Unpacking Your Life

The question at hand, was my adventure a success or a failure? On one hand, I was able to ride 1800 miles in 2 days, through all different types of weather and was able to come out without physical harm to myself or anyone else. How many people can drive in a call 1800 miles in 2 days? However the objective wasn’t obtained, or was it?

What was the real point of the trip? Well I was supposed to embark on an adventure from Texas, to Alaska. Ride the Haul Road to Dead horse, Alaska. Then turn around and head to Key West, Florida. Then head home. I wanted to ride North America coast to coast. This was my objective and what my plan was. Obviously God had other plans for me. When you are riding along on a bike (especially with a full face helmet) you have a great opportunity to yell and scream all you want and no one can really hear you. Let’s just say there was a great deal of yelling and screaming going on, but I kept asking why.

Let’s go back to the beginning. I was slated to leave on Saturday morning. Well due to  few issues, I was delayed until Sunday morning, so I was already having to adjust the route. At the time I was frustrated, but part of being an adventurer is that you have to learn to go with the flow. So I get up and leave on Sunday morning and I notice something wrong with the bike. I have a smaller gas tank on the bike (5.7 gal) so I should be able to go to 170-200 per tank including a little reserve time. Well at about 80 miles, the bike died and I had to flip to reserve. I thought ok, no biggie it might just be wind etc let’s keep going. However this pattern kept going and going. Also I noticed I didn’t have as much power as I should have in 4^th and 5^th gear, basically the higher rpms. So by Amarillo the uneasiness is staring to set up. However everything is still “working” so I kept going to the objective for the day, Cheyenne, Wyoming. When I got to Cheyenne I pulled into the gas station and top off the tank before heading to the motel for the night.

At the gas station, 2 guys JT and Bill came over and started asking about the bike. They really liked the hula girl and thought it was actually a Kawasaki Dakar version. We talked for a bit about their trip and mine and what we both had planned in the future. I asked if I could pray for their journey and they say sure. So we continued chatting and then they asked where I was staying. I let them know I was going to try get a room at the super 8 down the street. We parted ways and I hoped on the bike and rode down the street. After I checked in and took at a load of gear up to the room I came back down and see JT and Bill. They had followed me over to the hotel. We chatted for a few mins. I let them know I was going to head up and get some rest.

So now I go upstairs and call Brandi and Dad to explain the problems and see what the suggestions are. We have some long talks and ultimately it’s up to me what I need to do. Do I stay the course, or listen to my gut? It sounds like it’s an easy decision, but really it’s not. All the time and effort spent to prepare and now it’s wasted? Or is it? I also called and talked to Kevin who I would be meeting in Alaska to see what his timeline is like. Now, time for bed.

I get up the next morning, call Brandi and let her know it’s not worth continuing with the uneasy feeling. I also got a call from Matthew as well to make sure everything was ok (Thanks Matthew!) So as I am checking out and packing up the bike, I see JT and Bill. They wished me good luck on the next leg of the trip. I said thanks, and let them know I have decided to turn back. JT specifically had a very puzzled look on his face. I let him know of all of the problems I had yesterday and he responded with a big wow. He said he would do the same thing and echoed the same thought, when you are that far from home it’s best to take the safer route regardless of the cause. Granted I could have found a local mechanic to help with the problems, but with the uneasy feeling already in my mind I would now begin to second guess instinct which is where problems happen. We parted ways and I hoped on down the road without the power I should have.

So at this point I am already on my way back to Texas without power getting horrible gas mileage. If you followed online I chose to take the less freeway route as to not be a traffic hazard. As I am heading back to Texas, I am slowly getting better gas mileage, first 100 a tank, then 120 a thank, 130 a tank etc. Finally in Amarillo I stop and top off. Then I take off and the bike gets really loud. Wow I now I have lots of power now too. So I know I have another problem, but everything seems to be working I am tired and I just want to get home. However this next time I was able to make it about 170 miles before a fill up. I’ll take that. Well when I stopped I looked. My exhaust header has come off the engine. Oh great. So now I am looking at it crawling around the bike at the  gas station. It looks like one exhaust flange nut had backed off, and possible a stud had broke off the engine block.

But the good news is… I have power and good gas mileage hehe. So I continue along zipping making great speed in the rain and yet another problem. Now it looks like the bike has an electrical short somewhere. Grumble…

Well I finally limp along and get home about 1:00am. It was a very rough trip, but it did teach me a few things about instinct and gut. I would have had the same problems if I continued, at least I was able to head home to deal with them.

So what does that do for your time off? Well I am going to fly up to Alaska this weekend and ride around for a week or so. Then I will fly back, and my dad and I (and maybe some other folks) will be heading east, hopefully to Key West. I would like to be able to accomplish 2 high points of the trip I had planned, even if I was not able to see all the other parts in between.

Sometimes in life our timing for things isn’t what God wants for us. However we need to be wise and mature enough to listen and react as he would like us to.

Was the trip a success or a failure? I’ll let you decide.

Good news: i think i know whats wrong with the bike. Bad news: exhaust fell off good times. Ill be home about 12:30am. Tomorrow is a …

Due to circumstances with the bike, im headed home. ill explain more when i make it home.

I was able to make it 900 miles to Cheyenne, Wyoming. Of course this wasn’t without incident. I have a very uneasy feeling about the bike. So why is that? My gas mileage is horrible. I was getting about 40 MPG, now I am getting about 20 MPG, but I can’t find a reason for this.

A few parts fell off too, that was expected, but the MPG part is the killer. Basically I don’t have enough gas to make certain legs of the trip. So what should I do? Do I continue? Do I turn around and go home? What is the right thing to do?

