365 Group (f)
This morning I went out to a beautiful morning and a bald spot on my back tire.
Looking over my tire, it was definitely "showin cord". Not a good thing. I shifted my plans around for transportation to work and started looking for a new tire. Since it was early none of the shops would be open. I emailed a few of the places that I do business with, told them I needed a back tire "really fast, double quick and in a hurry".
Kind of bummed out I jumped in the pickup and headed out to work. One of the best riding days and I was having to drive. Thinking that this might not be so bad I pulled onto the street and was immediately held up letting a herd of bikes go by. Now depression is creeping in. I finally got moving and it seems everyone was riding this morning. Everyone but me. Oh well, I needed some four wheel time. Might forget how if I didn't drive every once in a while.
It was pretty much an uneventful trip in. I took a bunch of ribbing from the guys at work. They had all managed to ride in. I told them it was one of my bonus days that I had built up riding during the winter and went on in to start calling the local shops in the distant hope one of them might have a tire laying around.
By 10:30 I had called all the shops in the area and no one had anything that I could use. A couple said the could have me one by Friday so I ordered a tire while I wondered if I could make it till Friday on four wheels.
Sitting and thinking about my problem I remembered something from a couple of years back. Shoe Goo. This stuff is made to repair shoes and other rubber products. A couple of years ago I had a similar problem with a tire and as a joke had smeared this stuff on the spot. I couldn't remember how long I ran the tire with this Shoe Goo stuff on it but I did remember how when I finally changed the tire out, it was still on there. In fact I couldn't pull it off. Now I had a new mission, at least until my new tire came in, to find some Shoe Goo and "retread" my tire.
A quick call to a friend at the "Evil Empire" located what I needed. Now I'm all set. Who knows? Based on what I remember, this might work.
Since I have the truck, I think I'll just do a mini parts run this afternoon and pick up some things I have been putting off. A frame and a set of forks and some other odds and ends that were too big to carry on the bike. Winter projects actually.
Maybe today wasn't a total loss? One of them "Bikin" days.
Catch ya on the road
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
6/27-28/09 a two day trip...of sorts
365 Group (f)
This weekend was a hot couple of days. At times it seemed too hot to breathe. Air conditioning was a blessing.
I had volunteered to watch a couple of pups for the weekend and this sort of kept me in close. In fact, the majority of my riding was over to check on those "lil monsters" several times a day. My days started out being up early and feeding and fluffing my own "Republican Guard". Drink my first pot of coffee then fire up the bike and run the five miles over to the top of the mountain to feed and fluff the "lil monsters". Ride back to the cafe and have a little breakfast and visit with some of the local fixtures. Since I didn't know what their routine was during normal times I just ran back and forth several times each day. I'd let them out for a while till the heat brought them back in. Saddle up and head back toward the house or whatever errand I had. Lots of short rides.
To the majority of people, especially "Biker" types this probably doesn't sound like much fun. That's OK. These little guys are riders at heart. Really! Neither one peed on my tires.
These pups are a pleasure to be around. They aren't like most friendly critters,they actually love me and that's something since I haven't been around them all that much. It makes it all that much better.
I only got in about seventy five miles this weekend with the "pup sittin" and the heat. It was one of the most enjoyable seventy five mile two day trips I have ever had.
Catch ya on the road
Saturday, June 27, 2009
6/27/09 A great morning
365 Group (f)
Today I started out with a quick ride over to the top of the mountain, to check on a friends pups. They are out of town for the weekend and I "kinda sorta"volunteered to look after the little monsters as they needed someone real bad and the little monsters actually love me. I mean love me like I was kinfolk with money. When "little vermin" loves you it just makes your day I don't care who ya are. So I enjoy taking care of them.
There is something to be said for an early morning ride when the sun has just gotten up good and it's still a little cool. Jammin down the highway without any traffic to get in the way, makes that little five mile run something to look foreword to. Also there's just something about an old twin early in the morning, loudly rumbling down the road as people are trying to sleep in. Kind of makes up for the weeks close calls and other pressures. Hey, there not my neighbors.
I loved up the pup monsters and got a good lovin in return. I'm set for the day.
Heading back to the house I decided to stop off at the local gas station/cafe and grab a biscuit stuffed with bacon and tomatoes. Pulling in I saw one of those new Yamaha 1900's pulling up to the gas pump. That is one nice looking bike! The owner had nothing but good words for it, other than the price. I agreed. Seems he was going to something called "A Saturday Ride." I wasn't too sure about just what it was. This guy made it sound like a bunch of people that wanted to go for a ride but didn't know how to go about it. So they formed a committee to organized it so they could get in the wind. I found myself wondering, while he was telling me about it. why don't you just head out and see where you are when you stop for gas or lunch? Anyway, to each their own ride.
I got my biscuit stuffed with dead animal by products and garden fresh tomatoes, a cup of coffee and proceeded out to one of the picnic tables to enjoy the remainder of the morning cool.
Now that the biscuit is down and the coffee drank, time to get started on today's errands. Bank, Grocery store, mow the yard. Dinner this evening with the son. A light day with lots of short rides. And... the "little monsters". God has smiled upon me again.
catch ya on the road.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
6/25/09 Biker Puberty
365 Group (f)
Today would be a good day to go fishing. Clear and sunny. Not an offensive looking cloud in the sky. To my way of thinking a perfect day to ride over to the lake and do a little bank fishing from the shade. There is only one thing wrong with this plan. Work. Oh well, hopefully there will be other days.
I managed to get around early this morning and was on the road a good half hour ahead of normal. Thinking this amazing feat over I decided to make a run down some of the back roads. Maybe someone else had the fishing idea? I pulled on to Blue Springs Road with the thought in mind of riding down to the ramp area and seeing if there were any early risers wetting a worm. Along my way I came upon one of the local characters,a young guy I'll call Chuck, on his bike beside the road. Knowing that he didn't ride very much, I pulled up expecting to hear that something had gone "pop" instead of "bang". Shutting my engine off I asked what the trouble was. No trouble. Just taking a break. How far you coming from this morning. Just the house. Hummm, a whole three or four miles? Yep! Then it hit me he was serious. I asked him if he felt OK and he replied yeah. Just restin up for tonight. Tonight? Yeah, Bike Night is tonight. OK?? I couldn't help myself and asked, you don't ride a lot do ya? Nope, once in a while. That explained a lot about this situation. Bike Night you say? yeah it's a big deal every Thursday night over at Jose's in Fayetteville. Everyone rides over and shoots the breeze or a beer and something to eat. The bike nights we used to have had gotten kind of stale and I as well as some of the other riders in the area had stopped going. If he was needing to rest up this early for tonight's bike night, maybe there was something new and improved going on. I started to ask him about what all was happening now days when I got a look at the time and had to take off.
I couldn't help thinking about him needing to rest up. Guess I'm going to Bike Night tonight.
I pulled on to Hwy 412 from Blue Springs and headed East. Traffic was light and moving along really well. Before I knew it I was coming into town. Coming up on the Harps Grocery I noticed a couple of riders in the lot that I recognized. I pulled in and ask whats going on with bike night these days. They both said "same old same old." I quickly told them of my earlier conversation with Chuck and they both looked like I was conning them. They both couldn't remember anything special last week. Just a few beers and a little visiting.
I pulled back out and "pin balled" my way on up to work. It was kind of an odd way to start my morning.
As my day wore on I asked everyone at work that rode a bike if they knew of anything "special" about Bike Night lately. No one seemed to know anything more than I did. Finally I ask a line supervisor named Lynn and told him about Chuck. Lynn started grinning from ear to ear. "Chuck is the best part of the show at bike night". What? Seems Chuck discovered bike night sometime last year and hasn't missed one since. From what I gathered, it was the most exotic thing he's ever experienced. According to Lynn, Chuck acts like he has crawled inside one of the better issues of any of the old bike magazines from the seventies. He really "walks the walk and talks the talk." Lynn said I need to go and just watch the "Chuck show". If nothing more than to get set straight on the true meaning of "old school." The more I listened to Lynn about Chuck it dawned on me. Chuck was going through "biker puberty". I told Lynn my theory and he stopped and thought for a second. I never thought about it like that but that's what it is. Most of us in our circle of riders are older. Chuck is standing on the outside. Not in our group and not in the group his age. That's why he is so noticeable and comical. That was it!
Thinking, as I noticed Lynn doing the same, about "biker puberty". OUCH!!!!
I'm still going to Bike Night tonight. I've got a bunch of other "hard cases" lined up to go with me. Lynn said he and a couple of his riding brothers would be going too.
Who knows, we might be able to give Chuck a hand and nostalgically wax the fact we were all once young.
