 over the top of the lakes and not go through Sault Ste. Marie. I hear the latter is slower going and I am now looking for quickest and fastest way home, although I still want to touch Quebec before heading south.

Time for bed. Many thanks to all who are still reading this and tracking me.

In a Hotel for the night.... no parking lots or picnic tables...

I left from Hyder, AK this morning and it has been an absolutely gorgeous day. I definitely like coming out of Hyder down to Prince George during the day instead of at night. 37a and 37 are beautiful roads. Gorgeous scenery and the road surface is as smooth as a baby's butt. It was hard not to open the throttle up and let that big 6-cylinder engine run. Yes, I know... cops.... but there weren't any. I have seen two RCMPs the whole time I have been in Canada and that was in Prince George. I guess the rule up Hyder way is run as fast as you want and there will still be someone who wants to pass you.

I stopped in Prince George for an oil change. I went to Canadian Tire and they were still holding my oil that I reserved before starting this trip but they wouldn't change it or let me do it myself in the parking lot because of environmental issues. However, Guy (and if you pronounce his name the way you think you should, you are showing your lack of Parisian culture (it's "Gee") oui oui - was very helpful and made some calls to motorcycle shops for me. ALL of the metric places are closed on Sundays and Mondays. The only place that was open was the Harley Davidson dealership and they said to send me over.... WOW!  I got there a few minutes later and talked to the manager (Len) who also works in the service department and he said "I don't know if we are we have filters for this bike." I said not to worry because I had everything with me to do an oil change except a funnel and a catch pan. He asked me if I change my own oil and I said yes, several times. He said the bay is all yours, shout if you need something. So there I was changing my oil inside a HD service department much to the amusement of some of their customers. Everything went smoothly. I made a bit of a mess on their floor but cleaned it all up. I asked Len how much I owed him and he said "well we really didn't do anything but we did make our facilities available to you". I agreed and asked him how much. He asked me how much I thought was fair. I said, "No sir, not my call - it's your place", so he charged me a 1/2 hour of labor and I agreed to buy a t-shirt so he said the deal was fair. So, Joe LaGrave, if you are reading this, you have a t-shirt coming your way if you want it. All in all, the folks at the HD dealership were extremely nice. Harley owners in Prince George are well-served.

I pulled the bike out of the service bay and rode around front to pay and get a t-shirt. Like a goober, I left the key in the ignition with the lights on. No harm because it wasn't that long but when I came out there was a guy checking the bike out. I made some comment about the silliness of leaving the lights on and he commented that he thought the bike was running.... I damned near wet myself from laughing. (For those who don't get this.... Goldwings are quiet, Harleys are generally louder, so he got me good on that one).

Well, off to bed and getting an early start tomorrow. I have been told that when I get to the Jasper National Park, I need to get off the Trans-Canada and run down through what is called the "Ice Roads" which will then drop me into Calgary. I understand the scenery is quite nice. I think I will give it a shot.

Happy Memorial Day

My best tomorrow to all those serving in our military keeping us safe, and to all those that have served, and especially to those that gave the ultimate sacrifice.

"All gave some. Some gave all"

Last night in Hyder, starting home tomorrow

I had a great time in Hyder walking around and taking pictures. What a view they have here. The locals are very friendly and they love motorcyclists. Gary and Michelle, owners of the SeaAlaska Inn, are really nice people and I enjoyed talking to them. I had a delicious Western Omelette this morning with a truly bottom-less cup of coffee. This evening I visited "The Bus" for a Halibut Burger that was very good. I finished up the evening in the bar at the SeaAlaska where I got "Hyderized" and have the card to prove it.

I will head out in the morning for Prince George and change my oil and then hold up there for the night (depending on time) or ride further east before stopping. I am in no hurry and don't have to rush the return trip home. I have plenty of time so there should be no late-night riding. That will be a relief.

I am still trying to upload the pictures but it was giving me a fit so that may have to wait until I return and do it properly.

I am looking forward to returning home. Seems like I have been on the road forever....

