northeast mc expo…

went to the northeast mc expo in fredericksburg a couple weekends ago… the show seems to be getting smaller – most likely due to the crappy economy. was a good time, though, mostly because we hung out with friends.

pirates seemed to be the theme in the bike show this year… some pretty cool designs…

various other bikes…

a few from gravesend cycles…

a ‘47 knucklehead…

an autopsy themed bike…

even some cool custom sport bikes from custom cycle works…

family and friends… hell, with these guys, they’re all family…

and the after party at hooters….

frank handing out balloons to his valentines…

the little guy getting all the girls…

more fun and games…

sunday loop…

had a chance to take a short ride today… pretty much unexpected since i wasn’t really planning to ride today.

i decided to make some guacamole today and needed to go to the store to pick up the necessary ingredients. it was in the 40s, sun was shining, so i decided to take the bike… while i was gearing up, my wife suggested i stretch it out a little and take a longer ride. sounds good to me…

i needed to gas up the bike first, which ended up being a good thing. when i geared up, i decided, against common sense, to put on my chaps and wire up the ‘letrics. while i was okay making a short trip to the gas station or grocery, i have never made it on a longer ride.

after putting gas in the bike, i threw on the chaps and decided not to mess with the ‘letrics. that was a semi-good choice. definitely needed the chaps and would have been more comfortable with the gloves wired up. note to self, when in doubt, opt to stay warmer.

the tank was topped off and i was ready to roll… question was where?? i didn’t necessarily want to do the lake loop that seems to have become a ritual first ride of the year, but i didn’t want to just putz around town either… i decide to head up to the lake, but through louisburg.

i’m absorbing the scenery as i’m riding along the back roads. while the countryside is beautiful, i take notice of the run down houses, the old farms that are now for sale… i wonder how much of this is progress setting in?? how much of it is a reflection of our economy?? when will it get better?? will it get better??

as i approach louisburg, there’s a bit of new construction. housing, retail, new ground being broken. now i’m thinking maybe there is hope. maybe things aren’t really that bad… who knows??

all i really know is that i’ve been fortunate so far… it’s times like these i realize i should focus less on what i don’t have and be thankful for what i do have… i’m able to top off the tank and head out for the afternoon; i' have a roof over my head; i’m able to provide for my family; i have a wonderful family; i have an awesome wife…

about now, i’m heading into henderson, i’m missing my wife. i blow off the lake and point the bike back home. with a short stop, of course, at the grocery for ingredients.

it wasn’t a long ride, less then a hundred miles. but it was enough.

you can check out the 2009 ride map to see the route - this one in blue...

senate bill 22 - omnibus public lands bill…

from the american motorcyclist web site:

The U.S. House of Representatives could vote as early as next week on a wide-ranging bill that could shut off-highway motorcyclists and all-terrain vehicle riders out of more than 2 million acres of public land.

"This bill was on the fast-track in the U.S. Senate and passed swiftly earlier this year without public scrutiny or debate," said Ed Moreland, AMA vice president for government relations. "The measure is now being steamrolled through the U.S. House without giving the public an opportunity to fully digest its impact and debate the many provisions in the bill."

Moreland called on all AMA members, off-highway motorcyclists, ATV riders and everyone who supports responsible outdoor recreation to immediately contact their Congressional representative and ask them to reject the bill. The measure should be defeated because it unreasonably bans motorized recreation on 2.1 million acres of public land by inappropriately designating it as Wilderness, and because the procedures used for fast-tracking the bill through the U.S. Senate and House violate the spirit of open and democratic government.

take action (quickly) here…

easyriders bike show – charlotte…

went to the easyriders bike show in charlotte this weekend with the family… had a good time, saw lots of cool bikes and even talked to paul yaffe about the zebra skin lining in the tour-pak of one of his baggers…. he wasn’t sure if it was real or not, but for the cost, it should be!!!

first up was checking out the centerfold bikes… our favorite bike was built with a sideways engine from tempest cycles. apparently they started to use a snowmobile engine and transmission but discovered they needed to use a v-twin engine. to accommodate the snowmobile transmission, they had to mount the engine sideways. pretty cool…

 

the other centerfold bikes – in no particular order…

john dodson’s gangster choppers

 

 skunkworx custom cycle

 

the chopp shop

 

roadhawgs

 

some other bikes around the show that caught our attention…

 

i thought behind this tribute bike is great – i just think it’s a little overboard…

 

a couple of shirts for my wife…

a skull for my son…

world’s fastest indian…

big al and hayley from caronlina cruiser tv…

and to top it all off, a couple getting married in front of three hundred and fifty of their (not so) closest friends…

chili today…

finally got around to taking my first ride of the year… ray price was having their polar bear run and chili cook-off today, so i decided to head down there…

the problem with the polar bear run, and it seems to happen each year, is the weather doesn’t turn out to be polar bear weather. which really isn’t a bad thing. it got into the 60s today, which made for some really great riding. and in hindsight, i probably should have taken a longer ride through the country rather than head downtown…

although, with the chili cook-off, i can’t say it was the wrong choice. we got to taste from eleven different entries, some really good and, well, some not so good. two or three were really bad, i couldn’t finish the small helping i had. most were average with three really standing out. i did manage to get seconds of those so i could do a final run off to make my choice. all three had great flavor, but i think it was the versatility of the one chili i liked the most. i could see myself eating it by itself as a meal or throwing it on top of a couple hot dogs…

i tried to get a couple pictures… unfortunately it was my first day with a different camera and i was having problems taking pictures. turns out i was in video mode and have a lot of footage of the ground. here’s what i was able to get…

so after filly my belly with chili, it was time to head home… wife needed me to pick up some stuff for dinner and on the way to the store, i passed one of the most beautiful (inanimate) sites i’ve ever seen…

first, some background… there’s been some new construction around one of the nearby gas stations… i’ve been trying to figure out what it could be. the footprint is very similar to bojangles, but too narrow in my opinion. so for a couple weeks i’ve been trying to figure out what it could be… of course they won’t put a sign in front to help anyone out…

and today, the mystery was revealed!!! a good ol waffle house!!

what a great day for riding it turned out to be…

2009 rides

routes:
------ 02/15/2009 - sunday ride around - little loop
------ 05/15-16/2009 - smoke out x - rockingham, nc
------ 05/22-25/2009 - rolling thunder xxii - washington, dc
------ 07/03/2008 - matthew's first ride - nc and va
------ ride to drag races (coming soon)
------ ride with wife (coming soon)
------ 10/17/2009 - saddlesore 1000 - nc, sc, ga, fl

28063

starting the year with just over 28k... i put on a little over 8000 miles last year, more than i expected. most of those came from trips that were unplanned and just presented themselves as great riding opportunities. i think those can make the best memories.

this year, i don't really have too much planned, the usual smoke out... other than that, i nothing really set. although there are some trips i'd like to accomplish. like riding the blue ridge parkway, a trip to georgia to attend a wedding, an iron butt, the world traveler to name a few. most of all, i think i would like to ride more with my wife. we always have fun...

so just sit back and let's see what happens...