Catch ya on the road
Today would be a good day to go fishing. Clear and sunny. Not an offensive looking cloud in the sky. To my way of thinking a perfect day to ride over to the lake and do a little bank fishing from the shade. There is only one thing wrong with this plan. Work. Oh well, hopefully there will be other days.
I managed to get around early this morning and was on the road a good half hour ahead of normal. Thinking this amazing feat over I decided to make a run down some of the back roads. Maybe someone else had the fishing idea? I pulled on to Blue Springs Road with the thought in mind of riding down to the ramp area and seeing if there were any early risers wetting a worm. Along my way I came upon one of the local characters,a young guy I'll call Chuck, on his bike beside the road. Knowing that he didn't ride very much, I pulled up expecting to hear that something had gone "pop" instead of "bang". Shutting my engine off I asked what the trouble was. No trouble. Just taking a break. How far you coming from this morning. Just the house. Hummm, a whole three or four miles? Yep! Then it hit me he was serious. I asked him if he felt OK and he replied yeah. Just restin up for tonight. Tonight? Yeah, Bike Night is tonight. OK?? I couldn't help myself and asked, you don't ride a lot do ya? Nope, once in a while. That explained a lot about this situation. Bike Night you say? yeah it's a big deal every Thursday night over at Jose's in Fayetteville. Everyone rides over and shoots the breeze or a beer and something to eat. The bike nights we used to have had gotten kind of stale and I as well as some of the other riders in the area had stopped going. If he was needing to rest up this early for tonight's bike night, maybe there was something new and improved going on. I started to ask him about what all was happening now days when I got a look at the time and had to take off.
I couldn't help thinking about him needing to rest up. Guess I'm going to Bike Night tonight.
I pulled on to Hwy 412 from Blue Springs and headed East. Traffic was light and moving along really well. Before I knew it I was coming into town. Coming up on the Harps Grocery I noticed a couple of riders in the lot that I recognized. I pulled in and ask whats going on with bike night these days. They both said "same old same old." I quickly told them of my earlier conversation with Chuck and they both looked like I was conning them. They both couldn't remember anything special last week. Just a few beers and a little visiting.
I pulled back out and "pin balled" my way on up to work. It was kind of an odd way to start my morning.
As my day wore on I asked everyone at work that rode a bike if they knew of anything "special" about Bike Night lately. No one seemed to know anything more than I did. Finally I ask a line supervisor named Lynn and told him about Chuck. Lynn started grinning from ear to ear. "Chuck is the best part of the show at bike night". What? Seems Chuck discovered bike night sometime last year and hasn't missed one since. From what I gathered, it was the most exotic thing he's ever experienced. According to Lynn, Chuck acts like he has crawled inside one of the better issues of any of the old bike magazines from the seventies. He really "walks the walk and talks the talk." Lynn said I need to go and just watch the "Chuck show". If nothing more than to get set straight on the true meaning of "old school." The more I listened to Lynn about Chuck it dawned on me. Chuck was going through "biker puberty". I told Lynn my theory and he stopped and thought for a second. I never thought about it like that but that's what it is. Most of us in our circle of riders are older. Chuck is standing on the outside. Not in our group and not in the group his age. That's why he is so noticeable and comical. That was it!
Thinking, as I noticed Lynn doing the same, about "biker puberty". OUCH!!!!
I'm still going to Bike Night tonight. I've got a bunch of other "hard cases" lined up to go with me. Lynn said he and a couple of his riding brothers would be going too.
Who knows, we might be able to give Chuck a hand and nostalgically wax the fact we were all once young.
Catch ya on the road
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
6/24/09 Bankers,Doctors and Lawyers, oh my.....
365 Group (f)
Today was a great day to be on the road. That is if you were out early.
I had another Doctor appointment today and since it's only seventy or so miles I kind of slept in a little. That was almost a big mistake. I got around and put the pups in check to behave themselves, loaded the bike for a day trip and had "just one more" cup of coffee.
As I was bouncing down the drive I remembered the Banker that I been dealing with on a project and how he needed some things from my Lawyer. Oh well, a little side trip into Fayetteville wouldn't hurt. I hit the Highway and there was little traffic so I opened the bike up and made a fast trip into town. Once there everything slowed down to a crawl. Traffic was really heavy for this time of the morning. After lots of "shortcut" taking I pulled up to the Lawyers office. I explained what I was after and was told to wait and the heard quite possibly the dumbest question I've ever heard. "would you like a cup of coffee while you wait" Duh! After a couple or three cups of coffee the paperwork was all ready to go and I headed out to the bike. The heat by this time was starting to really come up and I was glad to finally get out and moving.
Once I got out of town everything evened out and it wasn't too bad.I just kind of floated along. Going East there was very little traffic and I made good time to about Huntsville. Just passed the first turn to Huntsville a Trooper had a car pulled over and had caused what traffic there was to slow way down. Once all us "law biding citizens" got out of sight we all hammered down and really tried to make up some time.
It wasn't too long before I found myself pulling into Marble and my Hush puppie stop. I grabbed a dozen to go and got back out on the road. The last time I had to see this Doctor I had a real wait. This time I had filled my thermos and had a dozen Hush puppies to help me kill the time.
From Marble on I didn't have anything but a sweet ride. I just tooled along and listened to the glass packs. I really had a good time with them rolling off the Boxley mountain. I let the bike hold back and did my best impersonation of an old truck. Running through the valley it was cool yet. The heat hadn't come up as bad in the lower areas as it was up on top. Pulling the other side of the mountain it was still shady in places and really nice.
I made good time until I reached Mossville. I pulled over at the church to give mom a call and see if she was home. There were three other bikes there and I chatted a little with the riders. They were just "out riding around". Taking a break from the road. All four looked like they were having a good time. I said adios and headed back out.
At about 11:30 I pulled in to my mothers house to see how the relatives were doing.
My nephew was up from Texas for a while. as I hadn't seen him in what seems like forever, it was a good stop over. Before I knew it it was time to make the last seventeen miles to the Doctor. I got out in the killer heat and hit the bikes sweet spot at 70 and settled in for the short trip. Going down the mountain into Jasper is always fun. Lots of curves with just enough straight stretches to make for a good ride. Some things don't ever change. I remember enjoying this short ride as a kid growing up.
I pulled up to the Doctors office with about twenty minutes to spare. In fact, I didn't even have time to pull out the Hush puppies before they called me.
After the bad news and "payin" and "yackin", I pulled out heading for Hwy 7 North. I had a bunch of thinking to do and I needed a long ride to do it.
Just across on the North end of the bridge in Jasper I hooked a left on to 74 and made a loud run up to Mt. Sherman and Low gap. I stopped at the brake check area on the Boxley mountain and downed a cup of coffee and a couple of Hush puppies.
The rest of my ride back to the house was a nice smooth one. The only thing that broke my easy mood was I noticed that a Trooper had a car pulled over in the same spot as the one from the morning. Something to remember.
This was a great trip, heat and all considered. About two hundred miles. Hoping to do it again on Friday. Without the Doctor.
Catch ya on the road
Today was a great day to be on the road. That is if you were out early.
I had another Doctor appointment today and since it's only seventy or so miles I kind of slept in a little. That was almost a big mistake. I got around and put the pups in check to behave themselves, loaded the bike for a day trip and had "just one more" cup of coffee.
As I was bouncing down the drive I remembered the Banker that I been dealing with on a project and how he needed some things from my Lawyer. Oh well, a little side trip into Fayetteville wouldn't hurt. I hit the Highway and there was little traffic so I opened the bike up and made a fast trip into town. Once there everything slowed down to a crawl. Traffic was really heavy for this time of the morning. After lots of "shortcut" taking I pulled up to the Lawyers office. I explained what I was after and was told to wait and the heard quite possibly the dumbest question I've ever heard. "would you like a cup of coffee while you wait" Duh! After a couple or three cups of coffee the paperwork was all ready to go and I headed out to the bike. The heat by this time was starting to really come up and I was glad to finally get out and moving.
Once I got out of town everything evened out and it wasn't too bad.I just kind of floated along. Going East there was very little traffic and I made good time to about Huntsville. Just passed the first turn to Huntsville a Trooper had a car pulled over and had caused what traffic there was to slow way down. Once all us "law biding citizens" got out of sight we all hammered down and really tried to make up some time.
It wasn't too long before I found myself pulling into Marble and my Hush puppie stop. I grabbed a dozen to go and got back out on the road. The last time I had to see this Doctor I had a real wait. This time I had filled my thermos and had a dozen Hush puppies to help me kill the time.
