It was a day made for cruising. The 100-degree Friday gave way, via a violent thunderstorm bringing in a cold front, to a gorgeous 79-degree sunny day with a northerly breeze. The breeze blew the scent of magnolia blossoms into my helmet, and I spent most of the ride with a silly grin on my face.
Unfortunately, circumstances did not work in our favor to allow Bill to get the R Nine T inspected in time for today’s beautiful ride. So I headed out on my own. The road work had finished over by the first historic house, and I enjoyed a spin in the gravel lot. Then I headed over to the school parking lot to do some slalom practice using the bus parking lines.
Into the ritzy neighborhood, past the gaggle of geese starting to cross the road, I noticed the spectacular hydrangea blooms. The flowers ranged from white, to pink, to fuchsia, to sky blue, to deep purple. Mixed in with the hydrangeas were bright orange day lilies, white magnolia blossoms, and even early crepe myrtle blooms. We’ve been lucky to have lots of rain and the flora clearly appreciate it. At one point I rode up to a low hanging magnolia branch to sniff the flower, something easy to do on a motorcycle. But it led to me almost dropping the bike.
One point Bill has emphasized to me about stopping on roadways is the unevenness of the roads and the need for care. My branch led me to the side of the court where the street dipped down toward the gutter. I was lucky. Because I was focusing on the flower, it would’ve been easy to forget myself and let the bike fall. But I fought the weight and managed to keep the motorcycle upright by pulling my left leg in closer toward the bike. I also managed to startle a Banded Hairstreak butterfly that fluttered out of another flower and crossed in front of me.
I continued my ride and continued to enjoy the hydrangeas, noting an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail also enjoying the blooms. I had the opportunity to practice the head movement to help steer in a wide turn; it worked like a charm and I found a few more places to practice it. I also worked on my rear brake stops and foot placement and did a much better job transitioning my hand onto the front brake. My standing stops also went smoothly as did my straightening out of a turn stops.
It was difficult to bring my ride to an end. Had Bill been riding with me, we would’ve ridden for another hour at least. But I took pity on him having to just sit around and wait and headed back. I did a fabulous job of parking the bike next to the lonely R Nine T. Next week for sure we’ll ride together and, I’m hoping, I’ll get another turn on the BMW.
Flutterby Biker 