Day 1: Half Moon Bay, CA to Paso Robles, CA

The morning started with sun

 it looked like so much fun

And then it turned to soup

Followed by 70 miles of mountainous loop-de-loops.

The sign said " 64 Miles of hills and curves"- a dream for most all bikers.  However, this duo had one with severely impaired arthritic hands compounded by a fear of heights and he was followed by a biker with one eye. Scary dudes- to themselves!

The weather had started warmly in Alamo but it was chilly by the time we arrived at Half Moon Bay. We did the ceremonial toe dip at Half Moon Bay's Poplar beach (Bluff Top Coastal Park) and headed south on PCH. Mountains, state parks, cliffs, giant redwoods, ocean views , birds of prey and elephant seals were the venue of the day while the temperatures hovered in the low 60's with fog overhead until our arrival in Paso Robles around 6:30 PM

The conditions, and our conditions, had slowed our progress to the point where visiting Hearst Castle and the wineries at Paso Robles were faded hopes which we offset by the warming elements of several adult beverages at the local Chili's. Any further renditions of our exploits for day 1 would bore you unless you are a fan of snoring.

Day 0

G became available after work on Wednesday, August 29 and picked up T at the airport. We picked up the bikes at Dudley Perkins and then holed up for the night in Alamo California at the Veiga residence. Dinner, adult beverages and goldfish races at "That Bar" in Danville was our preparatory training plan. (G's wife Cindy lost with her entry in the goldfish race)

Prelude

Steve Thomas( T) and Steve Gale (G) worked together for about 30 years and rode together for about 20 years.  With life's passings, and the passing of too many people and things, they decided it was time to work on the bucket list. Thus, the ocean to ocean motorcycle tour was created. It was tricky to work around personal and business schedules but that's what we did. The adventure began on August 30, 2012. So arrangements were made and the motorcycles were shipped from Barb's Harley-Davidson on August 13. The bikes arrived in San Francisco at Dudley Perkins Harley-Davidson on August 21. The motor ponies were waiting on us.

Mom always said " if your friend was going to jump off a bridge would you feel like you had to do THAT too? Well, now my friend is riding his motorcycle from ocean (Pacific) to ocean (Atlantic). And mom, the answer is still YES! S2O tour starts August 30th!!