vanzandt@uiucuxc.CSO.UIUC.EDU (10/07/85)
I am planning a cross country ride this coming spring. Any information
or advice pertaining to bike size, road selection, lodging, etc. would
be greatly appreciated.
To those in Champaign, Il. area, if you have a bike for sale that might
meet the above conditions, mail me something.
-Lonnie (uiucuxc!vanzandt)animal@ihlpa.UUCP (D. Starr) (10/09/85)
> > I am planning a cross country ride this coming spring. Any information > or advice pertaining to bike size, road selection, lodging, etc. would > be greatly appreciated. > To those in Champaign, Il. area, if you have a bike for sale that might > meet the above conditions, mail me something. > -Lonnie (uiucuxc!vanzandt) (This could go on for hours...) I'm putting this one on the net in the hopes that we'll get a little more discussion on the subject, since what works for me may not work for you. By cross-country, I assume you mean something like one of the coasts, or a week in the Rockies or something; at least not just Champaign to Dubuque. BIKE SELECTION-I would say that 500cc is a good dividing line: it is certainly possible to cross the country on a smaller bike, but 500 seems to be the line dividing proving a point from having fun. Obviously, the larger bikes will haul more gear than the smaller ones. I've taken long trips on 2 different 500's, and concluded that they're quite adequate (and a lot of fun) if not overloaded. This means (to me) no passenger, no hard saddlebags and at most a bar-mounted windshield. If you're interested in the fairing and bags route, I think 750 is a better minimum--850 with passenger. You should also consider what kind of bike you're taking. Lean-back boulevard cruisers (Virago, Shadow, Intruder, etc.) can get hard on the back if you don't have something to lean on. Similarly, squat-down roadracers (Interceptor, Katana, etc.) force you to do a continuous push-up at most legal speeds. Anything that doesn't allow you to change your seating position will get old real fast. I think the best setup is moderate handlebars (flattish but not too low) and a flat seat, so you can lean forward a bit into the wind at speed, lean back against your sleeping bag for the dull stretches, and sit up straight now and then. Such bikes are hard to find, what with all the specialization going on these days. Suzuki used to have a line of sensible motorcycles called the "T" (for traditional) series, but they were considered too bland by the customers and disappeared. If you can find one as a "non current" model, it'll probably be a bargain and an excellent choice. (Of course, the new Harley 883 is also very sensible if you get it with the [optional] flat seat, but it's also $4K.) Another thing to stay away from if this is your first long tour is the big, full dress "gunboat" (Goldwing, Voyager, etc.). Most of these machines are just too damn heavy to have any fun on. ROADS-I seldom use the Interstate system for the very simple reason that if I'm trying to see the country I want to see more than four lanes and an endless series of fast food joints. Believe it or not, Kansas is actually quite pretty if you take the two-laners. Similarly, you can cross Missouri on I-70 and be bored stiff, or take US 50 and go through hills and curves for the whole distance. The two-laners have a few other advantages: Lodging and food are frequently cheaper. Facilities along the superslab are usually new and a good chunk of what you pay goes to the mortgage. The places along the small roads are usually paid for, run by retired folks who don't need a lot of money, and are therefore cheaper. You can ride faster between towns with less risk of a ticket. (Keep this one secret!) Most of the cops are on the interstate, setting up speed traps to separate the tourists from their money. I've ridden all day in Ohio on US 30 without seeing a cop; get on the interstate and saw five in the first ten miles. Worried about hostile locals? You're watching too much TV. In nine years and 13 long cross country trips, all I've ever encountered was hospitality. A hint for finding good roads: the fainter the line is on the map, the better. The thin gray lines tend to mean less traffic and more hills and curves than the thick red or black ones. LODGING-You certainly want to carry the old reliable KOA guide, if for nothing else as a last resort. Note that the cheaper KOAs are often more tent-oriented than the expensive "award winners." I know of three motorcycles-only campgrounds: Songdog Ranch (near L.A.), Two Wheels Only, (Suches, GA) and Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground (Cruso, NC). There will probably be more opening; this is an idea whose time has come. In Kansas, you can camp out in most of the highway rest areas on the state highway system (NOT the interstates). This is generally not true in other states. National Park facilities are always full before you get there. On the other hand, there are frequently forest service campgrounds nearby, if you can negotiate a few miles of gravel fire road. Don't believe what you read about the joy of cooking your own food in camp. You will probably not want to do it (remember, you're on vacation), and you'd need a sidecar to carry all the equipment. If you're planning to motel it, grab a copy of "Lodgings for Less" at your local bookstore. It's a Mobil Travel Guide book listing only good quality budget motels. Also keep in mind, motels are cheaper and often more available if you stay away from the slab. Well, that's long enough. What do the rest of you have to say? Dan Starr
