I depart Rock Springs, Wyoming headed to Mobile, Alabama tomorrow at 11:30am, via Denver, Colorado and Houston, Texas. I'll be arriving at 9:45pm in Mobile, where ADVBilly (ADVrider member)has agreed to collect me from the airport!

All is well, and not only have I stashed some money in the bank, I didn't even have to pay my flight to Alabama! It doesn't get easier than that!

Oh yea. I got a hair cut on day 4 hear in Rock Springs. I decided it wasn't too professional to show up at peoples homes with my long hair sticking out of my hat with my sunglasses on!

AHAHAHAHA!



ONWARD!

--Alex
____________

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Well, as I flew out of Rock Springs, Wyoming this morning, all was well and my flight was on time. Check out this plane. Awesome.



Next in line was a 3+ hour layover in Denver, Colorado before my flight to Houston, Texas. Time to whip out the book. Awesome.

Boarding onto the plane for Denver, all was well, until some problem existed that took over 2 hours to rectify. A fault code showed up in the Pilots cabin that showed a problem with the aileron servo on the right side wing. 2 hours and 20 minutes later we were up in the air. Half way to Houston, in mid air, my connecting flight to Mobile, Alabama had already left. Damn.

So, United Airlines put me up in a Marriott Courtyard Hotel, gave me two meal vouchers totaling $22 ($15 + $7), and re-booked my flight for the next day. It turns out my flight had been re-booked for 8:45pm the next night. Well, that wasn't going to do, so now my flight is scheduled for departure at 10:10am. I should arrive just before 11:30am in Alabama. Awesome.

Check out my King Size Bed. Bitchin.



--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

I am now in Mobile (BETTER SAY MOBEEL!), Alabama and I am having a great time already.

Billy (ADVBilly) collected me from the airport yesterday just before noon, and took me down the road to his house. Mobile is a small airport by comparison, and he lives just short of 15 minutes away.

At his house, I was able to get a look at my new bike. AWESOME. Right next to it sat Billy's personal 2011 BMW G650GS. AWESOME.

From his house, he loaded up his bike in his trailer, I hopped on the DR650 and we took off down the road to his family hunting cabin in the woods.

I parked my bike in front of the house. Here's what it looks like.



However, on the way down the sandy gravel road to the Hunting Cabin (it's a house really), we drove passed the Skinning Rack, where all the animals that Billy, his friends, and his family hunt, are appropriately skinned. His father in law Larry was there, looking over a Western Diamond Back Rattle Snake that they had driven over, then skinned, and glued to a pinewood board. IT WAS HUGE!



Later that same day, after I had been shown where I would sleep, Billy's friends Pat and Doyle showed up, and along with Larry and I, we all sat around and shot the shit while Billy hit the store for some food. It was a good time.

After Billy got back, the good 'ole boys left, and we took off for Billy's house in his truck to pick up my Moto-Mule trailer that I bought from Mr.Bracket here on the ADVrider Vendors Section. I got it put together and on the bike inside of an hour. And it only took me that long because it was Dark outside! Check out this bad ass mono wheel trailer!!



After assembling the MOTO-MULE trailer, it was time for a steak dinner which Billy prepared excellently. I love steak. I love food.



You see what I am talking about? AWESOME FOOD!!!



After dinner, we sat down and tried to watch "The Sibirsky Extreme Project" by Walter Colebatch, but we were about to pass out, so we saved it for the next day.

The next day, I got about bolting a 24gl (100 liter) Action Packer tub to the frame of the Moto-Mule trailer, and got to work testing it out. Saweet. Airborne on 3 wheels!



This was of course all after breakfast, which was awesome, and after this, Billy took me on a 10 mile tour out and around his family timberland property. We rode in his Yamaha Rhino utility vehicle, and I began to see why people can learn to love the South so much. It was great.



I'm already kicking ass and taking names. I'm stoked.

As for now, I'll likely leave here on Monday and head south for New Orleans, I plan to meet a guy there named Michael that is the distribution manager for Kriega. I'll pick up a US-40 combo for my rear Luggage, and then head for West Texas to meet up with D-Rail and his pals who intend to spend 4 days in Big Bend National Park near Study Butte-Terlingua.

