Sunday, September 16, 2007
Mile High to Big Sky
I don't think I even got a full hour of sleep last night. I was up until about 3 a.m. blogging and repacking all my gear. When I was done, I just couldn't fall asleep. I must've dozed off for a bit because I do remember being wakened by the alarm. It was already 5:00 a.m. We had to hit the road by 5:45 in order to meet Mark Kitchen in time, so there was no time to snooze or dilly dally. We were a little behind schedule, but we still hit the road before the sun came up which was a first for me. We reached town and stopped for gas shortly after 6 a.m. and then met up with Mark at a Sears parking lot. From there, we made our way north to Johnson's Corner for some breakfast, passing a H-D dealership along the way. Mark claims to be a lover of all motorcycles, not just the BMW kind, but I did see the one-finger wave as we rode past. Maybe it's more of a love-hate feeling.
While gearing up in Johnson's parking lot after breakfast, the strangest looking motorcycle-hybrid mobile rode past us and parked. It was part H-D, part POS, and so unique I had to snap a shot.
I tried talking Mark into joining us at least to Casper, WY since Cheyenne was only about 40 minutes away. We made it to Cheyenne in no time but Mark decided to break off from the group at that point after all and made his way back home via Nebraska. Karson and I pressed on and eventually stopped in Casper for lunch. I saw a billboard sign for Free WiFi at the Comfort Inn so we stopped at IHOP next door. I was hoping to blog from the road mid-day, but it turned out I needed a room number and password from the Comfort Inn to access the free WiFi. We sat at a table with a clear view of our bikes to keep an eye on our gear. It was amazing to see how much attention our bikes drew from passersby.
Karson and I decided to swap lead position on every quarter hour to keep an eye on each other's gear, etc., but it ended up being a great way to break up the monotony and helped pass the time quickly. We also covered lots of ground averaging 90 mph most of the way. As Karson mentioned, we hit some serious white-knuckle, butt cheek-clenching moments for a good 50-mile stretch after Casper with the wicked crosswinds. Why is it that it was at those precise moments that I had an itch on my face that I just had to scratch or the desire to hit the Next button on the iPod remote? So I kept thinking about Peter's post about being the wind, though I honestly had more visions of being toppled by a strong gust. But traveling with another rider really challenges you to push your limits. I don't know that I'd have been so bold to have gone that fast if not for riding with Karson. Maybe it's a macho thing trying not to look like a wimp to your friends or something.
Tomorrow is supposed to be another long day, so I'm going to call it a night and catch up on some much needed sleep. Maybe we'll get a chance to post from the road.
Labels: crosswinds, IHOP, Johnson's Corner
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It's really cool to watch you guys finish A2B in style. Rainy in Seattle, but I can't wait to see my baby for the first time in months! Ride safe.
Forget trying to buy a new BMW Mark...you should get a hybrid POS like the pictured one!!!
Ride safely...
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Ride safely...
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