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The ride is over, the memories are fresh, and the pictures are up.

In a word, it was…fantastic!

Our group was made up of four riders:
Bruce - Leading the pack on a XB12Ss Lightning
Masa - Next in line in his XB9R Firebolt
George - Following on his Suzuki SV650S
Kurt - Sweeping the group on his Honda Interceptor

We left mid-day on Friday, June 26 and rode about 380 miles to just south of Knoxville, TN where we stayed next to the airport in Alcoa, TN for the night. Took us about 6 1/2 hours with three gas stops and a couple, “uh…where are we?” stops. LOL

Saturday morning found us on the Dragon, a first for all four of us. We didn’t even realize we had started on it until we stopped at a curve and talked to some old timers on their hogs. We hooked up the video camera and off we went. Masa and Bruce flew down the road pretty well on the Buells, while the Honda and Suzuki were a bit more relaxed.

We hit Deals Gap about 10:30am and like everyone says, it was pretty quiet at that time in the morning. We easily parked and checked the place out, then hit the Dragon again. This time Masa took the lead with the helmet video, with Bruce following. Masa pulled ahead at the first curve and Bruce never saw him again until we stopped at an overlook!

We then finished the Dragon and continued a bit more down the road along the lake. In hindsight we should have stopped and turned earlier, as this was when Masa received the first and only “performance award” of the ride.

Our third ride through back to Deals Gap was caught up in a bit of traffic, so that ride was a lot more relaxed but still enjoyable.

We then ate lunch at Deals gap and then took off down US 28 about 2pm, headed to the Blue Ride Parkway.

The BRP was breathtakingly beautiful. The ride exceeded all our expectations, with great curves and rolling hills/mountains and stunning scenery.

We rolled into Asheville, NC for our 2nd night of rest, and then continued along the BRP the next morning. After 235 miles of the BRP and only 2 short detours along the way, we exited off at US 21 and headed to Wytheville, VA. US 21 turned out to be an awesome ride as well. We spent our 3rd and final night in Wytheville and immediately turned on to I-77 to head home the next morning.

Something about I-77 turned some key critical thinking off in both Bruce and Masa as their blood got pumping on the ride and they proceeded to burst down the mountains at 110MPH+. Top that with some incredibly strong windy conditions the entire 350 miles home and in hindsight that was pretty poor thinking. Thankfully all went well regardless of the poor decision making in speed. However, speaking for myself (Bruce) I will probably not lead a group in the near future until I can get a handle on the lead foot…er, make that lead “hand” I seemed to have contracted from this ride.

1,112 miles later and we were back home.

Can’t wait until next year’s ride! Hope more of us can make it then!

Oh, you want some pictures? Okay, here are some highlights from the ride. Enjoy!

Here’s our tentative route - tentative in that depending on how we are with time and our energy, we could go further along the Blue Ridge Parkway then Bowling Rock, NC.

View Larger Map

Having bought my first motorcycle last summer, I’ve come to get acquainted with other local riders - particularly those that ride bikes from the same great manufacturer, Buell Motorcycles. Recently, three of us Buell riders met up and founded a local Buell riding club.

Central Ohio Buell Riders Association, or COBRA for short.

That was only just last week, and we’ve already had our club “approved” and placed on the Buell website. Being the techie of the group, I put together a website for the club over the weekend as well.

COBRABuell.com

We’ve garnered additional interest from other local riders now as well. Since Buell discontinued its own Buell chapter groups back in 2006, they’ve left it up as more or less a grass-roots movement to develop interest and support for local clubs.

I’m excited with my involvement in this group of riders!

Ok, the results are in for the 40th U.S. National Indoor Archery Championship.

First off, my results from E. Lansing put me in 2nd place for that particular venue. The gentleman in 1st place beat me by one silly point. So that wasn’t too bad, although I wasn’t thrilled with my results.

The final results put me in 34th place nationally. That’s out of about 200 national archers, including the Olympic Team and the United States Archery Team.

