Git-R-Done!

We had such a good ride yesterday! As you can tell from the pic there was a good size group as well. Even though I have to go slower, I love riding in groups. Its hard to explain but I just really get a thrill out of being on the road with a small contingent of riders.

I had originally planned to ride with another group but they ended up canceling their Saturday ride due to rain on Friday and early Saturday morning. I totally borrowed their destination, albeit with my own route. I think I’ve mentioned I co-host a very small group of riders on Facebook. It started as just an easy way for a very small group to post rides and has kinda grown into a fledgling club. Working full-time I can’t give it the TLC it probably deserves but it serves its purpose. I’m hoping to expand it a bit this year with a few other types of activities. I’ve gotten great feedback from the guys so I think it will be fine. Oh and speaking of, the weather was almost perfect. Just a little chilly but sunny and absolutely no rain! Oh hell yeah, it was on! lol

My poor beast was just itchin’ to get out of 2nd gear.  We ended up going down to Santa Cruz via some really awesome small back roads. We started out with a much larger group but many didn’t wanna go quite so far so we kinda bled riders until the half-way point. After that, we had pretty much the 7 knuckle-heads above for the duration. We had lunch in Santa Cruz, watched the American Hockey team lose the gold medal in overtime, and then headed home back along the ocean/Hwy 1.

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On a side note, Apple guy is in the process of getting his bike shipped here for his upcoming move. He is working on painting the fairings this week to give it his personal touch/look. I can’t wait till he gets here so we can ride together!

*The rest of the post is random details, feel free to skip if you’re bored. *

Part of the route was new for me but most of it was pretty engrained in my memory. I even found my way around Santa Cruz w/o getting lost this time! lol  I will say the Jaimison Creek Rd was a tad wetter than I had hoped. Its pretty much a connecting road so not a lot went into its production. Steep switchbacks and wet pavement aren’t the best combo for sport bikes.  But, we made it without a single mishap, thankfully. I always bring my med-kit just in case. Empire Grade Rd, on the other hand, is a motorcyclist’s dream. A varying degree of curves and straight-aways make it an awesome ride!

I’m also getting used to being the primary lead for most of the rides. I’m not sure how I got drafted into always being the leader but I’m adjusting to it. I don’t mind but its a lot of responsibility. Considering where I work, I spend a lot of time focusing on making sure the group is safe and intact. No matter how fast or slow, I absolutely will not leave a rider behind either. I tend to be a fast rider but when I’m in a group I try to keep it at a steady pace. There are lots of moves I would never do in a group as it just creates the likelihood of an accident. That probably alienates some of the better riders but I care more about safety than egos.

Ok, enough rambling for now. Time for food!