Super Special Final Ride of the Summer

Riders know when it’s their day to ride. When the weather is wonderful, just a little warm, and special events like the Oceana Air Show is in town, riders come out in droves. As we headed over to the garage, I saw too many motorcycles to count, mostly cruisers, though there was a Yamaha R1 that went zipping by until traffic caused it to pull up. I joked to Bill that there were two motorcycle gangs—a group of three riders. I keep the gang at a minimum of three so Bill and I won’t be mistaken for a gang (LOL).

The week’s wind and rain had made an autumnal impact on the crape myrtles. Blossoms were sparse and several trees were nearly denuded of their leaves already. I hope the other trees will hold onto their leaves long enough to give us some spectacular fall foliage to enjoy. Still, there were enough flowers still blooming—the second chance azaleas, vincas, and some more mums—to attract a few butterflies. I spotted two cabbage whites as we rode and even saw a monarch go by.

We were about halfway into our ride, and I hadn’t seen any Canadian geese. I was a little too deep into thinking about where the geese might be and had to do a sudden stop as Bill surprised me with a turn. We headed up the on-road U-turn street, and I was successful in staying on the road for both. My second turn is almost always better than my first, and I believe that is because during the first turn, I’m paying attention to where Bill is in his turn and not just focused on mine. By the time I get around for the second U-turn, Bill has already zoomed up the road, so I can totally focus on getting my head completely around and keeping the turn tight. I worked on my swerves as well and need to continue to practice because I realized I wasn’t using my legs on the tank like I should.

When we turned off this road, I finally spotted some geese. At first it was just a pair, but then I saw the rest of the gaggle a few houses up the street. I also spotted more Halloween decorations including a skeleton jazz trio complete with instruments and capes. The rest of my ride went smoothly including my sudden stop practice. Except I did stall the bike at the same stop sign I stalled it at a few months ago. I don’t know why I stalled other than I missed the sweet spot. Bill had gone sailing up the road, so I had the opportunity to roll on the throttle and play catch up.

After our ride, we took advantage of the beautiful day to wash the motorcycles. As we were washing my bike, a cabbage white butterfly flew in low right over top of the motorcycle before sailing away. If she had lingered a bit, I might have been able to snap a photo. But today was my day to miss amazing photos. While we were washing the motorcycles, we could hear some of the jets from the annual Oceana Air Show. Now my parents’ house is miles away from Oceana, but jets being what they are, the distance is nothing. I came out of the garage and spotted the Blue Angels flying by in a four-man formation; it was beautiful and up close and would have been a phenomenal photo. I kept looking and hoping they would fly back around—this time with the cockpits visible, but all we saw the rest of the afternoon were contrails as they performed loop-de-loops for the crowds. The only image I got was a slight contrail, and if you squint and look at the bottom right corner of the photo, you can spot it. I must say that having a Blue Angels flyover on the penultimate summer ride of 2024 is spectacular and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I suppose the lesson here for all of us isn’t that we must all ride motorcycles, but we should all spend some quality time outdoors.

Top of magnolia tree, blue sky, jet contrail — Contrail from a Blue Angel jet as seen above a magnolia tree.

Sunday Funday Ride

A rainy Saturday morning postponed our usual ride until Sunday with the weather bringing us a spectacular day for riding—sunny and comfortable with temperatures in the low 70s. Another indication summer is ending, and autumn is arriving.

Because it was Sunday our day to relax, we took a relaxed approach to the ride. No slow speed or tricky maneuvers; just cruising about and enjoying the sights. There was a rather ominous start to our ride. As we mounted the motorcycles to begin, a turkey buzzard was circling close above us. I snapped a picture of the bird which seemed no more than twenty feet above us, but I couldn’t focus the camera too well in my helmet, so the buzzard looks too small in the frame. I’ll just point out that the buzzard was close enough to us that I looked around for what it might be seeking to snack on. Luckily for me, I didn’t spot anything.

The buzzard floating above us as we got started but soon spiraled out of sight. I spied some harvest themed decorations—scarecrow and small pumpkins. One person with a sense of humor had a skeleton set out on his steps waving at passersby. These decorations were spotted early in the ride, and I was hopeful I would see more. But it is too early in September and too far from Halloween for most people to decorate. There are more and more political candidate signs appearing, but those aren’t very much fun.

