Miss Behavin' across America

**RDJ** · 5th October 2009, 17:24

"A short report on a medium ride"

The plan was actually simple.

Pick up Miss Behavin' in Los Angeles.

Ride to Paris Landing, Tennessee for the 10th Boss Hoss rally - and meet other V8 riders.

Take a side trip to Deal's Gap, North Carolina and ride the Dragon - and stay upright.

Ride through to the east coast and see the Atlantic - and go for a swim.

Turn around and take the northen route to Street Vibrations at Reno, Nevada - and meet other V8 riders there.

Then ride south back to LA, drop the bike off, and fly back to work.

That was the plan.

***

Arriving jet lagged made the first day's mileage relatively short - 286, to Kingman in Arizona. Most remaining days were 550-800 miles except when 'parked' at Paris, Reno and finally LA.

The next day was great weather and a nice ride to Santa Rosa, New Mexico - although the forecast after that, not so good.

And the next day it started to rain 30 minutes out of Santa Rosa, and it kept raining. It rained, in fact, for most of that day's ride... and the next, and the next, and the next. But no worries! Rain gear on, and so we rode across New Mexico, across Oklahoma, across Arkansas, and into Tennessee.

Miss B got a little wet, as did I. She lost her speedo, 3 out of 5 front lights, 1 out of 2 rear lights, and the GPS (a Garmin Nuvi) but we rode on. She never let me down. Not really weather for taking pictures... until we got to Deal's Gap. Where we happily rode the Dragon, both ways. That was FUN.

And in fact it stopped raining that morning for long enough to get some pictures... but the rain gear stayed on that day, and the next 2 days, from Robbinsville and the Cherohala Skyway to Paris Landing and the rally.

**RDJ** · 5th October 2009, 17:26

Because of the rain, I was actually ahead of schedule to arrive in Paris, as rain kept the side trips to a minimum; so we dried out in Nashville for an afternoon and a night, before riding up to Paris Landing the next day. Nashville was an interesting city, even in the rain.

The rally was great. Terrific to meet up with all the people there - and the riding around the area is scenic and easy. Thanks to Mountain Boss Hoss mechanics who replaced the front tire, speedo sensor, and light bulbs, and got Miss B ready for the next leg.

And a highllight was to meet up with Brian Ford and his lady, all the way from his dealership in Boss Hoss Christchurch. See you "at home" next time Brian!

An early Sunday start from Paris Landing for the 929 miles to Cape Fear country and the Atlantic. Weather leaving Paris was OK until Nashville, then rain again. All through the Appalachians until just short of Raleigh. At that, I was a lot better off than the folk in Georgia / Atlanta, for whom flooding was very bad. I'd originally intended to go south to the coast at Savannah or Charleston but in the event did not go much south of Wilmington; just as well given what the weather did to the roads in the South.

After a very wet run out of Tennessee, great weather and warm sun greeted us for the last couple of hours to the coast on Monday morning.

As Miss B does not have knobblies on she did not get to see the sea; she had to stay behind the sand dune at Access Point 18. I get to swim in the Atlantic, and fortunately for readers, no pictures of that event!

Nice accommodation beachside, but we have to turn around and head north... and so we leave the East coast 1300 hours on the Monday.

**RDJ** · 5th October 2009, 17:27

Crossing the Appalachians again on the Monday afternoon and evening was a challenge. Rain was heavy, visibility poor, and traffic dense - in both senses of the word. I rode on the right, mostly at 45 or 50 - faster than that I was outriding the visible road ahead.

Up early the next day for the run northwest; Tennessee, Kentucky, Nebraska, Wyoming etc. Seeing the St Louis arch up close as I rode the bike past it was an event best remembered not through a viewfinder I thought at the time (and still think). The rain gear came off halfway through Kentucky.

Now if one owns a bike called Miss Behavin', one really cannot complain if she misbehaves... and running across Wyoming she developed an acute circulatory problem, necessitating a diagnostic laparoscopy at the side of the road. The pic was taken post-op; the problem was the fuel pump. This was the only mechanical problem we had in ~7,500 miles; and since I'd packed fully 8lb of surgical implements, at least they got used!

Thanks to the gent on the red Ninja who stopped to see if he could help.

About 2 hours lost at the side of the road but Miss B and I were in no real hurry. The sun was warm, and we refueled at a truck stop before continuing westward.

Was originally planning going the southerly-northern route to Colorado but the weather started to get nasty again and although the fuel pump seemed to be OK, I decided to stay north, especially as the forecast for the south was much worse. Nearly froze even in winter gloves and layers of gear leaving Laramie early the next morning... snow in the passes, and 80 miles of heavy rain.

But all that was behind us once we rode through Salt Lake, and despite slower average speeds the last couple of days we made it to the Bonneville Salt Flats before dusk. Bert Munro's ghost deserved a visit, and walking the flats in the early evening was memorable.

**RDJ** · 5th October 2009, 17:29

Next the final westward leg through Utah and into Nevada. Terrific country for a visitor to appreciate - and yes, gotta ride the distance to see it, but on a V8 bike with 11 gallons of gas on board, and running at a shade over 2000 rpm in second gear and doing 75 mph, Miss B covers a lot of territory in a day.

Reno was also fun. Great to meet the V8 people who rode in from the San Francisco / Sacramento areas! Miss B was easy to find in the Eldorado parking lot...

And after Reno on Saturday night it was another early Sunday start for the last run, back south. And back home for Miss B, booking some TLC for her at California Boss Hoss before she gets put away for a few months.

**RDJ** · 5th October 2009, 17:30

What we used:
4 quarts oil
3 running light bulbs
2 indicator light bulbs
1 Garmin Nuvi (which revived once dry)
1 front tire

What needs replacing / repairing:
Brake pads
Front fender
Alternator belt
Fuel pump

Overall - bike ran very well indeed and made for a great ride.

Total mileage (Speedo and GPS / MapQuest): 7,483 (~12,000 km).

Back home for Miss B... She was the dirtiest bike I saw in California!