Here in Illinois, I can smell Florida. My trained olfactory senses pick up a whiff of orange and I'm possessed to get home. The only problem is Alberto churning in the gulf. My friends encourage me to take an extra day to get home. My friends are clearly smarter than I am. A reservation awaits me in Macon, GA which should be just north of the storm. If the weather was good, I'd probably push on through.

Yesterday and the day before were both 750 mile days. Today will only be 625, which is a relief. Coming through Atlanta, I see the biggest house boat I've ever seen on land. The boat is so big that it takes up 2 complete lanes on the freeway and requires the use of a State Trooper escort. This is just me, but if you have a vehicle this big I would suspect that you stay in the 2 right lanes. This vehicle is passing traffic like it's a Ferrari, not a wide load. Curious.

I also stop at BMW of Atlanta to visit the owner, Bob. This dealership gives BMW a good name, which is something they sorely can use. Bob is getting ready to head to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska to try to make a record run to Key West. He's the man. I've done the run several years ago and know that 4 days is doable, but a challenge. Bob mentions that the Dalton Highway is now paved up to Coldfoot. Factor in that the road is darn good 70 miles south of Prudhoe into the city, that only leaves about 170 miles of rough road out of the almost 600 miles I had when I went. He's got the focus to break the record and I wish him well.

Twenty miles north of Macon the sky opens up and I wonder if I shouldn't have stopped at the BMW dealer. The sirens are screaming as the accidents pile up. I make it to the motel in one piece and do a final chain cleaning. It appears that my chain is finally beginning to stretch and requires the first adjustment of the trip. This would happen when I arrive home also.

The weather is good for the final day of the trip and I appreciate the warm weather. Florida is where I belong and I never get tired of coming home. The bike performed flawlessly although it seems to eat rear tires. In the last 12,000 miles, I'm on my third. My Cee Bailey windshield has developed more cracks and I'm going to have to find a different brand. Cee Bailey suggested that this was a normal occurrence. I'm happy they are not in the dam building business.

One of the best things I did on this trip was to carry a laptop. I was able to keep in touch with my friends and search for interesting roads along the way. The wireless connections in the motel worked well. Hopefully next summer, I'll be able to ride overseas and really want to explore Ireland. Going to the Isle of Man TT would be a highlight. I wonder how much it would cost to ship my bike to Ireland?