smoke out 8...

took the annual trip to salisbury to attend the smoke out... this year there was some controversy over whether the rally was going to he held or not. the city/county commissioners passed a new law that alcohol couldn't be served on county owned property - which includes the fairgrounds. the county was saying they weren't going to issue the alcohol permit. the smoke out organizers said they had to because the contract was in place before the new law passed. with all the hubbub, there was word vendors were pulling out and people weren't going to show. our crew decided if there was a smoke out, we'd be there - alcohol or not.

the weekend started out the same - everyone showing up friday night. which really means it starts earlier here because my wife starts days ahead to get all the food ready. speaking of wife - this year was going to be especially fun since my wife decided to go. i was pretty excited about that...

friday night and people start showing up. they decided to show up in two groups this year - guess work was getting in the way for some people. that's when i had my infamous incident with the fender... we always pack our garage full of bikes - we had about ten or eleven bikes showing up this year. i decided to move my bike forward about two feet to make more room. not picking up the kickstand, i push it forward the two feet, positioning the front tire perfectly next to the lawn mower. i start to get off and the bike heads over on its side. seems when i pushed it forward, the kickstand picked up just enough that it wouldn't engage when i tried to us it. over went the bike, front fender crashing into the lawn mower. not only did it scratch the paint, it put a nice little crease in the fender. i was upset for about ten minutes until i realized it could have been a lot worse. in addition, it is only a motorcycle. the worse part was the rest of the weekend, and still sometimes, they call me freddy fender...



friday night was filled with eating and drinking, laughing and telling lies. which made saturday morning arrive even earlier. after eating some breakfast and drinking about ten pots of coffee, we're ready to head out... ride out was great - beautiful weather, traffic wasn't too bad and best of all, my wife was with me. it would be nice to take more trips with her... one day... off we went to the smoke out.





we get to the smoke out and park in our usual area. we hop off the bikes and settle in - having a couple of cold beverages, relaxing before heading into the mayhem known as the smoke out.




we wander around and check out the bikes in the build off.





stumble across some bikes by hank young.



and the ice cream man from hell...



compared to previous years, the smoke out was a bit of a disappointment. not nearly as many vendors and the crowd was quite small. it might be signaling the end of the smoke out - especially since they've been promoting a smoke out in the west. if they do have one next year, i'm sure we'll go. one thing for sure, it won't be held in salisbury - at least at the fairgrounds. if it goes, it was fun while it lasted. we'll just have to find another rally to attend. i can't imagine not having the gang down here hanging out, eating, drinking, laughing and lying. hell, we might just have to start our own rally...

on to more pictures... you can always check out the ride map, this one in blue.

'nother ride...

took a little ride around to a couple of the dealerships... had to head out to durham to pick up a check and to raleigh for the hog meeting. before leaving, i'm punching the locations into my gps. my wife is giving me a hard time because i'm taking my gps and i already know where i'm going. i figure i have it, i might as well use it.

ride out to durham was a nice, uneventful ride. let me say it was hot!! i could feel myself sweating even as the air was blowing through my jacket and cooling me off... i get to durham, take care of my business and head on to raleigh.

ride to raleigh was not quite as pleasant as i would have wanted. being in rush-hour traffic didn't help. i don't know if traffic around here is getting worse or if i'm just becoming less tolerant to it. we moved to the area from northern virginia - traffic up there is horrible. people complained about how bad traffic was down here, but compared to up there, it was nothing - heck, people were saying traffic was bad because five cars would get stuck at a light!!! as i was in the mix of rush hour traffic, i'm thinking about how congested it is. i don't know if that's because it truly is getting worse - which i'm sure it is. or if i'm just accustom to riding where there's less traffic and now i'm noticing it more. i'm sure the fact that i had a destination that i wanted to get to quickly didn't help my perception either.

