As tradition demands, one of the PacNorWet LD riders called a RTE for January 1st on the Oregon Coast at Mo's, (famous clam chowder restaurant, if you're not in the know.)
Mo's We went to the original Newport location this year.
Since NYE required me to spend the night at the SO's, I packed the necessary items, whipped up a batch of green chili fritatta w/shrimp for NYE dinner and headed across town in dark and rain on the Feejer to cook dinner for a small group and have a fun new year's eve celebration with friends. That went off w/o a hitch and fun was had, champagne was imbibed and fireworks were viewed.
Thursday morning - Up at 0700 to be greeted with dark and rain, much like the night before, only heavier rain and more wind. Forecast is for temps in the 45-50F range, rain all day and winds of 30-50 mph with gusting above that, increasing to 70 mph later in the afternoon on the coast. Oh well, it doesn't say "worlds toughest riders" on the plate backer because I only ride on sunny days. At least the di-hydrogen monoxide isn't solid and it's relatively warm.
I gear up and head out to the local meeting place and arrive a few minutes before 0800. As I'm gassing up, my friend Ken Morton shows up on his new V-Strom, (a.k.a. Black Betty), looking sharp in it's matte black simplicity. Shortly after we're fueled up our fellow adventurer Ted T. arrives with his V-Strom and tops off, then we have a short planning session and decide that the weather is not conducive to the slightly longer, twistier route I had planned and opt for brekkie followed by a slog down I-5 from Portland to the Hwy 34 interchange, then through Corvallis and direct to the coast on Hwy 20. About 140 miles to Mo's from where we were.
Mr. Wind is out in force. His twin sons, the Cross Winds, are also about, but riding South on the interstate we are pushing directly into Mr. Wind and the tire spray combined with the constant wind/rain is pushing visibility down to 1/4 mile or so. The standing water on the road and steady rain combine for tire spray of epic proportions. I run the Feejer's screen all the way up for the first time in a looong while and settle in behind the Givi trying to stay relatively dry and warm. Despite the warm temps, I turn the Heat-Troller on just a hair to the "not cold" setting. The rain is making the perceived temp a bit lower than what the thermometers we pass say.
As we take the exit for Hwy 34 and head West, the side wind is strong enough that all three bikes are in a constant lean, save for the moments when something blocks the wind briefly and we snap upright, then back into the lean. The rain has lessened a bit, or so it seems with the reduction in traffic and cross wind giving us much better visibility. We skirt Corvallis, (home of the Beavers), and get away from civilization enough that the trees provide a little relief from the winds, but the rain becomes stronger as we get closer to the coast. Crossing the last bit of the coast range mountains the wind significantly picks up for the last 20 miles or so to Newport.
Coming into Newport we are greeted with more wind, constant heavy rain and not much of an ocean view. We cut through some side streets down to Bay Ave. and ride along the bay, (protected from much of the wind), passing fresh seafood stores, restaurants and tourist attractions until we come to Mo's and find easy parking. Two bikes are already present, a FJR and a older Connie.
Walking into Mo's we trail water like god making new streams, shuck wet jackets, gloves & helmets onto a table and greet Roger VanSanten and Bob Pappalardo. Bob made the call, coming from Winston, OR and Roger rode in from near Salem. We sit down and immediately order coffee and chowder and catch up and share ride stories from the morning. Shortly the staff is bringing out water control tools to mop up the lake forming under our gear. Then Ken Hatten arrives and becomes the sixth and final member of this years RTE attendees.
All except Roger, (who ordered a burger), enjoy the always excellent chowder, some yummy garlic, cheese bread and share an order of fries along with our coffee. A couple go for the desert offerings and we share typical rider stories and remember the previous year's RTE where it was clear and cold, but turn out was 25-30 riders. Eventually Mo's starts to fill up and we opt to clear our gear table by departing so others can enjoy the warmth and culinary delights of Mo's. Taking off wet gear always feels better than putting wet gear on, but shortly we are outside standing under the awning for the last bits.
I ride down the street a couple of blocks and score some fresh dungeness crab to fulfill requests from the previous night, then with my wallet lightened and saddlebag full of crab, I re-join the others. No discussion is required and we head back inland on Hwy 34, the ever present rain maintaining it's steady, wind beaten patter on the road, us and everything else. Often twin rivers run in the ruts and others cross the road with water everywhere. Some storm debris on the road in places, but not bad enough to affect traction.
