Coast to Coast on a $200 Motorcycle

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The Story

This is a video diary about my first motorcycle adventure when I flew to New York, searched and then bought a motorcycle for $200 and then rode it from Long Beach New York, across America to Long Beach California.

Full story of this trip is below with photos

Hope you enjoy

Jamie

Coast to Coast on ‘Connie’ my $200 Motorcycle

The plan was simple; to ride from Long Beach New York to Long Beach Los Angeles, cheaply and alone. I wanted to prove that you didn’t need the latest bike or accessories in able to have an adventure of a lifetime and of course, do it on the freedom of a motorcycle.

Plus I hoped to raise some awareness for my chosen charity ‘Riders for Health’ www.riders.org if I could achieve that while discovering different parts of America that would be more than wonderful.

And just because I am daft and would be spending quite a bit of time with myself I threw in a few rules to spice it up a bit; designed only of course to make me to suffer to some extent in more ways than one.

Here are the rules I set for myself:

• ‘$200’ – Spend only $200 on a motorcycle and parts
• Ride on normal roads, no Highways or Interstates
• Sleep in a tent next to my motorbike
• Eat local and eat their ‘Breakfast Special’ every morning
• No Sat-Nav, just a map
• Can’t shave or shower until the journey is complete
• Enjoy

New York – The Start

As I arrived in New York with nothing more this a plan there was a bit of work to do just to get out of the city. Firstly I went to a grubby internet cafe, jumped online and started to look for motorbikes and cheap 1 star beds and hostels. Thanks to a last minute email from my big sister Victoria, who kindly mentioned that I would probably be able to stay with her boyfriend’s (Tristrum) brother (Olly) and his wife (Indira) who lived in New York. Wow, what a stroke of luck and even better as how could they say no?? They are practically family!!

So I called the # and prayed they’d answer. Lucky for me they did and seconds later and now armed with an address I jumped on the underground and aimed for Brooklyn.

Just through a chance email and some very welcoming almost family members, Brooklyn would become the hub for getting this $200 motorcycle journey going and would also be my home for the next 5 days as I lived at Olly and Indira’s apartment and slept on their fabulous couch.

To find my $200 motorcycle I searched all the usual places online, www.craigslist.com and www.ebay.com with-out any joy so then started contacting local dealers and getting out on foot. My search would take me here, there and everywhere but eventually to Works Engineering in Brooklyn, an interesting place which restored old British motorcycles amongst many other things. Eric the boss had purchased a $200 Honda 400-Four just the week before and said I could have it, great I thought but on closer inspection I was to find it didn’t have any carburettors, however it did have a birds nest underneath the seat.

Interestingly though, his buddy Lawrence who worked at the Matchless Bar (Very cool M/C bar) was looking to sell his 1989 EX500 Kawasaki, but wanted $500 for it, way over my budget. Even though I didn’t have $500, I have acquired some pretty good blagging skills from my Mum, (who is a true professional at this) so I decided I’d still meet with him and do my best at knocking his price down. Eventually I managed to get him down to $300, still $100 short….

Eric from Works Engineering wanted his name on the bike that I was going to attempt to ride across the United States of America, so I told him it would cost $100, to my astonishment, he agreed. So, as quick as that, I handed over my $200, Eric chipped in a $100 and I had a running motorcycle ready for an adventure. Quality….or so I thought.

The rather battered EX500 came with 120,000 miles on the clock, had been ridden across the country 5 times previously, and now was being ridden into the ground as a neglected city-bike; it had a set of badly worn tires that must have been on the machine for at least 10 years, the headlight didn’t work along with the indicators and speedo. The brakes hardly worked either. It did however come with a slow puncture as it had a nail in the back tire. A nail which had been in for the EX’s entire life with Lawrence, as he’d bought the bike with it in a few years ago.

Well I’d spent my entire budget, so what I couldn’t blag or borrow I was going to have to leave and get riding. Works Engineering very kindly helped me fix the headlight issue and I gave the old girl a once over. There was no money left for a new tire so the nail stayed in, it had apparently been there a couple of years already, so I thought I had a good chance of making it another 4,000 miles.

Foolishly, I didn’t know about the licence and registration procedure in the US and had huge issues just getting a new plate and correct paperwork, which came seriously close to ending the trip before it began, but I pulled off a blinder at the eleventh hour and within a matter of hours the trip was 100% GO, Olly and Indira could get their home back and I was finally legal and ready to roll.

