How did that happen?

Okay, have you ever been just going about your business and all the sudden you realize you've crossed a milestone and not even realized it? For a while, I thought rolling 30k on the new bike would be a "wow" kind of moment. Now I realize rolling a bunch of miles on a motorcycle isn't the milestone, it's what happened during all those miles that matters.


The first thousand miles were gone in a week and included a bit of traveling locally. Yes, when I picked up the R1200RT I scheduled the 600 mile start-up service for that weekend :) Next, I had the great pleasure of once again competing in the Mason Dixon 20-20 endurance rally. I still remember the look on the volunteer's face when I went to complete the odometer check before the rally. I don't know that I had the lowest mileage bike in the event, but it had to be close. Beautiful mountain roads in West Virginia (Rt. 50) at 2:00 am included a few deer, light rain and mist rising off the tarmac, and a Bubba in a pick-up truck. And the goal? In part it was to get back to where I'd been less than 24-hours before, but more so, to get safely back to Jennifer waiting at the finish line. In a bit over a month I was at the shop to schedule my first 6k service.


Since then the motorcycle and I have traveled to Canada, been to the top of Mount Washington, sat with family in Michigan to watched the Woodward Cruise, and then we did a little jaunt across country (check the September 2009 archives for more on the 100CCC).


It is in no small part fitting that I rolled the last few miles of my "30,000 or 3 year" warranty out on my way to the Iron Butt Association's Florida "Pizza Party" for 2010... with the man who sold me the bike. It is the people and the places we share on our travels that are the milestones, that make up the cathedrals of our lives.


This is what I will try to remember as I compete in the Iron Butt 5000 Rally this August. But tonight, I'll get home late after a quick ride home from the city, park the motorcycle, put a leash on the dog, and got for another late-night jog for a few miles without wheels.