Rain greeted us Saturday morning, so I didn’t get my last practice ride on the BMW G310 GS.  Instead, we headed out to Home Depot to get some supplies; we had a ramp to make.  When we bought the BMWs, we transported them home using a U-Haul 15-foot truck.  At Adventure BMW, the dealership, they used a metal ramp to walk alongside the bike while running it up the ramp (insurance issues prevent any riding the bike up into the truck).  When we got the bikes home, however, we didn’t have any such “sidewalk” ramp, so my 310 was walked out with Bill astride it, and the R NineT was ridden out by my daredevil younger brother.

            This new bike was a Ducati bought from Bayside Harley-Davidson and Ducati out in Portsmouth where they really expect you to ride the motorcycle out of the dealership.  But we had rented another U-Haul, and Bill had come up with a creative way to make our own “sidewalk” ramp out of half of an extension ladder and some plywood.  It worked beautifully, but it took the better part of Saturday to make and did not come without some complications.

            Our Sunday was devoted to transferring motorcycles.  I picked up the U-Haul and we loaded our “sidewalk.”  When we got to Bayside, we found my lovely Ducati Desert Sled Scrambler Fasthouse #683 of 800 in a fancy display with my name on the seat.  We found Dorian to finish up the sale’s details, Dorian rode the bike out to our truck, and we proceeded to load.

            Now this was Sunday, yet we saw multiple cars cutting in and out of traffic, cutting me off (people, U-Hauls do not accelerate quickly), and in general making the case for our transporting the bike by truck rather than trying to ride it in traffic. 

When we arrived at my parents’ house, I quickly went in and brought the G310 GS out; we didn’t want my Mom thinking for a moment that we were going to house three motorcycles in her garage.  Next came the hard part—turning the Ducati around so we could walk it off the truck (no daredevil brother today).  This required brute strength to drag the bike around and then strength to carefully walk it down the ramp—not letting it get out in front of you nor let it tip too much to one side or the other and fall off the ramp.  However, once we got it off the ramp, got the BMW loaded, it was time to start her up.  The roar of the bike reminds me of Bill’s R NineT.  I quickly grabbed my jacket and helmet, suited up, and hopped on.

Since it was my first time on a brand-new bike, I reverted to my MSF training, kept the bike in neutral and just rocked it back and forth, then walked it.  Next I put the bike in first and paddle walked it a little up the street, turned around paddle walking, and walked it back.  Now I released the clutch and rolled on the throttle and scooted up the road in first, shifting to second.  As I shifted into second, I felt the 73 HP and the power of the 803cc engine—I loved it!  I didn’t feel confident about my U-turn, though, so I took a spin around the block, never leaving second gear, and road the bike up into the garage—no stalls.  Next week will be the full practice and neighborhood cruise and I absolutely can’t wait!  It’s also the week before winter break, and I am honestly more excited about getting to ride my new motorcycle than the upcoming holidays.