long distance riding

[wheatonFJR]

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Staintune, I saw your post right away and had my own reaction, but kept it to myself. I don't like posts that don't offer anything constructive, and my reaction was negative. But others are working all around what I thought, without quite saying it. So I will:

In the nicest way I know how to put it, I think this trip is WAY ill-advised. Nothing but slabs for eight days, not much great scenery on the way (so I gather from other posters), no time to sightsee or follow any impulses along the way (the world's biggest ball of string, ten miles?), no allowance for the kinds of aches and pains or even mechanical issues that can cause unplanned breaks, and it sounds like no time at your destination to enjoy it. Already time to turn around and head back! Instead, fly to Rapid City and relax. Or take a ride on your FJR to some of the great roads in the Southeast and explore them in a series of MUCH lower-mileage days.

OK, Im really sorry to crap on your plans like this, honest, but I bet some others are thinking the same thing too. If you do go, though, I hope you can be flexible if you run into these kinds of things along the way. And seriously hope you enjoy your vacation, however you take it.

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Very nicely put...wise words.

If you had a lot more time...I would say go for it...wander the 2 laners, relax, have fun. Pushing it on the slab with the wife is not likely to engender great memories...other than "what were we thinking?" or "Let's NEVER do that again."

I will travel by myself 4-500 mile days on an extended road trip...and occasionally higher mileage when I have to get somewhere with limited vacation time for the trip. When I have taken trips with wifey for the weekend, I find that 300 miles can be a plenty long day, and I'm ready for a rest as well.

BTW, if you've done all this kind of travelling before and like it and all setup for it...then go for it. However, if you're asking advice, then I'd think that maybe you haven't done this before.

Some people have and do ride as a couple 2-up for 500 mile days successfully having fun. I know Bluebullet and wifey Bullet are doing that this summer with their tow behind camper out west to BC. But THEY are hardcore. I know I couldn't do that with wifey on the back...atleast not so that she'd ever want to get on the bike again.

 

[dcarver]

pretty solid advice already offered up.

For me, not having wiggle room on the bike precludes long days two up..

 

[Ricky Bobby]

The mind can only absorb...as much as the arse can endure.

That is a whole lot of saddle time.

Just sayin'

 

[Geezer]

I'll put a more positive spin on the idea. I like it and as long as your wife is up to it I'd say go. Keep in mind that a ride like that with someone along will either strengthen your relationship or show you where the cracks are.

 

[moto]

Long trip with what sound like no time to enjoy. My wife loves to ride on the back -- but, on such a long trip (and no time) ride up together and fly her back.

If you do ride into hot weather -- don't be tempted to take off the jackets. The hot air will only dry the moisture off your skin and you will dehydrate quickly.

Pack simply.

Listen to her. This is not the time to compromise on a long trip like this .

Enjoy

 

[pmspaul]

I have a positive outlook on this too. I will assume since you're considering doing a ride this big, that you and your wife like to ride. You guys are comfortable on the bike, have done some riding together, have the bike set up to suit you with intercom, radio, comfy seat, etc. My wife and I like to ride and she's done as much as 1500mi in 36hrs with me.

Someone else mentioned it, get up, ride, then eat breakfast. We break the day into riding about 4 tanks of gas between big meals (and the one before breakfast). Pit stops periodically for snacks, bathroom, stretch, sight see, etc. We knock out 800 miles pretty painlessly that way.

It's definitely not a ride that most pillions (and some riders) want to do. But my wife and I often enjoy the journey as much as the destination. Even if it's a slab haul, it's still time spent together instead of at work. We usually get an e-book to listen to as well, makes the miles disappear.

Only you and your wife know if it's for you. It's definitely doable, but if you guys aren't capable of riding at least 600-800 mile days, then I might rethink it. You need that "just in case" wiggle room in reserve.

Best wishes.

-Paul

 

[allrider]

Tons of great advice from everyone. Here's my 2cents:

Don't forget the Anti-monkey but powder, it helps. I put it in my shoes to keep my feet dry as well.

Evaporation cooling vests are great if it's going to be hot.

After riding with the Wife for 6 days this Summer we learned lots of new things about each others limits... First thing she needed to understand was that there is not much room for a lot of (her)stuff. I gave her a saddle bag liner and said that's all you get. I did that weeks ahead of time so she could actually come to terms with it.

Other things we learned are, she also doesn't like days over 250 miles and that's on secondary roads like the BRP. She'll tolerate a long day or two as long as they are not back to back. We also decided next long distance trip I'll ride out and cover long distance, she'll fly out and meet me and maybe fly home as well. I get some solo saddle time and it's all good.

Just remember: A Happy Wife is a Happy life.

 

[SacramentoMike]

After riding with the Wife for 6 days this Summer we learned lots of new things about each others limits...

30 years of marriage teaches you that, too.

 

[Yambone]

Hi guys Iam planing to ride this year to rapid city SD.and wife is coming with me. Time 8 days for the trip .leaving Orlando fl. to Rapid City SD. and back. need some imput from the experts THank

Yea lots of riding two up.Next five days in a row solo 1754 miles in 4.5 days. next Interstate most of it.next waether is n problem. age 58 years ,185 lbs ,5.9 height. Anything else that you need

From a post you had a while back, said you had 94,000 miles on your 2003, so you know the drill! You should have travelling dialed in. It's 2,000 miles of interstate Orlando to Rapid City.

