Miles and some deep bullshit thoughts.

Being stuck with a broken machine has taught me a few things:
1 - Moving is much better than not moving.
2 - Having friends, even friends you haven't seen in awhile, is a blessing.
3 - Just when you think you've got it all figured out, life throws you a curve.
4 - Friends will help you cope with the curves.
5 - Alone on a road is no place to be.

With the machine laid up for roughly 2 weeks, friends helped me pass the time.  They took time out of their busy lives for this middle aged Summer gypsy and opened their hearts and homes.  Missing the rally in Utah was a setback, but when one door closes, all I had to do was look for the next open door.  That door does not always present itself, but it's there....You just have to find it.

I've met a lot of great people so far on this ride, and I'm starting to field the same questions from many of them.  While the questions are phrased different, they all mean the same.  The question sounds something like this "Why are you choosing to support a cause in this manner?"

For one, because I can, and I choose to.  I don't know of anyone else that has done this before.  I do know some brave souls that have sat through round after round of chemo-therapy, and by most medical wisdom, they didn't have a choice.  It's time I start asking those questions back - What's holding you back from doing what you want to do?  Exactly what kind of horseshit excuses are holding you back?  Let me take a stab at the short version of what you might say:

Money
The kids
My job
School
Transportation
Significant other
Time (ties in with just about all above)

Sometimes the biggest obstacle you face in getting what you want out of life, is you.  If you want something in life, and I mean really want something, you'll do what it takes.  If those that love you see you really trying to archive your dreams, they will support you.  They may not like it, but they know you're gunning for the stars.  Don't say "I wish I could just win the lotto" when you don't even play.

Judge not unless ye be judged...I'm not perfect.  I screw up (some would say alot).  I easily get caught in the day to day activities that make me forget about hopes and dreams.  I'm human, just like you.

Ok...slight rant over.

Thank you Ben and Pam Rosenthal and Chris and Lyz Miller for hosting me in the greater Dallas area!  To the Harmon's, I'll see you guys around July 1st.  Leave the light on.

Early tomorrow I hit the road headed for Cedar City UT.  It's gonna be hot, and I'm gonna be padded up for the road...Water and energy bars in tow, and guardian angles looking over my shoulders. 

Here are a few pictures I've managed to snap over the past couple of weeks.

Afton WY - Worlds largest Elk Horn arch...I didn't even know there was a competition?

Kick ass burgers!  Ft. Worth TX

I must have seen this John Wayne movie 5 times.

Slick Delivery!  My buddy Chris Miller playing lead get-tar (that's how they say it in Texas)

Cheers to the road

The things I break - Ride update

The diagnosis is in on the bike, and being I ride a semi-rare, semi-unpopular BMW 1200CLC, finding the correct parts are no small task.  So after being dropped off at the Plano TX BMW dealership at 2:15am, and dumping the bike at the back door, hiding the key for the techs, and having a surprisingly spry El'Harmon pick me up....The bike will need a new final drive (or what would be called a drive shaft and it's respective parts).  Now if I was riding just about any make or model of bike, say a Harley or a Honda, there would be 300 of these final drives available within 20 square miles.  Instead, I ride a German built bike, and only TWO of these final drives are available, in the entire BMW service world.  To boot, they're in Germany.  So I have a 7 day wait for shipping then about a day for install.  I should have known I was in trouble when the the tow driver noted that he had never seen or heard of a BMW motorcycle.  He was 41 and had been in the tow business since he was 14 years old.

The tow to Dallas was about 250 miles (again, covered by my roadside assistance plan).  Warren was the owner and operator of the company.  Warren rolled up in a GMC Yukon, and a trailer.  It was about 7pm.  Warren had his wife and 6 year old child along for the ride.  Seemed logical enough...he hadn't seen them in a few days so this would be bonding.  Warren knew the area pretty well and let me know that the Duck Dynasty guys film and operate out of Monroe LA.  Well before I know it I received the grand tour of Willie's Duck Diner (the food was not good...Somewhere between a southern sprinkled Ponderosa, and a Joe's Crab Shack without all the garbage tacked to the walls), and Duck Dynasty Headquarters.  The Duck boys HQ had a striking resemblance to a place where one would pick up used truck and tractor tires.