i get to ray price and i notice the parking lot is rather empty - but i am a bit early for the hog meeting and the dealership is technically closed. so i mill around outside, packing away my jacket and helmet. there are two guys talking - both are employees. one guy obviously wants to complain about the level of service (or non-service) he's receiving. i could tell the way he started the conversation, he wanted to complain to the other guy - not that the other guy could have done anything about it. i didn't really pay much attention to the conversation in fear of being included. complaint-dood just wanted to complain and there wasn't anything anyone could do to make him feel better - short of the dealership fixing his bike to his expectation. i decided to keep my distance from that conversation...

i finally mill around to the front of the building and discover why it's so desolate... the hog meeting is taking place at lake wheeler!!! the good news is bbq is being served, the bad news is i'm late!!! even better news - the hard time my wife was giving me over the gps paid off!! i punch in the location for lake wheeler and i'm off.

as i'm riding over to the park, all i can think about is how hungry i am. of course the temptation of free food and the sixteen miles to the park wasn't helping. i was hoping there would be enough left for me to have a little - ole time barbecue was providing the food and it's always good. as i get there, they're scraping the last pieces off the pig - just in time for me to get some tasty morsels.

meeting was pretty much the same ol' meeting. talked about the events going on and then gave away some money. as far as events, the third annual capital city bikefest or, as it's sometimes referred to, the rally in raleigh, is going on at the end of september. should be a good time.

headed home after the meeting. for the first time in a long time, i decided not to ride with my jacket. felt a little under-protected at first, but the cool air made me quickly forget about that. the cooler air made the ride home a bit more enjoyable. sure beats sweating as you're riding. but if i had the choice of sweating while i'm riding or not riding - you know i'll be riding!!!

south carolina

in the catching up from earlier rides category, was in south carolina during bike week this year... unfortunately it wasn't myrtle beach... instead, i was near columbia for some training.

seeing the trip was rather short, i decided to ride down. trip down was rather uneventful - mostly interstate. left home and headed towards benson, nc where i met up with a fellow classmate. from there we rode to elgin, sc - non-stop since it was about a tankful of gas away. not too many problems on the interstate - the few, expected bozos making it dangerous, but if you're aware you can spot them.

on the way home, we decided to take rt 1. which was a little longer but much nicer ride. i was surprised because most of the trip seemed like two lane roads. for whatever reason, i was expecting more four lane, divided highway type roads. not complaining - it was a beautiful ride. made me wish we would have taken that route down... i guess you need to take the interstate every now and then to make you appreciate the other roads.

you can check out the 2007 ride map to see the route - this one in some sort of hard-to-see  green ...

a few pictures while i was in elgin. these were taken at the thunder tower dealership...





they even had a little putting green out front...



one of the older bikes for sale at the dealership...



me riding the ulysses xb12x while i was there...



packed up, ready to head home...



bone water - we were out for dinner one night and one of the guys started choking on his water. so the joke was there was a bone in his water...



one final observation... this guy cracked me up... remember, south carolina doesn't require helmets. so why is this guy wearing a full face helmet yet proceeding along in shorts, short sleeves and loafers?? seems if you're going to protect your noggin, you might as well protect the rest of your body...

detroit...

traveled to detroit this week... not by bike unfortunately... i did manage to squeeze in a visit to one of the local harley dealers. got a shirt and this shot...

17500 service...

here i am, taking the bike in for it's 17500 mile service - hard to believe. although it actually has closer to 18300 miles... it's been a very frustrating adventure - if i can call it that...

started out with the ride in - traffic wasn't too bad with the exception of one or two cages. since i was riding in the morning commute traffic, i was expecting to see (and avoid) a few bozos. they're usually easy to spot: reading the paper, on the cell phone, putting make-up on, shaving, still rubbing their sleepy eyes, trying to drink their hot coffee without spilling it in their laps, etc - we've all seen them... i'm cruising down the road - keeping with traffic but keeping a margin around me. then i get some asshole riding my tail. i've got nowhere to go - i'm in the left lane, cages to the right, cages in front. it's not like i'm holding traffic up. and he's got to be riding on my rear wheel. i tried looking back at him, thinking it might make him realize - nope, that didn't work. if i slowed any, he got closer. not what i needed this morning. eventually he was able to weave in and out of traffic and get in front. funny thing is i passed him a little later on. seems his cutting in and out of traffic got him stuck in a slow lane.

