Fort Nelson, BC to Whitehorse, YT Canada – Day 8

Posted on 08/05/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Summit Lake, BC

Saturday, 4 August 2012 Fort Nelson, BC to Whitehorse, YT Canada (616 miles) Total Trip Miles – 3668. 10.5 hour riding time.

Weather – Cool with temperatures in the mid 40’s to mid 60’s with moderate winds and mostly sunny.

Great riding weather and today brought some of the most beautiful views since the beginning of the trip along with more wildlife sighted. Within the first hour of heading out from Ft. Nelson, I rounded a curve to find a large cow moose standing in the road. As I slowed to stop I noticed its calf to my right in the tree line and at the same time the cow moose crossed the road to my left. Soon after the calf started moving behind me placing me between both the cow & the calf…at that moment the cow came charging back towards me and the bike – no problem here…I know my place and rolled northbound with no time to snap a picture. I also sighted some Elk calfs and quite a bit of Buffalo grazing along the roadside – that right Tye, I do have some pics to post!!

Passed quite a few bike riders heading in the opposite direction and chatted with several at gas stops and also passed several couples on bicycles carrying all their gear along the Alaska Highway. Arrived in Whitehorse about 6:30pm and booked at room at the High Country Inn downtown.

Looking forward to the ride tomorrow up to Fairbanks – spent 5 years there in junior high and high school and in many respects, it will fill like returning home. It was there I had my first motorcycle, a Harley Davidison 350 Sprint, I learned to ski, hunt, fish, snowmachine, work on aircraft…just about everything I’m passoniate about today. My last visit to the area was back in 1993…so long to be away.

If you would like to make a donation to give all kids diagnosed with cancer a better chance at living the full life they deserve, please visit Rally Foundation & Rally Around the World or Text “RALLY” to 85944 to give $10 to WIN the fight against childhood cancer. Send this message to 10 of your friends…Be a RALLY 10 to WIN!

Edmonton, AB to Fort Nelson, BC Canada – Day 7

Posted on 08/04/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Rally Bike

Friday, 3 August 2012 Edmonton, AB to Fort Nelson, BC Canada (654 miles) Total Trip Miles – 3052. 11 hour riding time.

Weather – Cool with temperatures in the mid 50’s to upper mid 70’s with moderate winds and mostly sunny.

Decided to buy a 2 gallon gas can and not use the two saddle tanks until Russia – just don’t want any issues with the airlines no allowing me to check as baggage once they have had gasoline in them. On the Alaska Highway fuel stops along the route are limited and having a spare can of gas provides me with some added piece of mind.

About a third of the roadway today way a 4-lane and for the most part I was able to maintain the speed limit…once on 2-lanes there were a number of slow downs since the Alaska Highway has quite a few trucks traveling in both directions. Also, ran into several areas under construction that were gravel and, in once instance, I rounded a curve and was unable to slow before crossing a 200 foot long section that completely caught me by surprise.

So far, cell coverage has remained pretty good despite what I discovered researching my global coverage…hope it continues.

Arrived at the beginning of the Alaska Highway in Dawson Creek, BC…the last time I was there was May, 1973 with my family as we were movng up to Fairbanks, AK to live…back then the road was all gravel and was challenging at best with large trucks passing and showering you with rocks and dust – my Dad stopped in Dawson Creek to construct a huge screen on the front of our vehicle to protect the windshield from damage – crazy stuff!…today the new road is paved and does not have the old “Mileposts” that were so important to finding fuel, places to stay the night and restaurants & other services. The US Army constructed the highway, known as the ALCAN, in 1942 to provide strategic access from the lower 48 states to Alaska resulting from the war in the Pacific and the Japanese threat to the Aleutians and the west coast. There were actually some veterans of that construction in Dawson Creek to commerate construction of the highway.

The bike is covered with mud, dust and insects from the last 3000 miles of virtually any summer weather…the gravel sections of the Alaska Highway were so dusty today, vehicles were required to burn headlights.

