As of 10am today, Friday, I am all packed up and ready to go. The trip starts Sunday. So, I'm a little excited.
Yesterday Nathan came over and we tested out our new CB radios. They work amazingly well. I had much lower expectations mingled with memories of my walkie talkies from years ago with the Morse code attached and the orange button of ultimate beepiness. These new CBs are very clear, provide a nice little beep after transmission (no need to say "over"), fully integrate with the bike's controls and displays, and automatically mute the radio when receiving. Very nice. Nathan's bike is 2008 Honda Goldwing so his was ordered from the dealer as optional equipment. My bike is a 1999 Honda Valkyrie Interstate and while the CB was a Honda option for my bike, the part is no longer manufactured. Thankfully, valkyrieblingandmore.com produces a CB unit that fully integrates with the stock controls on my bike. Matt and Nathan, Thank you both again, bought the CB and CB antenna for me as an early birthday present.
When Nathan left we decided to see how far we could chat. We were able to talk until he was about 2 miles away with my bike inside my garage and separated by city buildings and the like. Not bad at all. I imagine the range is pretty far on stretches of Hwy 5.
The trip is only days away and I'm wrapping up as many todo's as I can around the house while Tami is at work. Later today we go in for an Ultrasound so I hope to have a new picture of The Kid by this evening.