Day 6 Texas & New Mexico

Old Route 66

We jumped off the interstate for breakfast and happened to drop right on the halfway point of the famed route 66 in Adrian, TX.

 There is not much left to the towns we explored. Seems once the new modern interstates where built, may of the towns Route 66 went through could no longer survive. Many seemed like ghost towns with abandoned and boarded up buildings.

 This portion of route 66 dead-ends. We dismounted to snap a few pictures.

Sam: "Don't touch the cactus"
Me: Thinking to myself *well, duh* (to be fair, I do have a habit of touching things I probably shouldn't)
Sam: The "prickers come off easily"
Me: "And you know this how?"
Sam: "I don't want to talk about it"

 The never ending road in NM!  We went miles (almost a full tank of gas) on this road.  Passed maybe 6 cars. We where able to snap this picture without worrying about traffic sneaking up on us from behind. Roads like this make it nice to have the security of the Spot Tracker.

The remaining of these pictures are from NM. They do not do any justice to the amazing scenery. 

                                         We saw a number of adobe brick buildings.

Day 5 Texas

While back in CNY there is a cold snap with accumulating snow predicted for the higher elevations, here in TX we are melting.  Our Day 5 ride through TX was a scorcher. Most of the day it was sunny and around 97 degrees.  We won't shed the protective gear, especially at these speeds (Interstate in TX is 75). So, we need a way to stay cool.  The cooling vest is the answer. Soaked with cold water, lowers air temp around your core by a good 10 degrees. I add a wet bandanna for around my neck.

Super Cool Cooling Vest

Surprisingly the Mighty KLR & Mr Grey seem to not mind the heat. Engine temps are holding while both bikes continue to eat up the road.

Liz with her wet cooling vest

TX stop

TX stop

TX rest stop

Day 4

Addie The Great on the job

This morning still in St Louis. Addie takes over her Papa's office. 

Always good to see my Brother-in-law Hosseine. I'll be back in three weeks.

Late start today waiting for Liz's new tire to get mounted. Good weather, clear, sunny temps high 80s to low 90s.  Mr. Grey doesn't seem to mind the heat. Me, not so good! We don't get heat like this to ride in the North East.

The cooling vest works well keeping my temp down while still wearing protective gear. Soaked with water along with the bandanna under my riding jacket. Warm air blows in through the vents then is cooled by the water. Works very good!

Mr. Grey seems to be running well. Interstate speed is posted at 70mph meaning we are pushing 80mph plus most of the time. MPG is taking a hit. Down from 48 to around 38.

Liz's mighty KLR is surprisingly doing well at high speeds. Her engine mod (685 kit) must have paid off.

Biggest concern at this point seems to be retreads blowing off the big trucks. We dodged several today and one close call.  Liz was in lead, we were both in the passing lane, going by two pickup trucks. Ahead of the trucks was a fresh retread mostly in one peace. Seemed about the size of a normal big truck sized tire. I spotted the retread ahead of the pickups in their lane. I backed off the throttle anticipating one of the may hit it.  The first truck gently swerved toward the right shoulder of the road to get around the retread, however the second pickup did not see the retread until the first swerved around it. The second pickup was obviously a NASCAR fan / wannabe NASCAR driver. His truck was decked out with ground effects, rally wheels, and heavily tinted windows with the appropriate NASCAR decals.  I can say, he earned the right to sport the gear!  He avoided hitting the retread by first locking up his tires, smoking them. Followed by screaming smoking rubber, sliding to the right then left. Releasing the brake, straightening the truck, all while avoiding the tire or entering my lane.  Since I had intentionally backed off my throttle I got a most excellent front row view.

As I rolled back up on the throttle I passed him and gave him a huge thumbs up!  Great job pal!!



We passed this sign today on I-44 in Oklahoma.  Instantly I here the the chirp of the communicator. Before Liz could get the words out I informed her "I have no idea!" My thought is, what are my options at 80 MPH?

