Moto Broad

Another sharp, clear day. My friend rode with me on a utilitarian ride to my old house, but this time he followed me (for a year, I’ve followed him, and I know that’s annoying, constantly monitoring his mirrors to see if I’ve disappeared, slowing down to accommodate the squidlet behind him). I found that once I forget he’s back there (”Did I do that right? Does he think I’m an idiot?”), and just concentrate on riding (which I do when I’m riding alone), I do a bit better. I make my own decisions (”should I go or wait for this guy in the truck?”) rather than watching his decisions and following.

On the way home, there’s a bottleneck where the road goes from two lanes to one. A truck pulled out, and I had to choose whether to look at his rusty bumper all the way down the nice country road, or to take advantage of the last bit of my waning lane and accelerate past him. I twisted the throttle, the little SV took hold, and I pulled easily past him before the lanes converged. It’s a small thing. But it felt good. I realize that my sense of what the bike will do, and my perception of the road and vehicles around me is getting better.

Today I felt less tentative, and the joy of riding is starting to seep in. Good day.

A cold but beautiful clear Saturday, and my friend and I wanted to ride with “the Squeaks.” We were all to meet at some biker-friendly bar “on Hwy 78,” and I foolishly believed Google Maps instead of just calling the place. So my friend and I spent an hour fruitlessly riding on Hwy 78, only to discover later that the bar was just up the street. Doh! Lesson: call the damned bar and ask for directions.

After a few cellphone calls, we elected to just meet them at the destination rather than to try to catch up with them. I followed my friend on country roads, some of which looked familiar (although if you’ve seen one vinyl-sided bleak subdivision in former pasture land, you’ve seen them all, and a desolate form of deja vu sets in). I confess that I get extremely antsy when I don’t know exactly where I’m going, and I wasn’t the most patient follower. When we rode onto a road despite its “dead end” sign, and u-turned in a grimy neighborhood, I was getting tense and I’m sure it showed. He’s always gotten me home, and I know that, and I need to relax. I’m trying hard to relax. Continue Reading »

Went over to Birmingham to watch the AHRMA races and stroll through the wonderful Barber Motorsports Museum. That part went fine. But a ride to 29 Dreams for breakfast, well, not so fine. Continue Reading »

Rode up to Toccoa to see two cousins who are in town with their husbands and their big honkin’ Harley baggers. The road was nice and curvy, not painfully twisty. Boring by most bikers’ standards, I’m sure. But it was a pretty day, the air was fresh, and I was glad to be rolling through the countryside.

Parking was a challenge, though, because, although the bike was lowered, the stand is still stock length. So the bike barely leans. If I can park on a hill, with the left side even or lower than the right, I’m OK. But I have to figure the slant as I park, or it won’t have sufficient lean, and will tip over. So I’ll have to get the stand shortened. Another trip to the mechanic.

The one-on-one tutorial was *great*. The instructor, Jeanne Vicario (www.dovemotorcycle.com) is an ex-MSF instructor, and a former Ed Bargy School instructor (www.edbargyracingschool.com). She’s maybe 5′ tall, but she wields her little cruiser like it’s nothing. Very patient, with concise instructions. In just a bit over an hour, I improved my u-turns (turn that head! Turn farther! You can turn it farther than that!). Think Linda Blair, and you’ll improve your turning, too. I still can’t whip it in a figure-8, but I could turn painlessly in the practice parking lot, which would’ve been a wobbly challenge just the day before. I know it sounds so silly, and I realize that mindset has a great deal to do with all of this. If I think it’s hard, it becomes hard. I know I overthink things in general, and riding in particular. I suppose it’s the notion that I can compensate for lack of experience with “book learning.” Not that it hurts to read, but it’s not always helpful to be in analysis mode. Sometimes you should just relax and let your body do the right thing. “Try hard to relax,” y’know. Continue Reading »

Tomorrow, if I can wedge my elephantine foot in the boot, I’ll ride down to my favorite bike mechanic and have him lower it a notch (the bike, that is. It’s too late for the foot). I thought I’d been doing fine with the bike at stock height, but I really can’t afford to go through this again. It’s just great luck that I didn’t have to travel this week (I have tons of writing and Photoshop work to do, but I can sort of raise my leg while I do some of that). It feels like an admission of defeat to lower the bike, but I guess it’s just self-preservation.

I rescheduled the low-speed tutoring, and I’m hoping I will come out of that triumphant. I love the bike, I love to ride, and, frankly, I expected to catch on to this faster than I have. Things that are effortless for experienced friends (like quickly negotiating tight spaces) still challenge me. I’ll get better.

I had a wrestling match with an Ace bandage this morning. (The doc recommended that I batten it down by binding it, to subdue the swelling.) I’d get one end anchored, complete 2 or 3 trips around my leg, then DOH! the first end would lose traction and the whole thing would unravel. After the 5th attempt, I thought, screw this, I’ll go get some old lady compression hose. I picked up a pair of white (I know it’s after Labor Day, but so what?) and an unnatural tan pair. Continue Reading »