Saturday, September 12, 2009

Best Birthday Ever!!

Elephant Hunting Southern Style: Bill’s perspective

Bill – 04 Bandit 1200
Kim – 91 FJ1200
Jon – 08 XB12XT
Justin – 6th Gen VFR (new guy)

Background: May 17th is my birthday. I’m now 40. Somewhere in the beginning of April, Kim gets an idea and begins to make it happen. She contacts our riding buddies and tells them she wants to surprise me with a ride. She contacts 4. 2 are able to make it. Plans come together and I’m oblivious until the innocent blabberings of an 8 year old make it known that Kim’s taking me somewhere for my birthday.  So, I know there is something but not what. Fast forward to Wed before my birthday and I awaken to find out that it’s not just an overnighter to WV, but a 4 day trip down the Blue Ridge Parkway!!! Happy doesn’t begin to describe this birthday. Kim took Wed off work so we could do final prep stuff. She also gave me one of my presents which was a GoPro Hero Motorsports Wide camera with multiple mounting options. We got to test that before leaving. Fun.

Day 1: Due to the early departure, Justin and Jon spend the night Wed which makes Thu morning pretty smooth. Side stands up at 6:30. Leg one is to Winchester for a quick stop at Sheetz. This is boring and chilly and uneventful. Although, the anticipation of an excellent trip gives you plenty to think about and warm your insides. Lot’s of smiles at this point. Leg 2 is even worse because we jump on 81 for 110 miles to the Steele’s Tavern exit. (White’s Truck Stop) This is a necessary evil because today’s destination is Asheville, NC and we’re getting on the Parkway at mile marker 28 and taking it all the way down including obnoxious detours. Kim made it clear to the boys that today was going to have to entail some Nascar style gas stops and very little in the way of futzing around at stops. Time is of the essence! But Mr. Murphy knows this…

(Sidebar) Enter the new guy… STN knows him as Exxy. He’s been asking a lot of questions about tires lately. Turns out, there’s a reason. Justin is young and hasn’t been riding for very long but has an innate skill for it. Up until now, his longest ride was a WV figure 8 and that was one day and it whooped him good. This is his first multi-day trip ever and it’s one we’ve done numerous times. We tend to take for granted the experiences that life has thrown our way time and time again that are now simply a part of who we are. For example, we know that a soft compound tire will degrade more quickly toward the end of its life than at the beginning. We also know that tread depth on the side of the tire, for the most part, is not indicative of the amount of life said tire has remaining. So when Kim asked if his bike was in order and if his tires were going to make the trip, she made some assumptions. (/Sidebar)

So, we’re looking at Justin’s tires at White’s Truck Stop and we try to explain to him that his tires are shot and will not make the end of the day much less the end of the trip. He begins making phone calls and seeing who in Asheville or Boone has tires in stock. This could get very ugly very quick. Justin also hasn’t read the multitude of ride reports that end in people having to get a tow truck, U-haul, buddy w/ a trailer, stay an extra night waiting for a shop to open etc to save them from an epic misjudgement. Justin is also unaware of how the Parkway treats tires. In fairness, he has no idea what kind of riding he’s in for so he couldn’t know what his tires were going to endure. Justin feels stupid.

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I mount my new camera to the bike and we head up 56 to the Parkway. It’s hard to go from 110 miles of slab to a tight, twisting narrow mountain road so our trip up is slowish. We proceed south for about 50 miles or so and pull over to check Justin’s tires. We decide that Roanoke is more prudent a place to search due to the time of day and size of the city we’ll be rolling into. This is where we kick Mr. Murphy’s butt.  Justin searches for local shops on his trusty iPhone. He gives me the number of the nearest while dealing with his eyeball / contact issues. I make the call to the Cycle Shack in Roanoke. Jon answers and I begin to make my plea. He says he’s not only got M1s in stock but he can mount them right now. I ask how much and brace for the impact expecting retail. $287 for the tires and $25 per to mount on the bike. (Enter Mighty Mouse theme song… that’s “HERE I COME TO SAVE THE DAY!!!” for the pups in the audience) I think he only charged $20 per to mount because he felt bad for Justin. A harder compound would have been nice but there are times when you simply take what you can get and be exceedingly grateful for it. This was that time. Justin also has no idea how good this news is and is still feeling stupid.  We pull into the shop and Jon comes out to take the bike from us. He tells us it will take about 15 minutes. It took us longer to have lunch at Subway than it did to mount the tires. Jon met us after we ate, told us what the pressure in each tire was set to and we chatted a bit. His boy races so he opened up a shop as a retirement project. Take a moment to enter the Cycle Shack in Roanoke into your brains or GPS or whatever and give this man some business. He also sells racing stuff so if you need pieces parts, give him a call. Amazing guy. He could have gone a totally different route but true colors came shining through when it mattered.

