Retired and Trippin

Last week I started looking for a new or slightly used Goldwing to replace my 2002.  I checked with a dealer on the Missouri side and a dealer in Topeka.  Neither had a black 2012, new or used, and I determined I didn’t really like the 2013 colors.  Also, neither dealer gave a reasonable trade-in estimate for my 2002.  So I did some checking online. I found a good deal on a used black 2012 Goldwing at Sunrise Honda ( http://www.sunrisehonda.com/ ) in Searcy, Arkansas.  It had 5,870 miles on it and they made a reasonable offer for my 2002.  Chris and I decided to make a road trip. We left home at 1:00 on Monday, August 19th, and rode 375 miles to the Best Western motel in Russellville, AR.  It was 79 degrees when we left and it reached the low 90’s during the ride. On Tuesday, August 20th, we departed Russellville (72 degrees) and rode 100 miles to Sunrise Honda, where we arrived around 10:00.  At 1:30 we were finally leaving on the gently used 2012. We had a good lunch at Doc’s G

We departed Lincoln at 7:45 under mostly sunny skies with a temperature of 66.  We rode east to Union and south to Nebraska City (should have taken Hwy 2), where we caught Interstate 29 south.  We eventually rode into cloudy skies before we made our last gas stop at Jesse’s Last Stop on the north end of St. Joseph, MO.  It is appropriate that our last stop was at Jesse’s Last Stop.  After refueling we took final pictures of the four petite boys and their machines. We rode home, with progressively heavier rain from Platte City, MO to Shawnee, KS.  Larry wore his rain suit but it was not enough to ward off the rain.  The rest of us did not stop to put on rain suits because . . . . . we are manly men. We arrived home at approximately 11:30 after only 215 miles.  It is great to be home and I won’t be longing for a motorcycle ride for a few days. It was a GREAT trip and I can mark Alaska off my motorcycle ride bucket list.  We rode a total of 9,270 miles (Garmin miles would be a littl

We left Gillette, WY at 7:00.  It was 61 degrees and cloudy.  Gary and Larry decided to start with rain suits on, in case it were to rain.  It didn’t rain all day so they did their part in keeping us dry. We rode west and mostly south through Moorcroft and Newcastle to Lusk, WY.  This route closely skirts the Black Hills area of South Dakota and on Hwy 85 we saw a boat load of bikes on their way to Sturgis. In Lusk there was such a parade of motorcycles riding north through town that the locals were sitting in lawn chairs watching the show.  Sheriff’s deputies seemed to be on high alert also. We continued south through Torrington, WY and into Nebraska on Hwy 26 through Scottsbluff and Bridgeport to Ogallala.  We had a late lunch at a Dairy Queen there. Our friends, Rod and Maureen, were to be in Ogallala today on their way to Sturgis so before we left town we checked out the motel they were to be staying in.  They had not arrived.  We rode east on Interstate 80 and about 30 miles

We departed the Spa Hot Springs Motel at 7:30 am.  It was 57 degrees and mostly sunny.  We took off eastbound on Hwy 12 through Harlowton, MT.  The sun gave way to clouds by the time we arrived in Roundup, Montana where we had a late breakfast at the Busy Bee Café. Carl and I both had the burger and eggs breakfast that was LARRAPIN good, though Carl thought the burgers were overcooked.  We both got two burger patties – just what I needed. We continued eastbound on Hwy 12.  A short distance east of Roundup it looked like rain on the horizon and we had a few drops of rain on our windshields.  So we pulled the caravan over and put on our rain suits.  A few minutes later it started raining and it lasted for about 30 minutes (61 degree temperature).  It was good NOT to be wet. Hwy 12 intersected with Interstate 94 at Forsythe, MT.  I was leading today and knew we’d need gas before too long.  From Hwy 12 I saw a gas station some ways down into Forsythe but opted to get on I-94 eastbound

After having our complimentary breakfast at the Riverstone Lodge our first order of business for the day was checking out my left trailer tire.  We noticed previously that it was wearing unevenly.  About a fifth of the total circumference of the tire was worn bald.  The rest of the tread was worn normally.  Our best guess is that it was a defective tire.  I put on new tires before the trip and the other tire was doing fine.  Anyway, with the help of the other petite boys I got the spare wheel put on and I wouldn’t have to worry about an exploding trailer tire while negotiating a high speed pass. We were on the road at about 8:30.  It was 68 degrees and cloudy.  A short distance down the road it rose to 72 but that was the high of the day. We rode to the east entrance of Glacier National Park.  It was busy and we had to wait in line to pay our park fees.  The ride through the park was very scenic as you’ll see from the pictures.Carl was leading today and he stopped frequently for phot