Buffalo Bills WIN !!!

September 18, 2011

North Tonawanda NY

            Wow, did I ever sleep a long, deep sleep…think I was a little pooped.  Sis and I cooked up a nice breakfast then went to look at the American Falls via Goat’s Island.  We were hoping there would be a spot where I could pose with Sophia and have the Falls in the background.  But no such luck.

A nice thing happened however, in order to view the Falls you need to pay $10 to park the car. I explained to the gate guard what we were trying to take a pic of and he let Sis in her car and I with Sophia in for free since we would be there only about 10 minutes. 

Back at the apt we hung out while waiting for the Buffalo Bills football game to come on….she is a big time Bills fan.  They are playing the Oakland Raiders, a team for which I have no affinity, but was rooting for them just to stir the pot with sis and make it fun (but was hoping the Bills win J).  Yep, she is really into her Bills football…shrieking and jumping up and down at the times when critical plays were made.  It was a fun game, right to the end when the Bills went on top with about 18 secs left for the Raiders to execute a “Hail Mary”….at which the Bills intercepted and closed the game as the winners….made sis’ birthday a special one!

            Today was her birthday so, since she is very religious, I gave her the religious book and DVD that I had been carrying for her since I left CA….personal delivery without help from FedEx, UPS, or USPS.  I think she liked them.

            Dinner was with 2 of her close friends who cooked up a delicious eggplant parmigiana and chicken breasts and wonderful conversation.  Then back to the house for chatting with Sis and another night’s rest.

            I think this was a good birthday celebration for herJ.

C ya mañana,
Gonzo
twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com

Change Of Plans

September 17, 2011

North Tonawanda NY

The night in Cannajoharie (pronounced Canjaharie) was a quiet one….never heard the trains rumbling by during my exhausted sleep.  Canajaharie was affected by Irene; the town’s main intersection was under reconstruction and entry onto the road leading to the Rodeway Inn was closed off except to residents.  The Rodeway Inn was actually a very old style motel well past its prime but perfect for parking the bike right at the front door.  The room smelled a little musty and there was only warm water so I didn’t bother taking a shower.  I unloaded the T-bag and backpack then headed back up the closed road to find a takeout dinner…lucky me, I stumbled upon a Chinese place.  They packed me a dinner of Kung Pao chicken that was enough to feed 4 of me, or 8 Chinese. I only ate a bit and decided to save the rest for tomorrow’s lunch when I stop on the road.

I awoke at 7 feeling kinda “tween”, i.e. in between needing more sleep and being fully rested.  Did some stretching then went to get some coffee at the front desk and to tell them about the lack of hot water.  No one was at the desk and I didn’t bother making noise to wake them from their adjacent sleeping quarters. I’m sure when they clean the room they’ll also discover the chirping smoke alarm.

Knee Pads and Mask

September 16, 2011

Canajoharie NY

No, I haven’t gotten mythically religious and started praying, nor have I robbed a gas station.

The morning was cold….really cold…for a SoCal boy…. a chill factor of 40.  I wore jammy bottoms for supplemental long johns under the jeans, long sleeve Harley T with a short sleeve Harley T on top of it, a long sleeve shirt, Jeans jacket, and then raingear on top of that as a wind breaker. I figured that this would be enough to keep me warm….and it did as I got on the I-95.  BUT, before I reached the next exit my face was already freezing.  I pulled off at the exit and dug thru my tool kit and cold wx gear and found the neophrene face mask…I no sooner had put it on when my face warmed up immediately!

So off I went ….but only as far as the next exit…my knees started to freeze…they were taking the full brunt of the wind chill factor.  I needed a solution…the simplest way was to put something warmer between the jeans and the raingear….ahhh, I have two heavy duty synthetic cloth rags that could be folded over and placed over the knees!   So, pull off at the next, get the rags outa the bags and put them down the inside of the raingear…back on the I-90 and wow, what a difference, I was good to go to Portland and beyond.

The day slowly warmed up, but the gusting wind only got worse until I reached Worcester MA when it started to smooth out.  I ran all the way to Canajoharie , 50 miles north of Albany, for a total run of around 460 miles. 

