Franklin PA to Tucson AZ Return Trip

[ajwood]

Took off from Tucson on Sept 11th and rode every day until returning Sept 23rd.

The photo is sunrise 7:30am Colorado City Texas.
With speed limits at 80mph south of Midland I-20 until approaching El Paso on I-10 I started to get ideas about spending the night
in my own bed so I kept going, and I made it at 7:30pm Tucson time (14hrs.) .
I would have spent the same time span in a motel room trying to decipher the channels on the TV and tearing open tiny packages of soap. By now, daily usage of foam earplugs were making my
ear canals very tender. They were itchy when I left the ear plugs in and hurt when I took them out until I used soapy water and cotton swabs.

[fotoguzzi]

great!
I know what you mean about the ear plugs, they can make your ear canal sore.

[mwrenn]

Cool picture, thanks for posting!  I suppose that's I-20 in the background?

[rboe]

A buddy turned me on to beeswax ear plugs. 1st couple times I felt that my ear canals were the wrong shape, couldn't get them to stay but the issue with foam plugs made be try again. Gotta roll it up just right for your ear, twist in, smash like a mosquito and sometimes re-smash after the lid is installed.

I'm having better luck the second time around. They are not perfect but they don't irritate the ears like foam ones do. Do a pretty good job of killing noise too.

They are kinda fussy but you may find they are worth looking into.

[Lannis]

Foam earplugs are (were) horrible for me.   They hurt, they irritated my ear canal, and they made me feel like I was isolated in a deep-sea diver's helmet.

Got some custom-molded plugs made by my audiologist, and no more problems.   Ride all day and don't even know they're there.

I ain't ridin' 14 straight hours to get to NOBODY'S bed, though.   I'll tear open the little bars of soap, thanks .... !

Lannis

[segesta]

You rode from Arizona to Pennsylvania on a 750 cc motorcycle? You are made of sterner stuff than I am. Impressive.

[Scud]

Let's talk about how it took 12 days to do this trip. Where'd you go? What'd you see? Do you still love the V7 or do you wish you did it on a different bike? How many total miles? Meet any interesting Guzzisti on the way? etc.

earplugs.......... I just can't listen to any more of that...... maybe I need to put something in my ears...

oh - more pics?

 

[ajwood]

The V7 got heads turning in a lot of places. Three or four common comments were "I like the color of the tank" - and the tank color is so subtle.
Several times I'd get "I haven't seen one of these in years" - and mine is a 2015!
Monday, the 21st when I headed west out of Little Rock AR, there were lots of waves from opposite lane riders along I-40 with many double-takes over the looks of the V7, it's great.
You can't get that from the big three Japanese manufacturers.

I'm happy that I didn't have tire or mechanical problems. By the time the odometer rolled through 5,000 , the tappets were pretty clicky and the best idle at temperature would make the
RPM meter shake. At first, there was a pronounced rise in rpm from idle instead of smoothness but by the time I rolled back into Tucson I had a loose throttle cable and under-responsive power curves on accelerate. The oil was so beat-up, the transmission would slip into neutral just from shifting from 4th to 5th.
The first trip today was to take it in to my local Guzzi dealer to dump all fluids, filters, settings and start over.

Time after time, I would pass a semi-truck on the interstate and they would speed up too but the V7 could keep accelerating and they'd give up eventually. Too many bridge expansion joints
had pot-holes or a rise in the pavement that had me holding on for dear life. It was at those moments that I dreamed of having a California or a Griso.
The tollways around Oklahoma City are actually collecting money for the privilege of being knocked around by roadways so decrepit that my nuts will never be the same.
Plus:
1- Toll collection machines that have no fully operable money collected displays.
2- Vehicle detection sensors at booth that wouldn't sense the presence of my V7.
3- Various exits and entrances throughout the system that are unmanned with "exact change only" signs which are visible only when approaching close to them.

It was that experience on the way out east that had me choosing alternate routes for my return trip. And next time, more classic routes like 66, 30, 50, 54, and 6. But to do those, I'll
need to get my camping gear together. The motel game is rigged - dirty towels, toilets, remote controls, furniture surfaces and bedding.

It may sound cruel to sit on a V7 for 7-14 hours a day but a secret is to stop and get off to stretch, walk around, look at the foliage, architecture and
listen to birds and other sounds. I was using hand cleaner if I had to take plugs out of ears so fingers wouldn't migrate so much grunge on the way back in.
The air pressure differences between river valley and high ground can make plugged ears sore - especially high to low places (pressure increase).

After the first full week, I quit expecting so many numbers accomplishments and instead made myself as comfortable as I could. Every time I allowed myself to realize how much I bit off versus how
much I could actually chew (3 time zones away) I concentrated on the little things like the next 100 miles instead of the next 100 semi-trucks to contend with.
One of the more memorable lunches I had was at the El Reno Oklahoma BK with a big LCD screen playing dangerous weather stories as I munched away.

