EPILOUGE

EPILOUGE - July 6th, 2008

Hi Everyone,

A big thank you to all of you who read this blog and posted comments along the way. It was very helpful to know that there were people supporting us in this way.

I would also like to thank Karen, Shannon, Matt, Rory and little Findley for their support in this endeavor.

It was an incredible ride with lots of adventure and wonderful sights to see. Karen was a real trooper and we made a great team working together on routes, destinations, loading and unloading the bike, etc. Karen never once complained and in fact has exclaimed that this was one of the best vacations we have ever had! I’ll second that!

I remember feeling a bit apprehensive before leaving not knowing what to expect and how I would deal with the different cultures and people I would encounter along the way. It wasn’t long into the trip before I realized that my fears in this regard were unfounded and the only things I really had to worry about was keeping the bike upright and finding a place to sleep at the end of each day.

All the other travelers and locals I talked to throughout the trip were friendly, helpful and very interested in the ride that Karen and I were doing. There were a few times I got the comment “You’re a long way from home”, and at the time, we were!

Our favorite sights and areas were:

Southern Utah around Bryce, Capitol Reef and Moab.
Nashville
Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive in N.C. and VA

Gettysburg, PA
Niagara Falls, Ontario Canada
Upper Peninsula, MI
Wall Drug, Deadwood, Crazy Horse, Mt. Rushmore, Wind Cave National Park, all in SD.

I have already been asked if I would do it again. The answer is a resounding YES! Although, I would go to some different states further south like Texas, Mississippi, Kentucky, etc. And, I would definitely return to Southern Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and South Dakota, among other places.

There is so much to see and do in the US! Get out there and hit the road!

Now, onto the statistics.

Total Miles Ridden: 9,204.5

Number of states visited (not counting WA): Dave - 21, Karen 12. We also were in the Canadian Provence of Ontario for 2 days.
Total Driving Time: 163 hours
Average Speed: 56.4
Number of Fill-ups: 67 – approx.
Total Gallons of Gas: 221 – approx.
Average Cost of Gallon of Gas: $3.95 – keep in mind that I started over a month ago and the price of gas kept going up while during the trip.
Total Cost for Gas: $905.00 - approx.

In regards to the stats for fuel, I use approximately because while the numbers are accurate, I did lose (only), a couple of receipts for fill-ups. The numbers you see above are the minimums.


The other numbers are directly from the GPS and those are accurate.

As regards to the Maximum Speed you seen in the picture, I forgot to tell the story about that earlier in the trip.

When I was going through Salt Lake City I stopped in at Honda World (http://www.hondaworldslc.com), a large Goldwing dealer and had them temporarily install a turbocharger on my bike.

I then went out to Bonneville Salt flats and ran several 2 mile time trials across the lake. It took nearly all of the 2 miles to get up to that max speed of 238 MPH and it took almost another 2 miles to come to a stop. That’s why I had to have new brakes and tires installed when I got to Chapel Hill, NC. My previous top speed on a motorcycle was 150MPH on the race track on my FZ1. Attaining a top speed of 238 MPH was a real thrill!

You’re probably thinking, “Where will Dave go next?” Stay tuned ‘cause I got the wanderlust bug now!!

Lastly, let us know if you have any questions.

Thanks again to everyone and have a wonderful summer!

Love,
Dave and Karen

Monday June 30 and Tuesday July 1

Hi everyone,

MONDAY

On Monday morning we left Billings by about 7:30AM and rode a straight line on I-90 headed to Coeur d'Alene. There was some pretty scenery on the way but it goes by quick at 80-MPH. Not much else to report on this leg of the trip.

We did stop in Wallace, ID and had a huckleberry shake and that was quite good. It was hot there, over 90, so it was a refreshing break. There is store in town that has a load of old coin operated games like pinball, some old slot machines, etc. Some date back to the 40's, If you're into any of that, it's a good place to stop.

We ended this day in Coeur d'Alene at 502 miles. It was hot but we gained an hour's time when we crossed the state line and into Pacific Daylight Time. That gave some extra time to relax before heading to dinner.

TUESDAY

On Tuesday we left town at 7:00AM to beat the heat we might encounter in Eastern Washington. After nearly 100 miles we stopped in Ritzville for breakfast at Perkins. We gassed up headed out to cross the Palouse.

For the last couple of days I was thinking that I really did not want to end the ride going all the way home on I-90 but there didn't seem to be a lot of variation to choose from. While we were riding I was looking at the GPS and saw Hwy 281 headed north into the town of Quincy.

That road would take us to Wenatchee and then onto Hwy 2, Stevens Pass. At least this way I could get one more twisty road before ending the trip.

With all of the riding I have done in Eastern Washington, I had never been through the town of Quincy. In the middle of town the hwy changes to 28 headed north to Wenatchee. It was a real nice road up to Rock Island Dam. Through east Wenatchee then onto Hwy 2 and up and over the pass.

As it turned out, it wasn't all that hot and by the time we got over the pass into western Washinton, it was very comfortable.

We made it a priority to stop at the hospital to visit Geneo and Heide before we pulled into our garage, ending our exciting and adventurous ride around the USA.

Read my last blog for this trip, EPILOGUE. I'll include my final thoughts about the trip and include some statistics about gas, mileages, etc.

Take care,

Dave and Karen

Sunday June 29

Hi everyone,

We were packing up our stuff and getting ready to leave Deadwood when we learned that our friend Geneo (58), suffered a major stroke early this morning. He was having emergency surgery to relieve the blood clot and we were told he might not make it through the surgery.

At that point we wanted to get home as quickly as possible so we scrapped the plan to go to Sturgis and to just get on I-90 and go as fast as we safely could to get home quickly. We were still about 1200 miles away.

We didn't want to miss Devil's Tower so we made a quick side trip there and went to the visitor center at the base of the tower. At our stop, Karen talked with Geneo's wife Heide and learned that Geneo made it out of the surgery and was doing well. However, at the time, there was no way to tell the extent of the damage that might have been caused by the stroke.

Karen and I decided that the best course of action was to still head home quickly but the pressure was off and we rode the remainder of the day until we arrived in Billings, MT. This day's mileage was about 425.

We were thinking about Geneo and Heide all day and were in constant contact with Heide throughout the day to keep updated on Geneo's condition.

On Monday the plan is to put in a long 500 mile day and get to Coeur d'Alene, ID. That way we will only have about 350 miles on Tuesday to ride to get home.

Dave and Karen