Author Topic: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest  (Read 11957 times)

Offline kmev

  • Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 49
Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« on: June 17, 2017, 10:52:51 PM »
It seems today is the chosen day for rides - I departed Madison, Wisconsin, en route to Port Townsend, Washington. I'm spending some time in the Black Hills, Beartooth Pass (on Johnny''s recommendation) and Glacier National Park if it opens soon (currently snowed in).

Got some distance today to get through the boring stuff. Temps were good and mostly clear weather until mid-South Dakota when I started hitting a lot of thunderstorms and then a hellacious cross wind. Lost one of my centerstand bolts somewhere in SD.

Tomorrow I plan to slow the pace a bit to see some sights.
  • Madison, Wisconsin
  • 1994 K75s

Offline johnny

  • TrailBrakingThrottleWhacker
  • ^ Quintessential Motobricker
  • Posts: 7650
  • Whacking...n...Chopping Sliding...n...High Siding
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #1 on: June 17, 2017, 11:07:24 PM »
greetings...

93mph... naughty...

j o
  • :johnny i parks my 96 eleven hundert rs motobrick in dodge county cheezconsin  :johnny

Offline kryder

  • Realryder
  • ^ Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 70
  • Ryde ' em when I can.
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #2 on: June 18, 2017, 08:32:18 AM »
Nearly seven hundred miles in one day! Why, you ought to be as fresh as a daisy at days end!
  • Salida, Colorado and Park City, Utah
  • 1993 K75S
I live west and ski west, I ride east and west and sometimes north and south.

Motos currently owned,  or do these motos own me?
1993 K75S ( the Kryder )
2000 R1100S ( Blackie )
1986 R80RT ( Ole Red ) 1986 R80RT ( Ole Blue )
1994 BMW R1100RS ( Traveler )

Motos I have owned in the past; gone but not forgotten.

1964 Yamaha 55cc YJ1-K ( ringdinger )
1965 Yamaha Santa Barbara 125 ( ringdinger #2 )
1966 Honda CB160
1971 Honda CL350
1973 Yamaha RD350
1987 BMW K75T
1992 BMW K75S
1994 BMW R1100RSL
1978 BMW R100RS

Offline Supershooter

  • ^ Proficient Motobricker
  • Posts: 228
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #3 on: June 18, 2017, 08:53:42 AM »
Haven't ridden 700 miles on my brick yet, but 700 isn't an issue on my HD,  850 and over, the bsr gets cranky.
Supershooter
  • Liberty Township, O'brien County, Iowa
  • 85 K100 RT

Offline MIbrick

  • ^ Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 69
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #4 on: June 18, 2017, 09:00:20 PM »

[/size]greetings...93mph... naughty...j o



I have discovered this is the (or at least a) downside to sharing Rever rides. My family especially likes to comment on the max speed.  :riding:


Haven't ridden 700 miles on my brick yet, but 700 isn't an issue on my HD,  850 and over, the bsr gets cranky.
Supershooter



What is a BSR?
  • Michigan
  • 1986 K100RS (ohne Tragkorb)

Offline Supershooter

  • ^ Proficient Motobricker
  • Posts: 228
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #5 on: June 18, 2017, 09:51:40 PM »
Bsr = back seat rider


Supershooter
  • Liberty Township, O'brien County, Iowa
  • 85 K100 RT

Offline MIbrick

  • ^ Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 69
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #6 on: June 18, 2017, 10:01:21 PM »
Ahh...never had one. Explains why I didn't know it. 


OffTopic: Not sure why my quotes/replies seem to have text for ants from time to time. I don't do that on porpoise.
  • Michigan
  • 1986 K100RS (ohne Tragkorb)

Offline thecableguy

  • ^ Proficient Motobricker
  • Posts: 115
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #7 on: June 21, 2017, 10:36:43 AM »
Safe travels Kmev!  Haven't done that trip on the brick yet but have in the car...  Beautiful country.


Jim




MIBrick - Cutting and pasting may be the issue.  I saw that happen on one post of mine.
  • Madison, WI USA
  • 86 K100RT - Brünhild
...to make a long story short, use duct tape.

Offline BrickMW

  • ^ Proficient Motobricker
  • Posts: 126
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #8 on: June 21, 2017, 10:51:23 AM »


OffTopic: Not sure why my quotes/replies seem to have text for ants from time to time. I don't do that on porpoise.


This happens when you use "copy / paste" to insert text into your reply.. to fix it, hit preview before you post, then select all text in your reply and choose a font and font size to apply to the entire post.
  • Huntsville, AL
  • 1986 K75c
Luft & Jager... My two favorite Meister's :bmwsmile

Offline BearTrap

  • Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 49
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #9 on: October 21, 2017, 10:56:47 AM »
Curious as to what app where you using for navigation?
  • Rancho Mirage, CA
  • 1990 K75 low seat

Offline Filmcamera

  • ^ Quintessential Motobricker
  • Posts: 1434
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #10 on: October 21, 2017, 11:58:39 PM »
It is called Reever - I have it as well - you can track rides and it also has basic directions etc. You can also share rides with other Reever users.

I have also tried ESR (eat sleep ride) which is similar.  In the end I go back to Waze on my phone because it gives me traffic, police and accident warnings. 

Lastly I occasionally use DigiHUD which is nice because it gives you max and average speeds and is the easiest to see your current speed given that my speedo is not very accurate.
  • San Jose, Costa Rica
  • 1991 K100RS 16v ABS1, 2018 Triumph Street Triple RS 765
Poserbricker

Offline Laitch

  • Faster than a speeding pullet
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Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #11 on: October 22, 2017, 07:51:21 AM »
OffTopic: Not sure why my quotes/replies seem to have text for ants from time to time. I don't do that on porpoise.
This happens when you use "copy / paste" to insert text into your reply.. to fix it, hit preview before you post, then select all text in your reply and choose a font and font size to apply to the entire post.
If you go to your Profile tab then click on the Modify tab then click on Look and Layout, select the Show WYSIWYG . . . option. You'll be less like to be plagued by seemingly random text insertions after you do that.

It's always helpful to Preview your post anyway before you reply. That helps prevent Tapatalk from making your post appear like you are having a brain infarction while creating it, and distressing—or infuriating—the readers.
  • Along the Ridley in Vermont.
  • 1995 K75 89,000 miles
I wept because I had no radials until I met a man who had no splines.
https://tinyurl.com/RillRider

Offline kmev

  • Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 49
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #12 on: October 22, 2017, 01:46:43 PM »
Navigation was via an old fashioned paper map. I used the Rever app to track distance, time, and route. I tried Eat Sleep Ride, but Rever worked better for what I wanted it for. Rever was not an ideal app for tracking all-day, multiple stop rides - especially in places where there was no cell phone service. It simply stopped recording in those areas and I stopped using it halfway through the trip.


I haven't posted any updates to this thread, as this is the first I've been able to post to it since that last post in June. I tried for a few weeks to post updates but I just got error messages.


I did just a under 6,000 miles in two weeks. After the first day I only rode smaller two-lane highways and avoided interstates. After the Seattle area I headed to northern British Columbia and then came back east across Canada. The only other bike problem I had was a fuel leak in Calgary that was caused by a full fuel tank, hot stop-and-go city traffic, and an unattached vent hose beneath the tank. A ten minutes roadside stop fixed that. It was a great trip.
  • Madison, Wisconsin
  • 1994 K75s

Offline BearTrap

  • Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 49
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #13 on: October 22, 2017, 04:43:00 PM »
Thanks for that info. Apps don't work as well as a real GPS but they are convenient. I use Cruiser and it works on and offline. Shows altitude, current speed, posted speed, traffic light cameras and cautions you of your speed and tight turns.
  • Rancho Mirage, CA
  • 1990 K75 low seat

Offline stokester

  • ^ SuperNatural Motobricker
  • Posts: 802
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #14 on: October 22, 2017, 05:19:04 PM »
Navigation was via an old fashioned paper map. I used the Rever app to track distance, time, and route. I tried Eat Sleep Ride, but Rever worked better for what I wanted it for. Rever was not an ideal app for tracking all-day, multiple stop rides - especially in places where there was no cell phone service. It simply stopped recording in those areas and I stopped using it halfway through the trip.


I haven't posted any updates to this thread, as this is the first I've been able to post to it since that last post in June. I tried for a few weeks to post updates but I just got error messages.


