12 Aug, what broke the Ducati?

Today Dave Lillard and I tore into the Ducati to see what caused my problem in Canada, my $3,000 problem. The Multistrada is actually pretty simple but for anything but the most basic service you have to pull lots of stuff off. Having done this a few times it was old hat. Soon the bike stood there naked like a....well you get the idea.

The first sign of trouble was the timing belt that was shredded.


Not good. Then we noticed that the vertical cam would not turn.

After pulling the rocker arm pins we were able to beat the cam out of the head. Yes, this should come out like a knife in butter but it ain't that way when the cam has welded itself to the head.



Take a look at the journal where the cam lives! You can see more of the problem by looking at the cam itself.



We were like two CSI detectives as we tore deeper and deeper into the engine,



finally splitting the cases to see the most private parts of my beloved 1000DS.






The good news is that the inside looks great.



I maintain that my good looks and clean living are the reason but Dave thinks that maybe the Rotella T full synthetic oil had something to do with this. Everything looks fine, pistons, jugs, gears, oil pump, crank, rods, and so on.

There was a tiny bit of swarf in the oil bypass valve (really just a metal reed) that could have diminished oil flow....maybe.




We were flummoxed!

Much later in the day Dave called. He thinks he knows what happened. When were taking the engine apart he pulled the oil screen and commented that it sure was loose, that it was not torqued in place. Now he thinks that the strainer backed out just enough to block the oil passage between the oil pump and the rest of the engine. Dave called DNA to consult and they agree, this will slowly block off the oil passage and starve the engine. Damn, all this because some idiot (me) did not properly torque down the stupid strainer. I guess I thought that the external plug blocking the strainer was there to keep the strainer in place. Man, that's an expensive lesson.
There is one other item that caused some question in my mind, the Amsoil oil filter did not look like it was passing oil correctly. Tomorrow I intend to cut the filter open to verify that the pressure relief valve was working correctly. That's a long shot but I want to look at the entire lubrication system to see if I had a series of problems or just two.

In the meantime, anyone with a spare vertical head for a 1000DS engine, please call me so we can talk!

Mark’s comments written July 5, using my notes

June 13, Saturday: First day without Peter – we miss him already. He’s a great traveling companion with interesting stories, good advice, and a good sense of humor. Peter really had no good options regarding his bike, from the time the oil light came on, to the time it died. Buying another bike to complete the trip would have been very costly. I can’t believe our Yamaha FJ 1300s are $21,000 in Canada (about $14,000 in Virginia and also in Fairbanks, Alaska, as we later discovered.)
Rode 480 miles in nice weather today. We got a room at a rustic motel/cabin arrangement for $75 – Toad River Lodge on the Al-Can Hwy between Fort Nelson and Watson Lake. The owner was a nice guy – came over to chat while we’re having a glass of our/Peter’s port at a picnic table overlooking the river. He grew up about 50 miles away in a really rugged area. While he still lived at home, he and his dad couldn’t figure out why they were constantly being bombarded with “problem bears” (blacks, not grizzlies.) His dad ended up shooting about 30 of them that summer – not against the law if they’re bothering your property or livestock. It turns out the Dept. of Fish and Game were capturing these “problem (nuisance) bears” in more populated areas, and releasing them on public land adjacent to his folk’s home! They found out about this release program a year later, and convinced the Dept to stop it because the bears were just being shot.
At dinner we chatted with a guy from Illinois who was on his way back from Alaska on his Buell Ulysses. He loved it, though did say he dropped it on the rode to Prudoe Bay – apparently there are some bad sections of gravel/mud. It took him a day to ride up, stayed at a “group hovel”, and a day back. David and I decide to take a pass on this idea.

June 14, Sunday: More great weather – it’s fun to be riding a bike, not stuck in a car, on days like this. Saw bear, moose and buffalo right next to the road today. Of the 3, I’d say buffalo have the lowest IQ. Stopped at the Sign Forrest in Watson Lake, where people from all over the world have been posting signs for years. Must have been a million signs. Had a crummy breakfast at a local truckstop. We saw the longest I-beam we’ve ever seen being hauled north for some bridge. Then hit the road again – some areas of road construction with lots of dust and gravel. When the semis come barreling at you, you’re in a “white out” due to a dust cloud. Made it to Whitehorse, Yukon and stopped at the Yukon Brewing Company prior to their closing for the day. They gave us a tasting of 7 beers – their darks were the best. I bought a hat, David a t-shirt, then off to a local hotel. Whitehorse is a neat town and a bit of a tourist attraction. Ate dinner at a 50’s style diner, listening to the oldies. I had a buffalo burger – a bit bland, no fat.

June 15, Monday: The time changes are great – we wake up “early,” with it being 3 hours later than Virginia. Alaska has it’s own time zone, which will make the difference 4 hours. The bikes are still running great – no oil use, tire pressure staying good, never overheating, etc. I love shaft drive. Bikes are definitely getting filthy. The day started out sunny, then hit intermittent rain for hours. Had a nice breakfast in Haines Junction – I had my usual 2 eggs over easy with some great Canadian bacon and hashbrowns, David had oatmeal as he was “egged-out” for now. Coffee was expensive ($2.95/cup) but the mug did warm the hands. Canadian coffee is similar to U.S. – weak and endless. Our waitress was obviously pregnant (a recurring theme on our trip. Odd.)
Met an interesting couple riding 2-up on a KLR. They were on their way back to California, having completed the Top-of-the-World Highway (from Dawson City, Yukon to Tetlin Junction, Alaska.) They had ridden every major “gravel type highway” in the western hemisphere – clear down to Chile. He said he loved riding in gravel – and had the bike with knobby tires to do it. He said our FJR’s could do that Top-of-the World too, but that there was a 20 mile stretch of mud where we’d have to put our feet out and stay in first gear. Doesn’t sound too inviting to us. Our goal was to get to Fairbanks and back, without dropping our bikes or getting injured.
Back on the Al-Can for our final push to Alaska. Good weather, but discovered a new hazard. When the road construction sign says “Fresh Gravel” (as opposed to “Loose Gravel”), be prepared to switch from being a road rider to a dirt rider. Fresh gravel has not yet bet rolled and compacted, so it’s a real challenge for heavy sport-touring bikes with street tires. We could only go 25 – 30 mph in that stuff. I don’t have dirt riding experience, but I recall reading somewhere (some guys who rode across Africa) that it’s best to get up on the pegs (to lower the center of gravity), lean back (to put more weight on the rear wheel) and to stay on the gas. Anyhow, we made it. I’m proud of David, who’s only been riding 3 years. (On one stretch, a Harley rider dropped his bike.)
We crossed into Alaska in good weather and posed by the welcome sign. Hooray! A high-five, and off we continued.
Twenty miles east of Tok, Alaska, we hit a 20-minute construction delay. We happened to be first in line, turned off our bikes and walked around. We met Pete, about 22-years old, on a KLR – he learned to ride 6 weeks previously and decided to ride to Alaska to visit his sister in Anchorage. His boots and gloves were not waterproof, but his coat and pants were. He was having a blast. Also chatted with Veronica, the “STOP” sign holder. She was an Alaskan native (Indian), grew up on some island off the Alaska coast, and this was strictly a summer job. She went back to the island the rest of the year. She had the longest hair I’d seen in years. She said, Yes, when I asked her if I could hold the STOP sign. (How many of you can say you’ve done that?) I asked her if she had voted for Sarah Palin – she said, No, she voted for Obama. (Where are all the Republicans?)
This was our longest day – 609 miles and 12.5 hours to Fairbanks, AK. We made it in 11 days. We were worn out that evening and almost paid the outrageous fee of $189 for a room at Holiday Inn Express, until I dug out the phone number Peter gave me to the dormitories of the Univ of Alaska. The pleasant girl on the phone said yes, motorcyclists are welcome and it would be $44/night. Our best deal of the trip thus far, especially since we were spending 2 nights. Thank you, Peter, for saving us about $300. Had dinner and stout beer at Brewsters, then hit the hay for 9 hours. We were so far north on the globe that it stays light outside all night in the summer – very strange. The darkest time of the night was 2:00 AM (“local midnight”), and you could still read a newspaper outdoors. Temperature was 65 at night, 75 during day, and sunny! We like Fairbanks.

