Tuesday April 5th 05. Rode with Loonette to Caesar's Creek Dam. It is a good 40 minute ride from our place. The weather was perfect. Wind was a little strong moving from the south, but it was already in the 70s. Met some nice folks there. One guy on a Suzuki and a couple who had a very nicely painted Harley. Painted a bit like an Indian, but it looked nice. Had a chance to remove the side panels from my Joe Rocket leather, and it really moved the air nicely for a warm day.

Rode yesterday too and it was almost 70F most of the day. I hope to see a lot more of these days to come.

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

I hope that more warm days are to come to. Look forward to reading more.

Monday April 25th. I dutifully make a new entry here. It was a horrible weekend for riding, but I couldn't ride anyway as I was watching the kids the whole weekend while my wife was out of town on a personal break. We have had such great weather and I have been riding almost daily, so a break was due.

Friday (or was it Thursday) last week I bought a new helmet. The old one wasn't worn out, but I've had my eye on this Icon green Alliance helmet for a long time and finally they had one in stock at our local dealer. Loonette dropped her bike off for its first service at the same time, so I was going to the store really just to pick her up. I had put the helmet on layaway and Loonette asked me if I wanted pay it off and pick it up. I did want to very much. So my new helmet hang on its hook in the office all weekend. I tried it on another 10 or 12 times.

Well this week brings more nice weather my way, so I'm guessing that means very little time online. I guess there could be worse things. Don't forget me - I'll be back my foul weather friends!

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

April 28th - Thursday

I will probably go for a quick ride today. I am home alone and there is no rain. It will be only in the mid 50s today, but I think I will bundle up and take her for a spin. Yesterday I went to a bike gathering that happens every Wednesday through out he biking season. Well, that was a bit of a waste of time. It was cool enough that only myself and two other bikes were there. They didn't even bother blocking off the area just for bike, which they normally do on Wedneday. The past two weeks there were quite a few people there. I'll go back again next week and check it out.

I got a new helmet. It is an Icon Alliance and it green to match my bike. Truth be told it is not a perfect match, but I love the helmet.



My HJC fit too loose as an extra large, but the Icon fits perfect. The HJC was a pretty quiet helmet, but the fit of the face shield was less than perfect. I could fiddle with the screws that held the sheild assembly to the helmet and get it adjusted better, but that seems kind of hinky to me. The Icon is more noisy though. The shield seals nice, but there is a lot of wind noise from the helmet top vent. When it is closed it whistles quite a bit and when that vent is open it still is a little prone to a chirp or two depending on your head angle. The fit is perfect for me though. It is snug and will not move and it also does not leave me sore.

The HJC will stay an active spare. It is a good helmet and I would recomend it to others. I'll have to let you know long term with the Icon though. So far I'm very happy with this as a sub $200 helmet.

The red one is the one I have -

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

I didn't want to do this, but I'm going to blog.

July 23 - 10am
The bike is fully loaded. Joe Rocket saddle bags, my bike tarp, Frog Togs, and extra helmet are cargo strapped and bungeed down. I already warmed her up and checked the view glass for proper oil level. Off on the road to Detroit - actually Holly just south of Flint.

Temps are just coming up through 80F. Decided to wear my leather Joe Rocket Sonic jacket even though it is a bit warm, but with the side panels removed it is very comfortable at speed. Also decided to wear my Joe Rocket Phoenix pants - because with shorts underneath they are more comfortable than jeans, and safer. Wore my combat boots, which I usually wear for riding. They are the most comfortable shoes I've ever owned and I have had them for over three years. They are still absolutely waterproof.

The trip was a simple one. Up north on 68 from Yellow Springs until I hit 75. 75 merges with 23 which takes just west of Holly. A lot of freeway miles and a lot clear skies. 68 hosed me up a bit this day though. In the town of Urbana there was some sort of festival. They detoured me east and out quite a ways. I made a hunch and turned north and a few blocks later headed west and met back with 68 on the other side.

10am to 11:30am
Along 68 north I kept seeing BMWs. All kinds. Old, new, pretty, worn, small ones...you name it. Most of the folks were very friendly and I had a big string of riders pass me, all waving... so much so that I couldn't keep my hand out. The road was very fast this day and I had many stretches where several cars ahead of me were keeping a 70 to 75 MPH pace on this 55 MPH road. I could pace well behind a group of cars and play with little burst of speed when it seemed safe and clear.