On my way across the south it would be great to meet up with fellow riders and Adv'ers so here is what I need from you guys/gals.

My computer charging cable has crapped out, and I don't have a smart phone since I came back from South America. I DO however, have a phone and a GPS.

SO please, if you'd like to offer me a place to sleep, I need you guys/gals to call or text me. So many of you have so graciously offered me a place to sleep already, but now that I'm on the road and have little access to the internet, I'm reaching out again for your offers.

I'll be traveling west along I-10, from New Orleans all the way to San Diego and from San Diego north to Seattle,

PLEASE CALL or TEXT me at 425-903-2632

Thanks again guys/gals, you rock!

ONWARD!!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Yesterday, Billy and I took off for a round trip, 110 mile ride though the surrounding area and the Desoto National Forest. Out in the woods we rode, and took a look around. Meet Billy again!



Tearing ass around the forest on great dirt roads was AWESOME.



After a kick ass day, we headed back to the cabin (house) in the woods for dinner that night. The Sunset was awesome.



Billy cooked up a seafood gumbo with BBQ Shrimp on the side. Damn. I was hungry, and then I ate too much.



Then, this is what happened. You can thank Billy for this photo.



That was last night, and the next day we were up and eating food around 8am. Then, Kim Dunbar and his friend Paul rolled up at around 11am. Where did they come from? Atlanta, Georgia! 362 miles each way, 724 miles round trip, to come meet me out at Billy's place in the woods.



The guys run 14" mini cooper "run flat" tires on the back of their bikes. BITCHIN.



Kim brought us a couple of home brew s that Billy and I will be drinking tonight, and sooner than later they had to turn around and head out on the road for Atlanta. Off road on GOLDWINGS!!!



Here we are just before they took off. From left to right, Kim, Billy, Paul and myself.



After they left, Billy and I took off again for a trip south to Dauphin Island and Mobile Bay, and to show me the boat that he bought the shrimp off of that we had eaten the night before. Aaaaawesome.



The name of the particular boat was "Heart Breaker"



Then we rode over to Fort Gaines and I parked the bike in front of some big ass cannons! I loaded up the Moto-Mule trailer with my duffel bag of clothes that packed for work and this trip. I just through it in the trailer right before we took off and it fit with no issues. We hit speeds of well into the upper 60's and the low 70's and I could hardly even tell that the trailer was there. AWESOME.



Well, we got back to the hunting cabin (house) just after dark, and Billy's father-in-law rolled in just 5 minutes after us. Doyle, their friend, killed a deer and was going to skin it. Would I like to grab my camera and take some photos? HELL YES! The deer was very dead.



Here I got to see them start the skinning process. First time in my life I've seen a deer skinned. Cool. Punch a hole with a knife in the rear legs, and hoist it up.



Meet Doyle! On the property where Billy's family hunting cabin (house) is, they only Bow Hunt. Even more bad ass!



Then Larry joined in to make the process just a bit easier. Cut and pull!



Turn it around and pull the entire rear hide off.



Cut off the tale!



Cut off the fore legs!



Skin it some more, and cut out the tender loins. Don't forget to smoke your cigar.



Cut the front end (rib cage and head) off.



Get out the sawzall, and cut the hams into two pieces. Get it Larry!



Store all meat cuts on ice.



Get Ice from the Ice machine, and drag cooler into the walk in fridge at the "Skinning Rack". AWESOME



That was my day. My day was awesome.

Tomorrow, I'll be heading to New Orleans, to meet the distribution manager of Kriega USA. I'm going to take a look at some luggage for my rear rack (I won't always pull a trailer), and then I'm heading Westward!

As I said guys, let me know if you want me to swing by! I'm headed to Big Bend National Park to go ride with D-Rail and his pals, and then I'm off to San Diego via I-10 most of the way. UNLESS, I go to Colorado, and I really want to go to Colorado. So, I'll probably go to Colorado. I want to check out the Wolfman Luggage!

