For Love of a Motorbike

Paraprosdokian

2012-05-24T10:55:00.001-04:00

Absolutely no motorbike content. But these just tickle me and I have to share. Oilburner keeps saying number 5 applies to me... I turn around and tell him to reread 19.

PARAPROSDOKIANS (Winston Churchill loved them) are figures of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected; frequently humorous.

1. Where there's a will, I want to be in it.

2. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it's still on my list.

3. Since light travels faster than sound, some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

4. If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.

5. We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public.

6. War does not determine who is right - only who is left.

7. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

8. They begin the evening news with 'Good Evening,' then proceed to tell you why it isn't.

9. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research.

10. Buses stop in bus stations. Trains stop in train stations. On my desk is a work station.

11. I thought I wanted a career. Turns out I just wanted paychecks.

12. In filling out an application, where it says, 'In case of emergency, notify:' I put 'DOCTOR.'

13. I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.

14. Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut, and still think they are sexy.

15. Behind every successful man is his woman. Behind the fall of a successful man is usually another woman.

16. A clear conscience is the sign of a fuzzy memory.

17. You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

18. Money can't buy happiness, but it sure makes misery easier to live with.

19. There's a fine line between cuddling and holding someone down so they can't get away.

20. I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not so sure.

21. You're never too old to learn something stupid.

22. To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and call whatever you hit the target.

23. Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

24. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

25. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.

26. Where there's a will, there are relatives.

Does Anyone Else Have to Put Up With This?

2012-05-14T08:29:00.001-04:00

I'm all for a clean bike, but this is taking it to extremes. Dismantling the bike, piece by piece, and washing it in the kitchen sink is not productive!

hehehe...ok...that isn't quite how the story goes...but it sounds good.

Funny the measures that Oilburner will go to to ride my bikes! This time around, he caught a big nasty screw in the rear tire.

The resulting situation looked like this:

Therefore the days ride looked like this:

Aahhhh...so nice to see the girls together. Luckily I was going to take the R1200R out today. Oilburner doesn't get to ride the R1200R. He is not responsible enough not to pop wheelies... It has been awhile since I have been able to ride the "R"...and it felt GREAT!! Such a smooth engine, so much power, aahhhh. Smiles all around.

But what I haven't told you is that this wasn't the first time. Back in March we had another day of perfect weather and hadn't been out for awhile. Again...Oilburner's bike looked like this:

Desperately waiting for a new pair of shoes. So the days ride looked Iike this:

The first time my girls were head to head. I'm so proud!!

Atlanta to Athens....again and again and again

2012-05-12T20:34:00.001-04:00

It's that time of year again. The Multiple Sclerosis 150 from Atlanta to Athens, back to Atlanta.

The ride started Saturday in absolute downtown Atlanta, weaved through the various and sundry cities, mixed with narrow streets, road construction, bad drivers, and a full moon, to name a few obstacles. Within 15 miles the riders are farther into rural areas and aren't as harrowed, but that is a long 15 miles. I can barely survive it on the motorbike, I wouldn't want to attempt it on a bicycle. Then these riders headed out through the bucolic country side for another 65 or 85 miles to reach the little college town of Athens, GA.

If yesterday didn't do them in, they hit the start line and ride right back to downtown Atlanta the next day.

Needless to say, there are usually far fewer riders on Sunday than were present on Saturday. (And I don't blame them at all!)

The motorcycle marshals don't start downtown. We pick the riders up about 8 miles out. They get a police escort a portion of the way and don't need us getting in the way. But the police don't make any bones about when they stop the escort. We heard cyclists saying their absence was abrupt. Farther along they may not get an escort, but key intersections are manned by police or sheriff's that stop traffic for the larger groups of cyclists.

Our job as marshals isn't to stop traffic or escort the cyclists anywhere. We ride the route, faster than a cyclist, but generally slower than traffic, or posted speed limits, to keep an eye on the cyclists and help if they have any troubles. The most likely troubles are flat tires, broken spokes, derailed chains. We hope to never have to encounter a cyclist that hits something and is injured, or far worse, is hit by something and is injured. We have plans in place in the event that these are encountered, we just don't want to encounter them.

This years event was completely without events...with the cyclists.

Unfortunately, participation has dwindled each of the three years that Oilburner and I have been involved. (No, I don't believe there is a correlation there!) This event has only been in place for three years. So I can't say why participation is decreasing. I surmise it might be due to the location. I can't say that I would love to ride through downtown Atlanta, nor some of the outlying cities. Would participation increase if the start/end point was somewhere else?

I would have thought so, until I spoke with a rider Sunday morning that remarked on more cage drivers being more tolerant this year, thinking more drivers are becoming more aware of cyclists. Do events like these bring more awareness of cyclists (and possibly motorbikes)? Is it worthwhile to force the interaction, hoping nothing bad happens, to make ourselves (as bi-cyclists overall) more visible?

I'm just not sure of an answer to that.

I'm not going to say this is old hat for us. This was our fifth time volunteering as marshals for MS rides. We have progressively gained more experience overall, as well as increased our bag of tricks for what is needed or how to handle situations.

The big news is that this year we both received our HAM radio licenses (Amateur Radio). This was going to take our involvement to a new level. In past years communication had to occur through cell. Given where some of the routes took us cell coverage could be a bit sparse or command central could be busy with calls. Therefore, it could be difficult to contact the control dispatchers (Net Control) if we had a rider that needed to be picked up, or worse yet, had an emergency.

With our HAM radios we could just dial into the proper frequency and speak directly with Net Control. And even listen in to all of the chatter traffic. A few other marshals have their licenses, but all Support and Gear (SAG) vehicles have a driver and radio operator in the vehicle (two separate individuals). There is tight communication across the course of where the first riders are located along the route, to notify break points of when they should be ready. Or where the absolute last rider is on the course, since the Turtle van is right behind them. Or when another SAG is needed to pick up a rider that doesn't want to continue, needs a lift to the next break point that has a mechanic, all sorts of contingencies. Amateur Radio allows all of the people to be connected with each other to run as a tight unit and facilitate the event as a whole. You aren't going to get that if everyone is calling in to talk with operators on cell phones.

This year Oilburner and I get to be part of the "IN" crowd. We get to listen in, and participate when needed.

Right out of the gate the level of involvement was great! I took the first shift on the route when the first cyclists started to pass. As I was hitting every single stoplight I was able to call Net Control and have them inform my leads to spread the next marshal back farther than our original 10 min schedule. I wasnt going to get anywhere in 10 minutes, so the next marshal didn't need to get that close.

We were able to listen in when support vans were fending off loose dogs. In one instance, there was a request for a motorcycle marshal to sit with the dogs as the support van was needed to pick someone up on the course.

We learned when someone messed with the route signs. New signs were needed quickly. And oversight was needed when the second set of signs was removed.

I was able to inform Net Control the location of SAG #6, because it had just passed me. (The one support van that didn't have a radio operator on Sunday.) I was then dispatched to chase it down and tell it to phone into Net Control as it was desparately needed to pick up a cyclist. That was a fun one as I bent a few rules of the road to catch the van.

