All eMail Communications

A reminder to anyone sending me eMail while I am in South America. Please send ALL eMail to: thebmwrider@live.com I can not respond to eMail sent to my Roadrunner account while overseas. Thanx

Cleared For Takeoff

The time has arrived, and by the time most of you read this, I will be on my way to Chile for two months of sun and motorcycles. What more could one ask for in the middle of winter in western New York? My first stop will be to the airport in Buffalo to catch a flight to Boston. From Boston, it's off to balmy Miami, Florida. In Miami I will board a late night overnight flight to Santiago, Chile and SUMMER!!!! Tough job, but someones got to do it. Make sure you check out the other web site for updates. (see below) Now, I have to go work on my tan!

Remember The New Web Site

By the end of this week, I will be riding my motorcycle under the warm South American sun. This Wednesday I leave for Chile, and I just wanted to remind any of you that are interested in following my trip, that you will have to go to http://samotoadventures.blogspot.com/ because that is where I will be posting all the news regarding my travels in South America. See you there.

Rubby Tuesdays In Santiago

I came across this picture on the Internet, and it somehow looked VERY familiar. You can frequently find my motorcycle parked on the sidewalk here, and my butt parked at the umbrella table on the left of the picture (that's MY table), at about 4:00 in the afternoon (Happy Hour). This is just two blocks from where I stay in Santiago. The street is called Isadora Goyenechea, and is full of great outdoor eateries in the best part of Santiago. It's often referred to as "The Manhattan of Santiago". The storefront just behind the umbrella on the left, is the old "Hooters Restaurant" that unfortunately closed last year. Very sad! Directly behind where this picture was taken, there is a little side street, and on the other side of the side street is "Starbucks".

Dakar...Chile / Argentina 2010

Para todos que tienen interes en todo lo que es Dakar 2010, puedes ir a este sitio: http://www.emol.com/especiales/2010/especiales/deportes/dakar_2010/index.asp

Carretera Austral

Anyone interested in reading about the Carretera Austral, the road that I explored on last years trip to Chile, might be interested in reading this article. Travel writer Colin Barraclough, along with a good friend, recently made the journey to Chile, to drive a 330 mile section of the Carretera Austral, and he chronicled his experiences for the Boston Globe. You can read his impressions from the road in a story posted here. A word of warning however, after reading this article, you just may be booking a trip to South America.

Things Are Looking Up

BMW has returned to its sences, and brought back the RED R1200GS after a year of absence.

Likely “The Last Time…”

Few planes in the history of aviation are as well known as the Douglas DC-3. The DC-3 was the plane that pioneered the Airline Industry around the world. As anyone that regularly reads this blog knows, I ride my motorcycle to Oshkosh, Wisconsin every year for the week long "EAA AirVenture". EAA AirVenture is the largest aviation event in the North America. EAA has recently announced that probably the largest gathering of Douglas DC-3's ever, will take place at AirVenture this year to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Douglas DC-3. AirVenture will take place, July 26 - August 1, 2010. Read more here.

Dakar Rally announces 2010 route in Argentina and Chile

Sands of time: the 2010 rally begins in Buenos Aires on Jan 1 Photo: GETTY IMAGES

The route for the 32nd edition of the Dakar Rally begins in Buenos Aires on Jan 1 and ends in the Argentine capital on Jan 16.
Held over approximately 9,000 km the race passes through Chile and will spend seven days in the Atacama desert, known by experts as the driest desert in the world.


Dakar Rally route:

In brackets total distances/specials.

Jan 1: Buenos Aires - Colon (317 km)
Jan 2: Colon - Cordoba (652km/219km special for motorbikes, 684km/251km special for cars)
Jan 3 : Cordoba - La Rioja (626km/294km special for motorbikes, 687km/355km special for cars)
Jan 4: La Rioja - Fiambala (441km/182km special)
Jan 5: Fiambala - Copiapo (629km/203km special)
Jan 6: Copiapo - Antofagasta (670km/483km special)
Jan 7: Antofagasta - Iquique (598km/418km special)
Jan 8: Iquique - Antofagasta (641km/600km special)
Jan 9: rest day
Jan 10: Antofagasta - Copiapo (568km/472km special)
Jan 11: Copiapo - La Serena (547km/338km special)
Jan 12: La Serena - Santiago (586km/238km special)
Jan 13: Santiago - San Juan (434km/220km special)
Jan 14: San Juan - San Rafael (796km/476km special)
Jan 15: San Rafael - Santa Rosa (725km/368km special)
Jan 16: Santa Rosa - Buenos Aires (707km/206km special)

The good news is that the Dakar race will be coming south in Chile as I'm heading north, so I should run into the Dakar this year.

