west coast run

[mmwood_1]

I have a plan...work is stacking up (that's good) and I'm working my tail off (that's so so) and come mid or late September, I am going to ride my 450 down the coast hiway from Newport, OR to San Francisco, (that's way cool!) ostensibly to visit friends, but....The ride should be awesome!

[balisada]

I think that hwy 101 is a rather popular route for many types of travelers. When my grandparents were alive, I would drive down the coast to visit and it was common to see a group of bicyclists on the route, chugging uphill and cruising downhill.

RV'ers like it too.

Balisada

[mmwood_1]

It's late September and I've made the trip to the S.F. Bay area. And what can I say about it? Well, it's the first long distance trip I've ever done on a bike. It was somewhat grueling. Lots of breaks to give my butt a rest. Slow traffic was frustrating, too. Slower than I expected. Oh well.

Six miles from home, my speedo cable snapped, so along with the time, I had to let go of counting speed and distance. Just feel the ride beneath me. Ok. I can do that.

I had removed the slipstreamer fairing from the bike immediately when I bought the bike, due to the damaged mounting hardware(the fairing was not secure) and all the scratches in it. I've since reconditioned it and restored the hardware. I remounted it for this trip. It was really great to have on for a long trip, however, it limited my top speed significantly (I think, but without a speedo, it would be hard to verify) and cut down the overall power. It definitely cut into my fuel mileage. It took me about 3 gallons more than I estimated. I think. Without an odometer, I really don't know the number of miles I travelled.

Wednesday morning, I'll be heading back home. I'm not particularly looking forward to it. But at least I'll know what to expect. I think hiway pegs would be a good addition if I ever do it again. And maybe one of those backrests that mount behind the driver. Much as it's hard for me to accept, I'm not 25 anymore....dammit!