We were all on hand to listen to the Turtle van call in to report that it had stayed on the primary course, while the actual turtle cyclist had taken the Century route. (The Century refers to the 100 mile route.) We all got to hear the radio silence just before Net Control asked them to repeat. ;)

With so few attendees this year the riders were either bullet fast, finishing by 12:30, or turtle slow, coming across the finish line between 5 and 6. There wasn't much of an in between. It was the same thing on Sunday. There were large gaps between groups or riders, spreading thin, leaving us with very little job to perform. I was actually stopped by more non-involved cyclists, asking me what was going on, and sheriff's, asking me where everyone was, than I was by cyclists actually needing help!

We had been obsessing about the weather all week. I was hoping for intermittent rain showers since the temps were supposed to be in the 80's F. It would cool things of a little bit. And the weather patterns toyed with me as the predictions varied every day. Unfortunately the actual day of events say high 80's to low 90's with absolutely no rain. Of course, this had to be the hottest weekend that we have seen here this year. Murphy seems to be working overtime.

In all this was an extremely uneventful weekend. No accidents, no injuries, no flats. Many miles, many smiles, much sweat and some great people to ride with.

I took exactly four pictures the entire weekend. They were all the same shot and this was the best. ;)

Enjoying The Tours

2012-04-29T22:30:00.001-04:00

We've actually been doing a fair bit of riding lately. They haven't been jaw-dropping or awe-inspiring,but they have been enjoyable. And we have found some interesting things along the road.

A couple weeks ago it was a trip to the east. No destination, so we headed towards some unknown roads to see where they would take us. It was a quiet, leisurely ride just choosing roads at random. As lunchtime neared and I came to an intersection I recognized, I knew Subway's was just down the way. Let's see if we could get some Subway's and see if we could find a park.

Ok, the park was out, but Elder Mill Covered Bridge was just down the road. I think the garden club might have a bench to sit on in their little gardens.

Missed out on that score too and wound up spreading our jackets on the gravel. Oilburner wanted to go sit on a rock in, or by, the water...

But I nixed that idea when I discovered all of the paths down were overgrown with poison ivy. I can't help it, with all of the poison ivy in this state, I am always singing the Coasters song of the same name throughout summer.

Much greener now than when we have ever visited here in the past. It was nice and overgrown. But definitely not a forgotten road by the locals. And I wouldn't have minded owning the house right above the river.

Heading home on yet more previously untraveled roads we spotted some insanely ornate structure surrounded by a fence. The slightly run down appearance had me thinking it was some old school. But I wanted a closer look. We found the main entrance to the "Church"...

This structure wasn't the church itself, but rather was originally built to be the pastors residence. When it was completed he said it was too large and ornate and became the "guest" house. This place was a marvel. I just couldn't get over all of the wrought iron, staircases, walkways...everything!

Some members came upon us as we were getting ready to leave. They offered to show us inside, which I readily accepted.

Wow! I was speechless. Thosed curved railings are a marvel. They had quite a few craftsman in the congregation. And the model house is actually of 'The Little White House', FDR's Georigia home in Warm Springs when he came to partake of the geothermal baths. The model is on loan from the state. Why? I don't know. And yes, there are lights behind all the white and red ceiling panels. ;)

Yesterday was another one of those days that didn't have any hope of coming up with a destination, so it was another thought to just hit the back roads. Oilburner didn't know where to go, and all I knew was that I wanted to leave the state. He was thinking Lake Hartwell on the border of South Carolina. And I thought I would rather enjoy it from the other side. (I was right. The SC side was more likely to follow the river and lake line. GA reserved that for the rich on their dead end streets, or the hill people they were never able to evict and their land would be a superfund site with all of the dead and rotting cars slowly sinking back into the ground.)

We hit the highway (the paved one) to get out of dodge and make tracks towards the border. Close to 40 miles up the road Oilburner's bike and my tummy both need fuel. Two birds, one stone when we stop for bike fuel and there is an attached cafe. Yes, the cafe was on the corner...

After filling everyone up we headed out to find our adventure. I took the GPS out and selected to just head towards a road that sat on the lake, crossed the state line, and wasn't an interstate. This was interesting. I enjoyed turning down a first never traveled road before. Enjoyed going through town, by the newer looking courthouse and along the back of the businesses on Main Street. I don't think we were missing much being on the "wrong" side. I think most of those businesses were empty.

However, I kept seeing a sign for "Traveler's Rest State Historic Site". And it just happened to be in the direction we were headed. So when the sign deviated from our path I had a decision to make. It was actually quite easy...

This place was AMAZING!! The Traveler's Rest was an Inn to service the travelers on the Unicoi Turnpike in the early 1800's. The initial portion of the inn was built in 1815. The size was doubled in 1835. And 85% of that wood is original. Wow!

Now these are rules that I can live by:

The hidden drawers where the owner kept his gold were a little more hidden before someone in the past put drawer pulls on them. Can you identify the hidden drawers?

One of 11 fireplaces in the Inn that are not safe for fires.

How do you make cranberry colored glass? Mix a little gold in during the manufacturing process, of course.

Interesting little bathtub, completely with curves for soaking comfort.

Handrail was carved from a single log.

The cradle was carved from a solid log of Black Cherry

Ghost in the mirror. But I'm more interested in the men's [top] hat box. Never seen one before.

No more than 5 to these beds? No problem!

It's the little things...I've never seen window locks like these. I want!

I uploaded tons of pictures of the Traveler's Rest to Flickr.

We hit the road again and took a wrong turn. Actually...didn't turn, and that was the problem. But the road meandered along the river and I hoped it would be a nice opportunity to cross over into South Carolina. Yeah, that wasn't in the cars, but we stopped to turn around at the old power plant.

So serene!!

The ride through South Carolina was peaceful. We were amazed at how low the water level was. The GPS said we were supposed to be over water. The long grasses convinced me there hadn't been water here for a season or two. We didn't stop for pictures. Wasn't much interesting to photograph, but the views will live in my mind.

The return trip home still held something in store for us. The long way home took us through the granite capital of Georgia...and again past the Guidestones. We were up for a quick stop.

Remember, it's not the destination...it's the journey. Hope you find some special places on your adventures.

Highway Fines

2012-04-22T08:45:00.001-04:00

Unfortunately some people can't seem to be responsible and dispose of their waste in a reasonable and adult manner.

No. They have to take their crap to the nearest uninhabited, or merely unlit, road and quickly offload. Therefore I agree with trying to curtail activities like this along beautiful back roads.

But seriously...would you call this a highway??

Something New

2012-04-20T18:19:00.001-04:00

A couple weeks ago Oilburner and I did something we have never done before.

One of the first perfect days, and it has to be a Monday. It wasn't difficult to make the decision to ride to work. We hadn't ridden during the weekend, opting to enjoy the weather to catch up on some much needed work around the house. Or just sitting on the patio, listening to the birds, soaking up some time and vitamin D. (Covered patio, not soaking up direct sun.)

Sitting at my desk and facing down the 2:30 blahs it seemed such a shame to just head back home again. I was wondering what could be done with the day? We both rode to work. We both went in early and were eligible to leave about 3:30. There had to be something better than just pointing the wheel towards home.

I pinged Oilburner about going out for an early dinner someplace and not snubbing our noses at this perfect afternoon. He was absolutely game.

