Sue, Dan's favorite waitress at the Red Lion, is still there.  When the group tried to get something to eat, she came back and said that the kitchen was closed.  Dave asked if there was ANYTHING she could get e.g. some cottage cheese, a salad, etc?

"No!  The kitchen is closed!"

Great Northwest Tour by Bob Kramer

Day 1: Everett, WA to John Day, OR. - 422 miles

The night before, I was checking my trusty MS Streets and Trips and noticed a supposed paved shortcut to bypass Pendleton, OR.  The road was Big Butter Creek (next to Little Butter Creek).  Turned out to be pretty nice!  Only hitch was it was a “free range” area and we found cows in the road.  Luckily, no problem…we waited until they got off their fat asses and mooooved.  Then we connected to US-395 and this is where the good stuff started…for a while at least.  Cary and I had been on this stretch before and we were telling Chris I and II how good it was.  Then came the dreaded “Construction Ahead” signs…and expect delays.  Bummer!  The delay wasn’t too long, being mid-week, but some great sections of our route were spent behind a pilot car.  When we stopped for gas in Ukiah the locals explained they were widening and straightening the road making it safer for the big trucks.  Oh joy.  More big trucks on OUR motorcycle roads!!  Once we got past that crap, things were very good for our final descent into John Day.  We even passed a couple county revenue collectors but they were not interested in giving chase.  Cary said he didn’t even pick them up on radar so they could have been going home.

Once in John Day, we stayed at the Best Western.  It had a pool so Chris 1 and I went for a swim.  Chris, realizing that his skivvies were on under his swim trunks, attempted to remove them just as Collagen Lady walked into the poolroom.   He got caught with his pants down.  Good for a laugh.  At dinner, Cary was complaining that he just turned 50 so the bartender mixed him a Margarita big enough to swim in…compliments of the “house”.  That’s pretty much it for Day 1.

Day 2: John Day, OR to Burney, CA. - 463 miles or so

Another perfect-weather day!  In fact, we were extremely lucky to get the great weather we did.  Chris II had to head back home to his new wife.  He’s still on a relatively short leash since it has been only a month since the wedding.  So now it’s the three of us (Bandit Chris, Cary and I).  Steve and his two friends are to meet up with us sometime today.  Little did we know we had passed them in Burns, OR…but I didn’t know I was looking for an SV and two cruisers.   But back to the ride…

South of John Day and it’s 395 'till Burns….which is FANTASTIC!  Corners marked 30 mph that you can easily do at 60+.  Smooth and clean, good for scrubbing!   We then make it to Burns and that is where we passed Steve and his buddies.  We were going to find a place for breakfast and they were heading the other way.  After the meal, we decide to try a different more “interesting” route than 395 since, at that point, it is a straight line all the way to California.

We asked a local where the cut off was and he said, “hope you like gravel cause it’s about 70 miles of it”.  Uhhh…now what?  We’ve gone too far to backtrack so we now have to gas up in Fields, OR (a throw back town from the 40’s and 50’s…population maybe 37 now) and head over the border into northern Nevada!  The first town we go through is pretty much a ghost town.  It must have been there to “service” the sins of the Oregonians way back when.   Okay…now we finally start heading west on Hwy 140 in Nevada toward our original route of 395.  

Northern Nevada is NOT a place to break down.  It’s hot, windy, and very desolate!  We found some of the yellow animal warning signs to be somewhat humorous.  First there was to watch out for cows, then came steers, followed by wild horses.  But what really made us laugh was the sign for wild donkeys!   The road itself wasn’t much to write home about, but some of the plateaus we crossed were very interesting.  Up one side, then a straight ledge off the side of the world.  No time for pictures unfortunately…we had miles to make up!!

Amazingly, I averaged 40 mpg even while cruising at an average of 90 mph and at high altitude.   Finally we hook back up to 395 and I check my cell phone for messages at the gas stop.  Shawn, Steve’s cruiser buddy left a message saying they saw us in Burns and would meet us in Burney.   I then left him a message saying “OK”.  It went that way leaving messages most of the late afternoon/evening.