June 16, Tuesday: While in Fairbanks, we went to Northern Powersports for new tires. Peter had called in advance to make sure they had our desired tires in stock (they did.) We have Dunlop Roadsmarts (dual compound tires – hard in the center, soft on the sides) on our Yamahas – after 5,000 miles they still look pretty good (maybe good for another 2500 miles) but we had pre-determined to swap them out since 90% of tire failures occur in the last 10% of a tire’s life.) It cost about $500/bike for front and rear tires with removal, mounting etc. (about $150 more than in Virginia.) They wanted $70 labor for an oil change. We declined, and did it ourselves on the outskirts of town. I had hauled two Yamaha oil filters up with us; we drained out the Valvoline 20W-50 Motorcycle oil and replaced it with Yamalube 20W50. It took us 10 minutes per bike, saving us $140.
By pure coincidence, Peter happened to call the motorcycle shop while we were sitting at the Service counter – he was calling to tell them he would not be needing his pre-ordered tires after all. The service rep told Peter that his two buddies were sitting right in front of him.
While the dealer had our bikes for the tire swap, we ate breakfast (nasty reindeer sausage) then took a taxi to the Museum of the North back near the university dormitory. It’s definitely worth seeing. After a taxi back, we rode our bikes to the Large Animal Research Center run by the University. This research farm had musk ox and caribou. Interesting creatures.
Dinner again at Brewster’s, then early to bed (remember, there is 4 hour time difference, though we were gradually switching our bodies over to the new time.)

June 17, Wednesday: Checked our tire pressure (a regular morning exercise) and found the dealer had under-inflated them about 6 lbs – we prefer 39 psi front, 42 rear. We were on the road by 6:50 AM to hit Denali National Park taking Route 3 (the George Parks Hwy.) It was partly sunny, which means it’s partly cloudy, and sure enough, the clouds obscured Mt. McKinley. They have a nice visitor center, though we declined the 6 hour bus tour – we had spoken with a group of Harley riders earlier that day at breakfast who had done the bus tour the prior day – many said it wasn’t worth it, though some loved it. Rode on to Talkaneet, AK where we spent the night at a motel. This is where you can catch flights to see Mt. McKinley from the air. With a light rain falling, only one plane could go up (the pilot was instrument rated –VFR?), the other pilots were not. David and I along with a retired couple from Minnesota went up with pilot Dave in a twin prop Piper Apache. The clouds were at 3,000 ft, Mt. McKinley is 20,000 ft, so once we popped through the cloud layer, the view was spectacular. We were so high up that we all had to wear oxygen masks. Dave pointed out 2 mountain climbers – you must be tough to do that. I believe 4 climbers had already died this year – two of which have yet to be found.
Had my best dinner at the West Rib Pub in Talkaneet – a halibut dish encrusted with almonds(?) and parmesan cheese. The beer was good, too. It’s a favorite pub for locals and mountain climbers.

June 18, Thursday: Woke up to hear my phone ringing at 4:45 AM – who would be calling me at that time? It was a good friend, Sam, from Roanoke, VA where it was 8:45 AM. For a good part of the trip, we don’t have any cell phone service.
Left under cloudy skies but thankfully, no rain. We contued south on Route 3, where we eventually turned north onto Route 1 (the Glenn Hwy, very scenic.) We followed this onto the Tok Cut Off, where we encountered rain outside of Tok. We pushed on, taking Route 2 to the Yukon line, where it turns into Route 1. We ended up staying at a fishing/hunting lodge at Burwash Landing Lodge in Yukon. A young boy named Zack assisted me at the gas pump. This is the place we met a (crazed?) motorcyclist aboard a BMW GS 1200, who had ridden from Key West, Florida to Prudoe Bay, and now he was on his way BACK TO KEY WEST! He was from Connecticut originally, and you may see him written up sometime for this feat. I believe he was taking 6 weeks to do this. Peter had told me a day or two earlier that some guy just broke Gary Egen’s record of 110 hours (Prudoe to Key West), cutting the time down to 88 hours. (Can you spell “amphetamines?”)
We paid for dinner with my VISA, which is a US Airways Frequent Fliers card with my picture on it (for security). The young waitress said, “Oh, so you’re a pilot.” I said, “Yes.” She then asked if David was a pilot also. I said, No, but was tempted to tell her he was my navigator.

June 19, Friday: This 586 mile day started out sunny, but the last 3 hours were probably my most miserable hours on the trip. We had decided to drop down through British Columbia on the east side of the Rockies, having taken the eastern route on the way up to Alaska. We picked up Route 37 at the Yukon/BC border. Big mistake. We hit rain and lots of road construction, which means MUD mixed with gravel. Around one curve I encountered a moose in the middle of the road. I slowed down (from a safe 45 mph) and fortunately the moose decided to lope off the road into the woods. We were running low on gas (there was a warning sign 100 km back) and found an above ground tank (the likes of which we had never seen before and initially drove past) in a wide spot in the rode known as Good Hope Lake. We proceeded to drive on to Dease Lake, BC, where battered and worn out, we got a room. We chatted with 2 bikers from Oklahoma – on yet another BMW GS 1200 and a V-Strom, two very popular models for trips to Alaska. In fact, we met only one other FJR rider – and he had been to an FJR rally in southern BC. The Molson tasted pretty good that evening.

June 20, Saturday: This was another rainy day. (I’m beginning to sense a pattern.) We left at 7:45 AM but fortunately only had about 10 miles of gravel/mud today – most of the highway was paved. We traveled 485 miles, which included two rain-slick wooden bridges on infamous Rt 37 (which in all fairness, is supposed to offer great scenery on sunny days.) Before we stopped for breakfast, we pulled over so David could put on electric gear (where did all the warm days go?) This is where I chatted with a guy with an RV – he used to ride a bike, in fact rode a 650 thumper (single cylinder bike) all the way down the Baja peninsula. That was before the stroke.
Rode out of the rain in Smithers, BC, where we found an RV/truck/car wash where we pressure washed the mud off our bikes (of course avoiding the wheel bearings.) This was $5 well spent.
Then on to Burns Lake where we stayed in an historic hotel, whose current owners are a cordial Asian couple. Walked across the street where we had our one and only Chinese (Vietnamese?) dinner of the trip. I’m not a big fan of that type of food, though it was tasty. After dinner, David was kind enough to walk down to a laundromat to do our one load while I researched our maps. (I’m a map guy, David’s a GPS guy. Younger generation.)

June 21, Sunday: We awoke to a beautiful and sunny day. We pushed hard to cover 560 miles, seeing great scenery along Rt 5 (Yellowhead Hwy.) This was almost as pretty as Banff and Jasper National Parks (located on the other side of the Rockies.) Ending up in downtown Chase, BC, we thought we had found the perfect resting spot – a neat historic hotel with an attached pub AND a liquor store. Unfortunately, the rooms were all being renovated, so we went down the road a half mile to another place which had a restaurant with good Italian food.
After dinner, we walked back to the historic hotel, where we had a beer and played foosball. On the wall was a picture taken of the hotel in the 50’s – and in the picture was a 1953 Hudson Hornet (a 4-door, mine was a 2-door.) Neat.
David has wished me a Happy Father’s day earlier in the day, Catherine called me on my cell phone in the evening. It was great to spend Father’s Day with my son on a great bike trip.
The only glitch with either bike was noticed today – the rear brake pedal switch was sticking in the ON position – must have gotten mud in it. I could easily turned it OFF by lifting the pedal with my toe.