I was a bit disappointed with my results as I was shooting about 40 points higher in practice rounds. That would have put me in a MUCH better standing, at about 13th or 14th place. My goal was to break the top 20 given how well I was shooting and breaking the top 15 was actually feasible.

But alas…national and international competition adds a degree of competitiveness and nervousness that, if not calmed immediately upon standing on the shooting line, will carry itself into the competition. Having not been on the national stage in…oh…20 years, it had an impact on me as shown by a lousy score of 25 on my first end, and then another 25 a few ends later. I still pulled a 278 out of the first 10 ends, even losing those 8-10 points initially.

It was a great experience to compete nationally once again and I will definitely be doing it again next year. With the outdoor season about to start I’m still debating whether to shoot it competitively or not this year. With 125th U.S. National Outdoor Championship having moved just this year from it’s long-time location near the Olympic Training Center to nearby Hamiltion, Ohio, it would be a much easier trip to make. But the time, expense, and an achy breaky body may all take a toll.

So that decision has yet to be made for certain.

But all in all, I’m happy with my return to competitive archery. I had the chance to meet new up and coming archers, and re-acquaint myself with some old friends, including an old Olympian friend in E Lansing.

I just received my new Extra Heavy Universal Bar Ends from HVMP at a hefty 18 ounces - over a freakin’ pound EACH! Looking them over reveals them to be quality made, with a smooth mirror finish on the steel and HVMP (for Hudson Valley Motorsports Parts) stamped into the end. The rubber dampening piece that holds the bar end in place and from my observation helps provide the dampening affect, or rather the transfer of vibration to the bar ends, seems to also be quality rubber component.

Installation took me all of 5 minutes on the left side. 4 minutes of that was using an exacto knife to cut out the end of my traction grip so I could insert the bar end. Tightening the bar end was simple, using the hex wrench that HVMP thoughtfully provided in the package.

The throttle side took me a few minutes longer as my first attempt bound the throttle up. I simply had to clean up the grip a bit more to provide enough room for the bar end not to snag, and then it worked perfectly.

Today happened to be one of those wonderful spring like days in Columbus so I took my Buell around the block at low RPM to test out what vibration control the bar ends possessed.

O…M…G…!!!

I can see, I can see!!! My mirrors, that is. Or rather, reflections in my mirrors.

My Buell (along with everyone else’s from what I gather), with the powerful torque of the Thunderstorm 1203, has a strong vibration at low revs. These vibrations are strong enough to really shake my hands and arms, and shake the mirrors enough that I’ve given up seeing anything in them below 3,000 RPMs.

But with these HVMP bar ends, my hands aren’t numbing up from the vibrations and the mirrors aren’t shaking. Even at a lowly 1,500-2,000 RPMs I can see clearly in my mirrors! Yeah!!

Lisa says that they also add a slightly meaner look to the bike, and I agree. While at first glance they seem almost too big, these things actually add a great new look to the bike.

While on my short test ride I reached over to feel the bar ends compared to my grips. Wow, what a difference! The bar ends truly do take the majority of the vibration. I could feel in them the shakes that I used to feel in my grips.

I’m excited to get my bike out on the open road and see, or rather feel, more of this fantastic difference!

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Now playing: Theory of a Deadman - Not Meant To Be
via FoxyTunes

Once I took a look at the “weep sheet” (as the final results are lovingly called) I noticed the error. I submitted an objection and requested that the actual score sheets be checked again.

The archery club president at Caskey University verified the results and indeed determined that they had entered my score incorrectly. The 100 point difference moved me from the incorrectly recorded 11th position straight up to first place!!

You can see the results, and the apology for the scoring error, at Case Archery Club’s website.

I have to say, that’s quite a boost for me, coming out of the gate with a winner right away!