I was happily surprised to see a number of butterflies out on this Sunday afternoon. I even pondered if butterflies and nature in general “slept in” on Sundays. My first butterfly encounter was with a low-flying black swallowtail that passed by in front of the car windshield as I drove over to the garage. I actually hit my brakes to keep the butterfly off my windshield. I then spotted a yellow Sulphur flying over my parents’ yard as we unloaded the gear.

During the ride, I saw three cabbage white butterflies along the curvy road. I then spotted what I think was an Atlantis fritillary butterfly before spying another black swallowtail. One tiny butterfly flew up by my helmet, and from the coloring I think it might have been a ceraunus blue butterfly, but it went by too fast to see the black spot. I saw a couple more yellow Sulphurs and began wondering if I’d ever in my life seen a pink butterfly. There is a species called the pink-edged Sulphur and a phaon crescent butterfly, but I don’t think I’ve ever spotted one.

I enjoyed my relaxing, butterfly-filled ride. I know I soon won’t see any butterflies until next spring, so I’m glad they seemed to be out in force during this ride. And I look forward to whatever sights I can see next week as I ride.

Turkey buzzard circling above in a blue sky — An ominous sign that contradicts the beauty of my ride.

Gearing Up for Summer

Our luck with the temperatures finally ran out; the weather was typical for Memorial Day weekend in southeast Virginia—hot and humid. Actually, for us, low 80s isn’t too hot, but the humidity was up and the sun was bright making this ride warm and sweaty. I learned a valuable lesson with my riding gear on this warm, nearing-summer day. Do not wear the leather riding pants when the temperature hits 80 or above; it can lead to chafing.

Usually when I wear my Rev’It Ignition 3 leather riding pants, I wear a pair of tights underneath for an additional layer of warmth. Knowing that the ride was going to be warm, I opted to skip the tights, wear some knee pads to protect my knees, and wear the leather pants. Not a good idea. My right inner thigh about halfway through the ride began to rub a little raw. I stood up and shifted a bit to move the pants around, but I realized that I either wear the tights and get sweatier, or it’s time to switch to the Klim riding jeans.

I did think about wearing bike shorts under the leathers, but that solution still adds another layer of cloth and more to sweat through. Today’s ride was an experiment in what constitutes too hot for the leather pants, and I’ve determined 80 degrees or higher. Switching the pants isn’t a big deal, but Bill really likes me in the leathers.

It was a warm enough day that I kept my jackets partially unzipped. And it was my first really warm ride to feel how the ventilation on my Arai helmet worked. I made sure I had opened all the vents fully, and I was comfortable enough while we cruised, though on slow-speed maneuvers, I opened up the visor some. I did have a red, angry mark across my forehead when I removed my helmet, but to prevent that much like the chafing, I would need to add more layers when I’m already toasty.

As I was gearing up in the garage, a cabbage white flew by, almost flying into the garage. I chased after her to try and get a picture, but every time I was close enough to snap the pic, she moved herself in front of something white and disappeared. She was only the first of many butterflies I saw on this bright, sunny day, including an eastern tiger swallowtail, and possibly a Juvenal’s Duskywing butterfly. It certainly was dark enough.

With the sunshine and all the flowers in bloom, of course there were lots of butterflies about. I also saw some dragonflies, a real harbinger of summer as the dragonflies means the mosquitoes are coming. I forgot to mention that a few weeks ago, I saw a small dragonfly in the garage. I wondered if the bright reds and yellows in my helmet had attracted it.

The Canadian goslings have reached the teenager stage and are almost as tall as their parents. A young child of about three was watching the gaggle in fascination. We encouraged a couple of mallards to move away from the edge of the road as we zoomed past. And I almost missed a turn when I spotted a beautiful osprey with wings full spread in the blue sky.

As we rode, I worked on trail braking. Actually, what Bill had asked me to work on was feeling the dive of the front end of the bike when I pull in the front brake and then the release as I trail off the brake. I still tried a little bit of trail braking in some of my turns, and I am getting a better understanding of the importance of having some of the front brake engaged in a turn so that if something goes wrong, I can continue my braking while straightening up the motorcycle.