North To Alaska.......The Route

The route I plan to take to Alaska will take me from home to Toronto, Canada, then north around Georgian Bay, over the top of the Great Lakes and across the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Albert, British Columbia, The Yukon Territory and finally into Alaska. I figure it will take about eight days to get to Alaska. The return trip will be just the reverse.

Alaska

Welcome
Lots of great information in here in great detail

Yes, Alaska! The planning phase of a motorcycle trip to Alaska has begun. I have been toying with the idea of going to Alaska by motorcycle for quite some time. Although the ideal motorcycle to take to Alaska would be the bike I have in South America, the BMW R1200GS, I will probably make the trip on the BMW K1200LT that I have here in the States. One thing that I have to find out before I go is, where are the paved roads, because the K1200LT is not the bike you want to take down a wet, muddy gravel road, as it weighs in at nearly 900 pounds before you load it up. I just ordered and received the latest copy of the "Mile Post" for 2009. An inch thick publication, the Mile Post touts itself as "The Bible For North Country Travel" and is packed full of all kinds of information about traveling to Canada and Alaska. Now....to plan the trip.

Re-thinking Next Years Motorcycle Adventure To South America

Geysers in the Atacama Desert of Chile. Photo by Eric Cleaveland
Well, I had thoughts of heading back south to the Carretera Austral in January, but now, after talking with my friend Eric Cleaveland, who last year rode his motorcycle from Ushuaia, Argentina to Alaska, I am now contemplating going north in Chile to the Atacama Desert. Eric tells me "It's worth the trip". Others have also mentioned that the desert in northern Chile is quite spectacular. It is the dryest place on Earth, and it is said that there are parts of it where it has never rained. The good thing about going north is that I can pretty much count on good weather. One thing is for sure.....I'll know when I get there!

**UPDATE**
I have made the decision....I will be going to the Atacama Desert of Chile for sure. I am also going to go into Bolivia, since I will be so close to the border when I reach San Pedro de Atacama, adding yet another new country to the list.

Great Day For A Ride To Niagara Falls

Maid Of The Mist

Today turned out to be a great day to ride the bikes out to Niagara Falls. Joe and Howie stopped over this morning and we rode out Route 104 to the Falls. After walking around the American side for a while, we went up to the observation deck where there was a spectacular view of the entire Falls. On the way home we stopped in Johnson Creek, where Sharon met us for some hot wings and cold beer.

Announcing A New Site For My South America Adventures

Starting on January 7, 2010, the date that I will arrive in Santiago, Chile, there will be a new Web site dedicated to all my South American motorcycle adventures. All my adventures in one place. If you would like to follow my travels in South America, please go to this link and bookmark it so you can return often. Here it is: http://samotoadventures.blogspot.com/ I will be keeping you updated every chance I get.

Thinking About Next Year's Motorcycle Adventure

This is the place where Felipe went to Villa O'Higgins, and I went to Chile Chico and on to Argentina
I have been giving some thought to where I will go when I arrive in Chile this coming 7th of January. I have DirecTV here at home, and one of the channels offered is a feed direct from Chile called "TV Chile". TV Chile offers all the latest news and a great deal of programing direct from Chile. I've been watching a program that shows a great deal of the tourist attractions in Chile, and I am getting the itch to head back down to the "Carretera Austral" where I visited this past year. My thought, this year, was to go to the very end of the Carretera Austral that ends in Villa O'Higgins (Lat -48.458467, Lon -72.553602) Last January and February I made it almost to Villa O'Higgins, but because of the fact that last years trip objective was to go all the way to Ushuaia, Argentina, I had to turn east into Argentina before reaching Villa O'Higgins. (Picture above) The Carretera Austral is a rough gravel road that runs down the middle of the Andes Mountains in extreme southern Chile. It is some of the most scenic areas of this planet. Since I'm going to be in South America for almost two months, I should have plenty of time.

Motorcycle Video - Chile and Argentina

This morning I received an email from an adventure motorcycle tour company called Moto Quest Tours / Alaska Rider Tours. I met the founder of the company, Phil Freeman, at the BMW Motorcycle dealer in Rochester, NY about a year ago when he gave a presentation about riding in Alaska. (A future trip) Any how, the reason for this post is to show you a video from Moto Quest Tours of their ride in Chile and Argentina. The reason I wanted to post this is because it shows in good detail the kinds of sights and scenery that I rode thru this past January and February. I actually rode on many of the roads in the video. So, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeQB7V2v4Tg Enjoy!!