From Marble on I didn't have anything but a sweet ride. I just tooled along and listened to the glass packs. I really had a good time with them rolling off the Boxley mountain. I let the bike hold back and did my best impersonation of an old truck. Running through the valley it was cool yet. The heat hadn't come up as bad in the lower areas as it was up on top. Pulling the other side of the mountain it was still shady in places and really nice.
I made good time until I reached Mossville. I pulled over at the church to give mom a call and see if she was home. There were three other bikes there and I chatted a little with the riders. They were just "out riding around". Taking a break from the road. All four looked like they were having a good time. I said adios and headed back out.
At about 11:30 I pulled in to my mothers house to see how the relatives were doing.
My nephew was up from Texas for a while. as I hadn't seen him in what seems like forever, it was a good stop over. Before I knew it it was time to make the last seventeen miles to the Doctor. I got out in the killer heat and hit the bikes sweet spot at 70 and settled in for the short trip. Going down the mountain into Jasper is always fun. Lots of curves with just enough straight stretches to make for a good ride. Some things don't ever change. I remember enjoying this short ride as a kid growing up.
I pulled up to the Doctors office with about twenty minutes to spare. In fact, I didn't even have time to pull out the Hush puppies before they called me.
After the bad news and "payin" and "yackin", I pulled out heading for Hwy 7 North. I had a bunch of thinking to do and I needed a long ride to do it.
Just across on the North end of the bridge in Jasper I hooked a left on to 74 and made a loud run up to Mt. Sherman and Low gap. I stopped at the brake check area on the Boxley mountain and downed a cup of coffee and a couple of Hush puppies.
The rest of my ride back to the house was a nice smooth one. The only thing that broke my easy mood was I noticed that a Trooper had a car pulled over in the same spot as the one from the morning. Something to remember.
This was a great trip, heat and all considered. About two hundred miles. Hoping to do it again on Friday. Without the Doctor.
Catch ya on the road
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
6/23/09 Daily
365 Group (f)
These last couple of days have been heck on my back. I more than less over did it over the weekend. I guess it was worth it. Anyway the Doctor is going to explain it all on Wednesday and let me know if it was.
This morning was almost a carbon copy of yesterday morning. I fired up the bike and let it warm up a little while thinking about how easy it would be to call in and tell work that I had the "woofle's" and wouldn't be in. Then again it's the start of the week and payroll needs to get turned in. Guess I'll go on in.
The ride down my driveway was a bumpy mess. I got to get it repaired soon. Once I got on to the pavement the "owing" & "ouching" eased up a bit and by the time I was up to highway speed I was feeling no pain. I pulled into the one stop to top off the tank and look over the morning traffic.
After gas and a quick cup of coffee I pulled on to the highway and made a run for the mountain. Traffic was light and it was a smooth, quick ride. I enjoy this part of my morning ride as it's a good place to open up and get the cobwebs all shook up. Before ya know it though the turn off is coming up and gotta start slowing down. Guess I cant have it all.
I had a fairly uneventful ride in to work. Even in town. Everything seemed to be put on slow speed this morning. I didn't notice that "pinball" feeling either. Now that has to be a bad sign.
Running up Hwy.412 I noticed several bikes on the road. Most were locals on their way to work. I have been seeing this more and more. Lots of them are new smaller bikes. I'm thinking that some are just learning to ride and some are finally getting the idea. Riding to work is the best way to go. I also noticed another group with that look of "I'm on vacation about them". Whenever I see these folks, I always get a big case of the "wanna's". " I wanna go". There is nothing that compares to vacationing on a bike.
Pulling into work I saw that everyone that works here that owns a bike had ridden in. That means today will be another lunch run. A lunch run by it's self is reason enough to ride in. All of us saddle up around noon and jump out into traffic to roar around town and converge on a fast food place. Quite a show.
I parked my bike next to a big old dressed out Harley that looked like it could use a little classing up and headed in.
Depending on the doc, catch ya on the road.
These last couple of days have been heck on my back. I more than less over did it over the weekend. I guess it was worth it. Anyway the Doctor is going to explain it all on Wednesday and let me know if it was.
This morning was almost a carbon copy of yesterday morning. I fired up the bike and let it warm up a little while thinking about how easy it would be to call in and tell work that I had the "woofle's" and wouldn't be in. Then again it's the start of the week and payroll needs to get turned in. Guess I'll go on in.
The ride down my driveway was a bumpy mess. I got to get it repaired soon. Once I got on to the pavement the "owing" & "ouching" eased up a bit and by the time I was up to highway speed I was feeling no pain. I pulled into the one stop to top off the tank and look over the morning traffic.
After gas and a quick cup of coffee I pulled on to the highway and made a run for the mountain. Traffic was light and it was a smooth, quick ride. I enjoy this part of my morning ride as it's a good place to open up and get the cobwebs all shook up. Before ya know it though the turn off is coming up and gotta start slowing down. Guess I cant have it all.
I had a fairly uneventful ride in to work. Even in town. Everything seemed to be put on slow speed this morning. I didn't notice that "pinball" feeling either. Now that has to be a bad sign.
Running up Hwy.412 I noticed several bikes on the road. Most were locals on their way to work. I have been seeing this more and more. Lots of them are new smaller bikes. I'm thinking that some are just learning to ride and some are finally getting the idea. Riding to work is the best way to go. I also noticed another group with that look of "I'm on vacation about them". Whenever I see these folks, I always get a big case of the "wanna's". " I wanna go". There is nothing that compares to vacationing on a bike.
Pulling into work I saw that everyone that works here that owns a bike had ridden in. That means today will be another lunch run. A lunch run by it's self is reason enough to ride in. All of us saddle up around noon and jump out into traffic to roar around town and converge on a fast food place. Quite a show.
I parked my bike next to a big old dressed out Harley that looked like it could use a little classing up and headed in.
Depending on the doc, catch ya on the road.
Monday, June 22, 2009
6/19-21/09 Bon Rally
365 Group (f)
This morning was absolutely beautiful a perfect morning for riding.
I had picked up something on the way home from work Thursday and as a result had a flat on the rear. My bike sat all Friday until I got in to change it. Since it was a tube tire I couldn't air it up and run to a shop. I grabbed a floor jack and started improvising. After about twenty minutes I had the tire off. I loaded it and the new tube and headed to a friends shop. I replaced the tube and had everything back together by around 9:30. It wasn't as bad as it has been in the past.
So this morning when I went out I was tickled to say the least that the tire was still up.
I grabbed my camera gear and headed out to put on some miles. Stopping at the One Stop in town I topped off and watched as several bikes headed East. Remembering the BON Rally this weekend I paid for my gas and also headed East.
My ride over to Eureka was a nice ride. The traffic was moderate and there were lots of bikes on the road. I had heard that there was also a poker run benefiting a children's organization going on at the same time. Since I was running a little late I figured that I was meeting the poker run riders.
I made good time over to the motel, Swiss Holiday Resort, no one tried to run me over this time. As I pulled up to the intersection I noticed several bikes around the motel. Looked as if most everyone was already out and going. I pulled in and chatted a bit with a couple of couples and learned that a lot of the riders were out looking the area over. I headed out for something to eat and just sort of made a slow lazy pass toward Berryville and back.
As I came back into town I pulled in to Planet Leather to look around. They usually have the best prices around on leather. I've been stopping in with them for so long now that it's almost a requirement that I go by when I'm in town. I really didn't see anything I needed and ended up just visiting a little.
After Planet Leather I loaded up and headed down town to try and find some lunch. Everything looked packed and I really didn't feel like waiting around so I opted to head back up and grab a burger at Micky D's. Normally I don't like to eat MacDonald's. I made an exception in this case as the bunch of riders I was running with pulled in there. I got a burger and settled in. As we ate they all seemed to be interested in going across the street to Shawbee's (think that's it's name) for a beer three. After eating we all made a pass on down toward the motel and the back to have a beer.
The group was kind of varied. A doctor, carpenter,truck driver and three
"internetsomethingorothers." While we talked I answered questions about the local area and gave them some directions as to making some of the local riding loops.
About 2:30 I headed back up to the motel to check on the time for the band that would be later on tonight, then headed back toward the house. A friend had ridden up from Mississippi to attend a wedding and I wanted to get back to kind of visit a little with him. I made it back to town in time to catch him before they left to go to Devils Den and the ceremony. Jim is a crazy character about my age. We made Bikes,Blues & BBQ a couple of times together and had a good time. He's always lots of fun to be around. I told him of the BON Rally and the live band/concert later that night. If the wedding didn't drag out he said he'd like to run over. I told him to call me when he knew what he was doing and I headed to the house.
I never did hear back from Jim and about 6:00 pm I pulled out for Fayetteville and something to eat. Hoping to catch them on the road. I pulled into a little Mexican place and ordered. While I was waiting a group of riders pulled in and announced that they were headed that way. I thought "what the heck". After we ate, I fell in with them and made a mad dash toward Eureka.