Greetings from Hyder, AK

Well, I made it. Sure was a long trip from central Washington up to here. The road from Prince George up to Hyder was pretty lonely - not much traffic at all. At night it was around 37-39 degrees and right at daybreak it dropped to 35 degrees. The Gerbing electric liners really helped. I had no cell service for the last 4 hours or so outside of Hyder. As I got closer to Hyder my XM Radio stopped receiving. However, what gorgeous scenery coming in here.

To those that made comments about my SPOT tracker not working, I think the problem was on my end. They will only transpond for 24 hours and then must be turned off and then back on to start a new 24-hour period. I forgot to do that.

The bike is running good. Tire wear is also good and the car tire on the rear is wearing very nicely (still looks brand new). I don't know what I am getting for gas mileage as I haven't sat down and figured it out but it seems to be consistant with before so my guess is around 38-40 MPG. Canadian gas prices are much higher then we pay. I think the highest so far has been $1.10 CDN for a liter of gas.


I think that I will stay here until Monday and then head out early. I need to get down to Prince George and do an oil change and probably hold up there for the night. My plan is to ride across Canada until maybe as far as Montreal and then cross the border and head south.

I am going to try to post some pics.

Take care and thanks for your comments and for tracking me.

Sure is lonely....

On this stretch of road from Prince George, BC to Hyder, AK. Oh, and dark too!

Time to roll.... but to where?

I am going to be leaving Ephrata, WA in a short while and head north to Canada. For those who are still reading, tracking and watching - look to see which direction I head. Right now it is 50/50 that it could be east towards home, or north to Alaska. I will decide after crossing the border.

48-10 done

For those following me on my SPOT tracker, you will see that it hasn't moved for hours now. I am Ephrara, Washington in a hotel. I didn't have it in me to continue on to Alaska within the prescribed time for the 48-Plus. I am beat.

This has certainly been an adventure to remember. I will start working a ride report when I get back home. Give me some time and I will post here for you to read. I need to get my thoughts together and present them in an understandable format. My thoughts are very jumbled right now.

I am going to start riding back in the morning after I get an oil change. I am working on a route that takes me back east through Canada. I will enter the US at some point to be decided later. Right now I am thinking about riding as far as Monteal and crossing over in up-state New York.

Thank you to all who have been tracking me. It was nice knowing I had eyes on me as I moved around the country.

States for tomorrow

I forgot to include this with the last post:
Nevada
Utah
Idaho
Oregon
Washington

Somewhere around 1,200 miles on the plus side.

In Vegas

I am in a hotel for the night in Vegas. Busy, busy day tomorrow. I hope to get them all in a 24 hour period and, hopefully, cross the border and get a room in Vancouver. British Columbia. Off to bed. Night al.

Bad link for SpotWalla

Sorry, I fat fingerd it. Here is the correct URL. I like this site more then Spot.

http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=5485

I am in Georgia for the night. I have a hotel room. Hot shower, bed, and a nice sleep needed. I am behind schedule by at leas 200, if not 300 miles. I am hoping that tomorrow and successive days will be incident free and I can move faster and waste less time. It was a long day today. It actually started yesterday at 5pm and i stopped at 8pm tonight with about 2 hours of sleep on the parking lot of a McDonalds. Do I know how to live or what?

update

Sitting in Bojangle's in western VA eating a chicken salad. I haven't eaten much the last two days, mainly trail mix, power bars, and delicious beef jerky (thanks Tim).

This trip so far has been very hard going. Lots of construction, backups, accidents, rain (all day long on the first day), and fog. I have been napping in parking lots where it is safe. I am getting a room tonight.

I forgot to mention that there is another way to track me besides findmespot. Go to spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php/id=5485 - you may like this one better.

Next up:
TN
NC
SC
GA
AL
LA
AR
TX

Monday/Tuesday (17/18)

I delayed my departure from Virginia Beach on Monday because I was up very late the night before reviewing my route and doing other things before leaving. Almost all day Monday was spent in the rain but it wasn't coming down very hard so it just meant going slower and not making as good of time as I wanted. I got into Kittery, Maine and the hotel at midnight so I slept in a bit to get caught up and start fresh. There is no real departure time. With a ride like this I can leave when I want and the clock starts with the first receipt. I would prefer leaving real early in the morning because I don't like riding at night, especially after midnight.