June 22, Monday: Today was the day we made it back to the great U S of A. It took 472 miles of riding in the rain, mostly a light rain, but wet nevertheless. That did not stop us from visiting Glacier National Park in BC, Canada. We walked through an old (virgin) forest of giant cedars. The Mount Rogers Pass visitor center was nice. Cutting that railroad through the mountains was one heck of a task – fighting avalanches, etc. We rode through some snow sheds, which serve the purpose of tunnels by keeping snow and avalanches off the road. Those Canadians know how to keep a road open in the winter –more than we can say for the U.S. road crew at Glacier National Park in Montana.
We got a room at the Downtowner Inn in Whitefish, Montana. This is another neat town – one of our favorites. Had a few pubs to choose from within walking distance of the motel (one of Peter’s requirements.) Our choice was excellent – The Bulldog Pub. Peter called us while we were at the pub – gave him an update. It’s nice chatting with him (nearly every day.) It’s almost like he’s still with us.

June 23, Tuesday: We had heard about a heat wave hitting the U.S, and today we caught the tail end of it on Rt. 2. We decided to take a break for an ice cream treat in eastern Montana around 4:30 pm. It was sunny and hot, all the way to Williston, ND. The Miss North Dakota pageant had come and gone, but the best hotel was still nearly booked (as it had been on our way out.) The El Rancho Hotel had one room left and we gladly took it. The local hotels stay booked with all the oil drillers coming to that part of the country. There are a lot small oil wells all over Montana and North Dakota. When the price of a barrel of oil goes up enough, everybody starts drilling.
This was the day an older fellow on a Gold Wing pulled up to us at a rest stop. He was on his way to Alaska and had not decided on the ideal route. We gave him our opinion, and off he went.

June 24, Wednesday: David’s 23rd birthday! Good weather, a bit on the hot side, but no rain so we’re happy and ended up doing 560 miles. My butt gets a bit sore but not unbearable. I gave David my Airhawk seat pad to use a couple of weeks ago. We go about 160- 200 miles between gas stops. (The farthest we went was 219 miles while in Canada – close to our max.) It’s always nice to get off and rest your butt.
We took a 21 mile detour south while in Minnesota to see the headwaters of the Mississippi River. My SIDI boots are truly waterproof, as I did test them. The other tourists in their bathing suits/cut offs stared at me when I simply waded in with my Aerostich pants and boots on.
We parked it in Grand Rapids, MN that evening, staying at the same motel as we did with Peter. This time we decided to eat at the “restaurant with a bar” rather than at the “bar with a restaurant”. Being David’s birthday, we treated ourselves to great filet mignons – smothered in Maytag blue cheese - one of our most memorable meals. Then we walked across the street to Clementine’s for some birthday drinks. The (pregnant) waitress who worked on our prior visit (Peter’s birthday) wasn’t working that night. David did order a bottle of the infamous Grain Belt Beer. I’d like to see how they train the mules to piss in those bottle.
Wisely, David had a shot of Jack and I a shot of Peppermint Schnapps to get the taste out of our mouths. In bed by 10:15.

June 25,26,27 Thursday – Saturday: We took an easy and scenic ride north along Rt. 36 to see my cousin, Sue, who owns a fishing lodge in upstate Minnesota. It’s on Turtle Lake, between Marcell and Big Fork. What a nice place. It was an historic resort, and she purchased the lodge and 4 cabins 9 years ago. She’s totally restored them and they’re gorgeous. We got to meet two of her children, Jordan (age 20) and Jacob (age 18) along with her boyfriend/business partner/outfitter/fishing guide, Mike. Two of Sue’s grandchildren (Daryl and Jack) were visiting from Illinois. Jacob and his buddy were wrenching on their Yamaha 4-wheelers (a big sport up north.) Unfortunately, Jacob’s motor (a 636cc) seized up while we were there (oil problem most likely. Sounds familiar, Peter?) He decided to part it out. Bummer.
We caught rock bass and bluegills off the dock but no serious fishing. We did pull Jordan and David on their “tubes” behind Mike’s bass boat – a Skeeter with a 250 hp two stroke Yamaha VMax motor. Playing “crack the whip” was a blast with them. We toured the lake on their pontoon boat – it’s a crystal clear lake known for small mouth bass and walleye. Mike caught a 6-lb smallmouth one morning while we were there. David and I took canoes out with the grandkids, which was fun and relaxing.
David and I had our own cabin – full of mounted trophy fish and wildlife. Sue cooked three meals per day (though I did treat everyone to dinner one night at a neighboring resort.) The “resorts” on these lakes are a bit rugged – at least compared to what we’re used to in the Caribbean.
The mosquitoes weren’t bad – a few horse flies were worse. We never did break out our mosquito netting during the entire trip.
We had a nice bonfire one night near the lake edge. The kids made s’mores. The loons were calling out their distinctive “cry.”
Thursday and Friday were sunny and warm (80), but the rain returned on Saturday. Too windy to take the boats or canoes out that day.

June 28, Sunday: We said our goodbyes to cousin Sue and our new friends. We left under cloudy skies and lots of wind. We crossed that infamous Duluth bridge, but the wind was not as bad today, plus it wasn’t raining. We took Rt 53 south to Eau Claire, Wisconsin where we picked up I-94 for awhile. We generally detest and avoid interstates, but we were trying to make time to see my other cousins in Illinois (and to get home.) We stopped to see The Wisconsin Dells, which my parents enjoyed going to in their youth. We were not impressed, a bit like Gatlinburg, Tennessee, with waterparks, etc. We did stop to buy some delicious Wisconsin cheese.
Today’s 530 mile trip took us through Rockfort, IL, which is really run down. Since I didn’t have an Illinois map, I let David’s GPS take us along the Rock River to the Paddle Wheel Inn near Dixon, IL. We had great steaks and a bottle of Australian Shiraz at The Steak Pit, located across the street. Our courteous waitress was from Albania though she spoke good English. The owner was Greek and suggested a great after dinner drink – the Greek version of port. I had them write the name down.

June 29, Monday: A nice sunny morning to continue our ride along the Rock River. We went through Dixon, IL and got our pictures next to the best president of my lifetime, Ronald Reagan, who spent part of his childhood here. Then on to the tiny town of Seatonville, IL (pop. 350) to visit with my Aunt Bert (Sue’s mother) and cousins John and Patti. John shared his photos of his African safari, which makes the bear experiences in Alaska seem very tame.
We stopped at the Catholic cemetery to pay respect at the gravesites of my maternal grandparents, John and Catherine Schultz, their son (Sue’s father) Raymond Schultz, and my mother’s sister and her husband, Evie and Harold Dauck.
From there we drove to Peru, IL. (population 9,900.) where I had spent many a summer with my grandparents and cousins. Cruising down Market Street, past my grandparent’s house, brought back lots of good memories. The next street over lives my younger cousin, Jim, retired since age 45 with a full pension since working for a union that helped build a nuclear power plant south of Chicago. He has a nice garden of dill, garlic, tomatoes and peppers.
We cruised around Peru and then the adjoining town of LaSalle (where my dad was raised), visiting old familiar sites. We stopped at the Peru Pool, where my parents first met back in the 40’s after my dad was discharged from the Army Air Corp.
We hook up with my cousins Jim and John, spending the night at John’s in Ogelsby, IL. John shows me his garden and digs up a few garlic plants for me to take back to Virginia to plant this fall. At a neighborhood tavern, a bar patron and friend of John’s hears of my interest in growing garlic and proceeds to exit the tavern, walk 2 blocks home and returns with a few of his Italian style garlic plants for me to plant. I’ll need to strap these odiferous plants on the back of my bike rather than in luggage with my clothes.

