matt - want to join!!! well for a week or two. I hope to get some more of my friends here who have cross countried here. Just the packing out of your bike and other things are crucial for a good trip. LOL I saw one person in Canada my last big trip. He looked like a slow riding black blimp. Could not see his bike at all. You saw him, bare from waist up riding a bike that was covered in black lawn & leaf bags full of stuff (not returnables) - traveling slooooowwww.