Rest stops turned out to be the best way to strike up conversation with others. Day after day of being alone except for ordering food or motel was unhealthy.

Before I started this trip, I thought I had everything worked out on paper but that's just numbers. If a TV show is interesting into late night then a late start the next day is the new par.
I had to plan ahead better because with a late start comes sun in eyes in the afternoon or rush hour traffic stop and go that eats gas, time, patience and clutch plates. With an early start,
I have to know at what altitude I'll be until the sun comes up so I don't get so cold that I'm overspending and consuming too much caffeine. Too hot and it's 44oz drink at a
truck stop in order to fight dehydration.
I picked up 1/2 inch electrical tape so I could mask off the top 1/2 inch of the face shield so I could go farther in the afternoon without having the sun directly in my eyes. I quit using any
form of eye drops or lubricants and instead use a small spray bottle filled with distilled water. Spraying that into closed eyes cleans the road grunge. Open your eyes on the next squeeze
and your eye lids will be happier. Pack tissues to wipe closed eyes dry then save them for checking oil dip stick or using spray on headlamp or face shield. When I could find a gas station
that had the heavy duty paper towels at the pumps, I would lay one down at the gas filler hole because some nozzles like to spit on my nice tank.

Where did I go? One of the places was McKeesport PA and took GoPro footage of riding around Renzie Road and Ridge Road near Buena Vista. I found the nicest restaurant called
Mt. Vernon Dairy. When I was a toddler, my mother took us kids out to a cool place with a TV tower called WTAE where I'd play hide and seek until the engineers would stand on the stairs
and spot me first.
In our post 9/11 world, it's all locked up now.
I didn't make it to the new Flight 93 memorial this time but... I'll be back.

[ohiorider]

Very nice ride report!  Smaller bikes travel just fine, don't they?  Buddy of mine and myself took our 790cc Bonnies from Cleveland OH through Albuquerque and into Arizona before heading north to Cody WY and then back home.  Actually, there were several times when I was glad not to be fighting the height and weight of a larger bike (thinking back, several miles of stop and go across a muddy road in Yellowstone.)

If I could get Photobucket to cooperate, I'd post a couple of pix of lovely downtown Franklin, along with a pix of the older gentleman who owned the small barbershop in town.  He took several two wheel trips out West, but on 1940 and 1950 era Harleys, as they say, 'back in the day.'

EDIT:P/bucket sort of working..... here's pics

[Lannis]

You rode from Arizona to Pennsylvania on a 750 cc motorcycle? You are made of sterner stuff than I am. Impressive.

It's strange to hear that, in retrospect.

My friends and I used to ride all over the country in the early 1970s when a 750CC bike was a BIG motorcycle.

The equivalent of today's Honda Gold Wing was a CB500 Honda or a Suzuki Titan 500CC with a Windjammer fairing and Bates bags.

I put almost 70,000 miles on a Yamaha R5 350cc bike with no windshield and just a duffle bag as luggage.    Fay and I went two up to Alabama and back (from our home in Virginia) on an RD400 Yamaha, a steady 70 MPH at 5500 RPM, no strain at all.

I really believe it's the "marketing" guys who have convinced us that a 750cc bike is somehow "small" and incapable of long trips .... they want to sell monstrous, overweight, overblinged 1800cc barges instead ....

Lannis

[ajwood]

1800cc barges is right.

This trip ended up competing with a ride I took around the country in May 1980 on a Honda CB400A Hawk (two-speed Hondamatic). Back in that day 55mph limits made it all work.
When a driver wanted faster, they just went faster.
The Hawk went from north side of Chicago to a weekend in Albuquerque NM, then a week long stay in Berkeley CA then up 101/I-5 to Portland then week stay in Northglenn/Denver before returning to Chicago. Motel 6 was $8.00 back then !

The ability to pass most any vehicle at highway speeds is just what the V7 can do quite handily. And those short entrance ramp runs around rural areas need the Womp acceleration
of the V7 to get on at highway speeds without delay. A few times the V7 had traffic slow down when I got on the interstate because of its acceleration giving the impression of a police intercept.
It's funny that when I used 93 octane or 86 octane, the MPG calcs were pretty much the same on highways. At one point, 86 octane did better than 89. Local runs are different with hi octane having
better response. When the V7 was new, I had to switch to gas under 90 octane to prevent breaking traction and give smoother starting. And this is why I can't understand why so many
motorcycle reviews are done on bikes barely out of the "first service" nursery. Now that the odometer is at 6,009 miles the V7 is just getting to know its neighbors.

My local Guzzi dealer just called and it's ready - again.

[Hymes Inc.]