I started daydreaming about the open air restaurant at the marina in the mountains. A thick burger with steak fries and a good seat on the water was sounding appealing. But a quick search online didn't give me any hope that 1) they were open for the season yet, or 2) if they were open, would be open when we arrived. It was a 90 minute ride up there.

Oilburner and I met up in the parking lot where I work, and we hit the road without a clear destination, I was willing to forgo the marina, but I still wanted pub food. So we thought about the marina at Lanier Islands. We had been there once a couple years ago and found the food good, and the patio over the water excellent.

It has been a long time since we have been to this area and I was navigating from memory. (Memory was all I had considering I left the GPS at home this morning, thinking I wouldn't need it just to ride to work.) I managed to recognize enough landmarks to be successful. Too bad the restaurant hadn't opened for the season yet.

The gatekeeper was a fountain of information and directed us to another pub a couple miles down the road. It was apparent that he was a regular there when the waitress was able to tell us his name when we mentioned how we had arrived here. Gotta love the small town atmosphere that we just don't get to experience in many places around here.

Aahhhh...it was a wonderful afternoon, finding a great, new pub and enjoying a wonderful riding day in a unique fashion.

Mine. All Mine.

2012-04-12T19:27:00.001-04:00

Ya know, it's a real dilemma trying to decide which bike to ride sometimes. The hazards of having multiple bikes. Of course, the GS is the new baby on the block and is like playing with a new toy. Of course you are going to be partial to the new toy. It just begs to be played with! But the R is the tried and true bike that has stuck with me through thick and thin, I've bonded with, I have a deep seated passion for.

So I face a real conundrum when deciding which bike for what adventure.

The R has the super large capacity side cases that hold the same volume. And I have the gargantuan top box purchased from insurance after Oilburners fatal bike wounding last year. I don't love that top box, but it is darned handy on a long trip. I usually only keep the camera backpack in it. Therefore when I stop someplace I grab it and can stuff my helmet and riding jacket in it. I don't have to lock anything special. I don't have to rearrange the side bags. Easy peasy.

I also appreciate the gas mileage at a steady 47 mpg when keeping near the speed limit. But the sport style leg positioning can get a little cramped on longer rides. Mind you, I wasn't bothered too much by the leg position until I had the GS to compare it to. I had always been able to stand, stretch my legs, or scootch to the back seat for a minute to alleviate pains.

The GS, on the or hand, has a "wider" stance for all around positioning. It feels extremely natural to sit up straight, the handle bars are wider, the pegs allow for a less cramped position. But those damn Vario side cases! The expanding feature is intriguing. (In case you aren't aware, these cases have a lever that allows you to expand the side lids out about two inches to increase volume.). Which is absolutely required to give any useful storage space for the muffler side. Collapsed, that case can barely hold a jacket. Truthfully, it isn't much better expanded.

With the engine still breaking in, the fuel mileage is variable. It has been consistent between 42-44 mpg. But lately has started to creep up to 46.

So that leaves the question of a long distance ride... For slabs, the GS is more comfortable but the storage is lacking. For slabs, the R gets better fuel mileage and great storage. For twisties? They are both hard to beat. I haven't yet figured out which one is more fun.

So I ventured to make my first big purchase for the GS in the form of a top box. I had bolted my old Pelican on to the rear rack, and I really like it. But it doesn't hold a candle to being able to stuff a helmet and jacket into it.

I just happened to be flipping through Beemer Boneyard looking for an RT rack that would hold the trusty top box and could be modified to fit onto the GS rack. No luck. But I did find the matching Vario top box for a ridiculously low price.

They described the only damage being to the aluminum top being scratched and dinged. But upon arrival, we also discovered a missing back edge cover. You can't win them all. The back edge cover doesn't affect functionality and I wasn't concerned about replacing it. But at a small cost of $15, I'll do it.

Oh yeah, there is the standard crack along the bottom hook and this is the older model when they discovered there needed to be a centering pin to prevent the box from separating itself from the bike at the slightest provocation. All things that can be fixed or retrofitted thanks to those pioneers on ADVRider.

The first, and most important, thing to tackle was the lock. Someone had kindly removed the lock and all I needed to do was purchase a replacement one and key it to my keys. I had always been interested in how those things are rekeyed, but hadn't the nerve to try my hand at it.

This was my time!!

For a measly $35 I acquired a new lock cylinder with many pretty little "followers" to key to my hearts content.

This is an example of incorrect keying where the "followers" are too "proud". They should be flush with the cylinder.

This is an example of proper keying. The last follower sticking up from the cylinder is the lock. It prevents the cylinder from being slipped out. That tab will catch being a plastic tab preventing it from moving.

If you look closely at the top of the cylinder you will see the tab.

Here is the cylinder installed in the handle, with the key in the "locked" position.

The mounting rack for the bike, the lock, the retrofit locking pin, the top box, and the rear edge and I'm still at less than half of the price of a new one. Of course, it isn't quite as large a capacity as the one on the R. And as Nikos has found out, it might have difficulty holding a regular sized helmet. But it does increase storage. We shall see if it will fit the bill.

On a side note...Oilburner and our friendly parts guy continued to harass me about the ding in the top aluminum piece. They both encouraged me to replace the part. My question, why does it have to be fixed? I'm fine with the damage. It isn't extensive, it doesn't affect usage, it is only cosmetic. I'm going to damage it in some way, shape or form. A sticker will even cover the entire issue. So why do I need to spend money unnecessarily on this. What are your thoughts?

Just Call Me Puddles

2012-03-22T21:18:00.001-04:00

"Oh Mother of God. What the hell...ooowwwww jeez. Is there any place that doesn't friggin hurt??" If it's this painful just soaping up my knees, screw my toes. They aren't getting washed today.

We haven't had the chance to ride much lately. A quick trip to Cycle Gear. Dinner with the Adventure Riders. 40 miles here or there. Knowing we could get on the bikes this weekend was exciting. The rain was finally surrounding the weekend...not ruining it.


Dinner at Zuffy's a couple nights back. The proof that RichardM requested.

Since it had been so long since we have really ridden, I was thinking a nice, leisurely ride to get back into the groove and just take things easy. Oilburner was thinking it was time to hit the dirt. It wasn't exactly my ideal ride, I didn't want to have to "think" while riding. But it was going to make him happy. I still get the luxury liner GS and he has dibs on the Honda. he he.

Friday was a late night. We had been drooling over possible routes to the IMBC2012 in Eastern Oregon. When we actually drug ourselves out of the house it was nearly lunchtime. I proposed an old stand-by in the mountains that we used to visit while four-wheelin' in the Jeep. The idea was enthusiastically accepted. So I was thinking the jaunt to lunch, a spin around a mountain or two and then home, neat as you please. We didn't "have" to touch dirt if we didn't want to.

Yeah. Right. Like that was really gonna happen.

We did make it to our lunch spot. Nothing special. Just Moe's ("Welcome to Moe's"). But we haven't eaten here in over a year. We sat there enjoying the sun, realizing the day was just too perfect to content ourselves with a small run.