Saskatoon, SK to Edmonton, AB Canada – Day 6

Posted on 08/03/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Kevin Schaan & Brad at The Battlefords, SK

Thursday, 2 August 2012 Saskatoon, SK to Edmonton, AB Canada ( 380 miles) Total Trip Miles – 2598

Weather – Cool with temperatures in the mid 50’s to upper 60’s with strong winds & rain for out 2 hours.

Rode out of Saskatoon with Kevin Schaan having breakfast at Husky’s Truck Stop – for an “egg” and riding together to The Battlefords about an hours ride from Saskatoon. Said our goodbyes and Kevin headed east wihile I turned west for Edmonton.

Today marked a defining moment when I ran into heavy rain, winds and cold temperatures for about 2 hours. I was dressed in my riding suit having only a short-sleeve shirt on underneath and ended up getting a bit wet due to the driving rain and wind only to decide that adding clothes would work fine at the next gas stop a couple of hours out. After refueling, I continued to shiver uncontrolably and was a bit incoherent – early stages of hypothermia. I pulled a long-sleeve shirt from my “cold weather gear bag” only to leave it behind at the gas station!…I absolutely will not make that mistake again and will need to pick up a few items somewhere along the route.

Followed Highway 16 or the Yellowhead Highway the entire day arriving in Edmonton about 3 pm and couldn’t wait to get a HOT shower for some core warmth. After joing Don Berry with Medical Mart West and several of his friends at the Sawmill Bar & Grill, I received a cash donation of Canadian dollars from Don’s friend Bill, From there, we went over to pick up Don’s wife Marina for dinner – think we talked about Seinfield shrinkage, Breaking Bad, Mad Men and a whole host of great shows. To top the evening off with a nice Edmonton dessert, Don presented me with a generous donation to Rally…thank you so much for the support Don!

Winnipeg, MB to Saskatoon, SK Canada – Day 5

Posted on 08/02/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Michael Brown & all the folks at Northland Healthcare Products

Wednesday, 1 August 2012 Winnipeg, MB to Saskatoon, SK Canada ( 549 miles) Total Trip Miles – 2218

Weather – Hot & humid with temperatures in the mid to upper 70’s with rain & strong winds west of Brandon, MB.

Michael Brown graciously offered for me to stay in his home and he prepared a terrific Canadian breakfast of eggs, toast, coffee & juice – must say the honey was quite tasty. Michael showed me the way to one of the local “garages” where I filled up gas before headning out to Saskatoon – thank you Michael Brown and all the folks at Northland Heathcare Products for your generous support of Rally Foundation!

Picked up the Trans Canada Highway 1 and headed west where the speed limit was 110km and ran into some cold, rainy & windy conditions west of Brandon for about an hour – was my first taste of cold weather. Also, found out the hard way the need to look for fuel when the gage is half empty – ran the level down to reserve and punched in the GPS for the closest gas station and when I arrived the station appeared to have been closed since Walton’s Mountain & the Great Depression. Ended up heading in the opposite direction on the Trans Canada the the second closest option – ended up having only 3/10 of a gallon or about 15 miles left of travel.

The Schaan’s – Collin, Gerald & Kevin

Passed through Regina and picked up Highway 11 getting to Schaan Healthcare Products about 4:30 in the afternoon – I was met by Gerald Schaan and his two sons Collin & Kevin. Had a great tour of their facility and followed Kevin over to his house for a barbque with their employees, family and friends – a fabulous spot around the pool. Gerald Schaan addressed the groups making some very nice comments about Rally Around the World and pledged a very geneorus donation to Rally Foundation – their commitment to the health of children was not only exemplified by their support of Rally, but Schaan Heathcare made a signifcant contribution to the new children’s hospital in Saskatoon for a room for parents to have a quiet place – the hospital is schedule to be completed in a few years.

