Ironman & Sugarlips - September 15-17, 2007


What is hard to believe is that 2007 marks the tenth year of taking road trips. In the past 10 years we have traveled over 40,000 miles, 49 states, visited Sturgis 4 times, rode cross country to the Statue of Liberty and back to Oregon, flew to Hawaii, took a boat to Alaska, went to all 4 corners of the United States during the Harley Davidson 100th year Anniversary, finished a road trip during 9/11, completed the Oregon/Washington Highway 101 Coastline, and welcomed 2 children into our family in the past 3 years. Through all these experiences we have learned that flexibility, timing and humor are key ingredients to a successful trip. We had originally planned to ride North Dakota this year which would have completed our goal of riding all 50 states. With the arrival of our daughter Ava in late February we decided to postpone the road trip finish line and stay close to home. When July arrived JillMarie was not quite ready to ride after having a baby and then working through auction season from March to June. “I’d just like to take a simple weekend trip and stay close to home….” Those words would later make us laugh on the side of the road, in what felt like the middle of nowhere, drenched from the pouring down rain. With good intentions we planned our trip for mid-September and decided to complete Highway 101 in Washington State. We’d heard about the Red Caboose Getaway (see back side of this card) in Sequim, (pronounced s-kwim) Washington and thought we’d make a quick weekend with a Highway 101 loop around The Olympic Peninsula. In researching the area we knew we were taking a chance on unpredictable weather since the area is a rain forest located on an expansive coastline. As we approached our take off day we checked the weather reports which predicted a storm coming in on Monday evening. We packed our rain gear and decided to head out. After leaving the girls with family we had one of our best rides ever as we headed along Highway 101 for scenic Sequim. The roads were smooth and winding, traffic was light, the temperature was perfect, the skies were clear and the views were gorgeous. We arrived at the Red Caboose and settled in for the night, commenting on what a great day of riding we had. We woke up to clear skies and a great breakfast, heading out early to stay ahead of the weather change predicted for the next day. Two hours into the ride the storm arrived early and we found ourselves in rain gear battling the weather as we rode through the forest in very remote areas. We slowed down and took our time, taking 14 hours to ride what would have been a 7 hour trip. We were forced to pull over several times and discovered that raingear could only take so much. As we rung out our gloves we realized we were soaked through 3 layers of raingear, leathers, and clothes. In Hoquiam we stopped at the Laundromat and got some surprised and strange looks from the locals. We dried our gear and watched the sunset before attempting to ride the final 170 miles home. We both agreed that the Olympic Peninsula was worth revisiting but we decided a “quick weekend road trip” in this area was better taken before September. Stay tuned for the 2008 road trip, which we hope will be to North Dakota in early summer, but as always we’re flexible!

Taking Girls to the Grandparents	A Kiss for Dad

Ava Bucket butt	Boots with Miles

Biker Manicure	Party at the Laundromat

The Glamorous Life	At the Hoquiam Laundromat

Watching...Waiting...	We've Arrived in Sequim

Click here, to read the review of the Red Caboose Getaway