Shores wrote:
Piece-O-Cake....just fly out there, buy a new Indian or Venture and ride home! Half the miles in double the days.

or ...

Transport them out there and ride them home. Fresh for the reception and sleep at work .

This is a scooter adventure I have been reading about for a couple years now.


http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/a-short-scooterist-on-a-long-ride-around-the-usa-by-vespa.977812/

Not a stupid idea at all......

However, why do you want to ride bikes rather than fly? If you're looking to see if you can do - great! If it's to see the country, not so good.

You'll be averaging 725 miles/day. if you average 80 MPH and stop 3 times - 30 minutes per stop, food, gas bathroom. you'll be in the saddle for almost 11 hours/day - four days straight.

Not going to see much of the country, just whizzing by.

Why not try a weekend ride. 800 miles on to some destination on Saturday and 800 miles back home on Sunday and see if you'd enjoy it.

Whatever you decide, ride safe and have fun.

The plan is not for pleasure but just to say we did it. I understand that freeway speeds will allow little sightseeing. But to say you went coast to coast and back on your bike would be pretty neat.

Great idea to take a few test weekends doing those miles on those roads to see how it would be. Might have to plan something before the weekend is over that way I know going into the winter if it’s going to happen or not. Worst case we could always stretch it out to a full two weeks and relax a little.

And Shores…. I like your style!

You can't pass up this opportunity for a great adventure and challenge. You never know what might happen, but that is what makes it exciting. I'm 67 and I wouldn't be able to sleep at night waiting to hit the road.

Not stupid but consider....have you ever ridden that far in a day even once let alone that many times?
Its like the backpacking I've done my whole life. Everyone can hike 11 miles right? Can you do it at 10,000' feet? And ten days in a row? While carrying your house?
See? it gets tricky.

75kona wrote:

Day one: Graham WA to Bozeman MT 700 miles
Day two: Bozeman MT to Fargo ND 752 miles
Day three: Fargo ND to South Bend IN 737 miles
Day four: South Bend IN to Destination 714 miles

Total: 2903 miles

Return trip:

Day one: Richmond VA to Champaign IL 748 miles
Day two Champaign IL to Mitchell SD 705 miles
Day three: Mitchell SD to Bozeman MT 738 miles
Day four: Bozeman MT to Graham WA 699 miles

Total: 2890 miles

Grand total: 5793 miles. 8 days of riding.

I was thinking about this again yesterday. I've driven most of those roads, being a Seattle native myself and having lived in Northern Wyoming for a while, and thought about where you'd be making time as well as losing it.

Regarding your mileage per day on the way out, youth and exuberance prevailing, I'd adjust your first two days.

Besides wildlife on the roads in mostly morning and evening hours, your run through Eastern Washington, Idaho, and Montana should be at higher speeds. Montana is a super long state with a virtually unlimited speed limit. In the old days it had NO max speed limit. After Jimmy Carter's 55 MPH nationwide interstate speed limit, the fine for speeding on the interstate was $5. Not sure what they do now but many of the interstate speed limits posted today are 80 MPH.

How fast can you comfortably cruise on your R* for extended periods? With that in mind I think I'd push your first two day rides out to about 850 miles, while you're fresh. Leave EARLY. Take it to 750 on day 3 and the last 450 on day 4. Keep in mind that we were up there in late April and it was SNOWING on us in Colorado and Wyoming. Crossing the Rocky's in Idaho as well as much of Montana and North Dakota can have similar unexpected weather, though you wouldn't expect it.

So if you've gotta do it for posterity sake, tweak those miles a bit and let loose. You'll find plenty of motels along the way so no need to land on specific towns should you want to adjust things as you ride.

Hey we only live once and nobody is getting any younger. I say GO FOR IT!!! Often the best times in life are those spontaneous adventures.

I would hardly call this a spontaneous adventure, it's a year away and they are already making plans. A lot can happen in a years' time, who knows what unforeseen circumstances can dictate your ability to do this between now and then. Hell, the wedding could be called off by then. Wait til it's about a month out and then get serious.

Also road construction will slow you down some.