Kobi and I rolled out of Portland, Maine this morning. Care to guess the weather conditions?  Of course, it was freakin' raining!  I think it rained 85% of the time we were in Maine over the past few days, something I'm told is rare this time of year.  By the way, I forgot to post a photo of Mo's favorite hat he saw while we were in Portland: at the Manchester NH airport Mo (my Alaskan moose companion) and I dropped Kobi off at the Manchester, NH airport for her flight back to Phoenix (which, by the way, is called “Valley of the SUN”)...: ....then Mo and I took our own flight (that'd be Flight DL1000 Suzuki V-Strom motorcycle).  After blazing through 8 states (NH, MA, CT, NY, PA, MD, WV, VA) and covering almost 850 miles for the day, we stopped in Southern VA for the night.  You can't really dilly-dally off the bike taking photos and such when on a long haul, so I only have these 2 photos to share of our blast.  I took these especially to show a friend of mine that not all of New York is congested with people, vehicles, and buildings.  (Taken while on I-84 eastbound, less than 65 miles north of New York City): End of day GPS (Manchester, NH to Christiansburg, VA – the daily total shown doesn't include the 100 miles from Portland, ME to Manchester): After six hours of safety sleep, Mo said it was time to roll out so he could get his picture taken just down the road.... at the Tennessee state line:   The forecast today called for an “Extreme Heat Advisory” in Tennessee.  Ironically, I started this journey from Phoenix, AZ exactly 45 days ago under the same named advisory, which indeed lasted for 2 full days of triple digit heat (highest of 107 degrees) while riding through the scorching desert Southwest.  (Full report can be found: HERE).  Today's advisory stated temps in the mid-90s would greet me as I blazed a path along I-40 towards my Dad's driveway in Nashville, my hometown and where this “East Coast 2009” will come to a pause.  (I have no doubt my desert rat friends in Phoenix will rag me incessantly for what the South calls “hot”!).  Nonetheless, I got an early enough start this morning that I was quite comfortable riding and the Volunteer State's version of a heat advisory really wasn't an issue.  However, what did become an issue, and what the forecast neglected to advise, occurred during the last 90 miles coming into Nashville... I hit WICKEDLY FIERCE thunderstorms!  Oh my goodness, I've ridden in lots and LOTS of rain and storms of all kinds (including the tail end of Katrina), but today had to rank as the 2nd worst ever.  Intermittent storms cells unloaded buckets of water.  I'd go through stretches of 5-15 miles then it would clear up for several miles – so much so that I was convinced the rain was behind and would start looking for the next exit so I could change out my gloves – then it would completely dump again.  I'm talking rain coming down so hard that vehicles engage their emergency flashers and/or pulled off the side of the road.  Visibility was so limited that some people apparently thought they were actually off the road but were still in part of the first travel lane!  I saw a low-speed accident happen because of this very reason.  For me, the challenge in riding in such conditions is to determine what is the least dangerous (as opposed to “most safe” since no option would exactly be defined as “safe”).  Pulling off to the side of the road may seem like the best idea to some people, however it can also be the most dangerous since you are basically invisible to other cars who also may be pulling over or who are simply trying to make it down the road.  I saw a low speed truck-car collision because of that exact scenerio).  If I were to pull off the road (which I've only done twice in the bazillion miles I've covered during my 15 years of riding two wheels), I'd pull over beside a guard rail and in front of an already parked vehicle if possible, then abandon the bike while I jump on the other side of the guard rail to protect myself.  Given my riding experience in less than optimal riding conditions, I feel most confident in continuing down the road (assuming there is something above 0% visibility) rather than being a sitting duck.  I can usually draft behind a larger vehicle and use the “ruts” their tires create to increase traction for my bike.  While I endured the pounding Mother Nature was issuing today, I thought about how much I value the additions I put on all my motorcycles, namely the auxillary lights, the upgraded air horn, the LED hyper-brake/running lights.  Being in such horrible conditions make them worth their weight in gold in terms of me being seen and heard by other vehicles. Here's the end of day GPS: I mentioned above that this particular journey is being put on pause.  That's because I'm flying back to the West Coast tomorrow and will be spending the weekend with friends in San Francisco.  My plan as of now is to ride back to this side of the country (by an indirect route, possibly including states of MT, ID, MN) later this fall on my FJR1300 to meet my friend (and webmaster here!) Scott who will follow me back to Phoenix on my Strom.  I guess it will be “Webmaster Goes West, Part 2”. (Part 1: HERE). Thank you for all the support I've received while on this journey.  The kindness extended to me from countless people along the way are truly appreciated. AGirl Copyright © 2006-2012, All Rights Reserved.