The ride back to I-5 is uneventful. Conditions pretty much the same the entire ride, though a bit more wind in the afternoon. A brief gas stop in Philomath where the Chevron was closed, (and we then remembered they were closed last year too on new year's day), but the Shell was open, and we made the quick run back to the interstate. We made pretty good time running back North on I-5 until getting to Salem. Having Mr. Wind's cute daughter Tailwind riding pillion didn't hurt, but was far less enjoyable in the rain.
Roger waved as he exited the Five just as we entered the outskirts of Salem. Then, just after entering Salem proper, traffic came to a halt on the freeway and shortly we heard a multitude of sirens. Several police cars, followed by ever increasing sizes of fire trucks then passed us for an un-seen, but evidently large accident up ahead. After a short rider meeting, we rode up the shoulder 100 yards and did a U, riding up the on ramp shoulder and getting to the city streets to detour around the accident, returning to the freeway at Market street, (more or less the center of Salem for the non-locals). Clear riding after that as we headed North to Portland where I split off first and the others continued on to their homes in Portland and Vancouver, WA.
I delivered the crab, then rode the last 20 miles home to Oregon City. By the time I got home I was pretty much soaked to the skin. My left foot and back were still dry, and I was generally not cold thanks to the Gerbing jacket liner, but wicking and wind driven rain had combined to defeat most of my gear. I also learned that beyond the low speed stumble and idle issues I'd been having on my 90k mile FJR, I now had white steam coming from the exhaust as well. Looks like my next project will be swapping the new to me low mileage '05 motor for the worn out original one. Sooner, rather than later, me thinks.
Total miles for the day: 280. About 6 hours of riding. It was good to get out and put some miles on. I enjoyed the ride, the friends and the chowder. All the more so for waking up with 2" of fresh snow in the driveway this morning.
Only a few pics due to the rain. I snapped these at the gas stop on the way home.
Getting gas.
Ken M. standing in the rain.
The spray maker.
Wet, wet, wet.
Happy New Year to all.
Mo's We went to the original Newport location this year.
Since NYE required me to spend the night at the SO's, I packed the necessary items, whipped up a batch of green chili fritatta w/shrimp for NYE dinner and headed across town in dark and rain on the Feejer to cook dinner for a small group and have a fun new year's eve celebration with friends. That went off w/o a hitch and fun was had, champagne was imbibed and fireworks were viewed.
Thursday morning - Up at 0700 to be greeted with dark and rain, much like the night before, only heavier rain and more wind. Forecast is for temps in the 45-50F range, rain all day and winds of 30-50 mph with gusting above that, increasing to 70 mph later in the afternoon on the coast. Oh well, it doesn't say "worlds toughest riders" on the plate backer because I only ride on sunny days. At least the di-hydrogen monoxide isn't solid and it's relatively warm.
I gear up and head out to the local meeting place and arrive a few minutes before 0800. As I'm gassing up, my friend Ken Morton shows up on his new V-Strom, (a.k.a. Black Betty), looking sharp in it's matte black simplicity. Shortly after we're fueled up our fellow adventurer Ted T. arrives with his V-Strom and tops off, then we have a short planning session and decide that the weather is not conducive to the slightly longer, twistier route I had planned and opt for brekkie followed by a slog down I-5 from Portland to the Hwy 34 interchange, then through Corvallis and direct to the coast on Hwy 20. About 140 miles to Mo's from where we were.
Mr. Wind is out in force. His twin sons, the Cross Winds, are also about, but riding South on the interstate we are pushing directly into Mr. Wind and the tire spray combined with the constant wind/rain is pushing visibility down to 1/4 mile or so. The standing water on the road and steady rain combine for tire spray of epic proportions. I run the Feejer's screen all the way up for the first time in a looong while and settle in behind the Givi trying to stay relatively dry and warm. Despite the warm temps, I turn the Heat-Troller on just a hair to the "not cold" setting. The rain is making the perceived temp a bit lower than what the thermometers we pass say.
