Hoppy New Beer!

 
As The Man himself once said, "Are we gonna ride, or are we gonna talk about riding?"

Well, today we rode. Eight of us set out to do the West Side's Best Ride from Thorntons, 20 minutes late (as usual -- but we were waiting for a motorcycle guy who's name I think is Allan; he discovered that he had no headlights, and left Thorntons to check at NAPA for a solution... alas, that was at 12:45).

Here's Dan, Michele and Ed, on our first stop @ Old Charlotte and Sam's Creek.

Michele and Norm with some of the scoots lined up at Grumpy's (Wiley Pardue & TN-250).

Richard was pretty happy with the ride.

Michele stowing or un-stowing something at Grumpy's. That SYM Fiddle II is their family's 4th scooter!  How cool is her GoGo Gear jacket?

Franck does some Twittering...?  :)

The fire tower across from Grumpy's.

Have a Happy, Safe New Year's!
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Oh, Deer

Photo used under Creative Commons license. Photo by Wyarr.

Yes, I encountered one, in Nashville, about a week ago. A doe so big, I thought she was a buck until I got close enough to note the lack of antlers.

I was riding back from the motel my brother and his family had procured last Thursday night -- actually, Friday morning, about 1 a.m. local time -- on Cabot Drive. I was about 600 yards from Annex Avenue where I saw her. I slowed considerably, and after sauntering across the road, she stood motionless in someone's front yard as I passed. My bigger concern was that she would get spooked, and either jump on me or directly in my path, but she didn't really get spooked until after I passed her.

What's so odd is this section of Cabot Drive is about 40 yards from Interstate 40, and about 200 yards from the Cumberland River, two boundaries that would seem to make it an unlikely hangout for a deer.
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Edward James Almost

... as in "almost bought the frackin' farm."

We had an epic ride goin' on, this past Sunday. And I will say right now, this accident was no one's fault -- nor will I identify the person who wrecked, other than to say he really does resemble Edward James Olmos... in a helmet, anyway. Anyway, here we are, cruising along too fast on a curvy rural road in the middle of nowhere, when BAM! Down he goes.

We're a group of six. He's #3 in the pack to my #6, so I saw the whole thang, and I was scared. This did NOT look good in any sense. We were going 35-40mph, and he drifted towards the shoulder, got caught up in some loose gravel, went sideways, and over the handlebars into a ditch. OMG.

After everyone got stopped or turned around to check on what had happened, it was obvious his remaining problems were more with his scooter than his bones or internal organs, so that was a big relief. The forks weren't perfectly aligned with the handlebars, any longer, but it wasn't so far out as to think "Gee, this is gonna kill me if I try to ride it back to the country store," so that's what we ended up doing. In fact, it was okay enough that our low-speed ride back to country store convinced the rider that we could limp it all the way back to town, so I followed him all the way back, successfully.

Now, I'm trying to write up some basic "Here's how we ride, and here's what you can expect" rules so people will never feel like they have to ride faster than they're comfortable in riding to keep pace with the gang. 'Cause that's not how we roll! We just wanna have fun, and we're very good about making sure everyone makes it from Point A to Point C (and we really WILL come looking for your bleeding-at-the-side-of-the-road ass if you don't catch up with the rest of us in 5-10 minutes). It is NOT a competition. We're just having some fun, y'all.
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Hoppy New Beer!

It's not Chinese New Year, but... I thought I should show one photo of the detail of Josephine's Demon Buddy that I first mentioned back in October. It's a screamer... it even has a crankcase breather. Danged compression is so high, the starter barely turns the beast over! :) It's a blast to ride, I tell ya, and I know Ms. Josephine is going to be Hell On Wheels this spring.

Be safe, and whatever you do, call for a ride if you get out a-drinkin', please. I've lost three friends in the last six weeks, the latest a DUI fatality -- her own fault, apparently, but it hurts, nonetheless. Please be safe, and conside the safety of others.
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Oh. Emm. Gee.

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Spring Safety Sermon

Okay. Spring weather has not reached Nashville, consistently, but I suspect it will, later this week. We've been having a lot of rain, with some periods of clearing for an hour or so, so I've made some trips on very wet roads, recently. With that in mind, I wanted to remind you of a few thangs for safer scooting on wet roads.

1.) SLOW DOWN. Don't be in a hurry. Make your turns more deliberate, and more upright when the roads are wet.