11:30am
Joined up with 75 just north of a town called Kenton. They have a great little Marathon station there with fresh coffee and Pizza slices. Just what I don't need, but love none the less. Right before 75 there is an exit off 68 that points you to 75. I think it is part of 15 right there. Anyway, the exit off 68 to 15 is ridiculous. It is gouged up by some sort of road machine. It looks like right before they put a layer of blacktop on concrete. They gouge it up and then I guess the blacktop will stick to the surface better. I don't know. Anyway, this is hard to ride on in a corner and it has been like this for a couple years. I really hate this entrance ramp. I lived.

Noon
Shortly up 75, just north of Findlay is one of the nicest rest stops to which I have been. I almost always plan that as a stop if I pass it. It has picnic areas and a little river. Clean bathrooms and information area. While stopped a guy pulls up on some kind of pretty Harley with the highway setup and hard bags. No gear on this guy and I really look the contrast to him. He hops off, walks up and says "hey". We talked for a while. He was going to Michigan too and had also come up from the Dayton area. He got it in his head to go up and see the Mackinaw Bridge between the upper and lower peninsula of Michigan. Nice guy.

Also while at this stop a couple on a BMW roll up. The Harley dude and I had been talking about all the BMWs we'd been seeing. Well, when they showed up we knew we could solve the mystery. Real nice BMW 1200 touring bike. I'm not sure of the model, but it's the one that looks like a European Goldwing. Full fairing, built in hard bags, MP3 player, GPS - sweet touring rig and I'm sure $$$$! Anyway he confirmed that in Lima there was a national meet for BMW. I know I got to see a lot of cool bikes on the first half of my ride.

12:30pm to 2:30pm
Shortly north of the rest stop, 23 joins 75. I jump on and pass west of Toledo through somewhat heavy traffic. Every one just flying though. Seems pretty standard for everyone to go 15 to 20 over the speed limit. I keep using my pacing technique to allow the fastest guys to keep passing, but still keeping a quick pace. Staying alert of the brake lights of those moving past me an excessive speed. I'm still cutting a steady 75 MPH in a 65 zone with burst to 80 to move around slower traffic. Slow traffic is speed limit to 5 over and they are few and far between. Trucks have no problem matching this pace. It is quite funny when the brakes come on and everyone is an angel until they pass the ticket writer.

2:30pm
I arrive at exit 79 off 23 which will lead me to Holly. East bound for 10 miles or so through some great curvy 45 MPH roads. A little traffic, but they are moving along as well. At Dixie Highway it’s a right and I near my destination at nearly 3:30pm. The friends I'm staying with live on a dirt road and they are about 2 miles away from the paved road. Today the road is dry. It looks like it has not been graded in a while, which is a mixed blessing. Some parts are hard like concrete. Others are washboard with soft areas to the side. It takes skill and patience to get where I'm going. My bike is a little too sport for this road, but I know it is great to get practice like this, so I take it easy.

3:30pm
It is now very humid and around 90F. I have to park on the grass here because I want to stay out of there driveway and there is a spot in front of their shed where we usually park bikes. Problem is my stand is not good for grass. I lean it over and it sinks a bit, but seems to stay up. The weight of my bags does not inspire confidence. I run inside and ask for something to put my stand on and he has something ready. It is a brass 6" round cover that you put on a drain or access cover. Worked like a charm and the bike did not fall over before I got back. I was very sweaty in my gear, so I pulled the cargo off and headed to the AC.

4:00pm
Sound asleep. I planned to ride more this day, but it was too easy to nap and later I ate and my friends took me to the drive-in in their van. It was a nice end to a long day. Tomorrow I'm off to another buddy of mine in Mount Clemens.

I'll finish this series in the next couple days. I wanted to write about my 4 day trip to Detroit and back.

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

I forgot a ridiculous part of the my day on that first day up. Back when I bought my first bike it had a very hard seat - it was an FZ6. I bought a big gel seat to easy the rear on long rides. It was around $80 for this thing, which I now see as being very unreasonable. I don't know how I justified that little jem.

On this trip I decided to give it a try again on this bike. I hadn't done that yet. It had straps to hold it down, but I just left it loose. I figured my butt would hold it down. After I passed the Michigan border I realized it wasn't under my butt anymore. Where had it gone? I realized I had stood up on my pegs about 20 time between the rest stop and where I was now. I had covered 40 miles. One of the times it blew out from under my butt! Damn. I didn't go back since it had been such a long ride already, I still had a way to go, and I couldn't be sure where it was. Technically someone could have stole it at the rest stop too, but seems unlikely. I think I lost it in the wind.

