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Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11835)

Road Report Day 77 - An End to the Calm of Thinglessness

I said goodbye to Rachel and headed off on the last small leg of my journey through the traffic, humidity and oppressive heat. I think I'll see Rachel again. She lives pretty close. I wonder if I'll see any of the new faces I met while Out There. I sincerely hope so, as I realize I'm very hungry because I haven't had breakfast. "I tried to warn them, I tried to warn them all, but did they listen?", I thought as I chucked. I imagined a country peppered with "Do Not Feed the Yermos" signs. Fe ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11836)

Road Report Day 76 - Full Circle Back to Rachel's World

My apologies that it's taken me a few days to get this one done. Writing here at home is much more difficult than writing while Out There. I'm finding it very challenging to concentrate. There are a steady stream of interruptions and the din of my machines is distracting, but I try. Once I finish this one, I will write at least one more article about this improbably successful 2010 Deadhorse trip. Since my time with Rachel, I've been thinking back to the vastly different people I had met dur ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11837)

Road Report Day 75 - Strolls of Questionable Wisdom and Very Good Roads

My journey came to an end yesterday. Far too quickly the memories, the calm and the focus from the road are fading. Words are already becoming far more difficult to craft. Was it all just a dream? Rolling up to my house, I paid careful attention to my initial reactions, my first feelings. In ways, it's nicer here than I remember. In other ways, it's some of the ugliest scenery of the whole trip. Walking into the house, the din from the racks of servers I manage there was very disquieting. Str ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11838)

Road Report Day 74 - On Slow Roasting Dead Dogs

Imagine the smell of a dog lying in the hot sun for 10 days dead after a rain. The toxic fume emanating from my Transit Suit is worse. Even the most battle hardened carrion loving flies now avoid me. Phil had mentioned the suit smelled bad, which it did. After having worn it almost every day for 70+ days now it's to be expected. But after the cycles of rain followed by endless hours of being stuck in slow moving traffic under sticky humid sunshine over the last two days, now it truly reeks. ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11848)

Road Report Days 71, 72, 73 - Sailing and Rain

My unbelievable streak of multi-week rain luck has run out. The last 5 or so hours were spent driving through one of those annoying soaking New England rains, the kind that inexplicably penetrates through that which had been impervious during the worst downpours. To add insult to injury my Garmin Nuvi GPS has completely given up the ghost so I stood there in the rain with paper maps trying to figure out where to find a motel. I had wanted to ride further to get a more convenient and less i ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11851)

Road Report Days 69, 70 - Culture, Time, and the Zen of Motorcycle Repairs

I feel uninspired today. The words refuse to come to me. Doors that were open now seem shut or maybe it's simply that I've learned what I've needed to. I'm not yet sure. This feeling different continues.The days have largely been quiet. Phil and Valerie go to work and I hang out at the house either working on the computer or trying to write. Each night Valerie, who used to be a bartender, makes drinks or pours wine while Phil cooks dinner. Phil goes to bed early and Valerie and I stay up late c ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11852)

Road Report Days 66, 67, 68 - Riding with Phil and Charlie - Books, Covers and Goals

I feel my trip winding down. This wonderful fantasy is slowly ending and the angry face of reality is peering at me with malice from just over the horizon. Like the child I once was cowering beneath the covers slowly waking from a fading dream where I was calm, happy and safe, I try to lie motionless hoping stasis will hide me from the horrors unfolding elsewhere in the house and keep them from knocking at my door. But they always came knocking. My mind begins to dread what's waiting for me ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11853)

Road Report Day 65 - Getting to Yes

Phil and his friend Charlie, left a while ago get a new rear tire put on Phil's bike. The tires he had selected were fine for a twisty place like Deal's Gap but were not suited for thousands of miles of highway. Last night we noticed chords showing. I've spent the morning futzing with my bike's exhaust system. The patch we had put in place hasn't held and the leak is getting worse. The reason this is bad has to do with cold air. The break is only 20 inches or so from the cylinder. Exhaust ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11854)

Road Report Days 60 to 64 - Days Riding With Phil

I just haven't had the kind of time I've wanted lately to write or think about writing. Riding with new people who have very different styles makes that kind of introspection challenging ... my apologies in advance. During a very different kind of motorcycle trip earlier this year, Duncan, Bruce and I met Phil for the first time at Deal's Gap. We were sitting at breakfast talking about how the three of us were becoming known as "those BMW riders". A group of guys had just called over to us " ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11855)

Road Report Days 57, 58, 59 - Next

I do not have the time to develop the ideas in this post to the degree they need to be. In a few hours Phil will be here and I will have to focus my attention elsewhere. If, as so many of you have suggested, I do write a book the themes here will be much better developed and will form the basis of the book. I've been travelling for three days across epic flat under challenging skies all the while waiting for the storms to return. Thinking about perception. No, thinking about feelings behind ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11857)

Road Report Day 56 - Dodging Storms and Chasing Rainbows

Based upon a recommendation posted to the YML.COM forums by Ian, I opted to head to Calgary to an independent BMW service shop called Anderwerks. They have a reputation for being traveller friendly and they certainly lived up to that reputation. It's located back in a warehouse district. The front door is a bit confusing as it looks like a photo. I desperately needed tires as these Michelins had over 6,000 miles on them. Anderwerks hooked me up setting up an appointment for me the s ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11858)

Road Report Days 52, 53, 54, 55 - Do Not Ship to Canada

"Do not ship to Canada.", the stickers read. It was 1982 and there was very little humor that summer, as was the case with most years of my life. It was filled with a lot of being yelled at. I remember the vice president coming into my staging area at 1 AM yelling at me because I was taking a break. I mostly remember the yelling. 14 years old and I was being forced to do 80+ hour weeks for the summer, most nights working past midnight, because the old man's company was going bankrupt again a ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11859)

Too tired ...

