The Motorcycle Tourists Guide
THE MOTORCYCLE TOURISTS GUIDE
PLANNING THE TRIP
THERE IS ADVENTURE in simply getting on your bike one fine morning and aim-lessly following your nose for a week or more. But almost any trip will be far more enjoyable if you give a little time and thought to planning your tour beforehand. It’s disappointing to learn when you return home that you passed within a few miles of some major point of interest or scenic attraction without knowing it was there, and a little planning can prevent blundering into the 120 degree August heat of the desert, or September’s first snow storm in the mountains.
TIME AND MONEY
The more time you have for your trip,
the farther you can go. If you don't have the time to take the desired trip, you ought to make time. Check with your employer to see if you can get a leave of absence, as well as your annual vacation. With a two-week vacation and a two-week leave of absence, you would have time for all but the longest trips. One motorcyclist I know has a sure-fire method of getting enough time for his trips. He simply quits his job and looks for another when he gets back!
Once you have paid for the bike and equipment, money for a trip shouldn’t be too great a problem. Of course, if you go first class — stay at the best motels and eat at the best restaurants — your trip will
be expensive. But if one wants to cut a few corners, travel by motorcycle is the most economical way to go. If you camp out part of the time, you can figure your total expenses will run about $50 per week, and you would probably spend as much if you stayed home.
COMPANIONS
Something once shared is twice enjoyed, and having a friend or two along can add to the fun of a trip. It’s an advantage to have a friend with you in case of mechanical trouble on the road. He can help you fix your bike and go for parts if necessary. If the bike can’t be fixed on the spot, your partner can help you get it to the next town so it won’t be left to the mercy of cops and robbers along the roadside, and one feels more secure when camping out with a companion than when camping alone.
PART THREE: TOURING
GEORGE HAYS
However, one should choose his companions carefully. A motorcycle trip can bring out the bad, as well as the good, in a person’s character, and a guy who is your best buddy at home can turn out to be a real stinker on the road. The following story illustrates the point
Joe, Pete and Charley were three motorcyclists who worked for the same company. They gathered together at lunch each day to swap lies about the merits of their respective bikes and soon became good friends. Before long, they hit on the idea of going on a vacation trip together on their motorcycles.
The first day on the road, things went well until they stopped for lunch and Charley had a few too many beers with his burgers. Thereafter, it developed that Charley’s idea of a good trip was to stop at every other beer joint along the way. After spending a half-hour every hour in taverns, Joe and Pete abandoned Charley to get on with the trip. Charley poured out of a bar at two a.m., got on his bike and promptly ran out of gas. He had to push his machine five miles to the nearest station, loudly cursing his friends all the way for deserting him in his hour of need.
After leaving Charley, Joe and Pete discovered they had conflicting interests. Joe liked to travel at a leisurely pace and stop occasionally to photograph wild flowers. Pete’s idea of a good trip was to cover as much ground as possible between sunrise and sunset, stopping only for gas. When Joe stopped to take photographs, Pete would become so impatient he would ride ’round and ’round in circles, making unkind comments about “nuts” who take pictures of flowers. Finally, Pete rode off, abandoning Joe to his cameras and posies, but not before he had so rattled Joe that many of his shots were spoiled. Joe had to retrace his route to retake his pictures, muttering curses at Pete all the way.
The three who had left together as good friends returned separately, and were never good friends again.
(Continued on page 99)
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This little fable points out the wisdom of discussing the trip with your companions before departure. Check for common interests and goals. Decide on what help you will be expected to give or receive in case of a breakdown. You may wish to agree beforehand to part friends and go your separate ways if friction develops.
Companions for an extended trip are difficult to find and the dedicated motorcycle tourist may have to get used to traveling alone. To make a long motorcycle trip, a person must have the time, the money, the bike, and the desire to go. In your search for a traveling companion, you may find a friend with the time and the bike, but no money, or a friend who has the money and the bike, but can’t take time off the job, and so on. You may line up one or several friends who enthusiastically agree to go, but when the time to leave comes, they change their minds. Make up your mind that you are going to take your trip with or without company, and go alone if you have to. Traveling by yourself may be a bit lonely at times, but you will be glad you went.
