Oshkosh, Day 4

Today saw the arrival of the C5 (pictured), a C17 and the departure of the A380 as well as a demo flight by the space plane, White Knight 2. There are tons of pictures on the laptop, waiting for a decent wifi signal so they can be uploaded. Don't forget, you can see all the pictures so far by clicking the picture module at the top right of this page.

Rain at Oshkosh

It rained all morning today so I stayed in my tent and watched movies on the mini computer. The rain started to peter out around 1 so I rode to Walmart to pick up food and propane. I was also starved for motorcycle and car magazines so I bought 4 of them. Despite the rain the 3:30 performances went on as scheduled and made for some great pictures with the sun behind dark clouds. Hopfully I'll have the newest batch of photos uploaded later tonight.

Detroit Part 2

(Finally! It's a bit dated now, oh well) I am writing from the middle of Lake Michigan, sitting on the deck of the steam ship SS Badger. The ship is carrying my bike and I from Luddington, MI to Manitowac, WI. I left Detroit yesterday afternoon after a great weekend spent with Bernie as guests of Simone and Max. On Thursday, the day after I arrived in Detroit, I borrowed Max's truck and headed into the city towards the Automotive Hall of Fame and my first taste of Detroit roads and scenery. The roads were truly awful. Even driving on the freeway in Max's sturdy old Ford truck it felt as if the wheels would break off the axles at any moment. The Hall of Fame was disappointing at first, until I began reading the plaques for all the inductees. Anyone who had even the slightest hand in shaping the automobile industry was represented. The afternoon was spent absorbing industry history, until my growling stomach dragged me away to a very late lunch. I took a scenic route back to the house, trading freeways for the often bombed-out looking surface streets. The evening was spent changing the oil on the bike and failing at the first of two attempts to replace a broken mirror on Max's truck. Bernie arrived at 11 the next morning. On the way back from the airport I filled her in on what I had leaned about Detroit so far. The phrase “f**ked up” has never been used more appropriately. Despite that succinctly apt description I had already decided that the gearhead and abandon building aficionado in me liked Detroit, once I overlooked the fact that the roads are worse than any I have encountered in the five boroughs of New York City and that convenience stores are confusingly called “Party Stores.” We stopped by the house for a quick visit with Simone and Max then headed downtown to check into our hotel. We had tickets to a Tigers, White Sox game at seven, so we killed some time walking along the river and taking the glass elevator to the top of GM's Renaissance Center for 360 degree views of Detroit and Windsor, Canada. The Tigers won and, as a bonus, after the game we were treated to an eyeball searing fireworks show. After getting up late and lounging around over a delicious brunch we headed out to Dearborn to visit Henry Ford's home and Greenfield Village, his monument to American Industry and small town life. I enjoyed seeing the Wright brothers actual workshop and house as well as Thomas Edison's laboratory. Bernie enjoyed making a candlestick on a lathe at the old fashioned metal shop. On the way to meet Simone and Max for dinner we stopped at the auto parts store and I picked up another mirror for my second attempt at fixing max's truck. This time it worked. After dinner Bernie and I headed to Grosse Pointe to check out a bar that Simone had suggested. The bar is one of a handful of places in the country where the game of feather bowling is played and is recognized by the State of Michigan as a historic landmark for that reason. Feather bowling is similar to bocce, except that wide wooden wheels are used instead of balls, the court has a concave shape and the target is a feather that is somehow fixed to the ground in the middle of each end. With the help of our bocce experience we were soon rolling like pros. The next morning we woke up early enough to get the hotel breakfast and drove the truck north of Detroit to an old mansion called Meadow Brook Hall which was built by the widow of one of the Dodge brothers. The house was 88,000 square feet but we had a good tour guide so it seemed smaller than that. After Meadow Brook we visited the estate of Edsel Ford, Henry's son. Edsel was known for bringing new design ideas to the Ford Motor Company so it seemed fitting that his estate was the most beautiful of the houses we had seen. We left Edsel's with very little time to eat dinner and get Bernie to the airport. Even so, we decided to stop at a legendary jazz venue that is also famous for it's soul food. We ate fried chicken and listened to some amazing jazz and because we told the waitress we were in a hurry, we were out of there within a half hour. I got Bernie to the airport in plenty of time for her flight and left Detroit from Simone and Max's the next day. Thanks for everything, guys! I cruised across Michigan on the interstate and spent last night at a state park on the beach. The camp site was filled with kids who kept me awake but I got them back when I fired up the bike at 6am to catch the ferry.

