I must say, I’ve had my travel experiences over the years, thanks to the Air Force, but one area I’ve seemed to have missed… My own back yard, the United States. Sure, I’ve traveled the US like most others. During my younger years and thanks to Dwight D. Eisenhower and the interstate system, I’ve gone from Washington State to the east coast and back several times, and from Maine to Miami along with several points in between. Since 2001, I’ve been touring on my Goldwings (currently riding number two) and enjoying every mile. I don’t consider myself a road warrior, but I have accumulated some 200,000 plus miles over the years. Most of which to be standard riding to and from vacation spots or on weekend rides to nowhere in the local area of Southeastern and Southcentral Pennsylvania.
Goldwings first sparked my interest in 1994 as I was leaving a career with the Air Force. Stationed in Spokane Washington, I was leaving one life and diving back into another after 16 years of service. It was a bit of a change, and I was tempted to do it with style. I stopped by the local Honda dealership and instantly fell in love with a 1993 1500 SE, red and begging for me to buy it. Between selling my house, and a severance package courtesy of Bill Clinton’s reduction of the services, I had enough money, but the uncertainty of the future made the decision for me. With a wife and two kids, it was best I hold off.
By 2001 I had moved from Washington, started a career, and purchased a house in which there was equity to be had. Seeing the new GL1800, well that was all it took. A down payment was made, the create was opened and in a week, I had a nice shiny 2001 Pearle Blue Goldwing. It may sound to you that my riding experience was limited, well that might be an understatement as my riding consisted of a minibike my friend had when I was 13, a Suzuki TS 250 during my Sr. year of High School, and a Yamaha 650 Maxim that I had in 1986. So, to say that an 1800cc, six-cylinder bike coming in at just under half a ton was a bit daunting, was truly an understatement.
As I rode home from the dealership, my wife following in the car, I learned very quickly the need for respect with a bigger bike. As I entered an on-ramp to the highway which had an ever-tightening radius to the curve, I realized that my speed was a bit too high. Needless to say, my recall of counter steer had not kicked in yet, so the instant “brake check” method had to be used. Fortunately, I was able to navigate the corner. Nevertheless, I got home in one piece and from that day forward, I knew I had a new love affair in the making. A bike that was not only comfortable to ride on long trips but could also carve a corner on a twisty road with the best of them.
Fast Forward to today, the dream of that epic cross-country ride that had been itching at my soul for eternity has finally found a place on my calendar. No schedule, no need to be anywhere, just 6 weeks in September and October blocked off. And as long as the government didn’t screw things up, we should have enough money to make the trip.
As of today, the thought is this… In mid-September, my good friend Mike Prince and I will leave, after a local obligation to a Triathlon Group that we support which will be held in an area just west of Valley Forge Pennsylvania, and head north from there. The thinking is to get to route 6 and ride along the northern border of Pennsylvania heading west from there. Although no firm places have been carved in stone yet (maybe other than Mt. Rushmore) my preference would be to make this a rather nostalgic trip, hitting areas of the United States that are off the beaten path. Just find out what the people of the United States are really all about.
Since this is the first article about this journey and we have almost 10 months to think about it, please offer up any suggestions for places to stop and/or visit. They may end up as a nice article here in our blog.
