V11 pick up and ride from Indiana to Cali blog.

[Biglangster]

Howdy folks!

I was told by one of the members on here that I should make a little "blog" about my upcoming trip so here ya go!

My son is moving back to Indiana and I offered to go along on his road trip, meanwhile as his move was being planned I got ahold of an old friend about a bike he had for sale and that I had interest in picking up the bike and riding it back to California.  

The story on he bike:

The bike originally belonged to a dear old riding buddy and I even remember when he bought it "with a credit card" from Tipton Hardware, Moto Guzzi, and Red Wing Boots dealer. haha

We moved back to Cali in 2011 and he passed away shortly thereafter. A mutual friend bought the bike from his sister as a memento and has probably only put 1k miles on it over the last 10 years. Now it's my turn to take over the "memento". 

The trip back:

I plan on leaving Sept 14th from Northern Indiana down the 55 to hwy 36 thru Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, and into Colorado. Then I'll take the 70 to the 15 in Utah into Nevada, once I hit Cali I'll take 395 north to hwy 108 back home to Copperopolis. I plan on doing approx 500 miles a day and giving myself 6 days if needed to return.

If anyone has any cool camping spots or roadside attractions to check out along the way please let me know.

I'll try and do a daily update to this post.

Thanks, Langley

Edited September 9, 2022 by Biglangster
Posted pics

[KINDOY2]

Good luck..Do you normally ride long ride alot of back to back long rides? 500 per day is certainly  doable but it seems like a lot 5 days in a row on a new to you bike. Don't push yourself too hard, smell the roses..:-).  Have a safe and enjoyable trip!

[Biglangster]

12 minutes ago, KINDOY2 said:

Good luck..Do you normally ride long ride alot of back to back long rides? 500 per day is certainly  doable but it seems like a lot 5 days in a row on a new to you bike. Don't push yourself too hard, smell the roses..:-).  Have a safe and enjoyable trip!

I normally do 3-400, and I agree it's going to be a lot. I figure it's 8 hours in the saddle and I'm going to try and break it up as best I can.

 

[PJPR01]

That’s going to be a wonderful trip but I think your neck may protest after the first few hours…unless the riding position is more upright?  Does the bike have clipons or a more upright setup?

if you can swing it, try to get in as much of Colorado as you can off the interstate, the roads are much more fun than I-70 although that is a scenic ride as far as interstates go!

Taking any spare valve cover gaskets, tire plug kit or air compressor just in case?  Fresh set of plugs installed before leaving?

 

[Scud]

Ooohhh... I see a Black LeMans in your dropbox links. Well done. 

I notice the Hepco Becker racks in the pictures. Does the bike come with all three hard cases? Those could come in handy on a long trip.

I've found that a tank bag can give a little relief on a long ride - like a pillow on the tank.

One thing to consider is the age of the tires. You might be safer with a set of new shoes before you take off on that long trip.

Re the Utah to California route... Unless you really want to go to Las Vegas, it seems you have chosen a long route with a lot of Interstate. Consider going through central Nevada instead. I camped at Great Basin National Park once and loved it. From there it's less than 400 miles to Lee Vining (including the fabulous route 120 from Benton to 395 by Mono Lake). Depending on the route, you might need to carry a gallon of gas (ride 50 miles then top off the tank). Central Nevada would likely be very nice at that time - and almost certainly cooler than going through the Mojave desert.

[docc]

Thanks for sharing your plan and trip with us, @Biglangster! Some great advice, here, already.

I opened your pics in Dropbox, right clicked on the image for menu, and selected "Copy Image Link", paste into the reply box and, hey:

A very nice late model black LeMans!  

[LaGrasta]

So exciting, thanks for sharing and congrats on your new bike! I agree with the others, that's a lot of miles in one day, x5! I know myself couldn't or wouldn't do it, on any bike. Even in a car, any more than 6 hours and I'm drained.

Please bring precautions like valve cover gaskets, plugs, check tires date codes, etc.

Please be careful! Post throughout the trip, so your forum brothers won't worry too much!  God bless.

[Biglangster]

2 hours ago, docc said:

Thanks for sharing your plan and trip with us, @Biglangster! Some great advice, here, already.

I opened your pics in Dropbox, right clicked on the image for menu, and selected "Copy Image Link", paste into the reply box and, hey:

A very nice late model black LeMans!  

Yeah the forum is going to be a learning curve for me. Haha

I'm a telephone lineman, I can build you the internet, but I really don't try and use it. 🤣

[Biglangster]

1 hour ago, LaGrasta said:

So exciting, thanks for sharing and congrats on your new bike! I agree with the others, that's a lot of miles in one day, x5! I know myself couldn't or wouldn't do it, on any bike. Even in a car, any more than 6 hours and I'm drained.

