Awesome job of turning coulda-woulda-shoulda into been there, done that! Especially on a "vintage" bike. Tell us armchair pundits more about the practical aspects of the ride. What sort of gear did you tote? Comfort/convenience items, tools, clothing -- that sort of thing. Any problems with weather or temp extremes? Start/stop locations. Routes, types of road surfaces, speeds. What was your mental outlook toward the end when fatigue started to settle in?...and like that.
I'm twice-retired. Once from the Navy and again as a long-haul trucker. So I'm no stranger to distance. But my trips have always been in the relative comfort of a cab. So I'm interested in a comparison with similar trips with the wind in your face. Speaking of that, what type windshield is that on your bike? Did it get the job done? If you were to do it again, what would you do differently? Lotta questions, I know, but inquiring minds wanna know. (!) On Jul 1, 12:42 am, Average Joe <[email protected]> wrote: > Mark, at this point I have to agree with you on this point: Yes, the > Iron Butt rides are time-sensitive, so there is a sense of urgency to > get it done within the parameters we are given. But I will say that I > don't feel like I missed the world I passed through, since my goal was > to complete the journey I set upon myself to do. For that one day, > that was my world. There was a challenge before me and I took it, not > knowing at the start whether the preparations or the stamina within > would carry me through. The fact that it was a successful ride within > the IBA guidelines gave me a sense of accomplishment that I will hold > with me for a long time. > Some may call it a check mark on my Bucket List, I like to think of it > as a day in my life that was well spent doing something unusual and > now makes for a good answer to the question "What did you do last > weekend?" > > Seeing the number of BMW's, Gold Wings and Harleys that dominate the > long distance landscape of motorcycling, I felt that I had another > mission in mind with this ride, which was to demonstrate that even > though my Nighthawk is not as heavy, expensive or lavishly equpped as > those other bikes, it can still take on the challenge of an all day > run and not let me down. That makes me ever more satisfied when I jump > on my bike and go 10, 50 or 500 miles down the road next time. > > And I'm with you on this point- the basic 1000 miler is all I could > see myself doing within the time I have as well. Given three days of > free time, I would be spending as much of it as I can catching all the > fish I can eat. > Joe > > On Jun 29, 2:02 am, Mark Hasslinger <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > "Will I do another one? Hard to say right now. I rode through some of > > the most spectacular scenery in central California, and my main regret > > is that because of the time constraint I was not able to stop and take > > pictures of it. I think my next long ride will be over several days, > > but with a sleeping bag and fishing gear to stop and enjoy my time off > > the bike." > > > > This in my view is the problem of the Iron Butt thingy. Doing the basic > > 1000 miler is about all I have time for. doing more touring just to make > > miles sounds like a BMW rider who never sees anything but his stop watch > > and odometer the world he passes through is as completely missed. Hope you > > catch all the fish you can eat. > > > --- On Sun, 6/28/09, Average Joe <[email protected]> wrote:- > > Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text - --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nighthawk_lovers?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