i make it to the dealership and talk to the service doods. seems my preferred customer plan has run out. last month!!! i explain to service dood that i called last month, explained that i was close to the 17500 mile service, had about 17200 on the clock, and was planning a trip. the trip would take me over the 17500, closer to 18000+. would that be a problem. they told me it wouldn't be a problem - besides, they were booked and wouldn't be able to get my in before the trip anyway. long story short - took trip, got fender fixed, called to schedule service, couldn't get me in for two weeks. i'm arguing they should give this service to me. i also throw in the fact that i thought the preferred program was until 2011 - that's what it has printed on my card, and i show handy dandy card. service dood explains that the program wasn't explained clearly and a lot of customers have that confusion. then it hits me - what about the rental bike?? that's usually included - now i'm going to have to pay for that too... he says hold on, he'll talk to a couple people and see what he can work out.

one thing i will mention, the service people at the dealership are super - they really go out of their way to help out. and this dood was certainly doing what he could to take care of me.

he comes back a little later and tells me the rental is taken care of. at least i can get home without a lot of hassle. he says he's still checking on the service and has to wait for someone else to come in. he says that no matter what, he's still going to service my bike as a preferred customer - prompt service, bike cleaning, etc. he preps the bike and i wait.

he comes back and tells me that i can renew my preferred customer plan. he quotes me a price and tells me what i've already saved being a member of the plan. without going into exact numbers, it's saved me over seven grand. i have to admit - it's been a great plan. i just wasn't expecting to drop that much money today.

now i have to go talk to underwriter dood. main dood isn't there, so i have to talk to assistant dood. he doesn't seem too friendly and quotes me a price twice as much as service dood. i about fall out of my seat. i tell him that's not what i was quoted. he asks if i talked to main dood. i tell him i talked to service dood who talk to someone else - that's how i got the price. in addition, i wasn't expecting to drop that kind of money and wouldn't be able to pay today. we work it out so that i can pay when i pick up the bike.

i get the rental bike and start my venture home, not happy... on the way home, some woman decides to try to run me out of my lane. she was oblivious to the fact that i was even on the road. i'm in the middle lane, a cage in front, a cage to the right, this woman to the left and, thankfully, someone not too close behind. the woman in the left just starts coming into my lane. i can't go into the right lane and i can't speed up past her. i start hitting the brakes and the horn, quickly moving to the right portion of the lane to avoid her running into me. i was able to slow down enough that by the time she was fully in my lane, i was behind her. i don't think she ever knew i was there - even after that little mishap. today's a day i'd be happy to park the bike and wait for another day to ride...

here's a pitcure of the rental bike i got this time - a 2007 softail custom. rides smoothly. i like the lower seating position. i don't like the position of the forward controls - they need to be out a little further for my liking.

another ride...

finally got out for a longer ride yesterday... it was between riding and cleaning - and believe me, my bike is pretty dirty right now. so instead of sitting around cleaning most of the day, i decided to ride. the other factor is that i'm taking it in for service tomorrow and they usually clean the bike for me. might as well let them do it and i'll enjoy riding. so off we went, destination: no where in particular.

i did say we - my father-in-law and me. i need to come up with a good nickname for him - i don't want to keep typing father-in-law. sometimes i call him old man, but that seems to be a bit cliche-ish. sometimes it's gramps. who knows, i'll come up with something...

i really enjoy riding with him. he loves to ride and is eager to head anywhere - except interstates. but that's just his style - he doesn't want to be on interstates even in his cage. he's fun to ride with - no matter where we go, where we stop, he's got something to say to someone. i know i'll have a day filled with laughs when i'm riding with him.

as usual, it was a good ride. i plotted the route to take us around a big circle. he wanted to stop at the lake, so i put that in. what i didn't realize at the time was how big i made the loop - guess i wasn't zoomed in as much as i thought i was. the only real problem with the longer ride today was he was riding home today - about a two hundred and fifty mile ride. i was worried the back-to-back long rides like that may be a bit much for him to handle.

