One more ride for 2007...
So far, 2007 has been an epic year for me relative to riding. In years past, I've been fortunate to get about 17,000 miles on the bike. This year, I'm closing in on 24,000, and with the upcoming trip ... could easily hit closer to 28,000.
The trip? Well, for two years now, I've been wanting to get a Russell Day-Long saddle for the bike. Regarded as THE most comfortable seat, it is standard operating equipment on most of the serious long distance riders' bikes. I had originally planned a trip out in 2006 when I had the ST1300, but ended up selling that bike before I could pull the trip together. I tried again this year when I was in California last May, but it wasn't to be. I had a trip lined up in early October, but had to reschedule due to work conflicts at the last minute. That led me to this late November date.
I've not tried to go cross-country so late in the year before. My previous late season ride was in 2006 when I attended NNESTOC in Vermont in October. Having talked with the people at Russell (located just north of Redding CA in Lake Shasta CA), the weather is good all year round there, so my expectation was that my only concern would be crossing the mountain ranges in the west on my way out to California. My fallback plan was simply to stick to I-10 and ride it all the way into Los Angeles, and then up the I-5 to Lake Shasta. That route would keep me out of most of the higher elevation, and in theory in warmer temperatures.
So today is Saturday, the day before it looks like I'll head out for this ride. My appointment is set for next Thursday, but I had planned to take 3 days getting out there and 2 days getting back ... stopping to visit with friends on the way out. Starting last night, I've started scrutinizing over the weather reports with some disappointment. With the current storms in the west, it looks like my backup plan with I-10 is out of the question ... right now that's where the snow is. Instead, making the jump up to I-40 and over is looking to be the better choice. Once I get to New Mexico, weather doesn't look to be a problem.
To counter the weather variable, I've decided to leave tomorrow, Sunday, to give myself two days to make it to Phoenix. At only just over 1000 miles, this would normally be a day trip for me, but with the weather being what it is right now, I'd rather pad the time and take an easy 2 days to get there than to be rushed trying to make good time. Taking two days also means the majority of the ride will be in daylight, also helping me with the weather variable.
With the chance of rain predicted for Sunday, I probably won't have the cell phone rigged up as I leave Dallas, but will get it set up once I clear the precipitation. I'm staying with friends along the way, and will update at least daily from the road as I go.
I'm also hoping to get some good pictures from the road, as I've picked up a new toy that should map the time stamps from my pictures with the GPS log off my GPS unit to give me a better map of where pictures were taken. If it works, I think it will make an interesting addition to the website.
More to come ... for now it's back to monitoring my four different weather sources to reduce the possible surprises for tomorrow.
The trip? Well, for two years now, I've been wanting to get a Russell Day-Long saddle for the bike. Regarded as THE most comfortable seat, it is standard operating equipment on most of the serious long distance riders' bikes. I had originally planned a trip out in 2006 when I had the ST1300, but ended up selling that bike before I could pull the trip together. I tried again this year when I was in California last May, but it wasn't to be. I had a trip lined up in early October, but had to reschedule due to work conflicts at the last minute. That led me to this late November date.
I've not tried to go cross-country so late in the year before. My previous late season ride was in 2006 when I attended NNESTOC in Vermont in October. Having talked with the people at Russell (located just north of Redding CA in Lake Shasta CA), the weather is good all year round there, so my expectation was that my only concern would be crossing the mountain ranges in the west on my way out to California. My fallback plan was simply to stick to I-10 and ride it all the way into Los Angeles, and then up the I-5 to Lake Shasta. That route would keep me out of most of the higher elevation, and in theory in warmer temperatures.
So today is Saturday, the day before it looks like I'll head out for this ride. My appointment is set for next Thursday, but I had planned to take 3 days getting out there and 2 days getting back ... stopping to visit with friends on the way out. Starting last night, I've started scrutinizing over the weather reports with some disappointment. With the current storms in the west, it looks like my backup plan with I-10 is out of the question ... right now that's where the snow is. Instead, making the jump up to I-40 and over is looking to be the better choice. Once I get to New Mexico, weather doesn't look to be a problem.
To counter the weather variable, I've decided to leave tomorrow, Sunday, to give myself two days to make it to Phoenix. At only just over 1000 miles, this would normally be a day trip for me, but with the weather being what it is right now, I'd rather pad the time and take an easy 2 days to get there than to be rushed trying to make good time. Taking two days also means the majority of the ride will be in daylight, also helping me with the weather variable.
With the chance of rain predicted for Sunday, I probably won't have the cell phone rigged up as I leave Dallas, but will get it set up once I clear the precipitation. I'm staying with friends along the way, and will update at least daily from the road as I go.
I'm also hoping to get some good pictures from the road, as I've picked up a new toy that should map the time stamps from my pictures with the GPS log off my GPS unit to give me a better map of where pictures were taken. If it works, I think it will make an interesting addition to the website.
More to come ... for now it's back to monitoring my four different weather sources to reduce the possible surprises for tomorrow.
posted by Charlie at
12:09 PM
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