The rest of the route to Burney wasn’t thrilling and we were tired of being on our bikes.  We made it to Burney around 6:30pm and we were ready for a cold one!  We settle into a motel, leave Shawn a message where we are and soon enough, Steve and Shawn show up.  They quickly take off Steve’s luggage and head out two-up on Steve’s SV.

Hmm….what’s going on?  Turns out that both Shawn and his other cruiser buddy (forgot his name…sorry!) had a mishap and went down.  Shawn was fine but his friend had a bruised and swollen ankle and would not be able to continue with the ride.  They got the bikes back to the motel and made arrangements to have them picked up the next day.  Steve would then plan to follow our route on his blue, naked SV.  Oh, at dinner we chatted with an ex-state highway patrol guy who was now the bartender of a local joint.  Interesting how he admitted to the “revenue generation” of speeding ticket (nothing we didn’t already know).   Sleep wasn’t great that night due to the brick of a bed I slept on.  Tomorrow would be better because that’s when the really good roads started.

Day 3: Burney, CA to Nevada City, CA. - approx. 370 miles

Cary rode back and found Steve on the side of the road.  He’d gone down and hit a snow bank.  Luckily, his bike sustained minimal damage and he was able to ride it home.   He was able to use my cell phone (yes, cell service at the top of the world!!) and leave a message for Shawn.  Now it’s back to the original three amigos.  The road down the south side of Lassen is fantastic.  Gotta watch the road carefully…the views can be distracting!  Finally off the mountain, the road straightens but is still entertaining.

We stop for lunch in Greenville and I notice a naked SV ride by.  I was hoping he’d stop but nope.  After lunch, it’s Hwy 70.  Nice higher speed sweepers and good pavement.  We then see the dreaded “Construction ahead” signs.  But this time, they work in our favor.  (In California you are allowed to proceed to the front of the line in a construction zone.  They figure you are going to pass all the trucks/cars anyway so this is the safest way to do it)  The construction slow-downs were minimal and it allowed us to get ahead of ALL the traffic.  Sweet!!  As we approach Oroville, I’m keeping my eyes peeled for Cherokee Road.  I read in Pashnit.com that this was a “must-do”.  Yeah, a must-do for a TRIALS bike!  This thing is hardly a road.  What the engineers did was just pour down pavement with no grading what-so-ever.  And it was bumpy…enough to make Chris’s Bandit center-stand whack the pavement.  Luckily, it was only 12 miles…but in first gear, it was a chore.

A stop in Oroville to gas up and tighten our fillings.  The next road, (Oroville-Quincy Hwy) was one of my favorites the entire trip.  It starts out next to Lake Oroville and it is bliss.  We did encounter MORE road construction about 10 miles further, but what lay beyond is sport bike Nirvana!  After the construction zone, it was about 25-30 miles of PERFECT pavement, 30 mph posted corners that went on forever.  And NOT one car!  Cary and I dug in our heals and really let it rip on this section.  The Diablo’s were up to the challenge, but with a road this good any decent tire would suffice.  Only when we approached Quincy did we see any bit of gravel.

In Quincy, we stopped for more gas and had to rave about that last bit.  It was about 5:30pm and we had some choices to make.  Our original plan was to sample La Porte Road.  Ride about 25 miles up, then turn around and come back since there was no real good connector.  But time was not on our side.  We had about 120 miles to go to Nevada City and as the sun goes down, Bambi likes to take strolls on the roads.  So it was back to Hwy 89 to Gold Lake Hwy (a great shortcut to Hwy 49) and onto 49 to Nevada City.