anyway, off we went. ride was nice - found some new roads. spotted some places i should have pulled over and taken some pictures. gives me a reason to go back... while it was nice to ride, it was also good to get home - it was hot!!! one of those days you needed to keep moving. total ride came out to about one hundred and fifty miles - all but about twenty of it on two lane roads.

you can see the route we took on the ride map - this one in orangish red...

and here's one of the few pictures i got...

rocky mount...

in an effort to catch up on some of the rides i've taken...

back in may, i rode out to rocky mount... my brother and the guys were heading to myrtle beach for bike week and they overnight in rocky mount. since it's not too far from the house, i decided to ride out and see what's up... of course, i would have liked to have been going to bike week with them, but i was leaving sunday for a week in columbia, south carolina. i think if it would have been closer, i would have tried to make it out to myrtle beach one night - but that never happened.

i ended up spending the night in rocky mount and headed back saturday morning. i made an early start back on saturday, leaving before most of the guys were up. but it's probably a good thing, because it would have taken me forever to get out of there otherwise...

it was a nice ride out to see my brother - and i think he was a bit surprised to see me...

you can check out the 2007 ride map to see the route - this one in purple...

finally...

...got the bike back together and took it out for a ride. a very short ride, mind you - around the "block" which included a stop for gas. took it easy leaving the neighborhood mostly because i wanted to make sure the front brake was working before i got too far or too fast. by the time i got to the top of the neighborhood, i was fairly confident everything was back in working order - so off to enjoy the (short) ride...

it was great to be back on the bike again - even if it was less than thirty minutes. there's also something to be said for just having the bike in working/riding condition. even though i didn't have much time to ride while i had it apart, just knowing i couldn't take it out didn't feel right. it doesn't really matter if you have the time to ride or not, it's about being able to ride. and when you can't, it's a bummer.

the state of things...

well, it's been a while since i've posted... doesn't mean i haven't been out and about - just not taking the time to post... although lately i haven't been able to do much riding since my fender is under repair...
you'll find out more about what happened when i recap the trip to the smoke out in june. over the next couple days i also hope to post about the ride to the tail of the dragon, down to south carolina, rocky mount and maybe some others...

until then, peace...

msf videos

i did a quick search on youtube and found the videos from the msf... for being motorcycle safety awareness month and promoting videos on youtube, i was a little disappointed to only find three videos from the msf. you can find all three videos here... this is the only one i've watched so far:

motorcycle awareness month

today kicks off motorcycle awareness month. seems like the amount of effort being put into actually raising awareness varies from state to state. some states are going all out - well maybe not all out, but they seem to be making some effort. other states don't seem like they're doing anything.

the ama and msf are putting together a campaign to raise awareness. the ama has a humorous video on their web site. the msf is supposed to be putting videos up on youtube. i'll have to see if i can locate them...

the msf has come up with five rules for staying safe - actually ten rules, five for a motorcyclist and five for cages. here they are:

motorcyclists

• get trained and licensed - take an msf ridercourse and get licensed by the department of motor vehicles
• wear protective gear - wear proper protective riding gear, most importantly a helmet made to department of transportation standards
• ride unimpaired - ride unimpaired, never drinking or using other drugs before getting on a motorcycle
• ride within your limits - stay within your personal limits, never riding faster or farther than your abilities can handle
• be a lifelong learner - be lifelong learners, regularly returning for refresher riding courses

cages

• look out for motorcyclists - use your eyes and mirrors to see what’s around
• don't be distracted - hang up and drive, put down the food, the pet, the personal grooming gear, the cd, and the reading material and save it for later
• give two-wheelers some room - don't tailgate or get too close side-by-side
• use your turn signals - signal your intentions. it's also the law
• keep it in the car - don’t throw trash and cigarettes out the window, and securely lash down cargo that can fall out on the road and be a deadly hazard

there ya have it...