I really believe it's the "marketing" guys who have convinced us that a 750cc bike is somehow "small" and incapable of long trips .... they want to sell monstrous, overweight, overblinged 1800cc barges instead ....

Lannis

I agree 100%.  I find my V65C to be a perfect mile muncher for me.  Still blows me away to hear people talk about 1000cc bikes as "starter" bikes.

[Aaron D.]

I figured Segesta was being ironic. Surely no one here thinks a 750 anything modern isn't sufficient.

[gary martin]

There's a bar in Franklin called The Office.  "Honey, I'll be a little late coming home. I'm stuck here at the office."

[Lannis]

I figured Segesta was being ironic. Surely no one here thinks a 750 anything modern isn't sufficient.

That's why I worded my reply so that it works whether it was ironic or not ..... !   Sometimes you just can't tell around this place ....

Lannis

[Scud]

Now that the odometer is at 6,009 miles the V7 is just getting to know its neighbors.

My local Guzzi dealer just called and it's ready - again.

Cool trip on the new Guzzi. Those last couple lines say it all - ready to go again.

As for the perception of "small" bikes being inadequate for touring, I think a lot of that (at least in the US) has to do with Harley-spillover - where  883cc is considered a girl's bike and has such a tiny fuel tank that touring would be challenging. Most manufacturers would round that up and release it as a 900cc model. Ducati, of course, would pick a different odd number - so long as the model number does NOT match the actual displacement.

Interesting to note that Guzzi rounds 744cc down to V7 (instead of going with a 750 moniker), while my V11s were rounded up from 1064cc.

[Lannis]

Cool trip on the new Guzzi. Those last couple lines say it all - ready to go again.

As for the perception of "small" bikes being inadequate for touring, I think a lot of that (at least in the US) has to do with Harley-spillover - where  883cc is considered a girl's bike and has such a tiny fuel tank that touring would be challenging. Most manufacturers would round that up and release it as a 900cc model. Ducati, of course, would pick a different odd number - so long as the model number does NOT match the actual displacement.

Interesting to note that Guzzi rounds 744cc down to V7 (instead of going with a 750 moniker), while my V11s were rounded up from 1064cc.

Yep, all "marketing".  CB350 Hondas were only 325cc, while 650 BSAs were 654cc ... You can't blame the companies for saying whatever will sell bikes .....

Lannis

[cookiemech]

Where did I go? One of the places was McKeesport PA and took GoPro footage of riding around Renzie Road and Ridge Road near Buena Vista. I found the nicest restaurant called
Mt. Vernon Dairy. When I was a toddler, my mother took us kids out to a cool place with a TV tower called WTAE where I'd play hide and seek until the engineers would stand on the stairs
and spot me first.
In our post 9/11 world, it's all locked up now.
I didn't make it to the new Flight 93 memorial this time but... I'll be back.

That's interesting to me, because I can see the WTAE tower out the front of my house (I live near West Newton, in Westmoreland County, but look over toward Elizabeth Township in Allegheny County, where the tower sits on Rock Run Road). Renzie Road and Ridge Road are quite familiar to me, but I think it odd that you'd seek these roads out just to ride them. I assume it's because they have sentimental value to you.

Way prettier roads up toward Franklin!

[ajwood]

Yeah, a lot of sentimentality. There were so many insect hits on my face shield that I was afraid of smears on the lense at high speeds.
After the ride on Ridge I noticed my watch was not on my arm or pack or compartments and went all the way back to the motel at 51/I-70. The room was all made up but I still found it had fallen from the mattress to the box spring. Rode down to New Stanton and grabbed 76 up to 79. That's a nice ride especially 79 to 62 then over to Franklin.

WTAE has some sentiment because when they built the tower in '55 my dad put an antenna rotor on the roof to get rid of ghosting. 40 years later, I was designing, building and installing an FM broadcast antenna for a micro-operator in Los Angeles so they could run 24/7/365 until an initiative called LPFM took off in the late 90's under the FCC's Chairman Kennard. Now, 20 years later... I got to think for a while and thus, the ride.
When I passed through in '99 the house was for sale. In 2015, for sale again.

Renzie closed 092915


Someones trying to tell me something

[ajwood]

mwrenn said: "Cool picture, thanks for posting!  I suppose that's I-20 in the background?"

Yep. In Windows if you right-click on the pic and Copy Image Location then open a new tab and paste the address then Return, it should appear in full size. Saving that image, then opening it in Windows Photo Viewer will give it so much zoom-a-bility that you'll be able to make out the address on the store window near the Open sign which will read: 150 E I-20 .

Same for this sites avatars. Clicking on my avatar goes to my profile where if you get the address on a right click, you'll see my tired after 3 days on Amtrak face and other wide-angle features.
Some avatars link to site users personal web photo sites which in turn contains names and places and other stuff. That's why I use Rackspace and a public content delivery folder only.