Bonneville America Forums Forums General Motorcycle Forums Rides, Rallies, & Events Long ride

I'm thinking about heading out from Richmond Va to Denver Co on my BA....for a laid back ride, how long do you think it should take (counting good weather),,,,,,Am retired and have plenty of time although I do have a new wife and I expect she'd like to see me back home in about 14 days??

tx

Well my little mapping system says it's 1715 miles and will take three days to get there. You could probably do it in two days hard ride but we're talking HARD ride. And that is via slab... good luck if you decide to make the run and be sure to give us a ride report.

I'd take at least 5 days to get there, but then I have bad knees and a bad back. A 500 mile day is as much as I want to do, and I've done it a few times. I wouldn't want to do 500 mile days 3 in a row though. Personally, I'd plan on 350 mile days in the saddle, but then I'm not into superslabs, so I'd map out a nice back highways strategy. I also take a lot of small breaks...every 75-100 miles. That helps me from getting stiff. 350 mile days also allow some time to stop along the way to take pictures. If you want something to remember the trip, taking lots of photos is the way to go, and that takes away travelling time.

I don't know how much riding experience you have, so the rest of this is dumbing things down a bit. A lot of this depends on your personal stamina. Have you taken any long rides? What's the longest day ride you've been on where you didn't feel wiped out at the end of the day? These are the types of questions you should be asking yourself. And build up some of that stamina before the ride. Go on some long day rides building up to 300-400 miles before you go on this trip. Take an overnight or weekend trip. There's nothing worse than being out on the road and having your back act up, because it's not use to being in the saddle that long.

Welcome to the forum. What a first post!

Man, if you have that much time and a great machine, get out a map, highlight interstate 64 and 70 with a black highlighter, throw away the map, ride with the sun at your back in the morning, in your face in the evening, take breaks when you want, and eventually you'll see signs for Denver. Reverse when it's time to go home!

Welcome to the site!

I would find back roads that generally point west and take a week. If you have to be out there on short notice, I'd fly!

Tx,
Yeah, like bonnyusa wrote, aim your motorsickle WWN and ride! If you cannot stand being away from your new bride, fly her out to Denver for a couple of days mid week?!

Chy says 1700 miles. Your gluteus maximus won't be too happy if you ride that in three days. It'll take your buttocks a day or two to recover. So, in answer to your question of how long it will take, given you want to ride in a laid back way, say at least 5 days to ride there.

Long trips. The dilemma: You want to be there but you are here. Consider backroading it one way and slabbing it the other way. Works for Lynn Slabbing vs backroading. Figure almost one-third again as long en-route when backroading. What takes 1 hour will take 1 hour 20 minutes.

When you first start out you are usually fresh and happy and longing to see the world. The start is the best time for backroading. Slabbing is great for getting home after being worn out from all your riding, eating way too much food and paying to sleep.

Now that's the kind of problem I need......
About 14 days, eh? Are those standard days or metric days??

Take a cell phone and a credit card and go for it....

take her with you and consider useing up a month. i once took a ride from mi. to cal. and it took me 2 months. man what a ride!!!! from cal. to tex took me a month from tex to fl. took me a month from fl. to danville va. was another 1 1/2 months from va. to ky was 3wks all total was gone almost a yr. what a beutifull country we live in if you take as many backroads as you can, if you take the slab, you will not ENJOY yourself. when rideing a motorcycle it is best to take your time and see the scenery and ENJOY the ride, talk to people along the way, camp when you can motel when you need to and when you return you will want to do it again.

Riders, tx for the advice and insights. Think I'll take my time,avoid the major roads and turn off the engine when the butt hurts and I'm ready for a few beers. It's been a while since I've ridden a distance. Not is the best of shape for a 56 year old but I have my teeth, have my old jungle fatigues from the sixties and memories of doing dumb, fun things years ago. Hell, what's the worst that can happen??? Too old to be drafted and too smart to hang
with boring people. Regards to all. Denis (aka Latesail)