Someone was having a party—graduation or Memorial Day—so our on-street U-turn road was blocked on both sides. But I did my best ever U-turn in the handicap spots on the gravel lot; I am finally learning to trust the R Nine T and my ability to accelerate on the incline. My right arm did start to go numb. I am wondering now if it is the pre-load position; however, I don’t want to give up pre-loading the front brake to find out. I do have my left fingers extended over the clutch, but I don’t pre-load that, so I am not exerting pressure until I am ready to shift gears. My gear shifts were a little odd; I didn’t miss a gear, but at least three times during the ride I felt as though I had. Of course, the R Nine T doesn’t have a gear indicator other than the neutral light, so I’m always in a little suspense as to what gear I might be in until we stop and I can shift down to first.

Another riding mystery to be solved, and the only way to solve it is with more rides which I am always ready for!

Another Cool Ride

Having grown up in southeastern Virginia, I’m accustomed to summer arriving early. Usually in May, especially by mid-May, we’re already dealing with hints of the summer heat to come. But again we were blessed with cool air in the lower 60s, perfect for riding motorcycles.

Of course the cooler air keeps the butterflies at bay. I saw a few cabbage whites flitting about as I drove over to ride. But during our ride, I didn’t see any. I did spot three more goslings out with the family toward the end of our ride, but except for the many people out walking, I didn’t spot much in the way of wildlife. Except, of course, for squirrels.

I do tend to look about as I ride enjoying the beautiful plants and flowers and trying to spot various forms of animal life. But I also work on my rider awareness. During this ride, I got extra practice on my sudden stops when a squirrel that had been safely standing in someone’s yard decided that he needed to cross the street at the exact moment Bill’s Rocket was riding past. We both got our sudden stop practice in on that one.

Later, in the gravel lot as I worked on my U-turn in the two parking spaces, I had to skip my first attempt because of a squirrel balancing on the beams that frame the parking spaces. I did not want to be mid-turn and have to come to a stop because the squirrel wanted to play chicken with the R Nine T. So I looped around the lot and gave him time to reconsider his perch. I was still cautious and looking out for the little gray furball as I went into the lot. I had one good turn and one foot dab.

I did do better following Bill in the S-turns inside the square parking lot. I’m doing a better job of judging my distance and speed and setting up my lines so that I don’t overrun his path. And I’m improving in my sudden stops and gos.

I did have an issue with the numbness again, though. I did not go to the gym Thursday or Friday due to being under the weather, so I wasn’t pumped up from the gym. The numbness wasn’t as bad as the week before, but it was enough that I do think the slight lean in the riding position coupled with my pre-loading the front brake is causing something to get pinched somewhere in my arm.

Next weekend I’ll try a different undershirt; I’m starting to think I might need something sleeveless. Also next weekend is the Memorial Day weekend. Please be on the lookout for all the motorcycle riders riding out to honor our fallen service men and women. And enjoy your holiday too!

Watch Out for Goslings!

After a brief sampling of summer heat, we were blessed with a perfect spring Saturday for our ride. The temperatures, hitting over 90 during the week, had dropped to a cool mid-60s vibe, enough that I wore my fleece shirt under my jacket. Cool enough for comfort, but warm enough for nature to put on a show.

As I was gearing up and heading down to the R Nine T, I saw an osprey hunting above the river, circling, diving, soaring up, and diving again. By chance I glanced back over my left shoulder as I headed down the driveway and caught sight of the bald eagle flying away. I hoped for another glimpse of the eagle when we headed out, but I wasn’t that lucky.

But speaking of gearing up, I was amazed to realize how easy strapping the Arai helmet has gotten for me. I’ve gotten such a good feel for the straps that I can now even snap the snap closed. The only aspect I don’t like about the helmet is putting it on, but even that’s getting a bit easier. I am curious how good the air flow will be in the summer; I think it’s probably good that I accept bad hair day Saturdays.

The skies were partly cloudy, so I knew I’d see some butterflies and I did. The air was heavy with the sweet scent of ligustrums and honeysuckle, both big draws for butterflies. The first cabbage white butterfly took off at the same time we did, and I spotted the second one half a block later. I spotted a pair of what I think were Eastern Comma butterflies; they danced right in front of me and then I zoomed by. As we came to the duck crossing between the river, we came to a stop as a family of Canadian geese crossed the road—the mama, the papa, and the gosling. I only saw the one gosling and wondered what had happened to the others.

As for my ride, my on-street U-turns were all asphalt because I trusted the balance of the bike. During the first turn as I came around to the other side of the street, I made the decision to push further into my lean and let off the clutch rather than play it safe and ride wide into the grass. And the boxer engine didn’t let me fall. Later I struggled in the two-spot turn in the gravel lot, but that struggle is due to turning and having to get the bike up an incline rather than a flat turn. I need to let on a bit more speed to compensate for the fight against gravity.