June 30, Tuesday: Between cousin John arising at 3:30 AM to get ready for work, “Buddy,” his barking Dachshund, and Peter’s 6:00 AM phone call, it was not a restful night of sleep. (Peter forgot about the time change. He’s forgiven.)
Peter tells me he might ride over to Roanoke Wednesday to greet us if our/his schedules can coordinate. That would be nice. (Unfortunately, we couldn’t make the rendezvous work.)
We take Rt. 51 south to Rt 50 east – lots of corn being grown in this part of the country (in contrast to wheat and barley in North Dakota and Montana.) After cruising the hilly region of southern Indiana (roads with curves!), we catch the 5:00 rush in Louisville, KY on Rt 64 east/265 south. Route 150/31E takes us to the historic town of Bardstown, KY, the start of the famed BourbonTrail. The room was comfortable at the Bardstown Parkview Motel, and was next door to an old family restaurant – Kurtz’s. This is where I had a delicious dinner of Kentucky country ham with red eye gravy and their special dessert – bourbon soaked biscuit pudding. A pleasant evening sky, temp around 70 and the promise of more good weather tomorrow.

July 1, Wednesday: After eating a continental breakfast at the motel, we pack for our final day on the road. We select the Maker’s Mark Distillery tour in a nearby Loretto, KY and we were not disappointed. We learned some neat things about distilling bourbon and got a free tasting at the end of the tour. The final product is aged about 5 years and is 90 proof. It tastes much better than the 130 proof white lightening that is initially poured into the oak barrels prior to aging. We bought some souvenirs, including a bottle of Maker’s Mark which I got to hand dip in their signature red wax.
After having their small sample of rocket fuel, we’re ready to blast off for Roanoke and home. I can’t wait to see Beth after being gone almost 4 weeks.
The roads are definitely more twisty in Kentucky and West Virginia, as we take Rt. 150 east to the Hal Rogers Parkway to Rt. 83, ending up on familiar Rt. 460 near Grundy, VA.
The first meal of our trip was at a Bob Evans, so it was only fitting that we ate another one, this one in Bluefield, VA. I’ve never had a bad meal at Bob Evans.
After a 450 mile day, with NO RAIN, we pull into our driveway in Roanoke, with Beth ready with a camera. We made it! David’s GPS has it at 10,240 miles. Time for a cold Sierra Nevada Pale Ale!
We called Peter to let him know we made it home. He was tied up with the Portsmouth motorcycle exhibit, sailing, and Fourth of July festivities so he could not make it to Roanoke to greet us.
It was one heck of a trip – beautiful scenery, neat wildlife, interesting people, serious motorcycle miles racked up, and got to spend a lot of time with my son.
I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

9 Aug

Miracle of miracles, the bike arrived on Thursday! She is no worse for wear from her travel through Canada and into the USA other than no ignition key. Good thing I have a spare. On Friday I took the bike to Yorktown so Dave Lillard can open up the engine and determine what went wrong. He's out of town until next week so I hope to have something to report on Tuesday. This is like waiting for Christmas but with a bit of dread mixed in with the anticipation.

4 Aug

Progress is a slippery word, it can mean that a big change has been made or that only the tiniest change has happened. We made big progress yesterday when my bike finally cleared US Customs in Buffalo, NY. Today the bike is in New Jersey, soon to be in North Carolina (different trucking company at each stop?) and they will call to arrange delivery to my house. If you have been keeping track this is about 7 weeks to ship the bike from Canada to Virginia at a cost of $1200.

As an aside, I guess I should consider my self lucky. Today I was told that the dealer in Edmonton actually held my bike hostage for about two weeks until he settled up with the shipping company. Remember that the dealer's staff loaded the wrong bike and later caught the error. Then the dealer did not want to pay the published rate for having his bike returned. That's when my bike became a hostage. At any rate the dust settled and my motorcycle is finally within 500 miles of home.

23 July

The latest news about the bike is that when the shipper tried to take the bike across the boarder the US Customs folks refused to let the bike cross. They did not like the quality of copy of my passport. I sent a new copy via email to the shipping agent. Let's hope that does the trick. I have to wonder what else can go wrong!

8 July

Mark and David are going to fill in the blanks on the blog so you, the reader, will hear all about their fantastic trip. We can live vicariously through them. Just to bring everyone up to date on my Ducati here's what has happened since I got home....not much. Well, I did get a contract to have the bike shipped home. The shipping company picked up a red Ducati and took it to a marshaling warehouse in Canada awaiting more bikes for a full load back into the USA. A week later the dealership in Edmonton called the shipper wanting the bike back. It turns out they loaded the wrong bike. The bike in the warehouse is a brand new 1198R, a very expensive race ready bike worth $22K in the US and probably $35K in Canada. My well worn Multistrada was still sitting in Edmonton. The dealer and shipper say they are working this out and the shipping company says they will send another truck to get my bike. I'll see it someday...I think. This gives me more time to decide exactly what to do about the Ducati, fix it or part it out. The real issue is what would I get to replace this bike and nothing else seems to ring my bell. Oh well, it's too hot to ride now so not having a bike removes all temptation.

27 June

Message from Mark, they are still in MN but the weather has been crappy so I'm not sure they got to any fishing at the fishing camp. Bummer. Tomorrow they plan to head south and get into KY to tour the whiskey trail...evidently they can go to a bunch of whiskey makers. That sounds interesting...and then get back on the bikes??? They might get back to Roanoke by Wednesday.

24 June

Mark called to check in from Grand Rapids, MN. He and David rode 560 miles today, including a 21 mile detour (each way) to see the headwaters of the Mississippi River. Mark got to stand in the headwater wearing his waterproof Sidi boots. OK, rub it in, your boots don't leak! Oddly enough they were staying in the same motel we used on the trip west. This is the motel where we celebrated my birthday at the bar across the street. The odd part is that today is David's birthday and they are going to the same bar to celebrate. I'm sure the bartender will have a raised eyebrow when she sees the same guys once again celebrating a birthday, never to be seen again. It will look like we are only after free drinks...well, guilty as charged. Tomorrow the guys plan to go to Mark's niece's fish camp and relax for a few days before heading home.

23 June

Mark just called. He and David finally rode out of the rain and saw the sun for what seems like the first time in months. They celebrated by stopping to buy some ice cream. Now they are in Williamson, ND and staying in a decent motel where they got the last room in the place. That's not a bad way to end a 575 mile day on the bike. David says that 500 miles per day simply seems normal after doing it for so many days. They are losing an hour every day now due to the time changes so it seems that they are starting later every day. Tomorrow they could push to get to Mark's cousin's place in MN but that's a bad part of the country to be riding near dark. He said that he will make it a conservative day and not try to push for those last 100 miles if it is late in the day. They are taking US 2 across the country and basically retracing their steps in MT, ND, and MN.

22 June

Mark called today to tell me that he and David were in Whitefish, Montana. They rode in the rain all day, about 475 miles. That's significant when you consider that they have been on the road for almost three weeks and have put in so many 500 mile days that it's now the standard. To do 475 in the rain is true Iron Butt stuff. After three adult beverages they were ready to go to bed...at 8PM. Yes, these are real night owls!

17 & 18 Jun

Well, the good news is that Mark and David got to Fairbanks, did some sightseeing, bought $1000 worth of tires, and are now headed south. Last night (17th) they were trying to get a plane ride to see Denali but the cloud cover was a problem. Maybe today (Thursday) if the weather breaks they will see the 29,000 ft peak. At any rate they plan to get back on the road around noon today and try to make it as far as Tok, Alaska.
On the home front, more shipping issues so now I have changed shipping companies. The low bidder would not give the assurance that he could do this job without damage to the bike. He did not have the capability to put the bike on a pallet so it would have to be strapped to the deck of a semi. Even the agent did not feel good about that situation so now I am contacting a company that specializes in motorcycle shipping. It's more $$$ but more security. As cheap as I am it's hard not to go with the low bidder.

Here in Virginia it's getting hotter by the day and my garden is exploding. That gives me something take my mind off you know what. Tomorrow Sara and I leave for CT to pick up our grandchildren for an extended stay. Sara was going to have this experience all by herself so she is relieved to have company. Eight hours in the car with two young girls can be a challenge even with the best of children. We will be back on the 23rd.

15 & 16 June

There's something to be learned from my experience so I'm going to continue the blog for a bit more.