Please bring precautions like valve cover gaskets, plugs, check tires date codes, etc.

Please be careful! Post throughout the trip, so your forum brothers won't worry too much!  God bless.

Yep, she has a fresh tune up and new tires.  Oh and a spare shift spring from Scud

[Biglangster]

2 hours ago, Scud said:

Ooohhh... I see a Black LeMans in your dropbox links. Well done. 

I notice the Hepco Becker racks in the pictures. Does the bike come with all three hard cases? Those could come in handy on a long trip.

I've found that a tank bag can give a little relief on a long ride - like a pillow on the tank.

One thing to consider is the age of the tires. You might be safer with a set of new shoes before you take off on that long trip.

Re the Utah to California route... Unless you really want to go to Las Vegas, it seems you have chosen a long route with a lot of Interstate. Consider going through central Nevada instead. I camped at Great Basin National Park once and loved it. From there it's less than 400 miles to Lee Vining (including the fabulous route 120 from Benton to 395 by Mono Lake). Depending on the route, you might need to carry a gallon of gas (ride 50 miles then top off the tank). Central Nevada would likely be very nice at that time - and almost certainly cooler than going through the Mojave desert.

The bike has the side boxes and I'm taking the top case from my Ducati. I also have a tank bag.

I may consider your route as well. 

[80CX100]

That sounds like a great adventure. Heartwarming to read the backstory on the bike, nice to hear it ended up in your caring hands.

Your bike is almost identical to mine, glad to hear you've got new tires on it. When I got mine the tires looked brand new, but the date code was 17 yrs old.

If you pack a couple of good relays in with that shift spring, you'll probably never need them, lol.

My experience with the 1064 cc engine FI engine is that the regular fibre valve cover gaskets will always eventually fail,,, usually at the worst time as I recently found out far away from home on my CalVin.

Subject to verification because I just checked quick to grab you a link, but these are the metal reinforced valve cover gaskets made by Valpolini, they eliminate a potential problem, especially on a road trip,fwiw, fyi. https://www.mgcycle.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=4634

Anxious to read your thoughts and impressions as you get to know your new bike.

Wishing you fair weather and a safe ride home.

Tks for sharing and taking us along for the ride.

[Kevin_T]

Let me ask a few questions here.

What age are you? I ask because it's important, a couple years ago the wife and went to California drove close to 900 miles a day for 3 days. Now at 66 the wife and I went to Colorado a little over 600 miles a day for 2 days and that took a toll. If your late 50's you can recover quickly. (That's on the K1600)

Do you have anything like a cramp buster? They are a poor substitute for cruise control, but if the wind coming off your fairing is hitting you in the helmet 4 days at 500 miles a day throw in the tension of throttle cable springs you could have tight neck and shoulder muscles.

You mentioned camping? I love camping it's what I live for, but there is a time and a place for it. If you're going to use 6 days to go cross country go for it. You'll probably make a lot of stops along the way. Limited gas tank range and re-hydrate should still be hot. Although you get a couple extra hours.

Your bike she's a beauty, above all have fun stay safe. 

[Biglangster]

6 hours ago, Kevin_T said:

Let me ask a few questions here.

What age are you? I ask because it's important, a couple years ago the wife and went to California drove close to 900 miles a day for 3 days. Now at 66 the wife and I went to Colorado a little over 600 miles a day for 2 days and that took a toll. If your late 50's you can recover quickly. (That's on the K1600)

Do you have anything like a cramp buster? They are a poor substitute for cruise control, but if the wind coming off your fairing is hitting you in the helmet 4 days at 500 miles a day throw in the tension of throttle cable springs you could have tight neck and shoulder muscles.

You mentioned camping? I love camping it's what I live for, but there is a time and a place for it. If you're going to use 6 days to go cross country go for it. You'll probably make a lot of stops along the way. Limited gas tank range and re-hydrate should still be hot. Although you get a couple extra hours.

Your bike she's a beauty, above all have fun stay safe. 

Hi Kevin, 

Im 47, so this may be my midlife crisis ride!  haha

Thanks for the input on the crampbuster, Ill see if I can get one before I depart. I'm an avid camper/ backpacker so sleeping under the stars is a must. As far as fuel I'm used to my Multistrada's horrible mileage and I carry an old white gas fuel bottle as a reserve.  

[Kevin_T]

At that age you can persevere through just about anything. Not sure if the cramp buster is the best way to go but taking some of that stress off your shoulders and arms can go a long way. It's just when doing trips like this driving day after day things you normally would ignore have a way of manifesting themselves. Clothing that rubs you the wrong way can become a boil. Pressure points in your helmet can become hot spots.

[paulnaz]

          You Know What You Must Do, Grasshopper......................................