New Chain for a Whole New Machine

On Saturday I had a new chain and sprockets put on the Triumph. All I can say is it's incredible how much a bad chain will decrease your riding enjoyment. Suddenly the Speed Four is a whole hell of a lot more fun.

Partly to celebrate the joy of a smoothly operating machine, and partly because I realized I haven't gone out riding for fun in a really, really long time, I decided Sunday would be an awesome day to ride out to Tortilla Flat. I forgot that it was Father's Day, and every dad in the world would have permission to take his boat to Canyon Lake. Oops.

So, kind of a slow ride behind a lot of boats. I'd been hoping to reduce the width of my chicken strips a bit, but no such luck. Between slowbies ahead of me, and trucks crossing the center line coming towards me, I was focused on not having a high-energy meeting with a couple tons of steel more than getting my knee down.

Of course, it was still fun because the road to Tortilla flat is spectacular, and a quick 70 mile ride will always put a smile on my face. Even more so with a nearly silent, smooth new chain on the bike. I have to admit, I may have ridden a little faster than I needed to here and there...

Riding To The Doctor

Utter incredulity. That's was the expression the nurse wore when I stomped into the clinic this morning with my gear on, carrying my helmet. Apparently, not many folks in Phoenix have the grit to ride to the doctor's office.

I've heard a bunch of stories about doctors giving motorcyclists long lectures about their choice of transportation, and was wondering if I'd get to experience a "murdercycle" lecture during one of my appointments.

During the last couple of weeks, I've actually been to a couple of different medical offices and, naturally, I rode to each appointment. At each, I half-expected an anti-motorcycling lecture, but apparently when I responded, "every day," to the question "So you ride a motorcycle?" they decided I was a lost cause.

Well, that's not strictly true. One of the nurses told me that "a lot of people" don't like bikers. I wanted to say, "Nuts to them," but she was holding a rather long needle at the time, so I decided it might be best if I were diplomatic.

Luckily, we quickly got back to the topic of my immediate health and away from the dangers of motorcycles. I've tried explaining to people that, statistically speaking, it's mainly old, drunk guys that don't ride often who get killed, but they never listen.

Anyway, the good news is that I survived the trips to the doctor unscathed, because it would be terribly ironic to have a nasty wreck on my way to or from a medical office...

Just For Giggles Is A Perfectly Valid Reason For Early Morning Hooliganism

Some mornings, a biker just needs to lean his motorcycle way the hell over through a left turn and see how high of an exit speed he can achieve. And some mornings, that biker also needs to lean way the hell over through a right turn and see how high of an exit speed he can achieve while staying in the rightmost lane.

Yeah, dragging a knee in office clothes isn't the best idea when you've got a morning meeting with clients, but sometimes a little extra grime and a bit of fraying that wasn't there yesterday is exactly what a rider needs to break free of existential gravity, as Gary calls it.

At the very least, it's worth a shot. There's nothing like a little dose of freedom to help you stay sane on your way in to the office.

A couple of hard turns with excessive lean certainly helped me stay awake a while longer than I would have had I ridden at a more leisurely pace this morning. Accelerating hard up the on ramp into traffic even loosened up my concrete scowl enough to let a small smile break through.

And that is why riding to work is awesome.

Just One More Reason Motorcycles Are Better Than Cars

Motorcycles can entertain at dinner parties.

Getting Another Triumph?

So the other night, Lady Luck suggested that we take the Vespa ET4 as well as the Vespa GTS over to Phoenix International Motorsports and trade them both in towards a Triumph Bonneville.

And I can't come up with a good reason for not doing it, apart from the cash difference setting us back in the plan to get her a newer car. Of course, setting us back from getting the car could be a good enough reason. Maybe P.I.M. has a used Bonneville that we could do a straight-across trade for.

Hm.

Playing Musical Motorcycles before Sunrise

So I rolled the Triumph out of the garage today, and when I went back in to lock up, I noticed a new puddle of oil where the bike had been sitting.

Awesome.

Now, I could have taken the ET4 to work, but honestly, three days of riding that thing and I remember why I like fast bikes so much. And besides the GTS needed a run this week, right?

Unfortunately, getting the GTS out of the garage required shuffling all the bikes around. A bit of a pain. Anyway, bikes shuffled and put back in their proper spots, I got the garage closed up and hopped on the big Vespa.

