Quote:
Originally Posted by CC Cowboy
If you have never taken a motorcycle on a long trip like this I would highly recommend it before, well, before any other means of transportation (I didn't want to say before youget to old or something else). Where as the 250 is a mighty bike, I would highly recommend buying a big cruiser just for the trip. You can get one for cheap right now, ride it on the trip and sell it when you get back. It would have more space to carry your shiiite, be more comfortable, and be much less tiring. I have done many cross country trips and the ones on a cruiser were the easiest on my body and soul.
As far as the itinerary, everything looks good but the stretch between IL and WY. The northern route would be much more scenic.
Forget about support vehicles and other riders. The best part about doing a cross country trip is the people you meet. If you are by yourself you are forced to meet many more people than if you had company with you. You are more approachable when you're by yourself and people will be glad to talk, help, and all the other benefits of traveling alone.
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Thank you, Cowboy. Quite a piece of advice.
1. I may already be too old for this, but I'm gonna give it a go. Chances are I will end up taking the car (and I've done this 6X before, and going by car is no stress whatever), but I know that once on the road, in a cage, I'll be kicking myself.
2. About getting a bigger bike, I've thought about it, but that would create other problems, not the least of which being money. I know that the Ninja is much less comfortable, but since one of themes of the tour is global warming, its fuel efficiency is a statement unto itself. I've read about other people doing fairly long ride on 250s, and they survived it in good spirit. I do have a question about how long the ninja 250 engine can last revving at 8000+ rpm constantly. If I decide to switch to a bigger bike, financially, I would pretty well have to part company with my ZZR, and I'm sure everyone here understands how that would feel.
3. About the Itinerary, as I mentioned, I've done long road tours 6X before, so I've been on most highways and through most states, and I know what you're talking about, but I do need to go to Kansas and Colorado, which is why I'm dip south after Wisconsin. The stretch from Denver --> WY-MT-AB-BC--> Vancouver will be almost all mountainous terrain, and I'll have one hell of a grand finale.
4. About meeting people, I have a team making speaking engagements for me, setting up places to stay, so mine won't be as free wheeling as a normal bike tour would be. As is, I'll be meeting thousands of people, whether I want to or not. But I do know what you're talking about. When I go around riding by myself, I do get some very nice impromptu encounters.
Thanks again for the advice my friend(s), and I'll keep you posted on this thread.
Anthony