The people were great. The beer was cold and the band live. I was in "pup dog" heaven.
At about four thirty a m I said a few goodbyes to some newly made friends and kicked off toward the house. Worked out just right as I rolled in in time to feed the "little republicans".
Had a good time and met some new friends and a couple of really special people as well as got to see some old friends. I managed to get in about three hundred miles and just stayed in the local area. I hope next weekend is half as good.
Catch ya on the road
This morning was absolutely beautiful a perfect morning for riding.
I had picked up something on the way home from work Thursday and as a result had a flat on the rear. My bike sat all Friday until I got in to change it. Since it was a tube tire I couldn't air it up and run to a shop. I grabbed a floor jack and started improvising. After about twenty minutes I had the tire off. I loaded it and the new tube and headed to a friends shop. I replaced the tube and had everything back together by around 9:30. It wasn't as bad as it has been in the past.
So this morning when I went out I was tickled to say the least that the tire was still up.
I grabbed my camera gear and headed out to put on some miles. Stopping at the One Stop in town I topped off and watched as several bikes headed East. Remembering the BON Rally this weekend I paid for my gas and also headed East.
My ride over to Eureka was a nice ride. The traffic was moderate and there were lots of bikes on the road. I had heard that there was also a poker run benefiting a children's organization going on at the same time. Since I was running a little late I figured that I was meeting the poker run riders.
I made good time over to the motel, Swiss Holiday Resort, no one tried to run me over this time. As I pulled up to the intersection I noticed several bikes around the motel. Looked as if most everyone was already out and going. I pulled in and chatted a bit with a couple of couples and learned that a lot of the riders were out looking the area over. I headed out for something to eat and just sort of made a slow lazy pass toward Berryville and back.
As I came back into town I pulled in to Planet Leather to look around. They usually have the best prices around on leather. I've been stopping in with them for so long now that it's almost a requirement that I go by when I'm in town. I really didn't see anything I needed and ended up just visiting a little.
After Planet Leather I loaded up and headed down town to try and find some lunch. Everything looked packed and I really didn't feel like waiting around so I opted to head back up and grab a burger at Micky D's. Normally I don't like to eat MacDonald's. I made an exception in this case as the bunch of riders I was running with pulled in there. I got a burger and settled in. As we ate they all seemed to be interested in going across the street to Shawbee's (think that's it's name) for a beer three. After eating we all made a pass on down toward the motel and the back to have a beer.
The group was kind of varied. A doctor, carpenter,truck driver and three
"internetsomethingorothers." While we talked I answered questions about the local area and gave them some directions as to making some of the local riding loops.
About 2:30 I headed back up to the motel to check on the time for the band that would be later on tonight, then headed back toward the house. A friend had ridden up from Mississippi to attend a wedding and I wanted to get back to kind of visit a little with him. I made it back to town in time to catch him before they left to go to Devils Den and the ceremony. Jim is a crazy character about my age. We made Bikes,Blues & BBQ a couple of times together and had a good time. He's always lots of fun to be around. I told him of the BON Rally and the live band/concert later that night. If the wedding didn't drag out he said he'd like to run over. I told him to call me when he knew what he was doing and I headed to the house.
I never did hear back from Jim and about 6:00 pm I pulled out for Fayetteville and something to eat. Hoping to catch them on the road. I pulled into a little Mexican place and ordered. While I was waiting a group of riders pulled in and announced that they were headed that way. I thought "what the heck". After we ate, I fell in with them and made a mad dash toward Eureka.
The people were great. The beer was cold and the band live. I was in "pup dog" heaven.
At about four thirty a m I said a few goodbyes to some newly made friends and kicked off toward the house. Worked out just right as I rolled in in time to feed the "little republicans".
Had a good time and met some new friends and a couple of really special people as well as got to see some old friends. I managed to get in about three hundred miles and just stayed in the local area. I hope next weekend is half as good.
Catch ya on the road
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
6/16/09 The Bikin Part
365 Group (f)
These last couple of days have been great riding weather. Even with the storms that have blown through the area.
Since I made the return trip from mom's I haven't been doing a whole lot of riding. Mostly to and from work. I seemed to have redeveloped a Medical condition and, like the last time, it's painful and really saps the energy. I have a worn out disk in my lower back just at the belt line. That with a coupled with a couple of other chronic worn out body parts just sort of puts the damper on doing a lot. Especially with what I fondly refer to as a "roughbutt" frame. that and a cantankerous kick starter. At seventy miles per hour and only 3/4 of an inch give, it rides a little rough. So I have been doing only what I can to get by as far as riding. To and from work, the Doctor a couple of times and the necessary restaurant,bill paying,etc. I'm averaging about sixty miles per day. Enough to keep my standing in the Group.
I am doing lots of planning. I have a couple of Bobber projects kicking around in the back of my mind. I'm spending this "down time" researching bike magazines and the Internet to see how things look in actual play. I've also began picking up parts here and there so my time isn't totally wasted. Ya know, this is the Bikin part.
There is a gathering coming up this weekend in Eureka Springs of an on line bike group, "Biker or Not" or "BON" that I belong to. I'm hoping to be healed enough to make at least one day of it. Maybe meet a couple of the people I've met on there and take a few pictures.
Anyway, I been doin lots of "bikin" and not a lot of "Ridin" lately. Doctors say it may all come to a halt soon. If that is actually the case, you know hat that will mean? Trike sales will go up a wee bit.
Catch ya on the road
These last couple of days have been great riding weather. Even with the storms that have blown through the area.
Since I made the return trip from mom's I haven't been doing a whole lot of riding. Mostly to and from work. I seemed to have redeveloped a Medical condition and, like the last time, it's painful and really saps the energy. I have a worn out disk in my lower back just at the belt line. That with a coupled with a couple of other chronic worn out body parts just sort of puts the damper on doing a lot. Especially with what I fondly refer to as a "roughbutt" frame. that and a cantankerous kick starter. At seventy miles per hour and only 3/4 of an inch give, it rides a little rough. So I have been doing only what I can to get by as far as riding. To and from work, the Doctor a couple of times and the necessary restaurant,bill paying,etc. I'm averaging about sixty miles per day. Enough to keep my standing in the Group.
I am doing lots of planning. I have a couple of Bobber projects kicking around in the back of my mind. I'm spending this "down time" researching bike magazines and the Internet to see how things look in actual play. I've also began picking up parts here and there so my time isn't totally wasted. Ya know, this is the Bikin part.
There is a gathering coming up this weekend in Eureka Springs of an on line bike group, "Biker or Not" or "BON" that I belong to. I'm hoping to be healed enough to make at least one day of it. Maybe meet a couple of the people I've met on there and take a few pictures.
Anyway, I been doin lots of "bikin" and not a lot of "Ridin" lately. Doctors say it may all come to a halt soon. If that is actually the case, you know hat that will mean? Trike sales will go up a wee bit.
Catch ya on the road
Saturday, June 13, 2009
6/13/09 Retiree's, their friends and a Traveling Circus
365 Group (f)
This morning I woke up to a foggy damp day.
While waiting for everything to dry off I got the "republicans" all ready for the day. They seemed to appreciate the effort.
I had hoped to be on the road by 7:30 or so. With the fog That got pushed back some.
At about 9:30 the fog was finally gone. I hit the road and heading east. I was hoping to make Harrison before noon and meet up with some tourists from North Missouri I had met last night. With the storms that blew through yesterday and the forecast for last night they had planned to get a motel for the night and get a later start out of Eureka Springs the next morning.We'd meet at the Airport in Harrison around noon. The plan was I was going to be a guide of sorts for them through the hills down to Russellville. They were wanting to see some of the out of the way places in the area. The Buffalo River and some of the other attractions. Once at Russellville they were picking up the interstate to Memphis.
As I rode along I felt that it was about time for a new chain and sprockets. I was getting some high speed vibration and that is usually a good sign it's time for a change. I might try and get it done in Harrison if I make good enough time and the folks from Missouri aren't real punctual.
As I came over the hill to the station at Alpena I noticed a big bunch of bikes. Looked like a poker run on steroids. I couldn't resist so I pulled in to see what was going on. Seemed that there were several groups out fairly early and they happened to pull in at about the same time for gas and restroom and all that. It was a blast talking with the riders and looking over some of their bikes. I grabbed a cup of coffee and walked out to take off. A couple of couples were looking over my old antique. One of the guys said he hadn't seen one like it on the road in years. Not since his college days. I was impressed, he actually knew what it was and a little about it. They all thought it pretty cool. I even explained that it was now a kick start only and asked if there were any volunteers to start it. All got sort of red faced but declined my generous offer. Handing my coffee to one of the ladies I leaned on to the starter and she fired up about half way through. They all seemed impressed. I took my coffee back and put it in the specialized carrier (jammed in between the brake line and tach body) by the tach and told everyone adios.