It needed gas. Argh.

None of this is actually an issue (apart from the oil leak...), except it was too early in the morning for all this tomfoolery. Hopefully, moving motorcycles around will be the biggest problem I encounter today.

Spreading The Good Word

There is a woman who rides an older black and teal (with matching seats) Honda Shadow in to work just about every day. I've chatted with her a couple of times and she seems pretty cool.

The other night as I was getting my helmet secured, she looked over the ET4 (her expression said, "how many bikes does this guy have?"), and asked me if I have a car I use when it rains.

A car? For something minor like rain?

It took me a second to gather my thoughts. I mean, obviously I've got a car. I just don't use it for getting around unless I absolutely have to.

Now, I don't give smart-assed answers to honest questions. So I told her about my magical rain gear (prevents water from coming within two blocks of me!), and that I don't let a little water stop me.

I'd guess she thought I was only a little bit crazy.

Buzzing About On the Vespa ET4

So I've got this Vespa ET4 for sale...

It just kind of sits there, sulking, in my garage. It's pissed off because it's not getting ridden.

Today, it got to go outside and play. Nothing major, just running a few errands. But a run is a run.

I can't get over how much fun the little bike is to ride. For some reason the 150cc motor sounds tough. It's not nearly as quick off the line as the GTS, but it feels like it'll roll at 50mph all day without complaining.

I think I might ride it to work a couple days this week...

Fast Motorcycles Will Save Your Soul

I can't think of another activity quite as good for one's overall mental and spiritual health as regular motorcycle rides.

Maybe it's the inherent risk. Maybe it's the need to be aware and living in the moment. Maybe it's the thrill of being a part of the scene instead of watching it through a window.

Maybe it's just fun. Fun is underrated in our society. Everybody claims to be looking for it, or is attempting to sell it, but no one seems to be having any. We go to work every day at jobs that, on the whole, suck. Then we go home and stress out about whatever it is we're stressed about. Our jobs. Taxes. Bills. Death. We feel guilty about taking our vacation time, to the point that a ridiculous number of people allow their employers to call and demand their time while on vacation! And that's if they take a vacation in the first place. I know a bunch of my co-workers have so much vacation time saved up that they lose it at the end of the year. What's that about?

Fun is important. It's widely accepted that laughter is good for us. That's because laughing is fun. If you can't bring yourself to have fun, it is a sign that something is very wrong. Fun is food for your spirit. I'm not advocating an irresponsible, hedonistic lifestyle*, just a regular time out from drudgery to do something fun.

And a fast motorcycle** is fun.

I know a lot of you folks are ice-bound right now. If you're not inclined to install spikes on your tires and get out riding, I can respect that. You're welcome to haul your bike down here, by the way. I know some great roads. I won't even tease you about trailering your bike.

Anyway, if you're grounded for the time being, I hope you've got something fun going on. Because life is too important to waste it without a little fun.


*I am, however, firmly in favor of responsible hedonism.
**Slow motorcycles are also fun.

Motorcycle Dealerships Are Dangerous, Dangerous Places

Have you seen the new Triumph Scrambler in person? Good God is that a hot bike.

Also hot: the Speed and Street Triples, Thruxton and, well, pretty much every other bike they make.

And then there's Ducati. Oh, Ducati, how you tempt me. I had a seat on the new Streetfighter and just have to say: WANT.

Oh, also hot is the O.D. green Stella.

I really have to stop going to dealerships.

Motorcycles Make the World a Better Place

I believe every time I swing a leg over the seat of my motorcycle, I'm making the world a better place.

Yes, really.

Mahatma Gandhi said "Be the change you want to see in the world." I'm not so bold as to compare myself to Gandhi, but I'll take what I can from his wisdom and apply it to my own life. And maybe, if I'm bold enough to do that, other people will too.

You know what I was to see in the world? People unafraid to go for what they want, unafraid to take a calculated risk, people unafraid to have fun. Fun is a social good.

I like to think, and maybe I'm crazy, that I've inspired one or two people to dust off the bikes they've got in the garage and get them out on the road. I know I've helped a couple people taking those first steps to being an awesome biker and even motorcycle commuters. I like to talk to folks when I'm out riding or walking around in my gear, and I hope they walk away glad they talked to me.