Send me a text of call me please! 425-903-2632.

ONWARD!!!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Last you guys heard, I was on the road heading west. I was in San Antonio, Texas having passed through New Orleans, Louisianna on the way. Since then I have passed on through Del Rio, Texas and into Big Bend National Park where I met up with fellow inmate D-Rail (Darrel) Bobby (Craven Morehead), and Brandon (Dizzle).

Here is how the story went down.

I said goodbye to Billy in Mobile, Alabama, and got a photo of him on my way out. My brand "new to me" '09 DR650 complete with my little "Moto-Mule" trailer.


　
Here I am, dressed and ready to go. ATGATT baby! To answer a question, "I would think the logic approach is to wear one gear for riding dry and wet, and not take rain gear with you. Your thoughts when you get a chance?"

I like to ride with one set of gear, and when I left the US heading south on my trip to Argentina, I wore Rev'it Cayenne Pro Jacket and Rev'it Sand Pants. In the rain, the outer layer would get soaking wet, and eventually my crotch area would get wet and I'd be sitting in a puddle of water. When I got home, I bought a pair of AeroStitch Darien Pants, that are goretex, and they have been a step up in Waterproofness, but are not too comfortable in the summer heat. They are great for where I live near Seattle though. I now have a Rev'it Sand Jacket, and I like the way it fits better than my previous Rev'it Cayenne Pro. It is waterproof enough for me, and with the AeroStich pants, I have found my happy medium.



After I took off from Mobile, Alabama I headed South West to New Orleans, Louisianna. This was the first section of highway I would ride while pulling the trailer at highway speeds. It pulled well, and after a while I didn't even notice it was there and I was cruising at 70mph+



When I got into New Orleans, I stopped on the side of the road for a quick photo of a tourist trap, a horse drawn carraige.



My goal was to make it to the house of the US Distributor for Kriega Motorcycle Gear. Meet Michael, the guy that hooked me up with a US-40 Combo pack for the tail rack of my bike. AWESOME.



After hooking me up with motorcycle gear, Michael offered me a bed in his spare room and hooked me up with a place to sleep. After that, I took off to check out the French Quarter of New Orleans. I found a kick ass little shop that had some pretty cool things for sale. I saw a poster with Pink Floyds signature, a guitar with the signatures of the Greatful Dead, and this guitar signed by the Rolling Stones.



While I was downtown, I met Travis (HickonaCrick) and got a famous photo for the Ride Report. Hola!



That night, I slept well and took off early for San Antonio to meet another guy from the AdvRider crowd, David (HotAir) and midway, I was lucky enough to be pulled over by a Texan Police Officer. Apparantly I had been going nearly 80mph in a 60mph zone. I believe him, but I'll be damned if I thought that the Goldwing GL1800 behind me was a cop!

Sure enough, it was a cop, and he pulled me over and told me the facts. Then, he complimented me on the fact that I was in full riding gear (not a common thing in Texas it would seem), and started asking questions about the trailer. About 30 minutes after he had told me that he wasn't going to give me a ticket, he took off. "I have to go ruin some other peoples day," he said. I'm glad he didn't ruin my day!



Just short of San Antonio, Texas I pulled over for a shot of the sunset. Awesome.



When I arrived in San Antonio, I met up with David, and promptly we took off for the local Brazillian Steak House for dinner. Have I mentioned that I haven't paid for food yet? These guys are awesome! I ate way too much, and was happy I did!



The next day, I woke up and took off late, but not before updating my ride report a bit, and taking a look at David's Taurus Judge. A 5 shot revolver that fires 410 shot, or 45 caliber rounds... DAMN.



You do NOT want to be Judged by this hand gun.



After that, David took me out for breakfast, and on the way there, he showed me his car gun, and 5 round mini derringer revolver that shoots .22 caliber magnums. AWESOME. It unfolds like a pocket knife.



Turns into a hand gun.



And dissapears into your hand.



Breakfast was kick ass.



When we got back to David's place, I loaded up my bike, and got ready to head for Big Bend National Park.



