Three days riding, 1500 miles, avoiding storm Cindy along the Gulf. Great ride!

[drhunt204]

I just got back from wonderful trip to visit with family in Pensacola Beach, FL. I rode from Southeast Missouri to Pensacola in one day on mostly interstate (in a rush to see family members and go to the beach)! After a week visit I wanted to take scenic roads back home and see some sights. However, storm Cindy came through and made me ride with an eye on storms. I started home after Cindy had made landfall and dissipated but lots of rain. I saw flooding and swollen rivers! I rode with my rain suit on but no heavy storms, just rain off and on (watched weather apps a lot)! I ate delicious BBQ in the middle of nowhere, in Louisiana, from a man selling it while cooking in a huge black smoker (the smoker was as big as a pickup truck and homemade). I stopped in Ruston, LA because they were having a downtown festival when I rode through and I stopped to walk around. I also stopped in Little Rock, AR and got my picture taken in front of the Central High School steps that was the scene of desegregation strife in 1954. I didn't get many pictures because the weather made it difficult to keep the camera dry but I have wonderful memories of my first 1500 mile solo trip on my spyder.

 

[Peter Aawen]

Congratulations on your first solo ryde of that length! :thumbup:

And double congratulations on avoiding the rain over those 3 days too! :2thumbs:

Those longish rydes like that have a lot going for them, solo or with a pillion, & our Spyders really make them pretty easy & comfortable to do! I've converted a couple of the 'Hard Arse' Riders (Aussie version of 'Iron Butt' Riders) here to Spyders by doing a couple of trips with them, despite the relatively short range between fuelling stops that a Spyder imposes on a trip of that length.

 

[drhunt204]

I agree with you Peter. I find my spyder better at longer rides for comfort than my earlier bikes. However, I won't complain too much about the shorter distances between fill ups because I was always ready to get off my bike and stretch every time I had to get gas.

 

[Woodaddict]

Iron Butt ride

maybe you could have tried for an Iron butt ride!! I've done 2- 1,000 in 24 hrs on my Honda NT 700

 

[Peter Aawen]

Yep, I gotta admit that these days, I too feel ready to stop for a break at about the same time as the Spyder starts showing me that light asking for fuel!! I can usually still handle riding all day, just so long as I get that short break every couple of hours or so for a pit stop & re-fill, & that generally fits in pretty well with the Spyder's need for fuel too. The Missus prefers a longer stop every second re-fuel to walk around a bit more, our little dog appreciates that too, & I hafta say that even when I'm ryding solo that is rapidly becoming my preferred option as well!

I've done my share of the 'Hard Arse' stuff way back when, & nowdays I do often have a quiet chuckle to myself while I watch all the current crop of eager beaver 20-30 somethings racing along hot refuelling & busting a gut to avoid taking a pee-break for hours on end just to save those couple of minutes that'll let them make the time limit for their 1500 miles or whatever! Just give it a decade or three & they'll be busting a gut to make the next stop in time to avoid the solution to that particular problem that's been available all along.... Depends have been around for ages!! :roflblack: Suddenly taking a break every couple of hours won't seem so unattractive! :shocked: There's a lot to be said for taking the time to check out the scenery! :riding:

 

[SpyderAnn01]

Sounds like a fun trip. This seems to be the summer of riding in the rain. This would be the year to own stock in Frogg Toggs

 

[ARtraveler]

:congrats: Sounds like a good ride. :yes: