Chapter Eleven: Final Day and Reflexions

Don's Miles Today:  120.0    Don's Total Miles:  2,124.7

Sherry's Miles Today:  268.0    Sherry's Total Miles:   2,493.0

We woke up to a very foggy morning.  I was up, showered, called Lisa, and out to the bikes I went.  Lo and behold, I beat Sherry because the bikes were still very wet from the fog in the air.  I dried the bikes the best that I could but the fog was "re-wetting" the bikes almost faster than I could dry them.  I meandered around the parking lot for a bit taking some pictures and making a plan for some coffee and possible breakfast.  The hotel had NO breakfast or coffee except for the DIY coffee in the rooms and I usually try to avoid that stuff.

I went back into the hotel and sat in the lobby surfing the phone and reading some of the most intelligent political statements on Facebook.  Thank goodness the Founding Fathers didn't have Facebook or we would still be having spots of tea in the afternoon, driving on the WRONG side of the road, and New York's subway would be The Tube.  Thankfully Sherry bounded out of the elevator and saved me from my Facebook instructional period.

She told me that she bought some beef jerky to feed to the kitty and was joined by a fellow guest at the Quality Inn who said that he was Little Gotti because he worked for John Gotti.  You judge.  They talked about the cat, our travels, his travels, and other things before she could break away and retreat to her room.  He was actually a very nice guy and, like a lot of other people, just needed someone to talk to for a few minutes.  Then again, you hate to be mean to a guy who goes by the name of Little Gotti.

We loaded up the bikes and decided to head a couple blocks down U.S. 90 to a Waffle House.  Amazingly, this would be our FIRST Waffle House experience for the whole trip.  We went in and our streak of great service that we have gotten for the past week continued.  We had breakfast and pulled into the Exxon station to top off our tanks before taking off.

This was also going to be our "goodbye point".   Just 4 miles along U.S. 90 near Downtown Lake City Sherry would be turning off and start heading north.  So we said our FIRST goodbye.  Then I took a couple of pictures.  Then came our SECOND goodbye.  At that point we asked the lady at the pump

next to us to take a picture of us together.  That brought on our THIRD goodbye.  It was beginning to be like that proverbial phone call that ends with "you hang up" "no, you hang up" "ok, I am hanging up now" "did you hang up yet" "no, you hang up" etc.  With effort we got on our bikes, fired them up, and off we went.  When we reached U.S. 441 Sherry beeped her horn and off she went to the fading sound of my horn beeping.

My ride home was uneventful and as I pulled near my home in Ormond Beach I stopped to top off the tank one last time for this trip.  Minutes later I was home.  I sent a text to Lisa to let her know I was home and another text to Sherry to tell her the same and to also give her my final miles.  Miles are important to bikers.  If you're a biker you know what I mean.  It is the reason that each chapter starts with the daily and total miles.  About 4 hours later I received a text from Sherry saying she made it home but rode past her house to do a few twisties before wrapping up the ride.

The first thing I have to comment on is the weather.  Let's face it, it is the "wet season" in Florida where daily temps average OVER 90° (unless you are Don and you are riding across the Panhandle....Mom Nature thought it funny to MAKE ME buy a hoodie) and the humidity is high.  When the ground gets hot it triggers storms.  So afternoons in Florida can have rain and thunderstorms at the drop of a hat...OR not.  I am happy to say that we were in the "OR not" side of things for the entire trip.  It is very, very hard to believe that we rode 8 full days in the summer in Florida and did not get a lick of rain except for a couple little spits.

Right now in our country there seems to be a lot of hate and mistrust going on.  Let me tell you, we did not see ANY of that while on the trip.  We greeted with love and we were met with love.  Absolutely each and every person we met or did business with were smiling and friendly.  Many went out of their way to be nice.  The thing to remember is that you will reap what you sow.  If you are smiling, friendly, complimentary, and genuinely like people....you will receive the same in return.  I will admit that I had the advantage of having Sherry with me.  She genuinely loves everyone and lets them know and do you know what happens....everyone genuinely loves....or at least kind of likes a lot....Sherry.  I benefited by riding on her coattails.  I try to be nice and funny and loving with people but I don't hold a candle next to Sherry.  She makes me look like an amateur.  Bottom line is that we met GREAT people along the way.

Riding through the Everglades was almost mind blowing.  It made me think about the native peoples that made that region their home hundreds and thousand of years ago.  That continued as we rode up the the Gulf coast north of Tampa and into the Panhandle.  The miles upon miles of wilderness.  Even in the 21st Century I have to believe that there is still a lot of land that has never been touched by a human.  I love riding the "roads less traveled" and look at the buildings.  I imagine the buildings that were not there in 1960.  That was before Disney.  That was before expressways or inexpensive and efficient air conditioning.  The population of Florida in 1960 was roughly 5,000,000.  The attractions were the beaches and places like Cypress Gardens, Weeki Wachee, Marineland, Silver Springs, etc.  Orlando was a nice sized town in Central Florida with 200,000 people (it is about 2,000,000 in 2020).  As Sherry and I rode along the highways I would imagine what it was like in 1960 and even before.

As I ride around I marvel at the American worker.  They report to their jobs EVERY SINGLE DAY.  Do they moan and groan about it....sure they do, but they show up and they do a GREAT job.  Every time I cross one of those bridges that scare the crap out of me I am REALLY glad that the American worker takes pride in doing a good job.  The waitress still comes to your table after 6 hours, smiles, and says "hi, my name is Tracy and I'll be taking care of you today".   The doctor that has seen 40 people that day cares just as much about the last patient as they did with the first.  I see all those company trucks running all over the place carrying plumber, appliance repair people, carpenters, and more that do their best at every stop.  It is amazing and on a motorcycle road trip I can see it happening right before my eyes.  Of course, at the same time, I am thankful that I am no longer part of that.  After putting in my 55 years I am out riding a motorcycle.  But I never stop appreciating what they are all doing.

After all is said and done.....THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOME.  I love riding my bike, as does Sherry, and I enjoy staying in hotels all over the country.  I like eating in restaurants and meeting people.  But there is still a great feeling to come home and to be loved by my wife and dog.  So even though we are already dreaming about our next ride we are really, REALLY glad to be home.

Hope that you have enjoyed the journey.  God willing there are still a few more road trips to be had by me.  So stay tuned and watch for the next adventure.

Chapter Ten: Last Day Riding Together

Today's Miles: 323.4    Don's Total Miles:  2,004.7   Sherry's Total Miles:  2,225.0 

I found that I was still waking up to the Eastern Time Zone and I was up EARLY.  So I was able to almost completely ready myself before giving Lisa her "wake-up" call.  The dog had done her job and gotten Lisa up on time however after the morning routine Lisa went back to bed "just to relax for a bit".

After the phone call I finished getting ready and completely packed.  I hadn't heard from Sherry yet so I left the stuff in the room and headed to the lobby.  They weren't having a full breakfast buffet due to the pandemic but had coffee, juices, fruits, and packaged breakfast bars & muffins.  I sat down and was doing some writing and watching other doing the "grab & go" breakfast.  Just then I looked and who walked in from the outside.....yep, it was Sherry.  She also still was waking up on the Eastern Time and was outside wiping down the bikes.  After a quick cup of coffee we gather our things and loaded up.

The first thing that we noticed was that it was a wee bit chilly as we took off.  Then AFTER we took off it was a lot bit chilly.  We rode on and on but as we did that "chilly" became down right "cold".  Finally after about 70 miles or so we pulled in for gas in DeFuniak Springs.  I was wearing a t-shirt because the only long sleeve that I brought with me was my rain jacket......It is SUMMER in Florida for crying out loud.  Sherry had on her mesh jacket and a short sleeved shirt and she was just as cold as I was.  I went into the little store that accompanied the gas pumps.  I was prepared to buy anything that had long sleeves.  They didn't have anything.  Even the two gals were wearing sleeveless so they couldn't give

me the shirt off their backs.  I asked if there was a Dollar General or something around.  The one gal looked at me all weird and said, "yeah, next door".  Sure enough......there it was.  I told them that I knew that and I was just testing them.  I went in and bought the only hoodie they had......it IS summer in Florida......a nice BRIGHT orange one.  I wasn't getting lost in a crowd!

We were also getting a little hungry so we started looking for a place to pull in and grab a bite.  As we were looking we came to a stoplight and I saw something that made me laugh. It was a plumber's truck from Benjamin Franklin's Plumbing.  It was the phone number that made me laugh....1-877-BEN-1776.  I had never seen that before and yet when I looked it up it is a big outfit from all over.  Apparently "all over" doesn't include anywhere I have been.

We traveled a little bit further and came to a town called Bonifay and saw a place called Holiday Restaurant.  We pulled in and had a GREAT breakfast.  The service was "small town wonderful" and

the food was fresh and tasty.  After eating and while we were preparing to get on the bikes this fellow got out of his car and walked toward the restaurant.  He paused a bit and said that it was a great day for riding.  I said that ALL day were great for riding but some, like today, were greater than others.  He asked and we gave him the short version of what our trip was about.  Sherry added that we needed breakfast and that this place was great.  The guy beamed a little as he told us that was good to hear

because he was one of the owners and that his 93 year old mother, who was also part of the family owned affair, was in the kitchen right then helping with the cooking.  He went on to give us a short history of the restaurant and the motel next door.  So interesting...I could have listened all day.  But, alas, we still had to put some miles on the scooters.

We loaded up and pulled out and as we rolled on we weren't nearly as hungry as we were AND we were no longer freezing.  Sherry had pulled her hoodie out of her bag and I was still wearing my ORANGE BEACON.  As we rolled through Marianna, FL Sherry pointed out a street sign that said Bumpnose Rd.  Once again we had a chuckle over something that we were reading/seeing.  Come to find out...it was NOT suppose to be funny.  Bumpnose is a type of limestone or something like that.  I think that I read that correctly when I looked it up.  If I am wrong it is ok.....you don't have to act like my older sisters did and over power me with "YOU WERE WRONG" accusations.  I am quite happy believing that bumpnose is a limestone and not the description of my prom date.

We had been on U.S. 90 since leaving Pensacola and were to remain on U.S. 90 until we were a block from our hotel in Lake City.  When I looked at the map I noticed that U.S. 90 went right through the heart of Tallahassee, the capital of Florida.  On the west end of Tallahassee 90 crossed I-10 and then right at the east end of Tallahassee 90 crossed I-10 again.  So I made the executive decision that we would leave our No Expressway rule and do the 15 miles or so around Tallahassee.  You will be happy to know that Sherry survived.

We jumped back on 90 heading east.  The clouds were increasing and it was looking more and more like rain.  Just after we passed Falmouth, FL we were coming up to an I-10 interchange.  I looked ahead and I could see that they had U.S. 90 closed.  As we got closer, sure enough, it was closed with a sign saying "Water Over Road" and detouring us onto I-10.  So we were privileged to ride I-10 again for about 7 or 8 miles to the U.S. 129 exit.  We took that into Live Oak and jumped back on 90 again leaving us about 20 miles to go.  So far our entire ride had been free of any raindrops except for a itty bitty spit on me on the very first day.  Well, we can now say that we had to ride in the rain on this adventure because it rained....very lightly.....for about 90 seconds.

As we pulled into Lake City the streets were wet with puddles all along the sides of the road.  Apparently we had missed getting rained on with a bit more intensity by just minutes.  We turned on the first road after we rode under I-75 and there was our hotel, a Quality Inn, waiting for us.  The fellow behind the registration desk checked us in and then said that even though our rooms were smoke-free there were 4 rooms on our floor that did allow smoking.  He asked if we would like to be moved to a non-smoking floor.  How cool.....Sherry jumped at that and he proceeded to do that very thing.

We saw a Ruby Tuesday next door so we through our stuff into the rooms and tromped through the parking lots to eat......helmet heads and sweaty shirts and all (I had taken off the Orange Explosion so they didn't have to bear that).  Since this was our last day of riding together Sherry wanted to celebrate with a frozen fruity drink....and she did.  I celebrated with an iced tea.  After downing fried zucchini and some baby back ribs.....AND a frozen fruity drink....it was back to the hotel.  Sherry saw a cat wandering the parking lot and that ALWAYS takes over all her attention so I left her in the parking lot and went to my room.  I assumed that the cat wasn't violent and that Sherry was safe.  I guess I'll find out when I watch the news tomorrow.

Tomorrow we will ride together for about 4 miles before she turns north.  I'll tell you all about it in Chapter 11.  Stay tuned!

Chapter Nine: Perdido Key

Today's Miles:  154.8   Don's Total Miles:  1,681.3   Sherry's Total Miles:   1,901.6

Here it is the first morning and I have already forgotten that it is the Central Time Zone.  My phone whistled out a notification with the Text Message tone at 4:45 AM.  I knew that it was Lisa telling me that the dog had waken her up.  I thought to myself that it was WAY too early to call her and I figure that she would just crawl back in bed for awhile.  Of course it was only 4:45 where I was....It was 5:45 at home.  So Lisa took the dog out and started getting ready for work.  At MY 6:45 I realized that it was HER 7:45 and she would be leaving for work instead of the "getting ready for work" that I was thinking.  I gave her a quick call.  And it WAS quick because she was about to walk out the door.

The hotel was not having the Breakfast Bar because of the pandemic (unlike the Clearwater hotel) but that was OK with me.  I had other plans.  I packed up my stuff and decided that I would head down to the lobby and have a cup of coffee.  They might not have the breakfast but they still put out coffee and that is always better than those packets in the room.  I figured that I would sit down there coffee sipping and surfing on the laptop until Sherry came down.  It was a bit after 8:00 (Central Time....it takes awhile but I eventually catch on) and I really didn't care how long she decided to sleep in.

The elevator door opened and I was about to step in and, lo & behold, there in the elevator was Sherry.  She had just taken her load to the bike.  I told her what I was doing so she went to the room and got all that was left and then we BOTH sat in the lobby sipping coffee.  Instead of surfing on the laptop we continue our "pizza conversation" we were having at Clearwater and were able to solidify some of our ideas to solve ALL the world's problems.

My plan for breakfast stems from a time that Lisa and I had spent in Panama City Beach a few years ago.  We had breakfast at a place called Another Broken Egg.  One of their breakfast items is Cinnamon

Roll French Toast.  It is so good that it must be evil.  I won't try to describe it to you so just take my word for it that their Cinnamon Roll French Toast is just about the best breakfast meal I have ever had at a restaurant.  We loaded ourselves on the bikes and aimed them at the Another Broken Egg.  Sherry had a more respectable breakfast of an omelet and country potatoes.

Our timing was perfect because we walked right in and got a primo table outside.  There was hardly anyone there.  About 15 minutes later the place was packed and there was a line waiting outside. On the way in we met a family from Georgia not far from where Sherry lives.  The father said he had the Regular French Toast but that the Cinnamon Roll variety was awfully tempting.  Tracy, our waitress, was great and made sure that we had enough of everything the whole time we were there.  I can assure you that we did not leave the place hungry.

Then we hit the road heading for the Alabama border ON the coast.  We made one stop  in Navarre Beach for gas, a bathroom break, and some water (there was NO eating!!!) at a Tom Thumb convenience store.  Other than that we were riding.  The only real issue was that between Panama City and Pensacola there is a LOT of construction on U.S. 98.  There was so much construction that I thought we had made a wrong turn and had gotten into Michigan.  Then I realized....this couldn't be Michigan because there were people actually working in the construction zones.

There is another thing.  I have a thing about heights.  Not just heights per se but things like railings or anything high that is not secure.  Not only cannot not be happy about ME being in those places I have a hard time watching others.  Even on TV....if someone is leaning over a rail my whole body starts to tingle.  Lumped in with all of that are high rise bridges.  I can ride across them but I am making finger grooves in the handgrips and I CANNOT turn my head at all.  I have to look forward....not even swiveling my eyes.  Let me tell you that From Panama City to and through Pensacola and on to Perdido Key....there are WAY too many high rise bridges.  I did a lot of looking forward!

In the end it was worth it.  Sherry's goal was to ride the Florida coastline from Fernandina Beach to the Alabama/Florida border at Perdido Key.  At mid afternoon we pulled to a stop about 30 feet inside Alabama.  We walked back to the Welcome To Sweet Home Alabama sign and did some pictures with

the help of someone walking past.  The entire trip will include riding to and from our homes but starting at Fernandina Beach through Perdido Key was 1,540.1 miles based on my odometer.  A very exciting time for Sherry and an exciting time for me to see Sherry excited.

Up until this point I have been the lead bike for the entire ride.  I suggested that Sherry take the lead for the remainder of our day and she was more than happy to do that.  Frankly, I was more than happy to let her.  So she led us back into Pensacola and to our Comfort Inn.  Again they were kind to us and let us park our bikes under the main entrance canopy.

That's it for today.  I know that there isn't a lot in this chapter BUT the objective of the ride was achieved and that is a lot.  Stay tuned because there are still two days left of this adventure.  You have been with us this long so you might as well stick it out to the end.

Chapter Eight: Clearwater to Panama City

Today's Miles: 360.5   Don's Total Miles:  1,526.5   Sherry's Total Miles:  1,746.8

Today is THE special day of the trip.  Ahhhh, you say, it must be the day with the most miles or maybe we will be the subject of a Discovery Channel documentary or.....or....or.  You would be wrong.  Today is Sherry's birthday.  I have been told that I am not at liberty to post the age but I will give you a clue.....she is over 15 and less than 100.  Sorry, but due to my self preservation that is as close as I will get you.  Ok, so it is a special day for her but for me it is another day of being able to ride my bike.  And ride we did.

Surprises of surprises but the hotel actually had the normal Choice Hotel breakfast.  Do you think that it was in honor of the birthday?  Whatever the reason I was down there bright eyed and bushy tailed (kind of) at the 6:00 start.  Good and fresh coffee, eggs, sausage, biscuits & gravy, and three glasses of orange juice.  Life was good.  There was a steady parade of other travelers coming in for their morning shot of energy.  I have to admit that with the pandemic it was a little surprising that the breakfast was happening.  Then again, I thought of the thousands of baking bodies I saw on the Tampa Bay shoreline along the Causeway.......maybe there is no pandemic in the Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg area.  I am not one to argue or stir the pot so I just sat and watched and ATE.

I was there about a half hour when Birthday Girl walked in.  She apparently had been up as long as I had because she said that she had walked across the street and sat while the sun came up.  She also threw caution to the wind and filled a plate from the buffet line.

I won't bore with the individual details (like I bore you with all the other details) so I will group this next DAY LONG activity into this one paragraph.  Starting with the middle of breakfast and then continuing ALL DAY Sherry received somewhere around 2,000 birthday telephone calls.....give or take.  While riding we would stop at a light and I would hear her talking.  Thinking that she was asking me something or making a statement I raised my shield and looked over......nope, she was talking on her bluetooth.  I eventually came to the conclusion that I wouldn't talk to her again until tomorrow.  She apparently has a deep fan base.

The ride north on U.S. 19 and U.S. 98 was a prime example of why Florida has the reputation for straight and flat roads.  The thing that struck me was even with the 900 to 1,000 people that are moving into Florida DAILY there is miles and miles and miles of wilderness.

In addition to the wilderness we did see a few other things that captured our attention.  There was the guy dressed like a pig with a sign that said "honk if you like bacon".  I heard Sherry's horn and I thought maybe I had left my saddlebag open again.  Then there was a message plastered on the back window of a pick-up truck that said "Trump In 2020   F**k Your Feelings".  I don't care who you

are voting for....that was funny.  Then in Inglis, FL at the intersection with State Road 40 there is Follow That Dream Blvd.  Such an appropriate sign to read when on a motorcycle road trip.

Going through Crystal River was a joy.  What a great looking little town.  The little shops and restaurants were so very inviting.  Of course, we turned down the invitation to continue our ride.

We stopped at the Discount Food Mart in Chieftain for gas, a bathroom break, and some refreshments.  It was not one of your High End places so Sherry had me check out the restroom first.  I have seen better but I have seen a LOT worse so I gave her the "go ahead".

We continued on U.S. 98 heading west across the Panhandle of Florida.  We did a gas stop in Apalachicola with about 60 miles to go to our hotel.  There are miles and miles of U.S. 98 that go right along the Gulf Coast.  It was so beautiful with a "cooler" breeze.......it made it 90° instead of 95°.  It really was a very nice ride.

One thing that was very remarkable was the damage caused by Hurricane Michael in October of 2018, going on two years ago, was still very widespread.  Houses, businesses, and forests were still in a state of destruction.  There was a LOT of rebuilding going on but there is a LOT MORE of rebuilding that has yet to be done.

I looked ahead and saw a Comfort Inn and Suites.....it looks like we made it.  Not so fast Bucko!  We walked in and said that we had two rooms reserved and we got "Noooo, I don't see that name".  Sigh, there was another Comfort Inn and Suites 8 miles further down U.S. 98.  Thankfully, this has happened to me before (I am too embarrassed to tell you how many times) that I don't carry my bags in until I am checked in.

About 15 minutes later we pulled into the RIGHT hotel and checked in.  They very graciously let us leave our bikes under the registration entrance canopy.  We through our bags into the rooms, combed our hair, and out we went.  Sherry wanted a Birthday Dinner in a real restaurant.  She said that she also wanted to

have a drink or two so she didn't want to ride.  The only restaurant within walking distance was McDonalds and that wasn't happening.  So I let her ride bitch on my bike (she calls it "two up" but, hey, tomato/tomaaato) and we went in search.  We wound up at a Thai restaurant called Thai Basil.  We had a decent meal, got great service, and they even brought Sherry a "Birthday Key Lime Pie".

We rode back to the hotel and Birthday Girl headed to her room to read 10,000,000 texts, messages, and birthday comments...along with probably more phone calls and I to mine to............type.  This is the result.  Hope that you enjoyed and I will talk to you again tomorrow.

Chapter Seven: Everglades and the Gulf

Today's Miles:  307.1   Don's Total Miles:  1,166.0     Sherry's Total Miles:  1,386.3

After another good night of SLEEP....ahhhhhh.....I woke up and did a fast HOT shower.  As I dressed I heard some movement outside the room so I pulled back the curtain.  There was Sherry in her PJ's and with a room towel wiping the HEAVY dew off the bikes.  She is a lot more efficient than I am.  I would just let the sun do its job and dry the dew away naturally and if any remained on the seat I would just have a damp rear.

According to the Weather Bug radar there was a itty bitty clump of rain to the southeast and that was it.  That made pretty confident that at least the first bit of the ride would be free of clouds spitting at us.  We are still amazed that IN FLORIDA and IN THE SUMMER we have been on the road for three days and basically have not had any rain to speak of.

We got the bikes loaded up and made a quick stop at the registration office to drop off our keys.  Back on the bikes I took off and swung through the little maze of parking lots and got ready to pull out onto U.S. 1.  I looked in my mirror and.....no Sherry.  So I stopped and waited.....still no Sherry.  I did quick U-turn and started back and here she came.  She had forgotten to take a picture of her mileage last night so that is what she was doing.

We whipped up U.S. 1 to the first good intersection, turned left, and proceeded to right past State Road 997 which we were supposed to turn onto.  We went up a bit to find a good spot to swing around and we did it in the parking lot of Robert Is Here.  I didn't even notice the sign but was just pulling in to turn around.  Sherry thought that I had seen the sign and was going to take a picture for my brother, Robert.  I wasn't.....but I did and immediately posted it for him.  More significance to this later.

The early morning ride was nice.  We took 997 about 20 miles through Homestead, FL to U.S. 41 where we pulled into a Pilot Truck and Travel Center to gas up.  After topping the tanks we parked so that I could run in to get a morning pick-me-up in the form of Starbucks Coffee Double-Shot, a water, a coffee for Sherry, and a package of mini donuts.  We had parked next to another back.  It was owned by a fellow rider who lives in Homestead named Miguel.

We talked with him for a bit sharing our adventures and listening to his and giving him the address of the blog.  When we told him where we spent the night he asked "did you go to Robert Is Here?" 

We laughed because we only saw it because we missed our turn.  He said that it had been there forever and was a great place to stop and eat.  On the picture that I posted on Facebook with the Robert Is Here sign I got a comment from a J&P Cycles friend, The Wandering Sparrow, saying that "I love that place".  We had no idea that we were at such a landmark.

Miguel rode off and I gave Sherry one of my mini donuts.  She was polite and took it but she really didn't want it.  So she did the most natural thing.....she started feeding the birds.  Well, Sherry may not have wanted that donut but the birds sure did.  She would hold out her hand and they would come and eat it right from her fingers.  Of course only a couple birds could do that at a time so the remaining birds, seeing that I was busy trying to take a picture of Sherry feeding their friends, proceeded to attack the package of remaining donuts on my seat.

After feeding the wildlife more than feeding myself we headed out and hit U.S. 41 which would be our home for virtually the rest of the day.  For the next 80 or 90 miles we would be heading across the Florida Everglades.  This was going to be the first time for either of us to ride across the "Glades" and frankly we didn't know what to expect.  Let me tell you.....it was gorgeous.  There were miles and miles of seemingly untouched land.  A lot of it was wetlands.  We did see a couple of gators floating there watching humans watching them.  I'm sure that the beautiful blue skies with the bright sun helped but it was absolutely stunning.  It stayed wonderful for the whole time.

Now it wouldn't be a good motorcycle riding segment if I didn't have some kind of FUBAR to mention.  While at the Pilot I had taken my log book out of the saddlebag and as I was putting it in I had to go back in it to grab a paper to write the blog address to give to Miguel.  Fast forward about a half hour and we are riding along enjoying the Everglade sights and Sherry comes flying up next to me, honking her horn, and flagging me to pull over.  I did not shut my saddlebag and it was floppiing open leaving ample opportunity for some pretty important stuff......like deodorant, spare socks, and oh yeah the camera....to flop out.

The funny part about leaving the west end of the Everglades was that you go through miles and miles and miles of land that is as it has been for hundreds or thousands of years and then it is like going through a curtain......from primitive to million dollar neighborhoods in Naples, FL.  Don't get me wrong, those homes are also beautiful but in a 21st Century way.

One last note about U.S. 41 through the Everglades.  Florida taxpayers could have saved enough money to fund another theme park if the state hadn't spent so much money on "NARROW BRIDGE" signs.  Seriously, there was a "NARROW BRIDGE" every 100 or 200 feet and there was a sign for each and every one of them.  Nothing they can do now.  They are already bought and paid for.....although it probably played havoc with the National Debt.

We passed the Ft. Myers airport and we were a bit concerned.  There was a sign that said "Caution Low Flying Planes".  We ducked our heads and we safely made it through the "danger area".  After working our way north a bit we stopped at a Race Trac gas and convenience store for.....well, gas and convenience.  We topped off our tanks and had a nutritious meal of deli items from the Race Trac cooler.  Nothing too remarkable there except the obligatory drunks yelling at each other.

We continued north through all the Gulf of Mexico coastal cities and towns.  When we got to Sarasota and saw the turn for Longboat Key I asked Sherry if she wanted to go over there or keep heading to our room.  A few years ago she had gone to Longboat Key with her twin sister for a bit of a break from the daily working life.  It was great and they had a fantastic time.  She kind of wanted to see it and relive that good time.  However, it was getting later in the afternoon and the thought of getting into our rooms had a magnetic effect.....she chose moving on.

Just south of Tampa we pulled off to give our map a little check.  In Tampa we would be leaving our connection with U.S. 41 and we wanted to make sure we did it correctly......not that we have a history of wrong turns or anything!  We talked with a fellow biker who gave us his opinion and discussed bikes and traveling a bit.

In Downtown Tampa we left U.S. 41 to State Road 60 that would take us across the Causeway over to Clearwater, FL.  The Causeway more or less splits through Tampa Bay.  With water on both sides and a nice breeze it was very comfortable riding across the Bay.  On one side of the Causeway there is a VERY narrow strip of sandy shore.  That shore....FOR MILES....was packed.  I'm not talking about "a lot of people" but it was PACKED.  The only Social Distancing going on was the fact that they were 300 miles from Cuba.  Beyond that..........they were packed in there so close that no virus would have been able to squeeze in with them.  So I guess that they were safe.

We turned up Alt 19 a little bit north and came to our stop for the night, the Comfort Inn and Suites.  It had a small carport and the registration desk told us that we should park our bikes under that roof.  Very nice of him.  We did walk across the street so that Sherry could stick her toe in the Gulf but it was hardly what you would a beach so a toe in the water was all that happened.

We ordered a great pizza from a place called Jet's to have it delivered.  It was to take 45 minutes to an hour.  That gave us time to hit our rooms and shower up.  I also got in a call to Lisa who, by the way, is enjoying a little bit of "No Don House".  The pizza came so Sherry popped into the room.

We ate and settled back a little chit-chatting a bit.  In all this traveling we really hadn't had much time for talking.  You will be happy to know that we solved ALL the world's problems.  I am sure that you will notice the difference over the next couple of days.  With that Sherry shuffled off to her room and, well, here I am.  I will close this up for now.  I'll be back with you tomorrow.

Chapter Six: Third Day of Riding Florida City to Florida City via Key West

Today's Miles: 262.4   Don's Total: 858.9   Sherry's Total:  1,079.2

First let me tell you this; I slept REALLY good.  I hit the pillow with my normal prayer list with a few "great ride" additions.  That is about the last thing I remember until a quick 3:00 AM bathroom run (and I went RIGHT back to sleep) and then I didn't wake up again until after 6:30.  Wow.....I never sleep that late.  Sherry says that it was basically the same for her.  She read a little, watched about 15 minutes of TV and, BAM, she was asleep until morning.

I got all ready.  When I emerged from  my room Sherry was already wiping the dew, which was heavy, off the bike seats.  I walked down to the office to ask about the Wifi connection.  That is when I found out that the Guest Book had the correct password but they haven't gotten around to "telling" the rooms yet.

I gave Lisa a quick call.  I didn't want to call too early because it is the weekend and she likes to get in a few extra minutes of sleep on weekend mornings.  Of course, the dog usually has something to say about that.  I gave her a rough itinerary, she wished us well, and we ended the call with a couple air kisses.

Sherry and I jumped on the bikes and our first stop was the convenience store so I could stuff a couple of bottles of water into my saddlebags.  Sherry is the smart one and she carries bottles with her and refills them every night and puts them in the freezer so she has COLD water for the ride.  While I went into the store a guy pulled up in a pick-up truck and struck up a conversation with Sherry.  It is funny that guys come out of the woodwork to talk to her and they will hardly notice that I am there.  Anyway, this guy was one of those typical Mr. Negativity people.  He said that riding across the Keys was nice but if it rained or stormed it was miserable.  He said, and I quote, "I don't want to deter you but it can be awful".  I should mention that he is telling us this....well, not "US" but rather "Sherry"....there was hardly a cloud in the sky.  Granted, we are in Florida and if you have heat + humidity + a little instability it will = rain and/or thunderstorms.  I'm sure that if we gave him the opportunity he would have gotten to the story of his next door neighbor's cousin's high school sweetheart's ex-husband's boss having a bad motorcycle wreck.  He ended it all with a "have a good ride" as we started our engines.

I know that there have been many times that I have talked about the speed of traffic.  Don't get me wrong, I like to give my speedometer a workout if I can.  I often joke that if you are going 85 on the interstate and drive into Atlanta's city limits you have to bump it up to 95 or get run over.  Heck, if you are only going 85 the school buses will pass you...........BLOWING THIER HORNS!  So we jump on the Causeway to the Keys.  This is the same Causeway that we "tested out" last night.  The speed limit is 55.  So being good Americans Sherry and I are cruising at 65.  The Causeway is two lanes with a concrete median so there is NO passing.  There is, however, two or three Passing Lanes that pop up during the roughly 20 mile Causeway ride.  We knew there were cars behind us but we had no idea that they urgent and immediate business (more commonly called boating and fishing) in the Keys because when we hit the Passing Lanes they went passed us like we were sitting still AND some of them were passing the people that were passing us like they were sitting still.  It was crazy.  I am sure that someone was awarded the Sprint Cup.

With this being our third day on the road it is amazing that we have had three gorgeous days of riding.  If you listened to all the weather EXPERTS that can be found in most viewing areas you would have come to the conclusion that we were going to ride in the rain every single day.  So far we have gotten VERY tan arms (our hands are pasty white because we wear gloves....but our arms are tan) and our rain jackets have cobwebs.  I am NOT complaining.  Although I have my hopes up that the remaining 5 days will continue with this Sun Fest....I am keeping my cobweb infested rain jacket close by.  Still, it has been WONDERFUL.

On ALL my previous trips to the Keys whether in a car or on the bike I have stopped at a little restaurant in Tavernier.  When my good friend, Glen, was getting married in Key West they spent their arrival day at the Key Motel in Tavernier and the motel manager sent them down the street to the Tropical Café.  It was GREAT.  A perfect candidate for Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.  I haven't been to the Keys in a few years and I looked and looked but I saw no Keys Motel or a Tropical Café.  Well, fooey.  I searched again as we traveled back in the afternoon and again didn't see hide nor hair of them.  So I am either suffering from OLD AGE blindness or they are not there.......it could go either way!

The traffic along U.S. 1 across the Overseas Highway that crosses the Keys from Key Largo to Key West was heavy but it moved along well.  Apparently the NASCAR drivers that populate the Causeway do not drive on the rest of the route to Key West.

Our first stopping point was the Southern Most Point buoy.  If you have never been to Key West let me tell you that this is the...I mean THE...major photo op point on the whole island.  That isn't entirely true.  There are many other major photo op points during Key West's Fantasy Fest in the fall.  My cardiologist will not permit me to attend.  Back to the Southern Most Point.  The line to take pictures was WAY long. So we illegally parked in a resident spot a half block away and took some quick selfies and nabbed a passer by to take a picture that had our bikes, us, and the SMP.  That was cool...but he was to pop into our lives again.

We saddled up and got out of our illegal parking situation.....that we were only in for about 5 minutes..and moved on to our second point.  We illegally parked in a NO PARKING spot so we could take our picture with the U.S. 1 Mile 0 sign.  We each took a selfie and a picture of each other.  Then we looked to see who we could grab to take our picture together......and who do you think we saw?  Yep, it was the same guy that took our picture at the SMP.  He gladly took our picture and then told us that the first time was free but now that he was "On Demand" his rate was $50 a picture.  I told him to send us an invoice online.  While I packed up the bikes Sherry took pictures for some other people.

We rode around two or three different blocks about 4 times each to find a place to park....LEGALLY.  We wanted to have lunch so we had to stay on the right side of the law for this one.  We finally went into a lot.  When I went to pay "the guy" there was no guy to pay.  Instead there was a sign that said to get the ParkMobile app, sign up, and pay that way....there was a Post Script saying that the lot was checked often.  We downloaded the app and we both paid for our bikes.  At the time, there was only one other car in the lot.  It must be an acceptable way to do it because when we came back from lunch the lot was almost full.

For lunch we went to a place called Fogarty's.  The very first time that Lisa and I went to Key West (that was

a few days right after Christopher Columbus declared it the sovereign property of Ernest Hemmingway) we went to that restaurant every day for a week for lunch.  It was a Hooters then but they had a crab leg special that was a killer deal and Lisa LOVES crab legs.  It was a bit slow...they say that the computer spit our order AFTER everyone else's.  Computers don't just do things like that on their own.  Personally, I think it spit out the order and it got lost.  Due to that we had to wait a bit longer.  We made a comment and got a discount.  The food was actually delicious and the discount made it taste a little sweet.

From there we started back across the Keys.  We stopped about 10 miles out of Key West at a Circle K for Gas and a Pee.....well, we didn't buy a pee but we left them some.  Oh whatever!  The ride back was just as nice as the ride there.  It was, however, pretty hot.  After we had gone a little over 100 miles and we were pulling onto the Causeway for the last 20 miles or so traffic was moving nicely.  Then all of a sudden it stopped.  I could see across the water where the Causeway curved into view and I could tell that it was moving well.  Still, I couldn't resist saying to Sherry that maybe we would be sitting there for 4 hours like yesterday.  I wish that I could show you the look on her face.  That alone would make reading this blog worthwhile.

Once back we did a run to the store for water, snacks, and beer.  I came to my room to lounge and to catch up on emails, messages, and writing the journal.  Sherry washed her clothes.  Now I know that you are picturing her putting coins into a washing machine.  That was not to be.  She saw that a load to WASH was $6.  Plus she would have to buy soap.  Plus she would have to pay some more to dry.  So she washed her clothes in the bathtub.  I apologize that I do not have video of that to show you because I am sure that it was a fun thing to watch but I didn't know it was happening until she came outside and hung the clothes on her bike to dry.  After that she headed off to the pool.  When she came back she stuck her head in my door and said "I'm going to bed".  And I think that is a good thing to tell you.  I am going to bed.

I hope to be back with you tomorrow with Chapter Seven.  Feel free to Like, Share, and/or comment.  If you are a glutton for literary punishment check out the blog everyday.  Good Night!

Chapter Five: Day Two Of Riding....Ormond Beach to Florida City

Today's Miles: 353.9    Don's Total: 596.5   Sherry's Total: 815.8

In some ways I was expecting this morning to be a little bit normal.  I usually get up at 5:20, take the dog out, and wake Lisa to get ready for (gasp) work.  Then again, there was also the fact that not only was Lisa going to need to get ready there would also be me and Sherry stumbling around to get a semi early start for our ride south.  So I jumped....well, more like hobbled.....out of bed at 5:00 and got all my "morning stuff" done and was all dressed when I woke Lisa up at 5:45.  Since I had the 45 minute head start I was all smiling and full of life....and coffee.  I let Sherry wake up "naturally" and she was up and about around 6:15.

All of us were getting ready at the same time.  The strange part was that we all were heading to the garage at the exact same time.  We said our goodbyes to Lisa and she jumped in the car and headed off to earn enough money to pay for MY trip.  Sherry and I did the last minute prepping and we saddled up and scooted out of the garage.

Our first stop was a mile away at the 7/11 to top off the tanks.  Since we had just left with bellies full of coffee all we needed to do was get gas and hit the road.  We shot east on State Road 40 that took us right to A1A and just a couple hundred feet from the Ocean.  We turned south and went through Ormond Beach, Daytona Beach, and Daytona Beach Shores.  At the Shores we took the last bridge to the Mainland and started south again on U.S. 1.  Since yesterday was such a great day for riding we were hoping for another beautiful and dry ride.  Sherry asked if I prayed for good weather and I told her I did....BUT....as much as God hangs on my every word.....sometimes it still rains when I for dry.

We continued on U.S. 1 to Cocoa Beach where we were able to catch another bridge across the Atlantic Inter-Coastal Waterway.  That put us on the next section of A1A.  Twice we rode through areas that had obviously just been hit with  a downpour.  By the time that we got to those spots it was bright and sunny with only a little bit of spray being kicked up.  We followed that all the way to Ft Pierce where we had to grab another bridge over to the Mainland.  About that time I was in agony.  I had started to sweat a little bit and my sunscreen was just starting to touch my eye.  I don't know if you have ever had sunscreen sneak into your eye but it is similar to the way my grandmother used to describe what would happen to my eyes if I was to sneak into my dad's closet and "thumb through" his Playboys.  By the way, I never fully understood why my eyes would burn with hot coals if I looked at a Playboy but my dad's eyes were just fine.....the things an 11 year has to ponder.  Apparently my grandmother was telling the truth because my left eye was stinging and watering.  I tried to stick a finger up under my glasses to wipe some tearing away and all I accomplished was spreading oily crude over my sunglasses lens.

Since we had covered about 165 miles I pulled into a gas station to not only get gas but to try and relieve my eyes.  We were successful in getting gas but as for my eyes.....not so much.  Sherry asked a tow truck driver who was filling up his rig if there was any restaurants in the direction we were going.  He said that there was nothing but a Wendy's.  He said that we might not want to stop because it wasn't the best part of town.  I said that I didn't care, we were going that way anyways and if there was a restaurant we would stop and eat.  Apparently, and this is just my guess, the ONLY place that tow truck driver eats is at Wendy's so he thinks that is the only place there.  After about a mile we had passed a variety of chain restaurant....fast food and other wise.....when I saw a non-chain Mexican restaurant called Brisa Del Mar.  We had a great lunch and my eye was feeling WAY better......of course, now my nose was running because of the hot salsa.

We continued on State Road 70 from Ft Pierce to Lake Okeechobee.  Lake Okeechobee is the 3rd largest lake completely within the United States.  Lake Michigan and a lake in Alaska are the other two.  We came into Lake Okeechobee and hit U.S. 441 and rode it all the way from the north side of the lake to the south side.  There we hit U.S. 27 and started due south to our Florida City destination.  We were traveling a good speed with beautiful weather and light traffic.  It was about 4:30 and we were about an hour from our hotel.  Then what to my wondering eyes should appear.....a bunch of cars STOPPED so the road wasn't clear.  We rolled to a stopped and as I looked ahead I could see some of the truck drivers were out of their trucks talking.  So we shut off our bikes and set them on kickstands.  Sherry checked the Google Traffic and FDOT and we realized that there was a fatal accident ahead of us.........so we sat.  And we sat and we sat and we sat.  We didn't move an inch for FOUR HOURS.  In all my years of driving since Henry Ford personally gave me the FIRST Model T I have never,

ever sat in stopped traffic like that.  While everyone else sat in their cars Sherry and I sat out in the late afternoon Florida sun.  A couple cars ahead of us felt sorry for us and sent their daughter back with an umbrella.  As I write this there is right now a lot of struggle going on in our country......but when push comes to shove there is still love and compassion abound.

FINALLY, after a bit over four hours the traffic started to SLOWLY move.  We actually were not very far back from the beginning so we go out pretty quickly.  They still had one lane completely closed but we squirted out and we were again on our way.  Thinking that we would get into our rooms by 6:00 was changed by fate and we did not get into our rooms until 10:15...........YIKES!!!

Because we were now going to ride through twilight and into darkness we saw a gorgeous, pink sunset.  We did a fast stop to take a couple pictures and then were back on the road.  About 10 miles from the hotel we stopped for gas.  As Sherry was buying hers the credit card company called her to tell her that someone was trying to get a cash advance with her number.  With mobile phones and the 21st Century technology she was able to handle the situation in a matter of 5 minutes while standing at the gas pump.

Somehow (it was actually my fault but I didn't say that and if you say I did I will deny it) we came through Homestead, FL the back way and when I got to U.S. 1 I turned us right when I should have turned us left.  So we were IMMEDIATELY on the Causeway to the Keys.  We had to travel about 8 miles before we came to a spot that didn't have the concrete median and we could turn around.  We had reservations at the Quality Inn in Florida City and as we pulled into "hotel row" we saw the Quality Inn sign and pulled in.  I would love to tell you the whole story.....but I don't really understand it myself.  There has been sales, shiftings, buyings, take-overs, and Super Bowl bets.  We wound up at the Travelodge offic after trying to find the Quality Inn office.  It took FOUR of them to check us in and then they told us that our rooms had been switched from Quality Inn to Travelodge.....even though the Quality Inn was being used.  (there was another section that was completely roped off that no one was using)  Then a guy came with a golf cart.  He was the Navigation Guy.  He took us back to our bikes (they were parked by the Quality Inn rooms) and then had us follow him to the Travelodge rooms we were supposed to stay at.

I wanted some snacks and a drink to keep me "nourished" while I wrote the blog so we walked

up to the convenience store......everyone of them were closed.  They ALL closed at 10:00....sheesh!  So I grabbed a soda and some M&Ms from the vending machine and went back to the room.  Sherry said that she was used up and went on to her room to bed.

I went into the room, got ready for bed, got the computer, and fired it up.  It came up and I went to sign onto their Wifi......I read the guest book that had the Wifi directions and I signed up.....BUT....it told me to use a valid password.  I tried every which way but Sunday......I guess I should have tried Sunday because I could NOT get online.  Since I was ready for bed and I just killed 20 minutes doing my everything but Sunday routine...........I was NOT going to the office.

Instead I waited until morning.....quick update and why this chapter was a day late.....The book had the wrong password.  Well, it is the right password but they had changed all the Quality Inn rooms to that password but the Travelodge rooms were not changed yet.  ARGH!!!