More to come! Don't forget to double click the pictures on the top right corner of this page to see the big versions!

Elvis

Here's a shot of Elvis, the firefighting helicopter, dumping his load on the field. He got that name because pilots say it shakes, rattles and rolls, just like Elvis. Originally built as a sky crane, it's all engine.

Oshkosh, WI

I'm here at the Oshkosh airport now, camped out among thousands of other aviation enthusiasts packed in a campground about three miles square. A tent and RV city springs up here once a year, complete with showers, first aid, laundry, a movie theater, bus service, convenience (party) stores and wifi. Unfortunately, the free wifi is completely overloaded so my final Detroit post, which is waiting patiently on my computer to be published, as well as other longer posts, will have to wait until the mini computer can get connected. Until then I'll try to keep you entertained by periodically sending in airshow pictures from my phone, like this shot of the Aeroshell acrobatic team.

Detroit Part 2

The Apple store in Columbus was located in a strange, brand new outdoor mall. The mall was made to look like a small town, with quaint looking facades over all the stores. It was kind of like Disney World. I arrived a little before 10 in the morning and discovered that I would not be allowed to see the resident iPhone "genius" until 1:40pm. With plenty of time to kill, I secured all my riding gear on my bike, bought a ticket to Transformers 2 on IMAX and picked up some breakfast. It was a great movie-going experience. As one of only three people in the whole theater I spread my breakfast over the three seats on either side of me and had a feast! The movie was over with about 45 minutes to go until my meeting with the "genius." Conveniently, the mall had WiFi so I whipped out my mini laptop and did some email. 45 minutes later the meeting with the "genius" turned out to be bitter sweet. Bitter because it cost $200 for a replacement device but sweet because my phone, GPS and portable blogging tool was back in working order. I got out of there as quickly as I could and headed north, my aim set on East Harbor State Park on the shore of Lake Erie just outside of Sandusky. The campground was crowded and the sites were way too close to one another. It was almost like a parking lot with thin grass strips between each spot. There were a lot of noisy kids and I had to sleep with my ear plugs in once again. In the morning the "volunteer in park" (VIP) came by to pick up my tag. We got to chatting and he told me about a new Honda scooter he bought that goes 140mph. It sounded awesome, except for the fact that it was a scooter! He also had a good tip about camping at state parks. He said that most parks have what's called "primitive" or "walk-in" sites. You usually have to ask for these sites but apparently they are cheaper and much more private, perfect for a solo traveler on a motorcycle. Thanks for the tip, VIP! I left East Harbor early and made the short ride over to Cedar Point in Sandusky. The plan was to get on as many roller coasters as possible. I ended up riding five out of the six coasters I had hoped to ride. Millennium Force was by far my favorite. Unfortunately, the Top Thrill Dragster broke down as I was waiting in line but I wasn't too heartbroken because I had been on an identical version of that ride at Great Adventure in New Jersey. Check out my Sandusky post for slightly more info on the Cedar Point visit. I left Cedar Point around 3:30 and headed for Maumee Bay State Park, on the shore of lake Erie outside of Toledo. At the camp store I asked for the quietest site they had and was rewarded with a remote site nearly out of view and earshot of all the other campers. It was beginning to rain so I unfolded my tarp for the first time. Using the tar-infused string lent to me by Pete and G (thanks, guys!), I set up the tarp over the picnic table and whipped up a delicious freeze dried stew while staying nice and dry. In the morning it was still raining so I hung out under the tarp waiting for the rain to stop so that I wouldn't have to pack up all my gear while it was soaking wet. A half and hour before the 1pm check out time it was still pouring so I shook out the tent as best I could and rolled it up under the tarp. The tarp was the last item I packed. Suited up in full rain gear, I took off on the short ride to Detroit. I got in to the city a bit early so I stopped by a Starbucks where I met Brian, a Sears Repairman and motorcyclist. It turns out Brian rides a BMW R1200S, very cool! He told me about a bike gathering that goes on nearly every night on Main Street in nearby Royal Oak. He invited me to come by and check it out, he'd be hanging out near the Starbucks. Brian really likes Starbucks! We finished our coffees, Brian jumped in his Sears van, and I onto my bike to Simone and Max's house. Don't touch that browser bar, Detroit Part 3 is coming up after the break.

