you should've joined us Jared .. when I get back we need to do another group ride.

As far as net access it's dependent on where we stay and ability to borrow my friends laptop (didn't have room to bring mine) ... for those interested here's the first diary of a madman report:

Departed Atl around 4pm thurs and rode on through the night ... slept a few hours and 2nd day, with exception of eat and gas stops pretty much rode straight on through until just now where we finally pulled over to get some rest. Not much to report yet except to say alabama and mississippi have an over abundance of extreme bovine flatulence in the air lol.

Logged nearly 900 miles so far and it's hard to believe not even half way there. The pain is extreme but worth it so far compared to the awesome experience. I'm toughing it out .. this bike definitely wasn't designed for this purpose but whatever .. I just tuck my head down and keep on going.

My friends gps is also an invaluable tool as we take breaks off the major interstate from time to time and take some back hwy twisty type roads to break up the monotony.

will give a more indepth report next chance i get as i'm dead tired now and got to get some rest b4 we get up and do it all over again in a few hours.

p.s. Right now we've reached Oklahoma City.

 

2100 miles in 4 days and finally reached Vegas!

Some thoughts pondered about riding a 954 for 2100 miles in that short a period: No amount of preparation makes it less painful (frequent stops, padded shorts, corbin seat, convertibars, etc.. etc..) and the pain was almost unbearable at some points but the joy of the open road was still an awesome experience and worth it anyway. If I had to pick just one tip for a long distance trip I'd have to say good EAR PLUGS are a must.

Amazingly we seemed to just miss the severe weather and it was great weather for the most part with the exception of a quick downpour in the mountains near Flagstaff Arizona. And my dumb *** had the rain gear buried in the bottom of the bags .. not smart. btw, Flagstaff is a beautiful city and not at all what I expected of a city in the West. Cool weather, beautiful mountain scenery mixed with greens comparable to Atlanta ... great area.

Many times we chased the sun and wouldn't let it set .. miles and miles of riding directly west watching it set. Once, near Vegas we also rode while watching the sunrise ... awesome sight that I recommend anyone doing once in their lives. Reached Hoover Dam just as the sun was rising.

One thought during the western portion of the ride: with miles and miles of straight open highway with near perfect visibility front and rear and much better (more courteous drivers) makes me rethink that 85+ mph is dangerous in all conditions. On those open roads 85 to 90 for hundreds of miles not only kept me from going insane but didn't seem anywhere near as dangerous as those speeds would be anywhere in Georgia since the visibility is so incredible.

A lot more thoughts on the trip and a few random pics upcoming if any one cares.

Cheers

p.s. After a few days stop here in Vegas we'll be doing the second leg of the trip down to San Diego and back (approx. 500 miles or so I think ... chump change comparatively lol).

 

Awesome KB!! Glad to hear the trip is going well and you guys made it out to Vegas safely Man I soooo wish I could have joined you guys.... next time for sure!

Enjoy Vegas... don't get crabs or herpes from any of the hookers, and be safe on the next leg of your journey

 

Dude, you are epic! So, post up those pics as soon as you get a chance. I don't know if you need to edit them for size or anything else. If so, just send them to my email and I will post them for you. Oh, and try not to get crushed by the piles of **** flyers (I wouldn't believe how many fliers littered the streets of Vegas the last time I was there...long time, though).

 

WOW..good job KB. I'm so jealous you get to ride across the country like that...trip of a lifetime bro. Blow off some steam in Vegas and send us some pics!!

 

No, the handing out fliers for escort services seems to have been halted to a complete stop .. reminds me of Mitch Hedbergs saying: When you hand me a flier it's like you're saying hey man, you throw this away, okay? Wouldn't mind seeing the Bunny Ranch for "investigational research purposes" only

Here are a few pics as requested .. took many more but too lazy to upload the rest ...

Packed and ready-to-go .. bungee cords scratched the hell out of my paint but it just adds more character and natural battle scars, right?



Forgot to take a starting odo shot, here's one approx. 650 miles into the trip:



Bugs got more and more pervasive as we moved along ...



At one point during a long stretch and my mind going numb, I look down at my visor and see two thingies floating around as if I was in outer space with no gravity. For several miles I kept looking down inside my visor down around the mouth area trying to make out what the hell was floating around inside my helmet or was my mind just going comfortably numb only to figure out that my ear plugs had slipped out and the wind was making them float around .. haha

Here's one of the stretches out in the middle of nowhere in Arizona:



Note the new Convertibars which puts the position of the bars just about where the F4i bars are:



Some stretches had not a sole, building, or any signs of civilization for 40 to 50 miles at a time ... during those stretches I was thinking to myself how much I appreciate the reliability of a Honda.

I've heard of farmers tans and trucker tans but no one warned me about Sportbikers tan .. yes, it's as painful as it looks:



Only 120 miles left to Vegas baby! The rain gear was necessary for the last part of Arizona near Flagstaff but had to quickly come off as the Neveda desert heat was near 107 degrees!![] One last shot of an energy drink and off on our last stretch ...



Passed Hoover dam and vegas is in sight. Quick pee stop just north of vegas:



Finally!! After 2200 miles, vegas skyline is in sight ...




Highly recommend a Zumo Navi (or any Navi) if doing long trips. It added tons of enjoyment taking twisty off road routes which we couldn't have done otherwise:



After staying at cheap motels along the way, splurging on this resort in vegas is heaven on my back and sore *** .. have no *** left btw ...




Been riding around all over Vegas past couple of days and I don't know how you guys living here wear full gear .. 110 degrees and traffic light after traffic light .. my bike was around the 230 degree mark the whole time .. feels like I have a furnace stuck to my ankles ... I have to ride with my legs sticking way out .. quite an amusing mental picture for you so no pic on that one.

Cheerios

 

wow KB, havent checked back in on this thread until now......this makes me so badly want to do a long trip. i've never ever really taken a vacation, and i've never been to the west coast (besides NM, but doesnt count, long story). i'd absolutely LOVE to ride accross to CA someday.

glad you're having a BLAAAAAST, looks so fun KB. you guys be safe, and enjoy every minute of it. ya only live once!

damn it looks like fun.....

 

Great pics. Thanks for the update....I'd love to be on a trip like that now myself!!!!

Be safe, have a good time !!!

 

great pics! great road trip!!

 

Guys, I never ever thought I'd have the time, energy or money to do this trip either then one day I just said "F it" let's just do it and here I am. Just give up one of your other vacations and up and do this on a whim instead .. it's definitely worth it and a blast.

A few more pics ...

After all these trips to Vegas this was first time with a bike and it was definitely a blast last night to ride around the strip with a bike. This town is busting at the seams .. you wouldn't think it with the vast open surrounding desert but they've pretty much filled up every square inch between the mountains this town is nestled in between. I absolutely love the well thought out preplanned layout of this town with fantastic WIIIIIDDDDEEEE roads every where .. even small subdivisions and side roads have huge roads.








Voodoo, I think I found the missing ingredient in your band. You need at least one of these .. preferably two





Miscellaneous shots ...




The Palms had the most womengz but Bellagio should get the award for most attractive conglomeration of womengz and hottest clubs .. tons of celebrities going in and out .. I should be an *** detective as I didn't seem to get busted taking perverted shots .. a sample of one