Motorcycle/Trip Preparation

Motorcycle Prep.

A lits of the maintenance I performed before the trip.

1. Adjusted valve clearance and new gaskets Pic. 1  Pic. 2 Pic. 3

     2.  Synchronized Carburators

     3.  Tighten steering stem nut

     4.  Lubed Speedo Cable

     5.  Always checking tire pressure

     6.  Changed Oil. Next oil change I'll do Filter and Oil.

     7.  Clean and Lube Chain about every 500 miles.

     8.  New fork oil and seals    Nasty old oil
     9.  Installed new clutch fibers, steels, and new springs (stock)

Things that need to be done soon.

     1.  Bleed Brakes.

     2.  Change tires

More Trip Preparation...

The preparation process can be tedious. Some of the things to keep in mind are:

1. What's your budget?
2. What's your time frame?
3. If your riding a motorcycle, how far do you feel comfortable riding? Keep in mind that riding in multiple days in a row can make it even harder to ride the next day. 
4. What do you want to see that's within your budget?
5. Do you have any commitments you have to attend?
6. Do you have a schedule to attend to? You really should, BUT don't expect to be on time all the time. 

     After answering these questions you'll be able to figure out what type of trip will be best for you. I'll relate to my personal findings. 

     My budget from the time I leave to the time I get back is about $3,000. About $1,000 for gas. About $700 for camping. About $1300 for food. Gas is based on 55mpg, camping costs about $10 per day, and food costs about $20 per day. If you think about it, this isn't much for 70 days of vacation.

     Keep in mind that all of this doesn't include the tent, sleeping pad, luggage rack, maintenance consumables, national park pass, passport, toll fees, other fees, and probably many other things I've purchased beforehand. However, once you have most of this stuff it can be reused over and over again.

     Time frame will give you an idea of what to expect from your budget and the type of bike your riding. Most of my rides average out to be approximately 260 miles per day. Some places I'll stay for the whole week, so I won't be putting this many miles on per day. I do have some rides where I'll go 400 miles per day, but those aren't has often.    

    

     On my trip I decided I wanted to ride on the most amazing roads the U.S. could offer and do lots of sight seeing. "Google maps" (Gmaps) and "America's Byways" helped me a lot to find the roads I wanted to ride on. The motorcycle I ride is good for back country roads, so I tried to stay off the highway as much as possible. I'm looking at 90/10 for the types of roads I'll be riding (back country to highway). Not only is this fun to a motorcycle point of view, it's also cheap entertainment.

     For sight seeing and hiking I'm going to purchase a National Parks pass for $85.00. Since I'll be going to many of them, I figured that the pass will easily pay for its self. If you like this type of thing, then I would recommend you to spend some time on the "National Parks" website.

     I don't really have any commitments, which is really nice. I don't have kids. I don't have a job at this time. Soo why not be gone for 2 months?

Do I have a schedule?

     Of course I do; Otherwise, I wouldn't get to see what I want to see within my time frame. To help me with this, I have inputted on my iCal notes, sleeping spots, etc., which is then transferred over to my ipod to view on the go. You could even use Google Cal, or any online available cal. for your needs, and view it on your phone later on. The nice thing about iCal is that you do not have to have internet to view it. Also, you could do it old school and write it out on a paper calendar. Whether your going for a two day trip or two month trip, you have to know what your plan is. To stay on top of the plan, I found out that inputting it in a iCal is extremely useful for myself.

Resources I found very helpful to my trip planning:

• America's Byways
• Gmaps
• Camping (cheap or free)
• BLM
• US Forest Service 
• National Parks
• Bone Yard
• Lake Express