http://www.cycleshackracing.com/

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Now that a disaster has been averted, we press on. We lost a grand total of about a ½ hour on this tire fiasco. We had to eat and probably would have stopped in Roanoke for food anyway. Sweet. Please remind Justin how lucky he is. We hop back up on the Parkway and resume our journey. At some point shortly after getting on, I almost blew a turn and was reminded that I’m just not as good as I sometimes think I am. We had just gone through a really nice 25mph marked turn which felt really good. So, clearly, I can go a little faster through this one marked 35mph. Oops. I came in hot and it tightened up quick. I was able to practice what I preach and trusted my machine and looked through the turn and pushed harder. The left peg hit and the left highway peg must have as well which I didn’t find out till later. Why yes, I will pay closer attention to my set up from now on and not take the docile nature of the Parkway for granted. Happy is fantastic right up until it gets in the way of sharp attention to detail. The rest of the ride was largely uneventful from my perspective. I was listening to music and having a jolly old time getting re-acclimated with the Parkway which we were riding at a progressively more brisk pace. It was Thursday and there was very little traffic and very little in the way of enforcement. Life is good. Wild turkeys are slow and dumb. I KNOW you have wings and I’ve seen you fly!!! Why must you HOP across the road like a crippled kangaroo?!? Birdbrain makes much more sense now.

We made a lot of miles and it began to take a toll on young Justin. This is day one, hour 10…

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We take the standard annoying detours on the way down then the big one into Asheville. We opt to take 80 off the mountain instead of one of the 226s. Up until this point, I’d been telling Justin that the best way to get into the groove was to try to stick with the pack and to watch us as we go through the turns. If you see three bikes go through a turn without incident and don’t see any brake lights, it’s basically a free pass if you trust who you’re riding with. The Parkway is very forgiving and a great place to trust that the road will have almost no surprises. He grasps the concept and takes the leap of faith. Thanks for that. However, there was really no way to prepare him for 80 or those like it on this trip. It turns out that he likes the tight stuff more than the fast sweepers and had a blast on 80. Just wait, dude…

Rain was a fairly common theme on this trip. It didn’t dominate but it was around and a factor in a couple big decisions. As we were rolling into Asheville on 70, it began to rain. Luckily it didn’t pour like it could have but there was lightening in the sky and we were getting wet. Jon’s new GPS took us around Asheville and back toward our destination. It was only about 10 miles out of the way…in the rain…in the dark…on confusing and crappy roads.  We went straight to the restaurant since the hotel was just across the street and it was getting late. Luckily they were open till 10 as we rolled in just after 9. Dinner was excellent.

Another aspect of my birthday that I wasn’t expecting was the Jacuzzi room that Kim got for us. That was welcome in so many ways. 10 bucks!!! That’s what it costs to upgrade to a Jacuzzi!!! Suckers. We slept so hard and not nearly long enough.

I don’t know the exact mileage for the day but it took us 15 hours to do it. I think it was still under 600.

Day 2: Bliss
Part I

We awoke to questionable skies and a questionable forecast. Duh. It’s Asheville. Welcome to day 2, hour 1 of your first overnighter.

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We’re happy because we know what’s coming up…and we had a Jacuzzi room. 

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Jon is ready to test the Uly for real.

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Kim’s trusty steed turns 83K miles.

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After a later than preferred departure, we got back up on the Parkway which was wet and cool. This is one of my favorite things about the Parkway. We’re rolling along just taking in the views and loving life even though there is fog and general wetness. We go through a nice long tunnel and come out the other side to blue skies and dry roads and warmer temps. If you’ve never experienced this phenom, it’s a hoot. This has happened to us on several occasions. Probably at the same place. It’s Friday morning, we’ve shaken off the mental and environmental fog and it’s time to embrace the reason we’re here. We take off the Gerbings and the waterproof gloves and get comfortable. It begins…

This is what a happy birthday looks like in my world.

