First freeway ride!

[CajunR]

Congrats on the Monster!   

The only thing I can add to the excellent advice already given is to remember how agile and maneuverable you are on two wheels.  That 6 inch wide strip of pavement you need can mean the difference between hitting an obstacle and snaking your way around/through it. 

[pesto]

Thanks! I saw your message and was watching to see how the shoulders come and go and grow and shrink on my way about town in the car today. Good to be more familiar with the local freeways .

[Pinocchio]

The only thing I would add to all the sound advice offered thus far would be that if you choose to use the HOV lane during rush hour, either find someone you can follow closely enough to run interference for you (not too close, of course), or hug the median, cover your front brake, and scan the left front wheels of the vehicles of the next lane over for sudden movement left - if they don't see you, and cross the double stripe in front of you, they will be going about 50 mph slower than you.

At times like that, I usually invoke the biker's prayer, which I borrowed from my sailing days: "O God, thy road is so great, and my bike is so small." Then I invoke a couple other things I learned to say in the Navy.

Welcome to the DFWM!

[pesto]

Ah ha! Wouldn't have thought of that, but it makes sense  . Thanks!