Posts

Showing posts from August, 2016

South Mountain State Park

Image
Saturday, August 27th, 2016 It is time to head out and earn another North Carolina State Park Passport. This time we are headed west to South Mountain State Park. Before the ride, we needed to fuel up ourselves, and that would start at a Wayside Restaurant. While we have discovered there is more than one eatery with this marque, we have also discovered that they are not created equal. Even though one would be on our way, we decided to head for the one in Stanfield, that just makes better food. For us, we were getting a pretty early start, as we had some ambitious miles in ahead of us today. Some of the hardest would be the first, running up Highway 200 to Highway 601, and then turning west to get passed Charlotte. State Road 73 would be the asphalt that would pass underneath us for quite some time. As we passed over Lake Norman, the cool air from on top of the water mixed with the warm air the sun was providing. At Lincolnton we moved on to State Road 182, and that would carry

Birthday Ride

Image
Sunday, August 7th, 2016 Not just any day, but this is my birthday - 48 years young/old, however you want to call it. Since I was about to embark on a day of miles on my motorcycle with my favorite riding partner, I will say young. Maybe immature might be a better descriptor. The mid-morning started out with the sky broken up with clouds, but the temperatures were good. There was a slight chance for liquid to fall from the sky, but we had hopes for the best. We met T-Bo at the Sunoco, and then headed out of Locust, North Carolina using Bethel Church and Coley Store Roads. At Mission Church we ran passed Running Creek Church, and then headed north for Millingport. We would this road through the town of the same name, and into Richfield. We veered off onto SR 49, and headed north and east. We stayed on the State Road, crossing the Yadkin River and then entering the Uwharrie National Forest. On the eastern edge of the National Forest, we turned right onto Slate Mine Road. The woo

Making A Run For The Border

Image
Originally published in Southeastern Rider Magazine, August 2016 Moving six hundred miles from the place that I had spent most of my life means that every trip that I take in my new home state of North Carolina is an adventure. When I lived in Indiana, I spent all but a couple of college years living in the middle of the state. While I did make a few runs outside the Hoosier State, most of the time “a run for the border” meant getting a bite to eat at a fast food, pseudo Mexican eatery. So I was excited to be heading south and crossing the line into the other Carolina with my favorite riding partner seated behind me. We have this little tradition, it started with our first ride. We hop on the bike, with the plan only in my head, plotted on the GPS in front of me. She asks for hints and makes guesses along the way, but usually she doesn’t know our destination until we are nearly there. Compliments of Microsoft's Streets and Trips, our route for our Run South of the Bord