On The Road, Pt. VII

This is the end... Beautiful friend, the end.

Yes, this is it.  The final day of my journey has arrived and I would soon be spending the night in my own bed, using my own toilet and parking indoors.  First I had to get there, though.

When I went to bed, it was still raining in Farmington and i figured on another rainy day of riding.  To my surprise, the sun was out in the morning and it was cloudless.  I gobbled down some more breakfast, packed up the bike and headed for home.

I was excited to get back into Colorado because that meant some twisty mountain roads.  Bits of Cali and Arizona were nice but most of the areas were flat, straight and dull.  At points I was actually wishing I was in a car.  I could lean the seat back, put the cruise on and jam to some tunes.  On the bike I couldn't do any of that.  All I could really do is stare at the odometer and glance at the occasional pile of rocks on the side of the road that passed for scenery.

This was of course the Saturday of Labor Day weekend, so everyone and their dad was out on the road and driving at around four mph.  Honestly, it was a bit frustrating because I was used to going 70 everywhere and now I'm feel like I'm at walking pace. 

I also saw a lot of bikes.  I think I saw more bikes this one day than I saw in the entire preceding days combined.  Nearing the Wolf Creek Pass, I was passed by a group of Harleys complete with get back whips and do-rag-wearing riders.  Excited by the corners, I jumped into the passing lane and blew by them as the road got twisty and then did the same to a couple of BMW riders.  I waved to them all as I passed but none of them even looked at me.  Bastards.

Wolf Creek is a delightfully twisty road that goes up well above 10,000 feet and it has a tunnel.  I love tunnels.  This tunnel even has a curve in it, making it a million times better.  Another good thing for Wolf Creek is that its four lanes wide, so you can always pass the geezers in front and you can push it a bit because the edge of the world isn't inches away.  I had a grand time scratching around the bends before the straight stuff returned.

I made a pit stop for a snack in Del Norte and got ready to head for the arrow straight section of 285 that headed toward Saguache.  Breaking up the monotony are the two ridges that were cut through when the road was made.  This was fantastic when I was heading this way before and its fantastic now.  I bet its just as fantastic to be reading about it again, too.

As I was snacking on a protein bar I brought and an apple and banana I grabbed from the hotel, I noticed the sky getting cloudier.  I didn't even check the weather because I knew it meant rain.  By this point, I could predict the weather better than 100 Weather Channels.  I just got on with the job at hand.

It got darker as I neared Saguache, darker still as I neared Buena Vista and then it finally rained when I got to Fairplay.  I'm glad I got to see the scenery last week when it was sunny because it was miserable now.  All I wanted at this point was to go home.  I had had enough rain to last me for the rest of my life.

I wish I had more to say about this part of the trip but it was a blur.  I was focused on home and really didn't look at the scenery and really didn't care about the roads.  I went my speed, passed a bunch of cars and reminded myself how much fun it is to tour on a motorcycle.  This is fun, they said.  Riding is fun, they said.

I skipped a pee break in Fairplay to outrun the storm and that was a mistake.  I thought I could hold it but I couldn't.  Every bump was murder until I finally gave in.  I pulled over, scampered down a hill and released the Nile.  After what seemed like 20 minutes of continuous peeing, I walked back to bike and continued on my way a much lighter rider.

The rain came and went and came again during this time but I wasn't very bothered by it.  It was pouring rain when I made my final stop in Bailey and my crotch was cold and wet.  I think my penis ran away somewhere around there.

As I got closer to Denver, the sun came out and it finally got warmer.  I was still focused on home and was passing cars like crazy.  I was never so excited to see Denver as I got closer and closer.  I slowed down at this point because I didn't want to make it this far only to have a crash on my doorstep.  Turning down Colorado Blvd., then on to my street and finally up the drive was a wonderful feeling.  I had done it.  I rode my motorcycle to San Diego and back and lived to tell the tale.

Including going the wrong way and doubling back, the bike and I did just under 2,400 miles in six days.  That doesn't include riding around while in San Diego.  The bike never missed a beat the entire time, though it was quite dirty and sad-looking when we got home.  The air-cooled engine did get quite noisy going through the hot desert and the chain's a bit looser now but otherwise, you can never tell it went that far.  It never even used any oil.  Let's have a round of applause for modern motorcycles, everyone.

Would I do it again?  Well, yes and no.

My Bonneville may not have missed a beat but I sure did.  As the days went on, fatigue set in quicker and quicker.  The Thruxton gel seat I fitted to bike years ago helped some with comfort but the bike felt cramped, even for my short ass.  Add in the stuff strapped to the back and there wasn't much room for me.  I was constantly fighting for space with my luggage. 

As for the riding, well, pockets of it were very good but most of it was quite boring.  It was a bit like a 90 minute movie that had 12 minutes of action.  I felt like I was always waiting for the good part to come along.  A trip from Denver to San Diego will happen again (San Diego is too nice to not go back) but it will happen either on a more touring-oriented bike or in a car.  My Bonnie loved the twisty bits but hated the slab.  We share the same opinion, the bike and I.

So that's it.  It's back to work and planning more trips, most of which I won't go on.  At least it gives me something to do at work while I not do my job.  In the meantime, I can also look at the Triumph Sprint STs that pop up used quite often.  The 1050s, I think, look best in blue while I like 955i models best in green

Hmm...