Pulling back on to the highway I wound the old bike out so they could get the full benefit of my specialized glass packs.
Before I knew it I was coming down the hill to hit 65 and head into Harrison. Running up the four lane I decided to skip the bike shop and head on out to the Airport and see if anyone was waiting. I pulled into the parking lot at the Boone County Regional Airport and didn't see anyone. Hoping I was early I eased over to the State Police Headquarters next door to check the time. 10:55. I was doing good. I thought I would head down and grab a biscuit. As I was pulling out I heard the low rumble of several Harley's. Seeing my group coming down the access road , the biscuit would have to wait.
Everyone was ready to get this "adventure" started so I told them that I would lead them around the city on some back road two lanes and we would be coming into Hwy 7 off of Hwy 206. I took off and rode slow so we didn't lose any one at intersections. Once on 206 I opened up a little and we made good time. As we pulled up to Hwy 7 I explained The Hub over at Dogpatch and told them that I wanted to show it to them in case they were ever back through this country. Pulling the spur to the Hub we made a lot of noise. I pulled up and parked. I explained that this used to be the amusement park Dogpatch USA and now it was a Motorcycle Resort with a Motel and really good restaurant. They all got off and went in to look things over. I stayed close to the bikes and visited with a couple of the locals until everyone was ready to take off again.
Running back down the spur I think we made more noise than we did going up. It was way fun listening to the rumbling.
Heading south on Hwy 7 we made the short run over to the Buffalo river at Pruitt. We crossed the bridge and pulled in at the Ranger station. After a few minutes there we were back on the road heading toward Jasper and the cut across to the Boxley valley. Elk was a topic and I told them that we could take a detour through an area where they might get to see part of the local Elk population and would get to see some really beautifull country. Everyone was up for it and seemed excited.
Running up the mountain toward Mt. Sherman and Low gap I took it a little slower than normal to point out a few things as we traveled. My real reason was I wasn't too sure how much twisty road experience this bunch had. I didn't want to have anyone stack their bike in the ditch. Not on my watch.
Running down the mountain, with all the scenery and the rumble of all the bikes holding in third gear it made for a great ride. As we crossed the bridge I pulled everyone over and explained the lay out of the miles ahead of up and pointed out that the Elk were likely to be anywhere along the road from here over to where we started back up the mountain. I suggested that they might want to get their cameras out and if they wanted to take a picture just pull over. I strongly recommended against trying take pictures while riding unfamiliar roads. All seemed to get the drift of my thinking. Taking off we ambled slowly along almost to the junction of Hwy 21. In the big field that is across from this junction the Elk were on parade. I showed everyone where to pull off and they got to take a few pictures.
Saddling back up we headed up 21 and out to Hwy 16 and made for Deer and Gas at Clayborns Store. While we topped off all seemed to be tickled with the trip. Especially the roads, the twisting and turning. "Nothing like these roads back home".
After topping off we ran the two miles down 16 to Hwy 7 and again headed south.
The rest of the trip to Russellville was pretty much uneventful. I showed them "Booger Hollow" and Mac's Pines Campground as well as gave them a general idea of attractions like Pedestal Rocks that were in the area.
We pulled into Russellville around six and headed down to the Dixie cafe for some chow. It was a great meal. Everyone had a good time and all told me that they really enjoyed the ride. We sat and talked for almost two hours around the table at the Dixie. As things broke up I told them of my plans to make the 70 miles or so back to my mom's for the night. I also recommended the Hampton Inn across the street.
I took a couple of pictures of this bunch and told all of them to call me if there was any trouble along the rest of the trip and headed back North to Deer,mom's and some really good food.
By myself I made really good time on the ride up to mom's. Before I knew it I was there.
I think I'll spend the night and hit it again tomorrow...since I'm already out.
Catch ya on the road
This morning I woke up to a foggy damp day.
While waiting for everything to dry off I got the "republicans" all ready for the day. They seemed to appreciate the effort.
I had hoped to be on the road by 7:30 or so. With the fog That got pushed back some.
At about 9:30 the fog was finally gone. I hit the road and heading east. I was hoping to make Harrison before noon and meet up with some tourists from North Missouri I had met last night. With the storms that blew through yesterday and the forecast for last night they had planned to get a motel for the night and get a later start out of Eureka Springs the next morning.We'd meet at the Airport in Harrison around noon. The plan was I was going to be a guide of sorts for them through the hills down to Russellville. They were wanting to see some of the out of the way places in the area. The Buffalo River and some of the other attractions. Once at Russellville they were picking up the interstate to Memphis.
As I rode along I felt that it was about time for a new chain and sprockets. I was getting some high speed vibration and that is usually a good sign it's time for a change. I might try and get it done in Harrison if I make good enough time and the folks from Missouri aren't real punctual.
As I came over the hill to the station at Alpena I noticed a big bunch of bikes. Looked like a poker run on steroids. I couldn't resist so I pulled in to see what was going on. Seemed that there were several groups out fairly early and they happened to pull in at about the same time for gas and restroom and all that. It was a blast talking with the riders and looking over some of their bikes. I grabbed a cup of coffee and walked out to take off. A couple of couples were looking over my old antique. One of the guys said he hadn't seen one like it on the road in years. Not since his college days. I was impressed, he actually knew what it was and a little about it. They all thought it pretty cool. I even explained that it was now a kick start only and asked if there were any volunteers to start it. All got sort of red faced but declined my generous offer. Handing my coffee to one of the ladies I leaned on to the starter and she fired up about half way through. They all seemed impressed. I took my coffee back and put it in the specialized carrier (jammed in between the brake line and tach body) by the tach and told everyone adios.
Pulling back on to the highway I wound the old bike out so they could get the full benefit of my specialized glass packs.
Before I knew it I was coming down the hill to hit 65 and head into Harrison. Running up the four lane I decided to skip the bike shop and head on out to the Airport and see if anyone was waiting. I pulled into the parking lot at the Boone County Regional Airport and didn't see anyone. Hoping I was early I eased over to the State Police Headquarters next door to check the time. 10:55. I was doing good. I thought I would head down and grab a biscuit. As I was pulling out I heard the low rumble of several Harley's. Seeing my group coming down the access road , the biscuit would have to wait.
Everyone was ready to get this "adventure" started so I told them that I would lead them around the city on some back road two lanes and we would be coming into Hwy 7 off of Hwy 206. I took off and rode slow so we didn't lose any one at intersections. Once on 206 I opened up a little and we made good time. As we pulled up to Hwy 7 I explained The Hub over at Dogpatch and told them that I wanted to show it to them in case they were ever back through this country. Pulling the spur to the Hub we made a lot of noise. I pulled up and parked. I explained that this used to be the amusement park Dogpatch USA and now it was a Motorcycle Resort with a Motel and really good restaurant. They all got off and went in to look things over. I stayed close to the bikes and visited with a couple of the locals until everyone was ready to take off again.
Running back down the spur I think we made more noise than we did going up. It was way fun listening to the rumbling.
Heading south on Hwy 7 we made the short run over to the Buffalo river at Pruitt. We crossed the bridge and pulled in at the Ranger station. After a few minutes there we were back on the road heading toward Jasper and the cut across to the Boxley valley. Elk was a topic and I told them that we could take a detour through an area where they might get to see part of the local Elk population and would get to see some really beautifull country. Everyone was up for it and seemed excited.
Running up the mountain toward Mt. Sherman and Low gap I took it a little slower than normal to point out a few things as we traveled. My real reason was I wasn't too sure how much twisty road experience this bunch had. I didn't want to have anyone stack their bike in the ditch. Not on my watch.
Running down the mountain, with all the scenery and the rumble of all the bikes holding in third gear it made for a great ride. As we crossed the bridge I pulled everyone over and explained the lay out of the miles ahead of up and pointed out that the Elk were likely to be anywhere along the road from here over to where we started back up the mountain. I suggested that they might want to get their cameras out and if they wanted to take a picture just pull over. I strongly recommended against trying take pictures while riding unfamiliar roads. All seemed to get the drift of my thinking. Taking off we ambled slowly along almost to the junction of Hwy 21. In the big field that is across from this junction the Elk were on parade. I showed everyone where to pull off and they got to take a few pictures.
Saddling back up we headed up 21 and out to Hwy 16 and made for Deer and Gas at Clayborns Store. While we topped off all seemed to be tickled with the trip. Especially the roads, the twisting and turning. "Nothing like these roads back home".