Somewhere in the middle of nowhere, the Yukon blew a tire.  What I mean by this is the tire blew at 70 mph, with an over-sized Mac Truck on our tail and a sub-compact next to the trailer with the bike.  For 15 to 20 seconds Warren dropped some serious Baptist revival messages at full volume, but no dirty words.  I however dropped a few because it felt like we blew all 4 tires on the Yukon.  Warren skillfully got the truck into the median without locking up the brakes.  He and I jumped out to inspect the damage and found the rear drivers side was trashed.  Warren let me know he couldn't have jammed on the brakes any harder or he would have risked jackknifing the trailer and rolling it and the Yukon.  Good job Warren, good job indeed. We moved the Yukon over to the right lane shoulder to get some solid ground on the jack, and I mentioned that changing a tire is always more adventurous when semi-trucks are cruising 4 feet from the jack-man.  A few minutes later we're back on the road, and found out that Warren indeed was a Baptist Minister, and toured in a gospel choir.  Thanks for the tow and blessings good sir.

Chilling at the Harmon's house was a joy and a pleasure.  Seeing the Harmon family was fantastic, and getting a solid soak in the hot tub and pool kept my back from sending any more electric style shocks to my limbs when I turn my head.  I lived with Mr. Matt Harmon for at least 8 years.  When we got to his house after dumping my bike at the dealership, the first thing he did was offer me a beer.  It was like any typical Orlando FL night when we lived together.  Time had stood still.

Well, I have a rally to attend in Panguitch June 11-14. I may not be able to camp with the well respected Beehive Beemers, but I'm looking at renting a bike (likely a Harley) and making an appearance. I would at least like to shake the hands of the good folks that helped cement my Utah visit.  So while I wait for my bike to get repaired, I booked a flight to Utah, to link up with my friends Bob and Liz Turbyfill.  Bob was one of the kind soul that pulled me through my first 6-8 months at ADP.  I also learned early that Bob is one hell of an extreme sports athlete.  He's put me through my paces on mt. bikes, snow ski's, and dirt machines...each time I found myself struggling to keep up, but still holding my own in all except real Lake Tahoe black run moguls.

Well I talked Bob and Liz into some Sunday riding in American Fork Canyon.  I rented a quad sport (Honda 450).  After getting the very odd directions on starting the machine, off we went.  The odd directions were to not give the machine gas when starting it as it could do damage to the clutch.  Well the goofy machine wouldn't start at all unless it was in neutral with the clutch pulled in, then you have to give it gas in 1st gear or the POS would stall out.  Whatever, I won't touch the gas when starting it, and I didn't.  Well this was some serious rock, river and boulder climbing to get to a fantastic spot called Forest Lake.  I struggled with the slick tires over the rocks, but was the first one up the mountain.  Not because I was good, simply I went first to insure help was around if I high-centered.  We shut the machines down to cool off while we enjoyed the views and snapped a couple of pictures.  After 30 minutes, it was time to continue on our merry way.  Everyone had their machines going, but mine wouldn't drop into gear.  Seems I blew the clutch.  You have got to be kidding me!!!!  Bob being former military, and probably an Eagle Scout, had an 8 foot tow strap among his many potentially life saving supplies.  He towed me down the trail for an hour, and we loaded the machine up.  Upon delivery, I called the rental place and said I had a wonderful time and I'd provide referrals in the future.  So far no calls from the rental place about additional cost for a new clutch.

Official counts of crap broken on this leg of the trip:
1 blown final drive
1 blown tire on the tow vehicle
1 blown clutch

That's only in the past 5 day.  Keep throwing the good vibes my way, as I can use all I can get.

Cheers to the road

Warren for the tow to Dallas - 250 miles

Duck Dynasty - Willie's Diner...No real reason to eat here.

Duck HQ 

Just a few feet away, speeding tractor trailers...They didn't mention this in high school auto shop

The Harmon family pool and hot tub

American Fork - Forest Lake view

Off the trail and back to the staging area - Bob and his mighty tow strap

2.5 hours till pick up....Nothing but time.

First off, I'm OK.  I started off today in Atlanta GA at 5am, fresh from an excellent stay in Bentonville AR.

The little voice inside my head was chatting away at all the people I need to thank, and about something funny to write in the blog.  Well I heard a lyric to a song once, that said "If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans".

