[ Tuesday - May 12, 2009 ]

When Mother Nature deals you a bad hand and tells you, "Don't even think about it!", what do you do?  You tuck you tail and run away so that you can ride another day.  Such is the case when it came to the Central Coast '09 trip.  Everything was planned, we reserved our campsite, but the rains came and wiped out our plans.  Yes I know the enduros can handle the rain, but it's not me that I'm concerned about.  Additionally, the idea of riding the 1 Hwy in the dark with wet conditions doesn't sound too appealing.  The 1 Hwy is treacherous enough as it is in dry conditions, between Hearst Castle and Big Sur, that I don't care to ponder what it's like to have a caravan of motorbikes traversing under said conditions.  So what do I do?  I move a trip intended for later in the year up to an earlier date.  Hey, if life deals you lemons, make lemonade.  So now we're shooting for Yosemite in late May instead.

The 8GS is pretty much ready to go.  The only change I did was to swap out the 12R trunk for the old 4550 Pelican case.  Yeah I know... Pelican case.  What can I say, I need a flat area to carry the 2.5G gas can.  I can do the pillion peg caddy for the gas can, but I haven't bothered to build the bracket yet.  Buy one?  Forget it.  Everybody and their mother wants more than $100 for something that should only cost $25.  However, I eventually have to build the bracket before we head out for Mammoth Lakes at the end of the year.  Why do it now when I can procrastinate, and do it later.  A gas can is not an absolute necessity on this trip, but it's good insurance because some areas of the Central Valley, that we're traversing, has population of 0 for miles on end.  Beyond this minor mod, there's not much else that needs to be done.  The camping equipment is still packed from the canceled trip so not much packing is needed.  This sure makes things easier.  Knowing me I'm sure I'll still be scramble at the last minute.