classy, right? amazingly enough they actually work fairly well for blocking the wind, though my flexibility is a little limited. i didn't end up using them for that long, however, due to a very strange happening. i headed out from the motel and it was probably 50 degrees, maybe a little warmer. i was cruising along as expected when, about 20 miles down the road, i came up and rise and it felt like someone flicked a switch. all of a sudden, it was 10 degrees warmer. seriously. too warm for what i was wearing. i stopped and layered down for the first time, but it wouldn't be the last.
after that it was cruising on 90. the first stop? sturgis SD, home of the biggest HD rally in the world (i think). of course, the rally happens in early august, but it's still very much an HD town. bikes were everywhere, as well as stores selling accessories and t-shirts and whatnot. i stopped by the sturgis HD dealer because, well, you kind of have to, and then took a quick tour of the motorcycle museum and hall of fame. it was pretty cool. lots of classic bikes, and some rare ones too. moto-nerd heaven in many ways. here's a sampling:
that's a 1956 triumph tiger cub in the front, and this was just one room of many. i wandered around a bit before i started getting antsy and decided it was time to hit the road.
the original plan was to take 90 all the way to sheridan, then hope on highway 14 to cody wyoming, which is about 50 miles from yellowstone. i should mention, however, that through south dakota and wyoming the speed limit on I-90 is 75 mph, and when you're on a bike like mine, fairly light with minimal wind protection, those can be some hard miles. you get pretty tired fighting wind for too long, and so when buffalo came up and the turn-off for highway 16, which is a southern, slightly longer route to cody, i decided i had had enough interstate for one day.
16 turned out to be a very nice ride. going through powder river pass was a fun road full of twisties, though it got a little chilly higher up with the altitude. here's some of the view i had during the ride:
i stopped for lunch in the tiny town of ten sleeps, at the ten sleeps saloon, listening to town gossip while i ate. it was actually very fortunate that i stopped there, since a friendly local named bob who was sitting next to me noticed me looking at my map. he informed me that there was construction on the road to worland which included 10 miles or so of gravel. not so fun. he showed me an alternate route, taking lower nowood road to state route 31, which bypasses worland altogether and takes you directly to manderson. it was an awesome little detour. the road was empty, with sweeping curves and lovely scenery, and it cut about 20 miles off my route, not to mention whatever time i saved by avoiding the construction. chalk one up for local info.
i pulled in to cody around 4:45 or so, after 30 miles of terribly boring straight farm roads, and wandered around town for a bit before settling down in the hotel. i may head out to see if there's some live music playing in a bit, or i could just crash. tomorrow i'm heading through yellowstone which could take some time. according to google a straight shot through the park to butte is a little over 5 hours, but you never know with national parks. not to mention i'm hardly planning on just driving straight through. if i can get to butte, though, i'll be in good shape to get to walla walla the next day.
and then home. yeesh. i'm almost home. that's crazy to think about. i think it'll be about time, that's for sure. i'm a little tired of being on the road. i'm still enjoying the riding, and i'm seeing some amazing scenery, but the road part is wearing on me a bit.
anyway, one more good day down, hopefully 3 more to go.
rftc,
scott
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