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

July 24th - 3pm or so

After staying up until 3am in the morning I sure did enjoy sleeping in, and missing the morning rain. I did sort of feel bad that I didn't get to ride more on this Sunday though. I loaded my bags back on and made my way back out the dirt road that led me here. I had a silly moment where I was on the bike, loaded up, and looked at my brass disk which had kept my kick-stand from sinking and the bike falling over. Now with my bike running and me on it I had to figure out how to reach down and get the disk. I had to move the bike to more solid ground and go back and get the disk. Now I know I'm going to tie a little bit of string to the thing and leave it hanging on my handle bar when I'm parked so I can pull it up without such awkwardness.

Today leads me to Mount Clemens from here. I jump on south Dixie Highway from Holly which will lead me to 75 - but this day the 75 on-ramp is closed, and that is how I planned to get to M59 which will run straight to my destination. I don't totally know my way around from here, but figured I can work out getting on to 75 somewhere south and east of the closed exit. I end up almost to Pontiac when I notice Walton Blvd which I knew ran to Rochester where I could jump on M59. Uneventful and speedy run after I hit M59. Everyone is flying and between being able to go faster and have even faster people pass me I can make great time. Right before I got there I looked down and saw it was 4:20 and wished I was there already.

I thought I had more time to write. I'll be back for my arrival in Mt. Clemens and my afternoon of two-up riding.

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

Continuing on the 24th of July

I arrived at my buddy’s house in Mount Clemens just before 5pm. It was once again a pretty hot day, but moving on the bike always makes it better. Once I got to his house I rode around the back and parked on his back porch. He lives in a condo/apartment. I like staying at his place because of my preferred parking. I unloaded the gear and headed in to his house for a break in the air conditioning, but I knew I was not yet done riding today.

My buddy wanted to go visit another guy I hadn't seen in 20 years from high school. This other guy had moved all around the country and ended up not far from our old stomping ground (which was Rochester). He wanted to take his car, but I suggested my bike. He thought I would be tired of riding, but I planned to ride the whole weekend. I even brought an extra helmet just so I could haul someone else around. So I rested for a 1/2 hour, helped get him geared up and I was off again.

My buddy (Jon's his name) has ridden with me before. He says he considers me to be a safe rider and is not concerned riding with me. I really have tried to be that way, and especially two up, so it was nice to hear. We rode over to the other guy’s apartment (the other guy's name is Dave) and he wasn't home. He thought he might be at a second location near by, so we spun over that way. No Dave.

It was now closing in on 6pm and we wanted to go cruising around a bit. Jon suggested we head to Rochester and visit some of our old hangouts. The day was cooling down nicely. The ride out to Rochester from Mount Clemens was an easy one. We decided to go a path less traveled to get there - but really there isn't one. So I settled for the less traffic filled. Once you get close to Rochester you start to hit some hills and curves. Jon is such a good passenger. He stays with me on every lean and every turn. None of this moving around independently which makes two up down right dangerous.

We rode down through town and out to one of my favorite joints to get a pizza slice - Jet's Pizza. Yummy thick, saucy, and square slices. They didn't have any ready when we got there and we both order two slices each and a pair of Cokes. It was very hot for sitting outside eating pizza so I asked if we could loiter in the store. They not only said OK, but they gave us a small pizza for no extra charge. Cool. Too much pizza, but that never stopped me before.

We finished up the pizza and I thought it would be nice to sit and have a cup of coffee before we hit the road. There was some big chain place where we could sit inside and enjoy hot coffee on a hot day in the air conditioning. We noticed behind the shopping complex there was a bunch of teenagers loitering and playing music from their cars. Funny thing was, this was a place we use to hang out as teenagers. Most nights the cops would pull in and chase us out, and we'd just come back. It was funny to see how some things never changes. I was going to go over and either harass or high five the young dudes, but thought either would not go well.

8pm
It was getting apparent to me I needed to head back to Jon's place with him. I had only my dark smoke shields and it was no good for the dark. I could have rode with the shield up, but bugs are numerous and I'm not into that at all. We headed back the same way we came and made it back in time to try to see if Dave was back home. He was.

