Mothers Day Ride
when - Mothers Day 2003
ride - ZRX
who - bryan
route - Puget Sound > Eugene and back
Prep - The bike was ready, I picked up a new Autocom Pro 7 Sport. I've found I stress my wife out by not checking for phone calls until the end of a day's riding. Being able to take a call on the run seemed like a good solution. My initial GPS antenna install wasn't ideal, so I moved it a little and now have excellent reception. Physical prep, I stayed up a bit too late the night before, and found myself looking forward to coffee when I got up. I made a quick run down to Mondo's to get perked up. After only half my normal amount, I was ready to get on the road.
Jammin - I pulled out around 8am and enjoyed the commuter lane through the morning traffic jam. For some strange reason, I actually enjoy it when the traffic is mildly heavy. Jammed up doesn't work for me, but the challenge of working the traffic has always been fun. The ride down needed to be efficient since I wanted to surprise her with dinner. With efficiency in mind, I-5 was the route, it's horribly boring, but efficient. I stopped at the I-405/I-5 ramp and tested out the Autocom. Making a phone call on the bike isn't the least bit interesting, but my wife does appreciate being able to call me. This thing sounds good.
I-5 Shuffle - I-5 is just plain boring. I've also confirmed that the Autocom is going to need adjustments. I like to sing along, and it keeps turning the sound down. I suppose if my singing was better, this wouldn't be quite as annoying... but it's not, so I'll have to solve this. VOX is also needing adjustment to deal with higher speeds. I didn't realize how noisy my helmet was above 70. This bike doesn't have much wind protection.
Post cards - 10am - My first stop was in Centralia for gas and post cards (part of the theme for the trip). There's a little restaurant near the Chevron that's good for a breather. I gravitate towards weird place, and this is one I like hitting when hungry. I wasn't hungry, but was wanting postcards for the mother's day cards I was delivering. I was in a creative writing mood and spent time writing the mothers day thoughts. The people inside seemed really interested in me sitting outside. I suspect it was my stunning hair style (styled by Helmut), or possibly my stylish wardrobe (inspired by fireman's jackets), or maybe it was the blinker I was exercising.
I-5 Shuffle, phase 2 - This section is far less congested, but is still boring. I did enjoy blowing through Portland on the bike. The bumpy turns aren't nearly as much fun in the truck. Like usual, Salem felt like an oversized speed trap. I stopped in Albany for more fuel.
Pepsi truck flashbacks - I took the back route to Corvallis from Albany, I was ahead of time, and I wanted to ride through one of my old Pepsi routes. Albany is still a goofy town. When hitting Corvallis, I had a couple hours to kill so I rode through my old routes there. Ok, most of them. OSU campus has some delivery vehicle only sections. For some reason, campus seemed really empty. I could have sworn it was more interesting when I went there. I have a bike shop that I love to hit when in town. They aren't stocked anything like the ones around Seattle or even Eugene, but it's got an awesome feel. The guy who runs it obviously enjoys bikes, and it's always cool to talk to him.
Chinese food delivery - I picked up a load of Chinese food from the China Delight in Corvallis (2nd street near the bridge), and headed south. Pulling in had the effect I was hoping for. My mole in the house obviously did a great job staging things for me. Dinner was very relaxing and I found that it's easy to eat way too much General Tso's chicken. I had an offer to go see the new X-Men movie, but found my system wanting sleep. And I knew I needed rest, I had a great ride planned for early the next morning.
Starting the real ride - I woke up and was on the road reasonably early. It would have been way earlier, unfortunately, I forgot to bring an alarm. I didn't sleep in my Aerostitch, but had considered it the night before. I love the feel of starting out on a good ride. My goal today was to be in the Seattle area before dinner, and to have fun getting there. The weather was cool and overcast. It had rained overnight, but didn't look like it would today. The bike sounded like it was begging to go play as I rolled up 99. In Corvallis, I headed to the coast on hwy 20. My first stop was in Philomath for a quick picture.
NoTell motel - Purely a diversion stop. When I first started at OSU, I lived in a motel with some friends in Philomath. My roommates and I were waiting for our apartment to be built, and this motel was the best interim solution. Some very cool memories were created in this odd little place. Some of the activity may have even been legal. I had to get a shot of this place while it still exists.
Barns and bridges - The ride from Corvallis to Newport is one of my favorites. Hwy 20 has some awesome photo opportunities. Between all of those are some of my favorite corners. The road conditions are good, and the traffic was light for me. There are tax collectors, but not to the point of being annoying. Pulling into Newport had me wanting to turn around, and do it again. I love that road. But, I needed to be home before dinner...
Coastal Shuffle - The coast was slow going, I can't believe I forgot that it's almost always like this. Too bad, because the road would actually be pretty fun. I made a quick water stop in Lincoln City. By the time I got to Astoria, I was getting pretty cold. I pondered my choice to leave the grip warmers sitting in the garage last time I changed grips.
Columbia crossing - 1pm, Astoria - I should have ate something earlier, but didn't want to stop. Lunch was warm, the room wasn't cold, unfortunately, I was still a bit cold when I finished eating. Oh well, I need to get going. I shot a couple pictures of the bridge before pulling out. This bridge is 4.2 miles across (thanks for the info Rob), so it can be an impressive crossing when windy. There wasn't any wind, so I didn't get to enjoy that thrill while crossing.
Picking up the pace - In Washington - There's a couple different routes I could take, I let my GPS give me the best route, which ended up being up 101 to Aberdeen and then over through Olympia. Other than the high volume of tax collectors, this was a very cool ride. I'll ensure I do this section again before too long. At one point, I was enjoying it so much, I didn't pay attention to where the GPS was trying to tell me to go. This was a bonus, as I ended up on a very cool road and in some little town (I'll dig out the details and add here later). After turning around, and getting back on track, I was back on my way to Aberdeen.
It's the water (and a lot more) - I followed a tax collector for miles through Aberdeen and then ran across a silly volume of them along 12 while working to Olympia. Hwy 12 between Aberdeen and Olympia is not a motorcycle destination, but it is peaceful to ride. Olympia is one of those towns I've never stopped in. I really need to see if there's anything interesting around there.
Puget Sound Shuffle - After hitting Olympia, I was back into the ever so familiar Puget Sound Shuffle the rest of the trip. The only notable section was with some folks trying to show me how fast their Harley's could accelerate. I liked the look on the leaders face when he realized his brakes weren't really up to the task of avoiding the SUV he caught up with. I made it home right in time to head to Home Depot with the family.
Lessons learned -
- My helmet was killing me after only a few hours above 75. Impressive red marks across the forehead. This helmet is awesome for all my normal short rides. I'm not sure if it's too small, or that the shape is just a bit off. I'll need help solving this one.... Maybe that Corsair will be the solution.
- Figure out how to spend more time taking pictures.
- Take a better camera.
- Add paint to the tank from my right knee's activity. (it was applied too thin in the first place)
- Add a charger for the iPod - that last section got boring when it died.
- Add power for the Autocom, the 9v died half way into the second day.
- Spare 9v was a good move (thanks Tusk)
- Figure out how to turn the microphone off when I don't need/want it. The PTT switch only seems to apply to external radios, and really doesn't seem to do anything to the mic itself.
- Buy one of those visor cleaners - the bugs were way too thick!
- Tell more people about the Pirelli Diabo's - These tires are great in a variety of conditions.
- Consider taking the Camelback next time - dehydration sucks almost as much as stopping to get a drink.
- Find out about the custom seats - ass-b-numb after six hours.
- A radar detector would be nice.
