Coast2Coast Day 4 - Onward and Upward

Two surprises sprung up on the morning of day 4, both having to do with my tires. First was that because I had climbed from sea level to 7200 feet, my tire had managed to inflate themselves to proper riding pressure. I had let a couple of pounds out because of the heat in the desert and I didn't want them bursting. But, up in Moab, the were right up to pressure! Cool.

The second surprise wasn't so cool. Because of the heat and the extra weight of the panniers my back tire had completely worn out. Uggg. Sunday morning is not the day to discover a toasted motorcycle tire. Bike shops aren't open Sundays, and only a few shops are open mondays. So I was looking at 400-800 more miles on a roachy tire.

This kind of soured my mood. But it was first thing in the morning and I was in Moab, so I should really go see Arches National Park. Arches is stunning. But I was just completely absorbed by trying to figure out how to find a tire. And... I began to think of the Arches miles as miles I didn't need to travel. So ultimately I decided that I wasn't having a good time. After touring about 50% of the park, I bailed.

It didn't take long for my mood to turn around though. Highway 128 from Moab follows the Colorado river 44 miles through beautiful canyons and twisty roads. I was just having the time of my life. And becuase I was carving corners I was riding on the sides of the tires, rather than on the center (worn) part of the tire. So it was good miles.

It wasn't long before I was in Colorado. I was having a great time. The western slope of the Rockies is strange. You ride through prarie lands for a while, then you ride past these crested buttes into a canyon following the Colorado river. You begin to climb into the foothills of the Rockies, then into the Rockies proper, but because the slope is so gradual, you never actually see the rockies until you're actually in them. It's a bit weird.

Also, I had no idea that from Moab to the summit of the Rockies, some 300 miles, you follow the Colorado river. It was a nice surprise... but I guess I should have noticed it on the map.

The 70 is incredible. There is a section called Glenwood Canyon that looks just like the mountain passes of Switzerland, with the covered, futuristic looking highways. It's WAY cool.

I also didn't realize that the pass over the Rockies takes you to an elevation of 11200 feet! Oh how I love the BMW. At 11000 feet the bike was stomping up the grade at 90mph. Everyone else was eating my dust.

I got a little rain and hail at the summit, but it's nothing to speak of really. By the time I pulled on my jacket, the rain passed. Doh!

Spent the night with Chris and Shane. It was so great to see them!! Tomorrow, I'm off to find a tire. We'll see how that goes. Also there's thunder storms forcast for the Dakotas.

Yikes.

By the numbers:
States today: 2 UT & CO
Miles today: 403.1
Miles total: 1295.8


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