$100 Dollar Pancake

They arrived in all kinds of craft

A Cessna 140 from the '50's

Two classics, an Aircoupe and a twin engine Beech 18

A Russian Anatov An-2 from Geneseeo, NY

This morning Sharon and I flew the 1200LT over to the Ledgedale airport in Brockport, NY for a pancake breakfast put on by the EAA Chapter 44. There was quite a crowd there and many airplanes of all types. Everything from a homebuilt Ultralight to Cessna 140 dating back to the early '50's all the way to a large Russian Anatov AN-2 from Geneseeo.

A Ride To Duluth, Minnesota

The last "Whaleback" ship

Nasty accident

Engulfed in flames

On Wednesday I made the trip to Duluth, Minnesota to the Aerostich Rider Wear factory to buy a new rider suit. For some reason I thought the ride would take three hours but actually was five and a half one way including stops. On the way back, I stopped to take a picture of a ship at the museum in Superior, Wisconsin, just across the water from Duluth, Minnasota. Turns out the ship, that to me looked like a cross between a submarine and a lake freighter is the last of its kind. It's called a "Whaleback". It's the "SS Meteor".

On Friday, I took a ride to the Ultralight plane area of the airport to watch them take off and land. I then rode over to the Sea Plane Base, that is located on nearby Lake Winnebago. On my way to the Sea Plane Base, I had to detour due to a very serious accident involving a pickup and a motor home. It did not look good! Later on Friday I decided to pick up my toys and head for home, so I broke camp and headed out. Due to my impeccable timing, I reached Chicago at the height of rush hour. Three hours later I was south of Chicago. I will never go thru Chicago again!!!!!! I made it to the east side of Gary, Indiana before calling it quits for the night. I'd had enough after having to deal with the bumper to bumper in Chicago. Did I mention I'm never going thru Chicago again? Any way, I was up early on Saturday and on the road by 5:30am. Somewhere in Ohio I encountered a Minivan on the opposite side of the thruway and there was a small amount of flame coming from the underside of the vehicle. I called 911 as did others, but in less than five minutes, the van was engulfed in flame. Too bad! If anyone had been carrying a fire extinguisher, the van could have been saved.

And that is the end of another motorcycle trip to Wisconsin and back.

Tour Of The Airbus A-380

The A-380

The largest and the smallest. This little plane was brought to Oshkosh inside the belly of the A-380
In the upper deck
Thursday July 30

The big deal today was my chance to board the largest airliner in the world, the Airbus A-380. Boarding started at 10:00am this morning and as hundreds of other people, I took my place in line in the rain. After an hour and fifteen minutes, I stepped inside the cabin. The plane that is here at AirVenture is the second one ever built, and as such is a test bed for the Airbus company. What I mean by that is that this plane is not full of seats, but mostly test equipment. This plane is used to test various layouts that a customer may require. The large gray barrels you see in the pictures are used to add weight to the plane to simulate the weight of passengers or other things. Never the less, this is a huge plane. We boarded near the rear of the plane and proceeded to go to the second level via the rear spiral staircase. As we made our way to the front of the plane we returned to the main level by a large much wider staircase that brought you to just behind the flight deck. Off limits, of course. As a mater of fact, you weren't even allowed to bring a back pack on board.

BIG !!

White Knight II

Eric Lindbergh
Sealing the deal
Airbus A-380

Monday and Tuesday

The first two days of EAA AirVenture 2009 have been BIG to say the least. On Monday we saw the arrival of “White Knight II”, the aircraft that will carry "Space Ship Two"and eventually take people into space. The aircraft is a joint venture between renowned aircraft designer Burt Rutan and Sir Richard Branson, and a deal was signed at AirVenture on Tuesday, between Virgin Group and Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi. The deal is a 280 million dollar investment giving the Abu Dhabi firm a 32% share in Virgin Galactic.

The big, and I mean BIG thing on Tuesday, was the arrival of the largest airliner in the world. I'm talking about the Airbus A-380. A double decker aircraft capable of carrying a maximum of 500 passengers. It flew over the crowd of thousands to demonstrate the capabilities of the huge plane, before landing and taxiing to Aeroshell Square, where it dwarfs everything in the area, and will remain on display until later in the week.While wandering around the vintage aircraft area in the afternoon, I ran into a young pilot that I had the pleasure of meeting a few years ago. This young man flew a small plane SOLO across the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Paris, France. His name is Lindbergh... Eric Lindbergh, grandson of the other famous Lindbergh... Charles. Eric was gracious enough to allow me to take his picture. Thanks Eric.