Category: rides

Ride

While clearing the backlog of emails from the blog, I got asked if I still ride my motorcycle. The answer is yes. I ride it pretty much every week back and forth to work. I haven’t been doing many long rides due to my continuing diplopia and I "still" haven’t fixed the cracked fin on the left side. [1]It isn’t that expensive but I just have other priorities

You’ll remember I had the two eye surgeries to fix some ongoing issues over a year ago. All the structural issues were fixed and doing well. However, the right eye muscles never adjusted back to normal. The eye had adjusted for so long the muscles are now out of alignment. Luckily, it only affects my vision at up-right and direct-up angles. However, these are the very angles used while riding a sport bike. hehehe I see well enough I can drive day to day commutes and short rides just fine. However, I’m not sure how well I’d do on longer rides. I do exercises to try and bring the eyes in line but if I do to many or I strain against the double vision too much the eyes actually get fatigued and the diplopia increases until I let my eyes rest. I’m planning to go back this year for the extra (and hopefully last) surgery.

This last surgery should be interesting. Basically, they numb you up but you are still awake. They go in, snip the muscle loose from the base, and put a suture on it. They adjust the suture as you describe improvements to your vision. When it reaches normal (or almost normal) vision, they tie it off and let it heal. Bam! The caveat is if the adjustment is too severe I may not go back to a full 100%. That is ok with me. I just need a modular improvement. The latter being why I put it off this long. I was hoping over time my eyes would adjust on their own. Sadly, they haven’t.

So to answer your question (Tony), yes I still ride just not as often. I do kinda miss it. Especially on sunny warm days.

References

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↑1 It isn’t that expensive but I just have other priorities

Vroom

I finally got my blue beast back the other day. The damn part finally arrived after almost 3 weeks. You’d think they had to create one from scratch. Seriously, 10 days? I don’t blame the shop. They are a small local business and expecting them to keep parts on hand wouldn’t be very realistic. The supplier on the other hand, shouldn’t take 10 days to ship a small part!

Anyway, today I took a short ride down to Woodside with some of the moto gang. It was sunny/warm and traffic was bearable (in most places). Embarrassingly, we ended up getting pulled over by the Chippies (CHP). The funny part, it wasn’t for speeding! We take this particular road so much, we completely forgot the divider was a double yellow line. Without much thought, we zoomed around a slow moving vehicle in front of us. The Chippies were out doing motorcycle enforcement and apparently had a very nice view of us from the next rise. lol  We didn’t get tickets, thankfully. [1]And that’s all I’m saying about dat. lol

The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful. Well… almost. I’m not sure if it was the holiday weekend or just the warm weather but there was some major eye-candy when we stopped for Lunch at Alice’s. hehehe

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Oh and speaking of riding. Rumor has it one of my gang is getting himself a very hot new Ducati soon. (my lips are sealed!)

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Unlike some of the rest of you, I have to work tomorrow. I get overtime for it so I don’t mind but I kinda wish I had it off. I’d love to go on a solo ride. I love my gang but sometimes a solo ride can be so much fun.

Anyway, enjoy the holiday fellas.

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↑1 And that’s all I’m saying about dat. lol

Solo

The weekend is fast coming to a close. It was pretty good. My bike shop was having a bbq on Saturday and I stopped by for some free food while they put a new front tire on the bike. The roomie went with me. Beforehand, we stopped by Mr. S Leather to get his jacket worked on. My friend Christopher met us at SF Moto and afterwards we took a short ride down to Alice’s. He has a new back tire as well and they needed some wearing in.

I was supposed to do chores today but I got a wild hair and took the bike out instead. [1]well, I did get a few errands dones.  What was supposed to be a short ride, turned into a trip half way to Santa Cruz along the coast. It was such a beautiful day out. As expected, Alice’s was super busy. The pic is only a tiny fraction of the bikes. There is a convenience store across the street and their lot was full to the brim as well.

I could have easily planned a group ride but I wanted to go solo today. I prefer the group rides but sometimes I need to go by myself. I can set my own pace, I don’t have to worry about anyone else, and I can stop (or not) whenever I choose.

I’d only planned to go to down to Pacifica and back but before I knew it I was passing Half Moon bay. hehehe I didn’t have any plans today (other than chores) so I said the hell with it and enjoyed the ride. It got a bit chilly on the way back as the fog had started rolling in. [2]Course, Apple guy got 2+ inches of snow last night in Dallas so I’m not complaining.  Between yesterday and today, the new front tire is definitely worn in now. hehehe Sadly, the weekend is over though. Tomorrow, its back to the pump and grind of work. Its gonna be a stressful/busy week too. Ugh. I’m not complaining as at least I have a job. I know many who don’t right now.