Will I get kidnapped? Will that tire last? Will my 3 T-shirts and 2 x underpants be enough? I guess the only way to find out is to go for it; here is my daily diary of my adventure:

Daily Diary US Coast to Coast
*Denotes road number
Day 1 – Long Beach NY (Atlantic Ocean), New York, Catskill Mnts, Cazenovia (NY)
• Left Long Beach New York, headed out over the upper level of the George Washington Bridge, awesome
• 9W* followed the Hudson River north, out of the city, greenery at last!
• Got stopped for speeding, 61mph in a 45mph zone, talked my way out of it, P.D Gebert signed my EX
• 28* through the Catskill Mountains – Amazing!! Got lost taking a fun smaller road, but well worth it! Managed to get up to 75mph!
• 20* west, getting late and cold, bedded down in Cazenovia, a local lad helped me find a place to camp
• The EX 500 OK, brakes poor as best, the headlight is brighter on dip than on full-beam and dip is dim. Engine although not powerful and rattles a lot seems to be OK
Notes: Great to finally be off on my trip and I am learning the hard way what the bikes good and bad points are. Riding this bike hour after hour is a bit of a shock to the system to say the least. Was told to watch out for bear’s tonight….I rode out of the Catskill Mountains before setting up camp!
Start of day: 0
Finish: 378
Daily miles: 378

Day 2 – Cazenovia (NY), Niagara Falls, Lake Erie, Erie (Pennsylvania) Geneva on the Lake (Ohio)
Breakfast at Emma’s Cafe, great food, great place, very tasty and filling 10/10 – Bikers welcome
• 20* all the way to Buffalo, flowing hills, sweeping curves, beautiful scenery, mega road
• Buffalo City, crazy drivers, threatened for not queuing at toll!
• Niagara Falls, sight was amazing! Well worth the hassle of getting here
• More threats and people trying to stop me filtering in a 4 mile queue around Buffalo, not happy
• Lake Erie, finally somewhere safe. 20*South-West – Good road. Enjoyable
• Bedded down in Geneva on the Lake – in someone’s garden, they weren’t home
• Warm night, slept well, can hear the lake
• EX doing OK. Tyre still up, engine OK, seat is uncomfortable after a while – Groin hurts
Getting to finally see Niagara Falls was simply amazing being threatened for splitting lanes wasn’t. I’ve been told by locals to watch out for deer’s jumping out of hedges at the side of the road, mainly at night, making night riding even tougher.
Start: 378
Finish: 771
Daily miles: 393

Day 3 – Geneva on the Lake (Ohio), Cleveland, Toledo, Notre Dame, New Carlisle (Indiana)
Breakfast at the Sunrise Cafe, great food, crazy but great fun, tasty and filling – 10/10 – Bikers welcome
• Travelled down to Cleveland on the 20*, weather miserable
• Around to Toledo on the 6* and 2*, slow road, lots of traffic
• I’m Seeing motorcycle riders without crash helmets, never seen this before, they are crazy
• Got stopped by 2 police cars and a big dog for splitting lanes. Didn’t know you couldn’t, it’s a different law in each state. You can’t split lanes but can ride a bike with-out a helmet?! Eh?!! Talked my way out of it, they signed the EX – The dog looks like it would love to chew on my leg and loved every bite, GGGRRRRRRrrrrrr
• Headed west on the 20* out of Toledo, great road, sun has finally come out
• Passed through an Amish town, my EX might be slow but beats 1horse power
• Pressed on to Lake Michigan, told not to camp there as it’s not safe so bedded down in New Carlisle
• Camped next to a wood, lots of insects, little sleep as it was close to the freight train tracks!
• Named my EX ‘Connie’ after Connie, the old woman who served me in the Sunrise Cafe. They are both similar, a bit long in the tooth, slim, good fun and hard working! ‘Connie’ it is…..
Yeah OK, I got stopped by the Police again but they signed ‘Connie’ and let me go…Phew! Weather has been miserable most of the day but the sun finally came out this afternoon. My lack of thermals may prove to be a mistake as I seem to be living in my Cold Killer gear, day and night.
Start: 771
Finish: 1,134
Daily miles: 363