Am way too tired to write. Was so tired I pulled off on a dirt road and slept on the bike for half an hour. There's too much to say about the last three days and the words are just not coming to me right now ... maybe tomorrow. I'm currently in Jasper on my way to Calgary to get new tires and an oil change on the bike before I head to the Thunder Bay area. Too many things pointed to Calgary, so I'm heading there instead of Edmonton. I have incredible friends. A huge storm blew through ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11861)

Road Report Days 47, 48 - On Patience, Balance and Lack of Brakes

My apologies for having taken the longest pause between updates. Between lack of sleep, brake issues with the bike and a new friend here in Prince George who has helped me out tremendously, there's been little time to even think about what to write. Back several days ago ... Despite having gone to bed at around 1:30AM after having been in the hot springs too long, I woke up around 6:30AM feeling too tired. After trying to go to sleep for what seemed like a very long time, I misread my wat ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11862)

I'll post an update soon, hopefully tomorrow.

Brake problems and miles and not sleeping much have conspired to prevent me from having the kind of time to write. I hope to have some time tomorrow to catch up on travel events ... ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11865)

Road Report Day 46 - Dani, a real adventure rider

I did not sleep well. Exhausted, I dragged my worthless feeling carcass out of bed and stood under the shower for a while trying to shake this funk I was still in. It wasn't as bad as the previous day, but I was still down. The hotel wasn't bad and there was a cafe downstairs. I had an omelette, which has become customary on this entire trip. The waitress, who I believe was Chinese and spoke with a thick accent, remembered me from before and asked me if I was staying in town. I mentioned tha ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11866)

Road Report Day 45 - Heading East and not happy about it.

I don't know what got to me. Something did. Some thought, sound or image. It happens sometimes. It's not just that a memory is triggered, at times a feeling is triggered and I'm back in that dark place I spent so much time in and with no one around to pull me out I descend into it's depths. I didn't sleep well. I had fitful dreams and when I finally did awake I was in an even darker place. Burdened as if by a terrible weight and withdrawn, it was as if my reason for waking up was no longer t ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11869)

Road Report 43, 44 - Grizzlies, Sea Otters, Sea Lion and Whales

"You should write a book about your travels.", the gift shop lady said. "Actually, so many friends asked me to send them emails to let them know I'm still alive that one suggested I just write a blog. That way everyone who's interested can check and see if I've croaked.", I replied. "I don't know about that internet. There's just so much bad stuff out there. You hear about it all the time. And you on that motorcycle, that's so dangerous. We had a guy killed here last year.", she said. "There's ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11872)

Road Report Days 41, 42 - Fairbanks to Valdez, Alaska - Go to Valdez they said. It'll be nice.

A friend busted my chops about the "martyr" musings in the my last post. She had been there through the latter part of the Nightmare and saw much of the worst of it. Not to the degree that Duncan did, but much of it. So she, virtually, hit me upside the head to remind me I had little choice in the matter and was not, in fact, a martyr. There's an interesting aspect to the psychology going on in me. It makes no sense, but then again this kind of damage rarely does. You're raised in an environm ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11877)

Road Report Day 37 - Deadhorse, Alaska to Camp Coldfoot - Some Disassembly Required

I'm not feeling well today. I had trouble sleeping again last and woke up feeling very off and unmotivated. I had another episode of my guts letting loose yesterday. To top things off, while I didn't notice the smoke myself, the forest fire on the horizon has apparently been sending some smoke this way. I had noticed I was starting to get tired yesterday, a common allergic symptom for me, and today I was already completely wiped out. So I've decided to stay at the hotel here in Fairbanks ano ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11878)

Road Report Day 36 - Coldfoot Camp to Deadhorse, Prudhoe Bay, Alaska

I'm currently in Fairbanks at a motel that has WIFI. I arrived yesterday in the late afternoon. I've been tired these last few days. I had arrived early so I could write but realized I was just stupid tired. I decided to take a day off and just extended my stay here a day. I'll probably hit the road tomorrow. I've heard from so many people about the blog. It's a bit overwhelming. The idea that so many people are reading what I write and responding with encouragement and, three today, with sel ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11882)

No post today ...

I'm back in Fairbanks at a hotel. I'm too beat to write much today and there's alot to tell. I'm thinking I'm just going to hole up here tomorrow and write a long report about the Dalton Highway, Deadhorse and the return trip. I think then I'm going to take a day trip down to Valdez the next day. There's supposed to be a glacier you can see from the road and a boat tour that sees the same. I've never seen a glacier so I was thinking I'd like to. I was hanging out in the Coldfoot Camp bar wh ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11883)

Road Report Days 34, 35 - Fairbanks to Camp Coldfoot on the Dalton Highway.

I had left Tok and headed to Fairbanks. I needed to make time so I rarely stopped to shoot photos but as I was riding through the landscape here, which continued to be beautiful, it dawned on me that I have not often mentioned the horror show that's been unfolding on my helment and bike. Ever since I got into British Columbia, the bugs have just been horrific. I remember the mosquitos from the '92 trip, but this is much different. These beasts are HUGE. I don't know what kind of bugs they ...Read More

Yermo
13 years ago
Blog Article (11893)

Road Report Day 33 - The Alcan to Tok, Alaska

I had wanted to make some mileage so I got up relatively early and had breakfast at the adjoining restaurant. My room was on the third floor so getting all my gear back down and on the bike was kind of a pain. I was trying to make some miles so I didn't stop too often to snap photos. I did notice after a while that the landscape had once again change. Under a layer of vegetation it looked like sand. I found this rather curious. I wonder if this sand was deposited as a result of the la ...Read More