Heading home from a professional conference with anticipation for our next motorcycle trip. Trip preparation is systematic and calculated. First there are months of trip planning. We examine what roads, what routes, what cities, what adventures we hope to have while on the road. We know that you can really only have a beginning date and an ending date as so much in between depends upon,well, so many factors. So as I sit in the airport awaiting my flight home I am making my list and checking it twice so that once I arrive home I can begin the systematic, detailed activity of readying myself and my bike for the trip. That does not even account for all the things I have to do to ready the house for the house sitter. But that is for another blog. In June weather should be warm in the Carolina, our destination, but the mountains make weather a bit more unpredictable. Consequently, one must pack for all types of weather. The heavy leather jacket and chaps for the cooler mornings. The leather vest for warmer days. The rain gear because one just never knows and we are already anticipating leaving in the rain and driving the majority of our first day in the rain. Besides clothes one needs to have tools just in case. Then one needs the cleaning items, especially to clean the windshield at various stops and prior to getting back on the road after a night of rest. We pack a light dust cover to keep the rain off the bike, but really it is to keep the rain of the seat so that at least at the start of the day the seat is dry. You have to have rags. One just never knows what a rag is good for. I pack two types of cloves, one for warm weather and warm pair for cool weather. Of course, there is the road atlas and motorcycle manuals. Now, if there is any room left, I can pack my clothes. This is where minimalism is a good thing. Jeans and t-shirts are the standard. One needs clothes for the evening when the day ride is over. I pack my IPAD so I can have all the tech tools I need - books, blogging tools, MLB TV, and games to keep me entertained in case we have a rain day. So, as I await my fight home, my mind continues to make lists and checks them twice so when I get back on the ground I hit the ground running so when tomorrow comes we can be off, confidently knowing we are prepared for everything we can encounter on the road.
