We are Born to Ride!

As I’m writing my column for June, it’s into the later part of May and I’m wondering what to do this Memorial Day weekend. “What IS there to do?” I ask myself. Looking at my social/events calendar, everything seems to be canceled, postponed, or rescheduled for a later date.

But I wanna RIDE! Remember we are Born to Ride! Yeah, that’s it.

The “where” doesn’t really matter. At least not to my wife, or me. Just being able to get out there and enjoy it, enjoy the weather, enjoy the scenery, enjoy the ride. That’s what it’s all about.

Please don’t get me wrong. I like to party. I like to go to motorcycle shows, traveling to motorcycle get-togethers of all types, and I like being with motorcycle people. Talking motorcycles. Comparing motorcycles. Admiring motorcycles. Seeing what’s new. And exciting. And state-of-the-art (whatever that may be?). Enjoying motorcycle beverages. (motorcycle beverages?) Whatever.

Some years I rode up to see mom, now living in an assisted-living home in Belvidere, IL. Belvidere is actually a small town near Rockford, IL where I grew up. It’s a nice ride from my current home, just north of Atlanta. Nice time of year to travel. And mom’s birthday -90 years old this year- is near the end of May, Mothers Day has just passed…do I need any more reason to go? Of course not!

But whoa. Her very nice living quarters won’t let her out to visit with me. Or me in to visit with her. That Covid-19 thing is everywhere. The elderly, like her, and folks over 65 with diabetes like me, are some of the most susceptible folks to catch it. Go figure.

Sooo, I guess I won’t be going to Illinois anytime soon. Happy Birthday, mom! I love you.

That reminds me. When I went down to the garage this morning to let my dog Max out to the backyard to “do his thing”, my Road King wasn’t sitting there, where it belongs. Oh yeah. It’s in the shop doing some routine maintenance. Stuff that needs to be done. Like a primary rebuild kit consisting of gaskets, seals, and o-rings. Sometime recently it spouted a leak. I hate that.

Then while it’s in the shop, why not go to the other side and check my cam-chain tensioners. Yup. Now with over 51k miles on the odometer, they are getting a little bit worn. So I think that now is a good time to “freshen it up”, and keep my 96 inch running smooth!

Unfortunately, I was forced to drive my car last Saturday. My car usually sits and sits and sits. But it started up just fine, and now off to see Greg and Kurt at Hellbender Harley-Davidson. You see, I needed to pick up some much-needed parts to get my ride back to top-notch shape. And they had most of the stuff that I needed.

Keyword “most”.

Then after Greg made a call for me to Atlanta Harley-Davidson, it was off to see Mark Z and pick up some more goodies out there. I’ve got to mention that it is always refreshing to have perky Ashley great me at their front door. Nice.

Back to reality.

Now as I look out my window today, it looks like rain. So waiting for my bike to come back home, isn’t as bad today. But I want my bike back anyway. I still ride my hog almost every day. It’s my main means of transportation. My leisure transportation. My “freedom machine”. My weekend get-away. My jet for travel.

My wife Dana and I ride it every weekend. And we like to take weekend overnight trips. And longer trips when we get the chance. We ride.

And my mechanic Jose, working at WOW Motorcycles, knows that. So he is doing his best to get me back on the road for my holiday weekend ride. To anywhere. And everywhere. We just love to ride.

While dropping off parts to Jose, my good friend James came by to say “hi” and pointed out that it looked like I had lost some weight…..NOT! I blame it on just another casualty of Covid-19. You know, shelter in place. Stay inside.

So while we continue to practice “social distancing”, all while being in the wind, remember “this too shall pass”. I know that soon, we will be together at upcoming motorcycle events.

Through all this shutdown stuff, always remember and never forget “there is no problem that a sunny day and a tank of gas can’t fix”. Amen.

 

Until next month, “Go Fast…. You’ll Get There”. JP