Trip Out West - September 4 - 13, 2009

[Earache]

And were looking at about 4,000 miles total and around $1500 in costs?

Yup, that'd pretty much be it.

Costs can vary widely depending on your eating and spending habits, but it should be in that range somewhere.

[Dweezel]

Well put me on the list. I'm sure I can scrape 1500 together by September.

[Fonzie]

sounds nothing like the jim beam trip............. fonzie, nick!!!!!

Huhhhh Nick had us stoppin' constantly on that one

Not to mention my cramp that needed "massaged" out

[zerocrash]

Not to mention my cramp that needed "massaged" out

Now I'm a little freaked out..

[Fonzie]

Now I'm a little freaked out..

But curious

[knodel]

i'm in markin it on calender now

[SRTurbo04]

sooo tempting...is this more of a relaxed ride ?...might be interested but ide defetanlly take the vstar for this long ride ahh?

[Earache]

sooo tempting...is this more of a relaxed ride ?...might be interested but ide defetanlly take the vstar for this long ride ahh?

Dunno if it'll be that relaxed. There's a lot of highway miles to do and most of that will be done at 80 mph or so. You could always catch up to us, but most cruisers won't haul on the freeway all day at elevated speeds.

Once you're out there, you'd have no problems keeping up. I'd also make daily route sheets with the routes and stops on them. Easy enough to find us.

[Casper]

sooo tempting...is this more of a relaxed ride ?...might be interested but ide defetanlly take the vstar for this long ride ahh?

Ride at your own pace. If you fall behind, there will be places to meet up. And I'm sure other cruisers will be going.

[SRTurbo04]

Ride at your own pace. If you fall behind, there will be places to meet up. And I'm sure other cruisers will be going.

...my own pace woudl be right behind ur ass lol but was thinkin the cruiser with be alot easier on my back an for long ridees then my yzf600 would be...but forget that lol

[Casper]

my own pace woudl be right behind ur ass

That's the best laugh I've had in a long time. You realize I'm not driving the Camry out there, I'm riding my motorcycle, right?

[Earache]

For the guys that have done this prior... Can your tires make a trip like that without needing replaced during the trip? That's a lot of high speed mileage' date=' especially for a Hayabusa or even that Honda ST. Those aren't light or low powered bikes.[/quote']

I mentioned earlier - you gotta have brand new rubber before heading out. The higher speeds, heavy bike and hot temps equal fast tire wear. I can get about 4,500 miles out of a set of tires on the ST. New tires will be fragged when I get back from Colorado.

Last year's trip to California required new rubber for me on Medford, Oregon. Then had to buy new tires when I got back home. But that was a 7,500 mile trip.

A trip to Colorado and New Mexico should only require one set of tires - as long as you put them on the day before we leave.

[Fonzie]

Get rid of the cages.......And this road is BEGGING for a top end run!!

Trip I keep telling my sons' I wanna take with them when they graduate from high school.....Hit Rte. 66 & see "America". Little bonding time with dad before they leave the nest to strike out on their own, and everything changes

[kawi kid]

Huhhhh Nick had us stoppin' constantly on that one

Not to mention my cramp that needed "massaged" out

i meant more about the pace i was fine with it tho

[Earache]

Some more pics because I'm bored...

We could skip Santa Fe and do Moab, Utah. Some really good riding in the area and secenery like no where else in the World. Almost looks like Mars....

[Earache]

Hotter than shit here though. Temps in the 115F range are common...

[Earache]

Tons of cool stuff that you'll not see anywhere else...

[Earache]

On these long trips it's important to take a day off from riding. It's easy to do 700 mile days but difficult to string a bunch of them together. The longer the trip is, the shorter amount of miles you can do each consecutive day.

In Colorado, we rented a Jeep one day ($150 a day + fuel) and did some old mountain pass trails that go past old mining sites. Never went over 15 mph and had a blast!

Great way to get off of the bikes for a day...

[Earache]

Trails leading up the mountains were great fun in a Jeep...

[Earache]

I was really suckin' wind at the top - air was really thin!

[Earache]

Basic itinerary for the trip with mileages...

Westward Trip 2009 Itinerary

September 4-13, 2009

Friday, September 4

Columbus to Columbia, Missouri – 530 miles

Saturday, September 5

Columbia, MO to Black Hawk, CO – 739 miles

Hotel – Black Hawk, CO

Sunday, September 6

Central City – Rocky Mount Nat’l Park – 200 miles

Hotel – Black Hawk, CO

Monday, September 7

Black Hawk, CO to Ouray, CO – 345 miles

Hotel – Ouray, CO

Tuesday, September 8

Ouray area – 150 miles

Hotel – Ouray. CO

Wednesday, September 9

Ouray, CO - Santa Fe, NM – 285 miles

Hotel – Santa Fe, NM

Thursday, September 10

Santa Fe area – 300 miles

Hotel – Santa Fe, NM

Friday, September 11

Santa Fe, NM to Dodge City, KS – 590 miles

Hotel – Dodge City, KS

Saturday, September 12

Dodge City, KS to St. Louis, MO – 590 miles

Hotel – St. Louis, MO

Sunday, September 13

St. Louis, MO to Indpls.,IN – 243 miles

St. Louis, MO – Columbus, OH – 417 miles

Total mileage – 4,146

Edited November 24, 2008 by Earache

[Earache]

Basics routes....

After taking I-70 from Columbus to Black Hawk, Colorado, we'll do this to get to Ouray, Colorado...

Then on to Santa Fe, New Mexico...

After Santa Fe we head north and then east to Dodge City, KS...

Dodge City to St. Louis, MO ...

And finally on to Columbus...

Look okay to everyone? Additions? Deletions? Suggestions?

[CRed05]

That looks awesome. Would like to do that, looks like I have some preparing to do.

[Casper]

Basic itinerary for the trip with mileages...

Westward Trip 2009 Itinerary

September 4-13, 2009

Friday, September 4

Columbus to Columbia, Missouri – 530 miles

Saturday, September 5

Columbia, MO to Black Hawk, CO – 739 miles

Hotel – Black Hawk, CO

Sunday, September 6

Central City – Rocky Mount Nat’l Park – 200 miles

Hotel – Black Hawk, CO

Monday, September 7

Black Hawk, CO to Ouray, CO – 345 miles

Hotel – Ouray, CO

Tuesday, September 8

Ouray area – 150 miles

Hotel – Ouray. CO

Wednesday, September 9

Ouray, CO - Santa Fe, NM – 285 miles

Hotel – Santa Fe, NM

Thursday, September 10

Santa Fe area – 300 miles

Hotel – Santa Fe, NM

Friday, September 11

Santa Fe, NM to Dodge City, KS – 590 miles

Hotel – Dodge City, KS

Saturday, September 12

Dodge City, KS to St. Louis, MO – 590 miles

Hotel – St. Louis, MO

Sunday, September 13

St. Louis, MO to Indpls.,IN – 243 miles

St. Louis, MO – Columbus, OH – 417 miles

Total mileage – 4,146

I wish this was next week. That's freaking awesome.

[Earache]

That looks awesome. Would like to do that, looks like I have some preparing to do.

Just save a couple of bucks each week and it'll be paid for in no time at all.

Preparation just involves usual maintenance and some new tires before you leave - simple!

I'll be scurrying around the night before we leave to get tires put on, oil changed, brake job, etc. I'd like to think I'll take care of it beforehand, but experience tells me I won't. Lazy fucker.