I like waving to kids. Have you seen their eyes light up when they see a motorcycle? It's because they haven't been burdened with thoughts of "being realistic" or "being safe." They just know a good time when they see one. A few of those kids might grow up to be bikers. Or, they might at least do their best not to run us down in their SUVs.

And what's up with the obsession with safety, anyhow? I'm tired of people telling me to be safe. Safety this, safety that. Look, I've got a helmet on my noggin, I'm wearing protective gear, and I've been trained to ride this thing. I don't ride like an idiot. I'm as safe as I can be, and I don't want to be any safer. Safety is an illusion. Total safety is a padded room you lock yourself in. You'll be just as dead if you get killed in a car, but you won't have had nearly as much fun along the way.

So maybe some people think I'm nuts riding in the extremes of Phoenix weather. Some people might think I'm nuts riding to work every day. A few people probably think I'm nuts for having a motorcycle. And there are some who just think I'm nuts.

But there are hopefully always going to be a few out there who see me and get inspired to do what they've always wanted to do.

And that makes the world a better place, I think.

Tornado Warning? Let's Go Riding!

Those of you living in states with actual weather that changes from day to day might not know that Phoenix has been having some delightfully rainy, windy, stormy weather.*

Yesterday morning, it was actually raining outside. Naturally, I put on my terrible, awful, no-fun-at all rain gear. After 10 minutes of struggle to get into my rainsuit, the zipper on the jacket broke. Luckily, the velcro flap that goes over the zipper is strong, because there was no way I was taking it all off again after all that effort.

The ride in to the office was a bit wet, but not bad. The ride home, though... ho ho! Plenty of rain, and more importantly, lots of wind.

Riding across constant wind and rain, in my crazy opinion, is a heck of a lot of fun. You get to lean into the weather and it just feels so... purposeful. It's like being an explorer, only at the end of the trip is hot pizza and dry pants instead of hungry cannibals and scurvy.

So this morning, I rode in to work - of course - in the rain. And everyone in the office stopped by to ask how the ride was today and, more importantly, yesterday.

Here in Phoenix, people aren't accustomed to things like inclement weather. What could I have been thinking going out there with nothing but a polyester rainsuit and a helmet to protect me from the elements?

Well, between you and me, I was thinking "WHEEEE!"

Last night there was an honest-to-God tornado warning in my area. I didn't know about it, of course. We were advised to go to the basement. What basement? There are no basements in Phoenix. And besides, had I known there was a real tornado warning, I would have been compelled to go outside and watch!

I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. Maybe it's a Minnesotan thing, but whenever there's a storm, Lady Luck and I will go outside and, sure enough, our neighbors from Minnesota are all out with us watching the sky.

Safe? Probably not. Wise? Certainly not.

Fun? Oh yeah.

So, if you need to find me during inclement weather... chances are I'll be out in it, loving every minute.


*I told Irondad thanks for bringing it, by the way

Causing Trouble Again

So it would seem that I've successfully repaired the oil leak on the Triumph. There were no puddles of oil under the bike this morning, which is just how I like it...

Anyway, after a couple of weeks on the Vespa, getting back on the Speed Four is kinda... exhilarating. What can I say? I like fast motorcycles.

So after riding a more leisurely bike, it's very, very tempting to get into all sorts of trouble.

Especially when some guy in his car wants to race. I love it when people in cars want to race. Usually, I don't actually indulge in my urges to whack open the throttle and leave behind a hazy outline of myself that can still outrun some doofus in his pick 'em up.

But a cager who wants to race a motorcycle is just begging to be messed with. Although I wouldn't do this - because it would be dangerous as well as foolish - here is what I sorely want to do:

1. Doofus indicates desire to race in usual way (getting next to me and hanging out, then keeping pace when I speed up to get my safety cushion back)
2. I get into full tuck and speed up the tiniest bit, just to get doofus hooked
3. Doofus tries to pass, and I keep pace as we accelerate
4. I let him get the tiniest bit ahead, then pull up next to him/slightly ahead
5. Repeat step 4 several times so doofus thinks we're really racing now
6. Look over and make eye contact with doofus
7. Wink
8. Downshift and watch doofus vanish in my rear view mirrors

So maybe I won't really do it, but it's sure a fun dream...