On a side note, God of War 3 shipped this week. Expect me to be MIA online for awhile once it does! lol If the full version is as good as the demo I’m sure I’ll be enthralled until I finish it.

On another side note, Apple guy is back soon and for good this time. I’ve been obsessing a bit this past week and driving him a little nuts I think. The great thing is he and I can talk about such things openly. I like that very much as I never had that with the ex.

Ok, enough for now. Hope everyone has a good week.

References

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↑1 well, I did get a few errands dones.
↑2 Course, Apple guy got 2+ inches of snow last night in Dallas so I’m not complaining.

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. *

Continue reading Git-R-Done!

Blues

Summer is over and the cool weather is definitely setting in here in SF. While it rarely gets cold cold here, I did have to turn on the heater for the first time this past weekend. brrr! This coming weekend looks to be chilly as well.

Sadly, that also means less moto rides. I did get a ride in this past weekend even though it was chilly. I don’t like riding in the cold, but since I haven’t had much time lately I wanted to get a ride in. It was fun, as always. I’m sure we will get a few warm weekends sprinkled throughout the winter season. That said, I’m already missing the weekly rides.

In less depressing news, Apple guy got his bike this week. He made out like a bandit and scored a really nice bike off ebay for a steal! As luck would have it, its a GSXR like mine (but a 600 mind you :p). Its a sweet looking bike and he is already planning a slew of tweaks and customizations for it. I thought I was bad, he has me beat hands down. Lol. Of course, I have picked up some nice ideas from him. I think his creative streak is much larger than mine. [1]That or I’m just lazy. Anyway, he picks it up this week. I think I’m more excited than he is.  lol

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↑1 That or I’m just lazy.

Light Speed

So the rims for the bike finally came! I’ve been moaning for weeks now. [1]Actually, they arrived 2 weeks ago, but “I has been buseee!”  And let me tell you they were worth every damn penny!

Today was the first day I’ve had a chance to go out on a ride. (My new romantic interest has been keeping me nicely preoccupied!) I’d originally planned to go on a solo ride to give myself a chance to adjust to the new feel and demands of the bike. That is until I woke up to a text from two of my riding buddies inquiring if I wanted to ride today. I never turn down a good opportunity to ride so I jumped on it.

The new guy (hereafter referred to as The Apple Guy) had to go do some of his own stuff anyway so I had some free time on my hands. I’ve been doing my best to monopolize his free time so I figured he needed a break. What? Don’t look at me like that. I can be intense at times and I don’t wanna scare him away. :p

Anyway, I digress. I met up with the guys and we took off on our ride. We didn’t go very far but picked a nice windy road. [2]Lucas Valley Rd – it was just repaved last week!  The new rims are so light the entire feel of the bike has changed. If you’ve ever ridden any sort of two-wheeled contraption, you know body-weight and balance play a large role in controlling said device. The same is true of motorcycles. I guess I never really thought about how much weight rims can add to a bike. I know better now! My bike feels completely different even on straight-aways. Leans and swerves take a fraction of the body shift and I don’t mind telling you I love it!

I took it easy on the curves at first as I was somewhat afraid of over-leaning and low-siding the bike (again). On the way home after lunch, I gradually eased back into my normal style of taking curves. The boys let me lead as I also have a new front tire. New tires can be a bit slippery for the first 100 miles or so until they wear in. Anyway, I deliberately went wide in some of the curves to test how well the bike responded. Needless to say, I’m loving how the bike handles now. You might say, I’m happier than a pig in slop! lol

Sadly, summer is coming to a close here and there aren’t many good riding days left. We tend to get most of our rain in the colder months. I’m sure there will be some good days as winters here are never severe but I hate riding in cold and/or rainy weather. I’m hoping to get a few more good rides in beforehand though.

References

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↑1 Actually, they arrived 2 weeks ago, but “I has been buseee!”
↑2 Lucas Valley Rd – it was just repaved last week!

It Happened

Well, it finally happened. I banged my bike up a bit yesterday. Now, before you freak out, it was minor and I am fine, albeit a few scratches. Totally my fault this time. I went out on a late ride with my buddy Mark and we’d just left lunch at Alice’s. We were taking one of my favorite routes, Hwy 84 across to Hwy 1. It has a ton of different types of curves.

As usual I was spending too much time making sure the person behind me was keeping up and less attention on the road. I have an awful habit of doing that. Lesson learned.  Anyway, I came around a curve a little out of balance. [1]The irony here was my buddy had just finished bragging about how well I handle curves.  I figured since I was already going wide I’d just pull off onto the large shoulder. I assumed from the look that it was pavement. I was wrong! lol  Turned out it was very soft gravel.

