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Weather is looking good for this ride, highs of 50 on Friday and Saturday, 40 on Sunday and 30 on Monday and it looks like sunny each day.

I don't need a firm commitment but please give me an indication if you are planning on going. If I can get an idea of how many are going it will help me with my route and were we stay Saturday night. One route I am working on would have us in Grafton Saturday but because of a wedding the two main places are almost completely booked. In a nearby town of harden they have a small motel with a total of 5 rooms (out of 9) avaliable. I would prefer Grafton because it is a neat historic town.

Also let me know if you plan on sharing a room. If you did not know, I'm not sharing.

Eddie, I keep telling people at work that I am planning on going. They think I'm weird anyway, so I might as well give them something more to talk about. However, I may have to split early, like on Sunday mid- day. I don't want to burn up my vacation days before it gets nice. I'm hoping to get by with only taking one day off (officially anyway). I am willing to split a room if that helps someone.

ajayhawkfan wrote:I don't need a firm commitment but please give me an indication if you are planning on going.

Scottie (jasoomian) and I plan to ride. We plan to share a room, depending on the room situations we end up with. Plenty of room for you, Eddie, in between.

Scottie will ride up from Owasso, OK on Thurs. If all involved are off on Fri and the weather agrees, maybe we can head out earlier than the plan of noon.

You crazies have fun!

Despite the fact that as of Saturday I actually have a motorcycle capable of doing this trip, I think I am going to have to pass. I rode 20 miles Saturday morning in temps that were around the freezing mark and that was enough for me!

The end of my ride was a good thing in two ways- I could finally start feeling my extremities again and I had this to add to my garage:



Maybe for next year's Bald Eagle Ride I will have some heated gear, but for now I think I'll save my riding for when I don't need it.

Congrats on the new bike, Kendall! It looks great!

kendall_smith wrote:...and I had this to add to my garage:

Wish you were going this weekend. I have a good heated vest that would fit you well that you could borrow...you'd still need some heated gloves, a balaclava, toe warmers, and an insulated riding suit or coat/pants combo. The vest uses a "BMW" style plug, but I have an adapter to make it work also with a 2 prong SAE connector.

I borrowed Safiri's Hippo Hands. I'm curious to see if the combination of Hippo Hands + heated grips + normal gloves will keep my hands warm in 30 degree highway riding. I'll have my heated gloves along of course, but I'm going to test riding without them using the Hippo Hands.

troy wrote:Congrats on the new bike, Kendall! It looks great!

Wish you were going this weekend. I have a good heated vest that would fit you well that you could borrow...you'd still need some heated gloves, a balaclava, toe warmers, and an insulated riding suit or coat/pants combo. The vest uses a "BMW" style plug, but I have an adapter to make it work also with a 2 prong SAE connector.

I borrowed Safiri's Hippo Hands. I'm curious to see if the combination of Hippo Hands + heated grips + normal gloves will keep my hands warm in 30 degree highway riding. I'll have my heated gloves along of course, but I'm going to test riding without them using the Hippo Hands.

Thanks for the offer, Troy. If it weren't for a bunch of other factors leading to my decision to not go, I might be able to be swayed by your offer. I'll be interested to see what you think of the hippo hands and heated grips though- I plan on that being my cold weather setup on the bikes in the future. I already have heated grips on the FZ-1 and plan on putting them on the Adventure too. I'm hoping the addition of hippo hands will be the setup.

Looking forward to the ride report!

troy wrote:I borrowed Safiri's Hippo Hands. I'm curious to see if the combination of Hippo Hands + heated grips + normal gloves will keep my hands warm in 30 degree highway riding. I'll have my heated gloves along of course, but I'm going to test riding without them using the Hippo Hands.

I tried to buy a pair of hippo-hands a couple of weeks ago, but, for whatever reason, their website wouldn't process my order - so sad. I hope my heated gloves are enough. It is supposed to be in the high teens come Tuesday (my ride home day.)

ajayhawkfan wrote:Weather is looking good for this ride, highs of 50 on Friday and Saturday, 40 on Sunday and 30 on Monday and it looks like sunny each day.

I don't need a firm commitment but please give me an indication if you are planning on going. If I can get an idea of how many are going it will help me with my route and were we stay Saturday night. One route I am working on would have us in Grafton Saturday but because of a wedding the two main places are almost completely booked. In a nearby town of harden they have a small motel with a total of 5 rooms (out of 9) avaliable. I would prefer Grafton because it is a neat historic town.

Also let me know if you plan on sharing a room. If you did not know, I'm not sharing.

We are supposed to have meetings all day this Friday but my plan is to attend a couple in the morning and then leave. My only problem would be, if by slight chance, they have us sign in for each session...very doubtful. So, I would say about a 90% chance that I can get away in time to meet you guys but I may not know for 100% until Friday morning. Any thoughts about meeting time and location?