Now I realize that a 543 isn’t going to do much on the national scene, but it’s a pretty decent start. I am now shooting 570’s in practice, and if I can move that up to 580’s in a tournament, I will be very happy. That would put me on my way to shooting 1150+ at nationals in just 3 months…which is in the top 10 from last year’s results, including our Olympians. You can see those results here at US Archery.

But I’m trying not to get ahead of myself. For now, I’m still concentrating on shooting each arrow the best I can. No matter what score I’d like to achieve, they all start by shooting a ten with each and every arrow. One step (or arrow) at a time.

“Amateurs practice until they get it right; professionals practice until they can’t get it wrong.”

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Now playing: Dave Mathews Band - Crash Into Me (Acoustic)
via FoxyTunes

Yes, this is Bruce in 1987, can you believe it? This was the tournament that he missed my graduation ceremony for. WHATEVER!! It is now 21 years later and Bruce is back in competition again. Only this time, I and the kids will be watching and cheering him on. Go Bruce, Go Bruce, Go Bruce!! LOL!!! I am happy that he is back out doing what he loves. One should never give up on their dream. Mine is to rule the world…LOL!! No, seriously!!
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Now playing: Genesis - Anything She Does
via FoxyTunes

Mormon Church steps into the Prop. 8 battle

Everyone’s got an opinion about Proposition 8, the proposed amendment to the state Constitution to outlaw same-sex marriage. Plenty of people and organizations are voting with their pocketbooks, both from within and from outside California.

Now comes the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which grabbed some TV time in Utah to urge the 770,000 Mormon church members in California to weigh in on the matter. Here’s the story from the Associated Press:

Two members of the church’s second-highest governing body, the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, quoted from Mormon scripture on the sanctity of marriage as they laid out a week-by-week strategy for boosting Mormon involvement before the Nov. 4 election in voter registration efforts, phone banks and distributing campaign materials.

“What we’re about is the work of the Lord, and He will bless you for your involvement,” apostle M. Russell Ballard said during the hour-long meeting, which was broadcast to church buildings in California, Utah, Hawaii and Idaho.

So far, Proposition 8 supporters have poured $19,778,208 to outlaw same-sex marriage, about $1.6 million more than opponents of the measure. Add the two sides together and that’s about $38 million. Imagine the good it could be doing elsewhere…

Mormons face flak for backing Prop. 8

… the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members are increasingly under fire for their support of Proposition 8, which would take away the right of gays and lesbians to marry. In addition to increased protests, online campaigns seek to identify and embarrass Mormons who support the ballot measure.

The church largely stays out of politics. But in this case, the Salt Lake City-based church has sent letters, held video conferences and in church meetings asked for volunteers to support the campaign. In response, some church members have poured in their savings and undertaken what may be an unprecedented grassroots mobilization for the effort…

It’s my personal belief that this seems to be a difficult choice for many, due to a belief system that appears to be at odds - at least on the surface. On one hand, many religions (Mormons, Catholics, Protestants, etc.) on the whole dictate that marriage is between one man and one woman. At the same time, they preach love and compassion for each other, and the concept of free will.

No wonder so many people are at odds when trying to make their own decision on whether to vote for or against a legal proposition that would make marriage of other then a male and female to be illegal - constitutionally illegal (at least at the state level, for now). Would that not be a at odds with love and compassion, and therefore forcing a particular belief system on others?

That’s how I personally view this - as forcing a religious belief system on those who don’t belief in it. I myself am not gay and Lisa is not a lesbian, but we both have close friends that are and we can each easily empathize with their choice or nature (however you might believe it to be). It’s hard to fathom that simply because a person loves someone of the same sex they should not be able to consummate that love in a legal, binding manner - one that allows them the same rights and privileges to a legal relationship as any other married couple.

