Posted: 18 August 2007 at 6:10pm | IP Logged

I finished my BBG this morning & after a shower & a nap I'm none the worse for wear except for stiff legs & wrists.

I traveled the PA Turnpike, (I-76) from Carlisle, PA to New Stanton, PA & picked up I-70 heading West to St. Louis where I would turn around & make the return trip.

Aside from the perpetual scattered construction zones on the Turnpike, it was at New Stanton is where I hit my first major traffic problem. Within the first mile of I-70 I ran into a miles long procession. It seems the State Police were escorting 3 oversize loads of very large & very long concrete bridge sections. They took up 1 1/2 lanes & were moving @ 30-35 mph. The roadway for the first 20 miles or so here is very narrow, so there was no passing. Very frustrating. After the road widened, traffic started getting around them slowly because everybody had to gawk at the monstrous pieces of concrete.

In Ohio & Indiana there were numerous slowdowns due to construction. Most were just minor but there were a couple major time consuming backups around Columbus & Indy.

I hit my turn around point in just under 12 hrs. I was trying to stay about 5-10 mph above the speed limit & my longest gas stop was 15 minutes but I was still just barely keeping up with my 65 mph average. I had to turn the wick up, so I filled up & headed East.

All went well until about 2 hrs before day break when I started to lose my focus. I was forgetting to turn off turn signals, mind wandering & not paying attention to the road, etc. I got off for gas, took an extended coffee break & walked around in the cold (It was about 50F) for about 20 minutes. I got back on the bike & tried to continue but an hour later I had to pull off again for more coffee. I did some calculations & saw that if I had a full tank & if I really kept the hammer down I could do the remaining miles, with only minutes to spare & fumes in the tank. Now I have a mission.

I filled the tank to overflowing, got back on I-70, entered the PA Turnpike & pretty much stayed in the left lane. I kept looking at the speedometer, odometer, my watch & doing mental calculations. I could do it, but there HAD to be an exit or a Service Area very close after I hit my 1500 miles or else the ride was just going down as a BB1500 & not a BB Gold.

When I hit 1500 miles on the odometer the next exit was 12 miles away. I hit the exit & got my time/date stamped receipt at the toll booth 23 hrs, 52 minutes after my start time the day before with 1517 miles. I wanted more miles for a safety margin, but it couldn't be helped. I went to the nearest gas station, filled up, got my witness form signed & took back roads the rest of the 80 miles home.

Start time: 8/17/07, 09:04.     End time: 8/18/07, 08:58.

Have A Nice Day! I did.

Posted: 18 August 2007 at 7:04pm | IP Logged

Way to go Lynn. Never giving up says a lot.

Posted: 19 August 2007 at 7:22am | IP Logged

Congratulations!

Posted: 19 August 2007 at 12:01pm | IP Logged

I finished my BBG this morning & after a shower & a nap I'm none the worse for wear except for stiff legs & wrists.

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Contrats on the BBG. I know it is not "Easy" to do one. I tried one earlier this year and ran into hail storms and contruction in the mountains of Oregon and Northern California. I made it to the half way point in 12 hours and ran into another construction zone in Bakersfield. Only a rediculous speed at the end would have made it but I choose to call it off. When you mentioned you were at twelve hours at the turn around, I felt for you because I knew what you were in for. You pulled it off. I can feel how happy you are. I'll try mine again soon enough. Thanks for sharing.

Posted: 19 August 2007 at 7:23pm | IP Logged

Nice job!  Congratulations!  It always is good to accomplish something you really want, and it looks like you did it in style.

Joggernot

Posted: 19 August 2007 at 9:08pm | IP Logged

Thanks everyone. The time & mileage were both cut a little closer than I wanted but it couldn't be helped under the circumstances. If I'd cut my 2- 15 minute fuel stops down to 10 minutes each, things would've been different. If, if, if....

I spent this evening copying maps, witness forms, receipts & typing my trip log so it would be readable. The forms & the check will be in the mail in the morning.

Since the IBR starts in a couple hours, I doubt that the contents of my package will see the light of day for a while, but that's OK. I got the BBG out of my system & now I have to plan a 3-4 day October ride across Northern PA/Southern NY for my wife & I.