Jerry L

Just checking in. I have had my Miata for exactly six years. It is a 2010, but I bought it in March 2011. At the time I was using a 2002 Honda Goldwing as my "go-to" touring machine, but due to many factors, decided to swap it for the Miata. Here is a shot of her taken on the Pacific Coast Highway.



The year after I bought her I took it on a shakedown cruise to make sure it would suffice as a touring machine equal to the Wing. From here in Nebraska I headed west through the Rocky Mountains. As a motorcyclist, I have been from coast to coast on two wheels and now that I have this cool little car, I'd like to retrace some of the fun roads I have discovered over the years. Since Colorado is so "close" to me, and I have family in Loveland and spend quite a bit of time there, for some reason I did not take any photos there. The first one I took was on the Utah boarder.



From there I worked my way down to Phoenix where my sister lives. She has always wanted me to come visit her, but it is soooo hot there, making the trip in the summer on two wheels wasn't something I had at the top of my list. So after buying the Miata I thought I could chance the heat of summer and go see her.



Yeah, the Miata is much more comfortable than the Wing. And when it gets too hot or too wet or too anything, up comes the top!

From there I kept heading west until I found the coast. A friend of mine has a pair of photos of his Wing in his living room. One is taken with the Golden Gate bridge in the background and the other with the Statue of Liberty in the background. I thought that was so cool. Eventually I'll have the same set of photos. So here is the first one...



From there I kept heading north on the PCH. I have another sister and brother in Portland and a sister in Seattle, so the plan was to go visit my remaining siblings after the death of my brother the year before. The Oregon coast is stunning! (If you can see through the mist!)



Eventually I found my way to Portland where I spent a day or two with my sister and brother, then a few more days in Seattle. From there I started heading east.



There used to be a big sign proclaiming "sharp curves - 77 miles". I got a few photos of many of my motorcycles in front of that sign, but it was gone the last time I was through there. It looked like new construction happened recently right there, so I am hoping they put that sign back up eventually. I spent a night at the Sportsman's Lodge in Ennis, MT.



From there I worked my way down to Beartooth Pass at the north end of Yellowstone Park. I just went over and back. The park itself was crazy busy and I was running out of time. I was still employed at the time and vacation time was limited. I had already been on the road for two weeks. Here is the Beartooth summit...



From there I kept heading east and north towards the Black Hills. But first I stopped for a shot of Devils Tower...



Then on to Needles Highway in the Black Hills...



... and the Badlands on the way out of there, with a days drive away from home.



At the end of the trip I had to reflect on where I'd been, how far I'd gone, how good I still felt. As I looked at the Wing still sitting in the garage next to the Miata I made the decision to sell the bike. Two years later it was gone. And you know what? I don't miss it at all! Not even a little bit.

So that's my intro story. Enjoy! And as a footnote, I had been a member on another Miata forum for the last five years or so, and just a few days ago they must have installed some kind of "ad-blocker blocker". Now I can't go there until I disable my ad blocker. Too bad. I'll miss them.