Thursday, September 29, 2011

Wandering in the North

"If you are going to ride naked make sure you have a clean can" the voice intoned.

"The Voice" belonged to Oilburner, and he hadn't quite realized what he had said until it was out and ringing in our ears.  I immediately busted up laughing.  He might actually have blushed a little at that one, if his face could have been seen through the helmet.

I was riding as close to naked as I ever had.  No saddlebags, no top box, no luggage except for the tank bag.  I did still have the luggage racks and windshield, so I wasn't completely bare.

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The topic of conversation was the stainless steel "can" (exhaust).  My bike and I had ridden in the rain since the last washing.  And my dogs nose had left slime trails.  The can was desperately dirty and didn't look like the lovely shiny can it can be.

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Who cares?  Not me.  I wanted to ride, not was my motorbike!

This was the first perfect autumn weekend and I wasn't wasting it.  Daytime temps were supposed to peak out at 77F (25C).  Humidity should be around 45% mid-day.  It doesn't get much better than this.

Unfortunately I also had an invite to make jam.  I was interested since I have never made it before.  But this day was not made to be spend indoors.

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Oilburner and I saddled up and met up with a friend on the road.  No one had a clue where to go, so we just figured "north" into the mountains.  We wound up on some beautiful scenic byways and headed towards Hwy 60, a notoriously enjoyable twisty road up here.  The day was complete with perfect weather, beautiful blue skies and leaf litter scattered across the road.

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Our lack of destination gave us roads to head towards, but no restrictions on how we arrived there.  I tried to navigate on the less traveled roads.  I was plagued by slow drivers whenever I had to take the well-known roads.

Our food goal, for lack of finding another place, was the marina at Lake Burton.  The food is good and the place can not be beat for ambiance.

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It was a lovely day with no particular place to go.  Such fun taking turns at random.  Sometimes it back fired and we ended up somewhere we had just left.  Other times we were introduced to roads we had never yet met.

I did force us to take the long way home.  Adding a couple extra miles pushed my year-to-date mileage over 9,000 (14,484 km) to keep up with my goal of 1,000 miles (1609 km) per month.  And it also kicked the odometer of the bike to 41,000 miles (65,980 km).  Small victories.  :)

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I knew this trip was more about the ride and less about the scenery.  I knew I wasn't going to be able to play with the cameras, so just brought the point and shoot. I also discovered a way to attach it to my tank bag.  Therefore I was free to learn the complicated art of photography while riding.    I wasn't so successful all of the time.  For not taking many photos, I can't figure out how I had so many to upload.  You can view the more successful ones on Flickr.

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Work has been keeping me tied down lately. We've been working on a product release...that finally occurred last Sunday.  I've been absent in the blogosphere, but look forward to catching up on all of your adventures.  :)  Chat with you soon!

11 comments:

  1. Steel Cupcake:

    I was all excited when you mentioned the ambience at Lake Burton, then I saw that styro foam take out container. Couldn't they have put the burger on a real plate. and what happened to the rest of it, was it rejected by the first customer ?

    Nice riding photos, except for those "globs" . You need to ride and practice more

    bob
    Riding the Wet Coast

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  2. I cannot belive you ride with a dirty exhaust,,,,,shame on you!!

    Looked like a great day, nothing like not knowing where the bloody hell you are going.

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  3. Gorgeous photos! Reminiscent of parts of our south island. What a wonderful day out - thanks for posting.

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  4. Sounds wonderful, just head out with no destination in mind. Sounds like some of our road trips. The pictures don't look at all like Fall. At least not like Fall around here...

    Very nice ride report.

    Richard

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  5. Love those days when riding without a schedule or route. I enjoy the rides when I can strip down the FJR. The Beemer looks good stripped down.

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  6. What a wonderful way to spend the day. The weather was indeed too perfect for spending it inside making jam. Save that for a rainy day.

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  7. Looked like another great outing. I like the bike stripped. Looks nimble and sweet and you can actually see the beautiful bike for a change.

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  8. "Dirty cans" are why I NEVER ride naked! And I'll say this; "you can buy jam in a store, but you can't buy a good ride!"

    Nice post!

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  9. I am particularly fond of rides that begin with vague and indefinite destinations. This one ended up defining itself rather nicely.

    Thanks for the share.

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  10. That's great timing on the release happening just as the fall weather arrives. My favorite time for riding around N. GA.

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  11. Dear Steep Cupcake:

    What a great ride? I was laughing when I rad the temperature — 77º, which you indicatred as cool. I'd hsve the air conditioning on here. I also go a laugh ut of the clean can remark. My K75 came with a chrome muffler, and a black heat shield. I had the muffler run through the Jet Hot process, so now it is a sexy flat black. Next spring, I may have the headers done to match.


    The countryside looks delightful... And isn't it just the best, when the humidity is conspicuous by its absense?
    Fondest regards,
    Jack/reep

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