Saturday we determined that the motor was broken beyond repair in the near time frame. I flew out of Edmonton at the crack of dawn on Sunday. We all know what a huge PITA it is to fly these days so I won't go into too many details except for the out of the ordinary. First, I was on a motorcycle trip and thus was packed to carry stuff in lots of small bags and wearing a full riding suit and helmet. In order to get all that stuff into the fewest number of bags I ended up wearing the riding boots and carrying the Roadcrafter suit. I threw away my tank bag and anything that I could call worn out or expendable. That got the load down to three small bags so I put the GPS, computer, camera, and medication in a bag that I could carry on. The other two bags I checked and somehow was not charged by the airline. It was awkward carrying that suite around but the flight crew let me put it in the overhead so all was well. Funny, none of the passengers wanted to sit near this guy wearing huge boots and carrying a space suit. Go figure.

Monday I started to learn how difficult it is to ship a bike from Canada to the US. The carriers I would normally call don't ship to Canada. Federal...NO, Allied...NO; Daily Direct...NO, Fwd Air...get the bike to Toronto or NO, J. C. Motors...yes, $1212; still waiting for a quote from N. G. Jensen. If you are shipping within the US it looks like Daily Direct is the one to call first (888-285-2453). At the same time I have told the folks in Edmonton that I'm prepared to make a great deal on a Multistrada if they want to buy it as is. Mark called to let me know they were in Whitehorse, staying in a very nice hotel. He had just come from the brewery so maybe that's why he was in such a good mood.

Tuesday, more phone calls to get a better quote for shipping. Waiting for the word from N. G. Jensen. Mark made it to Fairbanks last night (600+ miles) including some gravel which he and David did not like at all. Today they will get new tires mounted, do some sightseeing, and maybe take a bit of a rest. I think we'll keep the blog going so he has a record of the entire trip. After all, it's his trip as well as mine. We can add photos once he gets back and thus have a good record of the whole adventure.

13 Jun

Well sports fans, after weighing all the options I decided to ride to Edmonton with the bike so I could make a value judgement while talking to the folks who had the best chance to fix the bike...if the problem is simple. If a quick fix was possible I could then get back on the road and try to catch up with Mark and David. If not, head home via air since buying here is prohibitive and renting is totally out of the question. It took 5 hours of steady driving to get to Edmonton and we made it just 30 minutes prior to closing. The head Ducati mechanic immediately took a quick look, listened to the engine and agreed that there was a problem. When he pulled the plugs prior to taking the cam covers off to look at the cam gears, etc, he saw that the verticle cylinder belt was balled up. It looks like the cam froze due to lack of oil and stripped the belt. The horizontal cylider is probably just about to do the same thing. This could easily mean two complete heads so I plan to ship the bike home ASAP and tear the motor down to see what is salvagable. There is no sense in talking about fixing it here because this is such an unusual problem that nobody in Canada would have the two complete heads and there might be more damage, such as the crank. In other words, the motor is toast!
I fly home tomorrow at the crack of dawn. Now is when I see how much crap I really have. The Roadcrafter suit is so big I can't very well stuff it in a bag so I will probably have to wear it through the airport. This will be very interesting! Ah, travel, nothing like it to broaden your views. Now for a cold beer!

11& 12 June

I'm having to backtrack for the blog....our internet connection was totally lame when in Shelby. Enough for the excuses. On the 11th we got up and were on the road at a good time. Although David and I wanted to blow off going to Glacier .



We went as far into Glacier as allowed, 13 miles, then retraced our tracks and headed north to Canada. The boarder crossing was painless. We had a killer breakfast and headed north to the Cowboy Trail. This runs parallel to the mountains and is a nice change from what is otherwise the flattest terrain I have seen since the deserts of western USA. The trail took us north. I had been concerned about my rear tire as it was wearing much more quickly than I liked, The plan was to get new tires in Fairbanks but that was a good 2000 miles away and I was already down to the wear marks on the tire.


We figured that the only solution was to go into Calgary for a new tire but that was backtracking. As we rolled through a small village we saw a shop that seemed to deal with motorsports. As luck would have it he had three new tires in stock...all the exact size I needed. I pulled the wheel off the bike.


$200 later I had a new tire on the bike.
Don't let anyone tell you that motorcycling is cheap. The old tire only had 3500 miles on it. At least we will be able to make it to Fairbanks with this rubber. We moved on to the Icefields Parkway. This turned out to be absolutely breathtaking. No kidding, this makes the grand canyon look less grand.



I was amazed that earlier I had been stripping clothes off as it got hotter and now I find myself shuddering in the chill of the glaciers. We had about 80 miles of breathtaking scenery, so much that it gets to be old hat.


We finally rolled into Jasper, exhausted after 12 hours in the saddle. Man, that first beer tasted as good as the very best I have heaver sipped. Magnificant. We also met Eric, from South Dakota, who is going solo to Alaska. He is trying to make 850 miles per day but finding it to be really tough. He was exhausted and we could understand having busted ass to do 500 miles in a day with the tire situation.




Today (12th) we got up at 6:00, left at 0730 with the plan to really crank out the miles to Dawson Creek. We did the normal 100 miles before breakfast through some truly desolute forests. We saw moose, antelope, deer, and black bear but almost no people. This was 132 miles between gas stations. After breakfast we continued on to highway 40, the Bighorn Highway. This is probably the best motorcycle highway in the continent. No kidding, We rolled along at 120 kph watching out for animals and saw moose, deer, black bears, antelope, and fox. Some of these were actually in the roadway....that's MR MOOSE to you. Oh well, we were making great time. That's until I was rolling long just after passing a construction zone and suddenly my engine made a horrible sound and then quit. I rolled to the side of the road and got the engine to start but it was running like shit while making really bad mechanical noises. Remember that oil light that has been on for the past 1000 miles? Well, the next few hours were filled with wreckers, motorcycle dealers, and lots of alcohol. At least this happened 25 miles from the largest town between here and Fairbanks. Earlier or later could have been so much worse. We even found the perfect motel....50 yards from a bar with decent food, 50 yards from a liquor store, next door to a restaurant serving breakfast, free wireless internet access, and CHEAP.

It's pretty neat when we can laugh at the disaster of today. And this was before we had any drinks!!!



Now we are faced with some options which range from bad to horrible. The nearest dealer is 5 hours away and even if I get the bike there the chances of a quick fix are less than slim. I suspect some serious damage to the engine. At first I thought that this would be a great excuse to get a new bike. Now I find that motorcycles in Canada sell for at least 25% more than the same bike in the USA. Go figure. That means that the Honda that goes for 13K in the US is 20K here. Oh, and the exchange rate is 1:1.01 so it is basically 20K for 20K. Sad. We looked at a few options and after factoring in the airfare home, airfare to Fairbanks, shipping costs, repair costs, and cost of repair it is starting to look like the best bet is to buy a used bike in Grande Praire, ride it to Alaska and home, get the Ducati fixed, try to sell it in Canada, or ship it home. Right now that is the plan. Hell, I'm so close to Alaska and this chance may never be in my lap again. It's only money and I can't take it with me. BTW, shipping the bike to the dealer will cost $1300. Everything costs more here. At least the beer is cold.
It's now 9:45 and the sun is still so bright that it is like mid day. This whole trip is an adventure. We are enjoying every bit of the trip, good and bad. Just think of the tales we will be able to tell our grandchildren. That's my story and I'm sticking with it. Fuck it, Drive on.

10 June 09

This morning we got up at 0600 fully expecting to hear the sound of rain. After all, we have had rain every day so far so why not today. Imagine the joy at seeing a hint of blue sky. On the other hand we did have frost on the bikes so it was below freezing. No problem for these intrepid travelers, we simply plugged in the electric gear and rode off onto US2 headed west. We quickly found ourselves in Montana and did our normal 100 miles before breakfast. By that time I was more than ready for a hot cup of coffee and a break from the chill of 70 mph when it's below 40F. We ate at a small cafe where the other patrons were local and much older. Imagine what they thought when thee guys came in dressed like space men. It did not take long for most of them to find a way to say Hi and find our what we were doing. The couple at the next table strongly recommended a side trip to the Fort Peck Dam.