Do you know if the planned motels have wifi? This is the first week of school so I will need to bring my laptop and at least maintain a minimum amount of correspondence....nothing that I can't handle with a few minutes of wifi in the morning and evening.

Depending on whether I can get out of a Monday obligation, I may need to be back by later on Sunday...seems like somebody else from Lees Summit is coming back on Sunday.

Looking at the weather in Grafton, Il, they are forecasting 19 on Sunday morning and 9 on Monday morning. Probably too late to get hippo guards but I'm going to look into hippo milk jugs.

I suppose my preference is for my own room but if there is a shortage of rooms I would be willing to share.

allkidd wrote: We are supposed to have meetings all day this Friday but my plan is to attend a couple in the morning and then leave. My only problem would be, if by slight chance, they have us sign in for each session...very doubtful. So, I would say about a 90% chance that I can get away in time to meet you guys but I may not know for 100% until Friday morning. Any thoughts about meeting time and location?

Do you know if the planned motels have wifi? This is the first week of school so I will need to bring my laptop and at least maintain a minimum amount of correspondence....nothing that I can't handle with a few minutes of wifi in the morning and evening.

Randy, it sounds like you could not leave before noon on Friday.

I believe the hotel on Friday night has wifi. The place in Grafton may not have wifi (Hardin most likely not). If wifi is needed we could go to Jerseyville, IL.

Additional update in first post

ajayhawkfan wrote:If wifi is needed we could go to Jerseyville, IL.

Eddie is leading this ride so it's his say, but I'd like to point out that there really are no guarantees on this thing. There are variables at play--especially in winter. Even if Eddie goes out of his way to ensure the motel has WiFi, in my experience, small motels with WiFi have about a 34.8% chance of that WiFi actually working. We could wake up Sunday to a surprise blizzard and decide to ride South. We could have a mechanical breakdown preventing us from reaching a motel until 10pm thus leaving you no time to get the laptop out and do "work".

All rides require an amount of "go with the flow", but I think this winter ride is especially one that requires flexibility and spontaneity.

That said, Eddie, do you know if the places where we are stopping to eat offer a gluten-free menu? I need to know before I can commit to this ride. JUST KIDDING!

ajayhawkfan wrote:

allkidd wrote:

Randy, it sounds like you could not leave before noon on Friday.



Additional update in first post

Eddie, Make the leave time whatever is best for everybody...were you thinking of leaving earlier in the morning? Either way I would do my best to make it but don't want to hold the group up....especially considering there is a chance that I couldn't go regardless of departure time.

kendall_smith wrote: Despite the fact that as of Saturday I actually have a motorcycle capable of doing this trip, I think I am going to have to pass..........

Sissy.



















Nice bike.

ajayhawkfan wrote:
Sissy.



















Nice bike.

Thanks!?!










I think?

I will be carrying my 4G hotspot for my laptop. I think it will support 4 or 5 users. Of course there is no way of knowing if it will work wherever we land until I power it up and try it. I'm trying to figure out a way to not have to carry my laptop without buying an ipad / tablet. I still have a flip phone, maybe one day I'll join the 21st century.

Ryan

After reading the updated itenerary, I think I will be heading home Sunday after we arrive at Herrman.
I won't be riding all of Lost Creek road on the Strom in the cold. The last time I rode that road, I took a swim, and submarined the KLR on a 70 degree day. I know there is an easy bypass for any other wimps. Maybe the creekbed will be dry.....

rycomm wrote: I won't be riding all of Lost Creek road on the Strom in the cold. The last time I rode that road, I took a swim, and submarined the KLR on a 70 degree day. I know there is an easy bypass for any other wimps. Maybe the creekbed will be dry.....

I'm guessing Lost Creek will be quite low.

Eddie drug me through the dozen icy creek crossings on Lost Creek Rd in pitch black darkness and frigid weather...on my Vstrom 650. It was the highlight of the trip!

troy wrote:Eddie drug me through the dozen icy creek crossings on Lost Creek Rd in pitch black darkness and frigid weather...on my Vstrom 650. It was the highlight of the trip!

That is why I want to see it the daylight.

kendall_smith wrote:
The end of my ride was a good thing in two ways- I could finally start feeling my extremities again and I had this to add to my garage:

Very cool. Congrats.
Jim

Cool bike!

kendall_smith wrote:You crazies have fun!

Despite the fact that as of Saturday I actually have a motorcycle capable of doing this trip, I think I am going to have to pass. I rode 20 miles Saturday morning in temps that were around the freezing mark and that was enough for me!

The end of my ride was a good thing in two ways- I could finally start feeling my extremities again and I had this to add to my garage:



Maybe for next year's Bald Eagle Ride I will have some heated gear, but for now I think I'll save my riding for when I don't need it.

It's official!! Kendall's 990 has been pictured more than any other bike in the history of Rideforum. What does he win Troy?????

(It is a pretty cool bike Kendall)