So that was our second day of riding.  It was, for the most part, a good day.  Yeah, there were a couple of hiccups but it was a nice day with good company so all was good.  Shortly Chapter Six will be up for you to read.  I hope you enjoy.  Talk to you later.

Chapter Four: All Rides Have To Start Somewhere

Don's miles today:  242.6   Don's Total Miles:  242.6

Sherry's miles today: 461.9  Sherry's total miles:  461.9

We went to bed last night KNOWING that today would be our first day of riding for this excursion.  In my conversations with Sherry over the past 3 or 4 days she said that she was planning on starting out at 7:00.  She said that there was a person riding with her as far as our meeting place in Yulee, FL so her ACTUAL starting time might be adjusted based on his starting time.  I told her to text me as she left and with each gas stop so that I could adjust MY start time.

My morning started off pretty normal.  I wake at 5:20 and do my "morning stuff".  I wake Lisa up at 5:45 (I don't have 25 minutes of "morning stuff" but I do like to play two games of Sudoku) and I take the dog out for her "morning stuff".  As Lisa was getting ready for her day at (gasp) work (hey, someone has to finance my motorcycle mania) I made coffee and watched the morning news.  By the way, I have come to the conclusion that they do LIVE news on Monday and then just show a repeat taping the rest of the week.  Then at 7:01 my notification beeped and Sherry was on her way.  Good for her.

Originally I planned on not loading my bike until after we returned to our house in the evening.  That way I wouldn't have to ride with a full load all day.  As Lisa pulled away to go to (gasp) work I thought that since I still had two or three hours I might as well load the bike up and then I wouldn't have anything to do.  Spoiler Alert: I am REALLY glad that I loaded the bike in the morning!  I checked everything off of the packing list and before long the bike was completely packed.  The only items not on the bike today that WILL be on the bike for the next 7 days is my computer.

Before I knew it I got another beep around 9:00.  Sherry was at her first gas stop at Milledgville, GA.  I went to my dear, old friend, Mr. Google, and he said that she was only about 4½ hours from our meeting place.  I was figuring that I would start right around noon but since it was going to take me two hours or just a hair more I decided that maybe an 11:30 start would be better.  So I rustled me up some grub.....that was said in my John Wayne voice.....took the dog out for her "late morning stuff", cleaned up my lunch mess, and headed out to the garage.

At 11:25 I pulled out of the garage.  Just before pulling out another beep came in with Sherry saying that she was filling up at Hazlehurst, GA and was still on track to be at the Marathon station/store in Yulee between 1:30 and 2:00.

Even though the vast majority of our trip will be on NON-expressway I elected to jump right onto I-95 and head north.  I live about 1 mile from the ramp and the Marathon station was about 5 miles from I-95 so the ride was ALL expressway.  That's fine with me.  I really don't mind the expressway and I certainly don't mind the 70 to 85 MPH (give or take).  The ride was a good one.  Traffic wasn't bad and the weather was good.....for the most part.  As for the parts that were not within the "most part" the sky did spit on me a couple of times.  It was a pretty hot day so that little bit of Ma Nature's spit actually felt pretty good.

I pulled into the Yulee Marathon convenience store & gas stop and filled up.  I was still a wee bit early so I was able to get in there and fill up before they got there.  After topping off the tank I got ready to move the bike over to the side and then I could go in and grab a water because I obviously had time.  I turned the key and it all lit up nicely.  I pushed the start button and............NOTHING!  Not only did I get NOTHING but at the same time ALL power was gone.  WHAT?????  Of course I tried five or ten or a thousand times like it was going to change.  In case you were wondering.....it did NOT change.  I was getting NOTHING.  So I pulled the bolts, removed the back pad, removed the saddle, and looked at the battery.  Yep....it certainly was a battery.  I am very good at looking at things.  Well, I wiggled a wire or two like I knew what I was doing and said a couple of magic words I heard on Penn & Teller's Fool Us.  I turned the key and...............IT WORKED.  As I reinstalled the saddle and pad I turned the key at each point and.......IT WORKED.  So I have no idea what was wrong or what I did.....but it is working fine now.

I went in the store and bought a bottle of water.  Did I mention that it was about 200° and the humidity was in the neighborhood of 2,435%......more or less.  I came back out and found a good spot to plop down so I could look up US 17 and see them come.  I wanted to take pictures of them as they cruised in.  One thing that I have noticed on my various trips over the years is that people can just tell that you are on a motorcycle trip.  I have purchased gas a gazillion times while not on a trip and NO ONE comes up to talk to me......except the occasional poor soul that just happens to have made it to the gas station but has no money for gas.....and, by the way, they still have no money for gas as they walk away from me.  Anyway, when I am on a trip people just seem to be able to sense it and they come up and talk.  The first person that stopped to talk to me was a local sheriff deputy.  We talked about my bike, my cousin's bike, Key West, and riding in general.  I hope that he was being a really nice guy....it could be that after riding 130 miles in the 200° heat I looked like a serial killer.  It was really a nice talk.

Shortly after he pulled away another fellow pulled up and asked if that was my bike over by the curb.  He said it was a "nice bike" and "have a good ride my friend".  People really are quite nice.  Just a couple minutes after he pulled away I looked across the intersection and I saw Sherry and her friend, Bill, coming toward the light.  All they would have to do is turn left and then immediately turn right at the first driveway.  I grabbed my camera and started heading for the driveway and.....what?.....they turned right.  About 5 minutes later my phone rang.  Guess who.  We straighten out the confusion and in minutes they were with me at the Marathon.

I met Bill.  He was visiting people around Daytona Beach and was nice enough to accompany Sherry on her ride.  He was one of her instructors several years ago when she took the Motorcycle Safety Course.  We took all the obligatory pictures and off he went to finish his ride.  We also took off to ride Florida's A1A down the eastern coast as far as Ormond Beach.

The route includes crossing the St. John's River in Jacksonville on the Mayport Ferry on the St. John's River.  It is just a five minute ferry ride but it is kind of neat.  We continued to ride south through Ponte Verda and St. Augustine.  At Flagler Beach we stopped for a few photo ops and for me to

call my wife, Lisa, and give her our ETA of approximately 20 to 30 minutes.  We stopped a couple young gals to snap some pictures for us.  They were young teens and kind of giddy and giggly but, do you know what, she was waving the camera around all goofy and weird but the pictures she took were great.

We rode the famous Ormond Beach "Loop" through some wetland and "jungle".  It is a very cool ride and it is also about the best way to get from Flagler Beach to our house.  Once here we did some quick "evening stuff" and the three of us headed to a local sports bas called Houligan's.  We had great food and great conversation.

Right now I am finishing this while Lisa and Sherry have both gone off to bed.  I guess that I should do the same (my first clue was Lisa coming back to the living room and saying "are you coming to bed or not").  Tomorrow our quest to ride the entire coast of Florida will continue.  Please feel free to Like, Share, and/or comment.  Talk to you again tomorrow!

CHAPTER THREE: Opportunity Plus Preparation Equals Success

Over the years I think that I have kind of more or less semi-perfected the art of packing for a motorcycle trip.  The previous sentence was not a frivolous choice of words.  It IS an art.  I have done many trips from long weekends to a full 15 days.  Virtually everything that I will need will be packed on the bike as I leave my garage.  One thing one learns mighty quickly is that under no circumstances should you NOT over pack for a motorcycle trip.  There just isn't enough room.  Many years ago I read in one of the many motorcycle publications that I had laying around about a method of packing that I appropriately named "The Landfill Method of Motorcycle Packing".  This IS the method that I will be using although I cannot speak for my riding companion, Sherry.  Over the next few minutes I will try to cover the process that we each are using to get ready for the trip.  From beginning to end we will be riding for 8 consecutive days.  That equates to us needing 8 days worth of clothing, toiletries, and miscellaneous stuff ON the bikes.

