Sep 18, 2006

not a virgin anymore...

well, i officially taught my first class this weekend... and it went very well. but that's about all i'm going to say about the class itself and instructing. after thinking about it a bit, there is a certain image we're supposed to uphold. that being the case, and me not necessarily wanting to confine the content here, i've decided not post more about teaching... doesn't mean i might not post about antic dotes or certain aspects of the class - i just won't go into boring detail like i usually do!!!

speaking of boring details - sunday's ride to and from class was a reminder of the brotherhood of bikers... there's just some connection you make with other people on two wheels when you're cruising along. people are friendlier, more interested in taking the time to talk, or help should you need it.

i left the house about 0600, heading for smithfield. the road i take is pretty much two lanes the whole way - which makes riding there extremely nice. not even ten minutes out, there's a biker behind me. what are the chances?? here it is, six in the morning, two lane, rural road and another biker.

as he's following behind, conversations start in your head - wonder where he's (or she's) going, wonder what they're riding, wonder what they're doing out so early, etc. soon enough, we come to a red light and he pulls up next to me. we exchange hellos and i soon find out that he's a cork-maker in zebulon and he's on his way to work. he literally lives around the corner from me. we ride together for a bit longer. stop at another light and talk some more. the nice thing about traveling together so early in the morning is you can chat a little longer when the light turns green because no one is around. and we do... we ride together until we pass through zebulon - then he turns off to head to work. i'll probably never see him again - although every time i ride down his street, i'm looking for him and his bike.

on the way back home, heading north towards zebulon, i pass another biker... after i pass, he turns onto the road behind me. i slow a little, trying to close the distance between us... however, he seems to keep his distance - a constant distance. as i speed up, so does he. as i slow down, so does he... we finally get a red light in zebulon and he pulls up beside me. as we're exchanging hellos, i do a double take... donnie?!?!?! sure is... of course with a full face helmet on, he's not quite sure who i am... i tell him my name, remind him we rode to the smoke out together in june... then the light bulb goes off in his head. about that time the light turned green - unfortunately, he turned at the next light and i was going straight. short conversation...

it's amazing the people and friends you meet when you're out riding... and this is what makes riding so great...

Sep 17, 2006

flashing high beams...

and not of the female kind!!!

rode in dark a couple times this weekend... seems everyone like everyone thinks i ride with my high beams on - and want to remind me by flashing their high beams at me. or worse yet, just leaving their high beams on.

i usually ride with my running lights on. which, i will admit, throws a lot of light. and i like primarily for two reasons - one it helps me see better. two, it helps other people see me better. so, i will continue to ride with them on. and i guess i will subject myself to having cages flash their high beams at me.

when people flash their high beams at me, i used to flash mine back at them. this was okay, but usually left me fumbling around a little for the switch and sometimes i was a little late in blasting the cages back. but i've decided to take a slightly different tact. since i know the lights are bright, and a lot of cagers aren't, i'll let them flash me once. if they do it again, i'll flash mine back at them. if they leave theirs on, then, obligingly, i'll turn mine on. seems fair to me...

anyway, the next time someone flashes their high beams at me, i would prefer it to be of the female kind...

Sep 15, 2006

today's the day...

i finally go live with motorcycle training... i've helped out on a couple classes, but this time it's all me. well, not quite all me, me and someone else. but this will be the first time actually teaching my own class. i'm really looking forward to it. the weather has been awesome today - which means i'll definitely ride the bike to smithfield. i'll have to make sure i pack the lining for my jacket - once the sun goes down, i'm sure the temp will follow.

i'm a little nervous about tonight - but i don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. it will make sure that i take a little time and think about what i need to take and what i need to teach. don't want to be taking things for granted. also, since this is my first time teaching, there will be a lot of administrative stuff i have to clue in to - like signing the contract, filling out the correct paperwork for the students, etc.

well - i guess i'm just rambling here and not really saying much - at least i don't think i'm saying much... guess i'll head out of here and fill you in later...

Sep 11, 2006

tragedy...

a week ago today billy lane, a custom motorcycle builder hit and killed a fellow motorcyclist, as reported by florida today. it's a sad story all the way around... i'm not sure where to start, other than noting the saddest part is the death of gerald morelock.

when something like this happens, the death of a biker caused by the wrongful actions of a cager, the cager usually gets off with a fine for the traffic violation. for example, if a cage makes a left hand turn in front of a biker and kills the biker, the cager is usually just charges with failure to yield the right of way and slapped with a fine. obviously this doesn't sit well with the biker community - which the ama is trying to do something about...

unfortunately this time a biker did it to another biker. through negligence, billy lane, in his cage, was passing two other vehicles on a double yellow line. before he could get back into his own lane, he hit the gerald head on - killing him. those are the facts. there's still speculation whether billy was drinking or not and the tox reports have yet to come back.

looking back on billy's past, i, unfortunately, have to believe he was drinking when this happened. i've seen billy four times in person, each time i've seen him, he's been drinking. no, that doesn't mean he rides after drinking. but i can't imagine he's the type to let someone else cart him around after he's tipped a few. not only that, when he was in town for the smoke out, he was arrested on charges of drunk driving, riding on the wrong side of the road and riding without a helmet. it would seem that billy might have learned from this earlier episode. but he didn't, at least not with his reckless driving behavior. and so it follows that he probably didn't with drinking either.

there's so much speculation about what should happen now. rightfully so, nothing will happen until the tox reports come back. if they show he's been drinking, he'll probably have the book thrown at him. what if they come back clean?? should he get the slap on the wrist and the fine?? should he get charged with something more serious for killing a biker??

and what should billy do?? a lot of people say he should do the right thing. but what is the right thing?? should he try to help out the family for the damage he's caused?? should he let the legal system handle it all?? at a minimum he should give up drinking and driving/riding. since he's been lying low, it's hard to know what he's doing. and i don't blame him - he's under a microscope right now and no matter what he does, someone will criticize him for it. at a minimum, he's got to live the rest of his life knowing he took another biker's life. and that's truly sad.

only time will play the rest of this story out. and not matter how it plays out, nothing will put all the pieces back together again. maybe the third saddest part of all this is stuff like this probably happens daily - we just don't hear about it because a famous bike builder or media star usually isn't involved.

peace out...

Sep 6, 2006

cool weather...

went to the hog meeting tonight. actually, since i hadn't been out in a while i wanted a reason to go out and ride... not that i really need a reason, i just feel less guilty about taking off and leaving the family behind...

the meeting was pretty much the usual same-ol-same-ol... well, they did talk about the rally in raleigh - capital city bike fest on september 29/30. it was basically and advertisement for the rally and a plea for volunteers. i'll probably end up helping out friday night. would like to go saturday as well, but will probably set aside some time to spend with the family - maybe take a trip or something...

like i mentioned earlier, the real reason to go to the meeting was get out and ride. and what a great night for a ride - cooler temps. after getting home, i was thinking i should have just blown the meeting off and ridden the whole time!!! it's nice to have the cooler weather here. i'd much rather ride in cooler weather and have to bundle up in layers. there's something about being wrapped up in warm layers and feeling the cool air seep in... i love this time of year. ahhhh hell, i like just about any time of year as long as i can ride!!!