Reflection Road

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been replaying a highlight reel in my head, filled with rides I've enjoyed over the last riding season. It's a coping mechanism that keeps me sane in chilly weather. I had a number of good rides this year and, consequently, a lot of good clips to choose from. Even so, there's one evening of one particular ride that I keep coming back to again and again.

I was nearing the end of day three in a ride spanning the Memorial Day weekend. In a rare piece of luck, I was able to make it a four-day run. It had been a flawless ride in every respect. On this particular day, Sunday, I'd just rolled in to Marlinton, West Virginia after a run of a few hundred miles through the heart of the Mountain State. I've always enjoyed West Virginia's roads, but this day was the sweetest in recent memory. I'd revisited many of my favorite roads, finding them clean, deserted, and begging to be ridden.

The day's run ended with a sprint down WV 39 to US 219 which brought me to Marlinton. I stopped in at a restaurant situated along the Greenbrier River for a bite and found they offered rooms for rent above the cafe. I snagged a room and some grub. For a while I sat on the porch and watched a game of horse shoes playing out in the park across the street. I could have called it a day, but I still felt the call to ride, so I suited up once more and pointed the bike north. I think the bike knew as well as I where we were headed--the Highland Scenic Highway.

The Highland isn't a road to be ridden for sport, it's a road to be savored. Its long straights and longer sight lines tempt the rider to wick it up, but that's harldy the point. The Highland traverses a remote, undeveloped corner of the state overlooking the Cranberry Glades Recreation Area, forever preserved as part of the Monongahela National Forest . It's a great road for reflection riding; that special time in the saddle when your usual stream of thoughts are overwhelmed by the sheer perfection of the elements; the amber cast of late afternoon light, a gentle rush of warm air, the steady trill of the bike, views ranging to the horizon. This was one of those times.

A few miles along the Highland, the need to ride began to wane as I reached one of the higher vantage points. I just pulled over and sat to enjoy the quiet and the view. Occasionally, I lifted the camera to snap a few pics of other riders buzzing by, but for the most part I just stared ahead, absorbing the silence. I might've been there ten minutes or it could have been two hours, I don't know. Time was passing though. An instant dip in temperature told me without turning around that the sun had slipped behind a nearby hill. Daylight began dissolving to dusk and the return ride was at hand. The perfect day was fading into the perfect night.

Whether by accident or design, I'd come across just the right place bring this journey to its close. The restaurant was dark by the time I returned and I found the whole building deserted. As the only room-taker for the evening, I had the entire run of the place. My bike, alone in the parking lot, looked vulnerable. I moved it closer to the entrance to keep an eye on it though I knew nothing would happen. TV in the room? Nope. Cell phone coverage? Fuhgetaboutit. In fact, the closest phone was a five minute walk across the bridge to a pay phone at the gas station. You know, the one with the handset that had been ripped out of the phone box. Perfect.

I walked out on the now-empty restaurant deck and took a seat at the rail. Nothing moved but the water. No sound, but for the occasional click of the town's only traffic light. Nothing to do but prop my feet to watch the river and contemplate the meaning of an empty Main Street.

For everything that went right on that trip and that last evening on the road, it's a highlight that'll be hard to top. I can't wait to get back out there to try.

Santa's New Ride

My shop, Open Road Outfitters, builds Harley and Gold Wing trikes. This is a sample of our latest work, the Santa Trike. The custom motorcycle paint was done by Webster Designs in Ruckersville, Virginia. I can't wait to get a chance to ride it, but am told I'll have to put on a Santa suit. No problem!

New Motorcycle Trailering Website

A couple years ago I put together a website about motorcycle trailering called Tailpullers. It was fun to create, but hard to maintain because I wrote the code. There are so many great off-the-shelf content management systems now, I decided the site needed a re-write.

The new site is called Motorcycle Trailer Guide and is located at www.mctrailerguide.com. It contains over fifty articles on all aspects of motorcycle trailering and includes a discussion forum and photo gallery. I look forward to building it out -- it's a whole lot easier with someone else's tools!

Come on over and join the fun!