We looked it up:
The state and highway maintenance department often have control or prescribed burns or fires on or along the highways to help control and prevent wild fires. As the smoke blows across the highways visibility can be reduced to zero in seconds preventing you from seeing other vehicles on the road which may have stopped. Also, if the fire is not a control burn there may be Fire Trucks and Firefighters on the highway. So the reason the do not drive through smoke signs are posted is to protect you the driving public, and emergency response personnel.

Day 3&4 (a short hold on the trip)

A day behind on the trip West. Holding up at my sister's in St. Louis.  We could not get the tire on by hand Sunday. Monday morning bringing tire to a bike shop for proper installation.

can't finish the beed

KLR not good as a unicycle

Sister Ann & Great Niece Addie

Days 1 & 2

Frosty, Sam III, Liz, Sam IV, Izzy

Parting pic. Bikes are packed and ready to ride.

Sammy is in charge of the kingdom.  

First days ride was a great ride to the Cleveland area to stay the night with a childhood friend of Liz's. Bikes ran great. Sun shining and temps not too warm. Seemed to get cooler as we left NYS.

Well balanced lunch

Always a stop. Cinnabon. Last rest stop in NY on I90 West.

The kids look lonely 

Liz's tire on her KLR lost several lugs. Replacement tire ordered and waiting for her in St. Louis thanks to my sister Ann for picking it up at the local BMW shop. Yea, BMW for a KLR tire! It's not very safe to ride on the tire as is.  We'll take it slow on back roads requiring an extra days ride getting there.

Staying a Super 8 in Indianapolis. Stripped as much off the bikes as possible. Some shady characters hanging around as we pulled in. Seemed very interested in our trusty steeds.

Only a lame 650 miles for two days of riding.  We'll need to pick op the pace following our stop in St. Louis. 

A Lot To Live Up To!

These are some of the best nurses who ever had the pleasure of taking care of ME! (LOL)

They are great. So caring and helpful, Always!  You'd think they'd have a bad day at some point. I'm in their clinic every other week for years now and I've never experienced any impatience or nastiness of any kind!

Professional? Of course!  Things don't always run smooth. Coming sick, reactions to the blood.  What ever occurs, it's taken care of. Hell, I'm still here!

Yup, they set the bar pretty high for the rest of the world's caregivers.  However, they are also the reason I am so uncomfortable about being treated ANYWHERE else.  But, they've assured me it will be fine, that many people travel and still get all kinds of treatments while on the road and vacationing.

I am going to miss everyone here.

Last Fill Up Before The Trip

Lets Stop For Two Units - In St Louis

My second vamp stop will be in St Louis at the Siteman Cancer Center on July 1.  my niece works for the University and did some poking around. She cam up with Dr Kristen Sanfilippo who graciously accepted me as a "transient" patient.

I'm still nervous about these stops but talking with talking to the nurses at the facilities and hearing they have been in communication with my home-base, it's soothing my emotions.  I keep telling myself, people are blood transfused all over the world, it's not major surgery!

So, as I stated for my Phoenix fill-up,  if you'r in the St Louis area on Friday 7/1, stop in and say hi.  I'd love the company. Especially if you are a fellow Red user (Thal Patient).

V Strom Progress

V Strom Maintenance and Upgrades

Engine
Service for Suzuki safety and emissions recall.  Tappet and camshaft excessive wear.

• Serviced, all was within specs. 

Suspension

1: Replace Shock & Spring with Ricor rear shock.

• Completed, seems to be a better fit for my riding style. Easy install.
• Hook-up on accelerations seems much better.

2: Change fluid in front shocks and add Intiminators.

• Completed, no real complications. As usual all came apart ok. 
• Only 16000 miles but not too soon for a fluid change.  Looked real grimy! We let springs and fork drain for about an hour then rinsed with fresh fluid.
•  Cut spacer to allow for new intiminators. 
• All went back together ok with just a couple of oops but recovered just fine.
• Less diving noticed on stops. 

Other Additions / Replacements

3: Install heated grips.

• Completed, Routing the wire was probably the most time consuming. 
• Was able to access the stock connector by removing left tank panel. 
• Grips went on pretty easily with baby powder and heat gun. Dowsed the inside of the grip with baby powder which allowed smooth handle bar insertion to about 3/4 then a little heat allowed remaining to be wiggled on.
• No very cold today (50ish). On hi with work type gloves & liner, hands where warm. I my regular leather riding gloves will take the warmth and retain much better.