We started thinking of our beloved mountain trails. Mountains and dirt roads and hiking trails that we had abandoned four years ago when I began obsessing about motorbikes. What better time to reacquaint ourselves with some old haunts on two most capable bikes? So yes. We headed into the land of dirt, gravel, and trees at 2:00 pm, still an hour and a half from home.

At one point in time Oilburner offered to trade bikes while on asphalt. I told him I would, if I could kick start the darn thing. I hadn't had any luck in the past, but was game to try again. No such luck... I was sweating in my helmet and jacket. Panting like a dog sitting in 100F heat. Nope. No Honda for me just yet.

I was true to my word and handed over the GS to more experienced hands. I took over the Honda as soon as we hit the dirt. Be damned that I couldn't turn the kick start over. I would rather take a tumble from the light weight baby Honda than the might, heavy GS.

OK. I can do this. My first foray into dirt. (for this is what I do consider my first. I do not count the afternoon spent on Oilburners mid-80's Honda on the sandy washboard roads on California BLM land in a time before helmet laws.) Oh if only I had a helmet then... Where I could be now??

Well manicured gravel.

So...this isn't so bad. Yeah, there is ALOT of loose gravel and very little dirt. And when I say loose? Very loose, deep, not compacted at all, recently laid type of loose gravel. Yeah, the bike was skating around a little. I tell myself to keep my speed down, kept the weight on the pegs, steer with my feet, don't pull the handlebars, and [darn it] don't use the front brake.

That's just way too much rolling back and forth in my head!!

We finally traverse the scariest 2.5 miles of my recent life and approach a crossroad: Cooper's Gap.

Great. Just what I need, having to make a hard turn, on dirt, with an audience of 15 Appalachian Trail thru-hikers milling about. I look left: where most of the hikers are congregated. I look right: downhill. Oh hell no! I would rather face the laughter and applause that would result when I dump myself and my bike in front of hikers than ride downhill!

I toddled along at my normal 20 mph rate just getting comfortable with all these new thoughts and experiences. Until I encountered another twisty downhill on ball bearings. My thighs were clamped to that gas tank so tightly I'm surprised I didn't find "Honda" tattooed on them. I finessed my way with the rear brake...and lived to tell the tale. By now I was starting to have a little fun. I still wasn't looking around and enjoying any scenery, but fun none the less.

I remember when I was first learning to ride. You remember...when 35 mph was like screaming down the lane with your hair on fire? The world consisted of handlebars, front tire, and the road in front of me for the next 250 feet. (If the road was straight.) I conceived of obstacles only when I had to assess how much damage they could do to me if I hit it. When Oilburner would ask if I was having fun, my standard answer was "Of course not! I'm learning to ride dammit! I don't have time to look at the scenery! Now stop bugging me!"

Yeah, he got that answer again in the forest. :) Only this time it wasn't the road 250 feet ahead, it was only 50 feet. How can I see where the rocks and holes are in the road, distinguishing them through all of the off again on again lanky shadows of trees?

So do you see my problem?

Once I finally realized that it is actually okay to hit most of those rocks and holes things started getting better. Such a strange, and difficult, thing to overcome. I mean, learning to ride on the street we are told gravel and rocks are the enemy; avoid at all costs! Potholes are bad! But on a dirt bike? No problem!

Hickory Flats Cemetery and Campground. I kid you not.

Once my sense of self preservation shifted I actually did begin to enjoy myself. Yes, I am still wussing out on the "manicured" forest service roads. So we decide to head up to the cemetery, on a slightly less well maintained road. This road has less loose grave, less traveled.

Here the fun starts in earnest. Once I learned rocks can't hurt me I veered to hit every single one I could, that wasn't the equivalent of climbing a rock face. I prefaced my intentions by yelling "ROCK!" in my helmet, then proceeded to giggle like a school girl when that nerdy boy trips over the chalk line of the football field.

There was a constant litany of "Rock! he he he haw he" over Oilburners speakers. A veritable laugh track from He-Haw.

But boy-oh-boy...add the water puddles!! I am now in hog heaven!

I love water puddles. I can't tell you just how much I love water puddles. (Oilburner will be nodding his head vigorously as he reads this.)

I'm that girl that enjoys walking in the rain. I will go out of my way across a parking lot to jump, planting both feet, into any puddle I can find. I don't care if my shoes and pant legs get soaked. I'll be laughing. And heaven help you if you are anywhere nearby. You are going to get wet, so watch out.

In Southern California, the land of no rain with torrential 5-minute downpours that fill up the drainage system so quickly that the street drains can't hope to catch up, blocking the outside lane of the streets kind of deluge. I drove a 4x4 Blazer and had no fear of that lane. While people were crawling along in the inside lanes, I was flying through 8 inch deep rivers in the outside lanes, kick up SHEETS of water. I discovered the cost of my glee in the grinding of a rusted out starter much later. Meh...what's the cost of a starter compared to that fun?

Yeeaaahhh...there were puddles on this road...

My new war cry became "Rock!! he he he... Puddle! (insert evil laughter here)."

It was only on the way back out that I conceived of maybe stopping with my rear tire in the puddle to attempt creating a rooster tail of mud to tag Oilburner with. (And no, I didn't care if it also hit my bike.) But I wasn't yet sure enough of my proverbial footing to attempt a "burnout" on the throttle. I contented myself with making as much mess as I could for my abilities now. The rest will come in time. (BBbbbwwwwaaahahahahaha.)

Super Man!

As soon as we reached paved road again I was stopped and insisting on getting the GS back. Only 30 miles of dirt, but it was a great time.

Time to change back to my GS... :)

The overall trip was tempered by the erratic, undependable kick start on the Honda. Sometimes it would start within the first couple kicks (for Oilburner). Sometimes it took a couple minutes of trying. I was reluctant to stop for photographs fearing it might stop for good in the middle of the forest.

The forest was fine. The problem occurred on the way home. We were on the highway to speed things along for a couple miles knowing we would need to fuel the Honda soon. We just didn't realize how soon with the toll the highway speed was taking. We made it to the top of the off-ramp where we actually were going to exit, when the Honda suddenly went quiet. No warning even?? Flipping over to reserve, and no amount of kicking or swearing would alleviate the quietness of that engine. The good news? There is a gas station, on the right, on the other side of the overpass. Exactly opposite where we were. And hey, it was mostly dowhill-ish to it. The bad news? Gonna have to push... My multiple sclerosis training came in very handy as I was able to run behind him, flashers blinking.

We fueled up, it started up. I didn't want to tempt fate by turning it off. I just wanted to continue home. We were still 45 minutes from home. After the grunt labor Oilburner wanted to take a breather. Yeah...that "breather" lasted about half an hour as he wailed and wailed on that kick start to no avail. He thought he was tired and thirsty after pushing the machine for 300 yds? He was plum worn out and breathless after trying to start it.

We eventually made it home, well after dark, and very grumpy with the machine and a few near misses with cars on the way home. Since then Oilburner has replaced the chain, sprockets, chain guides, pulse generator (for that pesky kick starter), stator, and a couple other parts I can't remember. The inside of the engine is very clean and has been well maintained in the past. The new pulse generator means it usually starts on the third kick...for him. I haven't yet tried my luck at it again.

Look how clean its guts are!

Pulse Generator

As for those 30 miles and thigh tight death grip? Oh my goodness I was damn sore the next morning!!! The toes did not get washed.