A brief description of "The Landfill Method of Motorcycle Packing" is that in the course of my normal daily life I do NOT throw away t-shirts, sweatshirts, jeans, socks, or underwear that are approaching that worn out state.  Instead, as they become worn, they go to my motorcycle trip storage.  To prepare for a trip I will count out what I need for the trip and figure out what I will be doing each day.  Then I pull out enough clothing for the entire trip.  At the end of each day while I am traveling I throw into the trash any clothing that I am done wearing.  That generally means that underwear, socks, and t-shirts are tossed nightly and every three or four days a pair of jeans will make it to the trash can. That actually accomplishes a couple of things.  First of all, even though I start off REALLY packed tight, my bag becomes less and less packed with each passing day.  The other thing is that I never have to go to the Dreaded Motel Laundry Room or, worse yet, a (gasp) laundromat.  Dirty laundry takes up more room than clean clothes so a full pack can actually become "fuller".  Heck, by the end of the trip I might even have room for a souvenir.

Before I go over the packing ritual I think that I should cover the preparation of the motorcycles themselves.  Checking with Sherry she told me what she had going on during the last week or so of getting ready for a long road trip.  When she bought her latest motorcycle (lovingly called Jo), a 2013 Triumph America, it came with a removable windshield.  And that is exactly what she did....she removed it.  She thought about it and decided that before this trip she would attach the windshield and see what it was like.  So far, according to her, she loves it and plans on leaving it on for the duration of our Florida Coastal Ride.  She has purchased a new set of tires and brake pads and has had them installed.  Wow!   New tires, new brake pads, AND a windshield.  She is going to think she is on a brand new bike.  She is also having an oil change and a safety check.  Sherry's bike will be ready to roll.

On inspection my tires and brakes SEEM good and they SHOULD make it the entire trip.  I have said that before and wound up sitting in a dealership in Savannah, GA getting new tires put on.  Nevertheless, I will go with what I have.....yikes!  Before you think that I am being nuts both my tires and my brakes are reasonably new and are up for the task ahead.  I purchased oil and filter from the J&P Cycles Super Store in Ormond Beach, FL and changed the oil last weekend.  I also did a Don Bova Safety Check and all SEEMS to be ok.  Lastly, I got out my can of Original Bike Spirits and gave my bike a good cleaning.  By all accounts it looks like both of our motorcycles are ready and able to ride the coastal highways of Florida.

Several years ago I made a packing checklist.  It is a rather comprehensive and some would say it is kind of an overkill.  Still, I made the list with EVERYTHING that take with me on the bike.  An item will not get checked it off the list until it has been put into a bag and/or it has been put into/onto the motorcycle.  Sherry has also made a list.  Her list is not as ridiculous as mine and it is what most people would call a good, solid list compared to the insane list that I make.  This might be a personal thought but I do believe that a list is vital to a successful packing experience.  Granted, it is not the end of the world to forget something but it can be a serious inconvenience.  In 2020 it is reasonably easy to find sources for all kinds of things but it is SO MUCH better to have everything you need to begin with.  Still, my list is a bit, well, much!

A few days ago, about a week prior to our Departure Day, a tropical storm found its way into the southern Gulf of Mexico.  Tropical Storm Cristobal was actually Tropical Storm Amanda in the Pacific but crossed over Guatemala and became Cristobal as it hit the Atlantic side of things.  Sherry sent me a message saying that she could shift her days if I wanted to leave later.  Cristobal didn't appear to be a real threat as it was heading for Western Louisiana.  I wrote her back saying that the storm was going away from us.  I also said that it was summer in Florida so rain was pretty much a fact of life.  It wasn't a case of IF we would get rained on but rather it was WHEN and HOW MUCH we would get rained on.  As long as the rain didn't have a name assigned to it I was good to go on June 11th.  Sherry concurred and so, with all things remaining equal, we would Get Our Motors Runnin' nice and early on June 11.

Over the past few days leading up to Departure Day I have been keeping track of Sherry's progress.  Through emails, texts, phone, and Facebook postings I have seen that she is very, very excited about this upcoming trip.  Although she has several good runs under her belt this Florida Coast Ride will be

step up in time, distance, and endurance for her.  I am proud of her and her "intestinal fortitude".  As well as the above mentioned prepping her bike she then came face to face with the reality of packing for an 8 day motorcycle trip.  It can be a daunting task.  My first advise is ALWAYS this: taking a motorcycle road trip is not a fashion statement.  Pack what you will need and only what you will need.  At the end of the day you are going to look like you have been riding all day no matter what you are wearing.

My packing has gone pretty well.  The first thing I do is put my list out for me to keep referring to.  Then I pull out ALL the clothes that I will need for the whole trip and put them in piles by type.  I separate what I will need on the first day of the ride because that will not get packed at all.  I will also determine if some should go into my back pack for easy access.

  Sometimes when I stop for the night I will leave my "big" bag on the bike and only take toiletries, computer, and the next day's clothes into the hotel.  If I am doing that I will have those items all in the back pack and will leave the travel bag.  Most hotels are very accommodating and will allow me to park my bike very close to the entrance.  Since I am using the "Landfill Method of Motorcycle Packing" what I wear INTO the hotel will generally still be there in the room's trash can when I leave the next day.

So now I await the final move.  My bag and back pack are packed with everything except for the items I need up until the last minute....Lisa demands that I keep my deodorant out until the last minute.  One advantage I will have over Sherry is that when she leaves her house she will have to be totally packed.  When I leave I will have virtually nothing packed onto my bike.  We will be meeting in Yulee, FL and then we will be finishing the day right back at my house.  So my "first day" clothing will NOT be throw-away and I will not have to pack the bike until that night.  I will actually have one less day of "stuff" to pack on the bike than Sherry.

Packing for a motorcycle road trip can certainly be a challenge.  I have on occasion in the past, if I was visiting friends or relatives as part of the trip I would ship a "resupply" ahead.  By the time that I would retrieve my shipment I will have thrown enough away to make room.  I have had to pack for 14 days and I will admit to you that I was bulging at the seams for the first 4 or 5 days.  But as each day passed I would gain a little bit more breathing room.  Both Sherry and I have met this packing challenge head-on and in my opinion we were successful.

On Sunday Sherry took her "loaded" bike out for a test ride.  She gave me a phone video "tour" of her packing skills and I have to say I am VERY impressed.  She did great and she is even carrying snacks.  Apparently she will not have meals of Twinkies, Little Debbie's, and Coke like I will.

I am happy to tell you that on Tuesday June 9 I have jammed and pushed and squished and I was ready to load everything onto the bike.  Am I missing anything?  Probably!  But that is why God invented the Dreaded Walmart, Walgreens, 7/11, and the concept of riding commando.

We are ready.  All that is left to do is for Sherry to jump on her loaded Triumph America early in the morning of Thursday June 11, 2020 and for me to jump on my unloaded Suzuki Boulevard around noon.  The next thing you hear from me will be the wonders of our first day of riding.

If you haven't read Chapters One and/or Two I urge you to take the time now and catch up with all events leading to this adventure.  Please feel free to Comment, Share, and Like.  I look forward to hooking up with you again in Chapter Four.