Almost 9pm
I found out Dave had an old Triumph he is working on and he showed it to me. It is missing a gas tank, so he is retro-ing some sort of Harley tank. The bike looks nice. Black. Probably late 60s or 70s bike. He is also looking for work doing bike building, but is currently out of work. Funny the contrast that life shows you sometimes. Real nice guy who spent a lot of years running his life into the ground. He now is struggling to live. I don't feel guilty for my life, but I hope he doesn't feel I'm in his face either.

I didn't end up staying long at Dave's. He had his two sons there, and with Jon and me, we jammed up his very small apartment. Plus his kids are sort of hyper and he basically ignores them. I was talking to Dave and the kids were beating up Jon. Mainly because he was paying attention to them and they glommed on to him. Anyway, I made an excuse to use and I'll visit him again another less hectic time.

9:30 or 10pm
Headed back to Jon's and called it a night for biking. I rode with my shield up, but he was a short way from Dave's house, so no biggy. It was suppose to rain in the morning, so I let the bike cool down, locked the front tire and threw the cover on. I patted her and told her she was a good bike. Then I felt silly. Then I smiled at her. Yeah, I do feel one with this bike many times.

The night went on, but nothing to do with bikes. More to do with medication, meditation, and mediation. I don't know why I said mediation - I just wanted another word that looked like it fit. Anyway, I partied and had a good time - stayed up late and slept in the next morning. My buddy Jon had to work, but he stayed up too. What a naughty worker bee.

I will continue this 4 day adventure on day three - Monday and a day to myself. I need a typing break again.

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

July 4th 06

I haven't written here in a long time now. I'm just not the blog type I guess. I have just returned from a 4 day trip to Detroit again and it was fantastic. I really like taking a ride to somewhere and being able to ride around the area where I grew up. This trip started with riding up to the Flint area with Loonette while she took the kids and the car. There was a forth of July party on the 1st.

July 1 06 - 11am to around 3pm
My primary task was to make good time, so I did little taking in the sights on my way up north. Route 68 runs right through my town and takes me right to Findley where 68 joins i-75. A lot of folks would take 70 West to 75, but I really dislike being on the interstate if I can avoid doing so. 68 passes through 5 or 6 small and medium towns. I like having the ride broken up with stoplights where I can stretch my legs and have the bike running at some varying speeds.

I'd packed very light for this trip. I packed my tailbag, a small tank bag, a backpack with a spare jacket, and an extra helmet that I could lend to my friend in Detroit that likes riding pillion. I always loved my saddle bags, but after this trip and how easy it was to keep after and unload I will only use the saddle bags if I'm really in need of extra storage. Having a tank bag is the best too. I can figure out what I must have access to and leave that in the tank bag. Everything else can be secured down and it doesn't matter if I can access those bags. Packing in the order that you least need things is the best practice. Pack what you won't need first and what you need most leave on the top.

Anyway, with my well loaded bike and a route to take I hit the road. It was already getting warm out and I started with my leather with the vent covers removed. I packed that extra jacket, but it was a Joe Rocket Phoenix, so it later ended up going on me and the leather went in the backpack. Not a cloud in the sky and traffic was moderate. I was able to either keep with fast traffic or pass slow traffic. All the way to 75 was easy and I was surprised I did not see many other bikes.

I called Loonette from Dunkirk to see if she had left home yet, and she had. She was about 1.5 hours behind in the car. I figured at this point that I would get off 75 as soon as I could and take an out of the way path to Flint. 75 is ferocious sometimes. If the speed is 65 most are going 80. How can this be, I wonder. How can so many break the law and yet we keep upholding these silly standards - no one fights them.

More later - unless this is like my other entries - in that case, see you in a year.

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.

Continuing on July 1 - by now around 1pm or so.

I hadn't really made a plan for after I reached I-75. I know my way around Detroit and everywhere southern of Detroit, so I can improvise, I figure. The stretch of highway between 68 and Toledo feels like the longest stretch of the trip, but it is not. Just boring fields, a few exits along the way, and fast driving cars and trucks.

I'm always glad on 1-75 when I get to where route 23 splits off to the west. Today I though about taking 23 as it would likely be faster, but I'd had it with the freeway so I stayed on 75. I still had not decided on when I would divert to my original goal, but I had some exits to pick from and I was leaning toward taking Telegraph, which becomes Dixie Highway - which is right near where they live. The only problem being metro traffic - but I'll chance it on this 1st of July.