CHARTING YOUR COURSE
Once you decide where you wish to go, a little research can assure a more successful trip. Gather maps of the areas to be covered and study them carefully. They may reveal many interesting places to explore along the way that you would otherwise overlook. The Automobile Club provides excellent maps to its members, freeof-charge. Most service stations supply free road maps to their customers and you may wish to obtain maps from two or tjiree for comparison and selection of the best one. If you plan to explore a given area in detail, the U. S. Geological Survey’s topographic maps are ideal. Write to the U. S. Geological Survey, Denver, Colorado, or Washington, D. C., for an index map of the state you plan to explore. The index map enables you to select the desired sheets, which cost about 354 to 504 each.
Gather information on the areas to be covered. The trip will be more enjoyable if you know something of the points of interest and history of the areas along your route. Your local library is a good source, and many states and tourist bureaus will send free pamphlets and maps on request. Check magazines for addresses.
THE WEATHER
A motorcyclist has to be a little choosey about the weather and should avoid the cold, the hot, and the rainy seasons if possible. Temperatures below 70 degrees are too cool for maximum riding comfort, and temperatures above 90 degrees are too hot. Many newspapers list the daily high and low temperatures and weather conditions for all parts of the country in their weather column. Watching this column will give you a good idea of what the weather will be like along your route.
During winter, of course, the weather is too cold in most parts of the country for cross-country trips. This is the time for
working and saving money to finance your summers travels,, planning trips, and for getting your bike in top condition. By April, the low desert areas are pleasantly warm for day-time travel, although the nights may be chilly. June is warm enough for travel in all but the high mountain areas. In July and August, it’s time to head for the high country and stay away from the low desert areas, where the temperatures can be unbearably hot. September is pleasantly warm in the lowlands, but the high mountain areas are awaiting the first winter snow storms and the unwary cyclist could be caught in one. By October, the low desert areas are again ideal for travel.
MAKING A SCHEDULE
Once the time available and route are known, the next step is making a schedule. Divide the miles to be covered by the days available to determine roughly what your daily mileage should be. You may wish to allow extra time for unexpected incidents and viewing points of interest. On extended trips, allow a few extra days for time off from traveling. Don’t try to cover too many miles in a day. Riding eight or ten hours with occasional stops is plenty for one day. The mileage you can cover each day varies and depends on a number of factors: the number and length of your rest stops; the time spent on points of interest; the condition of the road; the number of towns and cities you pass through; and weather conditions. The average rider under average conditions can expect to cover between 300 and 500 miles per day.
Make your schedule carefully, then throw it away. This may seem ridiculous, but there is a good reason. Having made your schedule, you will have a good idea of about where you should be at a particular time, and your trip will be more organized. But tying yourself to a strict schedule can take much of the fun out of a trip. Schedules have a way of becoming your master, and you may find yourself hurrying to keep up with it, or to get ahead of it, so that your trip will become a cross-country race. Part of the fun of a trip is getting away from things like timeclocks, deadlines and schedules, so they are best left behind.
Planning a trip is half the fun of going, so why not put down that TV guide and get out your maps? If you are short on ideas, try these for size:
1. A weekend trip to a near by campground.
2. A large circle route, keeping within a day’s ride from home.
3. A tour of the larger bodies of water within a given distance from home.
4. Off-the-pavement trips in mountains or desert.
5. A trip including one or more national parks.
6. Along the coast from border to border.
7. A coast-to-coast tour of the Nation.
8. The Overseas Highway to Key West.
9. Foreign travel — North to Canada or South to Mexico.
10. Ride the length of the Baja California Peninsula, the ultimate test of man and machine.
11. A tour of Europe, the ultimate goal of all dedicated touring types.
The possibilities are endless and intriguing.
(to be continued)
