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From MN to CA and return, started on 8/30/10
Well, yesterday was the day to leave, after camping out and teaching an MSF BRC in Duluth over the weekend....
I was tired, having gone to bed late and got up early three days in a row. The teaching weekend in Duluth was a dry run for the CA trip, I haven't slept on the ground in a tent in years. Here's my campsite in Duluth:
This is Knife Island campground, a historical old slate mining townsite.
Here's a picture of my bike in front of the Voyageur's statue in Cloquet, MN.
Monday morning dawned hot and sunny, with promises of nasty weather all the way to Yellowstone National Park. In making preps to leave home, I had to make sure the lawn tractor was operational for my wife to mow the lawn when she gets back home from week in Utah spoiling the grandkids, so the two main jobs before departure was to try and get the front brakes on the bike to bleed properly (failed there, the right caliper won't clear up, still have air bubbles), and test run the lawn tractor. I mowed about a 1/3 of the lawn to test it, works fine now.
All packed up and in the driveway, ready to leave on the journey. Westward Ho!!!!
The weather forecast sucked. I left late, near noon, thunderstorms with high winds, damaging hail, possible tornadoes from the MN border to Billings was in the forecast. snow showers in Yellowstone Nat Park. Oh well, off we go!.
It was hot and sticky, so I wore all my summer ventilated gear, a rather ho-hum ride through all the back roads and around lakes as I left going westward towards Fargo, ND. The ominous looking thunderheads grouped up, and lightning streaks could be seen in the distance as I neared Fargo/Moorhead. I hadn't eaten all day, except a quarter of a watermelon and a pot of coffee for breakfast, so i stopped at a Subway restaurant and ate a foot long sub.
About 15 miles west of Fargo, I rode for cover into a gas station just before the sky broke loose with torrential rain, lots of thunder and lightning to go with it. Tornado warnings had been in effect for the area since Fargo, I had been blown across the traffic lane on the freeway once already, from riding next to the white lane striping to the fog line. Boy, was that fun! I donned my rain gear before leaving, headed out into the mess as the rain let up some. After about 40 miles, I was able to pull off again and stow it all away, did leave the rain pants on though.......
To be continued.....
I was tired, having gone to bed late and got up early three days in a row. The teaching weekend in Duluth was a dry run for the CA trip, I haven't slept on the ground in a tent in years. Here's my campsite in Duluth:
This is Knife Island campground, a historical old slate mining townsite.
Here's a picture of my bike in front of the Voyageur's statue in Cloquet, MN.
Monday morning dawned hot and sunny, with promises of nasty weather all the way to Yellowstone National Park. In making preps to leave home, I had to make sure the lawn tractor was operational for my wife to mow the lawn when she gets back home from week in Utah spoiling the grandkids, so the two main jobs before departure was to try and get the front brakes on the bike to bleed properly (failed there, the right caliper won't clear up, still have air bubbles), and test run the lawn tractor. I mowed about a 1/3 of the lawn to test it, works fine now.
All packed up and in the driveway, ready to leave on the journey. Westward Ho!!!!
The weather forecast sucked. I left late, near noon, thunderstorms with high winds, damaging hail, possible tornadoes from the MN border to Billings was in the forecast. snow showers in Yellowstone Nat Park. Oh well, off we go!.
It was hot and sticky, so I wore all my summer ventilated gear, a rather ho-hum ride through all the back roads and around lakes as I left going westward towards Fargo, ND. The ominous looking thunderheads grouped up, and lightning streaks could be seen in the distance as I neared Fargo/Moorhead. I hadn't eaten all day, except a quarter of a watermelon and a pot of coffee for breakfast, so i stopped at a Subway restaurant and ate a foot long sub.
About 15 miles west of Fargo, I rode for cover into a gas station just before the sky broke loose with torrential rain, lots of thunder and lightning to go with it. Tornado warnings had been in effect for the area since Fargo, I had been blown across the traffic lane on the freeway once already, from riding next to the white lane striping to the fog line. Boy, was that fun! I donned my rain gear before leaving, headed out into the mess as the rain let up some. After about 40 miles, I was able to pull off again and stow it all away, did leave the rain pants on though.......
To be continued.....
.
I did check and glue both lenses when I rebuilt my bike and installed that fairing last year.
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