So, this was my first long ride ever and I really had no idea what to expect. I had done my homework and gone over the bike as well as I know how to, planned my daily wardrobe and my budget, packed all my equipment carefully, I talked to many friends who have done this numerous times and I still felt ill-prepared. But off I went, down the highway to meet up with the rest of the pack. Their were 5 of us for the ride down and a 6th would join us in Gatlinburg. After topping off the tanks we got on the road and somewhere in Ohio the 3 back riders pulled off into a rest area and removed their rain gear since it wasn't raining, me and the lead rider stopped at the end of the entrance ramp to the highway. Seeing the other 3 coming out to the the road, I started my bike. But when I rolled on the throttle, I had nothing.... It would only go fast enough to allow me top pick my feet up. I shut it off, a prayer was said and miraculously, it was back at full song. After arriving in Gatlinburg, I called a friend who said he had heard of something called "limp mode" and it sounds like I may have unknowingly caused this myself in some weird combination of ignition twisting and button pushing frenzy I had gotten myself into on the side of the highway.
After a few more gas stops we got to Lexington and stopped for some chow. Back on the road, we were trying to outrun a fairly scary looking rain storm and we made it to Mount Vernon, Ky before we needed a top off and to slip into the rain gear. We rode for what seemed like a very long time in a steady but not heavy rain, another first for me. I've been caught in a rain shower or two around town but never experienced a 1000 lb motorcycle on the highway, in the rain, for a few hours straight. I did get some good information from the other riders and it was a total non-event. After the rains came the humidity. I have to say, my Nelson Rigg rain gear performed perfectly and is as good as keeping warmth (heat, sweat) in, as it is at keeping the rain out. For $53 I consider it a fantastic investment. As we rolled into Pigeon Forge the humidity really started to kick my butt.
Arriving in Gatlinburg was a big deal for me. A personal goal had been met, I had ridden like I never had before. New bike, long distance, on the highway, in the rain. A day of firsts to be sure... I had been told by everyone I talked to that I should be ready to feel like I got hit by a bus after a ride that long but I tell you, I felt great considering I had just spent the better part of 12 hours on a bike. Hot and sweaty was a small price to pay for the kind of day I'd just had.
We spent the next four days cruising through the mountains and having a great time. We went to Maggie Valley for the Thunder in the Smokies rally and had a blast there as well. We decided the trip home would be split into 2 rides, Gatlinburg to Dayton and Dayton to Detroit. It's a good thing we did that by the time we got to Dayton, we were all beat to death. We were bucking a 30+ mph crosswind all the way. The ride to Detroit was no smoother, same wind but a little warmer. I actually felt worse getting home than I did when I got to Tennessee.
Can't wait to go on another trip like that one. A great time.
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Topic: Detroit to Gatlinburg and back. My first long ride...ever. (Read 2637 times)