Day 4 – New Carlisle (Indiana), Gary, Chicago, Springfield (Illinois)
Breakfast at Jennie Rae’s, cheap, food edible, plenty of coffee – 8/10 – Bikers welcome
• Went to Lake Michigan, beautiful but not that safe, warned again and again by locals to be careful
• Travelled through Gary, murdering capital of the state, AHHHH! – I made a wrong turn and went deeper into the ghetto, holy crap I was nervous for a while!!
• Travelled through the South-East Chicago, also scary
• Finally found start of Route66 in Chicago centre – Spent 2 hours trying to find it…
• Set off to follow the historic old Route66 all the way to California and the Atlantic Ocean
• Made it to Springfield but the cold night and fog is getting the better of me
• Set up camp in a Country Club, got in my sleeping bag and the Police showed up, went through all my paperwork and kicked me out of the club
• Set-up camp in a park nearby
• ‘Connie’ is doing running OK, seat is very uncomfortable after hours in the saddle – Will I be able to have kids?!?
Gary Indiana was nothing short of scary as Sh*t! I’m so lucky I didn’t camp there the night before. I went in search of somewhere safe to camp tonight but that back-fired. Oh well, at least I made it to the Route 66.
Start: 1,134
Finish: 1,435
Daily miles: 301

Day 5 – Springfield (Illinois), St Louis, Bourbon, Waynesville, Lebanon (Missouri)
Breakfast in the park thanks to Chad Robinson, Park Patrol officer! Mc’D’s egg muffin – 4/10
• Woke up to heavy rain, then thunder, massive down pour, going nowhere for a while
• Park patrol tuned up and also went through all my paperwork. All OK and Chad bought me breakfast – Thanks Chad!!
• Once the rain had stopped I set off, roads very slippy when wet!
• Got lost trying to stay on Route66, and again, and again and again ahhhhhhhh!
• Stopped in Bourbon, no Whiskey shops, big disappointment. But fun roads when you find them
• More thunder, lightning and rain, I dive into a fuel station and take cover
• Headlight blew near ‘Devils Elbow’ while night riding, it’s pitch black and I’m in the middle of nowhere
• Tried fixing it, but the fuse keeps blowing so I ride with no lights to a truck stop in Waynesville. Dodgy
• I’m told it’s not safe to camp or even stay around here. So I ride behind a truck to Lebanon with no lights, I’ve have no choice, it risky
• Police show up while I am taping a torch to the front of my bike just a few miles outside town, after some banter I get police escort into town
• ‘Connie’ was doing OK, need to fix headlight tomorrow, rear tyre is running soft
It’s been an interesting day to say the least. Found out that these tires are terrible in the wet, US roads have little to no grip near traffic lights in the wet and it’s dangerous as hell trying to ride at night without a headlight…but I’m having a great time!
Start: 1,435
Finish: 1,741
Daily miles: 306

Day 6 – Lebanon (Missouri), Springfield (Missouri), Gay Parita
Breakfast at Faye’s Diner, good food, friendly, cheap, smoking allowed – 8.1/10
• Woke up to rain again, looked out; I’d camped underneath a sprinkler! – Yeah, yeah well it was dark when I set up camp!
• Needed to get headlight fixed. Tried LSK M/C’s, they said they were too busy but they set me up to go and see JJ Cycles
• Route66 to Springfield, great road! Rolling hills, no traffic, excellent
• Arrived at JJ Cycles, Springfield and they helped fix the headlight. Connie also got some chain lube and a top up of engine oil – JJ Cycles were great! 10/10
• Amazing sun-set this evening, incredible
• Stopped early, tired and cold – Slept in a Route66 themed Gas Station – Thanks Gary!
• ‘Connie’ is like new, well not really but headlight is back working, rear tire won’t hold much pressure…running on 8psi
Connie had a full make over by the guys at JJ Cycles; well they fixed the headlight and gave her some chain lube. Didn’t get so far today but at least the lights are now working.
Start: 1,741
Finish: 1,867
Daily miles: 126

Day 7 – Gay Parita (Missouri), Baxter Springs (Kansas), Oklahoma City, Weatherford (Oklahoma)
Breakfast at Crossroads Cafe, huge plate full, food OK if you like slop, 5/10
• Woke up and went to Walmart and washed my hair and smelly body in the bathroom
• Today is a challenge due to the ever changing road surfaces, some good, some bad, some terrible
• ‘Connie’ started squeaking badly after a stint on the terrible off the beaten track type roads, it now sounds like she’s falling apart
• My butt and balls are starting to hurt with all the riding on this horrible seat
• Made a new seat with my blanket, its better!
• Hot and hard days riding
• Oklahoma City very busy, terrible drivers
• Amazing sun-set, best so far, sky stayed lit for ages
• Stopped in Weatherford, asked a Reverend where I could camp, he said his Church, so I did, camped outside the church
• ‘Connie’ feels OK but the squeak is driving me nuts!! Rear holds only 7psi and is slowly deflating
Fully recommend Walmart’s bathrooms to freshen up in! I had to make a new seat as I couldn’t take any more of that uncomfortable saddle. Connie developed a squeak after a stint on a very bad road; it would drive anyone mad…especially me.
Start: 1,867
Finish: 2,237
Daily miles: 370