On the way up I noticed that the water temperature sensor was reading hot when the bike was in stop and go traffic. Normally, that would be OK and the radiator fans (I have two, one on each side) would kick on and cool it done pretty fast. However, now the temperature on the bike shows very hot before the fans kick on. I am worried that the sensor is failing and at some point the fans won't come on. Not good... I will call Honda of Norfolk and see what they say.

As it stands, I still plan on doing this so the states today are:
Maine
New Hampshire
Massachusetts
Rhode Island
Vermont
Connecticut
New York
New Jersey
Delaware
Maryland
West Virginia
Pennsylvania

Tomorrow:
Ohio
Michigan
Indiana
Kentucky
Virginia
Tennessee
North Carolina
South Carolina
Georgia

48-Plus Map

This is what the route will look like, subject to minor modifications, to get me into all 48 lower states, British Columbia and Alaska. Click on the image for a full version.

Route planning for the 48-Plus

I am less then a week from departure on my IBA 48-Plus or 7/49 if you will, and I still don't have a solid route. That to me is not bad, it just means that I am considering options and playing out different scenarios. From the beginning, I have planned to ride some or all of Ron Ayres' original route from 1996, in which he set the record for the fast time to visit 49 states (just a bit over 7 days). When Ron did his ride, he departed from his home in Plano, TX and rode to Maine, with a next day start on his epic ride. Ron's ride is documented in this book.

I have toyed with the idea of officially starting from here and going to Kittery, Maine, and then liking up with Ron's route coming back down. In the end, I think I will just do a leisurely ride up to Kittery, Maine on 17 May and depart from Kittery in the early morning of 18 May. More to follow.....

48-Plus is getting close

I am about one week away from departing Kittery, Maine for the Iron Butt Association 48-Plus ride. I will end in Hyder, Alaska for the Hyder Seek 2010 get-together. I was the 36th person to register.

I will post more information as it becomes available including the projected route that I will take and a link to my SPOT tracker.

Ride Report for an IBA CCC100

Overview:

On 18-22 October 2009, I rode an Iron Butt Association (IBA) CCC100 (coast to coast to coast in 100 hours) from Jacksonville Beach, FL to San Diego with a return back to the starting location at Jacksonville Beach. I was riding on a 2006 Honda Goldwing.

Planning:

In preparing for this ride, I put in a fair amount of hours studying maps, using my Garmin software (Mapsource), and reading previous ride reports. As I was putting the pieces together and evaluating options, I realized that I would need to be flexible and not get myself locked into a rigid plan.

I worked through various scenarios on departure time (Jax) and arrival time (SD). I tried to pick a time that would have me going through west Texas and further west during the evening/night hours. In retrospect, my thoughts were completely opposite of those worrying about deer/critter strikes at night. My goal was to ride through the desert at night to avoid daytime heat. In reality, the daytime heat during this entire ride never got above the very low 90s and then for only a short period of time.

The working plan that I developed had me leaving Virginia Beach, VA on 17 October 2009 and riding to the Naval Station Mayport, FL for an overnight stay at the Navy Lodge. I would depart from Jacksonville Beach, FL at 1400 after collecting my water/sand sample from the ocean, going to the local police station for witness signatures, and filling up at the Kangaroo gas station on 300 Beach Blvd. I actually departed Jax Beach 1.5 hours earlier then planned.

Riding gear and accessories:

- First Gear Katmandu riding suit with hydration pack – My hydration pack is part of the suit and will hold 1.5L of fluid.

- Garmin 2820 with XM Radio and Bluetooth. I will listen to XM radio (80s music, comedy, talk radio) for the entire trip. I don’t like riding without sound in my helmet. Bluetooth in the GPS is paired with my cell phone and does a good job at letting me know that I had an incoming phone call. I don’t have an external microphone hooked up the GPS so I can’t answer while riding. I think for future long-distance rides I will work out a better system that lets me use Bluetooth for the cell phone and my wired J&M headphones/headset for music, CB, etc.

- CB radio – I previously added this to the bike using factory direct equipment.

- SPOT tracker – As with rides before, this device proves invaluable with keeping friends and family informed of your location. I had many people watching me and following my progress.

Departure:

After collecting my ocean water/sand sample, I headed to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department (101 South Penman Road), which is located a couple of blocks west of the ocean. It was a Sunday (18 Oct) but there were duty personnel working. I just had to ring their buzzer and talk to the dispatcher on their monitor. After explaining why I was there, I was told to have a seat and an officer would be out. After a short wait, a female officer came out and I explained to her what I was doing. She seemed incredulous with my plan to reach San Diego in 50 hours. I don’t think she was familiar with IBA rides at all. I asked if there was a second witness to sign my form (probably not needed since they were law enforcement officers) and she made a call. A male officer came out and she explained to him what I was doing. He was completely amazed and mentioned that a trip to San Diego by car should take four days. I didn’t have the heart to tell them that I planned on returning in the next 50 hour segment, or they might not have signed my form. The female officer had a sly grin when she said “you’ll be flying low and fast under the radar” and I assured her that this ride was completely do-able within the time allotted without speeding or being unsafe. When I left I wondered if they would put out a BOLO for a black Goldwing traveling at the speed of sound. All joking aside, their interaction with me was completely professional and they wished me well. I heartily recommend using them as a witness.

Jacksonville Beach to San Diego with local time in military (24 hr) format, fuel stop location and total miles ridden.

1. 1239 (18 Oct) – Jacksonville Beach, FL – 0 elapsed miles. First receipt after visiting the ocean and the Police Department for witness signatures. Original plan was to leave at 1400. I got tired of standing around wasting time. Ride officially begins.

2. 1555 – Quincy, FL – 204 miles

3. 1715 – Milton, FL – 364 miles. Short stop here. My knees were aching (mild arthritis) and I wanted to stop and take some Aleve. The pain was mostly located in the top of my knee caps. I finally figured out the problem and rectified it at the fuel stop in Las Cruces, NM.

* No gas stop needed in Alabama. The George C. Wallace Tunnel across Mobile Bay seemed freakishly high inside to me. I live in a area that has many tunnels but ours aren’t that high.
* No gas stop needed in Mississippi.

4. 2049 – Covington, LA – 561 miles – On I-12 just west of Slidell, I was held up in a road construction zone. Lots of tractor-trailers and it felt like I duck-walked the bike for 5 miles (I am sure it was less). I was worried that I would hit the same construction zone on the way back but fortunately it was in the west bound lane only.

5. 0026 (19 Oct) – Vinton, LA – 773 miles

6. 0329 – Alleyton, TX – 964 miles – I remember laughing when I saw a sign coming into Texas stating that I was going to have over 880 miles in the Lone Star State.

7. 0538 – Schertz, TX -1069 miles – I have now completed a SS1000 (and then some) in 18 hours. I was getting very tired and taking much longer then planned at gas stops to stretch, hydrate, clear my head, etc. I was time-wasting and that frustrated me.

I rode until 0700 and then pulled off into a picnic area. It was still dark (still on Daylight Savings Time) but morning was close to breaking. I pulled over near a concrete picnic table which will be my Iron Butt Hotel for the next two hours. I stretched out on top of the table, set my cell phone alarm, and slept. I felt much better after a two-hour nap. During my nap, I kept smelling cow stuff. I saw why in the morning.

8. 1227 – Ozona, TX – 1286 miles. These windmills were about 30 minutes west of Ozona if I remember correctly.

9. 1512 – Van Horn, TX – 1499 miles. During this stop I noticed that my front tire on the left sidewall had a crack all the way around. The crack wasn’t to the cords but it caused enough worry that I started calling local places to see if they had a front tire. I found two motorcycle shops that I could reach before closing but neither had a tire. I then started searching on my GPS for locations in San Diego but could only find car dealerships. I called one, and after acknowledging three times that I understood that they didn’t sell motorcycles, the guy finally gave me the number to Fun Bike Center (FBC) in San Diego. I called them and they had one front tire. I asked them to put my name on it. When I explained to the guy at FBC what I was doing, he told me that I would be priority one the next day. (pics below near Las Cruces, NM)

10. 1857 – Las Cruces, NM – 1695 miles. A short stop this time to check on my front tire. It wasn’t getting any worse so I decided to keep pressing on. The problems with my knees were caused by my thick but baggy jeans under my riding suit. The jeans were riding up and binding me behind my knee cap cutting off my circulation and pulling the jeans down hard over my knee caps. In the parking lot of the gas station, I stripped off the riding pants and jeans (I know, not a pretty picture but I would never see these people again) and then put my riding pants back on. Binding issue resolved and knee pain reduced greatly.