After topping off we ran the two miles down 16 to Hwy 7 and again headed south.
The rest of the trip to Russellville was pretty much uneventful. I showed them "Booger Hollow" and Mac's Pines Campground as well as gave them a general idea of attractions like Pedestal Rocks that were in the area.
We pulled into Russellville around six and headed down to the Dixie cafe for some chow. It was a great meal. Everyone had a good time and all told me that they really enjoyed the ride. We sat and talked for almost two hours around the table at the Dixie. As things broke up I told them of my plans to make the 70 miles or so back to my mom's for the night. I also recommended the Hampton Inn across the street.
I took a couple of pictures of this bunch and told all of them to call me if there was any trouble along the rest of the trip and headed back North to Deer,mom's and some really good food.
By myself I made really good time on the ride up to mom's. Before I knew it I was there.
I think I'll spend the night and hit it again tomorrow...since I'm already out.
Catch ya on the road
Friday, June 12, 2009
6/12/09
365 Group (f)
Well I got up to an absolutely perfect morning for a ride.
Even my little Republicans agreed that it was a good day. Rather they agreed that it was a good day for them to be outside. Things like that and Treats are really all they ever agree with me on.
I managed to get up a little earlier than normal and had a few minutes to get the bike loaded before anything else. That was nice. I didn't have to hum haw around when it was time to leave.
I also had time to check my email and find out how the "herd" was doing on the trip. From all accounts they were screwing off right on schedule. Stopping at each and every wide spot.
Since I had arranged work so I could be off there wasn't really anything for me to go in for. I thought I'd go and make sure the payroll got in without a hitch and then maybe head out for a little road trip of my own. I had been hearing about a couple of new shows over around Eureka Springs and since it's close, thought I would get a room over there and check out the shows. If I have to come back it wont be a big deal.
Getting on the road this morning was a little strange. No traffic at all for the first 10 miles. I cant remember the last time I didn't see something on the road that early in the morning. Kind of spooky. I enjoyed it.
Once I got into Springdale it all went back to normal real fast and I was once again the "Ball in the machine." I guess everyone had overslept and was trying to make it on time. The last mile or so I did manage to get in with a bunch of bikes that were passing through. It provided a sort of comfort zone. Safety in numbers. I stayed with them all the way to work.
Pulling in I noticed a lot of people had ridden in. May make a run at lunch time? That's always lots of fun.
Hopefully I'll be back on the road around noon and miss most of the early weekend traffic. Since I don't really have lots to do till Monday and I kind of have to stay in the area, I'm looking at hitting all the local attractions and getting in about three hundred miles.
So if your around Eureka this weekend your likely to see me.
catch ya on the road
Well I got up to an absolutely perfect morning for a ride.
Even my little Republicans agreed that it was a good day. Rather they agreed that it was a good day for them to be outside. Things like that and Treats are really all they ever agree with me on.
I managed to get up a little earlier than normal and had a few minutes to get the bike loaded before anything else. That was nice. I didn't have to hum haw around when it was time to leave.
I also had time to check my email and find out how the "herd" was doing on the trip. From all accounts they were screwing off right on schedule. Stopping at each and every wide spot.
Since I had arranged work so I could be off there wasn't really anything for me to go in for. I thought I'd go and make sure the payroll got in without a hitch and then maybe head out for a little road trip of my own. I had been hearing about a couple of new shows over around Eureka Springs and since it's close, thought I would get a room over there and check out the shows. If I have to come back it wont be a big deal.
Getting on the road this morning was a little strange. No traffic at all for the first 10 miles. I cant remember the last time I didn't see something on the road that early in the morning. Kind of spooky. I enjoyed it.
Once I got into Springdale it all went back to normal real fast and I was once again the "Ball in the machine." I guess everyone had overslept and was trying to make it on time. The last mile or so I did manage to get in with a bunch of bikes that were passing through. It provided a sort of comfort zone. Safety in numbers. I stayed with them all the way to work.
Pulling in I noticed a lot of people had ridden in. May make a run at lunch time? That's always lots of fun.
Hopefully I'll be back on the road around noon and miss most of the early weekend traffic. Since I don't really have lots to do till Monday and I kind of have to stay in the area, I'm looking at hitting all the local attractions and getting in about three hundred miles.
So if your around Eureka this weekend your likely to see me.
catch ya on the road
Thursday, June 11, 2009
6/11/09
365 Group (f)
These last few days have been good riding weather, for the most part. I have been having problems with my lower back and not in the best shape to ride. Last night I loaded up on some muscle relaxers and went to bed early in an attempt to get back in shape. So far it has worked and I was able to ride out to meet the crew that was heading south. A bunch of us from the area had planned a trip to the South and East part of the state. Leave out on Thursday and be back on Monday. Just ride and hit the local attractions along the way. A few of the guys from around Springdale had bought new rides and were itching to get 'em on the road. Some had wanted to hit the Folk Center at Mt. View and Blanchard Springs caverns over by Fifty Six. As my life worked out I wasn't able to go so my plans went down the tubes. Anyway, I planned to ride about a hundred miles or so with them so it wouldn't be a total loss. We had planned this trip back in the winter and everyone was looking foreword to it. I planned to make it as far as breakfast with them and head back. We all met at the nursery in Hindsville. Since I run this road a lot over to my mom's I got shuffled to the front of the herd. About seven thirty we all pulled out and eased up to the old/new 412 intersection and started East. A few miles down the road everyone settled down and got into the ride. This stretch of 412 is a nice ride early in the morning. Cool and kind of a damp feel in the air. My old bike ran like a song all the way. Pulling in to Alpena I slowed down as I came up on the station and sure enough a couple pulled in. Seems that they hadn't gassed up at Hindsville and somebody need to go to the restroom. About ten minutes later we were back heading for breakfast.Harrison was the breakfast stop. We all roared into the "Micky D's" and most everyone ordered a "Mcsomethingorotherwithcheese". After the Biscuit's and gravy I got out my map and showed the routes I had been down before and told everyone about a couple of places that make for a good stopping point. Even had a couple of good eating places marked. Finally everyone was done and had gone to the bathroom. I wished them luck and saddled up for my ride back to Springdale. My trip back up,other than I was bummed that I wasn't getting to go with the group, was a nice one. There would be other trips, I hope.Coming out of Alpena I came upon some bikes pulling onto the road. They had come out of Branson and were running the roads looking around and heading for Eureka Springs. I rode along with them to the Eureka exit by Huntsville. Waving adios I headed on up 412 to Springdale and work. I was only a couple of hours late and since I had already done most of today's yesterday, didn't have a whole lot to do.
Maybe I can find away to slip out early and find an excuse to get in a few miles before going home? Maybe even head over to Eureka and have dinner with the Branson bunch?
Catch ya on the road
These last few days have been good riding weather, for the most part. I have been having problems with my lower back and not in the best shape to ride. Last night I loaded up on some muscle relaxers and went to bed early in an attempt to get back in shape. So far it has worked and I was able to ride out to meet the crew that was heading south. A bunch of us from the area had planned a trip to the South and East part of the state. Leave out on Thursday and be back on Monday. Just ride and hit the local attractions along the way. A few of the guys from around Springdale had bought new rides and were itching to get 'em on the road. Some had wanted to hit the Folk Center at Mt. View and Blanchard Springs caverns over by Fifty Six. As my life worked out I wasn't able to go so my plans went down the tubes. Anyway, I planned to ride about a hundred miles or so with them so it wouldn't be a total loss. We had planned this trip back in the winter and everyone was looking foreword to it. I planned to make it as far as breakfast with them and head back. We all met at the nursery in Hindsville. Since I run this road a lot over to my mom's I got shuffled to the front of the herd. About seven thirty we all pulled out and eased up to the old/new 412 intersection and started East. A few miles down the road everyone settled down and got into the ride. This stretch of 412 is a nice ride early in the morning. Cool and kind of a damp feel in the air. My old bike ran like a song all the way. Pulling in to Alpena I slowed down as I came up on the station and sure enough a couple pulled in. Seems that they hadn't gassed up at Hindsville and somebody need to go to the restroom. About ten minutes later we were back heading for breakfast.Harrison was the breakfast stop. We all roared into the "Micky D's" and most everyone ordered a "Mcsomethingorotherwithcheese". After the Biscuit's and gravy I got out my map and showed the routes I had been down before and told everyone about a couple of places that make for a good stopping point. Even had a couple of good eating places marked. Finally everyone was done and had gone to the bathroom. I wished them luck and saddled up for my ride back to Springdale. My trip back up,other than I was bummed that I wasn't getting to go with the group, was a nice one. There would be other trips, I hope.Coming out of Alpena I came upon some bikes pulling onto the road. They had come out of Branson and were running the roads looking around and heading for Eureka Springs. I rode along with them to the Eureka exit by Huntsville. Waving adios I headed on up 412 to Springdale and work. I was only a couple of hours late and since I had already done most of today's yesterday, didn't have a whole lot to do.