Day8 – Weatherford (Oklahoma), McLean (Texas), Amarillo, Vega (Texas)
Breakfast at Downtown Diner, very good food, friendly, amazing Cinnamon rolls! 9.5/10 – Bikers welcome
• Started ‘Connie’ she sounded rough first thing…lots of knocking
• Met up with some Irish bikers who were riding Route66 for a children’s hospital in Ireland, there was 47 of them, paramedic, route organisers, mechanics and a van with all their luggage, I felt quite inadequate
• Visited Elvis’s hotel room, where he used to stay on his was to Amarillo for $5
• Rear tire really soft, won’t hold pressure, OK in a straight line, not good around corners
• Made it to Texas then got given some Slime for the rear tire, perfect as I need to stop this slow puncture as it’s getting dangerous
• Slime works! Yippee, the tire is now great and I can ride faster
• 10 minutes later…..Too much pressure blows nail out while doing 65pmh, green slime everywhere!  nearly crashed!
• 6miles from nearest town…limp there with a flat
• Arrived in McLean, it’s a ghost town, no one around, businesses open but no-one inside! Finally Carey shows up and tries to plug the hole. It works! We are back in business, Carey says to change rear tire in Amarillo – I don’t, keep riding with his awesome plug
• Massive thunderstorm in Texas, I ride into it! V-dangerous, take shelter under disused garage but still get soaked
• Stopped in Vega, cold and wet
• Most eventful day yet, good roads, enjoyed myself
• ‘Connie’ seemed to run OK after earlier concerns, squeak is very annoying but the rear tire is still up!
It was fun meeting up with fellow bikers in the morning and as it turned out I ended up having one of my most eventful days yet. The tire Slime fixed my slow puncture until the nail blew out, then I slimed myself and the Connie. I was in the middle of nowhere for a while but finally got the hole plugged at the next town and got on my way thanks to Carey. I then ran into a major thunderstorm in Tornado Alley, Texas and thought I may be in trouble but luckily found a disused garage forecourt to hide under. Hope tomorrow is less eventful…
Start: 2,237
Finish: 2,494
Daily miles: 257

Day 9 – Vega (Texas), Santa Ana Pueblo (New Mexico), Albuquerque, Grants (New Mexico)
Breakfast at Hickory Inn Cafe, friendly, the best breakfast Burrito ever! 9.5/10
• Stood in dog poo packing my tent up
• Went to see the Sheriff, had a chat and then tried to get his hat, without luck
• Into New Mexico and the scenery has changed, suddenly I feel very remote
• Starting to worry, I’ve been riding alone on the road with no signs or other people for over an 2 hours
• Ooops it turns out I took the pre 1937 Route66, extra 200miles out of my way, bugger…
• Finally made it to a Gas Station, filled up
• Accidently knocked ‘Connie’ off the centre stand and it broke the front brake lever clean off and high up at the pivot point so I can’t use it, it’s also damaged the handlebar
• Rode 102miles with only a useless and worn out rear brake
• The dreadful squeak has stopped after it fell over, happy about that!
• Made it to Albuquerque and found R&S Cycles, incredibly they had a front brake lever for a 1989 EX500 and donated it!
• ‘Connie’ got fixed and some more chain lube and oil – rear tyre still has plug, R&S were great 10/10
• Made it to Grants, strange feeling setting up camp, it’s dark and I’ve no idea what’s around me
• It’s been a good day riding, v-dramatic scenery, no traffic, enjoyable, rear tire is still up, daren’t check the pressure
The main thing is the tire seems to be nearly perfect and I am not riding with a badly deflated tyre anymore. Snapping my front brake lever off wasn’t very clever and I was super lucky to find R&S Cycles who had a lever in stock. I’m having loads of fun
Start: 2,494
Finish: 2,900
Daily miles: 406

