JourneyMan
06-16-2005, 11:26 PM
Wednesday evening I received a call from my boss - can I go down to Albuquerque for two or three days to help on a project? Sounds like an opportunity to take a company sponsored motorcycle adventure to me! Thursday morning I am on my way. Leaving Golden at 5:45 a.m., I hit I-25 south, make it through Colorado Springs and Pueblo with no traffic and have the road from Walsenburg to Trinidad to myself. I have been looking forward to breakfast at a tiny old restaurant called the White Spot in Trinidad and am disappointed to find it closed. (It was open on my way home though - so I stopped for a second breakfast to make up for the missed breakast on my way south).
Raton pass is crossed and I descend into Raton and buy gas. I-25 south from Raton is wide-open, with long vistas and long distances with no towns. Tempting to open the throttle here, but, I always find law enforcement near Raton. This trip is no exception as I pass three NM troopers in the first thirty miles or so.
Near Las Vegas I stopped to shed a jacket and change to ventilated gloves as the temperature is now about 80 degrees. A short time later the road climbs to Glorieta and the wonderful odor of pine studded mountains. Passing Santa Fe I head down to San Felipe Pueblo, buy gas again, and head into Bernalillo on old Route 66.
A two day job becomes a two week assignment. Long days of the approaching solstice give opportunities to explore the pueblos of Sandia, Santa Ana, San Felipe, Acoma, Isleta and Laguna after work. Working half-days on the weekend also gives time for a trip to the dusty old-west town of Socorro and on to the world's largest radio telescope, the Very Large Array.
One evening I make a scenic trip from Albuquerque to Santa Fe on the Turquoise Trail, passing trhough Golden NM (makes Golden CO look busy!) and funky Madrid.
I made a quick trip home on I-25 with an extra breakfast at the White Spot in Trinidad. Several heards of antelope spotted in both NM and CO.
The ST1100 ran flawlessly. I did learn that gas mileage drops very significantly at higher highway speeds. At 60 MPH I get over 50 miles/gallon. At 85 I get a little less than 40 MPG. 2300 miles covered in two weeks of daily commuting and evening rides has greatly increased my familiarity with my bike. On arriving home I took my Ducati SuperSport out for a ride and the bike feels tiny and toy-like (not a bad thing, as I enjoy playing with this toy). I am very impressed with the way the ST handles the longer miles on the freeway and leaves me feeling relatively unfatigued.
Dale
Raton pass is crossed and I descend into Raton and buy gas. I-25 south from Raton is wide-open, with long vistas and long distances with no towns. Tempting to open the throttle here, but, I always find law enforcement near Raton. This trip is no exception as I pass three NM troopers in the first thirty miles or so.
Near Las Vegas I stopped to shed a jacket and change to ventilated gloves as the temperature is now about 80 degrees. A short time later the road climbs to Glorieta and the wonderful odor of pine studded mountains. Passing Santa Fe I head down to San Felipe Pueblo, buy gas again, and head into Bernalillo on old Route 66.
A two day job becomes a two week assignment. Long days of the approaching solstice give opportunities to explore the pueblos of Sandia, Santa Ana, San Felipe, Acoma, Isleta and Laguna after work. Working half-days on the weekend also gives time for a trip to the dusty old-west town of Socorro and on to the world's largest radio telescope, the Very Large Array.
One evening I make a scenic trip from Albuquerque to Santa Fe on the Turquoise Trail, passing trhough Golden NM (makes Golden CO look busy!) and funky Madrid.
I made a quick trip home on I-25 with an extra breakfast at the White Spot in Trinidad. Several heards of antelope spotted in both NM and CO.
The ST1100 ran flawlessly. I did learn that gas mileage drops very significantly at higher highway speeds. At 60 MPH I get over 50 miles/gallon. At 85 I get a little less than 40 MPG. 2300 miles covered in two weeks of daily commuting and evening rides has greatly increased my familiarity with my bike. On arriving home I took my Ducati SuperSport out for a ride and the bike feels tiny and toy-like (not a bad thing, as I enjoy playing with this toy). I am very impressed with the way the ST handles the longer miles on the freeway and leaves me feeling relatively unfatigued.
Dale