Basking in the sun of the day.

Sparkling dust. If only it were solid gold.

Dirty, sandy, grimy, gritting chain.

Did Someone Say Spring?

2012-03-20T21:31:00.000-04:00

Yes. I know. I owe you all posts on a couple different trips. But you are just going to have to wait a sec. Everyone has gotten into the Spring Wishes as today was the Northern Hemisphere's Vernal Equinox. So I wish you all the same.

I know that some of you are still caught in the dire grips of winter with snow still on the ground, evidenced in RichardM's Ice Sculpture trip the other day. Bobskoot is still scraping ice off of the windshield in the morning. Trobairitz and Troubadour are luckily seeing signs, but are still being caught in rain showers.

So what is Atlanta seeing in times of Spring?

SEX!

Sex in the form of pollen everywhere!

For those of you with allergies this might be a little scary. So sit with a box of tissues nearby.

First...this is our Pollen Count for March 20, 2012.

Let me emphasize... nine thousand three hundred sixty-nine!!! (See...getting sex in there...)

For those unfamiliar with allergies and pollen problems, a count of 400 is consider dangerous to allergy suffers. So what exactly does a count of 9000 mean to them?!?! Today and yesterday absolutely shattered the records set in 1999 of a mere 6000+.

Wanna know what is causing all of this?

Chinese Holly Grape

Violets

Muscari

Dogwood

Azalea

Dandelion. Does anyone know a good recipe for Dandelion Wine? ;)

Sweet Gum Tree

Dogwood

Gardenia

Still trying to find out what this is...

Golden Rain Tree

And this is the culprit that is turning EVERYTHING a lovely shade of yellow-green right now...

Pine


Sorry. Couldn't convince him to write "Charlotte".

Evidence of pollen

Guarding the back yard.

Ants are active early this year.

I wish you a happy and healthy Spring (here in the Northern Hemisphere). Hopefully with less inhalable evidence of the natural world proliferating. But with lots of color and beauty surrounding you.

Now tell me...where would you rather be? :)

Teaser Post

2012-03-19T22:24:00.001-04:00

OK. I'm still making my attempt at a first pass over the photos. Slow going... And the video looks like it will suck due to condensation inside the GoPro housing. Oilburner and I haven't been having much luck with GoPro's lately.

I am posting this short little video of the driveway of the Bed and Breakfast that we stayed at. This driveway was DAUNTING! You can't tell in this direction, but the other side is a very steep drop off, with single lane twists, turns and roller coasters.

Time Stamp 41s...that is the roof of a three story house on the left...

But you just have to listen at time stamp 56s.

Can you guess what it is??

Ack!!

2012-03-16T21:32:00.000-04:00

Plans were laid. Routes were uploaded to the Garmin's. Reservations at a cute little B&B procured.

We were going to do Cherohala Skyway and The Dragon the "proper" way. In the past we have always rushed through the miles and the day to make it round trip home again. This time we were going to slow the day down, stop and smell the spring flowers, run Cherohala one day, stay at a little bed and breakfast centrally located, run the Dragon the next, and actually hit a new road through Great Smoky Mountains National Park. A road that we have wanted to do for years and haven't been able to.

It just wasn't meant to be...

A not-so-little landslide on the Dragon. No one was hurt, but it will be closing the most sought after road in the area for a couple of weeks.

This isn't a heartbreak for us. After all, we have ridden this a couple times. It's just that it was the shortest route to get us around and over to the Smokies and headed back home in the proper sequence. Now we have to navigate the Smokies south to north...then find an easy way to head south again.

It went from something like this:

View Larger Map

To maybe something like this:

View Larger Map

Or maybe we will wile away the day and ride through Cades Cove:

View Larger Map

I don't know. If we spent our time in Cades Cove, we just might have to head back and hit the last few miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway again. Wow. Life would be rough. :)

I hope that your weekend will allow for some good riding plans that pan out.

Spring Has Sprung

2012-03-14T22:07:00.000-04:00

I was working on another post when I discovered Trobairitz's challenge. If it were NIGHT outside I would prove that spring has already begun visiting the South. The Tulip trees are blooming.

I purchased some indoor Tulip bulbs to cheer up my office space.

And I managed to snap a couple of photos from the webcam at home.


My Witness Protection picture

A little too much bubbly?

Cousin It comes to visit.

Did this qualify? ;)

Ego Boost

2012-03-07T23:57:00.000-05:00

Yeah...I haven't been able to spend much one on one time with any bike recently. So the excitement started to increase as I contemplated riding over to a new adventure riding meetup group dinner. Of course, I left work an hour late. And I also had to go to the market for necessities. So I arrived home at 7. Threw the groceries in the kitchen. Put the perishables in the appropriate fridgerated compartment. Left the remainder strewn all over the floor and counters. Slipped my sweaty feet into leather boots. Threw my jacket over my shoulder, grabbed my helmet and ran to the garage.

It is an adventure riding group. I have to take the GS. It is the adventure bike after all. Unfortunately the tank is absolutely empty.

Get the bike out of the garage, close the house and hop on the bike. The new gas station around the corner seems like the perfect stop.

Hop on the freeway at 7:20 and enjoy a spirited ride to arrive someplace 20 minutes away...in 10 minutes. ;)

Didn't quit make it on time, but no matter...the ride was enjoyable.

I consider losing a little face as I have to make a couple of circuits of the parking lot as others watch on. I just can't decide where to attempt to squeeze the bike in. But it isn't worth feeling chagrined about. I've got one HOT bike. And all eyes are on us. Hehe

I don't know. I just can't help but feeling a huge ego boost when I am one of only three girls in a sea of 20 guys...and the only rider. Oh yeah, baby.

And I didn't even get stuck in the garage when I arrived home to stable the steed. :)

Carburetors and Fuel Petcocks

2012-02-27T22:05:00.000-05:00

So what happens when someone has become spoiled on his state of the art, fuel injected, luxury liner on two wheels and is put on a 1986 Honda duel sport? He completely forgets about carburetors and fuel petcocks that need to be turned into the proper position...

I figured he had stalled the machine when he didn't follow me through the right hand turn out of the parking lot. But I could see his frustration level skyrocketing when it died again a quarter mile down the road at the next light. His furious kick starting wasn't having effect. Luckily there wasn't anyone on the road behind us. I just pulled over and headed for the gas station. He was there jumping up and down on that kick start lever to save his life.

I was curious to see if he would pull it over to the gas station and just kick it over on its side. (He had spent all day Saturday trying to kick start that darn machine. You would think the fact that it wasn't getting any spark would have saved him tons of kicking.)

It didn't take him long to realize that the fuel petcock was in the "Off" position. Well...it didn't take him much longer...hehe

Just goes to show that you have to relearn some things on those older vehicles that you used to be proficient on. :)

Four's a Herd

2012-02-21T23:04:00.000-05:00

If two is company. And three is a crowd. What is four?

Apparently, a nice start to a herd...

The poor little thing is relegated to the patio for a couple days until we can make some space in the garage.

