Cool, windy, and wet Memorial Day weekend for us, but the wind kept the rain at bay long enough for us to ride.  Because we ride neighborhood streets, the wind isn’t much of a factor, but it would’ve been had we tried to ride on the highway.  As it was, the wind kept the butterflies away, all except one determined little cabbage white fighting his way to the clover that I spotted near the end of our ride.

            As we headed out toward the curvy road, we have a yield sign where we make a left turn.  Approaching the intersection, there was a white pick up coming up the road we were going to turn on.  He indicated he would turn left at our street, but as he did so, he slowly took the turn and I realized he was looking over our motorcycles.  They are two of the best-looking motorcycles on the road.  Before the looks of admiration were reserved for Bill when he rode the R Nine T; the 310 and the Fasthouse never drew many looks.  But now that I’m on the R Nine T, I draw looks but so does the Triumph Rocket.  I think the two bikes complement each other quite nicely.

            Later in the ride, as we waited at a stop sign to turn, a driver in a blue Toyota SUV slowly rode by again admiring the beautiful motorcycles.  It is fun to know I’m riding a great bike that handles well and looks amazing.

            I didn’t focus on any particular skill on this ride.  Instead, I let myself enjoy the ride and enjoy how my riding skills have progressed to keep the ride safe.  Halfway through the ride, I realized I was leaving the stops in sync with Bill without consciously focusing on doing so.  My riding skills have improved so much that I found myself trying the tight turns from a stop and having little trouble–at least at first. 

            A tight turn from a stop means there isn’t much road to turn onto so the arc of the turn is constrained.  In order to navigate this tight turn, I need to turn the wheel to full lock, lean the motorcycle in the direction of the turn, counterbalance with my opposite foot applying pressure on the outside peg, and go.  My first few attempts were very successful even though I forgot to load the opposite foot peg.  I judged my success on whether I stayed within two feet of the parking space line I was using as my marker.  After my successful tries, I had several that didn’t go so well; I kept straightening the wheel too soon.  So that just means more to work on.

            While I didn’t get to see too many butterflies on this ride, I did get a lovely surprise.  Bill led us into a small parking lot beside one of the churches to another tight U-turn.  We had a bit of traffic to wait through to turn back onto the main road.  As we waited, I saw some rustling in the ligustrum bushes across the street, a large rustling caused by what I thought might be a crow.  But instead, an upset kestrel flew out and right past me.  Seeing that kestrel made up for the missing butterflies.  But I do hope to see many butterflies during next week’s ride.

Our luck finally gave out and we were met by rainy drizzle as we headed over to ride.  We had some spanakopita to deliver from the local Greek church fundraiser for my mom, so the trip wasn’t a waste of time.  She also needed some help on the computer, and by the time I finished assisting, the crown of the road was looking more dry than wet.  I suggested to Bill we go do our grocery shopping and see if the roads continue to dry out or if there’s some more rain on the way.  The delay worked, allowing the roads to dry enough to allow us to ride.

            With the cloudy skies and the breeze, it was quite cool on the bike making for a very comfortable ride on what was supposed to be an 80 degrees day.  The challenge for today’s ride was dodging puddles which was easy as the roads really had dried out.  There were damp patches that we had to ride through, but we weren’t riding on wet roads.

            Since the weather was ideal for ducks, I saw several mating pairs here and there throughout the ride.  I also saw a gaggle of geese, both Canadian and white, with eight goslings being shepherded between them.  A few cabbage whites were flitting about, but I only saw three during the ride and one super quick Fritillary zoom by.  One lucky wren managed to zip by in front of Bill’s Rocket without getting hit, and we had to stop for several squirrels acting squirrelly.

            The hydrangeas are in full bloom, and I enjoyed the cool blue and bright purple blossoms.  They added more colors among the red and white roses and yellow and orange day lilies.

            During the ride, we passed a Harley-Davidson rider heading the opposite way which gave us the chance to exchange the “two-wheels life” wave.  It is traditional among motorcyclists to not wave but to hold out two fingers down towards the clutch as they pass.  This sign really is appropriate as there is a mindset that goes with riding motorcycles that only other riders appreciate.  This mindset gets me out of the house every week excitedly looking forward to my chance to ride.  As summer arrives, I’m hopeful that I can find even more opportunities to enjoy the “two-wheels life.”