On the way there, I took my time and went slow, I was in no hurry. On the way, another biker fell in behind me and we cruised about 80 miles before I pulled over for fuel in a small town and he pulled up beside me. Here he is riding an '83 Honda V65 Magnum 1100. He was a true biker. Ride what you have.



Just a bit further I stopped at a gas station/mini mart to grab a drink and instead ended up drinking the coke and chatting with the attendant there for about 45 minutes or an hour. In that time, about 25 people came in a bought multiple loterry scratch tickets. The attendant told me that he never saw anyone with money to spare come in and buy the tickets, only the ones that were looking to hit it big. The ones that couldn't afford to buy them in the first place.

So, I bought $5 worth of scratch tickets, to see if I couldn't hit it big. I won $4, effectively gave the Texas State Lottery a free dollar, and walked away from it.



Here is the Texas Lottery "Honoring All Who Served". I don't know about that.



A little further on, I reached Del Rio, Texas, hardly 150 miles from where I started in San Antonio. The sun was setting, and I didn't feel like riding much further. Along the way, I realized that I didn't have my sunglasses on. Damnit, when I had stopped to put my ear plugs in, I had set my sun glasses on my tank bag and then took off, leaving them on the side of the road. I also didn't have any gloves besides my winter gerbing heated gloves and I was about to ride for a weekend in Big Bend. Well, along the highway I spotted a motorcycle shop, so I stopped in to see what I could find.



After a look around, and about 30 minutes of shooting the bull with the owner, his wife, and a mechanic, I had some sunglasses and gloves, and a couple of photos of the bikes he builds. This was the first time I had seen or even heard of a rear sprocket that serves as a brake rotor!



After asking where I could find a cheap place to stay for the night (as I hadn't made it all the way to Big Bend) I was pointed in the direction of a $28/night motel. WHen I pulled up, I met another biker on his '76 BMW R90/6 with over 150k miles on it. He was heading home to Deming, New Mexico. He was coooool.



The next day, I left late again, at 11am, to avoid any cool morning temps (I didn't have to go to far to Big Bend), and rode until my felt like stopping 100 miles down the road at a "Picnic Area." I think the Safari tank on the DR looks kick ass. The trailer is kick ass too!



The night before I bought some snacks at the dollar store. Here I am stuffing face on granola bars, sour gummy worms, a coke and a quart sized bag of pecans from some trees on Billy's property in Alabama.



From there, I rode until my butt got sore, stopping only to see if I could decide what it was that had once been alive but had since been turned into road kill. Apparantly this is a Havelina. (Wild Boar native to the area).



That night, I ended up in Big Bend National Park, and stopped for a photo at one of the park entrance signs. I had ridden over 1000 miles with the Moto-Mule trailer behind my bike at highway cruising speeds ranging from 55mph-75mph. It never gave me a problem. (A great solution to clear up space on your bike!)



Soon thereafter, I found the Chisoc Mining Company Motel and after checking in under Darrel's name, was unloading my stuff into Cabin 19.



From there, I took the advice of Darrel and took off to find the Starlight Theater Restaraunt and Bar where I was told I would find the "night life."



First though, I had to order my dinner. I was hungry. I got free desert after eating the entire Diego Burger. It was rough, and I hardly wanted to eat it as it was 2.25lbs of rediculousness. But I finished, much to the surprise of all the people there, and I enjoyed my free ice cream desert.



This was the crowd that I found that night. One of the owners, and local teacher, a server/bartender, and a couple more locals. They were all quite drunk.



See what I mean? The bartender/server on the left and a local on the right...



That night, Darrel (D-Rail) and his friend Bobby showed up and we the next morning it was time for breakfast. We got a taste of some of the local form of transportation.



And after breakfast, a taste of ADVrider Transportation! KTM 690R



That day we took off around noon and rode 100 miles off road through the park, it was bitchin. Meet Bobby!



Bobby is 50, and has been riding his entire life. This wheely took off at about 30mph and probably touched down at 60mph. I can't do that.