Our planned destination was Shelby, MT, 380 miles away, so we had time for a short side trip. Off we went to Fort Peck and I can say that it was well worth the extra 30 miles. The Dam was built in the early 30's as a method of controlling flooding on the Missouri River. The final product is the largest earthen dam of its type in the world. We watched a Corps of Engineers movie all about the construction and now I feel like a walking history book. This was really neat. The center also had lots of information and displays concerning the prehistoric animals that lived in the area long ago. Once again, pretty neat stuff.

Mark, the vet, just had to see what I would be like with horns:




Back on US 2 we blasted west. This part of 2 is two lane with very little in the way of trees or brush so you get to see the huge vista of the great plains.


The speed limit is 70 and we tried to stay within a few miles of that....well, less than 90 most of the time. In short, we were rockin' and rollin' across the state. The miles rolled under our tires and we started to see mountains in the distance. About that time (just after Mark and David passed some large trucks but I did not) my oil pressure light came on. That's the red one in the middle of the dash that is telling you STOP RIGHT NOW OR YOU WILL DIE. I pulled over. Nothing wrong that I could see. There is oil in the engine, it runs fine, no funny noises. I had cell coverage so I called Dave Lillard in Yorktown for a conference. He is convinced I have one or more bad sensors and that I can ignore the light. Mark and David showed up, listened to the discussion, put duck tape over the warning light, and agreed that we were ready to go. That's easy to say when you are not riding the bike. Well, the next town was nearby so we got gas there and took another look. All OK. The town after that was 100 miles away so off we went, but now at a moderate pace of 70mph. Within 30 minutes I was cresting a hill and saw a car approaching....the car was a cop....he flashed his lights for about 2 seconds....either to say 'neat bike' or more likely to say 'slow down' which I did. I was only going 74. Not long after that we saw two antelope by the road, one actually in the roadway. Now we had lots to think about. At the next town (Shelby) we found that the road through Galcier National Park is still closed due to snow so we had to adjust our plans. We finally ended up near St. Mary and are now in a rustic lodge at the end of a dirt road.


We were the only guests there. Some locals showed up for drinks and heard stories about the fights they have every weekend. The lesson here is 'don't mess with the locals'.

Quaint is the vest description I can think of. Now, after a few beers and dinner I feel much better. This might be our best day so far, maybe because it is the first with no rain. We covered 528 miles today.

Mark here - thought I'd trying blogging for the first time in my life (from somewhere on a Blackfeet Indian Reservation.) Today was undoubtedly the best riding day thus far - NO RAIN. (Minnesota was nothing but rain - the "land of 10,000 lakes" now has enough rain to make it 10,001.) Brought out my sunglasses and dialed the Yamaha on. Actually, found out it tops out at 140 MPH in top gear (at 8400 rpm; redline is 9,000 rpm.) Will need to tune it up so I can run faster. The Yamahas get about 40-41 mpg at 80 MPH, the Ducati about 38 mpg. I expect a congratulatory letter from Obama for not taking the police car (7 mpg) on this trip. We're putting in about 10 hours on the road, which is about enough. The cold Budweiser at the end of the day is the "carrot" that keeps us going. We heard that it the daytime temps in Canada and Alaska is in the 70s - about 30 degrees warmer than Wisconsin and Minnesota. Yeah! We cross into Canada tomorrow morning - will need to buy some Canadian money at a bank. The trip is going well thus far -good traveling companions. Talk to you blog readers tomorrow.

9 jun 09

The geographic center of North America is in Rugby ND, right on our route of travel. It's about 50 miles south of the boarder with Canada. Think about it, half of the continent is north of this spot so there is a whole lot of land above the boarder. That helps explain why we are not quite at the half way point for our trip even though I have gone 2240 miles so far.
We met Art in a convenience store. He's a farmer in North Dakota and explained that although their soil is really rich it's not that deep, only about 6 inches. East of here the soil is much deeper. The local crops had been wheat and barley. Now they are planting corn but the seasons have been tough to predict. This year has been much colder than normal. We also talked about motorcycles (Art had an Indian and a Harley) and old cars.
Along US2 we came upon the Big Fish Inn and had to take a photo. Take a look at those teeth!
When we started today the temp was only 38F and it was really foggy. We thought that the fog would break up as the sun came out, which never happened. In fact, we has a light sprinkle and the sun stayed beyond the clouds all day. The high for the day was only 52F.
It's worth mentioning geography now. We have been on US2 across Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota. In Michigan this was a 55 mph two lane through swampy forests with very few towns along the way. In Wisconsin the speed was the same and the only change was a few more towns. By the time we got into Minnesota the forests had much larger trees, the speed went to 65mph, and the roads had fewer curves. In North Dakota the road was mainly 4 lanes divided (like the interstate) and the speed limit was 70. Today we made good time and covered 525 miles mostly at 80mph.
We ended up in Willistown ND and got what appears to be the last room to be had in the entire town. It turns out that the Miss North Dakota competition is happening now. Oh well, we are dry, had dinner and a couple beers so life is good. Tomorrow we hope to get across Montana and maybe up into Canada. In a few minutes we will check to see if the passes are open in Glacier National Park.

7 & 8 June

In the interest of full disclosure this entry is being done after indulging in a birthday celebration which included some free beers, a few shots, and a little food. You have been warned.

So, we left Merissa's house on the 7th at the crack of dawn or thereabouts. Make that 7:15AM. Not bad for a 6am plan. The day started out with partly cloudy skies and 65F temp. As we rode north on US23 we noticed that the clouds got darker but did not think much of that. Around 1300 the temperature suddenly dropped and the wind picked up. Then is started to rain. Soon it was 50F in the rain. We thought that this would blow over and the sun would come out. Not so. By the time we got to the Mackinoc bridge the wind was about 25kts and was blowing us almost all the way across the lane of traffic with each gust. We got to the north side and took some pictures while we calmed down. At that point we picked up US2 which we plan to take all the way to our entry into Canada. Now we were in the part of the world known as the Upper Peninsula. That is shortened to UP for those in the know. Anyway, we rode across the UP to Escanaba and along the way noted the large number of motels that had closed (gone out of business). I suspect that is the combination of high gas prices in '08 combined with the credit problems of '09. At any rate, it looks like the tourist related businesses in the UP have taken a huge hit. We finally got to Escanaba around 1800 and were both tired and cold. Our motel was within walking distance of a nice bar and restaurant where we relaxed in style. At least the motel had queen sized beds, a refrigerator, and lots of towels. That latter came in handy as we tried to dry all our stuff. Oh, I almost forgot, I left my journal at Marissa's house so I lost all accounting of our mileage. We think we rode about 500 miles on the 7th.
Getting up on the 8th (my birthday) I could not help but notice that it was RAINING. Oh well, we will not melt. We got on the road and headed for Duluth. If you look at the map of the UP you will find that there aren't many roads. That's because there aren't many people...or gas stations. We seemed to ride forever and longer through total wilderness. I'd like to say that the scenery was beautiful but the truth is that it was raining and all I saw was enough road to keep from hitting a deer or one of my buddies. Believe me, it was raining cats and dogs. As we rode through one small town I saw that the bank thermometer was reading 40F. No wonder I was cold. That was the story for the entire day. The only thing that changed was how much rain we had. I can now say that my boots are not waterproof. Close, but not perfect. My 'waterproof' electric gloves soak up water like sponges. They are still warm but get heavier as the day goes along. With my electric liner and gloves it was like riding in an electric cocoon. I was warm unless I got off the bike and unplugged from the battery. Life was good but totally plugged in. It must be like having a sugar daddy.
One of our goals for the trip was a stop in at Aerostich in Duluth. For those who do not ride, Aerostich makes what I consider the be the best riding gear in the world. Anyway, after about 1500 miles of serious riding you are ready to correct any problems that have cropped up. We walked into the showroom with a mental list of stuff we had to have. We had the place to ourselves since the weather was so horrible that nobody else would venture out. Oh, I wish you could have seen us crossing the bridge from SuWI to Duluth MN. The wind was about 35kts and it was raining like hell. I can remember crossing lanes in gusts. Scary does not begin to describe the event. Anyway, the folks at Aerostich were fantastic. I did some serious retail theapy and now feel confident that I can deal with any weather. Hell, at this point we already laugh at the weather!
We left Duluth and headed west at top speed. When we finally got to Great Falls we decided to quit for the day. Luckily we found a good motel located across the street from a bar. That take us back to the opening paragraph.
To date I have ridden 1712 miles on my walkabout.

