Little Things

Finally...the first day of a trip that was born 6 months ago in a beer-laden "we should ride to..."...Alaska. And here we are. No, not in Alaska, but on the way. How did I know? How could I have known that the celebration of the start of a 3-week motorcycle ride to Alaska would begin in the post-binge haze of too much fun. Wesley called it a late start...also known as a hangover. But there's nothing like balancing on 2 wheels, motorized, and extra heavy when in a slight haze. Ugh. My R1150 GS weighs in at over 500 lbs dry...without extra fuel, camping gear, photo gear, food, bear repellent (let's see how that goes) and a spare oil can conveniently carrying American-made whiskey over the Canadian border...we'll see how that goes as well, eh? But it all comes down to those little things as we get into the groove of the ride... Like locking my keys in my own garage when I started to pack. Going back to the house for the tire repair kit and leaving empty handed. And by the third gas stop I figured out the order of life...sidestand down (ALWAYS...even if you're not getting off the bike), gloves off, sunglasses BEFORE helmet, headset out of ears before throwing the tank bag down (ouch)...etc etc. And we also now know that leaving the San Francisco bay area mid-day on a Saturday in heavy traffic (all heading to Infineon race track) is no way to start an Alaskan adventure. But we're getting there. It was a hot-as-hell ride up the central valley. But once we got to Redding and into the curvy, rolling hills, the ride was...well...sobering. There's nothing like rolling through curvy mountain roads on two wheels and soaking in the view like this one of Mt. Shasta. And this is only the beginning. We're also figuring out the workings of posting to blogger, so bare with us...photos and videos to come.