ride safe...

yikes!!!

guess it's been a while since i've posted - too long... instead of sitting here making excuses, i'll just say i've been busy - extremely busy. which has also affected the amount of time i've had to ride. i've been getting some riding in, although it hasn't been as much as i wanted.

i've been on a couple rides - most just short rides around here. the one most worth noting is probably taking my sister-in-law for a ride... she and her son were visiting for a drum-line competition and she stayed with us. she's ridden before and has been contemplating getting back into it. she also has a early 70s honda 350 that needs repairs and is another story... we were talking about motorcycles and riding and, of course, she wanted a ride.

we hopped on the bike and i took her for about a forty-five minute ride around the area - avoiding traffic and sticking to two-lane twisty roads. i think she was pretty excited and enjoyed the ride. i think it confirmed for her that she wanted to get back into biking.

since the alst time i've written, i also had the 15,000 mile service done on the bike. some people would consider that average mileage, some low mileage. i'm impressed by the number of miles on it. to me, i just never really imagined putting that many miles on my bike. and it makes me think about putting 50k or 100k on the bike. it'd be neat to put 100k on it. it's working out to about 5k a year. and each year i say i'm going to put more miles on. this year, i think i will...

i took the bike in to the dealer for the service. because of the time crunch i was in at work, i decided to leave it there and pick up a loaner. what a great deal and chance to try out a different bike. this time, i got an '07 fat boy.


it was a fun bike to ride. i liked the new engine - it definitely had more get-up-n-go. i'm sure part of it was the lighter weight of the bike (compared to mine) and the larger engine. i also like the seating position on the bike. of all the bikes i've gotten while mine has been serviced, i think this has been my favorite. i wish i would have had more time to ride it around.

one final note, which may seem like an odd place to post this but is connected to motorcycling, i got a lesson in pre-judging people. while i try not to do it, sometimes it just happens - i think we all do it. i came across a guy, a guy in his 50's, that could barely read and write. i started thinking to myself, how could someone get by in life barely being able to read and write?? why wasn't he motivated enough to make more of/for himself?? i just don't understand it. after working with him for two days, i had the opportunity to sit down and have a real conversation with him. he opened the door by saying, you know, i used to be able to read and write really well. back in the 70s, he was in an accident that left him paralyzed, basically a vegetable. doctors said he would never be able to walk again. here is today, walking around - you'd never know he was ever in a wheelchair or an accident. and he's progressed far enough to not only walk, but learn to ride a motorcycle. i had a brand new respect for him - and a little bit of embarrassment for myself because i was quick to jump to conclusions. looking back, i wish i would have gotten some contact information from him to stay in touch with him...

peace...

mc expo...

went to the northeast motorcycle expo this weekend... overall, the expo was okay... from a show perspective, they had a lot of variety in vendors - harley, ducati, honda, victory, suzuki, and some customs. they also had the usual merchandise vendors - leathers, parts, trailers, shirts, etc. sometimes it just seemed so chaotic there. but what really made it fun was my brother and in-laws decided to go with us.

i have to admit, the main draw of the expo, for me, was russell mitchell of exile cycles. i've always been a fan of his building style. so, when i have the chance to meet and talk to him, i try not to pass up the chance. of course i probably end up sounding like babbling idiot...

while i was talking to russell, he mentioned that he's heading down to daytona bike week to build another bike in a week. he said they're going to be taping the build for a show on tlc. wish i could remember the name of the show - it's supposed to air in april. anyway, he's building the bike for john mellencamp. after the build, john and russell are supposed to head off on a ride to the keys. damn - this makes me want to head to bike week even more... not to be this year, though. or for several years most likely...

one of my favorite bikes of russell's is the rx-streetfighter. if i had the cash - which i never will - this is one bike i would love to have...






one of the ducati dealers had the new 1098 at the show. pretty cool looking bike. was nice to actually see one after reading all the raving reviews.



what i can't figure out is what's leaking of of this bike....



saw a couple other "rides" that look like they might be fun to own...




not really much else to report from the show...