For those who've ridden across the country, how long does it actually take to go coast to coast on a Dyna?

I want to ride the "open carry/no helmet law route" next summer...so pretty much 3500 miles right through the middle of the country and avoiding interstates.

Considering fatigue, unpredictable weather, maintenance, 2 lane hwys, etc...how long has it taken most people? What's realistic? And, I'll be on military PCS leave while doing it so there won't be TOO MUCH time for exploring.

 

I did Detroit to Manteca in 3.5 days. You should be able to do it in five. Six if you take your time. Stop at my house in Detroit and mow the grass. That's an order. SF K6

 

It would take 10 days average 350 miles a day which is a very easy day with time to look at the scenery and such.

 

Michigan DOES honor my weapons permit, but they've got a helmet law. Plus, I'd have to ride through Illinois and I'm not sure I have a visa for international travel.

 

So screw the grass cutting.....

 

First and foremost, Thank You for my Freedom!!

To your question...
I went from NJ to Calif and back last summer. I averaged 436 miles a day. My low was 293 (ended the day mid afternoon due to heavy rain, thunder, and lightning) highest day was 611 (all slabs). Most days were county highways that more or less ran along side major highways. I made it from NJ to the Grand Canyon in 6 days, spent a couple days there, 1 day to Vegas, 2 nights there, and 1 day to the Pacific Ocean. 6 days back to NJ, but the the last 2 days were pretty much all slabs.

Given the parameters you stated "fatigue, unpredictable weather, maintenance, 2 lane hwys, etc..." and "won't be TOO MUCH time for exploring." I would try to allow for 6-8 days; but expect the need to jump on the slabs to lay down some high mileage days if you lose too much time.

Hope this helps. Again, Thank You for Your Service, Have a Great Trip!!

 

I have not done anything long distance lately, but back around 1999 I rode from Lagrange Georgia to Albuquerque NM (about 1500 miles) took 3 days all interstate, I did close to 600 miles the first two days and the third day finished out the journey.

 

And you wanna do that with your starting/ending points in CA & VA??? Uh, 0 for 2...

I would LOVE to ride Rt. 50 coast to coast.

 

When most speed limits were 70 mph and we were pushing 75-80 we did a lot of Chicago to LA trips. Back then a trip average (on the road time including gas and food stops) of 50-55 mph was very good. I have taken 6 or 7 trips between Milwaukee and DC in the past 2 years, mostly on US Routes and few state highways. That trip is 832 miles driveway to driveway. I do it in one day, but that day is something like 17-18 hours. That makes for an average speed of around 45-46 mph. Never a problem with fuel but traffic is a problem around larger cities. I used to be a big night time rider. In the last two years I have had too many close calls with deer, raccoons and other rodents on the highway. Last year close to midnight I was crusin’ through VA on an Interstate segment. A car passed me and then a few seconds later he swerved radically. I slowed down to maybe 25 mph. When I got to the point where he swerved there a dead deer in the middle of my lane. I was tired after a long day and at 55 I would surely have gone down. Now I ride mostly when the sun is up.

I have ridden Route 2 and 18 from Michigan's UP and Milwaukee, WI to Sturgis and Glacier National Park. The roads were good. The biggest problem was road construction mixed with rain. I had one fuel problem. The town where I had a planned fuel stop did not have high octane gas. I put a half gallon in and rode 20 miles to a station that had high octane. I do tend to push the limits of a 5 gallon tank and too many times end up putting 4.8 gallons in. Oh well

The scenic route is best but staying off the super slabs you'll be lucky to average 45 miles per hour. You'll find lots of place to run 60-65 with little or no traffic. And then you'll hit the small town with a 25mph speed limit.

Don't know about the route you are taking but around here in SE Wisconsin many communities are putting noise ordinances on the books and are ticketing for loud pipes. This weekend one small town known to be popular with riders had a sign up warning that if you racked the pipes you’d get a ticket.

From a Marine - have a safe trip and a damn good time!

 

I forgot one important thing, something you already know! Keep the sun at your back. If you are going west to east the afternoon is your best time and if going east to west you want to be on the road just before sunrise and then knock off early. There isn't much worse riding than into the sun when it is at a low angle, especially if you plan on riding sans-helmet. It is just too hard to see what is in front of you.