Well, well, well, my darlings, if it's November then it must be time for an overdue annual October solo ride report.I pick October for my annual freedom ride, because the kids are back in school and the weather still seems to be holding out in the L.A. area and beyond. I just put my pencil on the map with a string measuring the distance of a week long trip there and back, and...voila, I'm off.
Everything fell into place perfectly this year. I got a weekend invite from some friends in Portland, Oregon.
"Hey Nicole, when are you ever going to make it up here?"
"How does now work for ya?"Got my L.A. bases covered for a week; whipped some food together; got my DRZ, Jack, oiled, pumped and torqued; and had my little angel girl, Alana, get me in the mood while I packed...
I spy a little munchkin in the background hooked up to an IV drip of "Club Penguin" on the computer. Just a little side note to see if any other parents out there are also up to their eyeballs in Puffles (Penguins' pets). Ha.
With ambitious mileage planned, 2,240 miles to be covered in 6 riding days, I knew I needed to pack some decent fuel for the ol' bod...
Grapenuts, raisans and powdered milk for breakfasts; salmon pouches with packet mayo and seasoning for lunch; and Clif bars, crunchy n sweet green beans and wasabi trail mix for some mid-meal munchies.
I dehydrated ground beef (lean cut), and roasted veggies with sauce for dinner. After sauteing and browning the meat with onions and seasoning, I drain it and pat it dry (it's the fat that goes rancid)...
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Then I saute and pan roast grated cauliflower, and chopped summer squash, red peppers and onions in coconut oil...
Then I spread out both the meat and veggies in separate pyrex pans to dehydrate in the oven at a low temp (around 190 degrees) all day with some stirring...
Then you get your meal ready to be rehydrated at your whim , and can last many days if not weeks...
Blast off morning had me waking up at 5a to rain on the apartment roof, so I layered crazily for my first ever long ride in the rain.
Jack waited patiently, while I could barely bend my puffy arms to strap on my helmet...
Note the nice brow of sweat I had going before hitting the cold outside...
Well worth it to be cozy in that weather, and not be phased by the pelting rain for six hours.
The layering puffiness did remind me of the little brother in the movie "The Christmas Story" where the mom bundled the kid up so much that he could barely move his arms when he went out in the snow, let alone get up after falling. Thank heavens no one tipped me over.
I knew this would be a problem I would soon be rectifying with some heated clothing.
I used the old fashioned GPS, Google maps, after spending much of the night before pouring over a borrowed Garmin 60CSx, to no avail...
I certainly am not the dullest tool in the shed, and because I didn't have the time to take a college course explaining the Garmin instruction manual this is what it looked like to me...
If any others out there have struggled with the manual not matching the features of the Garmin or have had any other questions on these fantastic devices that keep us solo riders safe, then I have the answer for you.
My dear buddy Chris Crawford, "Crawdaddy" around here, has launched the most amazing website, www.dualsportmoto.com...
"that provides the most robust GPS data available. Not just in numbers, but accessibility and ability to preview, edit and download all on the site. Submissions will multiply and make www.dualsportmoto.com a powerhouse in dual-sport trip planning. We're working with DualSportMaps.com to bring you the best there is for the dual-sport riding community."
Please check out Chris' new site that is the first to hit this specialty niche in providing the ultimate trip-planning data and supplies.
Sure wish I had found out about Chris' site before my Oregon trip. So instead, I had to look down at written directions in bold, red writing in the rain. Ha, not so easy. Glad I'm still here to tell the story.
My first overnighter would be my brother, Jonathan's, who will be known as "Toid" (childhood nickname) from here on out. I couldn't wait to see his new apartment in Jack London square near the marina in the Berkeley area not too far from San Francisco...
This city had a nice sunny welcome for me, and, of course, so did my sweet bro!
After overnight fun with family, I'm off on my amazing ride. So, put on your seatbelts people, because this is just as much an inward journey as it is an outward one.
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