Well somebody laughed at me as the little voice was crafting the rough draft...But all is well:

I rolled through Vicksburg MS, passed the mighty Mississippi River and started a long fast pace towards Dallas TX.  Let me tell you there isn't much but heat and flat land between Vicksburg and Monroe LA.
Attempting to roll through downtown Monroe, I heard something..."eh, could just be the road" I thought. Another 1/2 mile I heard AND felt something.  I scouted for a safe place to pull over without getting taken out by traffic (mostly semi-trucks at 2pm here in Monroe).  Found a spot 1/2 mile from an exit, and decided it was safe enough, just as lights started flashing.  What those lights mean, hell if I know, it's just not good when any lights are flashing urgently at a rider.  I coasted over to the side of the road, and turned the bike off.  Just then a jolly gent pulled over behind me to block traffic.  I walked over to him and and more or less explained I had no idea what was going on.  The jolly gent offered to follow me with his hazards, to the exit, which we did as the noise progressively got worse. I limped the machine into a Super 8.  The jolly gent said he could see my rear tire wobbling.  I believed him as I could feel it.  I told the good Samaritan thank you as I reached out with my hand introducing myself.  He shook my hand and said "My name is Santa".  There is no denying his resemblance to Santa.  I refined my thank you to be "Thank you Santa", and off he went.  My guess with the help of a phone call to BMW dealerships is the rear wheel bearing, and final drive are shot.  Or so the leak on my rim told me, and the dealer.

The Super 8 on Glenwood Dr. in West Monroe has world class employees.  While they do not have any rooms available, they are allowing me to hang in their A/C and wait for the roadside assistance folks to come get me.  

So I have 2.5 hours, and then a tow to Dallas, as that's the closest BMW dealership with the parts.  I better call Harmon and let him know I'm gonna be a bit off schedule, and he's gonna have to fetch me from Plano.

While this maybe an irritation to most, I have some pretty powerful guardian angels.  I'm good.  I could have been stuck in the middle of BFE.  I could have gotten the el'cheap roadside assistance plan (good old Tereck Hallsey insured I have the best roadside plan one can have).  I could have really hurt myself on that bad rear wheel.  But I'm just fine, the tow to Plano TX is covered, and I'm hanging out in a Super 8 lobby with A/C.  The bike is just a machine, and parts for those are replaceable.  The human body and mind is not so easily replaceable.

I will be writing a letter to Santa this year thanking him.  Plus I'm gonna buy the nice folks here at the Super 8 some pizza for being so kind.

That dark leak is not good....Very much BAD

Broken

.  Oh...And I gotta call Matt Harmon to tell him where to fetch me.

Cheers to the road

Good people and a return to the road

Happy Memorial Day!  Thanks to those who are serving, and those who have served.

The good folks of Tega Cay and Lake Wylie raised  an additional $550 for the Michigan Ovarian Cancer Alliance.  The hospitality and kindness of the residents around these parts is inspiring.  They'll ride a motorcycle with you, feed you, and keep you out till 2:00am telling you stories. 

Good honest souls.  Who all know a lot more about an awful disease.

Tomorrow I'm back on the road, so laundry and further watching of the weather is the order of the day.  This will help determine my route....Maybe towards Atlanta maybe towards Tennessee?  Heck the people are so nice around these parts, maybe I'll go check out the coast?  One step at a time, but by the time I start the bike, I'll know.

If you haven't donated yet, no better time then the present.  If you have donated, no better time to let your friends know their support is welcome.  Let the mioca know Matt sent ya.

http://mioca.org/donate 

Cheers to the road.

3 days deep and 900 miles wide

Wednesday morning it was time to get this show on the roads. Detroit to Beckley WV.  I'm an unbiased third party, but WV roads are much nicer than Southeast Michigan roads.  My good buddy and brother from another mother Brian Sandon dropped me some Diamond Club points and put me up at a Hampton.  Brian rocks, but more about that later.

While there will be a lot to learn about myself on this journey, I've managed to tune out the little voice in my head and pick up a glimpse or two of things I wasn't aware of about myself.  I now know when selecting waterproof pants, extra padding in the ass isn't unflattering, it's fantastic!  Now I also know that my skills on a bike aren't bad, but will improve.  Cruising along at a steady 70 mph on the highway, no respect is given.  Let's not forget that a bike has none of the comforts of a vehicle with 4 wheels.  Pass me if you must, just know that maybe I've been riding for 7 hours, dodging rain (sorta) and a tore up shoulder is throbbing.  To that I've learned I don't care.  I'll ride my ride, I won't ride yours. The machine I ride was born to roll, it does not want to sit still.  A motorcycle will fall over if it sits still (without side stand down).  Rolling it's like a gyroscope, and just wants to stay up.  Trust is growing between the bike and I in the curves and the straights.  People cross the country on bikes all the time, many of them on German built bikes. 

