It was bound to happen on a trip this long.  8261 miles and 71 days into this journey. My bike died.   Well, it didn’t actually die. In addition to continuing electrical issues, indications of more serious engine problems were getting worse. So, given the circumstances (distance from home, scarcity of repair shops, backlog of available... Continue Reading →

I had such a great time at Babes Ride Out East Coast last year, that I decided I would bookend the summer with similar events on each coast:  Babes Ride out on the East Coast in June, and the Dream Roll on the West Coast in August.  Similar to Babes, the Dream Roll is billed... Continue Reading →

Except for my jaunt down to the south unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, I followed US-2, aka the Great Northern, from just west of the Mississippi Headwaters in Minnesota, all the way to Glacier National Park.  So, why is US Highway 2 dubbed "The Great Northern"? In 1889, several pre-existing railroads were merged into... Continue Reading →

If you’ve ridden a motorcycle for any length of time, you’ve heard about the Going-to-the-Sun Road.  It’s one of the most iconic named rides in the two-wheeled world.  Construction on the road began in 1919, and ten years later, resulted in a 48.7 mile route that snakes across the Continental Divide in northern Montana from... Continue Reading →

I held my breath a bit in the early morning light as I turned on the ignition and watched the voltmeter arm swing confidently to just under 14V.  Whew!  I had packed up camp, hitched the camper to the bike, and was ready to leave Buffalo Gap Campground by 8:00 a.m. (I’m writing in civilian time,... Continue Reading →

After rolling past miles and miles of green and golden North Dakota farmland since leaving Minnesota's lake country, the landscape started to lose its orderly patterns and give way to something a little less agriculture. A little more wild.  The whine of the engine straining to pull the camper alerted me to the changing elevation... Continue Reading →

After an amazing week of adventure and sightseeing together, Missy and I said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.  I was over being in temperatures I considered too cold for the month of July, so I ditched my plans of heading north to Warroad in hopes of seeing the northern lights and decided that... Continue Reading →

Missy and I had agreed to meet in the lobby of the hotel at 7:30 am to grab a quick breakfast and check-out so we could meet our guide in Cranes Lake first thing in the morning.  We were both so excited about our private guided tour that we were ready to go and on... Continue Reading →

With a few solid days of touring Grand Marais under our belt, we were up early and raring to go the day of our scheduled ferry ride to Isle Royale National Park.  This was it, the main attraction that brought us up to the Minnesota North Shore!  The ferry departed from Grand Portage, about 35... Continue Reading →

In 2003, I was fortunate to be selected for an internship at the U.S. Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Colorado Springs.  The internship was a requirement for one of my graduate degrees, but it ended up being so much more than a prerequisite, it permanently altered the trajectory of my professional life post graduation.  I... Continue Reading →