Nor can I do this! Well, I am telling a little lie. I saw D-Rail roll over this lip and come around to the left. I didn't know what I was looking at and hit it without ever letting off the throttle. According to him, and I tend to agree, I caught just as much air, and landed just as well. I couldn't do it again, as I was too scared!



The night, D-Rail's friend Brandon rolled in driving his moto-van. We took off the next morning for the gas station, and saw this outrageous three wheels car. I call it a car, because it has a steering wheel. It's called a Stallion, and has a 4-cylinder Ford Ranger motor in it. The guy that drove it was retired and about 70 years old. To each his own.



After that, we took off into the desert. It was a kick ass day and about 80% through the day, D-Rail's KLR650 sprung a leak. Dammit! Meet D-rail in his moment of shittyness.

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About 15 miles down the road, D-Rails friend Brandon got a flat front tire on his brand new 2011 KLR650. I busted out my Enduro Star Trail Stand and got to work. D-Rail had one as well, but had never used it as in the past 25k miles he's put on his KLR, he's never gotten a flat tire! That bastard! I made short work of this flat, and we put in a new front tube.



Big Bend National Park is great for ADV riding, and I had a great time riding out there with Darrel, Bobby and Brandon. On the second day, they were all riding KLR650's (2011, 2008, and 2005) all of which were pretty much stock. All of them are better off road riders then me and were tearing up the trails on tires less suited for the dirt then my TKC 80's. IT WAS AWESOME! You can't knock a KLR650. They do the job.



And Bobby will show you how to wheely it as well.



Brandon will show you if you didn't learn the first time.



And Darrel will pull the inside line on you if you don't check your mirrors!



After 130 miles the second day, we found ourselves back at the Starlight, on the porch with the locals drinking like we had always been there. After a while we went inside for dinner. This is a shot of the wall above the bar.



The next morning, Sunday morning, after breakfast we all decided we had ridden enough for the weekend, Bobby had a family to see, Brandon had a girlfriend to take to a motorcross track to ride that afternoon, Darrel wasn't picky, and I still had 2500 miles in front of me before I would get home. So we parted ways. Kind of. Here is Brandon rolling out in his "Moto-Van" with his KLR650 in the back.



And my lucky butt (literally) was able to stick my bike in the back of Bobby's truck, and hop in for a 320 mile ride nearly directly north to the home town of Darrel and Bobby, Lovington, New Mexico. YAY! What's up Darrel!



At the gas station on the way out, we saw this guy... Haha. He was traveling in style.

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So was this dog! Zoom in close if you can, and you'll see what looks like a sheep dog straddling the passenger seat and the panniers. It was awesome.



When we got into Lovington, New Mexico we swung by Bobby's auto dealership called "Ranch Hand Auto". Across the street is his shop/storage area. Inside it was a Man Cave of a sort... Check out his Rock Crawler!



And his Polaris rig.

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And his DJ Sound System! AHAH! Bobby Moonlights as a DJ... Not really, he took it in on trade in the back of a trailer on a car he sold. It was outrageous.



Bobby and his wife Missy live about 30 minutes outside of town on a family ranch. They have a pretty neat wrout iron sign letting you know where you're at.



THIS, is D-rail's Toyota Rock Crawler... Coooool.



Well, what you see is what you get! I am in South East, New Mexico now, and will be staying at Bobby's house again tonight (I stayed there last night). I've been treated well in the past 2 weeks by my ADVrider amigos, and am having a great time! Tomorrow I hope to reach Las Cruces, New Mexico and meet up with another ADVrider named Dan. His DR650 has RM250 forks on it... I want to check it out.

From there, I'll be heading west still and gunning it for California where a plethra of ADV'ers have given me their good graces and offered me a place to sleep, food to eat, to drink, and a place to work on my moto if needed. I hope to have no use of a shop, and plenty of use for food, , and sleeping.

Stay tuned for more guys and gals!

--Alex
　

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Great to see the adventure continues. Are you planning to stay mainly on roads or how does the trailer handle off road? How easy is it to put on and off, it looks like it attached via the rear wheel spindle.