pag00@amdahl.UUCP (Pria Graves) (10/11/85)
> > I'm putting this one on the net in the hopes that we'll get a little > more discussion on the subject, since what works for me may not work for > you. > OK, I'll bite. I, too, have done a number of longish (4000 - 9000 mile) trips on two different bikes. I found my first bike, a Honda 550, to be literally a pain in the rear if I tried to ride more than 400 miles in one day. I also found it to be a bit underpowered for the Canadian rockies where everyone does 70. My second (and current) bike has turned out to be truely satisfactory for long distance: a BMW R100S (short bars and cafe fairing). I have it set up with rear sets (both rider footpegs moved back and passenger pegs up) and I alternate between leaning forward on my tank bag and sitting up or slouching. (most of my trips have been with a passenger so I cannot usually lean too far back). I also use hard saddlebags which help keep things dry. The bike is wonderfully reliable and will continue to run even if minor problems develop. The American BMW club also publishes a book for members which lists phone numbers of both repair shops and private individuals who are willing to render various types of assistance, a real plus for those travelling in unfamiliar areas. The bike combines good handling charateristics with the ability to be driven hard for long periods (200 miles at 80 non-stop, 700+/day) when the need or desire arises. It is also lighter (~475lbs ) than many bikes its size. Best of all, at 65000 miles I know it has a good 30K left before an overhaul! It is the only bike you can buy at 40K and trust it to last you through a good few trips! I disagree about not wanting to cook. When there are three family members on a three week trip eating out gets too expensive. By devoting one tank bag to a small backpacking stove and pots and by only buying one day's groceries at a time, we can eat quite well (camp style) most of the trip. It is also nice to be able to sip a cup of coffee before taking off. Another thing I find critical on most trips out of the southwest is a good rainsuit. I have the Rukka and find it to be most adequate. (By the way, rainstorms are the only thing that make me wish for a bigger fairing... for the sake of visibility.) A spray bottle full of water is also a large plus in the desert: soak your shirt and pants (even while riding) to help prevent heat problems. I'll second the comments about KOA's. Most we have stayed in have been very pleasant (but watch out for Odessa-Midland in Texas). While most major U.S. National parks are always full, many state, regional and less known parks can be wonderfull - some even have showers. In Oregon and Washington (also Michigan as I recall) there are hardly any other campgrounds. (speaking of that, where does one camp in Maine?) Secondary roads are definitely more fun. If you run into trouble you are also more likely to 1) be helped and 2) be entertained while you are being helped. A person I was traveling with a few years back ran off the road in West Virginia. I got a real feeling for the folks there while they helped rescue his bike and patch the gas tank - and they would only charge for the epoxy used for the patching, not the 3 hrs. of everyone's time! The only first hand account I have ever heard of someone being openly hostile to a biker was in a small town in Alabama. My husband was traveling through in about '78 on his full fairing BMW and got "escorted" through town by a cop on a similar bike. At a light the guy told him to "keep on traveling". I wouldn't ride through the south by myself! -- Pria ...!{ihnp4,hplabs,amd,nsc}!amdahl!pag00 (408) 746 7539
darryl@ISM780.UUCP (10/11/85)
[] There's a lot to say on this (set of) subject(s). Let me say that there's no real problem cooking your own food in camp. I have a backpacker's camp stove and a set of cookware. Cheap meals are easy to do, but don't bother trying to do something complicated -- go to a restaraunt instead. Cleaning up is easy: wash your pots with a little soap and a handful of gravel, then rinse. Use biodegradable soap (available at any camping outfitter); I carry some on my bike all the time as an aid to remounting a tire. --Darryl Richman, INTERACTIVE Systems Corp. ...!cca!ima!ism780!darryl The views expressed above are my opinions only.
