It was a dark and rainy Texas night............................................

[Firehawk068]

There I was..................sitting in the parking lot of a Buc-ee's.........

My first thought, having never seen one, was "Man, for a gas station this place is HUGE!"
It was late, and I was hungry................so I walked toward the door.
My second thought, as I strolled past the Statue by the entrance, was "What in the hell is a Buc-ee?"
I assumed it to be an "Alan-Steve" and went inside..............
I perused the rack of seemingly endless flavors of beef-jerky, and settled on a couple that I have never tried. My stomach wanted something more substantial, so I wandered over to the counter that had pre-made hot sandwiches. I chose one, then grabbed a small bottle of peach-tea from the cooler, paid for my selections and went back to the parking lot.
As I sat in the Jeep eating my dinner selection, I thought to myself..........."For pre-made gas-station food, the BBQ-Brisket Sandwich was surprisingly good."

[aviationfred]

The Buc-ee's chain of gas station/convenience stores have become an institution in Texas.....Take the saying to heart.... Everything is bigger in Texas, that includes the gas stations.

A link to their website.  https://buc-ees.com/index.php



Fred

[Firehawk068]

As I finished up my food and drink, it had started raining again...............lightly, but steady.
I made my way to the bin to toss out my refuse, then returned to my vehicle to double-check the trailer connections, the tires, and the straps holding my newly acquired prize firmly in place.......

The next priority was to find a place to sleep..................I had just finished over 1000 miles from Denver to just east of Houston a couple hours earlier, and was wiped-out.
Only a couple miles down the Interstate, The Flying-J had a security-car patrolling the parking lot all night, and he directed me to a spot off to the side, under some trees, away from most of the idling trucks where I could park for the night................The back of my Grand Cherokee with the seats folded down has a surprising amount of room. I laid out my camp-pad and sleeping-bag. It wasn't quiet by any means, but I slept for a solid 7 hours.......
The next morning I awoke mostly refreshed.....................I grabbed some breakfast and some fuel, and hit the highway.
I had 1000 miles to cover back to Denver!

I honestly am getting too old to comfortably cover this kind of mileage, two days in a row, back-to-back...........................But it was worth it!


A few days earlier..............a long-distance deal was made, funding was secured, and I was finally in possession of the bike I had wanted almost since the day they came out!  

I knew I wanted a Gen-2 version. That meant 2014-up..........(there are some desirable updates that the Gen-2 bikes got)
I settled on a price range that I could safely afford, and once I had my mind made-up on which color I wanted (I had to have the "Team Yamaha Blue") I set out to find one...........
At the time I was ready to buy, there were only 2 examples for sale in my price-range in the entire country! (I had to pick the rare color!)
One was in Virginia, and one was in Texas...........................They both had similar (Low) miles, and both were outfitted similarly with accessories.........
The one in Virginia was slightly (only just) more money, but more importantly was much farther from me. It would have added another 1200 miles to my round-trip, plus the additional fuel and food costs that the added distance would require.
The easy choice was the Texas bike................Besides, the super-cool young couple that sold it to me were an absolute pleasure to deal with, both on the phone and in person!
I wish all of my transactions could be that friendly, and go that smoothly!

What did I buy you may ask?

Well here it is!    A 2014 example with only 7900-miles on the odometer!

[Firehawk068]

Besides...................I just HAD to have a bike that matches my Jacket, don'tcha-know?

And yes, I already know "Everything is bigger in Texas", including Texas itself!
It took me 4-1/2 hours of driving to get TO Texas.........................and another 13 to get to Port Arthur!

[andyoutandabout]

Ooooo an adventuring he will go. Nice.
Don't sell that Fj though.

[TexasDave]

Very good looking Super Ten. Low miles too. Now you can have all the off pavement adventures you want.

Texas is big going east and west. Have ridden from CA to Dallas twice. The first time I stopped in El Paso, Texas thinking I was more than halfway home. Checking the map the next morning showed me I was not even halfway. I was not happy.

What was your round trip mileage?

Dave 

[FJ Flyer]

Nice looking bike!  I did a similar drive to Texas in February to pick up my '16 FJR.  And your pic of the display is surprisingly familiar.  Same as my FJR.  I think they use it on the FJ-09, as well.

[ribbert]

Well done Alan, you'll have a ball on that, they are a great machine and you've stayed true to the brand.

Noel

[Derek Young]

Congratulations on purchasing an amazing machine Alan Steve!!!!
Even picking it up was an adventure, can't wait to hear about the adventures you have riding it!
Having two motorcycles is great, especially when one is old and carbureted. You never quite know when you're going to have to tear it apart to work on it. It's usually when you're ready to ride and there's a puddle of fuel forming under the bike. It sure is nice to switch over to your more modern, fuel injected bike, hit the starter and ride. Its especially nice if the two bikes can serve different purposes.
Let the adventures begin!!!


Derek

[Firehawk068]

Very good looking Super Ten. Low miles too. Now you can have all the off pavement adventures you want.

Texas is big going east and west. Have ridden from CA to Dallas twice. The first time I stopped in El Paso, Texas thinking I was more than halfway home. Checking the map the next morning showed me I was not even halfway. I was not happy.

What was your round trip mileage?

Dave 

Round-trip miles from Denver to bike-pickup, and back was 2241-miles.

[Firehawk068]

Ooooo an adventuring he will go. Nice.
Don't sell that Fj though.

Not selling my '90 FJ1200, but I will have to thin the herd.........................There will be a bike for sale in the near future...................

[Firehawk068]

Just put some new tires on it, to get it ready for "Adventure-Duty"

[Tuned forks]

Those be some gnarly looking tires.  You'll be able to climb up the side of a tree with those.

Joe

[CutterBill]

You're gonna love that bike...

In June I picked up a lightly used 2015 model; same as yours except red. Amazing bike and surprisingly nimble; love that cruise control and heated grips. Now I have something to ride when I get tired of wrenching on my FJ's. Enjoy...
Bill 

[Firehawk068]

You're gonna love that bike...
In June I picked up a lightly used 2015 model; same as yours except red. Amazing bike and surprisingly nimble; love that cruise control and heated grips. Now I have something to ride when I get tired of wrenching on my FJ's. Enjoy...
Bill 

After some random days commuting to work, 3 day-rides, and 1100-miles later I love the bike!
So different from the FJ in almost every way.............There are a few things that I would change with it, but those are mainly things to suit my size...............
It is a great bike!