Alright, it’s been 9 days since my last report/check in, and a lot has happened. Specifically, I have arrived home! I know that a lot of you guys were psyched to see me, and meet me along my ride north from San Diego, but things got in the way, and I chose what you will see to be a much different route home...

First thing first, I had to leave Las Cruces, New Mexico and our inmate amigo Lunatic (Danimal). Having just checked the night before if his spare RM250 wheel would fit on my DR650 forks (to decide if I could keep my DR650 front wheel when swapping in an RM250 front end, which I can!) I hadn’t tightened up my front axle retainer bolts...



Good thing my mind decided to instruct my eyes to lean out over the front end of the bike and look at them! 8 minutes later, and I was back on the road having solved that minor hiccup.



About 100 miles later, I stopped for food at a local KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken), in front of me a couple driving from Louisiana to California ordered a 20pc family meal and then proceeded to sit down and consume the entire family meal... It would seem that I am not alone in this world. I took a picture of my kick ass motorcycle out the window.



About 100 more miles later, I pulled over for a break, and walked around for 5 minutes, then I laid down on the concrete in the sun for 10 more minutes, then I took a pee off the side of the road behind a large bush, and got back on the bike for more interstate.



I rode until it started to get dark, I made it about 15 miles east of Phoenix, or 344 miles that day. I had an offered bed in San Diego, and I figured I’d get there in 2 days. And so if came that I found a place to camp...



Under the stars! I’m a cheap ass. At least I am when I am by myself. I can be persuaded to spend money, but when I am alone, and a hotel costs $50, and there isn’t a cloud in the sky, I have a brand new “to me” extra long thermarest sleeping pad and a 0 degree down filled sleeping bag... I’ll sleep outside. I didn’t even have to use the tent that I had been carrying since San Antonio when David (HotAir) gave me one (brand new 3 man Coleman tent) that he didn’t use enough.

Only my face was cold that night, and I slept in my shorts and a t-shirt in the sleeping bag. It dropped down to about 40 degrees that night. This is either the 3rd or 4th time I have slept in this sleeping bag since I bought it on Day 5 of 250 on my way to Argentina. I’ll have more use for it now that I’m home!



Later the next morning, I got on my bike and rode 165 mile before stopping at a Yuma, Arizona Dairy Queen. That’s where I met this 89 yr old WWII veteran that was driving a newer model bright red Jeep Wrangler. We talked about motorcycles, and then my trip and he told me that “Doing that kind of stuff is what keeps you young. Traveling the world that is. I got my fill in the Army. Saw damn near half the world while fixing airplanes. No wonder I’ll hit 89 this year!”

HELL YES!



Later, I was about another 100 miles down the road, parked at a rest stop. I met some cool people there too, and was sitting in the sun for about 45 minutes. I busted out my cell phone to call BigJohn in San Diego, and my phone didn’t work. I’m using a friend’s extra phone, and his service lapped for about 8 hours... I couldn’t find a pay phone, so I just kept going.



Then, I was at Big Johns place! Excellent. Big John is 6’4” and half again my size. His appropriate steed of choice is a mostly stock BMW R1200GS. Its 105hp is something to be desired (if you’re me).



Inside John’s house, everything is done right. Here we can see his fantastic audio set up accompanying his big screen TV. Not only is the music equipment top of the line, his choice in music and books for that matter, the audio is wired to the entire house. The main living area (kitchen/living room), bathroom, bedrooms, and outdoor back patio are all wired for sound. AWESOME.



I arrived on Friday, and that night, John had his neighbors over for dinner. We stuffed our faces, and it was awesome. I ate my fill. The next day, John went to work. Well, he went to his volunteer post at the audio shop where he worked for the past decade and a half. While he was spending his Saturday shooting the shit with Audiophiles, I read one of his several hundred books. This one happens to be a Robert A. Heinlein classic, “The Star Beast”. I read it in one day. Mostly in the sunshine. J



When I say that, everything in John’s house is done right. I mean it. Meal time is included in that statement.



