Blog 2

Last evening I attended the first class of the RawHyde Adventures http://www.rawhyde-offroad.com/home.html off road riding class designed to teach riding techniques to riders of large dual-sport motorcycles. It was conducted at the BMW Motorcycle dealership in Pencacola, FL by Shawn who is from California and is a full time instructor for RawHide. RawHide Adventures holds these workshops all over North America in conjunction with BMW Off-Road Riding Academy. The owner of the BMW Pencacola dealership, Courtney Pereira, is a friend and he invited some of his non-BMW motorcycle owning friends to attend. There was about 30 guys and a gal in the class and probably not more than five under 50 years old...go figure. I do not intend to do any serious off road riding but I do intend to ride to and within the Arctic Circle and the best roads there are gravel.  I plan to leave Fairbanks north bound on the Dalton Hwy. toward Prudoe Bay which is the "Haul Road" if you watch the TV show "Ice Road Truckers." The Arctic Circle is approximately 150 miles north of Fairbanks and if it is raining the Dalton becomes quite treacherous. Last July former Alabama Governor Bob Riley rode his Harley-Davidson from here to the Arctic Circle and while returning to Fairbanks it started to rain, he lost control and was severely injured. He says that he does not regret that trip, it was one of the highlights of his life. If it had not rained that day on Bob he probably would have made it all right.

I am doing a lot of preparation and planning for this trip. And I have chosen a motorcycle much better suited for this type of adventure than the one the Governor chose. I am reminded that for all the prep and planning done how life unfolds is out of my control and for that I am truly grateful.