I’ve spent the better part of the evening on the phone with my support team, Dad and Brandi to try and make sense of what the next step should be. From this point on, there are aspects of the journey where I will be even more remote so we have to make the right decision. However… what is the right decision?

So if you were 1000 miles home and things just didn’t make sense, would you continue or limp home? Would I have failed the trip? I think I’ll sleep on this one, and ask for some prayerful guidance.

Ready to begin. The time has come. For the record, the trip is going to be great but nothing to risk my health or safety over. So I do reserve the right to turn around at any point. Hehe. Anyhow I wanted to post a few final words before I take off. The PKMUL has come together. Not 100% as I had envisioned. I did have many last minute things come up, but since I am not a super seasoned long distance rider then I’ll chalk that up to experience. I mean I ride long distances, but not for weeks on end. You’d be amazed at how difficult it is to figure out how many days worth of cloths to pack. One pair of underwear is good for 4 days right?

I probably over packed, but I think that is my nature. I tend to over think and over plan. I know the bike inside and out at this point, so hopefully no major mechanical issues at this point. The ride will beat me down, so I probably won’t be able to do the distance I need to make the places I need to be.

A special thanks and shout out to my Dad. Once again I was shown his great talent and ability. Some of you know about the UPS problem has ran into. Anyhow, Dad was able to cut a windshield down for me at a moment’s notice to take the place of the one I am still waiting on. This will allow me to actually leave, a day late, but hit the road. Since UPS broke their contact to deliver the product by an agreed upon time, and the reason it was late was their fault… can I ask them to provide a day of my life back? Anyhow moving on…

Since I am meeting a friend in Anchorage, I have to be there by July 3^rd. He fly’s in that evening. Then I have to be in Nashville by July 17^th. That is when Dad is meeting me. So overall as long as I can keep this simple timeline, I should be good to go. It’s fun to start with lofty aspirations, you never know how high you can jump until you start trying. Follow along as I start this adventure…

The adventure will just have to wait a day. It’s surely the best thing. A little sad, but it will allow for some last minuite items to come together. Just updating to let everyone know.

Thanks for the couple of people who bought a tank of gas. I wasn’t sure anyone would, but it means alot that people have.

Well if it’s 11:35pm and I am awake and writing this blog post. You guessed it, I won’t be leaving on time. I have been going back and forth on this decision for some time. I am just now coming in from the garage after spending most of the day finalizing many loose ends. There is much more planning going into a trip like this then one can imagine. For instance, something as simple as a kick stand height can make or break the safety of the trip.

 Tonight I was blessed to spend some great time with my dad (Gary Oakes) and a friend (Matthew Tomlin). Together the 3 of us were able to iron out all of the loose ends relating to the safety of the PKMUL and some of the comfort issues as well. Dad was even able to modify a kickstand for me, to accommodate my manly stature. Ok, I just wanted to write it, I know I’m short. Many of the issues I have had with the bike have been related to my height by the way. Something that most folks won’t even think about. I am also waiting for a replacement windshield. I did have another one I could use in a pinch, but… due to a UPS screw up it didn’t arrive. Maybe this is a blessing in disguise? The Lord watches over all of us, in ways we surely don’t understand at the time.

 The plan is to leave on Sunday morning. This was the consensus of everyone, we figured it would be best from this point. This will also give me a day to do some riding to make sure everything does stay connected and not fall off.

 I won’t be as far as I would like as quickly as I would like but it does allow for an additional sense of security before I embark on this new adventure.

its been named… http://twitpic.com/1zvo1l

Reflecting of the events of this coming weekend has put things in perspective. The task at hand really began to weigh upon my thoughts. This coming Saturday I leave for a 5 week or less adventure. For some reason I want to ride from Texas, to Deadhorse, Alaska. Then turn around and go from Deadhorse, Alsaka to Key West, Florida and then back to Texas. Total trip will be about 13,100 miles.

Why would I want to do this? Believe me I have been asking myself this more and more as the days come closer. Why would I be willing to leave Brandi and Ollie for so long? Well consider it a voyage of discovery. When I first planned the trip and came up with the idea, I was very unhappy at my job and many other aspects of what my life has become.

Relationships with some friendships have dissolved, people have moved on. Real friends have been found. Do I have to prove something? At the time, I think the intention was I felt like I had something I needed to prove. However that is no longer the case. Fortunately through the loving grace of God, the individuals have been exposed for who they are, so what is there to prove? Nothing.

So why are you still going? Well, the more and more I look at the overall idea of the trip, it’s an amazing opportunity to see the wonderful world that God has graced us with, and a time away to be immersed in the beauty that abounds. Can’t you just go to Big Bend or Yellowstone to see that? True, however there is something about a man and his modern day steed that harkens back to the days of discovery, the days where as far as the eye can see there is undiscovered land and place to explore.

In the modern world, with all the technology so many miracles are explained away. My journey is a voyage of self-discovery. The voyage will be a discovery of the natural world around me, discovery of the friendly faces that I will see along the path, and a discovery to see if I have the heart to tackle such a daunting task.

What happens if something happens? No idea, but I do know that in this type of riding, you need to be willing to take it day by day and just roll with it as ya go.

My plan is to document the trip using a camera and a video camera on the bike. I would like to do a daily diary and maybe post it with comments. It really depends on internet access, and other connectivity issues. However I don’t want to spend the whole trip on the computer, I want to just immerse and relax. My goal is to be in Anchorage, Alaska for the Fourth of July celebrations. Daylight and time zone are on my side. I will be going wherever the road takes me, and wherever the Lord guides. I do hope for a few wrong turns.

she will be with me the whole trip http://twitpic.com/1zbn2k