I had to take a break during the ride when we went into the hospital parking lot. My right arm became numb, and I needed to shake it out. I think the issue may be in my Friday lift at the gym. On Fridays I work my arms, and I may have some vascular swelling that causes unusual tightness leading to the numbness. I will be switching up my lifts during the week to see if that alleviates the issue. I still also believe some of the issues stem from the R Nine T riding position of a slight lean. However, since I don’t experience the numbness on my left side, most of it must be due to my lifts. And I need to work on balancing my lifts since clearly my right side is working harder than my left!

I was reminded during this ride of the time I almost dropped the 310. The magnolias are really blooming now, and I love the clean scent of them. I was off alone on the 310 taking my turn back when we only had the one motorcycle. I was in a court for a turnaround that had a huge magnolia tree to the left side. I thought how nice that I could stop the bike, lift up the helmet visor, and get a whiff of the blossom dangling across the court. What I did not know was that the pavement of the court dipped down at the edges to allow for water runoff. As I went to set my left foot down, I discovered the ground wasn’t where I expected it to be but a few inches lower. The 310 began listing heavily to the left but, because it wasn’t too heavy of a motorcycle, I was able to catch it. I never did get to smell that magnolia blossom, but I have decided to sniff what scents are blown through the breeze. It is much safer that way if a bit more boring. But with all the sights, sounds, and scents surrounding me, I’m never truly bored when riding.

Butterfly Blessed Ride

The rain defeated us on Saturday, so we crossed our fingers that the windy Sunday forecasted would dry out the roads and allow us to ride. By waiting until the early afternoon, we were able to get our ride in.

As we drove over to pick up the motorcycles, I noticed several cabbage white butterflies flitting about, enjoying the sunshine after Saturday’s rain. I was hopeful to see some during the ride, but I was surprised when I spotted one down by the R Nine T while I was putting on my gear. I grabbed my phone to try and get a photo of the butterfly right above the bike, but by the time I had the phone in hand, the butterfly had flitted its way across the street and into someone’s backyard. I still got to see the butterfly drawn in by the bright yellow and red colors of the motorcycles, so I was smiling even without a photo.

The butterfly blessing came a few moments later. Bill and I had mounted the bikes, and I was waiting for the tether check. Recently, Bill has taken to tugging on the attached tether for his Helite airbag vest while looking over for me to do the same. This check ensures we both have the vests attached which means, should either of us go flying off the motorcycle, the airbag will deploy. While I waited I naturally was looking toward Bill on the Rocket. I noted a shadow on the ground and thought it was the butterfly flying over us. When I glanced back, there was the little cabbage white, blessing complete, off to find actual colorful flowers to play among.

Off we went on a shortened ride. I had been ill all week and was just starting to recover, so the ride was shortened to keep me from overdoing it. Due to the shorter ride and the massive road equipment, we skipped the curvy road. Our first U-turns were the in-street turns, and I was as successful as lasts week in staying on the pavement. I again marveled at the balance of the R Nine T with its low-slung boxer engine as I worked my turns throughout the ride. The roads were drier than last week, so I did work in the gravel lot, almost completing a U-turn inside the large wooden beams that mark off the handicap parking. Next week I will try the full turn inside the beams.

My stops into restarts got better though I realized I’m not stopping hard enough. Bill wants me to stop hard enough to feel the anti-lock brakes shudder. I wasn’t stopping that hard.

My hopes of seeing more butterflies weren’t realized. I did see another cabbage white moving among the camellias toward the end of my ride. I was surprised to see some azaleas already in bloom; I guess they liked the mild winter and all the rain we’ve had. Usually I see the azaleas blooming after the cherry trees, and I suppose the majority of them will, but it is a fun sign of spring to see some azaleas alongside the sugar magnolias, apple blossoms, daffodils, and forsythia. Of course, the best part of spring and summer will be the butterflies.

Sugar magnolia blossoms under sunshine and clouds

Better Late Than Never

Friday and Saturday brought us rain, and I despaired of a Saturday ride. Bill was more optimistic; the rain was supposed to stop around 1 and the sun came out to dry the roads. When showers fell at noon, I figured our Saturday ride was out, but the forecast was right, the sun came out, and the roads, mostly, dried off. Temperatures were in the 60s, so in that regard it was perfect riding weather. But this ride had to be one of our latest as we headed out around four in the afternoon.

