Aside from our rather prosaic Ford Explorer with on-board GPS
and Delorme Road Atlas package (highly recommended if you like
to poke about!), Barbara and I have owned a variety of bikes,
from a '50s vintage Arial Square Four to an '83 Yamaha 750 Virago,
and most recently, an '87 Yamaha Venture Royale.
We recently (and regretfully) sold our big Venture touring bike "Balboa"
because he was orphaned and expensive to maintain. His swan song
was a good trip -- 1300 miles from Rockville, MD to Portland,
ME and back, done at a leisurely pace over six days -- two in the rain.
I doubt that I will ever ride a steadier bike. He would go 80+ all
day and not tire you out. But moving his 835 pounds (dry) when not
under power was a real chore.
We had equipped him with a very competant global positioning system (GPS). The receiver was mounted on the clutch hydraulic fluid reservoir, and hooked to a Compaq laptop running DeLorme's Street Atlas package. The GPS receiver drew power from the keyboard port of the laptop. The laptop and a 12-125v inverter lived on a platform fixed to the steering head. A plastic shield protected it from rain and truck wakes. It never failed.
We will get a BMW (probably an old boxer) when the right one comes along.
Barbara is a road-savvy passenger, knows how to travel light, and is smart and good company to boot. When I ride without her, I wish she were there to share the open vistas, natural sounds, and the feel of the air.
Over the years, we have travelled on the ground through the majority of the 50 states, including Hawaii, by bike, auto, and train.
During the 60's and 70's I rode competitively in off-road enduros,
but gave it up when I moved from Pennsylvania to Maryland - not
enough open territory.
But we kept my ancient and honorable '76 Yamaha XT500C Enduro.
That big single (serial number 274) is old enough to vote, and utterly reliable to this day.
It has wet its tires in the Rio Grande, the Pacific Ocean
and the Saint Lawrence Seaway on the way to San Diego,
the Grand Canyon, Independence Pass, and Canada,
rolling up over 30,000 miles in the process.
The Inventory:
Barbara and I have put two wheels in Arizona, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.
We look forward to riding from San Diego to Seattle some day, and to visiting Wyoming and Florida. Biking to Alaska may wait a while...
Before Barbara was in my life, I had ridden thru all of the above (except Hawaii) on my Yamaha XT500C thumper, as well as Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Missouri, Oklahoma, New Jersey, Ontario, and Quebec during coast-to coast and Canadian camping trips.
We have also traveled by train thru some of the above and Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, and North Dakota; and by auto thru some of the above and Washington, Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island.
Last updated 9/24/00