JHutch808
Junior Member
My 4,408.7 mile journey, hitting 10 different states began on 9/3/11. I worked dayshift from 6:25am until 2:25pm. Once I got off work, I raced home to load the FZ6 and get out of town. It was hot, humid and kind of nasty due to a very large cloud of smoke coming out of the Columbia River gorge from a number of wildfires. Upon getting home I raced to load my bike up but when I tried to load everything I planned on taking, it just wasn’t working out. I had loaded almost all of it up earlier in the week, just to see if I could get it to work, but for some reason it wasn’t. Originally I had intended on camping in several places on my trip, but due to the fact I was going to be meeting up with my parents on my return leg, that had been reduced to 3 nights. I then decided that I would instead camp at the Best Western when I wasn’t staying with friends or family, ultimately I’m very glad I made that choice.
I got on the road at about 4pm and headed from my home in Vancouver, WA across the I205 bridge then up I84 into the Columbia River gorge. As is normally the case, I was going into gusting head winds and cross winds. It was at this point I realized that my 24” Cee Bailey windscreen was probably not going to work for me. I stand 6’ 2.5” tall but only have a 30” inseam. This means unlike a lot of people, a large portion of my height comes in torso length making me sit higher in the saddle. The full length 24” Cee Bailey windscreen lands somewhere between my armpits and shoulders. With zero wind or a tail wind, it’s not an issue. With the head wind and cross winds, the buffeting on my helmet felt like my head was in a paint mixer. The only relief I got was by lying on the tank. Knowing the miles that lay ahead, that wasn’t going to be an option. I made it as far as Biggs Junction, OR where I pulled off to top off my fuel and re-hydrate. At that stop I changed back to my stock screen and never switched back for the remainder of my trip.
After that stop, I pushed on east making a couple more stops for either fuel or just to hydrate. I arrived in Baker City, OR (306 miles total) at about 10:45pm and found a room at the Super 8, as the Best Western was full due to a large group of riders in town, who were on a ride from the US/Mexico border to the US/Canada border. I got a decent night sleep, but woke up feeling nauseous. Figuring it was just due to the stresses of my previous day’s work along with racing to get out of town, I had a small breakfast and pushed on, with the brisk morning air helping the nausea go away. I rode down through Ontario, OR and crossed the border into Idaho. This began my most miserable day of the trip.
I took a picture before I left, but didn't take many in Oregon due to how late I left.
I got on the road at about 4pm and headed from my home in Vancouver, WA across the I205 bridge then up I84 into the Columbia River gorge. As is normally the case, I was going into gusting head winds and cross winds. It was at this point I realized that my 24” Cee Bailey windscreen was probably not going to work for me. I stand 6’ 2.5” tall but only have a 30” inseam. This means unlike a lot of people, a large portion of my height comes in torso length making me sit higher in the saddle. The full length 24” Cee Bailey windscreen lands somewhere between my armpits and shoulders. With zero wind or a tail wind, it’s not an issue. With the head wind and cross winds, the buffeting on my helmet felt like my head was in a paint mixer. The only relief I got was by lying on the tank. Knowing the miles that lay ahead, that wasn’t going to be an option. I made it as far as Biggs Junction, OR where I pulled off to top off my fuel and re-hydrate. At that stop I changed back to my stock screen and never switched back for the remainder of my trip.
After that stop, I pushed on east making a couple more stops for either fuel or just to hydrate. I arrived in Baker City, OR (306 miles total) at about 10:45pm and found a room at the Super 8, as the Best Western was full due to a large group of riders in town, who were on a ride from the US/Mexico border to the US/Canada border. I got a decent night sleep, but woke up feeling nauseous. Figuring it was just due to the stresses of my previous day’s work along with racing to get out of town, I had a small breakfast and pushed on, with the brisk morning air helping the nausea go away. I rode down through Ontario, OR and crossed the border into Idaho. This began my most miserable day of the trip.
I took a picture before I left, but didn't take many in Oregon due to how late I left.