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Random shot of spectacular views which are pretty much everywhere.

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Oh that road…

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Justin takes a couple pictures. (rolling eyes) We have to try to remember this is a first for him and give him opportunities to take it in. Kim makes a point to stop at places we haven’t stopped before so we can all see something new.

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To say that Justin is happy with his bike w/ the new tires and the Parkway time which is making it shine is an understatement.

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Without admitting to things that could incriminate, let’s just say that our run on the bottom part of the Parkway was invigorating. Kim, Jon and I are all very comfortable, competent and experienced at this. Justin blended in like he had been doing this as long as we have. Risks were calculated and discussed, limits were toyed with and elephants were tortured. (Kim and I have Metz Z6s on our bikes. They have little elephants on the edges. We refer to our spirited runs as elephant hunting.  Shut up. It’s cute!) This was one of those runs that was just euphoric. Everything went well. The road was clean and warm and dry. The traffic was light and polite. We had the same guy trailering a Harley pull over for us at least twice, maybe three times. God was shining on us by putting us behind slow moving traffic when a ranger was approaching from the other direction. To say that this is my favorite feeling in the world is not an understatement. Considering I’m generally trying to keep up with my wife and accompanied by my best friends, I’ve got the important things with me. Having one of the dogs put his head on my shoulder, make the licky noise, take a deep breath and go to sleep is a close second but this is the best feeling ever. We have perfect weather, powerful bikes with good rubber, predictable turns linked together for miles and miles and miles and people who really matter to share it with. Perfection.

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Then there’s Cherokee…

Day 2
Part II

Cherokee is hot, crowded, boring and an insult to everything that I’ve ever learned about American Indians. Whether they did this to themselves or it was done to them doesn’t really change anything for me. Ick. So, we head out of there as quickly as possible and begin making our way to the Dragon. The roads there are beautiful and after what we’d just ridden, it’s kinda tough to deal with the speed limit. Thank you to the crew that gave the signal warning us of radar. Once we got on 28, we got behind this guy on a red something or another. Probably some 600RR type thing. Although the bike had mirrors, they were of no use to him. We sat behind him for a couple miles of the best part of 28 while he rode that thing like it had plastic wheels. We were getting frustrated hoping for some courtesy but there was none. We tried to minimize the impact of the pass but I can’t imagine that riding a 600 SS and being passed by 4 fully loaded STs is a very good feeling. Indiana plates. Go figure. Ride safe dude. Beats the alternative. Then we got behind a guy on a big cruiser who was hustling that thing pretty well and Jon decided to follow and enjoy. Roads were wet from a recent shower. He was doing a very good job on that big machine. I love seeing those bikes ridden well.

We had ugly skies and were expecting the worst, not unlike other trips down here, but we were spared the worst of it. The plan was to make it to the Dragon, let Justin take in the insanity of it, check on enforcement and decide about riding it. I’ve been there several times and twice opted out of riding it. This was not to be one of those times. We pulled into the parking lot and it started raining. Of course it did. Justin was not happy. He’d been reading about this place and I suspect looking forward to it more than he let on.

We allowed Justin some pictures.

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We got some food

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Then we decided to roll out after finding out there was no enforcement. Even in the rain, he still needed to experience it. The rain let up by the time we finished eating so we saddled up and took off. About 2 miles in, the road was dry and the sun was shining. I love it down here. I try to pick a pace that Justin will be comfortable with yet still be entertained more than terrified. He’s proven his abilities to this point so I’m not too worried but we all have the ability to follow someone in over our heads. He did extremely well. For the last third or so we were following a line of cruisers and a Jeep Grand Cherokee who was taking pictures of them. As soon as we came up on them, I kicked back figuring we’d never all get around all of them so we’ll just chill. That didn’t last long. They were hauling!!! There were 5 of them and one was 2 up. I heard floorboards dragging and straight pipes cracking and I was totally surprised. I ended up having to put the balls of my feet back up on my pegs. We were moving right along. The Jeep was being tossed side to side like Gilligan’s boat. I’ve never seen that many of that type of bike being handled with such prowess. Once in a while one, rarely two, but never 5 with one of them 2 up. It was really very impressive.