11. 2113 – Benson, AZ – 1910 miles. Between Las Cruces, NM and here, I hit a couple sand storms. The first time had the pucker factor up pretty high because it was at night and it made it really hard to see. (more about sand storms at the bottom of this report)

12. 2315 – Stanfield, AZ – 2043 miles. Short stop. I am quite tired now and really tired of riding in the desert at night. Your peripheral vision is non-existent because it is so dark. It feels like you are riding in a box and the road starts narrowing on you; at least it did for me. This gas stop was an unattended station in the middle of nowhere. I thought I heard dueling banjos. Luckily the pump produced a receipt with all the needed information and I departed smartly.

13. 0233 (20 Oct) – Yuma, AZ – 2193 miles. Another short stop. This will be the last one until I get to San Diego, CA. I walk around for a bit and make a few phone calls to help clear the fuzziness. It has been quite windy, especially coming into and leaving Yuma. It really knocked me around. The mountain range in the Cleveland National Forest was a bit nerve wracking, mainly because I was pretty tired at this point and it took a lot of mental energy to focus on climbing up the mountain and coming down over the other side.

14. 0645 – San Diego, CA – 2372 miles. I made it to Ocean Beach by following I-8 and the signs for “Beaches”. It was pretty easy to find. When I got there it was dark with a few surfers waiting in the vehicles for day break. It was a bit of a walk from the parking lot to the ocean and there was nobody to take a picture of me getting my sand and ocean water sample. After I was done at the beach, I got my last gas receipt. Total time was 45H and 6M.

I checked into the Ramada on Rosecrans Street at 0700 for sleep and a shower. I checked out just before 1000 to head for Fun Bike Center to get my front tire replaced. At 1140 local time, my 2nd 50-hour period would start so I needed to get the tire changed quickly and be ready for the start of the next period.

I arrived at Fun Bike Center, 5755 Kearny Villa Road, San Diego around 1045. After some discussion and inspection of my tire, the decision was made to replace it. After receiving assurances that they would give me a quick turn-around, they took my bike and returned it about 1/2 hour later with a new tire on and ready to roll. I was very impressed. I could see this tire change chewing up much more time then a 1/2 hour. I give them high marks in customer satisfaction. They understood my needs and were very accommodating. Highly recommended!

I left Fun Bike Center and pulled into the closest gas station for my first return receipt. I got gas, filled up my hydration pack, ate a Power Bar and started rolling for the east coast. I was now 20 minutes into the automatic start of the return 50-hour period.

San Diego to Jacksonville Beach with local time in military (24 hr) format, fuel stop location and total miles ridden.

1. 1202 (20 Oct) – San Diego, CA – 0 elapsed miles. Just east of Ocotillo, CA, I pulled over to take some pictures. Just to the south was the border and to the west (behind me) should be the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

The following pictures are of the sand dunes on both sides of I-8. I took these pictures from a rest area in Winterhaven, CA. The rest area was between the east and west lanes of I-8 so getting on and off was pretty easy. To the south is the border (in places you can actually see the fence) and to the north is the All American Canal, which is quite a site to see.

2. 1540 – Yuma, AZ – 202 miles. I made an error here. I went all the way through Yuma just enjoying the scenery and not paying attention to my gas situation. By the time I got to Fortuna Foothills I realized that I had made a mistake but there was no place to make a u-turn because you were going up over a small mountain pass. My GPS, which doesn’t have all gas stations along the way, couldn’t find one ahead of me before I would have run out of gas. My safe option was to get turned around and head back into Fortuna for gas. While there I grabbed a bite to eat at a Burger King and relaxed for a bit. The lack of sleep from the trip out was starting to catch up with me.

