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Showing posts from June, 2016

GOE XX, Day Five: Back Home Again in Indiana

June 22nd, 2016 The Hoosier State continued to wrap us in a hug of grey clouds. Kasey and I awoke from our slumber in our bed at the Hilton Garden Inn, and made ourselves ready for breakfast with as little effort as we could. We made our way down to the lobby, and besides the aroma of the morning meal, we were also greeted by other Cruiser Club Members. We spent the time eating and talking, and most of the morning slipped away. Tuesday had two rides planned, one to Grissom Air Force Base, the other group was going out to wonder around and get lunch. Since we had recently visited Grissom, and the threat of heavy rain, Kasey and I opted for the lunch ride. I would talk more about the country side in Indiana, but our eyes were more to the skies, since they seemed to thicken, and it was only a matter of time before the rain was squeezed out. We were able to make it to lunch, and then decided to just head back to the hotel rather than chance any other miles. We stayed dry for most o

GOE XX, Day Four: The Final, Wet Leg.

June 20th, 2016 From the time we arose from bed at my parent's house on the north side of Indianapolis it appeared the theme for the day would be rain. After all it was Indiana, and while leaving under Carolina Blue Skies, we often remarked about the grey that held in Hoosier Skies for what seemed like everyday. After breakfast, we loaded up the bike with lots of of items from Kasey's Explorer, and suited up with our rain gear. It was not wet out yet, but we knew we were going to hit it soon anyway. We started heading north on Westfield Boulevard into the city of Carmel. When I grew up her, Carmel was only town. I'm happy to say it has grown out more than I have over the years, and ballooned in a sprawling city suburb. Where field of corn use to grow, the area is covered with pavement, concrete and brick. At 116th Street, we turn right, and head east. These are roads I have actually been on thousands of times. When I was a teenager, I cruised my 1972 Mustang along t

GOE XX, Day Two: The Things I see in Kentucky

Sunday, June 19, 2016: Father's Day Day Two of heading to Gathering of Eagles, Cruiser Club, USA's Annual Gathering, held this year in Fort Wayne, Indiana is still kind of a Blue Collar mile day, but it will be much more enjoyable. We started the morning by heading out of our hotel and crossing Interstate 75. We would see far fewer super slabs today. Our bellies were full, and my Honda VTX 1800c, as well as my chase vehicle, with Kasey and her daughter Rose inside, needed full tanks to start the day. So we set out heading west on the Russell Dyche Memorial Highway. A quick Google Search yielded that Russell was a local journalist during the early two thirds of the 20th Century. He was also a conservationist, and gave part of his salary to create an area park. I would say that is worthy of having a stretch of road named after you. The road sweeps back and forth through Kentucky foothills and leads us to Somerset. Her we start heading north on Highway 27. In Danville, Ken

GOE XX, Day One: Tunneling to Tennessee

Saturday, June 18th, 2016 Day One of the trip to Gathering of Eagles, Cruiser Club, USA's annual gathering, is often a blue collar day, or a turn and burn day. The point is to get some miles behind me, and have fewer on the day or days that follow. Also on this trip, I had Kasey, not in the seat behind me, but in her car with her daughter. If you do the math, you will see I couldn't get three people on one bike, let alone all the luggage. We left Locust, North Carolina on Highway 24/27 heading west. The sun was rising behind us, and the June air was already warm. It was a Saturday, so traffic was not too heavy, except for everyone heading to Lake Norman. We would follow that flow of traffic on to the Outer Loop of 485. Going counter clock-wise, we would go from the three o'clock position to nine, and take the ramp for Interstate 85. One of the few times you will hear me riding on a interstate. As I said, blue collar miles. Near King's Mountain, we split off the Inte

Why All The Questions?

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Originally published in Southeastern Rider Magazine, June 2016 Most of us have had to state this answer: “If I have to explain it to you, you wouldn’t understand.” I have said it, and I know a lot of fellow riders who have made it their go to answer for the question: “Why do you ride a motorcycle?” I have been riding since I was five years old, so the answer listed above is as good an answer as any. I do remember that the freedom, and the thrill I feel today was not there. It could have been that my parent’s front yard didn’t offer a lot of freedom, and the thrill was replaced with the amount of concentration I needed to just stay upright. I remember trying to perfect the art of turning. I would go straight across the front yard, turn the handle bars, lean over, and fall right on the ground. I didn’t waste time with embarrassment or wiping off the new grass stains, instead, I would just pick up the Honda Trail 50, turn it around, kick start the engine and head back across the yard.