We turned around at the dam and all commented on the cruisers. All comments were positive. Possibly a first. We had a clear shot back up so I told Justin I was going to pace up and for him to ride his own ride. We had a good run and I was able to play with the Bandit a little. I had the Bandit on the Dragon last year and it was fun but I hadn’t really bonded with it yet. This time we became friends. I began to move around a little playing with body position and just getting generally comfortable with the bike and letting the torque pull me out of those turns. Considering I had about ## lbs of luggage on this beast, I had a pretty good run back. Of course, the NC side was still wet and rainy but we decided to do it again. I turned off the camera so there would be no stupid camera heroics and off we went. This time Jon was behind me on the Uly XT and I decided I was just going to go ahead and see what the Bandit and I could do. You supersport guys can just look away now but this was the fastest I’d ever gone and the most comfortable I’ve ever been on that road. I was pseudo hanging off to maximize traction and at one point laughing at myself for what I must look like sliding side to side on this monster bike in my banana stitch with E41 side bags and an E51 top case. I didn’t care. I was having a blast but there was a problem. That stinking Uly wouldn’t go away. Jon was on me like white on rice. I could not shake him and I was trying. He’s only had the bike for a few weeks. How can he be that fast on it? I don’t remember specifics but we had the best run ever and if I never go back there, I will be happy with that ride. Jon and I have been friends since the Army 20 years ago. We are pretty subdued together by nature but when we got to the dam to turn around, we were both so excited that we actually did the fist bump thing. Uh huh. You read that right. Kim and Justin were not 30 seconds behind us. So proud and so happy. Then there was lightening…

Day II
Part 3

The rain came and we headed to the hotel. We would be staying at the Two Wheel Inn again. If you’ve not been there, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Unless you’re the breakfast buffet, concierge, swimming pool / gym type person. If you just need a place to park your bike, sleep, watch the weather and socialize w/ other bikers, this place rocks. Last year, we offloaded luggage, waited for a storm to pass and did an awesome run on the Cherohala. We were hoping for the same this year but it was not to be. Instead we ended up staying in the room playing with the videos from earlier in the day with the run on the Dragon being the favorite. The neighbors even came over and watched a little and I think another GoPro Hero was sold.

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The iPhone dorksy twins…

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We were pretty much done riding for the day but we needed food. Kim wasn’t feeling tops so she just jumped on the back of the Bandit w/ me. She’s not used to being on the bike and I’m not used to having anyone back there. As we were pulling out of the parking lot, there was a low hanging and very wet branch at about face level. After I ducked it, I heard a noise. Sorry Honey. It thwacked her right in the face. Like I said, we don’t ride the same bike. There are many reasons for that. Now there is one more.

Dinner was at the Mexican place in Robbinsville. It’s surprisingly good. No, really. Service was down a tad from the usual read my thoughts service we’ve gotten in the past but the food was good even though Kim’s was a little different than she expected. You gotta be really careful w/ Mexican food on a motorcycle trip. Like that needs to be said.

We got back to the room, watched some more videos and called it a night.


Day 3

We woke to blue skies and sunshine but there were green clouds moving in from the general direction of breakfast. Breakfast is NOT the most important meal of today. We pull the bikes out of our respective garages ( I love that ) and get our stuff ready. I’ve heard of this route 28 a couple times now and we’re rather close so we decide to check it out. Cherohala is too risky and since today is the promised flower sniffing day for Justin, we can’t really afford a nearly 100 mile detour. We head south on 129 to the end which is a really nice way to wake up. Then we turn left on 74 up to 28. This 28 is a really nice surprise. Jon has point and I follow. None of us are really expecting too much from today’s ride but this is a very pleasant surprise. Very tight, very twisty and long enough to be quite entertaining and a little tiring. We stopped at the filthiest gas station I’ve ever encountered in my life and decided that instead of heading to the end and making our way north, we would just turn around and run back up 28. I mounted the camera on the back of the Bandit facing rearward and Jon rode behind me having not been on video yet this trip. If only we’d gotten that 2nd run on at the gap… The return trip was at a brisk but comfortable pace which translates to me being afraid of the blind right hand turns. It was still pretty quick though and we were treated to everyone staying together for the video.

