A beautiful summer day in the mid-80s is quite a gift. Having checked the forecast for Saturday earlier in the week, I had been especially looking forward to today’s ride. All week we had temperatures into the 90s with building humidity that resulted in daily afternoon thunderstorms. But Saturday was partly cloudy with a high of 85, what should be a beautiful summer’s day for riding a motorcycle.
The ride began well enough, with a comfortable coolness coming from the wind generated by the ride. Bill did have to tighten up the battery connections again to get the Triumph Rocket to start but, after last weekend’s lesson, that was a quick fix. We headed out with cloud cover and cooling air, but my left shoulder was hurting. Somehow the clasp on the Alpinestars armored jacket was pressing into my front shoulder most uncomfortably. I reached in to adjust the strap, which I could do because I kept my jacket zipped only halfway to increase air flow. But it kept digging in.
I couldn’t understand the issue. The strap was not the one I had undone to get the jacket on and then secure the plating. My best guess was that it had gotten twisted when I put my gear away last week. Had it continued to press in painfully, I would’ve stopped riding, dismounted, and fully adjusted my gear. But after shifting it around four or five times, it became just a little uncomfortable and completely endurable.
We rode the twisty road, and I worked again on setting up my entries into the curves. These went great giving me time to enjoy some scenery. I saw some beautiful tall phlox in a gorgeous fuchsia shade along the twisties.
Having not done much with slow speed maneuvers last weekend, we spent quite a bit of the ride zooming into courts and cul de sacs to work on U-turns and S-turns. It was during all of this turn practice that I noticed my right hand again becoming numb. As soon as we got to the shady parking lot, I parked the bike and worked on loosening up my sleeve. I don’t actually know what causes this numbness; it is a fairly new development that I’ve only noticed as I ride the R Nine T. I’ve tried various undershirts thinking that my sleeve may have twisted underneath the safety gear and caused pressure on my arm.
During today’s ride, I began to wonder if the numbness is due to my pre-loading my front brake. I would think the pre-load and rolling on the throttle would be enough motion through the hand and arm to prevent any numbness, but something is causing it. I have wondered if it might be the riding position of the R Nine T. I don’t sit entirely upright, like I did on the 310, Scrambler, and GSA; I ride with a slight hunching forward. However, if the position was causing the numbness, I would think I’d experience some numbness in my left hand as well. Bill has suggested that my Alpinestars jacket may be causing the numbness because of the change in my arms. I workout and lift weights, in part to better help me handle motorcycles, and I am beginning to see some muscle definition. So Bill’s theory is that definition is creating a new tightness in the sleeve and leading to the numbness. Next week I’m going to try wearing Bill’s jacket and see if that prevents my right hand from falling asleep.
I did have a distraction from the numbness and that was, the heat. Even though the day was cooler, the humidity worked on me to the point where I began to feel a little sick. I’ve decided that the t-shirt I got that is supposed to wick moisture away from my body doesn’t breathe well enough. I’m going to try wearing a plain, white, men’s undershirt underneath my gear and see if that works to keep me more comfortable.
I tried something new while we worked in the hospital lot. Because I was feeling the heat, I didn’t want to spend too much time on slow U-turns. Earlier in the week, Bill had mentioned that I should try and lock up the brakes so I could feel the ABS (anti-lock braking system) kick in. I asked him how I would know if the ABS was activated, and he explained that I would feel a shudder in the motorcycle, like a “chiggering.” To keep cool and still work on my riding skills, I sped along in the lot and grabbed hard on the brakes. I felt the ABS activate three times. Why should I do this? As a skill, understanding the feel of the ABS can help me in an emergency braking situation to not freak out and, heaven forbid, stop braking. The practice also let me work up a cooling breeze to help with the heat.
Despite the discomforts of the ride, I did have a good time. I enjoyed seeing some tall sunflowers in bloom and caught a strong whiff of fragrant air from a mimosa tree. And I was quick enough to spot not only a couple of cabbage white butterflies, but two small Fritillary butterflies, one of which fluttered by six inches from my helmet. My riding skills are becoming second nature allowing me to enjoy these natural sites while keeping aware and riding safely.
Flutterby Biker 