Peter Y.

Day 3, 6 June

We could hardly sleep so it was easy to get on the road at 0800. Since we were going only a short way we stopped in at the American Motorcycle Assn. museum for a visit. The current bikes are themed on stars of screen and music. Although they are popular I did not have much of a clue about most of the owners. The bikes were neat so it was not totally lost on me. We then rode to Mark's niece (Melissa) and Troy's house. They have the ultimate man cave without any of the rough edges. We found time to plink with some Glock 40s, an AR15 and shotgun. What a great way to spend time on a bike ride. Melissa is a Sheriff's deputy, as is Troy so they can entertain with cop stories. He is a K9 cop and that's even more fun.

We only rode 90 miles today. Tomorrow we plan to go to Mackinaw MI, 385 miles.

Day 3, 6 Jun

I guess it's pure anticipation that gets us up early today. The three of us tossed and turned in our cots until 0600 at which time we simply could not stand it any more and got up to shower, etc. We left at 0800 with our destination as Mark's niece's house about 50 miles away. His parents are going to join us for a big family gathering so this is a big deal. Still, we had lots of time to kill so we went to the American Motorcycle Museum in Pickering, OH for a visit. Of course it is neat to see a collection of special bikes but the current display is of bikes from the stars (movie stars, that is) so I was not as blown away as others might be. I don't even own a TV and can't care less who some of these people are. The bikes were cool.
Late breakfast at a small town spot and then off to Melssia's place way out in the country. She is a Sheriff's deputy, as is Troy. Between them they have the ultimate man cave out in the country,but without any of the rough edges. We spent some time talking and having a fine time until Troy asked if we wanted to do a bit of target shooting. Well, not one to turn down such an offer I said HELL YES so we headed off to a deserted part of the property. Between the Glock's, the AR15, and the shotgun we had a wonderful time throwing lead at paper targets. Troy is a K9 handler so we got to see all the dog stuff. Man, I'm glad we have a guy like him in that job.
On the tech side, the bike is running great. That new battery is charging at 14.29V and everything seems to be perfect. My low fuel light came on at 141 miles, I refilled at 190 and had lots left. I saw that my tires had lost about 1.5 psi and will fix that tonight since Troy has compressed air.
Tomorrow we want to make it to Mackanaw City (sp) which is about 385 miles away. With an early start that should be do-able and will be our longest day of the trip. I'd actually like to go beyond that but we are still figuring out our riding patterns. Now it's time for burgers on the grill and some really great beer. Life is very good.

Day 2, 5 Jun

Up early and what do we see? RAIN. Well, that means we might as well get a slow start so we left at 8:45 wearing all our rain gear. Since I had discovered yesterday that my riding suit leaked Mark loaned me a rain jacket to wear over my Roadcrafter. This loaner looks like it will be up to the job....but it's PINK with some blue. Oh well, I feel good about my manhood and dry is worth any cost so away we go. We decide to take the Interstate as far as Charleston WV since the backroads would not be much fun in these conditions. Along the way the rain just gets worse. At one point we were putting along at 75 going up a hill and a tractor trailer decided to change lanes right in front of Mark. Wish I had had ABS at that point. No contact, just a bit of pucker factor. At that point the rain and clouds were all around us. By 1300 we finally found dry roads and started stripping off rain gear. We got to Parkersburg WV, got off the slab and soon got on Ohio 555. This is a must do road. Go to Google Earth and follow 555 north and you will see a road that is clearly a paved goat trail. At 45mph it is all the fun I can stand. In fact, lots of the road are fun at 35mph if you like to pactice your riding skills. Much better than the Dragon! By the time we had put 20 miles on 555 I had to force myself to concentrate because I was getting tired and on this road you need to be on your "A" game at all times. There were countless times I reached the top of a hill only to find that I could not see which way the road turned, oh, and the suspension was now light and the road was falling away fast. Exciting.
We finally got to our destination in Newark and spent the night with Mark's old friend Steve. Steve's brothers showed up and we talked motorcycles and other manley stuff until late. Man, what fun. In total we rode 376 miles today under challenging conditions. My check engine light did not come on so the battery must have been the problem.
Riding in the rain for a few hours leads to some serious mental exercise. Think about that damn drip inside the helmet that lands right on my nose. Why do some car drivers tailgate in the rain? The middle of the toll booth is coated with a thick layer of slime that is like a wet bar of soap in the shower. When you want to pay the toll for the group it's always hard to dig out the money. Bob Evans is the wrong place for fast food at noon. A hot cup of coffee is great when it's raining. A cold beer at the end of such a day is priceless.

Day 1, 4 June 09

OK, today's the day. After hardly sleeping at all last night it was easy to get up and get on the road. I took the scenic route from Portsmouth to Rt 5 along the James River until I got on US40 headed west. What a delightful road! I rode the two lanes through
some of the prettiest rural scenery in Virginia. There were lots of small town, tobacco barns, old mansions, livestock in the fields, and exactly what one would hope to find while 'out in the country' until I got to Fort Pickett. That's where 40 bisects an Army post. Hence, the 'Tank Crossing' sign. That's for real tanks. I did not see any, just their tracks.
Along the way I stopped in Victoria for lunch. When you can have a country ham sandwich, iced sweet tea, french fries, and cake for $6.25 it's hard to complain. I particularly liked the OPPS! cake. That's where the cook made a yellow cake which the day crew topped with chocolate iceing...not knowing that the cake was a lemon cake. It was still good tasing.

When I was leaving Portsmouth I looked at the weather radar and saw bad stuff to the west. Thus I fully expected to see some rain before I got to Roanoke. True to that it started to rain in Gretna (about 2PM). Correction, it started to POUR. In fact, some trucks simply pulled over when they could no longer see the road. I was looking for an overpass, with no luck. My waterproof suit ain't waterproof. At least my boots stayed dry inside but there were a few rivlets of water which always find their way to my crotch. The rain continued all the way to Mark's house and in fact it's still raining now at 8:30. We expect rain in the AM and might delay our departure just a bit to let the worst go past us.

Mark and David met me in the garage

David decided to cut his hair off for the trip, with some help from his Mom, Beth. What a trooper she is.

Tomorrow we think we will have about 6 hours travel time. If it's raining like now we will take the Interstate to WV, then hop over to Ohio 555.

Today I only rode 276 miles but it seemed to take all day. I guess those stops to call Redline really cost me some time. The check engine light still comes on after the bike warms up. I finally figured out how to call up the trouble code and it says 'battery HI' which is not a greeting. It's either a bad battery or bad regulator. As soon as I got to Roanoke we bought a battery (last one this size in the entire metro area) and it is charging now. Oddly enough I am showing a charge of 14.2V when going down the road so everything should be OK. Go figure. If this does not take care of the problem the regulator is next. Gotta get that from a Ducati dealer, not what you find on every corner of the globe. Oh well, it's supposed to be an adventure.

T Minus one

Boots seem so basic as to be ignored. Actually they are critical to having a good trip. If your feet are wet, cold, pinched, or cramped you will have a horrible time. These are 12 years old, made for Aerostich, and took me two years to break in. Here I have them sitting the sun so a fresh coat of SnoSeal will soak into the leather. This makes the boots more supple and helps keep them dry on the inside. Don't believe anyone who claims that their boots are waterproof. They just have not ridden through a long enough rainstorm.