On Sunday, while everyone else was getting their pregame face on for the Super Bowl, John and I made a 140 mile ride into the mountains, northward, and back down the coast. John makes his R1200 look similar to my DR650...



First stop of the ride for some refreshments at a gas station.



Here we are riding down the coast. In front of me is a NOOB riding his BRAND NEW BMW G650GS, wearing shorts, sneakers with calf length socks, a Peruvian style sweater, an off road helmet with no visor, and sunglasses. No Boots, Pants, Jacket, or Gloves... I hope he doesn’t crash...



We stopped for another break, and I took a picture of this house. With all the color in its front yard, it helped me realize why so many people love to be in California.



This scene... IN FEBRUARY.



Now you can see what happened... John said something to me the day I arrived. Something along the lines of, “You know, I have been meaning to head north to Seattle and North Vancouver, Canada to go check out some steel hulled sail boats, and provided the weather is good up there, I was thinking about going early next week, say, Monday or Tuesday. In which case, we could throw your little motorcycle in the back of my truck.”

I might be crazy, but at this point, I’m not stupid. And with nothing to prove, and a beautiful girlfriend at home, who’s been waiting patiently for me. I knew when to say when. YES PLEASE!



And so it came to be that at 3am on Tuesday morning, we left San Diego, headed north to beat the L.A. traffic. We beat it alright.



And my happy ass didn’t have to ride through the 500 miles of rain that John’s 2002 Toyota Tundra laughed at. While my bike was catching a ride...



I worked on a book John let me borrow. Richar K. Morgan’s “Altered Carbon” AWESOME BOOK. Does it look like I care at ALL that I’m not riding 1280 miles to Seattle? I don’t think so.



Well, with initial plans to drive to Redding, California and then spend the night and depart in the morning, we passed Redding at 4pm’ish and kept on going. We made it to Eugene, Oregon; home to Voodoo Donuts where John and I bought ate a Maple Bacon Bar. We opted out of the specialty donut “Cock and Balls”.

That was the end of my joy ride with John however, and I traded inmates for Mike, creator and builder of the Moto-Mule Trailer that I pull behind my bike. Mike showed up at Voodoo donuts, and I followed him back to his place.

John was a great host! Thanks John!



15 minutes later, I was parked in Mike’s garage. I like dry parking spots. I soon thereafter was fed, and then I went to bed. John and I had driven 950 miles in one day, and he had continued north to Longview, Washington the same night. He’s an animal!



The next day, Mike took me to his shop where I got to see some of his equipment. Here is a CNC Plasma cutter. I WANT ONE!



And a CNC mill! AWESOME!



And his shop neighbors ’86 Porsche!



After that, we headed over to the headquarters of ProCycle US, where I met the guys that sell nearly every accessory known to man for the DR650 along with a few other bikes. This particular bike belongs to Jeff, the owner of ProCycle. It may look like a standard DR650, aside from the Safari tank. Along with the bike has the “ProCycle Wheel Set” with a 19” front and 17” rear. The Front is a 110/90/19, and the Rear is a 150/80/17. The Motor is bored out to 780cc, with high compression piston, hot cams, oversized valves, and an opened midpipe/exhaust. It’s a MONSTER of a bike. AWESOME.



What does this look like to you? To me it looks like an oversized gigantic motor crammed into an ’86 Corvette...



Oh right, a 6.9 liter TURBO DIESEL CORVETTE! HOLY SMOKES!



Then it was off to meet Drum, a procycle employee at a local watering hole for dinner before heading back to Mike’s house for bed. The next day, Mike was feeding me breakfast while I was checking out facebook.



Then it was off to his shop to see his machines in action. Here is his CNC plasma machine cutting out aluminum plates that will soon adorn the side of my action packer tub on my trailer. BITCHIN.



Next step, powder coat the plates.



Then, hang them in the oven.



Homemade powder coat oven. Kick ass. I want one of these too.



When they are dry, take them back into the house to be pasted with stickers. Rad. He has a sticker cutting machine too. Put that on the list of items.



Next, group shot with Mike. Now my trailer is complete! Thanks Mike!!!