The Human GPS known as Brian Sandon met me in Galax VA.  Exit 8 was the plan, off of 77.  Well, I'm not sticking to the well traveled path if I can help it, and my GPS doesn't have a mile marker option.  So I set off on M52 as suggested by a gas station attendant.  When in the middle of nowhere, why not go for it?  Cue Deliverance Banjo's here. So after a very successful run on 52, it took me right into Galax.  So who needs to know where exit 8 is actually located?  Turns out, I did.  Galax wasn't at exit 8, but exit 8 wasn't really a town...So after an hour, Brian and I connected and off to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which was about 2 miles from the gas station where we filled up (to the brim I might add).  Never has there been on a more amazing stretch of asphalt to my eyes!  Brian and I put about 325 miles in that day - About 125 meeting (umm at Exit 8), and 200 on the Blue Ridge.  To explain it....No traffic, except the occasional motorcycle, possibly a Subaru or camper.  If you see a house or crossroad, it's about every 10-15 miles.  One mom and grandma knickknack store, that sold no gas.  Happy I topped the bike off 100 miles earlier. 

Brian Sandon - Can cut the curves with the best of them. Apparently he thinks I'm good luck, as he  noted he forgot his rain gear, and he always gets caught in the mountain rain.  Not this time.  I asked for no rain and believed it....No rain.

We've arrived in Tega Cay SC Friday, where I'll be hanging for a few days, but I have to give you a quick Brian Sandon (the Human GPS) story to provide those that don't know him, a quick peek into his mind.  Sandon burnt a few more of those Diamond Hampton points, and we rolled in about 7:30pm hungry.   We parked the bikes beneath the Hampton canopy, bag drop/check in if you will.  By no means were they obstructing guests or vehicles (including, if necessary, a fire truck and or paramedics).  I mentioned that our bikes added a bit more class to the entrance.  So we hit the room, dump our gear and catch a cab to a vibrant Ashville NC downtown scene.  During dinner, Brian's phone rings with an Ashville area code.  Brian heads to a quiet area to listen to the v-mail, and find it's the hotel.  Brian calls them back, and catches the manager, who tell him 'we need to move our bikes'.  Brian in the blink of an eye returns the 'order' with "would you like me to put them in the lobby?" to the stunned hotel employee.  A few more volleys progress with Brian finally trumping with "write me a ticket and I'll pay it."  I should also mention it was now pouring rain, and our bikes current location kept them dry.  Needless to say we didn't move them, and no ticket was written.

The world could use a few more Brian Sandon's.

I have a shower and a shave in and now I'm looking at my next routes and following the weather like a beagle on the tail of a rabbit.  

Here's a few pics from road...Notice Brian's bike as well as mine at the Hampton..Plenty of room.

Brian and I on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Bikes at the Hampton...Plenty of room

Cheers to the road.

Destinations are set, but the Journey is open

I have all my landing spots finally tightened up, but how I'm getting there, well, that going to be up to me.  Maybe it will be highway, maybe it will be backroads, maybe I'll change my mind halfway in between?  There is something to be said for being able to turn off a GPS and just using the sunrise and sunset as a compass.

So what is landing?  Landing is where I'll need to be and when.  Here it is folks:
MI for Tega Cay S.C. - Ride on the May 24th with a group.
Bentonville AR - May 31st Ride with a group
Atlanta GA - June 6th Ride with a group 
Panguitch UT - June 11th - June 14th - Working a rally (camping) 
Dallas TX - July 3rd - July 9th or 10th...This is a ride north into Oregon and back. I will not be riding with these road dogs the entire time.Likely I will break off once into Oregon.
Seattle WA Variable - Visit the Loeding's
Las Vegas NV July 31 - Because I will not be hot and sweaty enough by mid-summer.

By the time I leave LV, I'm sure I'll be running on fumes, both mentally and physically.  Working my way back to MI through Utah to see my Wife's parents Jill and Wayne, and her Brother Alex and his family.

There are a few holes in my schedule, which I will use for road and weather time.  It's physically going to take me a bit of time to get where I'm going, and for those of you that do not know...I CAN'T STAND riding in the rain.  There are enough knuckleheads out on the road when the weather is respectable.  The knucklehead factor jumps drastically in the rain.

If you live around these cities, or possibly between these routes....Keep a sofa and washing machine open, as I may come knocking.

Cheer to the road.

BMW ON (Owners News) Magazine

Snow, snow and more snow.  I'm part of the 98% of Michigan residents that have had enough of the cold white stuff.  Let's get a good melt on and start tuning our bikes up for the Spring!

In anticipation of an article which I drafted for the magazine, the good folks at BMW ON have graciously informed me they are publishing it in the February edition. I am giving a huge and heartfelt THANKS to Vince Winkle and his crew over at BMW ON for the honor.

This publication is sent out to over 37,000 members monthly, and I'm honored to be included with all the other fine authors, who are all also BMW MOA members.

More to come, so stay tuned.

Cheers to the road.

Email - mattmcewen911@gmail.com