OTP X - 2011

Hi all,

after another relaxing day in Lincoln, the whole familie Baum brought me to the local airport.

Fortunately they checked through my luggage zu Fankfurt. So I only had to change the airplane in Chicago to another flight to Frankfurt, where my wife Anette already awaited me.

Nobody asked me to get some tax or customs for the BACKUP backtrest I purchased during the OT-trip in US for my K 1200 LT. so I imagined that it is free ;-)

 After only one day at home with Anette and my daughter Jenny for cleaning and rearrangement of my stuff I already started again my journey to the GCE Rally 2011.

At http://www.winkler-braeu.de/ I met some other GCE members on their journey:

- Mika and Jaana Pitkaenen (GCE webmaster) from Finland
- Lars Anebreid from Sweden
- Uli Norden and Antje Klues .Germany
- Ralf and Ute Koopmann from Germany
- Markus Schneider from Germany

Together we had a good Frankonian dinner and some
of these excellent copper colored beers, the brew in the
house (that's why we ever meet here after Mika and I discovered
this Flair Hotel 5 years ago).

Tomorrow we will continue to Walter and Elfi Kirchweger in Austria
(OTP host for some years) to have our lunch there and then we
will stay at the most eastern town of Austria (Wolfsthal at the
Panonian Limes) to visit our Austrian AAD Hans Dresler (OTP traveler 2003)
at http://www.ciarivari.at/villapannonica/.

Mika surprised with a pretty new green 1400 GTR.
Congratulations for his new bike!!!

OTP has come to an end: last ride in the US today.

Rick, Phil ,Steve and Gie had their last ride together in the Rockies.

It's farewell but not goodbye, we will ride together again, someday, somewhere...

This blog will be updated soon, Bernd and me wil ride in the Carpathians next week (we hope to give you all also & taste of the GCE rally over there) , and afterwards we hope to give you an extended presentation of the highlights of this trip of a lifetime.

Many thanks to all who have contributed to this great OTP event!

Drive safe,

Gie & Bernd

During Gie did the long ride toward Colarado together with Phil and Steve,
I had a relaxing day, clreaned the bike, did some shopping and got some action
when I passed a serious fire in a house in Lincoln.

I thought already OTP is over. Chris Baum invited Cyle Rush (COG member) and me
to visit a Baseball Game of the Saltdogs in Lincoln and there I got my 2nd surprise:

I got a Saltdog T-Shirt at the entrance, Chris showed me the stadium and how everything works. He introduced me to some important persons

and then:

I got the honor of the First Pitch

Oh Americans what do you with me?
At first you bring me to an elevation, I have never been before with a bike.
Then you let me ride on 1000 km long straight roads at more than 40 °C (105 °F).
You organized a bike with more hp than I ever had (and I survived with it).
You guided me into a citiy with more inhabitants in every house as in the small town,
I lived within the last 20 jears.
I had to give a short speach in front of all that COG members
We passed the largest water falls I've ever seen

and now this:

The small boy from the Vogelsberg country area stands in that large stadium and had
to do only a simple thing: To throw that baseball to the catcher awaiting it.

But I was so excited with all the cameras and eyes on me and me on the large 
arena display that I missed him.
Anyway, I enjoyed that new expirience.
I got the ball signed by the Soltdogs coach and the catcher who did his best to
catch my ball.
Chris baught a glass box to put it in and find a adequate place on my desk.

Thank you, Chris for this exciting great expierience.

Today I will do my last ride to say good bye to the C14 who I ride that long
track through the middle and north east state of US and Ontario in Cannada.

At the evening I will depart at Lincoln, NE via Chicago towards Germany.

Bernd