3. 1659 – Dateland, AZ – 258 miles. Real short stop on purpose. After leaving Yuma, George, a friend of mine, was calling to see if I would be stopping in Benson, AZ on the way east. It was my intention to see him on the way out since he works at Fort Huachuca, but our schedules conflicted. Once George and I coordinated the stop in Benson AZ, I topped the tank off in Dateland and that put me in the perfect range for Benson.

4. 2024 – Benson, AZ – 472 miles. As I was getting close to Benson, George was getting SPOT updates on his push to talk cell phone from his girlfriend who lives in the same area as me. As I was coming down off the ramp from I-8, George just put his phone back in his pocket after being told “you should see him any minute now”, and there I was. Tracking technology does have it’s advantages! Here is a picture of George and then one of both of us. George is a biker, retired Marine Reserve Master Gunnery Sergeant, and retired Police Captain. He called me a crazy-assed squid Senior Chief for doing this ride. I took that as a compliment!

It was nice talking to George and well worth the “down-time”. However, I was getting tired and George knew that. His main stated purpose for our meeting was to “op check” me and make sure I was okay. I appreciated the concern. I am still pretty up at this point from having a chance to renew an old friendship, albeit briefly, and knowing that I got the first 50CC behind me and things are looking good for the return. After spending close to an hour talking to George, I pushed on. I am tired.

0051 – 0715 (21 Oct) – Deming, NM. I quit. I am both mentally and physically spent. To the Interstate I declare a truce for now. Further progress can not be made safely. At this point, I have ridden a bit over 3,000 miles on about 4.5 hours of sleep. I pulled over at a Super 8 Motel. Not a great place, a bit run down, it has seen better days but then so have I. It had a bed and a shower; anything else was fluff. I laid down. Sleep came fast and deep. I didn’t dream, which is unusual for me. I just had the sensation of black, completely out. Detached from thought – for a while. The alarm, obnoxious as it was, came all too soon but I felt better and the shower was refreshing. I made the decision at this point to ride until I reached Jax. I would start my ride at a Bun Burner Gold (1,500 miles in 24 hours) pace. That goal seemed very obtainable – that would change.

5. 0746 – Deming, NM – 644 miles. 1,734 miles to Jax Beach, 30 hours and 52 minutes to get there, Bun Burner Gold pace, piece of cake. I felt a bit like Elwood Blues, “It’s 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark, and we’re wearing sunglasses.” Jake Blues: “Hit it”. I did.

6. 1157 – Van Horn, TX – 867 miles. East of El Paso, I was contemplating taking I-20 rather than I-10. My thinking was that this route would bring me more north as I was heading east and I could end the ride at some location much closer to home. This had been a planning consideration to my flexible return route and at that time my overall moving speed (after leaving Deming) was 80 MPH so the Bun Burner Gold was looking promising. My less then logical thinking in my current (I have this ride nailed) euphoric state determined that based on my current average speed, I would be able to eat up the additional miles within the allotted remaining time. Now is a good time for all readers still hanging in there to say “you’re an idiot for even thinking about it”. You’d be right.

At the gas station in Van Horn I noticed that I had a voice message. It was my boss who was watching me on SPOT and wanted me to know that both I-10 and I-20 looked bad on the weather map and to expect heavy rain either way. Ok, that started me second guessing the I-20 route. I contemplated my route choices all the way until literally the split for I-10 and I-20. At that moment I committed to staying on I-10 with second thoughts about this decision until I reached Fort Stockton. The looming black clouds let me know that my choice was a good one. Shortly thereafter I hit rain, heavy rain, miles and miles of heavy rain. In some spots it would stop long enough to dry you out a bit and then the bottom would fall out. There was a tropical storm coming up from the Yucatan Peninsula and it dumped rain on me from east of Fort Stockton until west Florida. After that, blues skies all the way into Jax.

7. 1509 – Ozona, TX – 1,094 miles. Rain continues. I get a bite to eat at the gas station. It was one of those pre-made, hermetically sealed, nuclear holocaust survival sandwiches. It was delightfully bland with the nutritional equivalent of crack cocaine, but it convinced my stomach that I was “eating good”. Stomachs are easily fooled.