gnu@l5.uucp (John Gilmore) (10/15/85)
My first long-distance cycle trip was 8000 miles in three months on a 1976 Honda 360. This proved to be a very enjoyable trip, down the Blue Ridge Parkway, thru the South, Florida, along the Gulf and across Texas, up the middle of New Mexico, Colorado, then back across Kansas and east all the way back to DC where I'd started. For almost all of the trip I was alone, and for that kind of slow, one-person trip, a small bike is great. One of the worst things you can do to a good cycle trip is to TRY to make 400 miles in a day. Why bother? Are you out there to eat miles, or to have a good time? You'll see a lot more interesting things at 50 than you will at 80, and you'll have time to stop and take a closer look before they're too far behind you to bother. With a 10-minute break every hour or so, at a nice place I'd spot along the road, I had a very enjoyable trip. Anytime I felt like taking a side road, I just did. I took bread and cheese and water and juice and fruit, which was great to have when I passed a nice shady forest meadow and felt hungry. Once in a while I cooked a chunky soup over a campfire, or stole a few ears of corn from a field and cooked them within an hour in the coals. I found that the best spots to camp were just places where you could pull off the road and nobody could spot you. Check dirt roads leading behind farmers' fields, levee roads or access roads by a creek or river, fire roads, or whatever. Make sure the bike is not visible from anywhere on paved road. The cardinal rule is to leave the place looking *exactly* like you found it, which meant usually just spreading a tarp and sleeping bag under the stars, undisturbed by the rest of humanity. No fires unless I found a firepit. I NEVER had any property owners object to this mode of camping; I even had a cop come up the fire road one day (I heard him coming so I wasn't naked in the sleeping bag when he got there) and we talked for a few minutes and he went on his way. After this kind of peace and solitude, I find the typical car camp a sad place, to say nothing of the typical RV camp. Let me second the idea that you MUST carry raingear. The $30 rainsuits made of cheap vinyl are fine for a few months of touring; eventually they get holes or tears or melted and need replacing, but $10/month to be able to ride all day in rain without getting wet is c-h-e-a-p! Bring layerable clothes -- t-shirts, flannel shirts, sweaters, windbreakers, long underwear and jeans, and maybe short pants for when you aren't riding. Also big wool socks as well as normal ones. In Colorado I had all this on at once, plus the raingear, just to keep from freezing. If you can carry one extra set of pants & shirt, you can wash all the rest at laundromats. Be sure to buy your bike soon enough that you can break it in riding around town (say ~1000 miles) where you won't be riding it hard. Also, you can get the breakin service done at your original dealer, and get used to riding the bike and dealing with any problems it has. Buy spare cables and bulbs and fuses and find ingenious hideyholes in the bike where you can stash them so they'll be there in the dark in the middle of the cornfield in Kansas when you need them. And on a trip like this, do maintenance every day. At my first gas stop of the day, I would check the oil, grease the chain (vaseline is harder to put on than the spray on stuff, but it works very well and is very cheap), adjust its tension, and check all the nuts and bolts and lights. Doing it that often, it got to be a 10 minute job. A tank pack, with a clear plastic top you can put a map behind, is a good thing to have; as well as a pair of saddlebags (mine were vinyl, which meant they would stretch if I needed to stuff a little more in some days). This gear should be waterproof, or you should line it with plastic to make it that way. (I put plywood on the bottom of the saddlebags to keep the hot exhaust pipes from burning them, too.) I've done two more long distance trips (11K miles and 20K miles) and the largest bike I used was a Honda 400. I carried a passenger and her gear for a few hundred miles of it, too. You don't need a big expensive bike to tour!
roland@inmet.UUCP (10/17/85)
In reply to: Where does one camp in Maine?" Stop at a Maine tourist information center (I95 just across the border from New Hampshire if you're coming from the south) and pick up one of the official state maps. Among other things not shown on any service station map are U.S. Forest Service campsites, situated in the middle of nowhere with noone around. (I am loathe to share this information with the world, but I am also curious why Maine should be singled out? After all, it is half of New England and has half the population of Boston. If you can't find an unoccupied corner for your sleeping bag, you're not looking.)
ron@hpfcla.UUCP (10/17/85)
Responding to "faintest line on the map"
That's not necessarily the truth. Some of the very faint lines on the map
of Colorado aren't even really roads for cars. They're 4 wheel-drive routes !
