Page 11 - Peter Farrelly Issue

Rut Roh!
by Long Haul Paul
Riding a motorcycle across the country certainly offers many opportunities to experience the potholes riddled across our roads and interstates. I often use these asphalt craters as a metaphor of dealing with the often sudden changes living with a disease such as Multiple Sclerosis can bring. Just as hitting a foot deep black hole that appeared out of nowhere while traveling at 80 miles an hour, symptoms of chronic illness can appear without warning and create an ugly dent in our daily lives.
I travel the freeways because I am on a schedule needing to be somewhere to share my story or promote my fundraisers. Although my Yamaha Tenere 700 is an adventure bike capable of off-road and trail riding, I have it set up for long distance touring. I do enjoy riding off-road, I just don’t get much opportunity because my days are long trying to put down the miles to the next gig. I ride because I am on a mission, not a vacation!
My motorcycle weighed just 450 pounds when new, but after adding all the crash bars, hard luggage and tons of accessories, it’s much heavier. Put me in full riding gear and my luggage and we are over 800 pounds rolling down the freeway! Adventure bikes come stock with tires that have lugs designed for dirt and gravel, but would not last long enough for a trip across the country, so I use street tires. All motorcycle tires are soft compounds so they flex and grip in the corners and street tires usually last me around 7000 miles, or just over a week of long travel days.
I had the opportunity on a recent trip home from the Touratech Rally in Plain Washington to include a few hours
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