As we take the exit for Hwy 34 and head West, the side wind is strong enough that all three bikes are in a constant lean, save for the moments when something blocks the wind briefly and we snap upright, then back into the lean. The rain has lessened a bit, or so it seems with the reduction in traffic and cross wind giving us much better visibility. We skirt Corvallis, (home of the Beavers), and get away from civilization enough that the trees provide a little relief from the winds, but the rain becomes stronger as we get closer to the coast. Crossing the last bit of the coast range mountains the wind significantly picks up for the last 20 miles or so to Newport.
Coming into Newport we are greeted with more wind, constant heavy rain and not much of an ocean view. We cut through some side streets down to Bay Ave. and ride along the bay, (protected from much of the wind), passing fresh seafood stores, restaurants and tourist attractions until we come to Mo's and find easy parking. Two bikes are already present, a FJR and a older Connie.
Walking into Mo's we trail water like god making new streams, shuck wet jackets, gloves & helmets onto a table and greet Roger VanSanten and Bob Pappalardo. Bob made the call, coming from Winston, OR and Roger rode in from near Salem. We sit down and immediately order coffee and chowder and catch up and share ride stories from the morning. Shortly the staff is bringing out water control tools to mop up the lake forming under our gear. Then Ken Hatten arrives and becomes the sixth and final member of this years RTE attendees.
All except Roger, (who ordered a burger), enjoy the always excellent chowder, some yummy garlic, cheese bread and share an order of fries along with our coffee. A couple go for the desert offerings and we share typical rider stories and remember the previous year's RTE where it was clear and cold, but turn out was 25-30 riders. Eventually Mo's starts to fill up and we opt to clear our gear table by departing so others can enjoy the warmth and culinary delights of Mo's. Taking off wet gear always feels better than putting wet gear on, but shortly we are outside standing under the awning for the last bits.
I ride down the street a couple of blocks and score some fresh dungeness crab to fulfill requests from the previous night, then with my wallet lightened and saddlebag full of crab, I re-join the others. No discussion is required and we head back inland on Hwy 34, the ever present rain maintaining it's steady, wind beaten patter on the road, us and everything else. Often twin rivers run in the ruts and others cross the road with water everywhere. Some storm debris on the road in places, but not bad enough to affect traction.
The ride back to I-5 is uneventful. Conditions pretty much the same the entire ride, though a bit more wind in the afternoon. A brief gas stop in Philomath where the Chevron was closed, (and we then remembered they were closed last year too on new year's day), but the Shell was open, and we made the quick run back to the interstate. We made pretty good time running back North on I-5 until getting to Salem. Having Mr. Wind's cute daughter Tailwind riding pillion didn't hurt, but was far less enjoyable in the rain.
Roger waved as he exited the Five just as we entered the outskirts of Salem. Then, just after entering Salem proper, traffic came to a halt on the freeway and shortly we heard a multitude of sirens. Several police cars, followed by ever increasing sizes of fire trucks then passed us for an un-seen, but evidently large accident up ahead. After a short rider meeting, we rode up the shoulder 100 yards and did a U, riding up the on ramp shoulder and getting to the city streets to detour around the accident, returning to the freeway at Market street, (more or less the center of Salem for the non-locals). Clear riding after that as we headed North to Portland where I split off first and the others continued on to their homes in Portland and Vancouver, WA.
I delivered the crab, then rode the last 20 miles home to Oregon City. By the time I got home I was pretty much soaked to the skin. My left foot and back were still dry, and I was generally not cold thanks to the Gerbing jacket liner, but wicking and wind driven rain had combined to defeat most of my gear. I also learned that beyond the low speed stumble and idle issues I'd been having on my 90k mile FJR, I now had white steam coming from the exhaust as well. Looks like my next project will be swapping the new to me low mileage '05 motor for the worn out original one. Sooner, rather than later, me thinks.
Total miles for the day: 280. About 6 hours of riding. It was good to get out and put some miles on. I enjoyed the ride, the friends and the chowder. All the more so for waking up with 2" of fresh snow in the driveway this morning.
Only a few pics due to the rain. I snapped these at the gas stop on the way home.
Getting gas.
Ken M. standing in the rain.
The spray maker.
Wet, wet, wet.
Happy New Year to all.
.. Seriously though, your write-ups put mine to shame. I'm going to have to try harder :lol: 
