The Search Is Over

 If you've read this blog more than once in the last few months then I'm sure you know I've been in the market for a used truck or suv. I had been following the price drops on an F250 and when it dropped again over the weekend I decided to buy it and end my search. This was a v10 powered standard cab pickup. I texted my guy at the dealership where we bought my wifes BMW and told him I would be in to test drive it after work. We set up a time but unfortunately he didn't start work till noon and another salesman sold it that morning. I guess it wasn't meant to be.
 My needs are to be able to get to work when the roads are crap and also to be able to tow an enclosed trailer. I was thinking a gasser v8, auto tranny and 3.73 gears at minimum. What I found was an '08 Yukon XL with exactly that combo plus a locking differential all rolling on 20's. Once I yank the third row seating out I'll basically have a crew cab half ton with a permanent topper. Works for me.

 This Yukon has selectable four wheel drive, not awd and it does have low range. Its kinda cushy too with a smooth ride suspension and I felt comfortable sitting in it. There are a few other options I wasn't looking for but will enjoy like remote start, sun roof and a halfway decent sound system. Oh, I came in under budget too!
 I went to look at and buy it alone. That means its still at the dealership but they said they would deliver it. Sweet. I'll post again when I know if I picked a winner or a lemon.

Later.

Last Leg Of The Trip

I'm shacked up in central Illinoiz after a 600 plus mile day. I took a longer route than the GPS suggested to try to avoid some rain. I'm gonna go ahead and say that plan worked perfectly as I only got hit by a few drops today and that might have even been a bird. Temps hit 90 but the humidity was decent so I had a pretty good ride. The bike ran flawlessly and got better mileage than the trip down despite a headwind much of the day. I was running a tad faster today so my fuel mapping program must have a rich spot around 3000 rpm. I don't know how else to explain. It's certainly not because I'm lighter.  I spent the whole week eating.
The vacation was good. I enjoyed time with friends I only get to see once a year and ride my bike on some great, scenic roads. I still have half a day riding to get home and then it's back to business as usual. There won't be a Sunday morning post this week. I'll catch up with you on Wednesday. Right now I have to go find dinner.

Later.

Fridays Ride

The decision was made to ride to Hot Springs for lunch at the Iron Horse Station. As usual the food and service were good. We followed up with a little adventure through town before getting back on the bikes. Our next destination was a few hours away to visit a ranger station we know had a certain t-shirt one of the group was looking for. That ride included some of the parkway and the views were great. Traffic was light so we were able to keep a decent pace and not be bothered. An hour or so later we were back at the motel.
My wife sent me a text telling me my truck found money has been deposited so the search is now official. Thanks Honey! I won't have time to look down here anymore but I'll be keeping my eyes open. I'm gonna wrap this up cuz there's talk of dinner so my next post should be from somewhere in illinoiz.

Later.

Lunch at Pisgah

Today's weather could well be described as gorgeous.  I don't know what the actual numbers were but it was the kind of weather that was comfortable at speed while wearing all the gear. After a cup of doughnut holes and some orange juice I set out with the gang for a ride. We started with a visit to a local bike shop then made our way to the BRP and stopped at the Pisgah Inn. The plan wasn't to eat there but the view was so nice that by the time we had enough, it was time to eat, and so we did. Where to ride to for food has kinda been the theme this year and we were even talking about dinner while chewing lunch. After chow we rode north on the parkway and stopped at all the ranger stations, visitor centers and a folk art center. We even took the time to watch a movie at one stop. It was nice and relaxing with no pressure or many idiot drivers unless you count one guy that tried and failed to back over BillT.
That's really all I have to report today.

Later.

Found a Truck?

I'd be all over a rig like this if it were a clean runner. I've always thought these looked cool.
Today was a lazy day. A vacation day. Others like my wife would have preferred to dip their toes in the ocean or poke around for sea shells. For us it was three friends just catching up and bullshitting. Same idea, just no ocean although the first half of the day had water in the form of rain. In the afternoon when the sun came out we wandered into town to do some exploring. We took a tour of a distillery which turned out to be quite educational.
We await the arrival of Ed and then we'll forage for some grub. It's a pretty relaxed pace right now and that feels good.

Later.

Day Ride

Today Dan, BillT and myself spent the day on the bikes exploring the beauty of the area.  The first thing we had to do was figure out how much of the Blue Ridge Parkway was under construction being chip sealed. It looks like the section from Cherokee to 276 is messed up but we could still make it to the Piscah Inn which we'll probably do for lunch later in the week.
The day was a mixture of sun and light rain with a lot of wet roads in the tree shaded sections through the mountains. Normally the trees are just hanging there providing shade and blocking your view but we had some wind today. Some sections provided a new perspective with trees just swaying hard and freaking out. It was pretty neat to ride through. I know that sounds kinda lame but sometimes natures simplest acts are the most interesting.
BillT led the ride and spotted a little Mexican joint for lunch. We knew the food would be good because the parking lot was packed. That theory held true and Dan even cleared his plate!
We made a few other stops including a ranger station and a store called Mantiques. All in all it was a good day. Bill did a great job leading and navigating as usual and we arrived back at the motel dry.

Later.

Arrived Maggie Valley

I woke up this morning not knowing what my plan was for the day. The first thing I knew had to be accomplished was breakfast. The hotel furnished that and on a scale of 1-10 it scored in the low threes only because it was hot. I wonder what they do with all the juicy flavor they squeeze out of those sausage patties? A piece of cardboard has more flavor. Afterwards I hung out in the room searching the internet for used trucks. Good thing because breakfast was duking it out with my guts and winning. When I finally walked out to the bike I met a couple that was parked next to me. They couldn't figure out why their truck wouldn't start. Sometime in the middle of the night I had looked out the window and noticed the parking lights were on. I had no idea they left it that way nor did i really care. With that new info he found someone to jump start his rig and they continued on.
I went back inside to check out and quiz the clerk about the condition of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  She mentioned chip sealing but didn't know where and proceeded to tell me about the "road to nowhere". Google it for the story. Now I had a destination so off I rode to Bryson city. The road isn't unlike any of the other twisty roads in the park but this one is a dead end as far as pavement is concerned. There are foot trails beyond the tunnel. A group was walking out of the tunnel as I was walking in. I overheard them talking about snakes. You can see the other end but while inside it's quite dark and I'm sure I wasn't alone. About midway I decided I'd had enough and turned around. No snakes for me thanks.
On the road back out I saw a small black bear. No bear picks because I'm smart enough to know little bears come from big bears. No big bears for me thanks.
The rest of my ride was completely random with a few stops to look at trucks. At a lunch stop I met a couple from Maine and we bullshitted for an hour about bikes and road trips. They left and I ordered some chili cheese curds. Ya gutsy, I know.
I arrived in Maggie Valley early and got a message from Dan that he and Bill are an hour behind me. Sweet.

Later.