some rides are better than others..

[lucydad]

All,

Up early, bought breakfast for a recently terminated Petroleum Engineer friend, listened to his story, bought poodle food, home and took hand off from Ms LD for Alzheimer's care.  She returned from her workout, and then I took the Guzzi out around 10:30 AM.  Checked weather radar--WX is clear, headed to Mother Ocean on highway 6.  Noticed dark grey horizon, winds.  Got about 15 miles out:  a firehose from the sky hit me, with lightning and high winds.  Drenched in seconds, traffic goes wacko, streets a mess.  So I just turned around and came in bound. 

Hit every, and I mean every red light on highway 6.  Left turners and cars waiting to merge every where, and typical hurry up cagers on a Saturday.  Meandered a bit, did a bit of fast highway 90, and fast 99 and looped home. 

Not a great ride.  Maybe tomorrow will be better.  Bike is pretty grimed up and gear is drying. 

Oh well.  The visit with my friend was a very, very good thing to do.  He appreciated the gift of friendship and listening.  As I approach and pass my epic retirement date of October 5th, I am hanging on to good friends, and networking. 

So yeah there it is.  Maybe Sunday and a Monday off will feature better excursions? 

[toma nova]

Paul and I did 250 miles through SHNF, coolish this morning after just missing some rain, a little warm this afternoon.  Great burger at Yankee Tavern, awesome curves on FM 3090.  A little maintenance on the Norge, a great half day out and about.  Hardly any traffic north of Houston, they must have all been down your way.

Join us some time, we'll get you off Hwy 6!

Tom

[Lannis]

  Checked weather radar--

I don't think I've ever had a positive outcome from doing this.

If the forecast is showing "awful", I sometimes miss a great ride.   If the forecast is showing "good", I sometimes get drenched anyway.

When George Halas coached the Bears, he'd almost never have the Bears throw a forward pass.   He figured "When you throw a pass, there are only three things that can happen, and two of them are bad."   

About the same for studying the weather forecast ..... !

Lannis

[Cam3512]

MyRadar Weather Radar � Forecast, Storms, and Earthquakes by Aviation Data Systems, Inc
https://appsto.re/us/2Saot.i

I like this radar app.  Comes in handy when trying to avoid the heavy stuff.  Very accurate.
Lannis, not sure if your coconut cell phone will work with this app.

LD, you do realize the Gulf is not "Mother Ocean"?  It's a big salt lake.

[Lannis]

I like this radar app.  Comes in handy when trying to avoid the heavy stuff.  Very accurate.
Lannis, not sure if your coconut cell phone will work with this app.

Everything these days isn't an "app", you know.   

When I'm having my morning coffee in the Super 8 lobby or in the Kampground Kafe, the TV set is generally playing "The Weather Channel" ... an on my big clumsy desktop, NOAA has wonderfully detailed Doppler Radar pictures for the whole country.   

So any time before or during a ride, it's generally possible to get a look at the west-to-east-moving red blobs of rain and lightning .... but I've pretty much learned not to, having traveled with people who hyperventilate a bit over that stuff .... 

Lannis

[toaster404]

I'm always surprised by what a "good ride" is.  Got hit by micro-bursts, driving rain, 20 mph on at 65 mph road, crosswinds making sudden hard pushes and whistling helmet. I was grinning, it was great!  First bad weather on my 1400 and it didn't care.  Got tossed about 18" over to the right from what must have been a 50 plus mph gust, that was it.  Impressive.

Then there's the perfect day with sparkling weather where I can't find the right apex of a corner to save my life, when I miss shifts, miss turns, and my butt starts hurting.

If I get up the top of the hill, turn left nice and steady, and click through two perfectly silent invisible shifts while the engine is warming up, it's a good ride already, even if I'm just running 3 miles to get milk!!!

[lucydad]

Tom,

Wow I wish I could have joined you guys.  When the Alzheimer's clinic is OPEN, I have to do my part.  Cheaper than divorce, and just the right thing to do.

Emotionally the past few weeks for me have been difficult.  Friday late in the day I had a major ambush meeting from VP, Mr. Boss and Mr. donut on a project I worked on 3 years.  Result:  all for naught, and an incredible exploration oil project.  I am in a bit of a twilight zone right now, what Steven King (author) calls the border lands.  Hence, yes I am not quite normal.  All will settle out in a few weeks though. 

Guzzi gets rolled out again tomorrow.  Maybe it will go better.  Damn pop up storm just creamed me though.  Hate it when I am spewing water out my nose, and inside of helmet is wet for air vents, etc.  Little Goose needs a good cleaning.

Thanks for sympathy, I can be whiney when I get wet....

[Lannis]

Eat a Snickers Greg 

  Dusty

A reference to Mr. T's advice, I'm sure!

Sometimes you just have to get some ....

Lannis

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

A few Sundays ago I heade out for a ride and everything was just pi$$ing me off from the get go. Grass blown out into the road (on turns, no less), two drivers pulled out in front of me, got behind one going 30 on a nice open country road posted for 45, the helmet that I've been wearing for the last 3 years was suddenly hurting my head and I quickly got a headache, etc. It was like that for the entire first half of the ride.

At the "apogee" things completely changed - no traffic, no helmet pain, no grass in the road, started really enjoying the ride. Weird. Must have been that "magic" F'Real apple pie milkshake I had at Sheetz... 

[Muzz]

Caught up with my friend at church today to let him know when the bike was going to be registered for the summer season. He is an area manager for a rather large firm,  so his riding time is a bit curtailed.  He remarked that he just did his fluid changes on the Yamaha ready for the main riding season,  and found he had clocked up an extra thousand kms over the usual since we have been riding together. Got the feeling he can't wait for September 27th to roll around!

And yes LD,  riding in the pouring rain can be the pits.