Oct 28, 2013

Well here we are just out of customs at Tullamarine. The smiles never look as enthusiastic on the returning shot. Ha ha.

We had a great trip and were delighted with how it all went and thought I’d list some of the things which helped it work so well and what we have learnt to make the next trip better.

Worked well:

Grip heaters – will never have a bike without them and were hugely grateful we had them this trip especially the last two days.

Toll transponders – after doing some research on what systems were used in the states we were going to travel in we decided to use EZ Pass transponders and they were brilliant. There were only a couple of roads and bridges that weren’t covered by them and they made life so much easier than having to fish around for coins with gloves and in wet weather and also makes the tolls cheaper. When we have made a decision on just which states we will travel in next year we will see if we keep these ones or use another sort. If you think Australia isn’t very good at doing things on a National basis let me tell you we have the toll thing worked out …. but then we do only have 6 states and 2 territories which are considerably fewer egos and bureaucrats to deal with than 52!

Panniers / saddle bags – my bike had a good (lockable) set on already and Norm arranged to have some fitted to his bike which worked well. This gave us enough room to carry the backpack we carry when on foot and also for all the wet weather gear, bottles of water and anything else we need access to through the day when we’re travelling.

GPS / Garmin – will never travel without one. Even if we misread the instructions (because we can’t hear it on the bike) or misjudge a turn we just have to have a bit of patience and we will be redirected to get to where we need to go anyway. Enough said.

We had a great trip and were delighted with how it all went and thought I’d list some of the things which helped it work so well and what we have learnt to make the next trip better.

Bike seat – I checked out a 950 bike in our local Yamaha shop before we left to see how they felt and I decided the seat was too hard for me so arranged a cruising seat for my bike and glad I did. I didn’t once have a sense of having a sore butt even with some really long days on interstates. Might think about getting one for my bike here even though the seat is thicker than the 950’s.

What we learnt this time:

We usually do the bike handover on the same day we leave but given that more snow was expected this year we returned them the day we returned to Chicago so the day before our departure and found this was a lot less pressured. It gave us comfortable time to repack our cases and consolidate what we needed to bring home and a chance to relax a little and debrief before we climbed on the plane and it was good. We also had a couple of free days before we picked the bikes up which gave us a chance to recoup a little before starting off on the bikes. Both experiences a plus so will aim to schedule that into future trips.



I don’t know, somehow it just isn’t as exciting to have the cases out on the table when we are unpacking them instead of packing them to go away, hardly surprising I guess.

We couldn’t have undertaken our trip without help from a lot of people so thought we would list them and thank them officially. Perhaps some of you can use some of these services now or in the future.

Family:
Our family and other employees - make it possible for us to get away in the first place by doing what we normally do when we are home and at work. Their contribution to making our getaway possible is truly IMMENSE and we couldn’t do it without them!

Our nephew Kevin- who helped us negotiate the legal aspects on the east side of the Pacific.

Bike Sales and Service:
DuPage Honda Yamaha
27 W 215 North Avenue
West Chicago, Illinois 60185, USA
Web – www.dupagehondayamaha.com

Robert - Sales Manager who sourced our bikes and Mike - business owner and his team who prepared the bikes and will store them for our return.

Bike Sale and Service:
Parkway Cycle
http://www.parkwaycycle.com/
1865 Revere Beach parkway
Everett, MA. 02149, USA

Robert (DuPage Honda Yamaha) organised for us to have our bikes serviced here which was about half way through our trip. We also organised to get a rear tyre replaced on my bike and a GPS replacement for Norm when his died.

Traralgon Motor Cycles
http://www.yamaha-motor.com.au/dealers/ ... otorcycles
Lot 8 / Princes Highway
Traralgon East, Vic. 3844, Australia
Lot 8 / Princes Highway

we are grateful for their help in letting us measure up the size of the 950's and helped me determine that I wanted a cruiser seat and not the one which was standard.

Last but by no means least – Travel Agent:
Pinewood Shopping Centre
33-45 Centreway
Mount Waverley, VIC 3149, Australia
Email - travel@travelplus.com.au

Sue Ritter- TravelPlus Australia – Travel Agent extraordinaire who works with us to help us finalise our route and sift through the many accommodation and feature options and her input to our final decisions are greatly appreciated.



There is consolation in getting back on our bikes at home and heading out…..and it gives us some quiet time to start planning the next adventure! It was also a treat to get home to a garden in full bloom with spring colour but not as awesome as the many huge hugs we have had with our children and grandchildren on our return home. How fortunate are we!



I have countless great memories of our trip together but the two best are first of just being with Norm exploring a wonderful country full of incredible scenery, people and opportunity for the two of us just to be together and second the huge number of soaring eagles throughout the country. Many different sized eagles in incredibly varied countryside but the one thing in common is the graceful strength of their soaring over the top of us. Just loved it!

Thanks for joining us. See you for the next trip.