Mr. Peabody's Wayback Machine
Mr. Peabody's WayBack Machine
Looking back, the bike travel bug bit in the late 80s. I had a 1982 Kawasaki GPz 550 that sat in the garage corner gathering dust while I raced cars…then, for a reason I know not why, I attended a Rider Magazine "rally" in Pennsylvania and got hooked on traveling by bike. Up and down the east coast; the North Georgia Mountains, Blue Ridge Parkway, New England, the Gaspe Peninsula, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick…all were fair game. Various bikes came and went, trips got longer, memories were made.
Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of digital photos of that era…lost to moves, anger and neglect. But here are a few:
Sophia
Sophia was a passion, 2 big jugs and peak-a-boo bodywork…completely rebuilt by Ferracci with everything you could imagine…titanium rods, flat slide carbs, hi-comp pistons, big bore kit…a carnival ride…and I could set off car alarms at will. Pure fun…40k on it when the above photo was taken. It was my "travel" bike…my only bike.
Bought a 1993 BMW K75S as an addition to the stable…wanted something more comfortable for traveling, and it was…40k worth. The luxury of hard luggage…ahhhhhhh…
But…but, but…but…crappy brakes, balky shifting…the lure of power…led to a SuperHawk…
Exactly 117 miles until the RLOD…the Red Light of Death…and about 15 more until you were walking. That would never do in the great expanse known as the Southwest.
Before letting the Hawk fly, was a trip to the Alps, and my "GS conversion."
Being a "sport bike guy" I rented a K12S…can't believe that's almost 10 years ago. Nice bike, but the wrong tool for the job. The Edelweiss tour guide, Christian, kept pestering me to ride his GS…"nah, it's big, it's ugly, I'm a sport bike guy." Finally relented…"it's like a big friendly dog, does everything well, very comfortable, very quick." I was a convert.
When I moved to Tucson a year later, in 2006, I bought a R1200GS as the travel bike…turned out to be a wonderful companion. Truly the Swiss Army Knife of motorcycles…works everywhere…
After 46k of traveling the West, bought another, a triple black 2011…still the "travel" bike today:
Some fantastic trips, mostly 2-up, she's performed flawlessly:
The GS will continue to be the "go to" travel bike. My wife loves it, I love it…it will be tough to replace. That said, who knows what's next…such a great time to ride!!!
Looking back, the bike travel bug bit in the late 80s. I had a 1982 Kawasaki GPz 550 that sat in the garage corner gathering dust while I raced cars…then, for a reason I know not why, I attended a Rider Magazine "rally" in Pennsylvania and got hooked on traveling by bike. Up and down the east coast; the North Georgia Mountains, Blue Ridge Parkway, New England, the Gaspe Peninsula, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick…all were fair game. Various bikes came and went, trips got longer, memories were made.
Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of digital photos of that era…lost to moves, anger and neglect. But here are a few:
Sophia
Sophia was a passion, 2 big jugs and peak-a-boo bodywork…completely rebuilt by Ferracci with everything you could imagine…titanium rods, flat slide carbs, hi-comp pistons, big bore kit…a carnival ride…and I could set off car alarms at will. Pure fun…40k on it when the above photo was taken. It was my "travel" bike…my only bike.
Bought a 1993 BMW K75S as an addition to the stable…wanted something more comfortable for traveling, and it was…40k worth. The luxury of hard luggage…ahhhhhhh…
But…but, but…but…crappy brakes, balky shifting…the lure of power…led to a SuperHawk…
Exactly 117 miles until the RLOD…the Red Light of Death…and about 15 more until you were walking. That would never do in the great expanse known as the Southwest.
Before letting the Hawk fly, was a trip to the Alps, and my "GS conversion."
Being a "sport bike guy" I rented a K12S…can't believe that's almost 10 years ago. Nice bike, but the wrong tool for the job. The Edelweiss tour guide, Christian, kept pestering me to ride his GS…"nah, it's big, it's ugly, I'm a sport bike guy." Finally relented…"it's like a big friendly dog, does everything well, very comfortable, very quick." I was a convert.
When I moved to Tucson a year later, in 2006, I bought a R1200GS as the travel bike…turned out to be a wonderful companion. Truly the Swiss Army Knife of motorcycles…works everywhere…
After 46k of traveling the West, bought another, a triple black 2011…still the "travel" bike today:
Some fantastic trips, mostly 2-up, she's performed flawlessly:
The GS will continue to be the "go to" travel bike. My wife loves it, I love it…it will be tough to replace. That said, who knows what's next…such a great time to ride!!!