Maybe I can find away to slip out early and find an excuse to get in a few miles before going home? Maybe even head over to Eureka and have dinner with the Branson bunch?
Catch ya on the road
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
6/8-9-10/09
365 Group (f)
These last two days have been great days for riding!
I didn't get to ride either of them and probably wont get to any this week due to a pulled disk in my lower back. Just the motion of my weight coming down on the kick starter brought tears to my eyes. I knew I should have rebuilt that electric starter. So, for the next few days it's take it easy and no riding. Might be for the good, this morning the weather channel showed rain and thunder storms all week.
Just sucks don't it?
Hope to catch ya on the road...soon.
These last two days have been great days for riding!
I didn't get to ride either of them and probably wont get to any this week due to a pulled disk in my lower back. Just the motion of my weight coming down on the kick starter brought tears to my eyes. I knew I should have rebuilt that electric starter. So, for the next few days it's take it easy and no riding. Might be for the good, this morning the weather channel showed rain and thunder storms all week.
Just sucks don't it?
Hope to catch ya on the road...soon.
Monday, June 8, 2009
6/6/09 fishin
365 Group (f)
This morning was a nice morning for a ride. Temperatures were almost perfect.
I loaded up and headed out towards Huntsville, to Withrow Springs State park. The park was having a Kids Fishing Derby. A friend of mine was taking his family over to spend the weekend and his three boys were going to do some fishing. The park had stocked a small lake with Trout. It had all the makings of a good time. Plus I was invited for something to eat. Whats better than that?
I made good time over to Hindsville and Hwy 412. Once I got on 412 the traffic picked up a little. Still it wasn't bad for a Saturday morning. There were lots bikes on the road and that always makes for a nicer ride. I kind of floated along with the flow of things until a Big Hat popped up and put a real "slow down" on everyone. Funny how that happens. One minute every ones being a real terror of the roads and the next everybody is wearing a halo.
Coming up on downtown Huntsville's own cloverleaf I hit the Eureka Springs exit and made the five miles down to the park entrance. It was sort of disappointing, I was just getting warmed up for the ride and it ended.
Pulling into the park I saw that the Derby was already going on. Looked like lots of families had shown up. I made my way through the cars and people and located my friends campsite. It was guarded by the family Wiener Dog. After a few minutes of some serious behind the ear scratching and other assorted forms of lovin up which is sure to put me in a special place with the Pup Dog Gods, I headed back down to the activities.
The Derby was for kids under sixteen. Prizes were given for biggest and smallest catch, most caught as well as door prizes. This was pretty neat as two of my friends kids won door prizes. Everyone was having a good time. The kids were really working at it. I even noticed that some of the parents "lost track" of the fact that they were only allowed to help the kids and were having a good time themselves. Funny how people can lose track.
I watched a few good sized Trout get caught and took a couple of pictures of the event as a whole.
After visiting for a few minutes I headed back out to the highway and decided to run on down to Marble for some hush puppies.
Traffic was light and behaved. I made a good ride into Marble. As I pulled in to the store I noticed that the sky was getting dark and it was starting to look a lot like rain. Nothing in the weather forecast about rain. This could put a damper on the rest of my day.
I got a couple of large orders of Hush Puppies and walked back out to my bike. There were a couple of other bikes out by mine and I chatted up the riders a little and had a Hush puppie or three. They looked at the sky and got a nervous look on their faces. Apparently neither had anything other than their stylish Harley tee shirts, absolutely no rain gear. Ahhh come on now, they were tough bikers, ridin Hogs. As a cool breeze blew in they decided it was time to leave and took off like they were late and were trying to beat out he weather. Nothing against those guys. But the thought "it's hard to look cool when your soaked to the bone", came to mind. I looked over the sky again and felt the chill in the wind that was picking up and looked at my rain gear and decided that I might ought to quit screwing around and have another hush puppie.
Finally, after my second cup of coffee and a half of a large order of "puppies", I started packing up to head for the house. I thought about how good these Hush Puppies would go with dinner later. Cornbread of any kind is always a good thing. Especially in this size, in a bowl of hot brown beans. Yep! it be good.
My ride back wasn't as nice as the ride over had been. The wind had picked up with the storm front. It was cooler and I was blown around a little. But still it was a good ride.
I had a good time watching the kids fish and the parents "help". Parents always put on the best show.
I got in around a hundred miles and even managed to stay dry. By the time I pulled in to my drive, I was ready to go to another get together like this. Not quite a bike rally but still loads of fun. If you get the chance to attend one I highly recommend it.
catch ya on the road
mail: bikin_ridin@yahoo.com
This morning was a nice morning for a ride. Temperatures were almost perfect.
I loaded up and headed out towards Huntsville, to Withrow Springs State park. The park was having a Kids Fishing Derby. A friend of mine was taking his family over to spend the weekend and his three boys were going to do some fishing. The park had stocked a small lake with Trout. It had all the makings of a good time. Plus I was invited for something to eat. Whats better than that?
I made good time over to Hindsville and Hwy 412. Once I got on 412 the traffic picked up a little. Still it wasn't bad for a Saturday morning. There were lots bikes on the road and that always makes for a nicer ride. I kind of floated along with the flow of things until a Big Hat popped up and put a real "slow down" on everyone. Funny how that happens. One minute every ones being a real terror of the roads and the next everybody is wearing a halo.
Coming up on downtown Huntsville's own cloverleaf I hit the Eureka Springs exit and made the five miles down to the park entrance. It was sort of disappointing, I was just getting warmed up for the ride and it ended.
Pulling into the park I saw that the Derby was already going on. Looked like lots of families had shown up. I made my way through the cars and people and located my friends campsite. It was guarded by the family Wiener Dog. After a few minutes of some serious behind the ear scratching and other assorted forms of lovin up which is sure to put me in a special place with the Pup Dog Gods, I headed back down to the activities.
The Derby was for kids under sixteen. Prizes were given for biggest and smallest catch, most caught as well as door prizes. This was pretty neat as two of my friends kids won door prizes. Everyone was having a good time. The kids were really working at it. I even noticed that some of the parents "lost track" of the fact that they were only allowed to help the kids and were having a good time themselves. Funny how people can lose track.
I watched a few good sized Trout get caught and took a couple of pictures of the event as a whole.
After visiting for a few minutes I headed back out to the highway and decided to run on down to Marble for some hush puppies.
Traffic was light and behaved. I made a good ride into Marble. As I pulled in to the store I noticed that the sky was getting dark and it was starting to look a lot like rain. Nothing in the weather forecast about rain. This could put a damper on the rest of my day.
I got a couple of large orders of Hush Puppies and walked back out to my bike. There were a couple of other bikes out by mine and I chatted up the riders a little and had a Hush puppie or three. They looked at the sky and got a nervous look on their faces. Apparently neither had anything other than their stylish Harley tee shirts, absolutely no rain gear. Ahhh come on now, they were tough bikers, ridin Hogs. As a cool breeze blew in they decided it was time to leave and took off like they were late and were trying to beat out he weather. Nothing against those guys. But the thought "it's hard to look cool when your soaked to the bone", came to mind. I looked over the sky again and felt the chill in the wind that was picking up and looked at my rain gear and decided that I might ought to quit screwing around and have another hush puppie.
Finally, after my second cup of coffee and a half of a large order of "puppies", I started packing up to head for the house. I thought about how good these Hush Puppies would go with dinner later. Cornbread of any kind is always a good thing. Especially in this size, in a bowl of hot brown beans. Yep! it be good.
My ride back wasn't as nice as the ride over had been. The wind had picked up with the storm front. It was cooler and I was blown around a little. But still it was a good ride.
I had a good time watching the kids fish and the parents "help". Parents always put on the best show.
I got in around a hundred miles and even managed to stay dry. By the time I pulled in to my drive, I was ready to go to another get together like this. Not quite a bike rally but still loads of fun. If you get the chance to attend one I highly recommend it.
catch ya on the road
mail: bikin_ridin@yahoo.com
Friday, June 5, 2009
6/5/09
365 Group (f)
The rain finally blew through and left cool damp air. This morning was nice.
I went out to load up and my pups decided to help me. The smallest of the bunch grabbed a glove and took off out the door. The others naturally followed woofin and snortin like they were some body. I got my glove back, spoke sharply to the little miscreant and began packing up for the ride to work.
After some threats and promises I finally got the pups back inside. Too bad they wont ride with me. I fired up and eased down the drive.
