What went wrong...

The repair & clean up to the Spyder are now complete.  The O ring to the oil filter housing was defective.  Mark took the motorcycle out for a test ride on the interstate last night.  After planning this trip for the past year it was a devastating disappointment to say the least.  The bike has the state of the art technology built-in so to speak as it requires programming when you're towing the trailer/when you're not, and etc.  Therefore, when it happened and no warning at all displayed that the bike was failing, Mark hit the kill switch to shut the bike down.  Yup, it'll take a while to restore our faith in the bike's performance.  Again, we want to say THANK YOU to all who have been following our travel Blog and although we didn't make it outside Vermont, it's great to have seen a lot of interest in our travel!

 

Plan B Vacation

Everything we had packed for the USA Tour trip is now unpacked and put away :( Yesterday, Mark and I went to Accent Travel and made reservations to fly to Fort Lauderdale instead leaving August 14th. In the meantime, we'll be back at work starting tomorrow, Wednesday. It's my hope that the ocean view from our hotel room in Florida will help erase at least for the time being anyway the view Mark had Friday night & again Saturday morning as he/we watched the Spyder motorcycle being driven away on the back of the tow truck and back to Land Air. However, Mark and I both know things could have ended much worse and are grateful and appreciative to the people who stopped to offer us help and to the people who provide roadside assistance 24/7!!!!

Sick Spyder

Here are some pictures of my sick Can-Am Spyder RTS:

Dead Sypder on a Spyder gurney heading to Land Air.

Me steering the Spyder on the back of the tow truck.

Looks like the Spyder had a main artery cut. Oil shot out to the center line.

Where the Spyder bled out oil

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have reached failure

I like to believe that everything happens for a reason.  Now I know that Sh!t happens, but come on now, seriously.  We started out today at 3pm to head for the first corner Madawasaka, ME. only to have a horrendous breakdown.   One that is so serious that I have to question Can-Am's capability of building a steadfast product.  I have lost all faith in my Spyder RTS. The worst thing is failure when you are heading out on such a grand trip as this only to be stricken down 90 miles in to it. 

16.8 miles outside of St. Johnsbury, VT, I was going up a hill and the bike downshifted and began spraying oil all over myself, Diane and the bike. I hit the kill switch as the thick smoke started to pour out of the engine. I carefully steered the bike to the side of the road.  We were dead in the water, and in the middle of nowhere.

Long story short, luckly I have roadside assistance, which was great to have after 2 1/2 hours waiting in the middle of nowhere.  Luckily Diane's son in law, came to our aide to give us refuge in his car from the mosquito  infested forest. Thank you John!!!!!!!!!

We are safe and at home now.  Thanks to Pete the driver of the tow truck, that was finally sent to our location. Someone once said " That the only real failure in life is the failure to try".  We tried, but we shall try again, just not this vacation.

I think were still going to take a vacation, but not sure where.  We'll keep you updated.


Mark & Diane

One hour until take off!

Very busy week with packing up last minute items and with the birth of my first Grandson Liam Thomas Lovett!!  Mark and I will be leaving UVM's campus at 3PM ... yup, that's in one hour from now ... follow our Blog as we travel we'll be posting and adding pictures!!

10 Days and Counting

Counting down to the final take off day.  We are testing the SPOT device tonight to make sure it works.

Go Spot Go!  :)

16 days and counting ...

Home for the next 5 weeks.

 

Home for five weeks!

Pictures

Break Time :)

Counting down ... 17 days left before take off!

Mark & I are scrambling with trying to get last minute items we need for the trip. Saturday was spent setting up the tent ... purchasing dry bags to pack up our clothes ... and mapping out our route. Getting ready for some steamy temperatures as the South is heating up and in some places we'll be traveling are already 110+ degrees. Staying hydrated, is equally important as is our safety. As time gets closer to departure, we'll be posting more, including pictures, so stay tuned!

Getting used to the new bike.