Sometimes Kim will put the interests of her bike before her ego. She has no desire to, nor is there any need for her to prove herself. In the really tight stuff, she’ll sometimes wave me or others by knowing that the FJ is heavy and hard to stop with its antiquated technology, or lack thereof. In the interest of her 83,xxx miles, she will opt for 3rd gear when 2nd would get the job done more efficiently. Clearly, she decided on 28 that this was not going to be her mantra for this road. Jon and I were moving at a pretty good clip. I suppose we both had some unconscious expectation that Kim and Justin would be along shortly. Nope. There they were. She put the hammer down and used the revs regardless of her bike’s protestations. She actually admitted on this trip that her bike is possibly somewhat at a disadvantage. This is a huge step but the Bandit and the XB12XT raise the bar pretty high in the torque category. Funny thing is, I have no idea how she rides that thing the way she does. She’s about 125 lbs soaking wet and that bike is well over 600 lbs especially when fully loaded. It was probably closer to 700 this trip. We swapped up so she could ride the Bandit back on the 2nd run on the Dragon. They left me like I was sitting still. I just can’t ride that bike fast. Conversely, when she gets on a lighter, more modern bike, well you get the picture… Oh, and for those curious about the elephant hunting thing, here are the tires on Kim’s bike.

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See where the elephant was?

Done with 28, we make our way to Maggie Valley to check out the Wheels Through Time museum that we have passed a bunch of times. We stop for gas and are treated to this.

edit: The museum is closed!

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Waiting patiently at the gas stop…

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We do a pass through the valley and decide on this for lunch. How can you be in NC and not stop here?

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We arrive before the doors open and relax and take in the scenery.

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Lunch is served and it is good. Fun place. As we’re being seated, the waitress asks us as we walk in w/ our suits if we’re doing a controlled burn up the road. I thought she meant doing burnouts. Then she says it… “Aren’t y’all with the fire deparment?” Oh how we chuckled. It was my first time.

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I am not exhausted. I will not pass out in my BBQ.

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You know the rules.

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As a matter of fact, the Sundae is quite good thanks.

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Not funny

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Very Funny

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With full bellies and gas tanks, we head back up on the Parkway to make more time and more memories. Lunch was long and the picture stops would take their toll. We would not be making it to Fancy Gap for the night. We stopped quite a few times and Justin took a lot of really nice pictures. Perhaps he’ll post some.

This picture is most impressive when you consider that both Justin and Kim set their cameras on auto, both hit the buttons and ran to the bikes, squeezed into and onto their bikes and took position. Funny stuff. Most of these pictures are of all of us cracking up.
And I say again, this is a happy birthday.

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We got some more good riding in on the way up to Boone and noticed that the big detour wasn’t there. Get this… There’s a stoplight on the parkway. Uh huh. We rolled up on a red light and just looked at each other with that nothing to say kind of look of disbelief. Huh. We were greeted with a fair amount of rain on the way to Boone. It didn’t seem fair at the time though. We came down the hill into Boone and took the first hotel on the right. Holiday Inn Express I believe. Kim got us another bubbletub room. Upon inspection, we would be getting our money back on that decision.

The filter

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One of the jets – yum

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It was a nice room though.

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Dinner was across the street at Ruby Tuesday’s. Good conversation ensued and chain food was consumed. We watched it rain and rain and rain. We discussed how this is the thing that makes us happier than pretty much anything else. Justin was trying to convey to us how he wished his eyes were video cameras and that he could capture the feelings he was having and transfer them to someone else because he was just exploding to share it with his people. Preaching to the choir, dude. But I’m really glad that he got it on the same level that we do and that it was not wasted on him. Though it was my birthday trip, Justin was definitely given some gifts as well. We slept hard.


Day 3 part I forgot about

We came upon Mt. Mitchell State Park and it was foggy and damp. Kim decided to give it a shot because down there, you just never know. As we’re climbing, we’re riding through clouds but there are bits of light and even sunshine as well. It varies with which side of the mountain we are on at any given moment. We get to the top and it’s very very weird. There are gray clouds sitting right on the side of the mountain. Very cool. One side is really nice with white poofy clouds and the other side, with the barrier right at the peak, was shrouded in dark clouds. Justin has some really good pictures of this. Here are ours.

Here is the view looking left from that sign.

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Smile
Does this suit make my … nevermind

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Clouds flirting w/ the parking lot on the side opposite the elevation sign

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You can’t really make it out in this panorama but the white above the fence on the right side is actually the clouds on the right side of the mountain. It was very cool.