At this point, we were heading west right into the sun.  It was a very challenging road with the sun flashing through the trees!  One observation made about the cagers is that they either pulled over or raced you.  Many do try their best to let you go by, but some are determined to not let you pass, or they try to outrun you.  As we approach Nevada City, I’m following a Toyota Prius with Arizona plates.  As soon as we are behind him, he hits the gas and “tries” to outrun us… almost to the point of crashing off the side of the road.  He then cut over the centerline trying to straighten the road.  Not smart.  I swear I could hear his wife/girlfriend screaming, “You better pull over if you ever want to get laid again!”  He finally came to his senses and we scooted by.

Day 4: Nevada City, CA to Petaluma, CA - approx. 300 miles

First off, a big THANK YOU to Tracy and Dave to lead us through some of the greatest roads we’ve ever ridden.  You lucky bastards have them almost year round!

We set out to meet Tracy and Dave at THE Starbucks in the town of Auburn.  Seems simple enough.  But I forgot.  There are usually Starbucks on EVERY corner if the town has a population over 5000.  So after stopping at Starbucks #1 and finding out this was not the right one, we luckily found #2.  Inside, Tracy and Dave were pouring over maps…plotting our demise (just kidding).  I knew Tracy was a family man and found out that Dave was a very young 64.  Yeah, this should be a relaxing ride…hopefully we aren’t too fast for these guys.

Luckily, we got on the right road and we were greeted by some of California’s finest (no, not enforcement).  A PERFECT road once again!!  Dave led, followed by Tracy, then me, Cary and Chris with the big Bandit in tow.  After a few miles, it was apparent that these “hopefully-not-too-slow” guys knew how to ride.  Granted, they knew the roads too, but they are FAST and SMOOTH.  No hanging off or dragging knees and hard parts, just quick inputs to point the bike where it needs to go.  At one point, Dave slowed and let us all pass.  He hung back behind Chris who thought he was going fast…only to be smoked by Dave a minute later.  I wasn’t going to try any heroics.  I rode as fast as I comfortably could, but never could fully keep up with them.  Anyone who tells you that the SV cannot keep up with a Gixxer or R1 (unless it’s straight line) is full of crap.  In capable hands, our SV’s can hang with ANYTHING.  Just ask Cary and Chris…both respectable riders of their own steeds.  They were mighty impressed.  And when the three SV’s went to pass the occasional car, the sound was incredible!   So back to the road…

At the end of Wentworth Springs, Dave apologized for the condition of the road (kidding of course).  If you every make it to the Sacramento area and east, do NOT miss this road.  Inf*ckingcredible to say the least.  From WS, it was south on Icehouse Road.  This one is great too, but the sight lines are not as good so I didn’t feel as comfortable really pushing it. 

From Icehouse, it’s west on Hwy 50, a major highway connecting Sacramento to Lake Tahoe.  No wicking it up here.  Luckily, we were only on it for maybe 10 miles before we headed south.  But during those 10 miles, we observed horse crap on the road.  Where were the horses?  This was pretty fresh!  We round a corner and a highway patrol car is in the right lane slowing traffic.  We thought they may be for us, but it turns out they were escorting a parade…with horse-drawn carriages and covered wagons.  It turns out that this is still the Wild West.

South off Hwy 50 was E16, a collaboration of connecting roads that were quite good.  My original plan was just to avoid Hwy 50 but E16 and then Latrobe Road were FUN with not too much traffic.  But all good things must come to an end, at least temporarily.  We had to super-slab it for about 40 or so miles to get to the next great section.  As we were riding on I-80, I could see the foothills of the wine country in the distance.  That was the oasis we were aiming for.

Out of Winters, we take Hwy 128 east.  What can I say, another fantastic road.  Funny, but around 4pm we are starting to get SICK of these damn twisty roads!  We stop for refreshments and “eye candy” at Lake Berryessa.  Damn, those California women are nice, unlike the pale heifers we have up North.  Now we finish with 128 and continue to Oakville Grade.  In CA, the term “Grade” means straight UP, then straight DOWN.  This wasn’t as bad as Cherokee road the previous day, but it is not for the faint-hearted!  I rode most of this bit in first gear…and actually had to slip the clutch negotiating the 2 mph switchbacks.  If you fall, you tumble all the way down the hill.  Dave and Tracy eat these roads up!  We wimpy Washingtonians were frightened a bit and really took it easy.