2.) LAWN CLIPPINGS can be VERY slick when wet!

3.) RAIN WASHES OUT GRAVEL, MULCH, SAND and other road hazards to two-wheelers. Stay aware and alert for these hazards, and make a mental note of where they exist.

4.) AVOID manhole covers, utility covers, metal grates and reflective road paints when wet, because they are ALL quite slick.

5.) Assume the roads are slicker than they seem, and ride, accordingly.

NOW, BIG THANKS to a couple of KymCojones fans, who upon seeing my enormous plight with a 10mm screw, bought me a Slime Power Sport Smart Spair kit (with its own 12V compressor!) and a Avon AM63 Viper Stryke Pirelli GTS23 front tire (pictured below):


I love you folx more than food!
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HONNNNNNNK!

Safety first. 

This bad boy, the Stebel Nautilus Compact, sings out at 139dB, and it will nearly make you crap your pants if you're not prepared. 

Now to hope there's room behind the front cover of BRU to install it... if not, Plan B.

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Save A Cowboy, Ride A Scooter

That there is Big Red Ugly, next to another local scooterist's recent acquisition of a 1998 Yamaha Riva 125. Both are illegally parked on a sidewalk in Five Points, in East Nashville, at the start of the Save Cowboy Keith Poker Run. He and I even have the same Shad (!) 29L top case.

The Poker Run was a success. No spills, no breakdowns, no one got lost and no hassles from the fuzz.  :)  Oliver led 21 riders on a merry route throughout east and south Nashville, stopping at four different businesses, and drawing cards at each stop. Then, the final card back at Five Points, where we arrived later than expected, but still with an hour to spare for the silent auction. I had three 10s, and was beat by a Jack-high straight (which the winner put back into the benefit fund... good guy, that Gene).

Much fun was had by all, and hopefully this will help defray some of Keith's expenses. Well done, Nashville!

There's a metric buttload of photos over at the ESS Fun page, for those interested.

UPDATE: Bill Power got a shot of me during our stop at Grimey's. As always, standin' around with my thumb up my ass.  :)

UPDATE II: Nashville Scene's Steve Cross snapped this photo of the Poker Run pack returning to Five Points. Can you spot Big Red Ugly?

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Review: StreetGlo Firefly Gloves

I recently agreed to become a product tester/reviewer for StreetGlo products, having been quite happy with my purchase of a custom-made reflective decal from them, last year. The Firefly gloves are the first product they've sent me for review.

The gloves are well-constructed, and have double-stitching on all main seams. The leather looks to be of good quality, and the palms are super thick (great for soaking up asphalt, should the need arise). The gloves are soft, flexible and comfortable (I'm typing with them on, right now, in fact!).

As the photo above shows, the reflective material appears grey in normal daylight, and feels a little like a super-soft suede leather, although I'm sure it's some sort of textured vinyl.

This is a flash photo taken against a flat-white wall. As you can see, the reflective patches throw the light right back at'cha... which is exactly what it should do. Also note the closure tab (Velcro), also with reflective detailing, assuring a comfy fit at the wrists.

Between the fingers, there's a spandex-like material, which allows for excellent finger articulation, and I presume in warmer weather, would also help ventilate the glove to keep them comfortable.

Even though it was only 36°F here when I went to the mailbox, I had to give 'em a try. I rode to a convenience store a couple of miles from home, and back, and yeah -- my exposed fingers were complaining. Once I got home, I left them on for a few minutes, and amazingly, my frozen digits warmed up very quickly, though. In cold weather, I haven't found a glove that can really keep my hands warm -- in fact, this on the left hand, and this on the right is the best solution I've found so far, in that regard. I've been thinking about those sleeves that go on the handlebars, lately.

Still, I felt a lot less vibration through the padded palms (a concern of mine on the People 250), and I can tell that once we get into the warmer weather, these are going to be standard gear for me. I like having gloves I can type or use a pen with, too; since I'm starting a courier business, these will be very handy (to coin a phrase). 

For $13.99/pair ($26.99 for full-fingered), you can't go wrong giving them a try.

UPDATE: If you find the fingerless gloves are a bit snug, here's a tip for removing them...

• Undo the Velcro wrist closure;

• Loosen the thumb area;

• Grip at the webbing between the middle and ring fingers, and pull. 

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