Six...

Approximately 100 bikes [and riders] showed up for the annual Blessing Of The Bikes at our church today. We see a great collection roll in every year and this year was no exception, from normal trikes to the Can-Am trike (with two front wheels and one rear), Harleys to Kaws [pronounced "cows"], and everything in between. There were scooters and enduros, new and old - well, you get the idea. The one thing we all had in common was an interest to have our bikes blessed for the upcoming riding season, praying for safety throughout the season and an opportunity to appreciate all of God's great creation that surrounds us.


Since Dawn and I are down to six days before blasting into the Great Adventure, it was even more meaningful to us [of course, we wouldn't miss it even if we weren't leaving this weekend!]. Over the years we have seen rain, sleet and snow at these events but once in a while, we actually have really nice weather. This year was windy and cold so as you can see in the pictures, leather was the fashion for the day.

After lunch, which was provided, we had some heartfelt words and a brief moment of silence for Ron Nickerson, a member of a local Gold Wing riders club who recently unexpectedly passed away in his sleep. There was prayer for all who were there, then prayers over each of the bikes and riders.

After a brief time of fellowship, some of us hit the road for a ride to Ashtabula, Ohio, were we stopped in at the E-comm Cafe for some great coffee and fellowship. Then, on our way home we stopped to see the longest covered bridge in the U.S. [and it is the second longest covered bridge in the world!], the new Smolen-Gulf Bridge, located in Ashtabula, Ohio on Highway 25.





This turned out to be another blessed weekend as we once again got to see a lot of friends and family. Will was able to come in for the weekend and spend some more time with Jackie. It has been a real pleasure getting to know him and watch the two of them foster a relationship. Jackie was doubly blessed because she got to show him her new car (a 2001 Ford Escort, ZX2), which I continue to correct her by pointing out that my name is on the title. Haha Jackie, sorry, but it is true! She is psyched because it is red and has a sunroof! That makes it a good car, you know!

One Step Closer

The directions always make it look so simple, right? Slip the clamp onto the left side of the helmet and place the earpieces into the pocket of the helmet. Locate the best place for the microphone. Some minor adaptations may be required in order to... blah, blah, blah!

Real men don't need directions. Right? Wow, has that ever gotten me in trouble before!

In this case, I did read the instructions for our new headsets before installing them in our new helmets. Nothing new in the instructions though. Just a lot of blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

I must say, it is a bit disconcerting to cut into brand new helmets in order to make the new headsets fit, but after a very careful two hours, both helmets were fit with their respective electronics. What a difference the new helmets make - they actually have enough room next to the ears so the earpieces don't even touch the ear which definitely equals comfort and ohhhh, do they sound good!

Dawn and I really like talking to each other while riding [unlike some other riders we've talked to]. Can you believe that some guys actually get louder pipes and will never get intercoms - they don't want to talk to their lady at all! Ah, but they don't know what they are missing! Dawn and I have the best conversations while on the bike. We don't know what it is about a bike; maybe the fresh air, maybe that we are sitting so close, maybe that there is so much to see and you feel closer to your surroundings.

Regardless of why it happens, we wouldn't ride without an intercom now, so it was well worth the investment of both time and hard cold cash.

So, now we are one step closer to the Great Adventure! 24 days and counting!

Packed and Ready - I Think!

Driving across the causeway, which is a 3/4 mile long earthen bridge connecting the Pennsylvania shoreline to the Ohio shoreline on Pymatuning Lake, I am trying to maintain a straight line of travel against crosswinds that are gusting up to 4o mph. The bike is fully loaded with enough gear to take us on the Great Adventure and she is having no problem carrying us down the road. As the gusts peak, I notice that the bike is only slightly more top heavy than normal but definitely manageable. In fact, there seems to be little difference in the way she handles empty or loaded. The front end seems a little lighter, the required lean is a bit diminished and I am more attentive when coming to a stop, but other than that, it seems to be business as usual.

We are only running about 10psi in the rear shocks and will need to take them up to about 30psi for the big trip but will have to do little else! Well, add gas once in a while and perhaps, take more pictures, but truly, other than that we found that we have enough luggage space and can easily get all of our necessary gear onto the bike to make the trip!

Over the past week, Dawn was getting a bit concerned, so I thought it was time to load everything on and take the bike for a test ride. Every inch of saddle bag and trunk was taken although we found that the top bags (we have two of them) had a little more room for "stuff." You know what I am talking about, we all take stuff with us on trips finding every last nook or cranny that you can stuff stuff into! We once again, proved that we are very good at stuffing stuff!

Oh, I'm not gonna lie, it felt good to finally get all packed up and on the road. I had to resist the temptation to continue west - just to see what we might see, you know?! After all, that was the direction we were headed.

We did come back though (me kicking and screaming all the way!) and stopped in to see Steve and Rita. We wanted to pick their brains to see if we might have overlooked anything in our pack job. As it turns out, Steve was gone but Rita was more than happy to accommodate our request [which works out well since she really is the brains... well, I should just stop right there - haha]. She gave her expert approval of all that we had on board and said she was impressed with what we could fit on the bike - she even seemed to mean it!