Since I was already coming out of a the curve the bike was moving too fast when I hit the gravel.  Still having a bit of momentum from the turn, I knew as soon as I hit the gravel I was gonna loose it. Sure enough, the bike fishtailed and down on its side it (and I) went! The gravel was slippery but it was also soft, which turned out to be a good thing. I slid for about 20-30 yards before coming to a stop just shy of a guard rail. (Now that would have hurt!)

The fall/slide/crash was actually quite benign (luckily). I ended up with a few scratches and road rash and that’s it. I had all my gear on, as usual. My riding jacket/pants got all dirtied up but was none worse for wear. I didn’t even bang my helmet!

As you can see from the pics, my bike suffered some damage. Thankfully, I have sliders and the left one took the full brunt of the spill. It will need to be replaced as its bent now. I also broke the left foot-peg (below) completely off and scratched part of the engine casing. I’ll probably leave the casing for now but will eventually replace it. I don’t like it looking all banged up. That was about it! I was really (pleasantly) surprised at the lack of damage to my baby.

We spent some time looking over the bike before taking off again. All looked to be in good working order other than the foot-peg. I decided I’d just bend my leg back and up and prop it on the passenger peg. It worked like a charm. [2]Other than forcing me to lean way over on the tank and constantly push my balls into the tank. Thankfully, they were still in tack after the 40 miles home.  There was one more surprise in store for me though. About 3 miles further on, the gear-shifter peg fell off. (The blue lever in the below image) They are made to break to prevent the frame from being damaged so it wasn’t surprising. However, this created a unique problem because I had no real way to shift gears now. The lever was still there and working fine but the little peg I catch my foot on was gone.

I originally decided to just start the bike in 3rd gear. This would have reduced the need to keep switching back and forth.  It takes some timing to get the bike to take off in 3rd but it worked. Knowing I couldn’t ride all the way home in 3rd gear, I practiced using just the lever with my foot.  After about 10-15 miles, I started getting the hang of it. I had to look but I was basically just sliding my foot high and tight under/over the lever to shift. I still had to look down for most of the trip but I managed and made it home w/o any other incidents.

The down side is my moto shop is closed on Monday’s so I have to wait till Tuesday to take it in to get the foot-peg and shifter replaced. I’ll get generic ones until they get some more of the shiny blue ones (that I just bought 3 months ago).

References

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↑1 The irony here was my buddy had just finished bragging about how well I handle curves.
↑2 Other than forcing me to lean way over on the tank and constantly push my balls into the tank. Thankfully, they were still in tack after the 40 miles home.

Long Ride

Today was a bit of a long ride and a new route (for me) all rolled into one. It turned out to only be two of us which was probably good considering.

The Mines Rd part was basically a one lane road thru open space. It had some great curves but the road was so bumpy and gravely you couldn’t go fast at all. Definitely not a route for newbies. It was very scenic though. We stopped about mid way in the lowlands and I was overcome with a bit of nostalgia for home. It wasn’t the landscape so much as the vastness of it. There were a few farms spread out thru the area but most of it was just open space. I’ll admit I get so caught up in the daily grind I forget sometimes how much I enjoy nature and the outdoors.

I hadn’t planned a group ride in a few weeks so I wasn’t sure how many would show. I honestly was hoping for a small group (I got my wish) as the route was obviously a bit tricky in places. Like a good little EMT, I brought along my first-aid kit and extra water blah blah blah. There were only 2 of us as the weather was a bit overcast in the early morning. I think that scared a few people away. Anyway, the day was drama-free, no accidents or getting lost. I’d never met the guy that came along today, we met up in Livermore. I really liked him. He was very easy-going for one. He has been riding for decades but didn’t have any attitude about it and was very easy to ride with. We chatted and got to know each other a bit over lunch.

He lives in the East bay so after lunch we split up. He took 680 and I took 280. The ride had gone faster than I expected so I decided to take Hwy 84 across to Hwy 1 (along the ocean). That was a mistake. The fog had rolled in something fierce and I froze my ass off. lol

I didn’t stop and take pics, sorry. I’ll try to remember to bring the damn camera next time.

Quickie

No, not that. Get your mind out of my gutter. lol Just a couple random shots from the ride this past weekend. I ended up going Saturday and Sunday.  Saturday with a few of the guys and Sunday solo. I’ve been forgetting to grab the camera but I managed to snap off a few this time.