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Day 4:

We wake to rain in Boone. Nuh uh! Really? We know that today is kind of going to suck. Cameras are put away, rain precautions are taken, oh and we lost about 25 degrees overnight. Weee. Thing is, the veterans are prepared like veterans usually are. We’re just smart like that. So we don our Gerbings, crank up the heat and off we go. Once back up on the Parkway, its cold and foggy and raining. So we just crank up the heat. Sweet. The guilt of wondering how poor Justin is doing drives us to pull over. He says his core is just OK but his hands are not. He takes off his gloves and they’re purple. We have failed as mentors. Leaning on my good Army training, I told him we were going to have a ghey moment. I unzipped my stich and had him put his hands in my armpits and put the Gerbings on high. It reminded me of an 8th grade dance. Must have looked really cute though as he’s about a foot taller than I am. Generally a very cool guy in his all black gear and all black bike, he seemed perfectly fine with whatever was going to warm his hands regardless of appearance. Plus, his nearest friends were still hundreds of miles away and the cameras were put away. He could always deny it. I gave him my windtex gloves which would be warm until they got soaked. That didn’t take long. We ended up doing about 4 hours on the Parkway in the rain. We still needed to make time though since we were 2 hours farther south than we planned on. So even in the rain, Kim set a pace that would rival most people’s sunny day riding. Other than the tree snot that was on the road, it was actually not that bad for three of us anyway.

We stopped for lunch at Peaks of Otter just after it stopped raining. Much coffee was consumed. Buckwheat pancakes aren’t as good as they sound and sweet potato pancakes are better than they sound. I got this monster thing that was pork bbq sandwiched in between 2 cornmeal pancakes. I slathered it w/ bbq sauce and dumped cole slaw on top of it and it was wicked evil good.

Justin and Jon at lunch on the last day.

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The rest of the ride was a mix of wet roads w/ occasional dry spots. This was your basic last day gotta make it home kind of ride. The gas stops were uneventful and the Parkway was nearly empty so we were able to continue to make pretty good time even on wet roads. About 20 miles from the point where we get off the Parkway, I slipped on some tree snot and almost blew it in a right hand turn by fixating on a low shoulder. The combination of these two things was my indication that the sustained high level of attention and sharpness needed for a quick pace, especially in the rain, was waning rapidly. I basically waved off and let the others go. I have nothing to prove and there is a gas stop coming up where we will all meet back up. My darling wife decides to hang back with me though I know she doesn’t want to. Her reasoning was that it was my birthday and I shouldn’t be alone. Good answer, though I still felt bad. We gassed up at White’s truckstop again and hit 81 for the 110 miles of fun and games. At least it wasn’t raining anymore. Traffic was not cool though there were really no close calls. Some old dude ducked in behind me at a disturbingly close interval but otherwise, it was OK. We did another Nascar stop at the Winchester Sheetz because we have 2 dogs that were left at 8am and we would be pushing their limits if we didn’t scoot. Jon was getting off his bike so we bid him farewell and the three of us headed home. Booooooriiiiiiing. The light from 7 to get on 340 was broken so that was interesting for a minute. Otherwise, we just blasted home. Justin waved farewell on 70 and took off. We arrived home without incident to happy dogs. Jon showed up not much later. Justin emailed when he got home. All good.

Conclusion:

We have had some really good trips over the years with various people. Most have been good. Some extremely good. Some notsomuch. This one was excellent. Even with the rain, the riding was among the best I’ve ever done. While only marginally faster than other trips, it was the level of comfort that I felt which made this so great for me. Obviously, the lack of enforcement contributed greatly to this high. Having Justin along to experience this with us was also a treat for me. I love sharing this life with other people and showing them how good it can be. I love seeing people experience for the first time things I have enjoyed over and over again. I’m honored to be trusted with someone’s life as they put their faith in what I say and follow me, sometimes blindly, into the unknown. I was very happy to have my best friend with me for the celebration of my 40th birthday. I’m aware that Jon, Justin and Kim had to take off work to make this trip happen and I’m truly grateful. But most of all, I am just so overwhelmed by the love that went into this birthday. Kim took weeks to plan this, she made all the hotel reservations, decided on the itinerary and made sure the guys were all ready via countless emails. And somehow, she kept it all a secret. She is the most amazing, beautiful, generous and loving person I know. She is an incredibly skilled motorcyclist and I consider it an honor to call her my wife and my riding partner. Thanks baby. I love you. :inlove:

Truly the best birthday ever.

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