I got to bed early last night and got up a little earlier this morning to get moving sooner. After a great breakfast at Nolan’s Ironman Cafe, I fired the bike up and made the short hop through the last of Nebraska and in to South Dakota. From there I got on SD-18 and took it west to SD-47 north. I stayed on SD-47 most of the way through the state, fighting a 20+ mph crosswind the whole time. I cut across to US-83 just south of Selby, SD. That pesky crosswind didn’t give up, even as I crossed in to North Dakota. I had to get back on an interstate where US-83 and I-94 share the same road, but only for a few miles until US-83 split back off in Bismarck, heading for Minot. The crosswind started easing off, more hard gusts with a lighter sustained speed. It was still hard going, and I was definitely getting tired, but Minot was getting closer. I finally pulled in to the hotel at around 6:30 PM, got the bike unloaded, and got some food. Tomorrow I try to fix the headlight and then cross in to Canada…

After a good night’s sleep I started troubleshooting the low beam on the bike. It didn’t take long at all to determine that the reason why it’s not working is thanks to a shattered bulb. That’s annoying as HID bulbs aren’t stocked at auto parts stores. I’m going to run on high beams for the time being and will see if the stock low beam socket is still live. If so, a new halogen bulb will be installed for the time being.

After that I loaded up the bike and pointed the wheels north. This last bit of I-35 and I-135 are the last bits of interstate I’ll be on for a while. I’m heading pretty much due north through the middle of Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas.

The ride was pretty uneventful, thankfully. The temperatures steadily dropped as I moved further north, making the riding much more comfortable. North of Salina, KS, I-135 turns in to US-81 and the scenery gets much more interesting with small towns and farm land galore. I stayed on US routes and state highways through to tonight’s stopping point, Spencer, NE. I pulled in to the parking lot of the Skyline Motel at around 7:45 PM, got the bike unloaded, and walked down the street for a late dinner. This should hopefully be the longest day of the trip, clocking in at about 530 miles.

The first day of the longest trip I’ve taken yet started late, partly due to circumstances beyond my control and partly by choice. It’s hot outside, really, really hot. I decided to start a little later to avoid the worst of the heat. The plan was to get to Perry, OK, about 240 miles north of home, to shave some distance off of the run to Regina, SK. I made good time, and starting late worked out well. I did a lot of night riding, but the temperatures were way down. I rolled in to the hotel at around 10:30 PM. The bike ran great, but I did have one problem. The HID low beam bulb is not lighting up. It’s too dark to troubleshoot so I’ll look at it in the morning.