Drops and Stops

Well it finally happened; I dropped my Ducati Scrambler. It started innocuously enough. Bill let me move the Ducati down to the street to start it up and let it warm up. I got it turned around and rolled it (no engine power) down to the curb, managing to park the back tire nicely abutting the curb. I then leaned the bike to the left to set it on its kickstand and prepared to dismount. Only one tiny problem—I hadn’t put the kickstand down. I realized this just as I felt the bike tip past the point I could right it. Down it went.

I almost dropped the BMW G310 GS once coming into a turn, but I was able to manhandle it and keep it upright. But the Ducat weighs 70 pounds more, and my foot was too far out to get my leg under me for support. In a way I was glad the drop happened like this, where the bike wasn’t under power and in motion. Unfortunately, because I was perpendicular to the camber of the road, I did some scratch damage to the foot peg and the Barkbusters. But the worst damage was a bent shifter. Bill handled the damage perfectly, no anger, no repercussions, just the mindset that it was going to happen eventually because everyone drops their bike eventually.

I was ready to give up my ride for the day and let Bill head off on the R NineT, but he felt the shifter was fixable with a pipe wrench. He headed off to get one while I waited and let myself calm down. Within five minutes the shifter was fixed and the bike was ready to ride.

We headed out on this cold morning, 36 degrees with a wind chill in the twenties. It didn’t take long before we came across a slow-moving Toyota Rav4. We were at the stop sign waiting for oncoming traffic to pass. We waited and waited, realizing that the SUV was moving slowly, but not so far back we could turn in front of the vehicle. As the middle-aged woman driving passed by us, we realized her head was down and her focus clearly told us she was on her phone. This lady proceeded down the road, turned onto the road we were turning on, and made a third turn—all while staying on her phone. We pulled off into the school’s parking lot to let her pass and give us a safety buffer, but what a scary thought to realize how far this woman was willing to drive—through a neighborhood with kids and pedestrians—all while looking at her phone.

One of the best escapes the motorcycle provides is an escape from the phone. Not only would you not be on your phone as you need both hands for shifting, braking, and steering. But you can’t even hear the text chime as you’re revving the throttle and zooming about. Today I realized that Bill can’t hear what I’m doing on my bike just as I can’t hear his bike. So today I felt lost in my own world. Of course I can see Bill, but all I hear and feel is my motorcycle, letting myself get lost in the ride.

I did better with the gloves on the bike today, revving the throttle only twice. I did notice, however, when I was riding the 310 the next day, that the gloves make it difficult to turn on the turn signals. Moving forward, I will focus a little more on my grip in these Rev’It gloves to help me have better control.

Our ride picked up after we got around Mrs. Texter. We saw an osprey circling over the river when we had stopped for a moment. I noticed plum blossoms already opened, a sure sign that spring is almost here. The geese we saw were coupled up in mating pairs, another sign of the vernal season despite the winter chill in the air. It was such a cold, dank ride, my fingers started to get numb, so I was happy when we cut the ride short. Plus, I knew I would be riding again the next day.

The next day was 10 degrees warmer, a good day to get the BMW G310 GS out and about. I stalled three times trying to get the bike up enough for me to see around the neighbor’s SUV. I headed out over to the Greek church parking lot to practice S turns and riding on a straight line. I then cruised about, riding by someone who owns the BMW 1250 GSA, smiling because I like the bike and may own one one day, but also because I could recognize the bike.

I didn’t plan on a long ride as Bill was at home not riding. But I did get to go slalom in the orange cones at the high school parking lot, and I explored more of the back roads of the neighborhood. I stalled twice at stops because the 310 requires more throttle input coming out of the friction zone than the Ducati does. But that’s part of why I was out riding the 310, to experience and learn the riding differences between the two bikes. This will help me later in learning how to ride other motorcycles, something I am really looking forward to in the not-too-distant future.

The bent shifter on my Ducati Desert Sled.

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Trying to Get a Grip

Today was a beautiful day for the mental escape riding a motorcycle provides. Sunshine and fifties for our temps with gusty wind that didn’t affect our ride. We headed out for our neighborhood cruise, and I found myself cracking my helmet visor as I had overdone the clothes and was actually a bit warm. I had on my Rev’It Taurus GTX gloves for the colder temperatures, and I spent a good part of the ride analyzing the feel, grip, and comfort of these top-of-the-line gloves.
Because these gloves are insulated for warmth and have Goretex for weather protection, the fit is bulky. I have to push down between the fingers when I put them on to tighten the fit, but even then, there is a lot of fabric between me and the throttle. This is my fifth ride wearing these gloves, so they are new and naturally stiff. Today I wondered if I could wear the gloves around the house to try and loosen them up some as I do with my boots. I’m not sure, but it is worth a try.
I have established, after getting to wear my Klim summer gloves last week, that the gloves do affect my pull on the clutch and brake and my roll on with the throttle. In fact I had several excessive roll ons due to the gloves, so I have to work on getting a better feel on my right hand between the glove and throttle. I had no difficulty shifting with my left, perhaps because these thicker gloves cause me to pull harder on the clutch.
Where the gloves shine is the warmth they provide. Today was only slightly chilly, but I’ve worn the gloves while riding on 30-degree days with no chill to my fingers. I look forward to discovering whether with more use the gloves do loosen up and flex better; I certainly hope so.
As for our ride, every court we entered we circled three times, and I worked on watching over my shoulder for any potential cars. Last week Bill pointed out that as we enter a court to turn around, a car might be entering behind us but heading straight into a driveway, not realizing that we are circling. So I worked on checking my mirrors and checking over my shoulder during all of the circles.
We did S turns on the gravel parking lot, and I had two heart pumping moments when I felt the back tire slip. One day I’ll train using that slippage to help bring the bike around (backing in), but that will have to wait until we are on a softer surface than even the gravel. We did some more S turns in the hospital overflow parking. I was being cocky and doing tighter turns than Bill, so I had to dab my foot as I did too tight a turn.
Other than crows and a few gulls, I only saw one sole Canadian goose. Seeing that, and someone in the neighborhood flying a Canadian flag, brought my escaping thoughts to the terrible events happening in Ottawa today. I don’t want to be political, but I do want to say I support the Freedom Truckers. Motorcycle riding is freedom in motion; I’m glad I get weekly reminders of what it means to be free.

Harley-Davidsons Everywhere

If I tell you we spotted at least 25 Harley-Davidsons as we ventured out for our own motorcycle ride, would you know what the weather was for today? That’s right, a sneak peek at spring here on Lincoln’s birthday with gorgeous sunshine and temperatures right around 70. It almost became a game with us who could spot the Harley first as we drove over to and home from my parents’ house.

I suppose I find it so striking because it reveals how much of an appeal motorcycle riding has for so many people. Now a Harley-Davidson rider is usually going to be on a large cruiser bike such as a Road King with fairings and saddlebags and perhaps even a passenger on the pillion. And most of the ones we saw were cruising by on the interstate. We have no interest in riding the interstates, especially in southeastern Virginia, but our future may contain some more touring oriented bikes.

But for now we’re enjoying the R Nine T and the Scrambler. No practice alone for me today as we had a late start and Bill didn’t want to wait to ride. Out we went together in our warm weather gear with big smiles on our faces. Our first gravel lot was completely car free, so we looped about in it for a few minutes. My back tire slid just a bit, and I was surprised to find that I didn’t panic.

I realized on today’s ride that I am much more confident and relaxed with riding, so much so, I let my mind wander to another squid thought of backending my bike. Backending the bike means to skid the back tire around to turn the front end of the motorcycle. As I had that thought, I was reminded that it has been 10 months of riding with no drop. But I’ll wait until we’re on a softer surface.

Because of the warmth of the day, I was wearing my Klim summer gloves, so I made a study of whether my shifting issue from last week was more of a clutch issue or more with the shifter. I determined that it was the clutch. On my BMW G310 GS, I don’t have to have the clutch fully pulled in toward the handle, but on the Ducati Scrambler, I do have to come much closer to the handle with the clutch for smooth shifting. Realizing this, I quickly eliminated any shifting problems and easily found neutral.

We had more fun in our other gravel lot, working on circles. As we did so, I learned on the Ducati, I don’t need to feather the clutch as much as I do on the BMW, so I could worry less about stalling—none today. As we finished up the ride, I ran into some traffic. One was a car turning between Bill and me, but the other was a lady coming to a stop at the intersection for Bill, but then deciding she could run through the stop sign in front of me. I was aware of her approaching the intersection, and I had a feeling she would run the stop in front of me, so I slowed down and had no issues. But it is not a pleasant reminder of how drivers don’t think when it comes to motorcyclists.

I ended on a positive by making a beautiful short, fast stop, feeling the weight of the back end as it tried to throw me up, but bracing myself and controlling the bike well. I was sorry Bill didn’t see it, having ridden on ahead. We have some nice weather ahead for next weekend, though 20 degrees cooler. I look forward to the full return of spring for our riding.

As I finished writing this blog, before editing it, I took a break and had to laugh; I was still wearing my blue necktube from my ride. Clearly, I still want to ride.

Harley-Davidson motorcycles cruising on the street. — Photo by Quintin Gellar on Pexels.com

A Day Worth Waiting For

Finally! Despite rain late into last night, the roads dried off, the sun came out, and we had a day to ride. It’s been three weeks since I rode and a month for Bill, so we were extra happy that the weather forecast was right and the day was nice. There was some wind keeping it cold, but with the bright sunshine everywhere, it felt warmer.

And we weren’t the only ones out enjoying the prettier weather. We passed a small group of Canadian geese (6) driving into the neighborhood. And once I was out on the Scrambler, I passed another smaller group of 4. It felt great to be back on the motorcycle, though it was a bit like my first-time riding. I realized that my last ride was on my G310 and on different roads, so I was relearning the feel of my Ducati and relearning my practice routes.

The roads were fairly quiet which made my practice easier. The gravel parking lot at the neighborhood park was free of cars, allowing me to loop through it several times. I even rode my little dirt track, though carefully as there was a lot of mud from last night’s rain. My focus was on the feel of the bike, shifting the gears in my thick Rev’It winter gloves and keeping my left foot up. So I only did a few U-turns and only one fast stop as the gloves are stiff. I’m hoping that with some more winter rides, the gloves will wear in and loosen up some.

I slalomed through the bus lanes at the elementary school, riding by the house often as I expected Bill to be waiting so he could ride too. After about 20 minutes, there he was, geared up and ready to go. So we went and picked up the R NineT and headed out on our neighborhood cruise. Since we hadn’t ridden these roads in a month, we found some road work in the neighborhood—more gravel. I was watching the road and watching Bill as I always do when I caught sight of the bald eagle soaring above us. So not only was I thrilled to be back riding my motorcycle, but I had the added excitement of seeing the bald eagle coasting through the bright blue sky. As I watched the beautiful eagle, I realized that my sensation riding the motorcycle is as close as I will get to an eagle soaring aloft in the sky. I rode with a smile plastered on my face.

The smile turned to a laugh when we cruised by the first group of geese. Several of them were crossing the road, so we had slowed to a crawl as the stragglers made it across. As they cleared the road and we rode by, the big goose in charge chased after the stragglers, honking a reprimand for their slow progress.

The birds continued to entertain us on our ride. We passed more geese playing in a puddle. A mockingbird flew right in front of Bill. And, as we paused for our chat on the gravel lot, we watched four turkey vultures flitting about in the tall pine trees. I had some issues shifting from second to third during the ride. I would pull in the clutch and lift the shifter, only to look down and see I was still in second. I believe that is part of getting used to the gloves and the feel of the clutch. I was able to easily find neutral two out of three tries, which was a pleasant surprise as I was sure, after not riding the Scrambler for a month, I would lose the progress I had made in finding neutral.

Next weekend is looking to be a warmer ride, so I will get more practice in shifting and finding neutral and, hopefully, another chance to see the bald eagle in flight.