Now some states, California among them, already have legislation on the books that allow “domestic partners”, regardless of same sex or not, to have some of the same rights and privileges as married couples. One argument is that this is “good enough.” I disagree. It becomes problematic under many situations to understand the legal stance of such a situation. Take insurance for instance. I used to work for an insurance firm long, long ago, where I started out processing dental claims for railroad workers. It was a pain in the butt figuring out even simple dental coverage for “domestic partner” relationships - simply because there wasn’t any legal, binding arrangement or contract that one could simply send in or point to for verification of this relationship. It was quite easy to deny claims based on lack of information, which in turn forced the couple in question to go round and round trying to meet whatever criteria was set to prove otherwise.

Then there’s also the religions that like to argue that God has established marriage to be only between a man and a woman. Ok, that’s their right as a religious view. They certainly have the right to deny to marry anyone of the same sex within their various religious institutions. However, to go further and state that by allowing ANYONE to marry a person of the same sex will destroy the sanctity of marriage as ordained by God is simply ludicrous! How does one’s personal & private choice, a choice that effects no one other then themselves, their loved one, and by some extension their families, destroy the sanctity of marriage as defined by the various religions?

Huh…isn’t this the same type of argument that various zealots of other religions hold to? At the extreme end, since their view must be right in their eyes, that must in turn make it OK for them to perform the horrendous acts they do, such as maim and kill those who disagree. We’re just doing in a political sense here in the good old United States.

What happened to love and compassion? What happened to free will, free choice? What happened to tolerance? Simply because one person believes one thing another person should not be forced to act against their own beliefs.

Now of course, society must have some base level of morals, a sense of right and wrong, or else chaos would reign. But when we start legislating and even constitutionalizing things at this level, something’s gone very wrong. If you don’t want to have sexual relations with a person of the same sex, then don’t. If you want to marry the person you love, and they you, then go for it. Society should not be condemning those that they perceive to be different, or odd.

Heck, I wonder how many people realize that not that long ago, 1967 I believe, we had these very same types of arguments and beliefs when it came to allowing inter-racial marriages? How many people today even realize that inter-racial marriages were once strictly forbidden by federal law? Doesn’t that seem just a bit crazy today?

Love one another, accept one another for who we all are, and let’s live in some reasonable sense of harmony. Legislating religious beliefs is a very, very slippery slope.

Here’s one side of the argument, which actually seems to make some sense - at least at first. Until you give it some rationale thought and see through the FUD tactics:

Yes, there is a political and legislative issue in Massachusetts regarding the adoption laws. Simply put, any adoption agency must be licensed by the state. And to get a license, an agency must pledge to obey state laws barring discrimination - which includes a 15 year old ban on orientation discrimination. With the legalization of gay marriage in the state, discrimination against same-sex couples was then effectively outlawed, too. That all seems to be a good thing.

But then a Vatican statement made clear that placing children with same-sex couples violates Catholic teaching. Yet another clash of religion and state occurred, as Cardinal O’Malley (who had authority over the Catholic Charities of Boston) asked Governor Mitt Romney for a religious exemption from the ban on orientation discrimination. Governor Romney responded that he lacked legal authority to grant one unilaterally, by executive order. The governor and archbishop then turned to the state legislature, requesting a conscience exemption that would allow Catholic Charities to continue to help kids in a manner consistent with Catholic teaching.

Did anyone catch the irony in a highly-respected Mormon political leader taking the opposite side of today’s “official” Mormon argument?

To date, not a single other Massachusetts political leader appears willing to consider even the narrowest religious exemption.

Now that’s the real problem - that the state political leaders will not allow religious institutions to perform their duties as their own doctrine dictates (within extremes, of course - no drinking the kool-aid en masse - haha).

Therefore, the Catholic adoption agencies in Massachusetts felt compelled to close their adoption agencies because now the state was forcing them to do something they did not belief in. This would be the opposite of what the Mormon and other churches are now trying to do in California, where religious beliefs would be forced into the state’s constitution.

Pretty hard to cry foul on either side at this point.

Here’s the opposite view-point, Mac v. PC style:

And for you 80’s fans (like us), here’s a little Molly Ringwald.