For a Friday morning traffic was heavy. I guess it's due to the big 'Evil Empire" convention that's going on this week. It always seems to put a damper on things.
Pulling out onto the street I had a feeling that this was going to be one of those days. The traffic, even on the little short street I live on was bumper to bumper. Once I got out on the highway it was a little better. At least a little more spaced out. I made good time over to the foot of the mountain as everyone was in a hurry. At my turn off there was a little congestion but I managed to slip by and got on to the back roads and ended up having a good ride for seven or eight miles. Coming into town I decided to take the most direct route to work. Wouldn't be as much fun as going my usual way. It would get me off the road and out of this licensed lunacy a little faster.
I got on Hwy 412 at the East end of town and hammered with the traffic. Staying in the outside lane all the way up to work. In this town that's risky at best. But, I figured it would be the easiest to get off at work. It's funny. We were all floating along like the law was after us until we got to the first traffic light. From the light on it was inch along. After a few minutes of this I started riding the parking lots along side the road up to the next light. I managed to get ahead of this slow moving hoard. I know that I made some drivers mad by jumping out into a parking lot and in some cased several in a row and going on. Hey! They could ride a bike and do all this silly stuff I do. while I enjoy doing the silly stuff I would rather have a leisurely ride in each morning. I made it to work with exactly one minute to spare.
While at work I was quizzed about a kid's fishing derby supposed to be held a state park close by. The guy doing the quizzing was actually telling me that it would be a good photo op. He was taking his kids down and spending the weekend. I hadn't heard about it till now. I figure to reshuffle my Saturday and take him up on breakfast at the campsite. I think I'll even take my camera. Let ya know how the fishin is at the park in a couple of days.
Catch ya on the road
The rain finally blew through and left cool damp air. This morning was nice.
I went out to load up and my pups decided to help me. The smallest of the bunch grabbed a glove and took off out the door. The others naturally followed woofin and snortin like they were some body. I got my glove back, spoke sharply to the little miscreant and began packing up for the ride to work.
After some threats and promises I finally got the pups back inside. Too bad they wont ride with me. I fired up and eased down the drive.
For a Friday morning traffic was heavy. I guess it's due to the big 'Evil Empire" convention that's going on this week. It always seems to put a damper on things.
Pulling out onto the street I had a feeling that this was going to be one of those days. The traffic, even on the little short street I live on was bumper to bumper. Once I got out on the highway it was a little better. At least a little more spaced out. I made good time over to the foot of the mountain as everyone was in a hurry. At my turn off there was a little congestion but I managed to slip by and got on to the back roads and ended up having a good ride for seven or eight miles. Coming into town I decided to take the most direct route to work. Wouldn't be as much fun as going my usual way. It would get me off the road and out of this licensed lunacy a little faster.
I got on Hwy 412 at the East end of town and hammered with the traffic. Staying in the outside lane all the way up to work. In this town that's risky at best. But, I figured it would be the easiest to get off at work. It's funny. We were all floating along like the law was after us until we got to the first traffic light. From the light on it was inch along. After a few minutes of this I started riding the parking lots along side the road up to the next light. I managed to get ahead of this slow moving hoard. I know that I made some drivers mad by jumping out into a parking lot and in some cased several in a row and going on. Hey! They could ride a bike and do all this silly stuff I do. while I enjoy doing the silly stuff I would rather have a leisurely ride in each morning. I made it to work with exactly one minute to spare.
While at work I was quizzed about a kid's fishing derby supposed to be held a state park close by. The guy doing the quizzing was actually telling me that it would be a good photo op. He was taking his kids down and spending the weekend. I hadn't heard about it till now. I figure to reshuffle my Saturday and take him up on breakfast at the campsite. I think I'll even take my camera. Let ya know how the fishin is at the park in a couple of days.
Catch ya on the road
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
6/3/09 Rained out
365 Group (f)
This morning it was raining.
I had left my rain gear on the bike that I had left uncovered. So with that I drove my car to work this morning. I was in a strange way pleased to see that there were no other bikes on the road. Maybe the reason I didn't feel so bad about not riding. It was just as well that I didn't ride today. Along with the rain I got a call shortly after I arrived at work from a truck driver that I had met a couple of weeks ago. We had discussed some bike parts that he had to give away. Anyway, I had forgotten about him and the parts. Seems he hadn't forgotten. I gave him directions to where I was and agreed on meeting around lunch time. About 11:45 Donnie the trucker/biker showed up and made me the proud owner of three large boxes of miscellaneous bike parts. Speedometers, Tachs, cables, lights. Just a big bunch of stuff. Seems that he had picked the stuff up while putting together a ride for his little brother. All in all several hundred dollars worth of parts for nothing. Well, not really nothing. I took him over to Neils cafe and bought him the lunch special. Anyway, It was one of those deals you luck into sometimes. All in all it was a damp and drab day here in the hills. I couldn't ride today, but, just as soon as I get home I can bolt a few things on.
Catch ya on the road
mail: bikin_ridin@yahoo.com
This morning it was raining.
I had left my rain gear on the bike that I had left uncovered. So with that I drove my car to work this morning. I was in a strange way pleased to see that there were no other bikes on the road. Maybe the reason I didn't feel so bad about not riding. It was just as well that I didn't ride today. Along with the rain I got a call shortly after I arrived at work from a truck driver that I had met a couple of weeks ago. We had discussed some bike parts that he had to give away. Anyway, I had forgotten about him and the parts. Seems he hadn't forgotten. I gave him directions to where I was and agreed on meeting around lunch time. About 11:45 Donnie the trucker/biker showed up and made me the proud owner of three large boxes of miscellaneous bike parts. Speedometers, Tachs, cables, lights. Just a big bunch of stuff. Seems that he had picked the stuff up while putting together a ride for his little brother. All in all several hundred dollars worth of parts for nothing. Well, not really nothing. I took him over to Neils cafe and bought him the lunch special. Anyway, It was one of those deals you luck into sometimes. All in all it was a damp and drab day here in the hills. I couldn't ride today, but, just as soon as I get home I can bolt a few things on.
Catch ya on the road
mail: bikin_ridin@yahoo.com
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
6/2/09
365 Group (f)
This morning I was sort of running a little behind. I had planned on taking the long way in this morning and having breakfast out on the road. Since I was a little behind I grabbed a Bacon biscuit at the corner gas station and hit the road.
Heading east I had the road all to myself till I got just outside Hindsville. As I came up on the old 412 merge I laid on the throttle and leaned in to run on up to the new 412 intersection. About half way into my merge I noticed there were several slow moving cars coming my way and figured that there was Trooper up ahead. Topping the hill at the intersection I came upon some farm equipment that was slowing folks down. Glad it wasn't an early morning accident or a Trooper.
Heading back west I ran up to about seventy and just kind of held there. This stretch of 412 is fairly new and is still pretty smooth riding. I had adjusted my chain yesterday afternoon and it made for a smother ride. The bridge across the lake was the only rough spot that I noticed.
Before I knew it I was coming into Springdale. Traffic started getting heavier and at the last moment I hit the spur and made a detour down by the livestock auction and through the old part of town traffic on these back streets hadn't picked up yet. If it weren't for the traffic lights I wouldn't have had anything to complain about.
Pulling into a gas station I got a cup of coffee and sat on my bike and ate my Biscuit. It was good. Several bikes roared by and waved. I waved my coffee cup back at them. Seemed that this was starting out a good day.
Catch ya on the road
This morning I was sort of running a little behind. I had planned on taking the long way in this morning and having breakfast out on the road. Since I was a little behind I grabbed a Bacon biscuit at the corner gas station and hit the road.
Heading east I had the road all to myself till I got just outside Hindsville. As I came up on the old 412 merge I laid on the throttle and leaned in to run on up to the new 412 intersection. About half way into my merge I noticed there were several slow moving cars coming my way and figured that there was Trooper up ahead. Topping the hill at the intersection I came upon some farm equipment that was slowing folks down. Glad it wasn't an early morning accident or a Trooper.
Heading back west I ran up to about seventy and just kind of held there. This stretch of 412 is fairly new and is still pretty smooth riding. I had adjusted my chain yesterday afternoon and it made for a smother ride. The bridge across the lake was the only rough spot that I noticed.
Before I knew it I was coming into Springdale. Traffic started getting heavier and at the last moment I hit the spur and made a detour down by the livestock auction and through the old part of town traffic on these back streets hadn't picked up yet. If it weren't for the traffic lights I wouldn't have had anything to complain about.
Pulling into a gas station I got a cup of coffee and sat on my bike and ate my Biscuit. It was good. Several bikes roared by and waved. I waved my coffee cup back at them. Seemed that this was starting out a good day.
Catch ya on the road
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