Pre-Trip Prep
I've been spending every night this week getting ready for the trip. I've had to make 2 trips to Campmor (fighting from the bag area... okay, so I visited it but I did NOT buy one) this week geting last minute items. I had to do a crash course in the waterproof bag department (1 for the sleeping bag and another for clothing... I'd hate to get into a wet sleeping bag). Snagged a first aid kit (I figure it would not hurt to have if for the cruise in July anyway), some tent sealant, dehydrated food, JetBoil coffee press and post stabilizer (to convert the Jetboil over to a standard stove), and etc. This will be the first time I will have ever tried the dehydrated foods. I'll add my review when I return. Although a friend/associate from Insight , Brian, might show at Lake Placid on Saturday night with his fiance. If it goes that way, I'll have a good excuse from having to eat the stuff; we'll do dinner instead... real food. I'll probably modify the route if Brian shows (he lives in Montreal and is a BIG Canadian's fan!).
I figured a nice way to strap the bag down onto the rear seat, being able to quickly remove it. I think the bag is going to be relaxing. According to what I have packed, the saddle bags are not going to be crammed. This will help determine how much space I will need for the VA trip to see Roy. I'd like to get a camera mount for the RAM (the RAM mount is the only way to fly http://ram-mount.com) so that when Roy and I drive Skyline Drive, I can set the camcorder up and make a movie of the ride. Might be fun. So everything is packed in a pile and ready to be loaded on the ACE. I'll load'r down tonight after work but after I make a short trip on her so that I can add some lube to the chain with it warm.
The only thing so far that has not gone as planned is in the tunes department. The speakers I bought for the helmet did not fit as well as expected. I made some using the KOSS earphones but converting some nice gel earplugs to fit them. I have not tried them yet, I will tonight. If they don't fit well then I am going san tunes. It might not be the worse thing anyway because I need to do some thinking on this trip and not be so entertained. There are a few headphones that I looked into last night, mostly from http://shop.store.yahoo.com/earplugstore/index.html They have 2 that I am interested in, the Sensorcom (which is much more cost efficient) and the Challenger isolation earphones. The Challenger earphones are actually made of an impression of your own ear that you send to them. I only question how well these 2 actually sound. The Challengers are $200 (ouch!). I am going to call them to find out if I can 'try' the Sensorcom's. I fitted the sheepskin seat cover on the saddle... plush baby. I need to do some touch up on it by cutting the draw cords and stuff but I think it too will make a big difference.
I plan on leaving around 9:00am and reaching the campgraound by 5:00pm. I don't have a planned campground. I called this week and they want a 2 night reservation. There are 4 in the area (see map below) so hopefully one of them can accomidate a walk in. It should take roughly 6 hours without stopping too much but I would like to check out Lake Placid a little and maybe take some pics. The NYS Thruway (87) is suppose to get pretty nice towards the north. This will be my first trip that I log so that will be interesting as well. I'm concerned that I will not recall as much as I wish. I plan this trip will be just over 700 miles round trip.
Champaigne bottle slaps the fender at 9:00am. Catch you tomorrow...