Gerald Schaan presents the Rally contribution

And once again, I was an invited guest to stay the night in an NDC dealer’s home – laundry on all. I am so grateful for the hospitality of the last several days from so many people making my trip around the world so much more enjoyable..If you would like to make a donation to give all kids diagnosed with cancer a better chance at living the full life they deserve, please visit Rally Foundation & Rally Around the World or Text “RALLY” to 85944 to give $10 to WIN the fight against childhood cancer. Send this message to 10 of your friends…Be a RALLY 10 to WIN!

Sioux Falls, SD to Winnipeg, MB Canada – Day 4

Posted on 08/01/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Kreisers – Sioux Falls, SD

Sioux Falls, SD to Winnipeg, MB Canada (535 miles) Total Trip Miles – 1669

Weather – warm & but slightly less humid with highs in the low 90’s and clear skies.

Joined Dave Larson, Denise Gregory and all the folks at Kreisers for a breakfast Rally Event – a traditional breakfast of eggs, sausage, bacon, potatoes & sliced fruit was served to start us all off to a hearty meal. Kreisers employees were invited to make donations to Rally and Dave offered to match that total. Both Denise and I were taken on a tour of their corporate offices and there were great pictures of Dave’s grandfather who started the Kreiser business and his father that continued to legacy – Dave makes it a 3rd generation company with Scott Larson, Dave’s sone, rounding out the 4th. Congratulations on a wonderful success story!

Rolled out of the Kreisers parking lot at about 9am bouind for Winnipeg crossing into Canada mid-afternoon and only taking about 15 minutes. After answering a half dozen questions or so, I was cleared and allowing to continue on my trip north. Met Michael Brown at the Northland Healthcare offices and was given a tour of their main facility – Northland offers a strong home healthcare presence in the Winnipeg area along with physician office supplies. From there we both joined Donna Jackson from Northland for a great Canadian dinner! Ended the evening with a grand tour of city of Winnipeg about 800,000 people.

I did note one thing after crossing th Canadian border – the road are a bit bumpier…will just have to wait and see how that might impact my speeds and travel times. Michael was gracious to allow me to stay at his home – he even left his vacation spot from out of town to join me for the evening!

Kansas City, MO to Sioux Falls, SD – Day 3

Posted on 07/31/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Brian Sullivan & Patrick Madden

Kansas City, MO to Sioux Falls, SD (405 miles) Total Trip Miles – 1144

Weather – hot & humid with highs in the upper 90’s and no rain

Joined Brian “Sully” Sullivan and Patrick Madden this morning for their Monday morning ESPN Talk Radio Program on 1510AM in Kansas City…finally got the opportunity to truly see firsthand just how wacky & unbriddled Brian can be – are you kididng me?! He was the same ol’ Brian we all have known for years – this visit only confirmed for me his unique talent of harnessing his audience. Thank you Brian & Patrick for allowing me to pitch Rally and the tremendous work these folks do.

As you might expect, the highlight of my day was visiting the kids and meeting Ema and her Mom was no exception. Ema is a young woman diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma on her 16th birithday and as she put it sarcastically, “that was my 16th birthday present.” I enjoyed hearing from Ema’s Mom on all the challenges families face when a child is diagnosed with cancer.

I was also fortunate to chat briefly with a young man named Dustin who was having his first round of chemo after completing radiation therapy. It was in Dustin’s room I couldn’t help but notice that with each child I had visited these last fews days, there was one common element – a parent was always in the room and in most cases living alongside their child daily…suitcases, clothes and mostly the hopes & fears so visible in their eyes. A special thanks to each of the families allowing me to briefly peek into their lives…these are the kinds of things that make a difference to me and only help to solidfy my resolve to expand awareness for these kids.

St Louis MO to Kansas City MO – Day 2

Posted on 07/30/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Cheyenna – Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital – St Louis MO

St. Louis, MO to Kansas City, MO(346 Miles) Left the Telkers just after 8am to meet Rick Mosely and ride over to Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in St. Louis for a 9:30am visit and tour. Recently, there has been little or no rainfall in the area; however, we were greeted with a moderate to heavy downpour as we made our way downtown. Rick and I were greeted by Ashley Wiehle – communcations specialist & joined by Dan Buck – executive director and given a wonderful tour of the hospital. Cardinal Glennon has a terrific outside play area funded from by fans of the St. Louis Cardinals from donations through sales of Rally Squirrel T-shirts – that’s right the Rally Squirrel – you just can’t make that one up given my event supports Rally Foundation!

