EDD: Early May

So the other day I was riding my Tiger back home from the shop. Fresh brakes installed and breaking in at every red light. The ride was less than 10 miles and along some beautiful scenery; the eastern side of Lake Sammamish. It was a beautiful day of blue skies, sunshine, and high temperatures.

My Tiger parked above the Columbia River in Eastern Washington.

Now, for those of you who do not live in the Pacific Northwest, high temperatures includes anything over 70 degrees. Live here long enough after living anywhere else and your body becomes acclimated to narrow temperature fluctuations--it's neither really cold nor really hot. And when it is, you feel it.

So there I was, riding in a short-sleeve shirt feeling might toasty, when it occurred to me that my Puget-to-Potomac run is planned for next summer. That's not a problem for here, but crossing the Midwest and into the Mid-Atlantic states in late June or mid-July will probably wilt me.

Don't even get me started on the humidity.

Portrait of my father and my grandfather's medals displayed
during last year's Veteran's Day ceremony at school.

So, in sharing my concerns with Cece, she came up with the great idea of arriving in DC for Memorial Day in time for Rolling Thunder. Brilliant. I leave Seattle in mid-May under probable cool, gray skies, and arrive in DC to the last bloom of cherry blossoms and one of the largest annual congregations of motorcyclists in the country. I've never ridden in Rolling Thunder, so it would be a great cap to the journey.

And as Rolling Thunder is the annual ride to remember our soldiers who fell in combat or are missing, I can also combine it with a visit to Arlington National Cemetery, to visit the tombstones of my father and grandfather.

So right now, the estimated departure date (EDD) is mid-May. 

Next up, staying warm and dry.