Day 18 - The Lone Ranger Rides Again

 A last-minute snap decision was made to ride.  It was all against my better judgment.  My shoulder and neck soreness will not go away.  We were faced with a challenging ride of over 400 miles rated at 8 hrs duration.  This would include an endless mountain climb, and dealing with the San Francisco Bay area.

My steed was the electric start Rapide.  This was proving itself to be the most reliable of the lot with one major flaw - no second gear.  This is a problem that will have to wait for Dallas.  We have neither parts nor time to fix it.  Little did I know that the foggy climb would be just as demanding as the Beartooth Pass.  Anyway, I had learned in Montana how to nurse this bike over such challenging roads.  Once again it came through like a champ.  

After the descent over steep hairpin turns we arrived, chilled to the bone, at a terrific spot for breakfast and coffee.

After this, I got separated from the group somehow.  Perhaps it was a dense fog that caused me to miss a sign.  Anyway, California is familiar to me.  I chose to proceed on my own route to forgo the Golden Gate Bridge and all that.  Instead, I went a short way around the Bay through Oakland and down Highway 101.  It was nice to be on my own actually.  The Rapide instilled confidence.  I arrived way ahead of the others except Ian Blake who had also been separated.  He had cooked his brakes and did most of the trip on a Triumph backup bike.  

I hope to have this bike again for the final day, tomorrow.  It is a peach.

Mark Dunn and the crew had my bike and the Triumph serviced long before the main group arrived.  He was astounded at how clean the Rapide was.  There was no oil on the rear rim at all.  I ride fast enough but am very gentle on the equipment.  He said the others who had been on it thrashed it too much.  On a Vincent, that always causes them to sweat.  

Ventura, here we come!