Rally Around the World – Day 1

Posted on 07/29/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Rally Kids Adrianna & Amelia

As we arrived in Clarksville, Mid-South Motoplex served hot dogs on the grill along with iced, cold drinks as Molli provided the musical entertainment It was emotional when Adrianna so eloquently addressed the Clarksville group with thanks and her desire to conquer this terrible disease – she is such and inspiration and a beautiful young woman…have had her sweet smile on mind this entire day as we made our way to St Louis. Folks…this is what Rally is all about! Chuck,

Dave, Rick, Keith, JR & Stark continued on the ride after Clarksville with Chuck & Dave stopping at Metropolis and the rest of us riding onto St. Louis for the night – have to beleive some gambling was on the agenda for the evening for a couple of the riders.

Ended the ride with a great meal prepared by Paul & Lilly Telker – bar-b-que ribs, corn on the cobb, sweet potatoes and broiled tomatoes topped off with some Kentucky bourbon. Had a great time on their deck with some great conversation and welcomed the opportunity to stay with them in their home for the evening – just can’t beat their MO hospitality.

Rally Around the World Launch Eve Party

Posted on 07/28/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Shanon, Brad & Elaine – Cool Springs Powersports

Wow!…what an incredible launch party for Rally Around the World hosted by Cool Springs Powersports! Sixty family & friends joined us for a great time on the eve of of my around the world ride supporting Rally Foundation. Wine & beer was provided by Constellation Brands including Blackstone Wines, fabulous hors d’oeuvres, desserts by Nothing Bundt Cakes, music by Brynn Marie and her band and a special thanks to Jim Osborn and Chris Holbrook at Cool Springs Powersports for hosting the event and providing all the door prizes.

Melissa Smith managed donations and any pre-registrations for the first-leg ride on Saturday and Chris Brooks and Elaine Kay drew names for door prizes. Missed you Jenni Rodgers – you would’ve been quite proud of how well the event went!

Rally Around the World in Just 3 Days

Posted on 07/26/2012 by rallyaroundtheworld

Down to just 3 days before I head out on this 14,000 mile ride around the world supporting Rally Foundation and all the great things they do to fight childhood cancer. The rally begins Friday evening, July 27 with a kick-off party at Cool Springs Powersports in Franklin from 7pm to 9:30pm with food, drinks, music and a good time. On Saturday morning, July 28 the Rally Around the World First-leg Ride starts with registration from 9am – 10:30am at Cool Springs Powersports and the ride leaving for Mid-South Motoplex in Clarksville – about a 60 mile ride. From there I’ll head out for my first stop in St. Louis staying with Paul & Lilly Telker with T-Plex Industries – an NDC vendor partner that has been so gracious in allowing me to stay the night in their home!

Natalie Martin continues to be a huge supporter of my event by most recently creating the sponsorship decals for the bike along with all my sponsorship embroidered patches for my riding jacket. Melissa Smith jumped in this week and has been booking hotels along my route and providing me with up to the minute details – she’s terrific at scheduling and managing any event and especially keeping me on task.

Received my shipping packet today from Motorcycle Express – these folks arranged the shipment of my bike from London to Montreal along with my bike insurance GREEN CARD for travels in Europe. Also, the last 2 weeks I’ve been working closely with Wendy Choi in Seoul, Korea to arrange customs clearance for the bike arriving in Inchon along with scheduling the bike to be trucked from Inchon to Dong Hae where I’ll be catching a ferry up to Vladivostok, Russia. Rindy Veatch with DHL in Anchorage did an amazing job working with Polar Air Cargo and scheduling the bike shipment from Anchorage to Inchon – just a lot of great people making this event possible!