Oilburner and I have been wondering lately just how two of us are going to go adventure riding? I realize that he is ok with taking his RT(A) on some dirt roads. I'm sure he would be capable of taking it through some pretty interesting areas. But whenever I think about some of the places I am interested in exploring, I don't want to ask him to take the RT(A) down those roads. I'd be too afraid of what might happen...

He's just been too darn jealous.

We knew we would end up getting something that would allow us both to get out and dirty. We've always just wondering what it might be. I figured it would be some old, beat up thing that would allow me to learn to ride the dirt. And so it is.

I still think that 600cc is large for off-roading. At least to learn on. But the important thing is that the cc's will allow us to ride the bike to the trail instead of trailering it there. So what I think is going to happen will be Oilburner riding this on the highways and byways to reach the dirt...and then we can switch bikes. I'll ride on the comfort of the GS saddled, cushy shocked shiny luxury liner. :)

Some of you have been posting some of your pictures of the "basket case" bikes. And we are wondering if this will be one of them. Luckily the thing runs great. Oilburner is torn between just getting it out and riding or taking it apart and cleaning all the little pieces and prettying her up again. I'm more of the camp of just riding it right now and having some fun. Clean it up next winter. Maybe.

Oh yeah. Oilburner wants to make sure that I point out that I got the brand new, pretty, shiny big GS and he gets stuck with this old, dirty, rusty bucket o' bolts. I told him that you all would only say "that is as it should be". :)

Around The World In 8 Hours

2012-01-31T22:48:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving. Happy Chanukah. Merry Christmas. Happy New Year. Happy Anniversary.

So much has gone on in the past month. Sometimes the smallest changes can be the most difficult to handle. I may backtrack at some point in time and tell you some of the stories. But for now, let's look to the future and get to the latest ride.

Well...the latest ride was Oilburner taking his bike in for the 6K service. And it having to stay a couple days extra to replace a leaking final drive seal. Ahhh...the beloved final drive on these R bikes. They arent getting any love, nor respect, these days.

So, the ride before?? We took a tour of the world. And we accomplished that in a mere 8 hours. OK. It wasnt really around the world. It was more of a European tour. I've always wanted to travel. Though I was hoping I would get to spend more time sightseeing. This was just a whirlwind tour that left little time to see or do anything. If we only saw the seedy part of town...so be it.

US Riders News is promoting world travel, almost armchair style. They want us to get out and see some International cities...that are located in our home, or neighboring, state. Submit 6 photos of you and your bike, or your bike and the magazine, and receive a patch.

I have a friend that is laid up after shoulder surgery, so he took on the planning. Of course you would think the obvious cities would be Rome, Cairo, Athens, Montezuma, GA. But really, so many names come from so many places. Of Europe. Since my friend doesn't run down the obvious path the first route he gave me, that was a day ride, covered Smyrna, Winston, Ithica, Bremen, Bowdon, and Fairburn. The other choice was a three day ride covering most of the state.

Now, I've heard of a couple of these international places...but Smyrna?? Fairburn?? I wasn't planning this shindig, so I'm not going to worry about it. I'm just along for the ride.
We figured the counter clockwise route was the way to go. We would get the speed up and the slab portion of the day out of the way and we could enjoy the back roads at the end. So Smyrna was our first stop.

Even though this wasn't my ride, I was the one elected to lead. I originally led us to a regular Public Library sign that wasn't plagued by vehicles passing by every few seconds. Invalid boy wasn't satisfied with that, so he went to find this one. We had the enjoyment of running up the sidewalk to park in front of the sign. We also had the difficulty of balancing the camera on a fire hydrant, set the timer, get across the street and dodge cars blocking the photos. Needless to say we were here for awhile. I'm happy the police weren't around.

Next on our itinerary was Winston. I didn't have much hope for a formal city. So many places here a merely bumps in the road. So I immediately made a u-turn for the Post Office with the official Winston name.

This was an easy one that didn't take any time. We were there and gone again in the blink of an eye.

The next city wasn't going to be so accommodating. Ithica.

If you read the rules you will see the first problem right off the bat. Our Ithica vs Greece's Ithaca. The cities need to be spelled the same. Therefore ours wasn't going to work. Unfortunately we didn't realize that until we had already ridden down the roads searching for an official sign for Ithica. Good thing there wasn't one. But now we were going to have to find another city on our route.

Our next stop was a more identifiable Bremen. Bremen I could handle. I would much prefer it be the one that is more well known though. Approaching town there is a great "Welcome to Bremen" city sign. However, it was on a major road with only an embankment to ride up. And the police officer turning behind us probably wouldn't appreciate us blocking traffic. I decide to just get to city center and we can discuss it, when this shows up. How fortuitous.

Forward Ho! Just a few miles down the road is the city of Bowdon. Oilburner seems to be flauting his use of the handicapped spot. Which really has an eldery gentleman perturbed when he came to pay his water bill. I think standing around and chatting with us helped calm him down. Then he realized this was Saturday and the office wasn't open at all.

Next stop is Fairburn. Invalid boy seems to remember the city name growing in the bushes somewhere. So apparently that means it is my job to find it. Find it I did!

This was also the location where I took the little GS off the curb! Rebel me. Quite daring. hehehe. Oilburner had blocked me in and thought I wouldn't have the guts to go forward. Looks like it was him without the guts.

Our last city idea was Hampton. But first it was getting late and we need food!!

Good ole BBQ.

A little too much time was spent eating and gabbing. We hit the road knowing full well we were pushing the clock to reach Hampton before sundown.

Yeah. I know what you are thinking. It didn't happen. So not only are we trying to photograph our last city in the dark, the only good place is the police station. And without a tripod the only way to really get it all in is to ride up the sidewalk and park in front of the sign. Luckily the police took pity on us and didn't give us a problem.

Update. I wasn't able to submit everything through the website. Kept giving me errors even though the images were tiny.

I also had the chance to speak with a US Riders News representative at the M/C show last weekend. She confirmed that the magazine does have to be present. So now this little tour won't receive official recogition. :(

We're just going to have to hit the road again and do a little more International Touring.

Hope you are able to get out and have some, two wheels or otherwise.

My Night of Danger

2012-01-29T22:58:00.000-05:00

I could have died! I could have died...and Oilburner was wandering around less than 100 feet away. He was oblivious to my screams for help. Oblivious or intentionally ignoring me. I will reserve my opinion for now.

I was in the garage and trapped by my bikes. Oilburner had walked away without a second thought as to my well being.

I was trapped with the only option being to spend the night there hollering my foolish head off or hurting both of my bikes. Apparently I was opting for the foolish. Come hell or high water I wasn't hurting my bikes if I didn't have to.

What happened, you ask? For a first, after pulling into the garage, Oilburner closed the garage door. Closed the door before the bikes were completely put up. He had dismounted and rushed into the house, taking care of the alarm. I wasn't in danger yet, and this was just standard operating procedure.

I sat there enjoying the bike under my butt, while slowly removing my gloves and helmet. I easily rested the helmet on the mirror of my other bike. The problem now rears its ugly head. I put the kickstand down, begin to lean the bike over, and bam...right into the saddlebags on the R12R. This wasn't going to work.

With the garage door down I was limited in how much I could maneuver the GS. I look a quick shot and tried to execute a 9 point sashay with the GS to move it a little farther away from the R.

