It was only a matter of time I’d get into motorcycling. After all, if you cross a bicycle with a sports car, you get a motorcycle. My current ride is a 500cc Buell naked sport bike.
Today being Tax Day, I celebrated being done with my taxes months ago by doing a little exploring of the Red Feather Lakes and Poudre Canyon regions just to the west of Fort Collins. Since it was a glorious 75 degrees out, I donned my motorcycle pants and took the Buell for a spin. Continue reading »
We had yet another gorgeous weekend out here, so I took Boo for a spin on some country roads devoid of cars where I could open up the throttle a little bit. Along with experiencing some wind in my chest and the type of acceleration I last enjoyed since the Z3, I enjoyed the views of the snow-capped Rockies beyond the honey-colored grasslands of the Front Range.
At one point, some words of advice from the Buell’s previous owner, Beth, came to mind. She warned me that “after 100 miles, you should start thinking about getting gas.” After all, the Buell’s gas tank is only two gallons, after which I’d have to switch to reserve. And Boo had already gone 100 miles since leaving her previous home in Boulder, the location of her last fillup. Continue reading »
At last, the replacement for Goldie the MG is here. It’s red, modern, and has two less wheels. And it’s a “Blast.” Continue reading »
Many people do not know this but I’ve been licensed to ride a motorcycle in California since 1999. I never purchased a motorcycle out there due to my wariness about riding on gridlocked streets among stressed-out, road-raged drivers, but moving to Fort Collins (#2 safest drivers in the U.S.) — along with experiences last year with motorbikes in Vietnam — has rekindled my interest in motorized two-wheeled machines.
I thought it was a good idea to refreshen my riding skills, then. I signed up for a motorcycle skills class held by ABATE of Colorado at the Front Range Community College. Continue reading »
Perhaps Vietnam’s heat had finally gone to my head. Maybe having that bottle of Hue’s rather strong Festival Beer from earlier in the day had impaired my judgment. More likely, the summer doldrums of the last couple of days in Central Vietnam had me craving a little excitement when I returned via plane to Ho Chi Minh City. These are the only explanations for why I would willingly climb onto the rear of an aggressively-driven motorbike through the endorphin-crazed rat race of the streets of Saigon over to my designated not-so-close hotel, again.
Actually, I am starting to get good at this. Continue reading »