Okay, so we got back home and unpacked everything and this is all the stuff we had on the bike! It doesn't seem as impressive in the picture, but I was really surprised at how much there really was!

[Now if only I could find a way to load up the bed, we could really travel in comfort!]

"The Plan"

Alright, alright already! Enough is enough. For those of you who cannot stand the idea of our Great Adventure plans of, "get on the bike and head west till we hit the ocean, turn around and head east until we come somewhere near home" - we have decided to draw a line for you.

This blue line represents nearly 7000 miles of secondary roads. If we average only 200 miles a day, we could complete the loop in 35 days. If we average 300 miles a day, that number drops to 23 days and leaves some time to stop and enjoy some of the locations for a day here and there. So the bottom line is, we will see what the Good Lord wants us to see and the rest will have to wait for another trip!

Now, the reality is that plans change sometimes unexpectedly. At least they do in our lives. I am reminded of this girl in high school who was marching across the football field in band camp so many years ago. Wow, did my plans change! She was a real cutie! I told my friends, "I'm gonna marry her someday!"

A couple weeks later at a football game, hanging out at the top of the stands cheering for the team and getting to know that cutie a bit more - I started picking on her as my family so aptly taught me to do. [My dad's family was masters of picking and joking with each other. Oh, the stories they have told. And so, they passed that same ability on to us kids] So while picking on that cutie in the stands that night - just for fun, mind you - she warned me to cut it out, or else... and she made a little fist to threaten me with. Oooohh, scary!

"Hey, don't wave that thing at me unless you plan to use it," I said, as I pointed at my chin. Little did I know that she had a killer right hook! You know, that was the last time I invited her to hit me cause she didn't even hesitate, didn't even bat an eye at the idea! Yessirree - plans can surely change in the blink of an eye!

So maybe our plans will change because of some unforeseen reason. Maybe we are biting off more than we can handle with this crazy Great Adventure. Who knows? Maybe we will get as far as Zion National Park and have to head back east. Maybe we will get to the ocean, see the coastal redwoods and have to zip back home without getting to see all the other great stuff we have planned. [Maybe there simply will not be enough time left for the Spam Museum, Ellen]

Who knows how far we will get? Honestly, it doesn't really matter to me because I will be spending five weeks with my best friend, the woman I love - yes, the one with a killer right hook! And, oh yes, I did end up marrying that cutie and we have enjoyed life's highways and byways ever since! You can be sure of one thing, I will certainly behave myself cause if I don't, that right hook is always poised and waiting! [haha - just kiddin' dear]

How About Those Plans

Well, here we are, after church, loading the firewood in the back of the truck, power washing the deck and mowing the grass! Oh, wait a minute, this picture doesn't look like that to me. Hmmm...

Oh yeah, that is because our friends (left to right: Steve, Rita [Greg, Dawn], Karen and Carl)decided to talk us into a two hour ride that only lasted four hours! Of course Steve is a.k.a. Ironbutt and man, he can ride forever without a break. In fact, his short ride can bring tears to the eyes of even the most "calloused cheeks" among us! Alright, I might be exaggerating a bit on that - but not very much! Carl is a.k.a. Gadget because he has all of the latest technological, electrical gadgets one can imagine. Alright, that may be another slight exaggeration.

Karen and Carl just put a new seat on their Kaw this year and it has made all the difference in Karen's ability to ride distances. She could only get about 30 minutes on a ride before needing to call it a day before the new seat. After putting the custom designed saddle on the bike, she is now comfortable with the longer rides like we put in today demonstrating once again, that you must have the right combination of bike and saddle to put in the long rides. Which is exactly why Dawn and I chose to purchase our Yamaha Venture - it simply fits us like a... well... I guess it fits us like a... hmmm... perfect fitting bike [calling it a glove just doesn't seem right, sorry].

Back to our ride today, you know, a person really must be careful of what your friends talk you into, it may involve a great afternoon of fellowship, twisty roads, and perfect weather. We enjoyed all of the above and much more on this ride around northwestern Pennsylvania, and still were able to get home in time for Dawn to mow the grass and me to power wash the deck (well, most of it anyhow).

That was the most fun I have had bringing in wood and doing yard work in a very long time! [Of course, truth be told, I think it was my idea to go for the ride, but at our age, who really knows how things come about?]

Nine more hours logged in preparation of the Great Adventure - YAHOO!

Safety First!

If you did not get a chance to read our last posting, you really need to do that to more fully understand and appreciate this one. So...

Jackie! You simply cannot believe what we found for you! As we were out preparing our butts for the Great Adventure, we came across this jewel! Definitely a safe ride - it seems like it would be safe as a tank! It even has plenty of room to get all of your junk... [I mean], stuff down to college with you. BONUS!

What do you think, kiddo?! I bet we could even get it for a good deal. Do you want us to look into it? Of course, you need to let us know right away because I bet this beauty won't be around for long!

