Passes & Canyons Blog

I make note of my odometer readings on all three bikes and my car at the end of the year and once again I put more miles on my bikes than I did on my car. It has been quite awhile, actually, since the last time I put more miles on the car than on the bikes. I try to ensure that the bikes get the bulk of the miles.

That said, my mileage overall for the year was down. In 2018 my total mileage was 10,158 (7,230 motorcycle miles); in 2019 it was 8,011 (4,777 motorcycle miles). I guess I just don’t leave the house as much as I used to. Still, that was 4,777 miles on the bikes versus only 3,234 miles in the car. But there have been years when I’ve put more miles on the Kawi alone than I put on all my vehicles last year.

So which one got the most riding? Once again it was the V-Strom. This has totally to do with tires. I was getting set to go on the OFMC ride last year and looking at the tires on the Kawi I was not confident. I wanted to take the Kawi but the tread was getting thin. But it was not thin enough for me to want to get new tires yet. I briefly considered taking the CB750 but it has the least luggage capacity so I took the V-Strom.

All told, I put 3,494 miles on the V. That compares to 2,425 the year before.

The Concours was the one that really got short shrift last year. That wonderful highway bike was only ridden for 688 miles, versus 4,336 the previous year. That has got to be the least it has ever had. (Nope, I checked my records and I only rode it 666 miles in 2013.) I want to ride it on the OFMC trip this year so I’ll make sure to wear out those tires and get new ones before that trip comes around.

In last place as always is the CB750. I only put 595 miles on it last year. But that’s up from 469 miles the previous year. I made a special point of riding that bike more.

So what am I looking for in 2020? By golly, I will put more miles on all three bikes, I swear. And if I can put fewer miles on my car that will just be a bonus. In particular I want to put more than 1,000 miles on the Honda in one year, something I haven’t done since 2009. That used to be my only bike and it always got lots of miles.

And let’s see if I can exceed 10,000 motorcycle miles this year. You know what they say about a dirty job that someone has to do. Well, I’m more than willing to do the dirty work.

Biker Quote for Today

The cost of not following your heart is spending the rest of your life wishing you had.

Once again last year my motorcycle mileage totally kicked the butt of my car mileage. I only drove my car 2,928 miles, while I put 7,230 miles on my three bikes. Heck, I put more miles on the Concours in one trip than I did on the car the whole year. In comparison, I put 5,043 miles on the bikes in 2017 and 3,004 on the car.

The lowest mileage–as usual–was on the Honda. That was just 469 miles, compared to 713 the year before. Every year I promise myself I will ride the Honda more and every year I prove myself a liar. Maybe this time at least I can claim that, “Oh, I would have ridden the Honda more if I weren’t off the bikes for two months due to heart surgery.” And that’s certainly true because minus the surgery I would have ridden the Honda in both those months at least a few miles. But that’s still not much of an excuse.

The V-Strom got quite a bit more riding. We went 2,425 miles together and that compares very favorably to the year before when we only went 1,588 miles.

The big boy, also as usual, was the Connie. I put 4,336 miles on that bike; the 2017 total was only 2,742. So once again, that one trip to British Columbia put more miles on this bike than it got all of the previous year.

In other words, if you really want to put some miles on your bike it pays big time to go somewhere–somewhere far away.

So what’s on the agenda for 2019? Of course the OFMC ride will happen, and that looks to be about 2,300 miles. And once again we’re hoping to join members of the Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Riders Club on one of their long trips, but that will all be determined by timing and conflicts.

And I’m not planning to be off the bikes for two months due to surgery. Of course I wasn’t planning that last year either but it happened. On the other hand, if I hadn’t had that surgery I might easily not be alive this year to do any riding at all.

Beyond all this we’ll just have to see. I do have an idea, however, that I might get out on at least a couple longer solo rides. You see, Judy is very preoccupied at this point and for the forseeable future playing grandma to her new–and first!–grandchild. There may just be times when I tell her I’m figuring to head out for a few days. I don’t want to leave her behind if she’s interested in going but if it’s a choice between Jack and a ride, I’m figuring she’ll choose Jack. Or I could be wrong; we’ll see.

Biker Quote for Today

Time on a motorcycle is unlike time spent anywhere else. There are moments lost in the landscape, seconds devoted solely to balance, and long stretches spent spiraling inward. — Barbara Schoichet

I’m not one for patches; I don’t have a riding vest covered with those things the way a lot of people do. And I don’t care about reaching artificial goals just for the bragging rights. Nevertheless, I do like events and programs of that sort for their ability to give me ideas about riding I might like to do.

In this case I’m thinking about the LongRider program organized by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA).

Here’s how they describe it:

The AMA LongRider program is your chance to show others that you’re serious about riding your motorcycle. AMA members are invited to earn patches for various mileage milestones.

Mileage awards are available at 10,000, 25,000 and 50,000 annual miles. In addition to the awards, AMA LongRiders will be recognized on the AMA website.

If you don’t get a chance to ride that often, let your miles accumulate for a Lifetime Mileage award at 25,000, 50,000, 100,000, 250,000, 500,000, 750,000 and 1 million miles. Riders who achieve 1 million miles will earn a special AMA LongRider plaque.

OK, so this thing doesn’t actually offer ideas about where to ride so much as an incentive to get in some extra miles. There have been a couple years when I could have earned a 10,000-mile patch, and certainly I would now be holding some of the lower lifetime mileage awards. Shooting for that 250,000-mile award would definitely demand that I get serious. Please don’t throw me in that briar patch!

The AMA has rules about participating, such as AMA membership, registering for the program, and abiding by their verification rules. All that info is on that page linked above. And heck, for me, I make note of my mileage every January 1 anyway. All I’d need to do is sign up and register my current mileage.

Maybe I will. As I said, I’m not big into patches and such but it’s still kind of a fun idea to do an I’ll-show-you-mine-if-you-show-me-yours thing. I know lots of riders will outdistance me by many miles but I don’t care. Just something to think about.

Biker Quote for Today

You’re a biker wannabe if you carry a lap-top in your saddle bags. (Hey, I do carry a lap-top. I don’t always agree with these quotes, I just collect them and put them out there.)