I woke early for this, so after trying to create a usable time-lapse of the sunrise, it was time to pack up camp and hit the road.
iphone shot, tweaked with onboard software, from last night
I write the above note to save you some time and gas if you're seeking picturesque canyon scenery. The eastern 2/3rds of the monument are pretty but there was a dearth of suitable spots for pictures.
It had rained overnight and this rain would be my companion for the whole day, becoming more pronounced and deluge-like once I was in the mountains near Vail, all the way to the house.
The clouds Scarlett and I were headed towards, as seen
from Parachute, CO
Looking towards the passes, from Vail
Looking east towards the Continental Divide and
the Eisenhower Tunnel
My Frogg Togg rain jacket did great, the upper half of my body except for my gloves, stayed dry.
Gloves got soaked, I have to locate the Aerotech "Lobster Claws" for the next time.
Rain paints didn't do so well, leaks accumulated and by the end of the ride, the bottom half of my body was soaked. Not cold mind you, just wet and uncomfortable. And of course, the water drained down into the boots.
Looks like I have to get myself some Frogg Togg rain pants!
Scarlett did great through the whole trip. I sure missed Fiona's powerful BMW engine though on the hilly portions of the riding. Perhaps I'll make Fiona my long distance ride rig.
Found that MPG plummets to the low 20s when going 55 or higher with Scarlett. If I kept it between 50-54 MPH, then MPG rose into the low to mid-30s. Still kind of sad.
Oh, Scarlett's headlight's High Beam failed sometime on the way to Utah it seems, but got home just fine with Low Beam.
1699 kilometers ridden or 1019 miles.
1699 kilometers ridden or 1019 miles.
8 comments:
Maybe the poor gas mileage comes with rain. At least that's been my experience. Wet air filter=horrible gas mileage.
New air filter as I just did the 35k services. I got the low 20s mpg outbound to Utah in dry weather.
Is the low mileage from the recent efi mapping? Except for during the engine break-in period, my gas mileage has been somewhere in the 30s since June except when raining or snowing. Then it drops into the low 20s. Maybe it's my snazzy airbox. What it really needs is a snorkle...
Off Road 1.02 EFI mapping definitely runs richer. v1.01 had better mpg. trying to get back to v1.01 as I had become OK with the hesitation at parking lot speeds.
Given that this is has been a business trip... it looked much more like an adventure to me. Breathtaking scenery, camping, adverse weather conditions... you had it all, Dom. I want your job ;-)
Careful editing and omitting details makes it look like an adventure! ;)
Those are some ominous looking clouds. Sounds like they weren't just threatening though if you were soaked.
At least your top half was dry.
Those clouds were no lie Trobairitz, at times the deluge was biblical
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