June 30 2023 Day Twenty Eight

 June 30 – Eagan MN – Day 28

 

I’m home after a long day ride and thought a number of times about calling it a night before reaching my destination, but as long as it is showing me getting home before 10:00, I have no problems riding in the dark, especially when this close to home. It was a long ride too, according to my bike’s trip planner, 928 miles in about 12 hours at an average speed of 80mph, yep, I was hitting it hard.

 

I did get another early start since I knew it’d be over a 12-hour trip since waking up early and not being able to get back to sleep since I was thinking about the ride. Packed the bike, which gets easier every day and took my shower to wake up for the days ride. It wasn’t that late at night before because the wedding partiers left the bar early so all I had to finish up was my story for the day.

 

It is pretty nice riding this early, around 8:00 am in the morning across Montana when I am pretty much the only one on Hwy 200 across the state on my way to I94 to home. Sure, it is a 2-lane road, but very few curves and hills that I was able to hit it hard and ride it like a freeway. Sure, I thought about the occasional animal that could cross the road, but I kept vigil about watching the ditches. Most of it was prairie with no ditches, but I only saw deer in the distance and none on the road. There were the occasional elk crossing, so I kept an extra eye out for them cuz that could be worse to hit. 

 

It seemed to be a long stretch heading East, but with so much space only for me, it turned out to be a good ride toward the interstate. I did hit another Motorcycle Advisory – loose gravel and construction ahead that you may want to consider an alternate route. I didn’t even think about stopping and checking for a different route, because I knew whatever it would be a lot further out of the way that I went for the construction zone. The same thing as some construction with the same warnings about loose gravel and the speed reduced to 35 miles an hour for a 10-mile stretch that I think I can muscle my way thru. The helping factor that I was on the road by myself that I didn’t have the horrible dust to deal with and could slow it down if I had to. This construction zone wasn’t nearly as bad as some of yesterday’s and still none compare to how bad the 10-miles of construction on the ‘Going to the Sun’ road had. 

 

I did make sure to get gas since the towns were a bit sparse along Hwy 200, but again a nice ride since there is close to no traffic on the road. I did hit another stretch of construction close to Glendive just before getting on the I94, but it was construction where the pavement was grooved since they had shredded the top layer of pavement and was paving over. The nice thing on this road is it was only the East bound lane and since I could see a long way in front of me, I rode the lane going against traffic and only pulled into the construction lane when there were vehicles coming. Not many to consider that I made really good time. 

 

On to I94 toward home and this will be my first time riding this road for as many years that I’ve been riding that I’ll be taking the northern interstate home. I have taken I90 home too many times that this will be a good break. I did notice for being wide open much like South Dakota that the speed limit was only 75 mph instead of the 80 that SD allows. That didn’t stop me from riding it like I do I90, fast. 

 

I didn’t have the luck today of another rain free day, I ended up at the wrong place at the wrong time and got drenched. Another one of those rides where I could see the rain coming down in the distance, but every time you’d go around a curve, you’d be riding away from it that thought that was hopefully going to happen to me this time as well. Well, my luck ran out and just as quick as I rode into the rain, I had to pull over since it was a horrible downpour. Nothing to get the bike under that I just turned on the hazard lights and sought shelter for myself in some trees so I wouldn’t get any wetter than I already was. It was a quick shower and as soon as it hit and just down poured it was over and time for me to hit the road again. Now I’ll need my jacket because I’m chilled and drenched that I’ll have to warm up and dry off later. Just as I’m getting my jacket on a couple of bikers go by, that was me on most of the other rain occasions that I’ve been on that I was coming thru just after the rain and only have road spray to deal with, but not this time. It wasn’t far up the road, and it started to get hot again that now I could use gas and get the jacket off so the rest of me can dry out in the heat. There were a few times it looked like I was going to hit rain again, but this time luck was on myside that I only hit road spray and missed the full-on rain. 

 

I crossed into Minnesota and noticed that I still had about another 4 hours to get home, but again as long as it was going to get me home before 10, the only thing to stop me from pushing it to home would be running out of gas that I did make sure that wasn’t going to happen to fill up when I needed to. I did get home earlier than expected and that might’ve been because I did push it a little thru the Twin City traffic just to get home. Now I get to relax for a few days, get things done around the house that need to get done and pack for my next trip out East. Not sure how soon I’ll leave for that, but stay tune, more to come before this summer riding is done.