After Oakville (up and down), it was into Petaluma for the night.  Being Friday night, we made reservations beforehand.  It was also NASCAR weekend at Infinion Raceway 15 miles to the south.  Our Hotel (The Metro) was cute and French, which means small and expensive.  BUT, at least the coffee was good!  Tracy and Dave luckily found lodging a few miles down the road.  We all ate in Downtown Petaluma at a great Pub.  I had catfish that was the best I think I’ve ever had.  It was a great dinner with a great bunch of guys.  At dinner, Tracy admitted that they were kind of “testing” to see if we could ride or not.  If not, they would have changed their plans.  I guess we can ride because they continued on with us to Fort Bragg the next day.

I have to mention the couple at the table next to us.  When they first got there, they couldn’t keep their hands off each other.  To quote a line from European Vacation, “I think he’s going to boink her Rusty”.  Later on, the touching and laughing stopped.  No “boinking” for our touchy couple.

Day 5: Petaluma, CA to Fort Bragg, CA. - approx. 285 miles

Tracy, Dave, Cary, Chris and I rolled out of town around 9am.   Within about a mile or so, the twisting starts again on Pt. Reyes-Petaluma Road.  Man, I love the Bay area foothills!  Our original plan was to head a bit south and pick up Fairfax-Bolinas Road, but Tracy and Dave advised us not to do it - too bumpy and twisty.  That kind of input really helped us have a more enjoyable ride.

After about 20 miles of gentle rolling sweepers, we made it to the famous Hwy 1 which hugs the Pacific Ocean.  If you want scenery, quaint bed-n-breakfasts AND one hell of a road, this is it.  Oh yeah, expect lots of fog and traffic too.  Luckily, we missed the fog and got on it early enough to beat most of the heavy traffic.  I wish they would outlaw motor homes on roads like this.  We stopped for gas in some small town, and when leaving, almost got attacked by a large black dog.  He didn’t bother me, but wanted to take a chunk out of Senior Bandit.

A bit further on, we were to hit Stewarts Point-Skaggs Springs Road…the “Holy Grail” of roads as described in www.Pashnit.com.  And I won’t dispute it either!  But Dave (aka Goat Trail Man) veers us to Meyers Grade which will pick up SP-SS Road five miles inland, allowing us to miss some of the road’s more-difficult section.  Here we go again with the “Grade”.  So up we go, and it’s a pretty nice road.  I’m thinking, “Hey, he didn’t hose us!”  What goes up MUST come down though…and that’s when the road turned quite challenging.  At one point  we were going straight down.  Felt like I was doing a handstand on my clip-ons.  A bit too much front brake and oops, over ya go.  Didn’t even have a chance to waive back to the family of Native Americans repelling down the “road”.  If this thing had snow on it, it would be a Black Diamond run!

Another thing to watch out for are the car clubs.  The local Porsche 924/944 club was coming the other way when we were stopped at the “smoke shop”.  And further down, a MR2 misjudged a corner and kissed a big tree.  Getting towed from there must cost a fortune…not to mention the expensive twisted bits!  Both occupants were fine.  After a road like that, it’s time for lunch at the Hoot Owl Café (or something like that) next to Hwy 101.

After lunch Cary left us for a more direct route back north.  He had unexpected business that he had to tend to.  From there, the rest of us proceeded east toward Calistoga (known for it’s spring water).  We bypassed the town and went north on Hwy 29.  This is a GREAT road IF you can miss the traffic.  We did not.  We were finally making progress getting past those f*cking cagers when damn, we’re stuck behind a fire truck on it’s way to an incident.  It’s doing 25 mph and won’t let us pass.  Not to mention, we’re sucking in diesel fumes.  Turns out it’s another car-meets-tree affair.  Come on guys, let’s get OUT of our cars and hug the trees!  By that time, Hwy 29 ended and we connected to Hwy 175.