I did just a under 6,000 miles in two weeks. After the first day I only rode smaller two-lane highways and avoided interstates. After the Seattle area I headed to northern British Columbia and then came back east across Canada. The only other bike problem I had was a fuel leak in Calgary that was caused by a full fuel tank, hot stop-and-go city traffic, and an unattached vent hose beneath the tank. A ten minutes roadside stop fixed that. It was a great trip.
As a native-born Cheesehead I've made a number of trips from VA to WI, one through the UP of MI on my K75 with the only one problem, a burned out taillight bulb.


I plan on doing it again the in the near future with some plans to go further west so keep up updated on your trip as you can.
  • Yorktown Virginia
  • '94 K75S Dakar Yellow - '93 K75S Seiden Blau - '91 R100RT Bermuda Blue- '78 R100S Smoke Red

Offline The Mighty Gryphon

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Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #15 on: October 22, 2017, 08:38:19 PM »
Interested as well.  Hope to go out to B.C. on the Trans Canada maybe next summer.  Will probably go the U.P. through Duluth to hit the Lakes Maritime Museum there when I do it.  From there up to Manitoba and then west. 
  • In my garage in Marilla, NY
  • '91K100RS White/Blue
Current:
'91 K100RS16V "Moby Brick Too"

Past:
'94 K75RT "Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS"
'92 K100RS16V "Moby Brick" (RIP, deceased in a vehicular assault)
'94 K75S Special Edition Dakar Yellow "Cheetos"
'89 K100RS Special Edition "Special Ed"

Offline kmev

  • Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 49
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #16 on: October 22, 2017, 10:01:35 PM »
Interested as well.  Hope to go out to B.C. on the Trans Canada maybe next summer.  Will probably go the U.P. through Duluth to hit the Lakes Maritime Museum there when I do it.  From there up to Manitoba and then west.


That was the route I brought back. I was planning on riding the north shore of Lake Superior and coming back into the US at the Sault, but downpouring rain made me turn south and ride through Lake of the Woods and on to a friend's house in Superior. His sauna was very nice after 550 miles of heavy rain.


The maritime museum in Canal Park is nice - it's a great sight watching the freighters coming through the lift bridge only a few yards away from the sidewalk. Aerostich is only a couple miles from the museum. If you need any gear they usually have in store discounts all summer.


The Trans-Canada Highway is a very different feel from the US interstates. It's a divided four-laner for most of they way and you can easily ride 80 mph all day long, but it feels much more relaxed as you can stop anywhere on the road, it travels through some small towns (not too many to be annoying), and the scenery is greener (although a bit less exciting) than riding the Dakotas and Montana. There were a large number of bicyclists riding across Canada on the same route.


After four days of riding I was surprised when I got to the sign in the attached photo - Canada is a big country and a LONG way across. Banf and Jasper National Parks are not to be missed - they were absolutely fantastic, but the mosquitoes are horrendous if you're camping.
  • Madison, Wisconsin
  • 1994 K75s

Offline The Mighty Gryphon

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Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #17 on: October 22, 2017, 10:31:29 PM »
I just did the North shore of Superior about a month ago.  +1 on the Trans Canada.  80+mph and passing lanes on every uphill made the ride from Sudbury to T-Bay very pleasant. 

One thing though, you gotta be very careful about fuel management.  I just made it to Nipigon on fumes.  When I opened the tank it was so empty I couldn't smell any gas in there.

Definitely want to hit Banff and Jasper.  No camping though, the back can't handle sleeping on the ground anymore and I haven't found a mattress that works yet.
  • In my garage in Marilla, NY
  • '91K100RS White/Blue
Current:
'91 K100RS16V "Moby Brick Too"

Past:
'94 K75RT "Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS"
'92 K100RS16V "Moby Brick" (RIP, deceased in a vehicular assault)
'94 K75S Special Edition Dakar Yellow "Cheetos"
'89 K100RS Special Edition "Special Ed"

Offline kmev

  • Motobrick Curious
  • Posts: 49
Re: Wisconsin to Pacific Northwest
« Reply #18 on: October 22, 2017, 10:52:59 PM »
I did the north shore about ten years ago, so I wasn't too disappointed in not seeing it again (in a raging downpour). I fueled around every 100 miles and didn't have any fuel concerns along the route. Next summer I am planning to cross at the Sault and head east to the end of the road at the Bay of Fundy, and possibly New Brunswick or Novia Scotia.
  • Madison, Wisconsin
  • 1994 K75s

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