It's been a while since I have posted anything. So, here's an update.  I have been riding a lot, Since April 2nd when I picked up my Spyder, I have driven 1150+ miles.  So whenever the weather is nice, Diane, and I are out riding.  Which lately the weather has not been very nice, so I've been putting on the miles when I can.

The Can-Am Spyder RTS handles incredibly smooth.  It doesn't lean when you turn, so if your used to a two wheeler, it may take some getting used to. It's been about 15 years since I've road a two wheeler, so it didn't take me long to get used to the no leaning.

Let's talk about the power, at a 998cc V-Twin engine,  it has the get up and go you sometimes need.  I have the 5 speed semi-automatic transmission, so there is no clutch, to shift it up gear its just a push of the thumb, to down shift its a press of the index finger toward me. To break there's only one and its a foot break. It breaks all three tires at the same time.

Diane is getting used of riding. She is fine, until it comes to interstate riding, she gets an A+ for effort though.  So, we know we need to do more interstate riding :)  It looks like the weather is supposed to be good this this weekend, guess what we'll be doing :)

Can-Am Spyder Roadster RTS

I picked up my bike yesterday from Land-Air. I've got plenty of room for my gear :).  It handles incredibly well. I put 72 miles on it the day I picked it up :)

Tour Master Jacket

Tonight I bought this Tour Master Transition Series 2 Jacket.  The jacket fits great.  It's very versatile and has plenty of adjustments to make sure the jacket fits great.  Its very durable and its water proof, plus it has a removable liner and has plenty of ventilation vents for summer heat.  7 days left until I pick up my new bike. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you what bike I got.  I got the ............ I guess you'll have to wait until the next post to find out :)

Intercom System

The bluetooth intercom system that I bought seems to be awesome, so far.  It is not the NCOM system that the helmet is designed for as it did not have the best reviews.  I went with the Cardo Systems Scala Rider G4 bluetooth intercom system.  The reviews were great! It supposedly connects easily to bluetooth device which is a plus. Here is what it looks like.

Find out more on there site at:
http://www.cardosystems.com/scala-rider/scala-rider-g4

Go Spot Go

More gear okay, I know that some of you are probably thinking "what the heck?". But the reality is that we may not be able to get a cell signal in some parts of the United States. People that know me know, I'm all about safety, for a number of reasons. The top being prepared for the worst, hoping it never happens, that's why SPOT is coming with me on this trip.  This is what SPOT looks like:

For more information on SPOT check out their site at:  http://www.findmespot.com/en/index.php

Emergency beacon and tracking device, yeah I have to have it.

Helmets

Gear, Gear and more Gear..... I have been really busy the past couple of weeks getting gear together for the trip. Here is a picture of the helmets. After careful consideration I decided to go with the Nolan N90.  The helmet had great reviews from a number of websites, and most importantly one of my favorites Web Bike World, you can find them at http://www.webbikeworld.com/. The helmet is comfortable, and very quite. I did not go with the NCOM bluetooth system though. More to come on that in a later post.

Notice the sun visor, this was an important feature for me as well as noise reduction.

Also, Dream team members let me know your thoughts..........

Updates

Just an FYI I have been updating my routes. So feel free to check them out, and offer up any suggestions. Thank you :)

Blaine, WA to Essex Jct. VT

I'm going to call this the home stretch ;)



View Directions to essex jct, VT in a larger map

San Ysidro, CA to Blaine, WA

Third Corner to the fourth Corner. If anyone knows of any places I should stop on the way and check out please let me know.






Click here for large map.

Key West, FL. to San Ysidro, CA

Second Corner to Third Corner.  If anyone knows of any places I should stop on the way and check out please let me know.



To view full map click here.

Madawaska, ME to Key West FL.

I have set this up to update automatically as I change my route. But for now it looks like this is he one I'm going to take.  I am up for any suggestions.




View Directions to Key West, FL in a larger map


See full map Here

2011 Four Corners USA Tour

This blog is going to be about my up coming 2011 four corners USA tour. I will be planning my trip and posting things here concerning my trip. If you been on a four corners trip please feel free to give me a advice.