Detroit, MI

For the past few days I have been resting peacefully here in Detroit at the home of my friends Simone and Max. I have a lot to report on since leaving Mid-Ohio. I left the track around four, at the end of the second race. The local coffee shop was closed, so instead of stopping to update the blog over a cup of coffee, I picked up some fruit at a neighboring farmers market and headed straight to nearby Mount Gilead State Park to set up camp. After setting up camp and dropping off some gear I rode into the center of the tiny town of Mt. Gilead to call my loved ones on the pay phone, as my cell phone was out of commission. As I'm talking on the phone, a police officer rolls up and asks "is that your ratty-ass KLR?" but he has a smile on his face. After I get off the phone, we get to chatting and it turns out that Officer Mark is a great KLR aficionado and an all around bike enthusiast. When we discover that we are both members of the same two obscure motorcycle message boards, in true ADV fashion (advrider.com), Mark invites me to crash on his sofa for the night. It was a great stroke of luck, as Mark turned out to be a really cool guy. I rode back to the State Park, packed up my gear and headed over to Mark's place in town. He let me into his house, said "make yourself at home" and then took off. He was still on duty until midnight but said he'd be back around dinner time. After I took a shower and caught up on email, I sat there alone in Mark's house thinking this is what motorcycle travel is all about. It had all started with sharing a campsite with Phillip, my fellow biker from New York. Phillip had suggested I go to Mid-Ohio which is the reason I ended up in Mt. Gilead. The only reason I met Mark was because my cell phone was broken and I had to go into town to use the pay phone. It's funny how things work out sometimes. Mark came back and we went out in his cruiser to pick up some dinner. On the way to dinner I told him about my plan to buy an unmarked police cruiser for myself. He was a bit confused by the whole idea. I think that's because he was thinking of it as a work car, while I was thinking of it as a super-stealthy speeding machine! After dinner Mark went back out to complete his shift. Before he left he showed me how to get my bike out of the garage so that I could just take off if I woke up earlier than him in the morning. Thanks for everything, Mark! I left Mark's place early the next morning and headed to Columbus on a mission to get my phone fixed. Stay tuned for part two of the mega-update, coming soon. In the meantime, don't forget to check out the new pictures I uploaded in the picture module!

Sandusky, OH

I'm here at the home of the mythic Callahan Auto Parts Company and roller coaster capital of the world to ride every coaster I can get my butt on. As you can tell by this post, the phone is up and running again. More on that and my luxurious accommodations of two nights ago once I get in front of a computer. At the moment I'm standing on line for the Top Thrill Dragster, 120 mph and 400 ft straight up. Stay tuned!

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Track

Over the course of some great conversations with my new friend Phillip, he mentioned that there was a race track somewhere nearby in Ohio that held a great event that might be this weekend called Vintage Motorcycle Days. After a little research on my iPhone (which is now dead because it won't charge, hence the small number of updates recently) I discovered that Vintage Motorcycle Days are next weekend but this weekend the track is holding an AMA superbike race! I wound up talking to another camper who also happened to be a motorcyclist. He said Super Bike weekend at Mid-Ohio was a blast so I decided to go check it out. I arrived at five on Saturday just as racing was winding down for the day. I bought my weekend pass and headed to the infield campground to set up. After setting up camp in a remote corner and cooking dinner, I decided to go for a walk. As I had been warned, the scene was wild. The best way I can describe it is similar to the infield scene at the Preakness steaks before they started clamping down. Except that compared to the Preakness, Mid-Ohio Super Bike weekend has more fireworks, nudity and drunk people bombing around the campground on every kind of motorized vehicle imaginable. At 1130 I had to put in the ear plugs I use for riding to finally get some rest! As I went to bed earlier than most, I woke up earlier than most. The campground was littered with overturned trash barrels, fire pits filled with all types of inappropriate objects and people passed out in a variety of unnatural poses. I packed up quickly and parked the bike near the gate for a quick exit once racing was done for the day. There were three races scheduled for the day and I took the opportunity to see the action from nearly every vantage point on the track. While the racing was excellent, I had just as much fun ogling the huge number and variety of bikes that spectators had ridden out to the track. I was surprised to find that quite a few people were interested in my bike and I met a few very nice fellow KLR owners who wanted to talk about some of the modifications I had made. Overall I had a great time at the track and it was a great way to break up the routine of ride, camp, ride, camp. My plan is to ride to Columbus tomorrow to get my phone fixed so I can be posting frequent updates once again.