We were able to get about five hours in the saddle today. First, we had to check on the car and make some decisions on how we should proceed. It looks like it will be totalled. The front clip is busted up and pushed back far enough that the doors both catch when you try to open them. The drivers door is bent all up and the window is busted out. The bumper cover is destroyed and the rear end has some damage as well [the car's rear end, not ours - the new saddle is great!]. But, all things considered - Oldsmobile, you make one tough car!

Next, we traveled a couple hours to one of the large motorcycle shops in the area to look at some new gear for the trip. We are pretty cheap though, so we didn't buy anything. Wednesday we will go out and pick up some gear that we have finally decided buy - a couple new helmets and a new headset. I know... BLAH BLAH BLAH... boring! But you should try to get a couple extra bucks out of my wife - no easy task, I can assure you of that!

The good stuff was actually all the secondary roads we traveled and the time spent together. There is a tremendous beauty that surrounds us every day and we cannot ever take that for granted! We tend to take too much for granted - family, friends, blessings, creation - you know, stuff! Most of all, we tend to forget about how special our spouse is and how much they bring to our lives.

Dawn and I cherish our time together and can never get enough of it... all because of that crazy calendar with all the little squares filled with scribbles that equate to meetings, appointments and obligations which seem to be a requirement of the 21st century. You know, I lost my day planner [which my kids have affectionately named, "Your Life, Dad!"] last summer and thought my life was over! (no pun intended, haha) That was the first appointment calendar I have ever lost and I can assure you, it already had the next 12 months planned out. Now that was scary! But, you know, I actually survived the ordeal. Hmmm... is that further evidence that there is life after death? Get it? Life after death? Ahhh... never mind.

Well Jackie, make the time to study for finals - schedule it in if you must. Remember to trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, but in all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight.

By the way, we really like that car! What do you think?

And for all who may be reading this... remember to proceed with caution! The curves can really get you! Take the time to spend with those who are close to you cause you never know...

The Anticipation

There doesn't seem to be a day that goes by without a discussion of the Great Adventure coming up. Yesterday I was talking with a friend and colleague, Ellen, about the trip and she once again insisted that we stop at the Spam Museum in Minnesota. The Spam Museum Ellen? What, are you crazy? What could we possibly see in the Spam Museum that could warrant taking time from spectacular sights and other great destinations like Mt. Hood, Glacier National Park, Olympic National Park, or the coastal Redwoods in California? [Hmmm... I must admit you have stirred my curiosity, but before you get too excited about that you must know that it has only been a slight movement - no major interest has grown there yet]

That is the way things seem to go in this life though, a simple seed is planted, it takes root and the next thing you know it has grown into something that you couldn't foresee. Kind of like our children. They are conceived and we think we have their lives all figured out and then they hit the teenage years and we learn that we really had nothing figured out after all! Well, at least that is the way it seems. We think we see it all from the beginning to the end for them - not intentionally mind you, it just kind of happens. Later in life we find out that, just like us, they have developed their own interests and personalities, friendships and relationships. If you have young children, remember the old proverb, "raise them in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it." After those teenage years, with your continued love, they will come back around.

Dawn and I have two great kids (I know, I know, they are children - some of you think of goats when I say kids, I have been corrected more than once for that - sorry. Of course, sometimes they remind me of... never mind!). Now where was I? Oh yes, our kids, Adam and Jackie. They have grown into a couple of great young adults. We couldn't be more proud of them. In fact we were thinking primarily of them when we set up this blog so they could follow us on the Great Adventure. Jackie enjoys writing and texting and all those social things young adults like to do so we thought she would really enjoy reading our blog. While Adam is into hanging out with friends and gaming after work. So naturally, we thought that Jackie would follow the blog and Adam would probably never look at it.

Like I said before, one never knows. When we asked them if they would be interested in following us on the blog, it was Adam who said he would probably [meaning, maybe once or twice?] check it out and Jackie who said that we didn't need to take the time to do that [translated... ?].

It seems as though everyone has some input for our trip and many would love to be in our saddle. Of course there are many others who think we are more than a little short in the marble department. Five weeks on a motorcycle traveling the highways and byways of America might sound crazy, however, to some very jealous people, it would be like experiencing a slice of heaven!

As I was talking to Ellen about our "bike" trip to the west coast, Michelle asked rather incredulously, "How are you getting back?" We are riding back of course, how else? She was amazed that we could ride so far... of course, she didn't realize that our bike had an engine - a ride to the west coast and back on a bicycle, now that would really be newsworthy! What do you think, Dawn - sound like next year's trip?

The Beginning...

It is hard to imagine that after 18 months of planning and anticipation, we are within six weeks of departure to the west coast on a great motorcycle adventure. Just the two of us on the road for five weeks. In our 27 years of marriage, we have been richly blessed and once again stand on the brink of another great memory!

We have to consider how to pack all of our gear on the bike without blowing the tires. In our opinion, riding two up is the only way to go so that leaves two saddle bags, one trunk and one trunk top bag for our gear... let's see, that is one saddle bag for Greg and one saddle bag, a trunk and a trunk top bag for Dawn. Hmmm... sound familiar?

We can't wait. Feel free to follow along and we will gladly share the blessings!