A week ago I saddled up the big Kawasaki with my new removable saddle bags and headed out to Lake George with my friend and Best Man, Marc Horowitz, and his two sons. We met at a gas station in New Paltz just off the New York State Thruway and struck out from there. It was the first time in a while that the Kawasaki and I were on a major highway and all my concerns about it being up to the task faded within a few minutes. Their bikes have all been built in the 21st Century while the Kawasaki is a 1983 vintage model. Not only that, their bikes were bigger in engine size. I needn't have worried. 
With speeds hovering between sixty-five and seventy mph the Kawasaki just hummed along singing a song that made four cylinder Japanese motorcycles famous. Not only that, but even at that pace the Kawasaki returned forty-seven mpg from its aging carbureted motor.
In no time at all we covered the hundred and thirty-five miles to Lake George making our first stop the official registration area where we received our information, pins and decal for the event. Venturing over to the headquarters for the event we were surrounded by motorcycles of every shape and size. Once there we saw the tents for BMW, Indian, KTM and Yamaha bristling with motorcycles all available for a test ride. In addition there were tents for various vendors with items for sale. 
We were there for four days, saw just about everything they had to offer and Marc and his sons tested several motorcycles from the manufacturers. I passed, not feeling confident enough to ride anything at the displacements that were available. On the third day we rode a loop through the Adirondacks for one hundred and seventy miles. The scenery was gorgeous, the roads were attention grabbing and the supplied lunch was tasty and fresh. Again the Kawasaki provided all the performance required and made me appreciate its virtues. At one point we stopped for gas and the bike rewarded me with fifty-seven mpg. It did well.
After four days of riding, test riding and eating it was time to go home in the morning of day five. In pretty good stretches of fog we returned home buzzing along the Thruway. I peeled off in New Paltz while Marc and sons continued on to Long Island. It was a great five days and I look forward to doing it again. Lake George is a pretty place and they say when the event is done in June there are many tourist attractions to entice you to spend money and time exploring them. Most were closed for the season at this time in September. I look forward to a repeat visit.