75 winds around through Toledo and crosses a major river, which I don't know the name. I always notice the old Willy's smokestack sticky out of the Chrysler plant near the river. Makes me think how different and purposeful a jeep use to be. I can feel the speed building as we roll through Toledo (me and the other traffic). We are over the limit already by around 10, but it seems to build more as we reach the Michigan border where 70 MPH is the speed limit, and everyone trumps that by at least 10 MPH.

As I enter Michigan I recall there is a Michigan greeting center and spot the sign reminding me I have 5 miles to get there. Traffic is becoming dicey. Some folks are going fast on the right, and some on the left. Everyone is going near 80, but the speed changes based on personal shuffling. I decide to get over and do a steady 75 until I get to the rest area. I snuggled in behind a truck and enjoyed the drafting. In the last three miles I had to keep tapping my brake for cars approaching too fast in the far right lane. I was looking forward to getting off the freeway.

Great stop FYI on 75 after you enter Michigan. Information-o-plenty. All kinds of Michigan tourism stuff. Big maps posted on the walls inside and out. Clean bathrooms and some snacky stuff and soda. I was able to utilize the maps to make sure I knew what I was doing on this unorthedox route to my destination. I was losing time doing this, but my sanity was going to be better once I got off the speedway. I had about 10 miles to go to hit North 24 - Telegraph.

Along the way I pass through the Flat Rock area. Remember me talking about the speeding? I watched the most amazing thing go down in front of me, and I was just as likely to get nailed as anyone in the group of about 20 cars moving my speed. We were all going around 80 in this 70. As I'm about to enter a road overpass I see a police car pulling out from behind the bridge. He is making himself seen and then starts to roll. He pulls out very deliberatly to the left lane behind a pickup truck. The pickup move one lane to the right and another. The police car did not have his lights on yet. He had a hard time getting around all the cars now going 65 now and bunched together. He weasled his way back behind the pickup. He was the target of the day. Poor sucker never saw it coming. We were like a flock of geese and he took the buckshot. He was guilty, but so was every car on the road. Money money money for Flatrock. I thought a bit more carefully about my thinking riding with the crowd somehow protected me from speed laws. You are always eligable - isn't that true of death as well. Too heavy - sorry.

Telegraph exit is upon me. This is a trippy exit ramp. It stays like a freeway. It has a double-lane drop off of 75. Posted speed is 65 for about 2 miles. It then dumps right onto a populated area with shops and gas stations and that keeps on for the next 15 or 20 miles. It is a wide road with U-turn lanes cut into a grass area between the north and south-bound lanes. Looks like a highway except intersections cut through it and it has places to make u-turns. The u-turn thing is really for the folks turning left at an intersection. You can't turn left at any intersection - you pass through, do the u, and make a right at that same corner.

Two things happen in the arrangement. First, everyone in the right lane may be getting ready to enter shops and whatnot. Everyone in the left is possibly getting ready for the u-turn. Everyone in the middle is not going to go as fast as the speed limit since they are often in transition between the left and the right. So if you are going straight for a long time you need to change your spot quite often and be alert of changing possitions of other road users. Good practice and I enjoy it actually.

Before I would get where I was going I needed something to eat. Let me talk about food for a minute. I packed a few granola bars and an orange for the way up. It is good to pack some snacks but sometimes I need to sit somewhere, cool off, and relax. So the snack is great when I want to keep moving, but when I'm ready for a real break, I need to get in some airconditioning for a few minutes, and that is what I meant when I needed something to eat.

I am a pizza addict. I can't get my fix where I live, which is good for my health. When in the Detroit area I can't pass a Jet's pizza without stopping for a Coke and a Slice (or two even). I passed one and turned back around and did what self-discipline would not be able to stop. Good stuff Maynard. Anyway, it was cool because the pizza was free since they said it was too old to sell. Guess what - I love me a leftover pizza - so whatever.

Bringing this to the end I arrived around 3pm at my destination. I was about 1 hour earlier than Loonette and the kids. I lost some time, but it was worth it to avoid highway time. Once more I rode in on the dirt road I mentioned in an earier blog entry. It is rough in spots with washboards and packed and smooth in other spots. I have to take it slow, even with my Avon Azraros I couldn't be sure of my usable traction here.

Well I seem to have the writing bug for the moment so I'll see if I can jump on later and tell - day two - July 2

_________________
* 2003 Kawasaki ZRX1200R *
"What good fortune for those of us in power that people do not think. " Hitler - think about that one for a minute.