Saddling Up - Part 1

Well... 3 more days to go. Today I've made sure that my steed got a good makeover. Drained and filled both brake lines, radiator and engine oil with new fluid. Oiled all throttle, brake and clutch lines.

I had a brand new front tire sitting around in the garage and decided to get it installed. I have to remind myself to go slow for the first leg of the journey until the tire has broken in a little bit. Otherwise my trip will be short (Very short).

Tomorrow i'll install all the luggage, fill her up with gas and she should be all ready to go. I'll post an update and pics after I get her saddled up.

I'm starting to feel a little nervous now. That little voice at the back of my head keeps reminding me that i'm absolutely nuts! Somebody at church today suggested that I head over to Harley Davidson and rent a cruiser for this trip... what really surprised me was that I actually considered it!... for like 3 minutes. No No... I am resolved to do this on a sportbike. I ain't going to be defeated before I even start.

On another note, thanks to Susan C., I have a suggestion for a food stop at the end of my first leg in San Antonio. Looks like it's going to be Henry's Puffy Tacos. I keep hearing about this joint. Finally I'll get to see what the hype is all about. I don't know why, but somehow taco bell's beef chalupas keep popping into my head. If it turns out to be just that, I'll be sorely disappointed.

The Trusty Steed

Well this is the trusty steed that will be carrying me around this time round.

Comfortable? Absolutely NOT!!!

Fun? Totally !!

Some Stats:

Make / Model : K5 Suzuki GSXR1000

Engine Type : In-Line four, four stroke

Compression : 12.5 :1

Fuel System : Injection

Fuel Control : DOHC

Cooling : Liquid

Gearbox : 6 - speed

Power (crank) : 178 hp @ 11,000 rpm

In preparation for this trip, I had a SCORPIO alarm system put in which will make a huge sound and lots of flashing lights should anyone come within 8 feet. Remote alarm also lets me know immediately if the alarm is triggered in my absence.

Am I Nuts !?!!???

As far as I can remember, I've always been an adrenalin junkie. I love thriving on the rush that one can only get by throwing one's self off a plane or train or anything else that a sane person should never ever ever themselves off. But more than the experience of putting my body in stressful situations, I really get a high on God's creation that is nature. Some of the most powerful moments that have moved me to tears involve being far far away from the hustle and bustle of urban sprawl. Staring at the stars which adorn the immense night sky, or at the mountains and seas which that only the hands of a master artist could have ever conceived. For it is those times that I suddenly feel utterly tiny in the face of such infinite beauty.

Riding a motorcycle has been a recent passion of mine. It seems though that I arrived little late to the game. Stupidity with how I have treated my own body and taking it for granted over the years has left me with painful aches in my lower back. Alas my riding days are numbered. But i wasn't content to hobble out the passion with a broken back, I figure I'd go out strong.

Inspiration came to me via (quite oddly enough) Obi Wan himeslf! Ewan McGregor & Charlie Boorman's LONG WAY DOWN planted the seeds in my mind years back. What better to enjoy God's nature by riding through it. Riding is quite unlike driving in an AC car. On a bike, you are fully immersed in whatever you ride through. You feel it, smell it, live it.....

On Tuesday (8/3/2010). I'll be taking what will probably be my last bike ride (for a while at least) from the southern US in Texas, up to the midwest, back again, and everywhere in between. Hopefully I will be meeting some nice people along the way, perhaps sample the local food, making friends, catching up with old ones and more importantly, enjoying God.

If there are prayer requests, they would be 1) Safety on the road and 2) Renewal in God.

Thank you. And God Bless.

Laus Theo!