There is a stretch of Hwy 175 that will make you dizzy.  You get off your bike and almost fall over from going back and forth so quickly.  Next time, I will go straight to this stretch and bypass the other gunk.

Now we are back on Hwy 101.  Dave and Tracy decide to “test” a road they’ve never been on.  Chris and I don’t feel like “testing” roads so we play it safe and make the most direct route to Fort Bragg via Hwy 253 to 128.  Traffic was a bit heavy but it was a nice ride to our hotel.   An hour or so later, Tracy and Dave roll in…Tracy smelling of gasoline.  Going against his better judgment to not use a cracked petrol hose, he started filling his tank.  It promptly split and started showering his arm with gas.  Many expletives and a good soaking got him cleaned up and back on the road.  Very lucky no one was smoking at that gas station!

Later, we had dinner on the waterfront harbor.  Overpriced, but still good.  We said our goodbyes to Tracy and Dave 'cause they were going to head south the next day.  Adios until next year guys!!

Day 6: Fort Bragg, CA to Redding, CA. – approx. 290 miles

It was now only Bandit Chris and myself.  Left Fort Bragg around 8:15 a.m. thinking we could make it to Garberville and breakfast with Duncan (aka svsportrider).  This is the last stretch of Hwy 1 before it joins Hwy 101 and the BIG trees.  Might as well save the best for last!  This section that winds up toward Leggett is one twisty mother…with many 15- and 20-mph corners.  Better get on it early cause getting stuck behind the motorhomes means a long day.  We were fairly fortunate and only encountered a little bit of funky pavement.

Made it to Garberville and saw Duncan waiving his arms.  Okay guys, we see you!  He and his friend (sorry, what’s his name again?) were on their way south to pick up a Gamma 500 in the Bay Area, so they would not be riding today.  It was cool that they still decided to meet us for the 1-hour breakfast.  To give you an idea of where Duncan lives, it’s at the base of Hwy 36, arguably one of the best overall roads in the entire state, maybe the nation?  Oh, and just south of his hometown is “The Avenue of the Giants”.  This is where the world’s largest trees reside.  I didn’t take any pictures this time and, besides, pictures do not do it any justice.

After breakfast, we made our way to the fabled Hwy 36.  What makes this road so amazing is that it has it all.  It’s all your favorite roads rolled into one 140-mile stretch.  Nuff said.  The only downer today was the amount of gravel in the corners as we came down the other side of the mountain range.  You just needed to stay close to the centerline and you were OK, but we really could not feel 100% comfortable.  As you get close to Red Bluff and I-5 (the main freeway on the west coast), 36 turns into a roller coaster.  Never ridden this section before, I took it very easy.  If you aren’t careful, you will get airtime!

By then, it was getting HOT and the pool in Redding was sounding better and better.  So a short stint up I-5 to Redding ended our day…but not before we witnessed ANOTHER vehicle vs. tree incident.  It started a fire in the median and we were lucky to get through without too much wasted time.  We had a nice, casual dinner and some beers at the hotel bar.  Are managers supposed to be doing shots?  This one was…still on duty, nonetheless.  Cheers! 

A note on riding in hot weather: GET A CAMELBAK!  Many riders we saw in CA had them, and we were prepared too.  I cannot recommend it enough.  It made our long, hot days 1000% better!

Day 7: Redding, CA to Roseburg, OR. - approx. 330 miles

Left Redding around 9am and it was already 85 degrees.  This area of CA is very hot and we were glad to be leaving for cooler temps.  We head out on 299 east toward the coast and the temps start to fall as we climb the mountains.  Highway 299 is a GOOD road, but not great.  Scenery is top-notch but the prevalence of tar snakes makes you keep your corner speed in check.  They bite when hot!

By the time 299 hits Hwy 96, you are in Bigfoot Country (and Indian, er, Native American Country).  We stop for gas in Willow Creek, snap a couple pics, and then head north on 96.  If you like high-speed sweepers, you will LOVE this road.  We carried 80+ mph for 100+ miles.  Nice!  This area of Northern CA is called the Green Triangle cause it’s major industry is Pot.  Yup, Bigfoot is smoking a fatty right now.