Then, I hauled ass home to my parents house, 300’ish miles. Everybody was happy to see me. YAY! I’m home!

The next day, my Dad woke me up at 8am with his mini laptop in hand... What do you think of this Al Pal? Hmmm. What year is it? 1997. What is is? Mercury Grand Marquis. How many miles? 98k. One owner eh? Yep... I think that’s AWESOME.

And so it came to be that I am the new owner of a mini land yacht previously owned by an 89 year old man and his wife. This baby hasn’t seen the front side of 3k rpm’s in it’s life!



The same day, I went for a drive over the mountains to see Kristi! YAY!



Hi Kristi!!!



Dinner time! FEED ME!



And so it goes. I am home now.
I’m currently in Ellensburg, Washington doing absolutely nothing physical for the next few weeks while Kristi goes to school full time. Tom and I will go the docks on Wednesday and get his motorcycle, and get the bike running again. I will probably re-read my entire ride report and then edit it. I’ll gather my favorite photos and compile them. I’ll study how to fuel inject my DR650. I’ll decide how and where I’m going to put a turbo (GT15) on my ’95 BMW K75 (Mike gave me a free BRAND NEW turbo! HELL YES!)

And then I’ll begin planning No Job, No Responsibilities, No Better Time Than Now. ROUND 2. Can you say AFRICA?

Onward amigos!

Any Questions? Now is the time to ask, I’ll be full time answering questions now!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Hi Alex,

Has been interesting following your blog, and good to see the adventure still continues on home turf. Quick question re the masses of photographs you have collected enroute. What did you use to store them? ie Hard drive, mem-card?

I am shipping my bike to Chile in October for a brief 3 month trip. Would have liked to spend longer but the usual work and family requirements have to be met.

Cheers
Gordy

Thanks for following along!

I brought along with me 2(two) 4 gigabyte SD memory cards and one 1gb card for my camera.

I nearly used the entirety of the second 4gb card by the time I finished my trip.

Whenever I would sit down with my computer I would upload to my computers hard drive all of the new pictures that I had taken with my camera. I NEVER deleted any pictures from my Cameras SD cards. NEVER. (Not including instantaneous deletions that occured when a photo came out terribly).

Further more, all of the really great photos made it to my Ride Report, and henceforth were uploaded to my photobucket account to link them to my reports.

So, in the end, I had 3 copies of my most important photos, and 2 copies of ALL of my photos.

I stored in original formatting all of the photos that I took on my computers hard drive and on my memory cards.

Secondly I had a 3rd copy of my photos, in a much smaller format 800x600, stored online in my photobucket account.

If you are so inclined, you could carry a small usb thumb drive of 8gb-16gb and likely not run out of space.

For my computer, I used a 3 year old ASUS 1000HA Netbook computer. It was everything I needed it to be.

Enjoy your Adventure!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Fantastic report Alex, it really looks like you're ready for the next leg. Africa, wow are you going to have an amazing time. I look forward to hearing about you're proposed route, I've spent a fair bit of time around Africa over there years though sadly never with a bike, though it's been going round my head for a while now. Good luck.

Hi Alex,

Thank you for the photo storage info. Good luck with your future adventures. Look forward to reading about them. Africa has got to be a go!

Gordy

Hey Alex - sorry I missed you on the way up through California - it took me a while but I made it through all your blogs - hella of a road trip to South America - one to tell your grandkids about. Let me know if you're ever down this way (Sacramento), and i'll buy you a steak and a

Ro-Bear (aka HondoLane), from U-Bear's website

Epic tale Alex. And the new bike looks awesome!

Hey BugsOnMyBoard, I'm glad you enjoyed the ride report! I had a great time writing it, and I'm having even more fun riding around on my new bike!

Thanks!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

We're up and rolling again!

It had been 13 month since I returned to the USA, and the plans were being sorted out. Now I'm on the road again. This time to Australia with my lovely gf turned fiancee Kristi!

No motorcycle as of yet, but the adventure continues!

Life is grand!

Follow the adventure here: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...es-still-68392

Thanks!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN