Moto Broad

A friend and I rode our bikes through the oven of Atlanta today (mid–to-high 90s) because, well, we thought that if we moved fast enough we wouldn’t be miserable (we were wrong). As a couple of old farts, we thought it might make us feel young again to go listen to some indie bands (we were wrong about that, too).

We went to funky East Atlanta to participate in the Corndogorama Music Festival. Cute area; despite living in the adjacent Inman Park area for several years in the 70s-80s, I’d never been to East Atlanta. I’d go back just for the Blue Frog Cantina alone.

The theme for this year’s Corndogorama was “Yes, We Corn.” We declined the opportunity to have our photos taken with the official Corndogorama placards, despite strong temptation (below).

(Photos aren’t the greatest, but not bad for a cellphone, eh? Courtesy of my BlackBerry 8330 Curve. Love it.)

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So much for spring. It’s in the mid- to high-nineties now in Jawja. While my bright yellow Olympia jacket has open mesh sections, it’s still stifling unless I’m moving. And while my HJC helmet seems overly well-ventilated in winter, it doesn’t feel that way in the summer. But I refuse to ride without gear.

As long as I’m going 60+mph, it’s bearable, but the heat is miserable when I’m stuck in traffic. So I’m trying out a “Cool Off” neckerchief my cousin Julie sent me. She and her husband have a Harley, and she claims the Cool Off really helps. They live in Florida, so I figure it’s worth a try. The Cool Offs are made by Allegro, and they’re available from a variety of suppliers, including Safety Company (how’s that for a unique name? What — was “Brand X” taken?).

At first, the Cool Off looks like a thin, flat tie (left, below). Hold it up to the light, and you’ll see a few translucent grains (about the size of small aquarium rocks) in three of the sections. Soak it in water for 10 minutes or so, and — foomp! — it puffs up like a wet marshmallow (right, below). Fasten it around your neck using the pull-through buttonholes, and it’s secure. Evaporation cools your neck; I found I needed to turn it over periodically at stops to get a fresh cool surface, but it was a nice relief.

Not as refreshing as a cold blast up your pantleg (still looking for freon-powered riding boots with ducting), but it does help. And it stays puffed up for days! (Of course, that may be because moisture has no place to go in our humidity.)

I teach software classes for the continuing education arm of a local university, and occasionally have to teach a class on Saturday. The dress code is business casual, which I’m fairly sure doesn’t include grungy t-shirts and motorcycle boots. It’s a 60 mile round trip, gas prices are going up, and yesterday the lure of dry, sunny weather was too much. So I shoved dress shoes and a wrinkle-resistant shirt (yay TravelSmith) in one saddlebag, and my lunch in the other. I figured my black jeans would pass muster.

Traffic was light, and the cool morning air was invigorating. The ride put me in a good mood for class. I wondered if I had scandalized the lady working the front desk, but it turned out that she is interested in learning to ride. I changed my clothes and subdued my helmet hair, and the students no doubt thought I was a perfectly nice lady-type person. No hint of the hooligan.

Usually the ride home from school is tiring, with stop-&-go traffic on the 4-lane highway, and it seems longer going home than going in for some reason. But yesterday it was enjoyable, and over too quickly. Funny, that.