Instead of taking 96 all the way to I-5, we decide to take a connector road from Happy Camp (hmm…wonder why they call it that?)  Most of the road was repaved a few years back so it’s a fairly fun ride UP and over into Oregon.  We then head toward Grants Pass, OR where Jellyfish is going to try to meet up with us.  We are behind schedule (as usual) so he probably took off before we made it there.  Sorry Jelly…maybe next time!  From Grants Pass, it’s I-5 to Roseburg.  Had a surprisingly good Italian meal and called it a day.  I did talk to Joe S. and he would see if he could meet us in Newport the next night and ride with us on Day 9.   

Day 8: Roseburg, OR to Newport, OR. – approx. 250 miles

After 7 days straight of  riding, we’re a bit tired so we scaled our mileage down a bit.  Our original plan was to head a bit southwest on Hwy 42 to the coast, and then burn it up Hwy 101.   Instead, we cut up on some back-roads northwest to Hwy 38, which then took us to 101 and the coast in Reedsport.  Along the beautiful coast for 20 miles and it’s back inland on Hwy 126 to 36.  All these roads are good, 36 the best of the bunch.  For lunch we stop in the town of Monroe at the “Chew and Chat”.  Seems to be a great place for Moms to get liquored up as the kids wait in the dining room.  “Mom, can we go now?”  “As soon as I’m done with this double martini…”.  Motherhood at it’s best.

From here, we have a few choices.  Do a straight shot (no pun intended) north to Hwy 34 and then back to the coast, or cut through some more back roads and get to Hwy 34 without having to do much straight-lining.  A local said we’d have a few miles of gravel to deal with, but it was worth it.  He was right, the road was damn good and NOBODY else was on it.  The gravel section was minimal and connected up to 34 right when it gets good!  Then it’s Hwy 101 for about 15 miles up the coast to Newport, Oregon.  This is where they “freed Willie (the Orca)” a number of years ago before he was shipped on to Norway (I think).

Day 9: Newport, OR to Woodland, WA. – approx. 250 miles

Joe met Chris and I at the hotel for a 9am departure.  We took Hwy 20 a few miles east to pick up Hwy 229 which heads back northwest.  Joe warned me that this road wasn’t in the best shape and he was right!  Bumpy and lots of road crap.  If/when ODOT repaves, it will be sweet!  But I think I’ll stay away till that is done.  Oh well, at least we bypassed some of the coastal tourist droning.

Back on Hwy 101 we ride through Lincoln City, the coastal town that extends forever.  It’s like the Energizer Bunny…it keeps going and going.  Finally, we pick up Hwy 18 east to Grand Ronde and back northwest on 22.  Highway 22 is a fantastic bit!   I had been mellow for the last few days, but when I hit this I was gone.

I passed a big hay truck and had the next 20 some miles of pavement to myself.  Chris and Joe got stuck behind the hay truck and couldn’t pass and, unfortunately, didn’t enjoy this road as much as I did.  We picked up 101 and went south a bit so we could have lunch on the coast at Cape Kiwanda in Pacific City.  You have to get off the main highway, so many people will miss this section of the coast.  I’m glad Joe pointed us in the right direction!

Lunch was at the Pelican Brew Pub…an establishment right on the water.  The views were good both in and out…this place had a ton of cute waitresses!  Thanks again, Joe!  After looking at the fine women, I’m starting to REALLY miss my wife…if you know what I mean (Joe’s bike wasn’t the only thing blue).

After lunch, we hugged the coast a bit more and saw some strange vegetation.  It was a forest growing out of the sand.  Must be high winds that blow a ton of sand…but it sure looked peculiar.  Back AGAIN on Hwy 101 through the cheese town of Tillamook, and on to some more very good roads.  First is Miami River, which leads into Hwy 53.