Nope. Not enough. I sit there for a second and wonder where the hell Oilburner is?? He's normally right back in the garage polishing his bike. I make a quick holler but hear nothing indicating he might have heard me.

I take stock. I don't have the Flass2Pass on the GS. So I can't open the garage door. I can't reach the key on the R to get its opener working. As I am pondering I hear the front door open. What??

I take my chances and make another 9 point sideslip. Better. I can lean the bike farther, but still no luck in landing it all the way on the sidestand.

What is this? Where is Oilburner??

I start screaming my fool head off a lot louder. Oilburner finally comes running.

He takes a gander at my predicament and just about doubles over laughing. I wasn't as amused. He opens the garage door so I can finallly maneuver the bike enough...and I promptly attempt to set the GS on the side stand...without actually making use of the sidestand. At least Oilburner was there for that one.

The mess gets sorted out. I am finally able to dismount with both of my bikes intact. My pride isn't quite so lucky. I'm still screaming, for different reasons now, to find out that Oilburner had wandering around disrobing of his riding gear, actually plugging his helmet in, sauntering down to the mailbox and picking up the days offerings. All while I am in grave danger.

Wait. Strike that. I didn't almost die. But if Oilburner keeps up the snickering...he might.

If You Can't Laugh At Yourself...

2011-12-05T22:27:00.000-05:00

...you probably aren't riding your R1200GS. After all, we are on the White Horse of the Apocalypse. The Alpha and the Omega. ;)

Where's my little "strongman" emoticon when I need him??

How's the GS?

2011-11-27T16:53:00.000-05:00

I realize I have been away a little. Work and life balance is not one of my strong points. :) I was facing a product (software) release the week after purchasing the GS. Many hours of overtime and a Sunday deploy kept me grounded and merely watching the GS sit in the garage.

Really. A brand new bike and I get to watch it sit in the garage... Argh...

During the interval the GS has received:

1) It's 600 mile service (965 km). Do you conceive of how difficult it is to put 600 miles on a bike when you cannot ride on the freeway?? This was the longest and most difficult 600 miles I have ridden!

She got new oil:

New final drive fluids:

2) Received engine and tank guards:

3) Installed a Centech unit for all those electronic accessories. Oilburner did a great job, didn't he?

4) Auxiliary headlights, to better be seen:

5) Hyperlights (no pictures)

6) We took a quick trip to snag a tag and she saw her first bit of dirt...errr water:

I think the next item should be a Fender Extender to save those pipes. :)

Can you believe? Even the RT was showing RTA (Adventure) stripes:

What's In A Number, Part II

2011-10-31T18:14:00.000-04:00

Don't get me wrong, I don't much care that my bike has 42,000 miles (67,600 km) on it. I am quite proud of that number in all honesty. My shop tells me that I am one of their higher mileage bikes, and I like that.

Oilburner and I never purchase something with our eye on value retention or resale. We purchase what is good and plan on keeping it until it is worn out. After all, I drive a truck that is 18 years old with 230,000 miles (370,000 km) on it. And yes, we bought it new. It has been paid off for over a decade and hasn't required much work beyond normal maintenance. The engine should be good until 400,000 miles (645,000 km) at least.

So mileage doesn't mean too much to us. But I know it is important to some people. A friend was looking at used GT's and RT's that had 50,000 miles and 75,000 miles (80,500 km and 120,700 km). He was seriously concerned over longevity. We told him that shouldn't be the only limiting factor. But to him it was a deal breaker.

Of course, mileage really depends on your expectations. It might be a different story if you want a daily or long distance rider. Higher mileage may be less appealing. A collectors item that will be ridden less frequently might not be a problem.

Now, I did forget to add the winking smiley to the end of the last post. I have no qualms about keeping my R1200R in my garage. Truthfully, it would be next to impossible to ask me to get rid of it. (Sometimes I get really attached. Just ask Oilburner. He's been trying to bribe me for 17 years to get my truck.)

There are a couple people out there wanting to get their fingers on my R1200R. But I ain't listing to them. So yes, the beautiful R1200GS with the DOHC engine is appealing. After all, I have been drooling over GS' for years. It has always been a bike that was unattainable to me, a dream: too tall, too heavy, I don't need that kind of power. My eye sparkles and delights looking at the GS, but never at the expense of my "R". I just can't give up the bike I love for one that I don't know.

Rest assured. The R1200R is remaining in my garage.
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But that doesn't mean I don't have enough love to share...

So that "number" is now TWO. hehehe. I'm catching up to you Brady. :) And rIePe...have you ever been accused of being a prophet? ;)

What's In A Number

2011-10-27T23:27:00.000-04:00

24,901.55 - circumfrence of the earth at the equator, measured in miles
5280 - feet in a mile
451 - degrees in Fahrenheit at which paper burns
42 - The answer to Life, The Universe, and Everything

When can something be nicely worn in without being worn out?

For kicks, Oilburner and I have been talking bikes. (Like we've never done that before...) I was wondering where is that magic mileage sweet spot when a bike goes from "nicely broken in" to "too many miles". Where is that perfect line of a bike still being marketable versus someone having prejudices against the mileage.

My baby went in for her 42,000 mile service yesterday. I didn't even look at the new DOHC Classic R1200R. Well...I didn't look much.

I sat with the service manager and chatted and laughed. I stood in the service bay talking with the tech working on my baby. I played with the used oil, no metal shavings, no burnt smell. I inspected the valves, the chains, the springs.

Then Oilburner arrives...

He starts looking around. He starts talking. He starts asking me if I am going to take a test ride.

I've never demo'ed a bike before. I've never had enough confidence to jump on a bike that I don't own and take it for a spin. I mean, how much am I going to have to pay if anything happens to a motorbike that I don't own. This is the same reason that I never ride someone else's bike. I've even been resistant to riding Oilburner's bikes in the past. I had only ridden any of his previous bikes once each.

Somewhere along the way that changed. And I can't pinpoint when it occurred. A couple months ago, when he informed me that I would be riding his new bike home I didn't bat an eye. Didn't have any queasy butterflies in my tummy. I hopped on it and took it for a rrriiidddeeeee. I'm suspecting my trepidation left me for good after Oilburner totaled his bike. My subconscious thought process might have followed something along the lines that if he totaled a bike in one fell swoop, there wasn't much worse that I could do.

So back to the bike shop...

I decided to take that test ride finally. Steve, our friendly, neighborhood sales guy, rode the Classic R1200R off the showroom floor. Yes, I said rode. It went over to the service bay to get a couple pounds of air. Then she stood in the parking lot waiting for me to take her out.

We enjoyed a quick little romp, unfortunately rush hour traffic was closing in. I took her over to a short, twisty little road I know. Autos prevented full utilization of the best curves. We also scooted over to the main thoroughfare to enjoy the high speeds against traffic. She was an enjoyable bike. There wasn't a "wow" factor. She was so similar to my bike. There didn't seem to be enough differences to justify a trade. She was nice, just not nice enough.

Oilburner and I took a seat at the table, sipping some sodas and talking about the ride.

All the while is a big, beautiful R1200GS sitting in the sun, gleaming in front of me. Hmmm... In for a penny, in for a pound.