The first thing people ask about when we talk about a long distance trip is how sore by butt will be. OK, let's cut to the chase....yes my ass does get sore. This gets better as the trip goes on but I try to solve the problem by having a decent seat and moving around on the seat. This trip I will be using a sheepskin pad.

It's handy to have a way to carry stuff you get along the way. I also use this net to help dry my socks if they are not dry from hanging in the room overnight after a wash in the sink. Note the attachment points on the hard bags.
My bike has chain drive. I like the fact that it is the most efficient way to transmit power but the fact is that you need to lubricate the chain to keep road grime from eating away at the built in lubrication which is sealed with 'O' rings. The lube also keeps rust at bay. I'm using an automatic oiler that dispenses oil based on distance traveled. I can change that setting on the fly if, for example, I am in a heavy downpour that is washing the lube from the chain. I use ATF as a lube because it slings dirt off and keeps the rust away. Yes is does make a mess on the rear wheel so I have the unit set for very light delivery.
It seems a shame to have all the electrical gadgets we love to have but also have a huge lump of chargers that must be plugged into the wall every night. I have run 12V electricity from the bike into my tank bag. In the bag I can charge my cell phone or IPod.
Speaking of electrical stuff, I have installed a volt meter just above the controller for the ProOiler. Above both you can see a knob that controls the heat to my heated vest. Once you try heated gear it's hard to do without.
Of course everyone seems to use a GPS nowdays. Mine is a Garmin Zumo. Oh, I still carry a bunch of paper maps. The GPS is a handy backup for the Ducati speedometer and a reminder of when I have gone 150 miles and should start looking for fuel. The gas gauge on the Multistrada is not to be trusted!!!
Here you can see the adjustable levers, handguards, and throttle assist. They combine to make the bike fit me better as well as offering a bit of comfort on a long trip.

T Minus 2

With time getting shorter and shorter I spent yesterday getting some of my last minute tasks done; waterproof bag, ear plugs, hi tech undershirt, and an attempt to figure out why I have that check engine light glowing from time to time. The plan included hooking up my computer to the bike and using Techno Research software to diagnose any trouble codes on the bike computer. Of course things did not go as planned. I could not get one computer to talk to the other. After a series of calls to Michigan to talk to the tech guys at Techno Research we realized that I had a very old copy of their software along with an old driver for the interface cable. Once I loaded the new software at least I now had the two computers talking but then I discovered that the Ducati computer does not save a history of trouble codes! Now I'm back to square one. As I will worry constantly if the trouble light is burning I think I better bite the bullet and replace the fuel filter. For the non Ducati owners this means taking much of the bike apart because the tank is a large plastic gizmo that actually extends to under the rider's seat. The filter is inside the tank along with the fuel pump. Oh well, might as well start now.This is the fuel pump with fuel filter. At shop rates I bet it takes $200 to install the $4 part.
This shows why I hate to remove the tank. That's the gas tank on the towel....it's huge!

T Minus 3

Now is when I need to do the final changes/packing for the trip. Last weekend I did a 500 mile shakedown ride to West Virginia. Since I had quite a few new additions to the bike this trip was critical. Here's what I found: The new tires grip just fine in spite of their much more aggressive tread pattern and the higher tire pressure worked well too. I'm running 38F and 42R in an attempt to get more mileage for this trip. The new chain did not stretch but I was able to cut back on the oil delivery of my ProOiler. I started with table 12 and am now up to table 18. The chain still has enough lube but my rear wheel no longer has a coating of oil. I thought that the 'low oil pressure' light was coming on. Now I see that it is the 'check engine' light. I already knew that the stepper motor was bad so maybe that's what this new light is all about. The built in diagnostic program does not show what the error is all about and the bike runs great so I can only hope that Dave Lillard can find the problem on Tuesday. The stepper motor only controls idle speed so I can go on the trip without it. We ordered the part last week....all Ducati parts come direct from Italy! Let's hope the problem is not a clogged fuel filter or something else that requires removing the gas tank. What a huge PITA that is!
Clothing is always a challenge. I travel light but on this trip I need to pack for cold conditions as well as wet. It's a good thing that I experienced some brisk conditions last weekend. Now I know that I need a fleece jacket (but a thin one). I should also take another long sleeved undershirt to add a layer for medium days. My electric liner works great so for really cold days I just plug that in however that does not help when I get off the bike. Today I'll go through all my stuff and see what I can leave behind. Nevertheless, it looks like I will need a small waterproof bag to carry on the passenger seat so I have less jammed into my other bags. That's a good place to stuff extra gloves and maybe dirty clothes.
Another observation from the weekend trip, my gas tank holds something like 5.2 gallons of fuel (yes, I should know the exact amount but I simply don't trust the Ducati figure on this). The fuel gauge is notoriously unpredictible. My low fuel light comes on as early as 90 miles sometimes and this weekend I got to 149, 154, and 162 miles before the light came on. On the final tank I rode 203 miles before I put 4.3 gallons in the tank. That's almost 47 mpg! The importance here is that I feel more confident in the fact that I can go 200 miles on one tank. Gas stops can be few and far between when out in the less populated parts of North America. I think I'll also carry a 3' section of gas hose just in case.
Today I go to the bank to get cash (dollars and loonies), then a supply of good ear plugs, the dry bag, and double check fasteners on the bike.

From Virginia to Alaska and back....or bust!

For about 5 years Mark Finkler and I have been talking about riding motorcycles to Alaska. OK, usually this was also when we were drinking some adult beverages while at Bike Week in Daytona Beach, Florida. We have finally come to the point of do or die so we are going to leave Roanoke, Virginia on 5 June bound for Fairbanks, Alaska. Mark's son, David, is our third member of the insane threesome. I'm riding my Ducati Multistrada while Mark and David are riding Yamaha FJR's.

Since I had months to get ready for the trip I have made some changes to the Multistrada so it will better support me on the trip. The bike now has a Pro Oiler to automatically oil the chain. I have installed a Fuzeblock to power various electrical devices (power to the tank bag, volt meter, electric vest, and GPS). I also installed guards for the sump and front forks in addition to a new front fender with greater clearance from the front wheel. Speaking of wheels, I now have new tires (Dunlop 616), chain, and sprockets. Dave Lillard at Redline Performance Motorsports offered to fine tune the bike prior to the trip. While Dave worked on the bike he found that I needed a new clutch as well as some seals. Dave also set the CO to 3.5% and balanced the throttle bodies for the smoothest ride imaginable. As a final step Dave convinced me to get an Ohlins rear shock. Man, what an improvement in the overall ride! Now the bike glides over potholes..well, almost.
To test all this out I rode to West Virginia for East Coast Madness. This was a 250 mile trip each way so it was a serious test of all the systems. I found that the Pro Oiler needed to be dialed back for less oil delivery. I started on table 12, went to 15 and now am on 18. The chain still looks good but now my rear wheel is not covered in oil. This will be a work in progress. I have a sheepskin seat cover and it seems to be letting my ass go longer in the saddle. This is something I need to sit on for a few thousand miles before I can decide if it is a good thing or not.
Even though I have made four cross country motorcycle trips in the past this one is taxing my ability to plan. The problem is that we will hit rain, freezing rain, snow, more rain, and then really hot summer weather (with more rain). How do you pack for that without taking a trailer? I pride myself in packing light so this is a big deal. I'll be re-working my clothing list in the next few days.
A trip like this is great fun but lacks something if you can't share with all your friends or bore your neighbors. To that end I'm taking a netbook computer and a digital SLR camera. I hope to post to this blog from time to time (frequently?) to reassure Sara that I have not fallen off the edge of the world. Depending on the WiFi connections we find in the hinterland, we will post photos to keep you on the edge of your seat or at least fill up the blog pages.
Wish us luck. If the bank calls please say that our credit is good. If the police call please do what seems most likely to keep us out of jail.

Peter Y.