After a morning of legitimate work and a bit of procrastination, I took myself to the storage unit to leave the rest of Trisha’s belongings there. It was a bittersweet process, but it needed to be done. Having enough space in the storage unit wasn’t an issue. It’ll be even less of an issue once I start getting some of my own things out of there that I no longer need, but that’s a project for another day.
With more space in the van for my own stuff, I thought about what I had in storage that I really missed having with me. The honest answer was nothing. I don’t consider myself a minimalist, but this may be a sign that I could be moving in that direction.
I did grab a few things I left behind specifically to pick up for the New England Forest Rally, mainly to help string up a wire radio antenna. I also grabbed the spare parts for my motorcycle. I might as well have them with me, whether I need to make repairs or I someday sell the bike and can include them. Mainly, though, I just freed up a bunch of space inside the van. Now I need to work out how best to spread out and use storage areas that weren’t originally available to me.
I’ve also slowed down on the trailer idea for now. I took a lot of weight out of the van by leaving Trisha’s stuff behind. It certainly wasn’t 400 pounds worth, but it was a bit. I want to see how the van rides with the bike on the back, but without the extra weight of her stuff on board. I’m also considering going with an open rather than enclosed trailer. The KLR has been fine sitting outside in the weather, unlike some other motorcycles I could have. My newfound interior storage reduces my need to store bulky motorcycle gear outside the van.
My main goal with a trailer is to stop scraping the Black Widow carrier on the ground, and a sub-$1,000 open trailer would accomplish that. I could still add weathertight storage bins to it if I wanted. The other thing is as long as I get a trailer with a solid deck, I can start carrying my bike on it immediately, without modification. This is crucial, because I have nowhere to park the bike while I muck about with how to carry it with me. I’d certainly want to add a motorcycle wheel chock and some improved tie-downs, but it would work as-is until I got there.
Smokey Da Van 