Cannonball Run Part I

(August 23, 2009 - Germany)After filling up with gas I stopped for a quick bratwurst to refuel my tank as well. I had forgotten how much I love German sausage. I retraced my route and headed back to the Autobahn. I wanted to make it to Heidelberg tonight but that was beginning to seem out of the question. Perhaps Frankfurt then?


My detour to search for a filling station had cost me a fair bit of time and now I had to make up for it. I had hoped to stop somewhere in Dresden for lunch but that wasn't going to happen. The afternoon was upon me and I had over six hundred kilometers to my final destination. Of course six hundred kilometers can go by really fast on the Autobahn.

North American's seem to think the Autobahn is some driving utopia with unlimited speed limits twenty lanes wide that you would be foolish to go on without a Ferrari. Yeah right! The Autobahn is the same as any North American highway with the exception of the signs. Speed limits, potholes, and lots of police. Lots and lots and lots of police. Truth be known, you can sum the Autobahn up with one word - 'BORING'.

My motorcycle gobbles up the miles as I relax on the bike and daydream about the trip behind me. The warm sun above me is making me long for the Adriatic Coast. Why would I put myself through such a torturous trip when I could have lounged in Dalmatia? I traded in a nice tan for dusty Albanian Highways, being stranded in Turkey, detainment in Moldova, a machine gun pointed at me, terrible storms, and a sore body. I wish I could go back and do it again!

As the hint of evening begins to show I see tail lights stacking up in front of me. Road construction brings me to a standstill and there doesn't seem to be any way to get around it. Normally I would have space on a shoulder or between lanes to get around but this traffic is tight. I'm in the thick of it. The next two hours would see me across forty kilometers of tarmac and the sun setting in my visor. Darkness would be upon me in about half an hour. Do I continue on or find shelter? Heidelberg is probably another four hours away. By my calculations I will be rolling in around midnight. It's always a shame when I ride at night because I miss out on a lot of scenery but this being the Autobahn you really don't get to see too much. My instincts are to stop but I decide to go on anyways.

I'm hammering down the freeway when a police car burns past me. It slows in front of me. What do they want? There's a marquee board on top flashing words I don't recognize. Finally the word 'FOLLOW' appears.

I'm being pulled over.