Lake Erie

Here's a shot of my camp site just east of Cleveland. As you can see I'm right beside the lake. I'm sharing the site with a fellow biker named Phillip from NY because the park is completely full. Now dinner is done and we're watching the storm clouds roll in. Tomorrow, Michigan!

Franklin, PA

Finally, I get service again! It's day 3 and I'm taking a little coffee break here in Franlin. My goal is to stay in an Ohio State Park tonight. At this point my camping routine is well established. The only problem so far was that I could not get my gasoline stove to light. So I bought a new propane stove that works great. Hopefully I can ditch the gas stove in Detroit. This morning was very cold and rainy but my new aerostich gear worked great and I was able to cover a lot of ground. I did have a slightly worrisome "Deliverance" moment this morning. I took a short cut down a back road that followed the river. It took way longer than expected and the road kept getting narrower and rougher. Fortunately, I heard no banjo music, although I did get passed by a guy on a GS that could have easily been Charlie Boorman (in the unlikely event you get that GS/Boorman reference please explain to the rest of my readers in the comments!) I eventually intersected the main road exactly where I expected. I think the fact that the shortcut road was actually called Rt. 666 caused my immagination to get the better of me!

Stay tuned for Ohio...

The first campsite

Lackawanna State Park, PA. Now time to make dinner!

Heading out now!

My first iPhone post! Here's a shot of my ride, loaded to capicity.
Headed to PA. More to follow...

The Final Shakedown Run

This final shakedown run was part of a larger trip that involved multiple plane flights, buses and trains. It took me from Brooklyn, NY to Nantucket, Ma to Rockland Me, to Boston, Ma and then back to Brooklyn. The KLR took me to Boston and back. Two modifications tested on this run were the tall windshield, Storm top box and the newly painted diamond plate aluminum dashboard. Additionally, it was the first run I made wearing ear plugs. For comfort, the taller windshield made a nice difference. Instead of hitting me straight in the chest, the wind is now redirected to hit me in the top of the helmet. On long trips I'll need to use a lot less energy bracing myself against the wind blast. The only downside is that the taller windscreen gets a little floppy at higher speeds but I got used to that pretty quickly. I don't have too much to report on the dash and that's a good thing. The only thing I was worried about was wind getting caught up behind the dash and lifting it off the gauges. Fortunately that was not a problem as the stock fairing did a great job of directing the wind out of the way. On the last shakedown run there were two items that fell off the bike due to engine vibrations. I replaced the missing exhaust baffle and the new one stayed in place. The other item was a cap for the PVC tool tube. The replacement cap vibrated out once again. Today I bought a new cap, the third, and installed pins on both tube caps to keep them from spinning on their own. I'm confident that the pins will solve the problem. On the ear plug front, they were a major improvement in comfort. Thanks go to my friend Jeremy, a firearms enthusiast, who showed me the proper way to install ear plugs. Thanks to the windshield, ear plugs, modified seat and extra large gas tank, I can ride the bike all day long. I am declaring the bike officially ready to go. With two days to go before I leave, preparations are in the final stages. During my New England trip I made a stop in Boston to visit my old friend Jon. As the manager of the REI in Boston, Jon was extremely helpful when it came to picking out gear and providing camping and survival advice. With camping and survival gear taken care of, I stopped by CVS and picked up medical supplies and toiletries. These next two days I'll be taking care of all the last minute details. The bike's inspection runs out at the end of August so I'm going to get it inspected tomorrow. I'm waiting on a new jacket from Aerostitch which should arrive tomorrow. I need to make a trip to the grocery store for traveling food as well. After that I think I'm going to spend all of Tuesday figuring out how the heck everything is going fit on the bike!