4: Replace head lights with LEDs.

Before

After

• Completed, You can see the LEDs are a much whiter light. Haven't had an opportunity to see them in action at night yet.
• Installation was a little tricky. Just getting your hand in and out of the front without taking any piece of the bike off. But, doable. We cut our a bigger hole out of the rubber boot and neatly zip-tied the power modules with the wiring. 

5: Install separate switch for auxiliary lights.

• Completed, Had dealer do it while in for Suzuki recall. 
• Auxiliary lights can now be used with driving lights and or brights. 

6: New chain and sprockets.

• Completed. had some difficulties mushrooming the link pins. Ended up going with clip-ons.

7: New front and rear breaks.

• Decided they where not needed with the mileage currently on the bike. They will be good for the 8,0000 mile trip. 

8: New tires.

• Went with a new Shinko Trail Master E-705 Radial for the rear. Front practically still new. Decided I'll change the front out in St. Louis (about 6,500 miles into the trip)

9: New air filter

• Completed, Had dealer do it while in for Suzuki recall. 

10: Flush and replace coolant.

• Completed. Replaced stock blue coolant with green.

V Strom (WEE)

V Strom Maintenance and Upgrades

Engine
Service for Suzuki safety and emissions recall.  Tappet and camshaft excessive wear.

Suspension

1. Replace Shock & Spring with Ricor rear shock.
2. Change fluid in front shocks and add Intiminators.

Other Additions / Replacements

1. Install heated grips.
2. Replace head lights with LEDs.
3. Install separate switch for auxiliary lights.
4. New chain and sprockets.
5. New front and rear breaks.
6. New tires.
7. New air filter
8. Flush and replace coolant. 

Lets Stop For Two Units - In Phoenix

First vamp stop on the trip is locked in.  I'll be topped off with Hi-Octane Red on June 17 in Phoenix, AZ.  I'm sure I'll be craving the Red by time this date arrives.

Following several weeks of me talking to my doctor, verifying locations and days.  Followed by my doctor talking to their doctor, Dr Gomez and his staff have graciously accepted me as a temporary patient. I'll need to roll into Phoenix by 6/15 to properly be typed and crossed.  I'm sure they've never seen cells like mine!(they wink at you). So I'll give them an extra day to match a couple units for me to receive on Friday 6/17.

It has taken information and time from many to make this happen.  First I'd like to thank my wife Liz for pushing me out of my comfort zone and seek the possibilities of being treated away from my home-base so I can see the world.  Also, a thanks to  Eileen at Cooley's Anemia Foundation for digging up Dr. Gomez's name and information for me as a contact in Phoenix. Lastly, thanks to my Dr. DeTraglia, her staff and the entire staff of the Infusion Unit and Blood Bank.

If you'r in the Phoenix area on Friday 6/17, stop in and say hi.  I'd love the company. Especially if you are a fellow Red user (Thal Patient).

Phoenix to Vancover

This section of our itinerary is in the planning stage. Any suggestions on places to camp or motels?

Utah

Following many hours of research, this is what I came up with. We still would like a place to camp or motel around Anasazi State Park Museum and Ancient Indian Village. 

June 8 (Day 1):            Set up camp in Moab area for two nights. Moab is 3hrs from Ouray.

                                     Visit Dead Horse Point. C on map. 45 min from Moab.

June 9 (Day 2):           Arches at sunrise. Allow 3-4 hours with in the park. B on the map.

                                    Grand View Point. Allow 3-4 hours. D on the map.

                                    Back to camp at Moab

June 10 (Day 3):         Capital Reef area. E on the map. Capital Reef is 2.25 hrs from Moab.

                                    Allow most of the day.

Continue on to Anasazi State Park Museum and Ancient Indian Village 1 hr from Capitol Reef. Camp

June 11 (Day 4):         Break camp. Allow day for Anasazi State Park Museum and Ancient Indian Village. F on the map.

