The Motorcycle Chronicles of Jackie & Valentino... The Southern Episode

T-03


When do you start a ride report? Do you start it when the ride starts, when the ride is started? Well you start a ride report when you actually start it. For me it starts when I start writing it, which is now; for you it starts when you start reading it, which is now; so it works out for everybody.

For Jackie - Valentino & "Co." it started when the anxiety and the excitement levels reach their paroxysm... At T-03...

Before we delve any further into the subject and commence on this Adventure. for all YFFs that don’t know who Jackie and Valentino are, and .... Uh yes! Our third protagonist “& Co.”, introductions are required.


Meet Jackie aka Liliane

Occupation: Flight Attendant extraordinaire

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Profession: gnarly adventurer



Very gnarly

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Current position: co-Pilot for Valentino - multi-linguist - negotiator - and all around border fixer WTF

Always in for a good time




Meet Valentino aka René aka "Da Dood"

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Occupation: Inspektor, as in: - I am not a Doctor but I’ll take a look

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Profession: would be adventurer

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Current job: GSA 08 Pilot - Organizer (read PITA) - Surf fishing afficionado - and all around trouble maker

Always in for a good time

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Meet "& Co." aka Steve aka Adventureposer (in this here asylum)

Occupation: a retired man-of-principle



The Master of disaster; Profession: adventure poser

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Current job: GSA 12 Pilot - Social Butterfly (read misfit) - Goodwill ambassador - and all around socialite

Always in for a good time






Vroom Vroom..... Destination Ushuaia we leave very soon. Are you guys coming with us or what?

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This Ride Report promises

Lots of cool bikes

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Good Food

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And maybe some of the local talent

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P.S.: If you need to find out more about this Jackie and Valentino bit click on the link in my signature block for the prequel to this upcoming most excellent episode of the Motorcycle Chronicles of Jackie - Valentino "& Co."...

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Nice start, there Valentino!

More more more!
Ya set the damn hook!!!!

subbed!

you're off to a great start!

Indeed there is a fair amount of planning involved when you leave for six months. Basically, you have to first save-spend, save-spend as much as you can for as long as you can. Then make sure any money you spend other than on the necessities of everyday life is on gear for you, your pillion, and your bike. Once you are in that saving-spending mode then you are on your way.

Send a bunch of email and cool stuff starts to show up at your door. Repeat the process until just before your departure date. And somehow once the reminder shows up on your Iphone that the day of is just around the corner you are ready to go. Easy as that.

But seriously, there is actually a lot more involved. I make lists and cross stuff off. It works for me. When all the stuff is crossed then I know we’re good to go.

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There was also a pre-trip involve; actually a couple of pre-trips.

First there was the Southwest with our ST1300. Are you kidding!! 2 up camping on an ST… Yeah sure.

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Then I found an inmate from this here forum who was looking to part with an Adventure bike. Cool he lives in Winchester, KY so pre-trip #2 a fly and ride; from the Blue Grass country to the PNW.

Through the Mid-West

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Stamp here stamp there, spend this spend that, and Angela has full landed immigrant status, and is working on her citizenship.

Meet Angela

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Now we’re getting somewhere; cross this and that from the list save-spend more and do another pre-trip;

This time Baja; another beautiful ride down the coast, realize that there is a lot more room on a GS Adventure than on an ST1300, and further come to the profound realization that Beast and Sand are not great friends.

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So we come back, cross a few more things on the list. Save-spend some more. Learn how to navigate difficult terrain;

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Loose some weight. Do a final pre-trip to hook up with folks that have the same infectious lust for adventure, listen and learn, because you think you know, but in reality you don’t know much.

Learn to negotiate a few more treacherous roads.


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Come back home and cross the last few items on our list until there is no more time left to send emails, and the cool stuff stops showing up on your front step.

Meanwhile,

Jackie wanted to make sure that the Southern Episode of the chronicles begun where the previous most excellent episodic adventure had ended.

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So she; Flight Attendant extraordinaire booked a couple of seats for Paris via Amsterdam.

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She was adamant that the bibliophiles of Adventure Rider have the opportunity to settle back in. "Comfortably numb" into Episode 2. So what is Valentino to do but oblige.

Hop on a jet airplane…

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And for a couple of weeks; eat fries; drink beer, and cheese, and pastry and stuff...

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Navigated some canals, walked in the steps of their ancestors in two of Europe’s greatest capitals, until such a time when Jackie felt that you guys and gals were adequately caught up to where the previous story ended.

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And see some cool French bikes

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Jackie can be so thoughtful that way…


Back home in Victoria, there were still a few things to do.

Get cool haircuts

Pack some of the cool stuff I mentioned earlier





And one final precaution

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I think we’re all set at T-02… Are you? ​

We just had the pleasure of meeting "Valentino & Jackie" at our shop. What a great couple! Debbie and I look forward to hearing about the South American adventure.

The monsoon rains came just about the time we started re-installing the rear wheel and now have diminished here in this part of the NW, but I am sure the wetness won't dampen the spirits of these two travelers!

Don

Subscribed. René has been a huge help to me on my trip. Can't think him enough. Hope you guys have a safe trip and we get to meet sometime on the road. I'm currently riding with Jeff (Super Tenere) and he's got a ride report going if you want to see our progress and road/border info. Cheers!

Enough about prep, I was getting antsy.

There would be no T-01; we would skip right to departure day. Hop on the ferry to Port Angeles, and get the show on the road already. The last four days were actually quite tough; tough as in busy, tough as in “try not to spin around so much” and attempt to focus on the myriad of things that need to be completed at the dawn of a new adventure. For reasons unknown these mundainities may only be accomplished at the very the last moment, finally freeing you to lock the door, and pet the cat one last time before you hit the road.