This was on Sunday when I went by myself. This chick was walking by staring at me like I had two heads because I was taking a self-pic. I guess she’d never seen anyone taking pictures with one of those ‘new-fangled thinga-ma-jigs’ referred to as a camera. Of course, I promptly ignored her. Whateva! lol

I sometimes like to ride solo as I can do my own thing. Riding in a group (especially as the lead) requires a lot of effort and you have to always be thinking about how a particular move will affect everyone. Plus, not everyone rides at the same skill level and/or style. I tend to be aggressive (without being crazy) but ride much slower in groups. It really isn’t fair to ride too fast or aggressive in large groups as it isn’t really safe. It encourages people to ride outside their skill level and that’s always a bad idea. Solo or in groups of 2 or 3, you can haul ass and pass a lot more.

Saturday, there were only 3 of us so it wasn’t bad. We didn’t go far, just down to Woodside/Alice’s for lunch and back. On the way back, we were cutting across Hwy 84 to Hwy 1 (which runs along the ocean), I was a ways ahead and came across a guy that looked to have wiped out. He was walking and carrying a fairing so I was thinking, ‘holy shit!’ lol Turns out, it worked loose and blew off while he was riding and he was just retrieving it. He was kind of a hottie but totally straight. I stopped to check on him and let him use my tools to try and jerry-rig his fairing back on. I think he pegged me for being gay but he was way cool about it. [1]He might have caught me staring at his rather pronounced crotch but I’m not sure. heehee After that we just cruised home along the coast enjoying the beautiful weather. The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful.

Sunday, I got a wild hair and decided to go solo. I went back down South thru Woodside, up over Big Basin, and then down Hwy 9 which has some awesome curves. I took a couple of rough roads that I normally avoid as its just not safe to have large groups of hard terrain. [2]My wrists weren’t too happy about that

It was crazy busy with bikers everywhere. I couldn’t believe how many bikes were out on the road. At one point, I’m cruising along at my speed feeling quite proud of myself for being a bad-ass until this guy blew by me pushing close to 90 mph. He was taking curves like a maniac and burning thru the route. It was very humbling because I’m a good rider but I’m not a pro. I think its nice to keep perspective when you are traveling at high speeds on two wheels with nothing between you and the pavement but leather and pads. I wasn’t even tempted to try and catch him. Anyway, this last shot is of my bike parked up among the throng at Alice’s.

On the way back, I stopped back thru Woodside and ran into a buddy. We hung out and had a late lunch before heading home. The fog, which had been unusually absent, had rolled in with a vengeance while I was tripping thru the mountains. It was down right frosty coming home along the coast. So the ride home was very windy and chilly. I got a wake up call when I saw a newer model cadi trying like crazy to pass every car in sight. This guy was driving crazy. He was passing on blind curves and hills. As we come into Half Moon bay, I see him cutting other cars off and weaving like an idiot. This was right before I pulled over to put the liner to my jacket in. After getting back on the road, I come over the next hill to see him pulled over with not one but two chippies behind him. Serves his dumb ass right. I drove by real slow, flicked open my visor, smiled real big, and gave him the gayest wave I could. What a douche-bag. I hope they impounded his car and made him walk. That idiot could have killed someone.

Anyway, I made it home in one-piece and promptly crashed on the sofa for a nice 2 hour nap.

References

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↑1 He might have caught me staring at his rather pronounced crotch but I’m not sure. heehee
↑2 My wrists weren’t too happy about that

Boys & Gurls

This weeks ride was one of the biggest yet. We had nine guys (and girls) this time around. Even better no one got separated from the group. heh heh.

Actually, it was a lot of fun too. The moto group (Facebook link) is slowly expanding to include a bigger variety of riders but maintaining its close-knit feel. This week’s course was kind of the reverse of last week, with a few modifications. The weather was a teeny bit hot but bearable. I think at one point it was up in the 90’s. Oy!

Here we all are at lunch. We stopped at Mr. Pickles sandwich shop again. Man, those people go apeshit when we show up. lol The owner runs out and takes our pics and told us she was getting it framed for their wall. I have one pic where her head basically covers the whole shot. She was sweet though. We laugh and cut up obviously, which I’m sure might have something to do with it. heh heh So starting with me going clockwise, Moby, ‘bekah, Tom, Don, Stephen, Kevin, Patrick, William, and Michelle.

I’m a little sad as next week is my last Friday off before my schedule changes. I won’t get to ride w/the guys as much anymore. I talked it over w/William and we might host double rides, one on a weekday and weekend. At least this way, I’ll still get to ride with some of the gang. There are also a few riders I know who can’t ride weekdays so maybe we’ll get some new folks too.

Here I am checking my phone. The boy was flying off on vacation but he worries about me when I ride. I’m also updating my geo-location. I know, geek! What ever did we do before the advent of the internet and text messaging? Seriously, how did we survive? LOL

More pics on ride on the stream, if you care.