Hwy 53 is only 17 miles long, but there is a 12-mile stretch that will have you begging for more.  Back and forth 20 mph posted BANKED corners.  This is one of the best in Oregon in my opinion.  From there, we pick up Hwy 26 (a major connector to Portland) for a short time, then head north toward Clatskanie.  There is a 10-mile stretch before you get into that town that almost rivals Hwy 53, but we were unlucky and got stuck behind way too much traffic.

I wasn’t too upset as we’d been very fortunate with traffic and weather all trip long.  At this point, it was bye to Joe as he headed back to Portland and we headed to Woodland for our last night on the road.  Chris II (aka Duc hunter) rode down from Seattle to meet us there and ride with us through Mt. St. Helens on Day 10.  At dinner (pizza and beer), Chris II told us of a gasoline incident he had in Yakima WA.  What is it with gas pumps these days? 

Day 10: Woodland, WA to HOME!! – approx. 265 miles

At least we are not finishing this trip with a dud!  Mount St. Helens rivals anything out there in terms of awesome beauty and great riding.  Jim (aka Mooner) met up with Chris I, Chris II, and me.  He only had 3.5 hrs of sleep the night before and had to get home to tend to a water problem.  Hey Jim, did you get that taken care of?  Thanks for showing us your type “R”.  Now I’m jealous!!  Jim has obviously put some time into his bike…he just needs time ON it now.

Jim headed home as we went east toward the town of Cougar, leading to the mountain.  When we left, it was quite overcast and I thought it might be socked in up top, but Mother Nature blessed us once again.  The clouds cleared and we got blue skies.  I’ll keep my synopsis of this day short and ask Duc Hunter to give his take on St Helens, being his first time there.  After the MSH, we had lunch and proceeded on to Hwy 7 toward Puyallup and home.  I have ridden through this section many times and NEVER have I completely missed traffic.  (Chris II, it isn’t usually this clear.  Consider yourself lucky!)  From there, it was typical crappy Tacoma-Seattle traffic on the freeway home.  My odometer said we did 3,326 miles total.

MotoGP at Laguna Seca in 2005

For the next 5 years, we will be blessed to have MotoGP in the USA!  Not only am I booking my tickets for next year, but for the next FIVE!  I guess I can always find a buyer is something comes up, right?

The US Grand Prix will be presented in the 2005 MotoGP pre-calendar.  Red Bull is partnering with Dorna, a Spanish-based TV company that holds the rights to FIM MotoGP World Championships to bring the races to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for a five-year run.

Wayne Rainey (former champion) has been instrumental to bring the races back to the US.  The event will be officially named the Red Bull US Grand Prix, and is scheduled for July 8-10, 2005.

The 500cc Grand Prix World Championships (now MotoGP) raced at Laguna from 1988-1994.  Other past American champions were Kenny Roberts (1978-1980), Wayne Rainey (1990-1992), Eddie Lawson (1984, '86, '88, '89), Freddie Spencer (1983, '85) and Kevin Schwantz (1993).

August 20-23 - Lunar Spud Recap

The first day started out with five of us meeting for breakfast in Monroe.  Dawn had shown up for breakfast, but would not be joining the "boys" for the ride to Idaho and Montana.  Marv Travis, Dave Bolton, and Steve Dorsey were the others willing to bear the bleak forecast for the next couple of days.

I know I was pretty tired after the long day since I was out of shape having not ridden much this year (except for the racetrack).  The temperature was mostly hot this day in the mid-to-upper 80's, to be expected in mid August.  The next day would be more of the same for the better part of the day, even reaching mid 90's going over Lolo Pass.  This would all drastically cool down as we approached Challis, Idaho at the end of day two.

Upon speaking to the concierge at the motel, Dave was able to finagle the room rate down from the initial quote.  I started with asking for the AAA rate, which was a few bucks cheaper than full-fare.  Marv asked for the AARP rate, which was the same and didn't help any.  Finally, Dave asked about the "Government" rate.  Low and behold, another 10% was saved.  I do somewhat qualify, working for a public entity, right?