Truth in Advertising: Highland Scenic Highway

I'm fascinated by Adobe Photoshop's panoramic scene stitching software. This image was taken along WV 150, the Highland Scenic Highway, about ten miles from Marlington, WV. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Spotted in a field on an evening ride. She's seen better days, but there's still a certain charm in her curves.

Swivel Hitch Installation Video

Motorcycle cargo trailers have a unique relationship with the bikes that tow them because the ball-and-coupler connection between the two moves in multiple dimensions as the motorcycle leans through a turn.

Some riders feel there is sufficient range of motion in the existing coupling to accommodate their riding style while other riders feel a swivel is essential. Then too, there are occasions when the motorcycle's lean can exceed the range of the joint and twist the trailer tongue. Hopefully this will only happen at low speeds, e.g. a tip-over in the parking lot or dropping the bike in a tight U-turn; I've done the former and heard from someone who has done the latter. In either case, it's possible the bike might lean too far, twisting the tongue.

Here's a little five-minute video I put together that demonstrates how a swivel is installed on a cargo trailer.

Click this link to order a swivel hitch for your motorcycle trailer.

Motorcycle Touring Do's and Don'ts

I had the chance recently to take my first extended ride of the '08 season and it reminded me of some lessons about motorcycle travel I've learned (and relearned) over the years. Funny, even though I write often on this topic, I still find myself, usually somewhere along the road, thinking "I should have known [insert travel pearl of wisdom here]." Here are a few things that re-occurred to me over the weekend.

DO bring backup maps and DON'T rely exclusively on a GPS. Three hours into my four-day trip, the GPS quit (that's strike two, Garmin) and I found I'd neglected to pack my DeLorme Gazetteer. It wasn't a deal killer for this trip, but had I been venturing into unfamiliar territory, it would have been a problem. I did at least have Street Atlas on my laptop, so I could browse routes each night and make notes.

DO choose boxers over briefs. I've found over the years that brief-style undershorts contribute to short rides because the elastic bands around the legs begin to chafe in delicate areas. Boxers or better yet, bicycle pants, are more comfortable over the long haul. Bike pants in particular are well padded in critical areas and significantly increase comfort on sport-oriented bikes with a forward-cant seating position that keeps you balancing on your nethers.

DO at least one shakedown run of any new gear before your "big" trip. I can't emphasize this enough. Week after week I get frantic calls from folks here at the shop, looking to bolt a trailer onto their bike and, oh by the way, they're leaving in a couple of days. Whether its a GPS, new tires, or anything else new to you, you will enjoy your trip a lot more if you add those gadgets and become accustomed to their operation well before your trip. This is especially true with any new riding gear. If you are planning to buy a new helmet or boots, purchase these at least a couple months in advance and wear them as much as possible to ensure they're well broken in. It's no fun to discover that your new helmet doesn't fit well or your boots pinch when you're at the end of day one on a ten-day trip.

DO have aspirin or ibuprofen handy. Take the recommended dose in the morning before you start riding and this will help ease muscle fatigue during the day.

Believe it or not, you'll feel fresher at the end of the day if you DO use earplugs on your ride. You may not pay attention to wind noise, but your brain is still processing it. Earplugs are especially good at filtering out white noise, while still allowing you to hear your bike and important sounds like sirens. In fact, I can hear sirens from a greater distance while riding WITH earplugs because the extraneous sounds around me are filtered out. When you hop off the bike and pop out the plugs after a long ride, you will be able to detect a noticeable difference in the sharpness of your hearing.

If you think you will need a tire change on your trip, DO coordinate that in advance, especially if you are choosy about your tires. Based on your tire's estimate remaining life (be conservative), figure out about where that will fall on your trip and contact a dealer in that area to reserve a set of tires. If your tires are within 1,000 miles of the end of their service life, replace them before your trip. When I returned home, my rear tire was shot. If I'd been on a longer trip, that could have cost me a day or two waiting on replacements that might not have been my preferred tire.

And finally, DO stay hydrated. Throughout your ride, that wind in your hair is taking moisture along with it. If you start feeling draggy, fatigued, or begin developing a headache, you own machine may just be low on water.

I hope you enjoy a safe and exciting riding season!