Monday started out normally. I woke up, made some coffee, got Miranda and Laela out the door for school and then things were a little different.
I started by laminating a few maps and then finished up packing "Wheezy." My good friend Fred Gablick came by on his BMW R1150 and we got things together and got on the road at 11:00am. It was about three hours after I wanted to start but given the things that I needed to get accomplished, it all worked out for the best.
It was cloudy and overcast when we started, but that was a good omen because it allowed me to wear my glasses for the majority of the day rather than having to wear my sunglasses. It was a little chilly, but my gear kept me plenty warm. We hopped on 161 and headed west. We spent the next couple of hours winding through Ohio and eventually made our way into Indiana and made our first fuel stop at 110 miles. Wheezy isn't a big fan of going much over 100 miles before he needs to dip into his reserve. Fuel stops are also a great chance for a cup of coffee and to stretch your legs for a bit. We got moving again and made our way towards Indianapolis. Our route was to take us up over the Indianapolis outer belt but I missed our turn and we ended up going towards downtown. It took me about 15 minutes to realize that we were going the wrong way and by the time I figured it out it was getting to be about 4:00. Fred had to join a conference call for work at 4:00 so after another quick fuel stop, we parted ways.
I headed back the way I came and corrected my mistake. All told it was about a 35 mile detour. It also briefly had me on the Interstate and made me REALLY glad that I chose non-interstates to travel on. It's so much more peaceful on the "Blue Highways." Western Indiana and eastern Illinois are paved with beautiful rolling highways and were often lined with trees. That was especially nice in the late afternoon as the sun started to set. I only had to wear my sunglasses for about an hour today. I made it across the Indiana/Illinois border and decided that it was time to look for a hotel. The problem with taking "the roads less traveled" is that it is longer between areas that are populated enough to need hotels. I had to ride about an hour after dark fell which I didn't want to do, but my late start today kind of necessitated it. I finally rode in to a Best Western in Rantoul, IL and parked for the night. I unloaded all of my gear, rode over to the gas station on the corner and prepped for tomorrow.
The bike held up great and was really comfortable. Special thanks to Fred for all of the gear that he loaned me for the trip and for coming with me as far as Indianapolis. Also thanks to Nick Garcia at Iron Pony for reminding me about some items that I hadn't thought of checking before I left (most importantly my tires).
I titled this entry as "Invigorating" because that's exactly how I feel. My energy level jumped as soon as I set off and hasn't let up yet. I'm actually too wound up to sleep right now; hence, my late blogging. I'm looking forward to putting more miles behind me tomorrow and can only hope that it goes as well as today did.
Link to the photo album on Facebook: http://bit.ly/9ngPAV