You’ve dreamt of Adventure to distant foreign lands, put pen to paper and thought about where you needed to be and what you needed to do to make it all happen. You listened, talked (usually too much), wrote and read. Moulded your reality from reality to reality-to-be. At last you are free and it’s time to go; twist the throttle and finally relax.

Jackie and Valentino have a ferry to catch.

I knew the Squids, Pirates and Poseurs would be there



For us it’s a special event; I suppose that for insulars it usually is. Boarding the ferry to the mainland always brings an abundance, an aggregate of emotions. There is something magical about putting a motorbike on a ferry when you’re an island dweller. You are intimately familiar with the ritual; follow the instructions, tie the bike, chocks on chocks off…



Mainland ferries are the great equalizers. Car – bikes – lorries – pedestrians, young and old, rich and poor. At the mercy of an underpaid attendant waiting for their turn, filing in, leaving the parochiality of the island behind, surrendering life and limb at the whims of the sea.




And for a brief moment the promise of something else, something better… maybe the fear of something new, a departure for horizons unknown.



For Valentino there was a plan, a purpose. Get Angela some new shoes. A pair of German sneakers.

Heading for Graham, WA for a fitting with a master cobbler. All Moto Tire is the sensible choice in the PNW if you need new rubber, a smile and a hot cup of java. Don cares, more than that he is a link. Grounding for a brief instant a world of transient riders. From Georgia, Alaska, or the neighbouring province he spins your wheels and points you in the right direction, go, be safe, and keep the rubber side down.



Serendipity is usually concomitant to my travels, but little did I know that it would manifest itself so early on our journey. At the first chance it could really. My encounter with the tire cobbler was more than just a business transaction, it was an uncommon commonality, a moment, for us, that happened somewhere between France and airplanes.

Go figure… Thanks Don.



Then it started to rain, Jackie and Valentino had enough for their first day out and now sought the rewards of an evening repast.



All is good in the world again….

I bet it feels good to be on the road. If you manage to wander through East Tennessee I have a place you can camp & if the weather is really nasty, a shop w/apartment in the back.

Awesome! See you guys on the road somewhere.

I skimmed over to preview looks like adventure from the start! That's Great, let's go..

I'm the "& Co" in this RR. I'm a retired school principal, among other colorful job detours on the road of life, and I've dreamed of a long ride through foreign countries for a long time! Since retiring, I've been to China, Vietnam and Thailand as well as taken some pretty good rides here in the States. South America will be the culmination of riding in the western hemisphere-Alaska was fun, and Tierra del Fuego will be amazing! I met Rene and Lili over the internet. And as luck would have it, we hit it off quite well, and shortly thereafter began "planning" this trip.

Well, Rene, aka Valentino, has been planning. In many ways, I'm a grab a map and some cash and go kinda traveler. For example, I did a circumnavigation of CONUS...thought about it on Monday, and left Tuesday with a cell phone, cash, and a couple of AAA maps. Did I mention cash?

But, in order to be more like Valentino, I did plan for this ride. I saved money, did a bit of reading, and talked to several people who've done what I am embarking on very soon.

"Yo quiero Taco Bell." Even my Spanish is coming along nicely.


I also watched "Long Way Round" twice.


Still, my little brown spiral book with its weather beaten pages has been my best friend. In it are dreams, stories, numbers, costs, and check list after checklist. Now, with nearly every line crossed out (tires and service tomorrow, Dentist on Wednesday)I'm just about ready to go. If I'm forgetting something, I don't know what it is!

And I'll bet there are stores in Central America where I can buy what I need.

Still there are SOME things you gotta plan: shots, a Brazilian Visa ( I know, how much is a brazilian?) more shots, a fancy shmantzy riding suit (thanks KLIM), a fresh debit card and checking account, international DL, Medjet, etc, etc.

Well, that's all done.

With a free weekend, I thought the best thing might be a shakedown ride. You know, to take my mind off of riding 16,000 miles in the next six months. Actually, this shake down ride is the second one. The first was 3K through the intermountain west.


It almost ended when my rear tire delaminated about 60 miles outside of God Knows Where Oregon. Good times.


Where was I? Oh yeah, a shake down ride over the weekend. 760 miles of twisties and gorgeous coastline seemed like the perfect thing to do....plus, it gave me a chance to spend some time with my girlfriend who is already missing me.


Missing me...I told her to pretend I was going to be in jail for six months. It would make the time go by faster.


As, "& Co," I'll be feeding you a steady flow of quality photography; hard hitting images that'll make you laugh, cry, and beg for more. And, let's not forget the emotive, skillfully done wordsmithing. No, actually, you can forget all that stuff. I'm neither a photographer nor a writer, but I will throw up a pic or two occasionally.


Maybe "throw up" isn't the best choice of words.


But I'm dancing around around like a hamster on crack. Here's the weekend ride. Enjoy!



A great shakedown cruise. It rained hard most of the day on Saturday, so I got a chance to check out the waterproof capabilities of my new KLIM Latitude suit. After two hours I was soaked inside...


Next time I'll remember to close the chest pockets and pit zips BEFORE it starts to rain.


And that's it friends. I'll catch up with you "On the dark side." For you who are uninitiated, that would be Arizona.

subscribed.

Hey guy, are you going to Torrey this year? Wished I could have made it before leaving for SA.

Glad you are following along!

Steve

Jackie (Brown???) and Valentino.

Have a great trip and let me know when I can book the blue room..

René

Another Rene....this is getting scary.

A small video produced - A nice visit with a great couple at All Moto Tire.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01m0_kME3Ds

René aka "Fat Man Bass" is my twin, we met in the Netherlands





Update on its way