            Hints of summer greeted us on Saturday as temperatures hit the low 80s with a chance of thunderstorms later in the day.  As we warmed up the motorcycles before heading out, I felt sweat rolling down my back, but once we started moving, the breeze kept me comfortable.  And as long as we were cruising along, I enjoyed my ride.  But the slow speed maneuvers were awful.

            Our first circles went fine; however, when we turned into a new court to get away from traffic, my turns went wide as my speed wasn’t slowing like I wanted.  I realized soon after that I had stayed in second gear, so on my other slow turns, I double checked that I was in first.  Yet still I went wide on most of my turns and felt uncomfortable on all of them.  I even had a near miss of a curb in one parking lot.  It was at that point I accepted that I was having an off day.  This acceptance allowed me to relax and not worry about wider turning.  Even still, I stalled the R Nine T when starting from a stop late in the ride, something I haven’t done in months.

            I counted ten cabbage white butterflies during the ride, and I saw dragonflies for the first time—a sign the mosquitoes will be here soon.  The best part of the ride was smelling the honeysuckle blooming alongside the road.

            My redemption came on Mother’s Day.  We took the BMW G 310 GS and the Ducati Scrambler out for photographs.  I felt for sure I would struggle with the wet clutch on the 310 and stall the motorcycle.  But I was happily surprised to have no issue with the clutch.  It was an odd feeling to ride the little 310 as there is quite a power plummet from the R Nine T.  I also struggled to shift in my Daytona boots, but I managed.

            As we headed home from our short ride, I realized that my ease of handling on the 310 was due to my greater riding experience especially my figuring out the dry clutch of the R Nine T.  After my struggles yesterday, it was a great feeling to realize I have improved as a rider.  My improvement is due to practicing those slow speed drills, and I can’t wait for next week’s ride.

            Happy Mother’s Day to my wonderful Mom and to all my readers who are Moms!

It so happened that today’s ride fell on the 17^th International Female Ride Day, and I did my part to show women enjoying motorcycles and riding.  It didn’t hurt that it was a gorgeous spring day for riding. 

            I was also celebrating my second year as a rider.  Two years ago, on May 1 and 2, I rode my first ever motorcycle, a Kawasaki Eliminator 250 small cruiser, as part of the MSF course.  Soon after, we purchased the BMW G310 GS, and I was riding.  A few months later, we got the BMW R Nine T Urban GS for Bill to ride.  Eighteen months later, that became my motorcycle as Bill began riding the Triumph Rocket GS.  In between the two BMWs, I rode a Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled Fasthouse, a bike made for cold weather riding.

            On today’s ride I found myself wondering if my skills riding the dry clutch on the R Nine T would make me a better rider on the 310 or Scrambler.  Or would I struggle relearning the friction zones of those motorcycles.  I also wondered if I would feel as confident in my tight turning drills or would the two more top-heavy bikes give me problems.  Oddly enough, I don’t feel concerned about transitioning to the R 1250 GS, and I believe that is because both the 1250 and the R Nine T have the boxer engines keeping the center of gravity lower. 

            These thoughts played through my head as I rode.  The day was so beautiful it was sheer joy to be out riding.  The roses are gorgeous, and I forgot to mention the colorful clematis I see including one bunch of deep purple, bright pink, and white.  I also forgot to mention seeing my first magnolia blossoms last week with even more flowers open this week.

            There were so many cabbage white butterflies flitting about, I lost count after ten.  I did have one zoom across my path.   I saw what I think was an American copper and for the first time one of the Sulphur butterflies; these are difficult to distinguish from the back of a motorcycle, but it was a yellow butterfly, so it fits several of the Sulphur family.

            Today’s ride also marked us scaring some young goslings, the first I’ve seen this year, as they hurried across a yard with their dutiful parents.  In a shady glen by a pond, I saw two large white geese hanging out with some of their Canadian cousins.  And again I zoomed past a mating pair of ducks grazing too close to the side of the road.

            As for my skills’ practice, I continued to work on my no look turns which are getting easier.  I also worked on smooth, synchronized take-offs from stops, meaning I left the stop at the same time as Bill.  But I also found myself waiting a beat longer at a few stops so I could ensure that I’m checking for clear roads and not just relying on Bill’s vision.

            The neighborhood road construction gave us a new challenge.  There was an actual one-foot down ditch in the road that could have been a nasty jolt if entered unprepared.  I enjoyed the little bit of off-roading and look forward to my third year of riding.