Day 1 - And We're Off!!

Richmond, VA to Deal's Gap, NC (via TN)
Daily Mileage: 495mi
Trip Mileage: 495mi
State Count: 3

After a year and a half of planning, we launch on our five week, 35 day adventure. J This morning started with a furry of packing, trying to make sure we had everything.  Luckily, we’d been adding things to a list (and had two bins  of random items we wanted to make sure we packed). We also had numerous “Just Married” and “OFP Racing” stickers we put on the bikes this morning.  After all that was completed, we hit the road at 10:00am ready to attack the day.

The original plan had been to get to Bristol, TN today.  But after Larkin coming home early last night, and having a bit of extra time, we decided to try and make it to Knoxville.  Martinique had made mention a few days ago about not having Dragon stickers on the Beemer, but we’d decided that it was a bit out of the way to go to Deal’s Gap.  Well, after making it to within an hour of Knoxville, and it only being 3:30, we decided, what the heck, we’re OFP!  What could be better than going to the place where we first said ILU, on our honeymoon!

Besides a pretty sore throat for Martinique, and the start of one for Larkin, we’re doing pretty good.  It probably has a lot to do with thick pollen and allergies.  The bikes have pollen all over them.  Today was a blast and not too hot, tomorrow we’ll set out early for Little Rock!

T-1, the night before...

Almost time to leave!!  Can't believe it.  Over a year and a half of talking and "planning" this trip, and it's finally happening, it's almost surreal.  It's hard to think that we'll be on the road for five whole weeks.  But that's nothing compared to our friends over at RideDOT.com, an amazing blog I LOVE to read. :)

After a frantic week for Martinique trying to get all the loose ends tied up at work, and a lot of pressure on Larkin working through the last of the Beemer issues and just general bike prep, everything is all together and we're ready to finalize the details and get on the road!  The last of the packing needs to be done, but since Martinique is incapable of packing more then three hours before departure...  That'll happen tomorrow. :)

Larkin was extra on the medic unit, and was able to use annual leave to dip out early in order to ensure a good nights rest.  The goal is to hit the road by 9am tomorrow, to try and avoid the very hot mid afternoon we're sure to hit.  With highs in the 90's, we're definitely not acclimatized to those extreme temps just yet, and it may make the start of our trip a little difficult.

Here's the starting map:


This is on my top case, representing all the states we've rode in together.  Both Louisiana and South Carolina were done via trackdays. :) We'll be knocking out a lot of these over the next 5 weeks... :D

Finally, here's a friend Larkin picked up while packing last night...


Stay tuned... It's gonna get crazy!! :D

Oh yeah, and don't forget to check out our Facebook page OFP Racing & Adventures.  We'll be posting pics, status updates, and a route tracker on there real time. :)