Yes a motorcycle might make it but I sure wouldn't take a Goldwing on
any of them.
The secondary routes (US Hwy vs I-XX) are the way to go. Folks are friendly,
traffic is light (away from cities) and the pace can be varied from twisty
roads in the mountains to dead-straight in the plains. In '83 I did a trip
on my CB900F and had everyone I met all afternoon (about 20 or so) in
western Kansas, wave to me ! I didn't think that people did that anymore.
Ron Miller
No one has ever gone broke UNDERestimating the intelligence of the American
public !
FSD Service Engineering (Hardware Support)
Hewlett-Packard Co.
Ft. Collins Systems Div.
Ft. Collins Colorado
303-226-3800
at: {ihnp4}hpfcla!rongordon@scgvaxd.UUCP (Gordon Howell) (10/18/85)
Newsgroups: net.cycle Subject: Re: Cross Country Ride Info Summary: Expires: References: <11100004@uiucuxc> <824@ihlpa.UUCP> Sender: Reply-To: gordon@scgvaxd.UUCP (Gordon Howell) Followup-To: Distribution: Organization: Hughes Aircraft Co., El Segundo, CA Keywords: My discoveries after several lengthy journeys: BIKE : I am a BMW fanatic, so take it with a grain of salt. Use a BMW R80RT (or similar) for pavement. Unbelieveably smooth and reliable. For one-up and cheap, an older R65 or R75 is good (get rubber engine mounts to kill the few vibrations) Just got back from 7 weeks in Alaska and the Northwest Territories. The only bike for this territory is the BMW R80 G/S. I was able to re-build the transmission in the arctic (air freight in parts) with tools available in an auto shop and my shop manual. Try this on a Gold Wing. This is the only breakdown I have ever had on a BMW (and I deserved it...) LODGING: Join the American Youth Hostel Association. Not always where you are going; but I plan my destinations around them. Otherwise camping is easy. I never go anywhere more than a day away without tent and bag. If you get a BMW (here he goes again...) you can join the BMW owner's association and have another resource for fixes, lodging, friends, etc... Other resources I use: Rider Motorcycle Touring Club; KOA directories; Motel 6 directory; local advice on out-of-town cheapo motels; train and bus stations (as a last resort to a wet night!) The single most satisfying way to find lodging is to befriend the locals. I have spent many happy, dry evenings at fellow biker's homes; people I met on a previous journey; sympathetic auto shop owners (!); MOTOS...; etc. FOOD: Never spend more on food in a day than you do on gas :-) [after all, I can travel on an empty stomach, but try it on an empty gas tank!] I usually only cook at youth hostels. Don't pass up the handout --- most people really want to meet you (who is this strange human travelling thousands of miles on a bike??) REPAIRS: Always be prepared. Carry duct tape, baling wire, tools, and crazy glue in that order. I also carry a spare tube, tire patch kit and pump (standard on guess-what-brand motorcycle). Small items include: headlight bulb, breaker points and condenser (if you need 'em), several nut & bolt sets, electrical wire, and loctite. Carry your shop manual! ROADS: Avoid the interstates. I go for 60 mile roads that connect two points 10 miles apart. If an RV is there, you don't want to be. Look for lines on the map that you thought were rivers. Look for roads marked 'unimproved' --- on a light touring bike (such as a BMW :-)) you will have no problems, and LOTS of fun. US Highways winding their way through Iowa cornfields are actually a lot more interesting than you might think. COMPANIONS: I prefer to travel alone, meeting people on the way. I have not had good luck travelling two up --- I finally taught a girlfriend to ride, and that made all the difference... This is already longer than expected... Common sense is the most valuable commodity on the road, whether you are on the interstae or the outback. Most of all, have fun. (and stop by when you get to LA!) Gordon Howell engvax!gordon@CIT-VAX.ARPA (213) 419-0254