Steve checks it over and sets the seat on its lowest position. I swing around to turn her on, only to realize the key has suddenly disappeared. Explain that one to me... Yeah. Steve left the key in the seat lock. hehe

We only get to spend a short time together. Rush hour traffic had set in. Any direction we traveled was going to be hindered and just spent burning a clutch up. We went to a short little road with a couple of representative curves. Wow. WOW! Four miles was way too short a time to get a feel for anything. All I know is that I wouldn't mind spending a couple hundred more miles getting to know it.

So what would you guess that mileage line is on my precious bike? I was thinking 50,000 miles might be getting there. Boy was I wrong. It seems that my baby's time has passed. Those who didn't know her don't want her. She can be her 2007 model self, but would need to have 30 or so thousand miles on her, instead of the 42 that she has. Finicky damn men. Apparently no or old model doesn't matter. But they can't have been well ridden. ;)

Darn. I guess I will just have to keep her in the stable.

Cherohala

2011-10-16T23:28:00.000-04:00

I had to stop and play the last sentence of the conversation over again. Three grown men, none of whom had children, were talking about sippy cups. Really?!?!

I believe that many men act like children, but the use of a sippy cup? Well...yeah. I guess I can see where it would be beneficial. But I am way off track.

The conversation was actually chiding Oilburner for not having a cup holder on the RT. After all,Ken had one on his. And the discussion at hand was the only way Oilburner would be able to drink while riding with a full fact helmet. Sippy cup came up, but I think they meant something with a flexible straw.

I didn't care. I knew Oilburner wasn't installing one. That is a Goldwing farkle. So I tuned back out of the conversation and thought forward to the ride that was coming up.

We hadn't ridden to Cherohala or the Dragon yet this year. With the fall colors coming, and winter not far behind, those roads were going to be busy soon. Therefore the first "autumn" like weekend of year saw us headed there.

Who knew the first autumn week would have us experiencing 37.4 F (3C) at 12:30 on the Skyway. But there it was in all its blinking glory on my temp gauge.

Where were the 67 F (20C) highs they had predicted?

Nothing to worry about here though. Starting out in my winter jacket and four layers of winter clothes showed me that would not be sustainable at freeway speeds. So I switched the layers to the Gerbings heated jacket directly at the breakfast/meetup location. Two guys had fairings, and one of them heated gear. The Harley dude, sans a windshield, had on a down jacket. We were all prepared.

There isn't much more to say about this day. It was all about the ride in the company of good friends that were well matched in riding styles. The twisties were smooth and easy. The side trips were agreed upon. The route was up for changes. We were all willing to take a lead.

You can see more images on Flickr. And you can watch the video that sums it all up.

Cherohala With Friends from Love Of A Motorbike on Vimeo.

Wandering in the North

2011-09-29T21:43:00.000-04:00

"If you are going to ride naked make sure you have a clean can" the voice intoned.

"The Voice" belonged to Oilburner, and he hadn't quite realized what he had said until it was out and ringing in our ears. I immediately busted up laughing. He might actually have blushed a little at that one, if his face could have been seen through the helmet.

I was riding as close to naked as I ever had. No saddlebags, no top box, no luggage except for the tank bag. I did still have the luggage racks and windshield, so I wasn't completely bare.

The topic of conversation was the stainless steel "can" (exhaust). My bike and I had ridden in the rain since the last washing. And my dogs nose had left slime trails. The can was desperately dirty and didn't look like the lovely shiny can it can be.

Who cares? Not me. I wanted to ride, not was my motorbike!

This was the first perfect autumn weekend and I wasn't wasting it. Daytime temps were supposed to peak out at 77F (25C). Humidity should be around 45% mid-day. It doesn't get much better than this.

Unfortunately I also had an invite to make jam. I was interested since I have never made it before. But this day was not made to be spend indoors.

Oilburner and I saddled up and met up with a friend on the road. No one had a clue where to go, so we just figured "north" into the mountains. We wound up on some beautiful scenic byways and headed towards Hwy 60, a notoriously enjoyable twisty road up here. The day was complete with perfect weather, beautiful blue skies and leaf litter scattered across the road.

Our lack of destination gave us roads to head towards, but no restrictions on how we arrived there. I tried to navigate on the less traveled roads. I was plagued by slow drivers whenever I had to take the well-known roads.

Our food goal, for lack of finding another place, was the marina at Lake Burton. The food is good and the place can not be beat for ambiance.

It was a lovely day with no particular place to go. Such fun taking turns at random. Sometimes it back fired and we ended up somewhere we had just left. Other times we were introduced to roads we had never yet met.

I did force us to take the long way home. Adding a couple extra miles pushed my year-to-date mileage over 9,000 (14,484 km) to keep up with my goal of 1,000 miles (1609 km) per month. And it also kicked the odometer of the bike to 41,000 miles (65,980 km). Small victories. :)

I knew this trip was more about the ride and less about the scenery. I knew I wasn't going to be able to play with the cameras, so just brought the point and shoot. I also discovered a way to attach it to my tank bag. Therefore I was free to learn the complicated art of photography while riding. I wasn't so successful all of the time. For not taking many photos, I can't figure out how I had so many to upload. You can view the more successful ones on Flickr.

Work has been keeping me tied down lately. We've been working on a product release...that finally occurred last Sunday. I've been absent in the blogosphere, but look forward to catching up on all of your adventures. :) Chat with you soon!

What's It Worth To You?

2011-09-12T21:53:00.000-04:00

Baby Ruth candy bar:

$0.89

Diet Mtn Dew:

$1.29

A stranger excitedly exclaiming that yours is the superior bike within Oilburners hearing, even though it is sitting next to a shiny, new, loaded BMW with the new DOHC engine:

PRICELESS!!!

Look What the [Cheshire Grinning] Cat Brought Home...

2011-09-07T20:19:00.000-04:00

That's right. I rode the brand spanking new RT home today. Starts its new life in our household with 13 miles on it. I brought it up to 21. I took the slightly longish way home. I wasn't going too far out of my way since it was evening traffic. The only direction I could have gone was downtown if I didn't want to sit at stop lights. I wasn't terribly gung-ho on that idea. So we shared a few quiet lanes with a few quiet curves. I can't get too crazy on it during the break in period and brand new shoes. But we did have a little fun.

Oilburner was gracious enough to follow us home in the pickup. He asked me to ride it home to sustain tradition. When our group started back into the riding business, most of us were new enough that we didn't trust ourselves to ride our bikes home. So Oilburner was tapped to be the first rider on all our bikes. No one had done that for him, and look at his track record. He is hoping to break any potential issues by having someone else ride the bike home for him. Voila ME!

So...what can I say about the BMW's new Dual Overhead Cam (DOHC) engine? Nothing. Not a damn thing. Though I gave Oilburner the thumbs down on the way home. And I immediately called our sales guy and told him that I hated him and he wasn't allowed to play with Oilburner any more.

That is one flipping awesome engine!!! Lower torque, smooth, quiet. Almost has a little turbo diesel whine to it at times. Sweet. Just really super sweet.

I'm wondering if Oilburner's guilt is showing through. He keeps pushing me to upgrade to the R1200R Classic. Hmmm...that new engine makes it tempting...