Saturday was beautiful! I suppose it topped out at 74 or 75 degrees. I jumped at the chance to take a ride. I hopped on the old V-Star and headed north.

 It took a good twenty minutes longer than usual to get to Wasilla, on account of road construction. But once I inched past the workers the lanes opened back up and I averaged 65 to 70 mph after that. I stopped by a friend's house in Wasilla to see what's up, but no one was home.

 So, on to Willow. The bike was running great, and so far it was a pleasurable ride. As I left Willow the traffic really lightened up and I was able to check out the scenery as I rode.

 By now, I had been on the bike for about 90 minutes, and thanks to the road construction, I was passing mile maker 75. That's not very good time. I had planned on riding to Talkeetna (approx. 95 miles) but the hind side was starting to bother me.

 Soon I was passing mile markers in the eighties and was looking for a place to rest. The Kashwitna River crosses under the Parks Highway around marker 83. There is a nice pull out right beside it, so I parked the bike.

 It felt good to stretch and walk around. I definitely need some highway bars. My knees get locked up riding too long on the stock foot pegs. After a good 15 minutes standing upright I had to decide which way to go. I really wanted to continue, but to do that I would have needed some pain killer (which I failed to bring). I decided that by the time I got home it would be about as much as I could take. So I headed back home.

  When I parked it in the garage, I had been gone 3 and a half hours. For an old guy like me, 3 and a half hours on the bike was pretty good. It's a far cry from touring several hundred miles per day like I want. But to do that, I definitely need some modifications. I need a better than stock seat and some highway bars to stretch the legs.

 This week I may take off to Glennallen and from there, on to Tok. That would be approx. 640 mile round trip. If I do it, I'll do an overnighter and try to split those miles up some. And I'll be sure to remember the ibuprofin.

 We have gotten about 3/4 inch of rain since saturday, so it's a good thing I got out when I did. But, the next few days are supposed to be sunny again. And I've got the itch to go.

 Later