Day 1, We're off!

Ok, so this is the culmination of a 15 year dream of mine:  ever since I saw pictures of the Canadian Rockies area, when I saw pictures of Banff and Jasper National Parks in one of the first issues of Mountainbiking I ever read, I've dreamt of going there.  Whenever I've seen pictures of the area it's looked like the most beautiful place in the world to me.  To top it off the place looks like it's littered with fantastic roads and trails custom made for bicycle and motorcycle exploration.

I've also pined after the BMW GS-Series motorcycles ever since I became aware of them in the late 1980's, when I got my first motorcycle after years of riding passenger with my grandfather.  A week ago I finally got and received a beautiful 2009 BMW R1200GS Adventure.

Brian picks up his long-awaited GSA -- sihpped from
Arkansas with 1041 miles on the odometer!

First thing I did was drop an e-mail to my buddy Dave, asking him if he wanted to go for a ride.  He immediately responded telling me, "I've put in for leave September 27-30 -- let's go!".  I then set about talking my other buddy, Scott, in to joining us and he was immediately game.  Our destination?  The Canadian Rockies!

So on Friday, September 24, Scott, Dave and I each cut out of work around 'Noon and we all met at Fairchild Air Force Base near Spokane, WA.  Scott and departed on this first leg of our trip from Seattle, and Dave headed up from beautiful Waitsburg, WA.  We had no schedule and no route planned, only the object of making it to Banff and hopefully Jasper.  The weather had been looking real sketchy for those areas earlier in the week (non-stop rain, and even snow -- not the best motorcycling stuff!) but we were bound and determined.  We were rewarded with a revised and much more favorable forecast just a day before leaving!

Day 1 mileage:  282 mi

Total mileage:  282 mi