However, about 30 miles from C-town (I think a pattern is developing here) there was a lot of construction on two bridges and it slowed/stopped traffic for an added 30 minutes to the run.  This meant that I was out there when the sun dipped behind the hills and I got cold again…and I'm coming down with a slight head cold.

So it’s into the hot shower and a long sleep. 

I may want to rethink my lack of religious orientation and use the knee pads to pray to the Harley gods for warm and dry weather for the next 24 days J

Gonzo
twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com

I’m a WUSS

September 15, 2011

Bangor ME

                Took care of the admin things before riding out of Madawaska; gas receipt, photo at PO, mail the SCMA form, and then a visit to the 4 Corners Park monument (very nicely done).  At the Post Ofice Riding thru the town I could see why my ride in at 9pm in the rain was swishy….Main St is grooved with car tire tracks!  Each side of the rode is perfectly grooved from what appears to be either a long time of a lot of heavy traffic (morning commute of 300 families??) or a weak sublayer….I vote for the latter.  At nite I couldn’t see the grooves but could feel the bike handling weird as it wanted to follow the groove.  Also saw more of the road outa town that I drove thru last night and some of the stuff I couldn’t see….damn scary at nite.  Moose warning signs were posted along the way at the marshes/swamps where they like to hang out…..glad I didn’t see any last night!

Bless the Trucker Guy

September 14, 2011
Madawaska ME

                I got up at 4am and was on the road by 5:30.  Learned a few more things on loading the bike to make it go quicker next time.

                The ride outa Walpole was scary….dark I-95, and traffic beginning to form.  But as I was passing thru Boston, watching the golden orb rise in the east, I noticed the traffic jam on the opposite side going into Boston….seems like getting up at 4am was a smart move after all.

                The slab ride on the I-95 was a nice one.  Saw the ports and cities and beautiful countryside.  Went into a McD for a bkfst and met about 8 seniors in their 70s-80s enjoying a bkfst meeting.  Great fun joking with them…I encouraged them to by a Harley and hit the road J

                The ride thru ME was fantastic!  The scenery is absolutely gorgeous even tho the leaves haven’t turned yet.  Out of Bangor to Houlton, where the I-95 ends at the US-1, I made great time doing a steady 70 mph, a speed that feels very comfortable to me with this load and my inexperience. During the whole run to Houlton I saw maybe 20 cars….not too many folks heading to this part of the country for a vacation at this time of the year J….wonder why not?

Stolen Helmet

September 13, 2011
Fairfield CT

                Well, this trip is getting to be real exciting.  Last nite my helmet disappeared and I called the police for them to interrogate two guests of the hotel who were smoking near the bike as I carried my bags in to the room.  Needless to say, they were innocent and a search of their room as well as friends rooms uncovered nothing.

                Hard way to learn a lesson….leave nothing loose on the bike.  I’ll have to change my plans and ride up to Bristol near Hartford to get an exact replacement…They’re the only store open on a Monday in CT and RI…..the two states that don’t have helmet laws.  I need to get it Monday however as I will be traveling thru MA and that state has helmet required law.

                Good News, as I was carrying my things past the front desk, the Hotel Clerk, Melissa, called me over and putting a helmet on the counter asked if this was what I had lost.  Seems that the cleaning ladies found it in an empty room….go figure, huh?

                As Gus (GM) was coming in to the hotel I told him about the find.  He was very gracious and still insisted on comping the room for me even tho the helmet was found and returned.

                My ride up the CT coast and into RI was uneventful and enjoyable.  Spent the night in a small local hotel in Walpole MA

                So again, a great lesson learned with only a little pain L, but no loss.

                BTW, in addition to carrying all items immediately into my hotel room, I also remove saddlebags, luggage rack, sissy bar, and back rest.

                Don’t wanna learn any more lessons J

C ya mañana
Gonzo
twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com

Day Two

9/11/11

Fairfield CT

                Exercised out this morning for 45 min then loaded the bike.  Did a little variation to the arrangement and think it’ll work out for the better.  Stopped at the Waffle House for breakfast and was served will by Pamela….that place was really jumping…WH, exit 80 on I-95.

