What I would like to find out is how do the members of the HRF tour. Do you stay in hotels, camp on the side of the road, stay with friends, camp at camp grounds etc? What have you tried?

I personally have stayed with friends, this is particularly easy they are usually there when you get there, and if there is no room in the house I have tented in their yard. Great time had by all and safe too. What have you done?

On one trip I stayed with my buddy, then we all went camping in the Sequoia national forest, went on to Utah and camped by the side of the road. On the way back I stayed in a motel... I guess I did it all on that one trip and the best sleep I got was in my tent in the mountains... The "high" altitude makes food taste better and the cold nights were great for sleeping...

It wasn't so much where I slept but rather having the right equipment and basic knowledge.
Camping: warm comfortable clothes and gear, ie; sleeping bag and air mattress
Staying in a motel... long heavy motorcycle chains and locks to secure the bikes - removing any "removable" parts - windshields and the such and keeping them in the rooms with us. We also requested rooms at ground level and parked the bikes right outside the door/window.
Most times when I stay at a buddies house I'll get preferential treatment and get to store the bike in the garage or in a back yard to keep it safe overnight. I also bring a waterproof cover in case of foul weather.
As for rain gear, and you WILL get rained on, I bought a suit from a uniform store, canvas covered with rubber. I used that suit for over 10 years... it finally dried out and cracked. I plan on getting another this summer.
Touring is a blast, you never know what you'll come across. The most important thing to bring with you is a sense of adventure and be adaptable. A 25 cent newspaper can keep you entertained and warm if you know how.

Hotels. After a 4-5-600 miles day I'm not interested in hunting a camp ground(hotels are every where and right off the exit) nor sleeping on the ground in any fashion. I have found hotels to be more then reasonably priced. When we rode to San Diego we were on the road for 3 weeks. Other than a few friends houses along the way we stayed at hotels. Never paid more then 75-90$ and all came with an extensive hot breakfast. I have to tell you how great it is to be able to simply pull off an exit and ride right over to a hotel, A/C,hot shower,TV,soft bed and room service.

Sig other usually lanquishs in the pool and sauna while I unload the bike and reorganize for tomorrows days ride to include checking computer for prospective town and ammenities up a head. She usually wants to tour around the local city but I never do that. Every major city has gang issues and it'd be my luck I'd end up in a no white welcome zone. It happens all the time.

I'm a minimalist, and always have been since I was a kid.

I do find 'comfort' quite seducing, however. One summer the weather was incredibly hot across most of the nation. My wife wanted to go to South Dakota, but wanted to ride in our Suzuki Tracker because it had a superior A/C and got great gas milieage. She's a suburban girl, and got us luxury suites with restaurants, gyms, no smoking floors and most importantly to her, room service.

While I felt a tad jealous as the Harleys rumbled by us on the Interstate, I had to admit that I relaxed about as much as possible as I can when traveling with my wife. As most of you know, she packs in far too many events, requiring break-neck driving, almost no naps or relaxing by the pool.

I have sport racks on both the Dyna and the Sportster, and I feel that even day trips should be fun, have no real agenda, and consist of a buddy saying, "If you're wearing clean underwear, then let's leave now!"

However, there's no way I going to sleep on the cold ground of some remote campsite with a rolled up leather jacket as a pillow. I had enough of that during the club years, and while it was an adventure, my knees and shoulders have a few more miles on them now...

I'm wondering what you do to secure your bike while staying at a Hotel? Hotels are usually larger and more likely to not put you in a room where you can "see" or keep tabs on the motorcycle while staying there.

I pick my "motel" usually because I can get a room where I can park right outside. I have a security system on my bike that I installed. It has a wireless beeper/pager that goes off if the alarm is triggered. My concern: I saw a video, some time ago, where in it 4 rather large men got out of a pickup truck and picked up a motorcycle just like mine and placed it in the bed of the truck (chains through the wheels - not chained to anything) and drove off... That haunts me every time I walk away from my bike, let alone leave it overnight in a parking lot...

1st: you have insurance. Park as best as possible and don't worry about it.
2nd: Most hotels will let you park under the front entrance over hang which is in front of the front desk, at least in their viewing area.
3rd: when unable to park under front entrance easement I locate the window under my room and park it there

I've never had a problem ever and I have a XM radio which is not detachable. If possible take your cover and keep it covered. Try not to get one that says HD(adverstisement), get a non descript black one.

good advise, thanks.

RK...its understood the owner rider should take every care possible with theft and damage in mind. Even with just stopping at a restaurant special logistical care of motorcycle placement has to be under consideration ( I could tell you horror stories from personal experience of ignorant drivers in restaurants and I am sure you have a few of your own). But there is only so much and within reason I find one can do. As much as I love my bike and as much as me and my bike have been thru together and as much as I'd hate it to be stolen and/or damage there is only so much one can do.

Great advice! I for one try not to let my bike out of my sight. Like you have stated BI63 we all have horror stories and there is only so much you can do. This is exactly the type of replies I was looking for this thread. I think that it will help our members that tour on motorcycles.

Personally we should adopt this philosophy to all phases of being on a motorcycle, and lots of other aspects of our lifes, as well.

If a motorcycle becomes so valuable, so irreplaceable, and so fragile, of what overall good is it? One of the best things about my Sportster is the ease of maintenance. It takes +30 minutes to wipe down Betty's chrome, perhaps ten minutes to run a micro-fiber cloth with Bug Slide over Spinner. And being smaller and lighter, I can get to places--safer places in keeping with this theme--then a garbage wagon loaded to the plimsoll line.

In other words, at my stage of life, motorcycling has become more of a joy. As I often have stated, my FIL said, "A man spends half of his life accumulating things, and the other half getting rid of them." I have found that to be true. I spilled some hot mustard on my Harley T-shirt over lunch, wiped most of it off with a dish-rag. In the old days a spill on an Armani or Dior suit would have ended up as an expensive trip to the drycleaners.

And while many of the younger riders here might find this hard to believe, the more things I give away, the happier I become.