We all got cleaned up and went across the street (a place that didn't require any travel) to a nightclub for dinner/drinks/entertainment.  We were too early as the place was empty, but would easily accommodate hundreds.  After watching Dave down a few bad beers from "clean" taps, I retired for the evening.  I was BEAT!

Now in Orofino, we gassed up in preparation of Lolo Pass (US-12).  I pulled off to mount my video camera while the others rode ahead.  After 10 minutes of farting around with it and now sweating like a warthog, I was off to give chase.  I met Marv and Steve a little ways down the road and filmed them for a bit before going around and trying to find Dave, who had REALLY enjoyed himself on this road.  Once on the other side of the pass, Dave was waiting for us, along with 30-40 Harleys on a ride from Lewiston to Missoula (it was an all-day ride for them).

We gassed and were now on a mission to meet up with an old female friend of Dave's in Hamilton, MT.  I have been giving Dave a hard time about this the whole trip thus far, but meeting up with old friends is usually pretty important to those involved so I didn't mind making the sacrifice in time and energy to make it happen.

We met at a brewpub and, to Marv's surprise, he also ran into someone he knew.  After a brief visit and some food, we were warned about the Darby town Marshall, only 17 miles down the road.  He used to be the town drunk and now cites people for 1 mph over the limit.  Apparently, everyone else knew this already since, when we arrived, everyone was 5 mph UNDER the speed limit, so that eliminated any chance of us getting pulled over for speed.

Back up to speed, the clouds that we had been watching for the last couple of hours got ominously dark.  Thunder started to rumble, and occasional flashes of lightning were coming down.  At one point, a bolt came straight down in front of us and forked to both sides of the highway.  I quickly covered the metal bar ends on the bike in efforts to not attract another bolt like that one.  The water droplets coming from the sky (if you can call them that) contained enough moisture to fill a swimming pool.  Everyone stopped alongside the highway to don raingear (almost too late) as I sat there in my 'Stich and watched.  Thanks to GIVI, I didn't have to waterproof my bags either.  For the first time ever, I didn't have to do the rain-dance shuffle.

Challis was just down the road and that would be our stop for the night.  This time, when we pulled into the motel, we didn't ask for any discounts as the rooms were already reasonably priced.  This day was 550 miles, but the first 300 went by VERY fast, practically before lunch.

Once at Stanley, we turned right onto SR-21 and over to Lowman.  Here we cut over to Garden Valley, which turned out to be a great surprise in a road.  Once heading north on SR-55 towards McCall, I started to have flashbacks of riding that road in the middle of the night being cold, wet, tired, and hungry (1997, during my Bunburner 1500).  That was pretty much how I felt this time too, but at least we had DAYLIGHT.  We ate lunch here and prepared for our final leg into Lewiston.

The ride north on 55, which became US-95, was pretty much uneventful with the exception of being led by a rabbit over the pass at considerably above the speed limit.  I almost begged him to pull over in Grangeville so that I could see the look on his face when Marv took off his helmet, but it didn't happen.

Once in Lewiston, we converged on our usual stop at the Comfort Inn and negotiated the "Government" rate, once again.  It came with a hot tub, Chinese food next door, and a breakfast bar that made it quite the steal!  The TV also had A/V inputs so I was able to plug in the footage from Lolo the day prior.  Okay, so there are some bugs that still need to be worked out when it comes to taping.  I'll keep working on it.

Day Four would take three of us home, leaving one of us to fend for himself.  (Did I mention that Dave mimicked an alarm clock again?)  Marv, who always pushes the limits of himself and his tires, found that the last 220 miles to get home would be in the back of a truck.

Marv pulled out the phone card and started making calls.  After his future was secured, Dave, Steve and I jumped on westbound I-90 and we headed home.

It was a great trip and we could've used another day to explore everything.  As with our normal M.O. on these multi-day trips, we covered a lot of ground in short time and returned home unscathed.  I clocked 1700 miles.