An 8-day time doesn't allow much playing around time, so enjoy the ride. Orlando--Chattanooga--St Louis--Sioux Falls--Rapid City. Reverse route home. 500 miles per day is a fairly easy interstate ride, so you don't have to really rush through rest stops. You'd have a few hours at each city, also. Just roll with it!

Some nice roads in north Arkansas or over toward North Carolina, but you'd need to add a day or two more to enjoy some off-interstate roads.

 

[101stpathfinder]

pretty solid advice already offered up.

For me, not having wiggle room on the bike precludes long days two up..

My wife and I did a 1200 mile ride in 20 hours. I was stunned by her performance on a boring slab ride

down I-10 to Houston. For me, the bike was much more comfortable 2 up than what I imagined it would

be. We communicated by using the "Spell" feature on my GPS. When I thought things were going "Too well"

I simply made sure I ran out of fuel... I am not sure which loosened the muscles up more- the pushing the

bike OR the heat from her stare as she followed me carrying the helmets! :lol:

Either way, we enjoyed the ride. We still smile and laugh when we recall the memories. Ride through some

sunrises and sunsets together and it may start or finish the day off right!

This fall we will do the Smokies, hopefully with communication system of some sort- at a much slower

pace. That could be your fail-safe plan if the ride's pace is not feeling good. Either way- have fun! Some

times the "Mishaps" provide the best laughs............ much later.

 

[Auburn]

We ride about 90% of the time two up.

Since you are traveling during the heat of the year, we have found the LD Comfort gear under the riding gear has amde the ride much more comfortable than anything else we have found. As you can soak it and let it evaporate and cool you off. It is very effective and doesn't feel like a diaper that cooling vest can feel like. Get dri-fit underwear and socks, they wick the moisture from teh skin and help prevent any chaffing.

Personally, we could not do that many slab miles and get any enjoyment out of it. We will do 500 mile days routinely, but they are on twisty secondary roads with plenty of scenery. I give her the camera to take pictures as we are moving. We don't stop a lot between gas stops, unless it is really hot - 100+ F. Just our style.

We have the intercom, first it was a Starcomm, we found it to have limitations, so we upgraded to a J&M. That has helped the enjoyment and communication significantly for us. We also got custom ear plugs made with speakers built in by BigEar. Absolute must in my opinion, music sounds like a concert going on in your helmet. The J&M has a better mic system which helped the communications.

I can't understate it enough how important having the bike set up properly. That means good after market suspension set up properly, aftermarket seats for comfort. We have GP Susupension and Russell Day Long seats. We did change our windscreen to a VStream which helped the buffeting for her.

You will be pushing your and the bikes limits, and all of these will make for less fatigue and more enjoyment. As others have said, her happiness will directly affect yours.

Eah year we do a 10 day trip of about 4-6,000 miles 2 up. Last year we did a 4500 mile trip in 10 days pulling a trailer with the FJR almost all of it on secondary twisty roads. We started with the trailer 2 years ago, because it allows us to stop where and when we want for the night. It has made the trip more of an adventure and enjoyable for us. Before we had the trailer we found that we were racing from motel to motel (We set up the reservations in advance as some areas can be a challenge to get) and had to remain on a time schedule. It was not fun.

Now we will go until we are tired for the day, stop and set up camp for the night. Some days are 200 miles, others are 800 miles. We just ride how we feel for the day. The trailer also let's us adjust for bad weather and pick a different direction to avoid rain.

As some have suggested, I would add 3-4 days so you can take "the road less traveled" if you are able to add some time.

Sounds like the start of a great adventure. Enjoy!

 

[timk]

Don't do it! Wwe went from a full tourer to the FJR, stayed late at a meet, and had to spend 16 hrs in the saddle to get home.Mama was not happy.400 miles is tops now.

 

[FJRMGM]

lots of experienced folks on this site (including me) are advising against taking the spouse and yourself on a forced-march high mileage, super-slab torture trip.

But hey, in the end its your life, and if you decide to jump on it, let us know how it turns out for the two of you.

 

[DABRIT]

Here are some thoughts from the other half.

 

I have my own bike for day trips but I love going two up on longer trips and letting my husband do the hard work. I agree that the custom seat is a must if you are going to go over 300 miles a day consistently. Also, I think a back rest or top box is critical otherwise you get tired a lot quicker and if the passenger is not ready for the quick acceleration when passing or getting up to speed when merging on the freeway. The top box is nice because I can bring more stuff on the trip, you know us girls we always need twice the space! :yahoo: .

 

Although we had some hand signals pre-communicator days, we enjoy the ride a lot more now that we have the Scala Rider 2 set up, mainly for telling him not to go so fast (or go faster) and when I want to stop and take photo's.

 

For me 400-450 is probably tops.

 

I like to do the more detailed route planning, especially choosing the area where we will stay the night. Guys tend to be happy with any roadside hotel but us girls like a place with more character with some sights around the hotel that we can walk to and stretch our legs.

 

I have a small still camera and a Kodak Playsport waterproof HD video camera in my pockets so I keep pretty busy recording the ride each day. It's really fun to watch the videos or flip through the pics months after the ride -- brings back all the memories.

 

We are planning a six day trip this fall with a couple of shorter days built in so we can relax and sight see. And of course seeking out that special restaurant each day for lunch or dinner is always fun.

 

The FJR is really great and I feel very involved as a passenger. We had a Gold Wing for a weekend last year and it was extremely comfortable but I did not feel as involved in the ride as I do with the FJR.

Di

Mrs DABRIT