It was warm enough to bring out a cabbage white butterfly which I spotted on the drive over to get the motorcycles. I hoped I would see more as we rode, but perhaps the lateness of the afternoon or the rain or the early March date kept other butterflies at bay. The rain drops gave a sparkle to the daffodils, camellias, and the sugar magnolias I saw in bloom. And the green grass shone under the sunlight.

As we headed out, we did have to dodge some puddles here and there. Yet I found out early it was going to be a great ride as we hit the cul de sac at the end of the curvy road, and I did two of my tightest U-turns ever.

Unfortunately, the sun didn’t stay with us throughout the whole ride. While the sun was shining, I was comfortable in my Klim lightweight jacket, but when the clouds blocked the sunlight, I got chilly enough to turn on my heated grips.

Of course I kept my eyes peeled for large birds. The Canadian geese were out in their mating pairs here and there, and I even startled some ducks by the river. An eastern bluebird flew across our path, a few feet in front of Bill’s helmet. And I did spot a large bird, but it was too far away to be certain that it was the golden eagle.

I was finally able to complete both on-street U-turns successfully. The first one was berm to berm, but the second one left me a good foot away from the berm. We stopped at the gravel parking lot outside the historic house, but as I rode into it, I noticed the mud and puddles and felt I should give it a pass. I think part of me just didn’t want to have to wash the motorcycle later.

My emergency stops and restarts went better than before, but I feel like I’m stopped longer than I should be. I did better at scanning the mirrors as I came to a stop. I have to develop comfort with just putting my left toe down and trusting that my acceleration will keep the R Nine T upright.

I’m lucky that Bill was right to have us ride Saturday. I became quite ill Sunday and have been sick all week. I’m working on getting healthy for the weekend because I don’t want to miss my chance to ride. Of course, I need the weather to cooperate and push the rain off until Sunday.

Golden Ride

Sometimes not having a roof over one’s head is a good thing, and it’s one of the many aspects I love about riding motorcycles. Having the freedom to look up unencumbered by a car roof gave us a spectacular view of a golden eagle.

I remembered this week to check the wind chill though I only checked it for my city and not my parents’, so it was a little chillier than expected but no where near as cold as last week. I only felt the wind through my helmet; I need to check my ventilation because I may have extra open vents. I was wearing the same outfit as last week, but the temperature was at 50 and that made a big difference in my comfort.

We headed out with a detour due to road construction down the block from the garage. Because of the torn-up roads, we didn’t go down the curvy road. I was a little disappointed, but I let the squirrels running about and the Canadian geese distract me. I even spotted some robins, the birds of spring. The skies were cloudy, but yesterday’s rain was on hold and the roadways were dry enough for our ride though we had to dodge a few large puddles.

Since we bypassed the curvy road, it didn’t take us long to reach the cul de sac where we practice on-street U-turns. With last week’s disastrous turns still fresh in my mind, I was a little trepidatious, and that trepidation affected my first turn. Wide into the grass I went; one thing I have improved on is not shaking my head when I make a mistake or goof. I tightened up as I started the second turn and managed to stay on the street. It’s definitely a feel thing and a need for more practice because when I was turning in the gravel lot, I performed my tightest U-turns ever.

Bill led us on a meandering path for our ride, but this was a good thing. We headed up the road to the footless stop Yield later in our ride than usual, and that allowed us to witness the magnificent sight of the golden eagle landing in a tree. The movement of its wings caught both of our attention because it was only about 30 feet up from us on the road. Unfortunately for us, the motorcycle noise disturbed it; the eagle flitted to another tree and, even though we had stopped the bikes, then decided to head off. Our arrival was probably a lucky happenstance for one of the four Canadian geese grazing by the roadside as the eagle most likely was planning on making one of the geese its lunch.

The benefit to startling the golden eagle was we got to see it launch in the air and fly away. Outside of an ostrich at the zoo, this golden eagle is the largest bird I have ever seen. What a spectacular sight; that golden eagle makes me even happier about riding my motorcycle and, while the odds are I won’t get to see that beautiful bird again, I will keep my eyes peeled as I keep riding.

golden eagle in flight — Photo by Andrew Patrick on Pexels.com