No matter how I slice it/dice it, I average 25 mph day in day out.

I'm on the road at sunrise, pour it on till around 1 pm when I start looking for the All U Can Eat lunch buffet, then play it by ear. Find a swimming hole, do a newspaper interview, visit Indian tribes (I stopped at 11 tribal offices in Oklahoma). Then I go as long as I want before looking for a spot to camp.

If I need to make up time, I ride to nearly sunset, but if I'm ahead of schedule, I tool around towns, check out museums, talk to the locals.

Neighbors time my bikes at 33-35 on straightaways, but I can consistently carve off 225-250 mile chunks of distance per day. The Florida trial run taught me a few tricks, but here are some of the main ones.

1. Foam grips- when I put an engine on a different model bike, with rubber grips, & do some break-in miles, I'm thankful for that Sun Retro-7 (which has the curviest handlebars all foam lined). Rubber or ribbed grips would rub me wrong, foam grips sells at bike shops for $5.

2. Thumb throttle- I have a heavy oval shaped piece of wire I can slip on the throttle as "cruise control", have both hands free to move around.

3. 12" saddle on a shock absorber seat post.

4. Dependable zip tied wheels, slime tubes/tuffy liners. My last flat was outside El Dorado, Arkansas, caused by the spoke ends rubbing through the little rubber gasket. (who knew??) I carry electric tape, made three rounds inside the wheel over the gasket, and now I do that on every bike I build.

5. NO ETHANOL ever.