I've completed the planning and have used the Harley Davidson Ride Planner to be able to upload the directions into my GPS.

My objectives of this trip are:
1. Meet my friends in Deadwood, SD on 8/10 to go to the Sturgis Rally and ride around the Black Hills with the group. We're staying at a hotel on main street in Deadwood from 8/10 - 8/13...we're going to see a LOT and the riding in the area is outstanding.
2. Travel to as many states as possible
3. Put as many miles on my bike as I can.....it's all about riding

So....that being said, my schedule looks like the following:
8/3 - Home to Evansville, IN - total of 430 miles....states visited: GA, TN, KY, IN
8/4 - Evansville,IN to St. Peters, MO - total of 314 miles....states visited: IN, IL, MO
8/5 - St. Peters, MO to Sioux Falls,SD - total of 591 miles....states visited: MO, KS, NE, IA, SD
8/6 - Sioux Falls, SD to Hardin, MT - total of 614 miles...states visited: SD, WY, MT
8/7 - Visiting Little Big Horn Bighorn Battlefield
8/7 - Hardin, MT to Red Lodge, MT - total of 106 miles
8/8 - Red Lodge,MT to Cody, WY - total of 347 miles....states visited: MT, WY, ID
for this leg of the trip....I'm hitting some great places including: Beartooth Pass, YellowStone and into Idaho
8/9 - Cody, WY to Gillette,WY - total of 277 miles....state visited: WY - hope to visit my cousin in Thermopolis,WY
8/10 - Gillette,WY to Deadwood, SD - total of 414 miles....states visited: WY, SD
going to see the Devil's Tower....and going through Spearfish Canyon and the Black Hills National Forest, then visiting a friend at the Rapid City, SD Harley dealership
8/11 - Riding with the boys
8/12 - Riding with the boys
8/13 - Deadwood, SD to Luverne, MN - total of 624 miles....states visited: SD, ND, MN
8/14 -Luverne, MN to Hannibal, MO - total of 598 miles....states visited: MN, WI, IA, MO
also plan on going to the Mark Twain museum
8/15 - Hannibal, MO to Tupelo, MS - total of 628 miles....states visited: MO, AR, TN, MS
plan on visiting the "Birthplace of Elvis"
8/16 - Tupelo, MS to HOME - total of 288 miles....states visited: MS,AL, GA

The total miles (including what I think we'll be doing while we're in Deadwood) is right at 6000 miles....which for 15 days on the road equates to about 400 miles/day.....which on a motorcycle equates to about 9-10 hours.

I'm making one more "trial run" this weekend....going to North Carolina to do "The Trail of the Dragon" again with a group of folks from the dealership.

I've booked hotels at each of the stops since hotels have a tendency to fill up from people riding to/from Sturgis.......and who knows...I might decide to change the destination and routes.....the only place I REALLY have to be is in Deadwood sometime on 8/10 and home sometime on or about 8/16-17.

So....I can't wait to fuel up the "red beast" and hit the road....hopefully I'll see some of you out there. I'm riding largely by myself to get my head straight. A year ago my wife and I lost our 29 year old son in a traffic accident.......I find that on the bike I can connect with his spirit (yeah...I know this sounds weird but it works for me).

 

Sounds like a great trip! I'll be just a few days ahead of you, stopping in Sturgis for a couple days before I head thru Hardin, Red Lodge, Cody. Have fun!!

 

Hey whatever works, works. Dont let anyone say differently. Sounds like a great trip and plenty of time to clear the mechanism. Good luck, and ride safe.

 

Wow, quite the agenda - Good luck, be safe and enjoy it all....