8. 1823 – Johnson City, TX – 1,276. I know, how the hell did I get here? The answer comes with a story. After leaving Ozona, I struck up a conversation with a trucker on the CB. My moving speed is down because of the rain so I stay in his range for quite some time. He is also a biker so it was a pleasant discussion. I wasn’t really paying attention to the GPS because I was going back the same way I came out. Then I notice that the GPS has a maneuver coming up in a few miles so I pulled up the details. It wants me to go on Texas State road 290 East. Really? My Garmin didn’t bring me that way coming out. I asked the trucker, since he was a Texan, about this road. He gave me the quick run down with pros and cons. He said it was a good motorcycle road, scenic, generally two lanes each way, with few big trucks. The biggest advantage is it cuts straight across and links back up with I-10 and bypasses the southern dip that I-10 takes to pass through San Antonio. Excellent idea. I passed through San Antonio going west and it was a traffic nightmare. So, I made another last-minute decision and took the State Road mainly on the recommendation of the trucker. He wasn’t wrong, but he was far from right. It was getting dark and further complicated by rain, so scenic was quickly exhausted. The roads were good but you kept running into small town after small town. You would just get going along pretty good and then small town, 35 MPH and local law enforcement is out in force. At the gas station in Johnson City, the rain same down in buckets. I just left the bike at the island and stayed in the convenience store for a while. There was no sense trying to ride. I begrudgingly conceded that the Bun Burner Gold would have to wait for another day.

9. 2222 – Houston, TX – 1,494 miles.

10. 0108 (22 Oct) – Lake Charles, LA – 1,633 miles. Short stop. Tired of rain. Tired of riding. Just tired. A break is needed.

11. 0500 – Hammond, LA – 1,797 miles. Rain is beating me down. Average moving speed is dropping. I am having a hard time maintaining posted speed with the rain and road spray from the trucks. I am finding that I have to drop way back off of them, or speed up to get around them. However, I did talk to several more very pleasant truckers throughout the night. They helped me keep my wits about me in the dark and rain. I was thankful for their hospitality, at least the friendly ones. There were many that were bereft of anything resembling manners. That’s as nice as I can say “assholes”, but of course, I wouldn’t say that.

12. 0648 – Mobile, AL – 1945 miles. Good stop. I am starting to feel better now that morning is close to breaking. The ride across Mobile Bay was very picturesque as the sun was just coming up.

13. 1110 – Chattahooche, FL – 2,163 miles. For some reason, I had a harder time finding a gas station here then in the desert. Since leaving Deming, NM it has taking me 26 hours to go 1,519 miles. I am well off of a Bun Burner Gold pace. I have 5 hours and 28 minutes before the 50 hour mark. 215 miles to go.

14. 1450 – Jacksonville Beach, FL – 2,378 miles. Made it! 29 hours and 4 minutes after departing the Super 8 in Deming, NM. 4,750 miles in 98 hours and 11 minutes total. As I am getting my last gas receipt, at the same gas station I departed from 4 days earlier, my phone is ringing. Someone from work congratulating me on making it. A voice message just minutes before from my Dad also extending congratulations. Before I can get the bike pulled off to the side, two more phone calls come in. Thanks, SPOT!

I rode over to the same area at the beach to collect my third sample of ocean water and sand. The beach goers, more out on this day, looked at me quit incredulously. One couple, the one that I had take a picture, asked me if I was there to collect a water quality sample. Why yes, in a manner of speaking.

I departed the beach and headed back to the Jax Beach Police Station for my witness signature. The female officer that signed my form was very familiar with what I had just completed. She said she signs several IBA forms every month. I was in and out with no problems. Again, I highly recommend them for your witness signatures.

Very tired now and starting to crash. I headed back to the Mayport Naval Base for one more night’s stay at the Navy Lodge. I stopped at a Chinese restaurant and grabbed a bite to eat. I finally laid down around 8pm and slept for 12 hours. The next day I departed Mayport for the return ride up I-95 to Virginia Beach.