                                    Ride on to Rainbow point. G on the map.

                                    Camp in area

June 12 (Day 5):         Break camp. Ride to Zion Park. H on the map.  2 hrs from Rainbow
                                    Point

                                    Set up camp (1 night only)

                                    Ride on to Monument Valley. 4 hrs from Zion. Camp or motel for two
                                    nights.

June 13 (Day 6):         Explore Monument Valley. 4 hrs from Zion.

                                               

June 14 (Day 7):         Petrified Forest AZ. 3 hrs from Monument Valley.

                                    Set up camp then visit forest.

         

St Louis, MO to Moab, UT

From St. Louis we'll ride 7.5 hours to our next sleeping stop in Oklahoma City, OK.  Waking up in Oklahoma City it should be June 5. No plans for sightseeing yet.

Back on the interstate for another 7.5 hour drive.  Arriving in Las Vegas, NM. Yea, who knew there is also one in NM!  This is the point we may start to deviate from our schedule based on what we hear from locals and or may want to see.

Leaving NM from the North, we'll arrive and stay in Ouray, CO. 7.5 hour ride.  A little Ouray info: Originally established by miners chasing silver and goldin the surrounding mountains, the town at one time boasted more horses and mules than people.Prospectors arrived in the area in 1875. In 1877, William Weston and George Barber found the Gertrude and Una gold veins in Imogene Basin, six miles southeast of Ouray. Climate:Spring is generally cool with early spring often bringing the largest snowfalls; late spring into early summer (mid-May through late June) is mild to warm and is usually the driest time of year. http://www.ouraycolorado.com/

Ouray is 7.5 hours from Moab, UT. Provided we don't get too sidetracked in the Ouray area we should arrive in Moab June 8.

NY to St. Louis

Going to hard slab it from home to St. Louis.  We have explored the hell out of NY and the surrounding states.  With plenty of friends and family in this area which we can ride to any time, we'll hop on the interstate and put it all in the side mirror ASAP.

About six hours to our first stop at a friend in OH.  Then we'll get up early for the eight hour ride to my sister's in St. Louis.

Yellowstone's Grand Loop

Yellowstone's Grand Loop

Yellowstone's Grand Loop Road seems to be the best way to see the park. At 142 miles long, it can take four to eight hours to loop the park depending on traffic both from vehicles and park residents. Looks to be a two day adventure. I am kinda concerned about being on a bike and encountering a bison! Need to do some research to verify if this is a real concern.

The Mighty KLR

First bike into the shop. Snow is still on the ground but eager to get started on mods. Liz dives into her bike without hesitation!
 

KLR Maintenance and Upgrades

Engine

1. 685 piston upgrade kit
2. Head refurb
3. Valve adjustment
4. Clutch side oil screen cleaning
5. Replace leaking petcock with manual petcock
6. Add in-line fuel filter
7. Thermobob
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Suspension

1. Shock
1. Replace with Moab Adventure?
2. Revalve w/ RT gold valves?
3. Revalve w/ Top Gun’s shock internals?
2. Change fork oil/ check sag

Electrical

1. Inspect wiring harness for rubs
2. LED headlight upgrade
3. Replace distribution block with fused block
4. Aux light?
5. Replace grip heaters w/ Symtec?

Chassis/ Drive

1. Replace L fairing (aka 'Frankenfairing')
2. Reinforce R fairing crack
3. Replace fasteners as needed
4. Replace handguard plastics w/ Barkbuster Storm
5. Widen pegs
1. Replace 8mm peg bolts w/ 10mm?
6. Lube and adjust throttle and clutch cables
7. Run spare clutch and throttle cable next to existing cables
8. Madstad windshield
9. Sand and touch up paint on luggage rack
10. Wheel bearings F & R
11. Tires
1. 95% sure I will go with Shinko 700
2. 5% toward Heidenau K60’s
1. Just as good off road and will be smoother for high speed travel… but not sure that is worth the huge price difference
12. Replace front brake line w/ SS
13. Replace brakes
14. Replace chain?
15. Rear brake reservoir protector – from Ninja?