Made it as far as Fairfield CT, actually got thru NYC without any trouble…not bad for 9/11….of course it was around 9pm on a Sunday so that helped a lot.  My route took me into the town of Aberdeen so I could mail a letter and get a pic taken with something that depicted the name of the city.  From there I headed up the I-95 into DE and the University of Delaware campus.  I lost some time here as I could not find a mailbox to deposit my letter…asked two kids if they knew where a mailbox was….one said it was on his computer…I liked that.  Finally found a post office and got outa Dodge.

On the run to the City I missed the turnoff for the DE Bridge and Jersey Turnpike and staying on the 95 entered PA.  Fortunately there was a Welcome Center at the first exit and I a route thru PA and NJ that got me back on the NJT.  Along that route I stopped at a roadside stand to confirm directions…met Frank, fella in a truck for Gates & Doors. 

The Turnpike was a long ride….all the way to the Geo. Washington Bridge into NYC.  With the exception of the 40 miles of construction it’s a pretty good one…and the 100+ mile ride only cost $4.75, however, before  the bridge I got hit for another $4 which seemed like the cost per mile went up considerably as I only traveled about 10-15 miles.  Riding these slabs and constantly watching traffic is a full time job in these overpopulated areas….not like runnin thru the Dakotas or WY or UT….hell, the whole southwest.
At the first service stop for fuel I got directions to Rahway from the attendant pumpmeister.  Of course, finding a PO or PD is a challenge.  So I pulled into a Quick Stop and a young man was coming out...perfect...asked if he knew the area...and he did.  His name is Marcus and he gave me excellent directions to both the PO and PD.  At the PO I was able to get a phot taken by a gentleman from the Ukraine...forgot his name (bummer aging)...got me, Sophia's license plate (DIELVN), and the Rahway NH PO signage...sweet :)

At the last service area, around 830pm, I bought a small hamburger and a coke.  In the parking lot I met Lenny Gusel , his wife Anna and cute little girl Avial (hope I got the spelling correct).  He’s a SW engineer working marketing and she’s a grad from Columbia…so we had that connection as my dau is an alum.

Found a Hampton Inn in Stamford CT but they wanted $175 for a room…oops!  Another 20 miles later I found a Best Western to bunk down for the night.  Hope to get an earlier start tomorrow and get settled into a good routine to get in and out of hotels/campsites. 

C ya mañana
Gonzo
twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com

Day One

September 10, 2011
Aberdeen MD

                Had a bit of a challenge getting out of town.  After loading the bike up Bro and I rode over to the Ace HW for a few more bungie cords and I didn’t like the way the bike was handling…a little too much weight  affecting the balance….seemed like my center of gravity was off.  So we headed back to the house and I ditched the leathers, small cooler, extra helmet, and other things…about 20 lbs.  Made a big difference when we headed out again.

                Bro followed me for about 20 miles on his Harley to make sure all was well.  He confirmed my route again and gave me a few pointers.  We parted and I headed off to pick up the MD2 which showed up real quick.  I pulled off a small road and called Peggy to confirm and when turning around on the gravel I dropped the bike!  Crap!  Fortunately, with a lotta leg strength I got Sophia upright.  But navigating these country roads is a challenge.  Finally hit I-95 and arrived at Aberdeen at the Edgewood side.  At the gate I got directions to Skipper’s Point Recreation area but found it all muddy from the rains.  Ended up dropping the bike again when my foot slipped out on unseen mud.  Again, got it up and got the hell outa there and went to a hotel.

                Once I had the bike unloaded and settled into the room, I went out for a sandwich.  When I returned I knew it was going to rain so I went to the room to get the bike cover and upon exiting the front entrance I was greeted with a torrential downpour!  What is it about MD and the East Coast?  Cant they join the SW in a drought so I can enjoy my rides???

                Anyhow, finally settled down for the night….hoping to never again drop Sophia…way too hard getting her upright…and risking her displeasure with me ):

C ya mañana
Gonzo
twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
email:  GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com