Day 10 – Grants (New Mexico), Gallup, Flagstaff (Arizona), Grand Canyon, Williams (Arizona)
Breakfast at Aurelia’s in Gallup, food OK, friendly, good coffee, warmed me up! 8/10
• Windy today, the cold just seems to get colder
• The EX is v-difficult to ride in cross winds as the front-end rides light and is made worse with the big bag strapped to the back
• Got lost, ended up down a long gravel road miles from anywhere
• Winds pick up even more, it’s very gusty and more bad weather is coming in. I try to ride through it but it is very demanding in cross winds. Riding is a constant struggle today
• The trucks are very dangerous when they pass me doing around 80mph+, they nearly blow you off the road – Sketchy
• It’s miserable as I’m very cold and wet, nearly made worse when I almost run out of fuel
• Stop to warm up with a Cup Noodle
• Even though I’m frozen I decided to go and see the Grand Canyon, its 1hr North, I’m very cold but the sky is amazing this evening
• Grand Canyon is spectacular, incredible, awesome, it was well worth riding in the cold, wind and rain to see
• ‘Connie’ feels OK, think we can make it, somehow the tire is still up, plug looks OK and I’m try to forget about it as I’m clicking down the miles
• Set-up camp near a forest
I froze my butt off today and really it’s my own fault as I didn’t bring any water proofs or thermals. By the time I got to the Grand Canyon I was a partly frozen in the riding position but the sight was absolutely incredible, it blew me away and is one of the most incredible things I’ve ever seen. It was worth freezing for.
Start: 2,900
Finish: 3,340
Daily miles: 440

Day 11 – Williams (Arizona), Hackberry, Kingman, Amboy (California), Barstow, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Santa Monica
End Route66 – We did it!
Breakfast at The Cafe in Ash fork, one of the strangest places I’ve stopped at yet, food was good, warmed me up, locals looked at me weird 6/10 – As it warmed me up
• Woke up at 6:30am to make an early start and pressed on, wanted to see if I could make it to the West coast today
• Bright but v-cold morning, slowly got warmer, I’m still cold from yesterday
• Incredible road to Peach Springs, Hackberry, some of the best so far, joy to ride from start to finish
• Very remote road to Amboy, started to worry about that bloody rear tire. Keep seeing blown out tires and bits of rubber everywhere
• Very long and hot road, the surface is bumpy and breaking up and seems to be getting worse
• No traffic, no one!! I’ve fuel and tire worries, what am I doing??
• As I get close to LA, the traffic goes crazy!
• Once in the city it is very stop start and I’m quickly running out of daylight
• Finally get to Santa Monica for the sun-set, it’s beautiful and warm. Very peaceful
• Set up camp on the beach – had 2 beers, slept like a baby
• ‘Connie’ feels better than ever, had many fears in the desert today with the rear tire and puncture but we made it!
We made it to the Atlantic! Awesome feeling and as a bonus it’s warm! Got myself in a bit of state earlier in the day when I was riding on bad roads in the desert and kept seeing blown up tires strewn all over the place, but we are here and I’m chuffed to bits.
Start: 3,340
Finish: 3,910
Daily miles: 570

Day 12 – Santa Monica, Rancho Palos Verdes, Long Beach
Breakfast at Jen’s Diner, good food, amazing pancakes, 7/10
• Got up late, no hurry, cruised down to Long Beach following the coastal road
• Beautiful around Rancho Palos Verdes
• Called into West Coast Chopper, they signed ‘Connie’
• Finally made it to the Queen Mary
• Went to the beach for final sun-set – mission completed! Very happy
• ‘Connie’ is awesome; I can’t believe she got me here, should she retire now….?
There were no brass band or welcome home banners for when I finally reached Long Beach Los Angeles but I felt on top of the world regardless. I’d travelled across the US on a $200 motorcycle and had an amazing time, met some amazing people and seen some amazing sights. I can’t wait to go on my next adventure.

Start: 3,910
Finish: 3,986.2
Daily miles: 76.2

Coast to coast – Total trip: 3,986.2 miles

Conclusion:
Apart from smelling like a tramp and probably looking like one too, I felt like a king when I finally arrive in Long Beach California, I loved my trip across the states; it was a truly fantastic experience. The trip turned out to be a whole assortment of challenges, most of which were totally new to me but I enjoyed getting through each and every day and nearly every mile of the trip. If it wasn’t for my useless map reading or the tiny scale map taped to my tank, I might have made it back a day earlier, but who cares, I love riding so getting lost was just a way of doing a few extra miles.

Back in the t’good old days our grandparents would tell us of these kind neighbourly folk, that would help you out if you needed it and I have to say, I found them, lots of them. I bumped into the kindest, most helpful and generous people on my trip, they made it all worthwhile, those who made a difference all signed ‘Connie’ my trusty old EX500 who I have to say was blinding and she didn’t give me too much trouble, we bonded well.

Where now I wonder….I got this far on ‘Connie’ I just wonder how many more incredible adventures we can have together. While I contemplate my next motorcycle adventure on my $200 motorcycle I encourage anyone who is even thinking about going on a motorcycle trip to just go do it, go travel, go and discover, I promise you’ll have a blast.

The coast to coast trip across America was fascinating, beautiful, weird and wonderful all rolled into one, I want to discover more and I will, just maybe next time I may allow myself 4 pairs of underpants for a 12 day trip.

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