U.S. Hwy 20 (W ➡️ E)

[McQueen216]

I just drove from Newport, OR, to Boston, MA, on US Highway 20. I did it in 13 days on my fairly-new KTM 890 Adventure S, with Touratech hard cases. No camping, all motels / hotels.

I went over the passes in the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks - to include the one in the Tetons that later had that massive washout (I didn’t do it, I swear). I drove across the plains as a low pressure did the same, leaving me facing high winds every day - often in the 30-45mph range (I built so much character on this trip…) Driving directly East left me horrible tan lines on my face; I look like a cheap DC Comics villain. The bike has been awesome, driving like a rock star and taking care of me at every mile of the way.

So… now I am on the East Coast. I have a couple of things to do over the next… two weeks, between the upper corners of New England down to about… North Carolina, and then I will figure out some sort of plan for heading back to the PacNW. I need to be back there in earlyish August.

[Thumper]

Thanks for checking in. Got any pics. Hwy 20 certainly has some great views and scenery.

That first hour to Corvalis is beauty! The oyster farm on on the North side of the river in Newport (Yaquina Bay Rd) is great. They sell pints and quarts of large and cuts for a bargain, great for oyster stew... onions, milk, potatoes, butter, black pepper and salt. That's it

The fish market(s) are great as well. I stayed at the beer and breakfast way back when, I think Rogue discontinued the place. I think it became a liability. The aquarium is excellent, near the brewery. Can't wait to get there again.

The 890 sounds like a well engineered frame with a beast of an engine. Enough power to buck that wind. Have fun up there. Safe travels.

[McQueen216]

Yeah… a few. And a lot of video - I mounted a GoPro up front, right next to the windscreen. But a lot of it looks like… this

[McQueen216]

Or, like this - crossing the Mississippi

[Sport Rider]

epic ride! I did my trip on I40 going west and I10 coming back east. Lots of great views. I've often thought about following US70 from NC out to Arizona. Specifically, it starts in Atlantic, NC and goes to Globe AZ.

[2LZ]

Thanks for checking in McQueen! Glad the new bike is scratching your itch as it should.

[McQueen216]

Originally Posted by Sport Rider

I've often thought about following US70 from NC out to Arizona.

U.S. Route 70 is one of the options I am considering for heading west. US 60 is another option, though it comes out of Virginia and also heads to AZ. I suspect I’ll be starting from someplace closer to Asheville, so 70 might make more sense if I want to do something that wanders that sort of way.

But then again… with the heat that is settling in back East this week… I’m reminded how much I hate this kind of heat. I may look at ways to drive back just by driving around weather.

[McQueen216]

People often ask questions about the bike or what I’m doing wherever I am, given the license plates and the fact that I am thousands of miles from where I started.
Today, some older gentlemen with the Boston access Ben Affleck and Matt Damon wish they had started talking to me as I was suiting up after getting coffee and donuts at a local Dunkin’s. He was wildly perplexed how a motorcycle could drive by wire, to the point where the throttle and the clutch both are driven by the ECU, not an actual cable. ������

[McQueen216]

I think… my current plan is that now that I’ve gone all the way up to Maine, I’ll probably head all the way down to Orlando and to Florida. That will also put me at about the mileage when the bike will need its first big service, and I am sure I can find a KTM dealer someplace in FL that will be able to squeeze me in. Then I can figure out where to go from there - maybe back to VA and do the MABDR or something, since I am out this way, before heading to the Rockies and some real driving.

[Sport Rider]

MADBR is good. In this area there's also the SCAR (South Carolina Adv Route), the SM500 and the SM1000. Also the KAT (Kentucky Adv Trail) which I hear is a real challenging route for anything larger than a dirt bike.

[Thumper]

Reviews of this KTM bike mention that it is closest to a "big" dirt bike of the adventure class. Real world appreciation for the low center of gravity and taught suspension that makes it possible to really use this bike as a dual purpose vehicle. Based on the quality of components and engineering on my 250 SX I am not at all surprised.

How does it feel off the pavement? Have you gone off the pavement on this trip??

[McQueen216]

Originally Posted by Thumper

How does it feel off the pavement? Have you gone off the pavement on this trip??

I’ve been solely on pavement. It handles really well. Maneuvering, low speed, highway, even the interstate… all fine. I’ve been primarily on backroads and highways, even days like todays - interstates, coming out of SC & GA into FL - it handled well in keeping up with traffic.

Now that I’m in Florida… I keeping looking at the side roads and dirt paths and wondering where McCheese is…

[McQueen216]

BWAAAAA HA HA HA HA I just noticed that today, I’ll be ending up at my auntie and uncle’s house and it’s riiiiiiight near EXXXXXXTREEEEEEEEME Motorsports! ERMAGHERD.
extrememotorsales.com
I may have to do go there and… what? Test drive everything? Annoy the hell out of them? Ask for swag? Plead for better ads on the internet? Design a better bike on the back of a napkin, hand it to them, and say, Here - import this, please.

[Thumper]

They have the KPX 250 in stock. You can get a first hand look. I finally worked on one (valves) and rode it. It was different than I expected, with lots of replaced parts. I would have liked to drive the original setup. But... it was much quieter than I expected and quite smoothe. I did not know that the catalytic converter is in the muffler.

[McQueen216]

So… end of week 7, and I am in… the San Bernardino National Forest. Two weeks ago - Florida. Boom - across the US, up and down and around the Rockies, to include things like the so-called Million-dollar Highway and across US Highway 50 across the Nevada desert, through Highway 108’s pass into Yosemite, and down into SoCal. Just over 12k miles on this trip, just over 14k miles on the bike itself. I had to run north out of Florida to avoid the bulk of the hurricane, and the Texas / etc heat, but getting to the Rockies was amazing. Amazing. Amaaaaaazing. And even crossing the desert was incredibly worth it.