Methods used to fight tiredness:
- XM Radio and switching often between program formats helped to break up a lot of the monotony of the ride.
- CB Radio came in very handy and provided an easy way to strike up a conversation.
- Atomic Fire Balls – sucking on these will keep you awake, especially the first few minutes.
- Gum
- Lots of water from my hydration pack. I filled my pack at every stop (1.5 L) and yet I wasn’t giving very much back. I would have been in sad shape if I was only hydrating at gas stops.
- Doing simple math in my head (computing miles, average moving speed to get to final destination, etc)
- Talked to myself a lot about nothing in particular. Solved major world problems but have since forgot the answers.

Deer/critters on I-10/I-12/I-8:
I must have been fortunate on this ride. During the entire time I only saw one deer (actually a group of three) and that was on the return trip east around the Slidell area (maybe a bit east of there). The deer were gathered at the tree line grazing and presented no threat to me. There was one critter (small, fury, fast moving) that ran across the road in front of me in west Texas as I was heading west. It happened so fast there wasn’t any time to react. Like I said, it was fast moving, didn’t stop, and thus would live to do it again to someone else. Most of my night riding was done with my high beams on. I know you aren’t supposed to but the high beams on a Wing can really light the night up. Occasionally oncoming traffic would flash their lights and I would dim mine but for the most part the divide between the east/west lanes seemed to diffuse the intensity of my lights on high. I really should have installed some HIDs in the lower fairing. I am strongly considering doing this for future rides.

Sand storms:
One thing that gets discussed less often then critters on the road is the sand that blows across the Interstate west of Texas, particularly in Arizona and New Mexico. There are several areas where warning signs caution you to beware of sand blasting. I must admit that my experience was mild compared to some stories I have heard from Navy/Marine members who have to make that transit during reassignment, work, etc. The first time I hit this was at night and it freaked me out pretty bad. The sand does hit you pretty hard and the wind was coming north/south, so on the Wing I was just a big sail. It would literally push me into the other lane. There was one section where it was blowing hard enough that for a split second it looked like the road was a sand dune and I was going to run through it. I am not a’feared to admit that I was screaming like a little girl! That will wake you up in a hurry. On the way back I was prepared for these areas but it still didn’t make the experience any less tense.

Traffic:
A lot of people mention how bad the traffic can be on I-10/I-8 but I didn’t really experience that. The truck traffic was moderate and very well behaved. Most appeared to be running on cruise control right around 75 or so, maybe a bit less, although I believe their speed is supposed to be 70, but that might have been their night speed (I can’t recall). There were several trucks running at night around 80, maybe a bit higher then that. I liked to get behind them a safe distance and let them clear the road of any animals that may be out there. They can sustain a deer strike much better then me. Several times I did this for many, many miles and it relieved some of the stress of riding at night. Some may not like this idea, but I stayed far enough back off their bumper so that I didn’t have to worry about a rock being thrown or sudden maneuvers to avoid debris in the road, and yet close enough to allow my low beams to fill in that area between us.

Ill affects after the ride:
For several days after the ride I was fighting off a bit of dysentery. I believe that one of two things happened, perhaps both. I didn’t always drink bottled water which was probably a mistake. In the hotel I was drinking their water straight out of the tap before sleeping. I would like to think that our water treatment programs would guard against anything bad but maybe not in this case. A contributing factor was not eating right. I was eating Power Bars and fresh fruit when I could find it in a truck stop. I ate at a fast food restaurant once on the return from San Diego. Also on a couple of occasions, I was eating the prepared sandwiches that you can get in a convenience store. I am not steadfast in any conviction that it was the water or the food. The most likely scenario would be a combination of being dehydrated, not eating properly or regularly and a disruption to my established circadian rhythm. This causes me a great deal of concern for the spring when I plan on doing the IBA’s 48-10 (48 states in 10 days). I will have to seriously consider nutrition and hydration.

Cost summary:
The total cost of this certification, as calculated from Virginia Beach to San Diego via Jacksonville Beach was $999.30 and includes the $60 to the Iron Butt Association, 4 hotel rooms, one new front tire and gas. Food isn’t included because I didn’t really keep track of that but I didn’t eat too much. I spent more on water and Gatorade. Total gallons of gas used was 167 gallons. Total miles driven was 6,000 and includes the 620 mile each way between Virginia Beach and Mayport, FL. Average MPG was 36.

Until next time…..

Gregg Lenentine
Virginia Beach, VA
gregg.lenentine #at# gmail.com