What riding a motorcycle has to do with Veteran's Day

    Before WW II -the war to end all wars- there were hundreds of motorcycle shops in the U.S. creating their own brand of motorcycles. Sure, they all looked similar, two wheels, engine in the middle, a seat and some lights; but each bike had the unique touches of the shop proprietor. Something as simple to how the gas tank was attached to the frame changed from shop to shop. Because the throttle, brake and shifter locations and operation were not standard on any bike, you would never ride a "buddy's bike". Because of the lack of standardization of control placement and operation, it would take weeks to acclimate a rider to a new bike. Sometimes, in an effort to reduce this acclimation time, shop owners would place the controls to the customer's demands or preferences. Then that big war broke out on the other side of the pond.

    Generals leading the fight overseas knew that they needed equipment for their soldiers and it all had to be high quality and simple to use. Standardization was born. From the C 17s that dropped the first soldiers behind enemy lines on D Day to the boots on their feet, everything was made to one specification. That way, any soldier who was trained to use a particular piece of equipment could use it from any source. This led to soldiers to frequently "commandeer" equipment from one another. A good example of this were the pool cars and early jeeps, if they used a key in the door or the ignition (many did not) ANY KEY for that model would work. To prevent "commandeering" of the General's cars, their drivers attached pad locks to the outside of the doors.

  Motorcycle standardization was born during this era as well. Back home, stateside, the small shops gave way to the big manufacturers who could produce hundreds of the same bike in a single day. Same color, same equipment, with interchangeable parts. For the most part, throttles were put on the right, shifters on the left foot or left side  of the tank and brakes on the right foot. Only two companies made motorcycles for U.S. soldiers, Harley and Indian. They were faster than horses, didn't need to be fed as often and  were highly maneuverable. That's not to say that everything was the same, different missions made some modifications necessary.

    One of the more interesting modifications was the introduction of a shaft drive, sideways mounted engine on the Harley for the North African Desert campaigns. The "Rat Patrols" would frequently capture German equipment after battles. Two motorcycles that particularly interested them were the BMW and Moto Guzzi. For the Nazis, their bikes had side mounted engines and shaft drives. To this day, Moto Guzzi is known for it's side mounted engine. In the desert of North Africa, chains would quickly get fouled by sand and dust, whereas the shaft drive remained sealed and operational. A side mounted, air cooled engine would stay cool in the desert because both cylinders would benefit from the air passing over them, whereas the standard mounted engine put one cylinder in front of the other. This caused the second cylinder to suffer from excessive and early wear due to heat. Harley and Indian answered the call from the Rat Patrols and made bikes with shaft drives and side mounted engines, but I think it was Harley that put it into production.

    After freeing Europe from the yoke of oppression and death that was the Nazis; soldiers and airmen came home from seeing unbearable things in battle to peaceful white picket fences and suburban living. Gone was the excitement of battle and camaraderie that is made in the face of adversity. Jobs were scarce and for the first time, men were competing with women in the work place. Some of our soldiers and airmen didn't "blend" with what many saw as the new picture of the American Dream. They craved excitement and adventure. Motorcycles were then as they are now generally less expensive than cars and hey, they already had leather jackets. The leather coats worn by airmen in the unpressurized C 17s and other cold bombers and aircraft protected riders from wind, rain and even the occasional scrape of asphalt. The bomber jacket became the biker jacket. Groups of doughboys would gather to ride to see the sights. Some would boast of their exploits in the war, measuring the fighting prowess of one military unit over another. This would frequently lead to disagreement and often not polite disagreement. The biker fight was born, which led to the biker club (so everyone would know on whose side you stood) and that led to brand specific clubs that exist today.

    Things began to change and evolve. Not all soldiers came home and joined a biker gang, some rode with friends and never fought again. Today, the same mix of clubs and gangs can be seen everywhere. Gone are the reasons most gangs and clubs started, but new feelings and directions have boiled to the surface. We've seen the return of the custom motorcycle shop. You can have a bike built to your own specifications (within the constraints of safety), gone is the near monopoly held by the two U.S. motorcycle manufacturers. And that American Dream? It's changed too. White picket fence, a dog and 2.3 kids, "No thanks." most say. Today's American Dream is synonymous with  adventure, the need to explore, get some excitement.

      For the uninformed, motorcyclists are a dangerous lot. We look mean in our black jackets or brightly colored racing leathers. To the white picket fence crowd, we're odd. We crave the road and the adventure of what lies around the next bend. We have a debt of thanks to pay to those who have gone before us, who helped shape the motorcycles we ride and the clothes on our backs. To repay them, we ride.  To repay those who died for the freedom of the world, go ride, pay your debt, show the non riding world what riding free is really like. Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines and start your adventure!

 Until next month,

 Ride with Pride!

       ~Hawk  

   Post Script- After I wrote this, two things struck me. I am a veteran. My adventure was in the Coast Guard, swimming in turbulent waters to cheat the sea of those she wished to claim and wrestling drug smugglers for their illegal cargo. When I returned home, I bought a motorcycle. The other observation is that in my garage, there is a Suzuki 750 belonging to my daughter's boyfriend. He's entrusted me to start it and ride it while he's gone. Like the doughboys in the past, he's a soldier, fighting for us over in Iraq. I guess the more things change, the more they remain the same.                                                          Good Luck Pete and keep a weather eye out.

October 2007

 Spooky sights and sounds along the way.

     On a brisk October evening, I found myself standing around the warm community campfire of the Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground in Cruso, NC. Riders from all over the country were sharing their "road lies" and each tale was growing taller as the evening progressed. I continued to listen intently for a good story, believable or not, they interested me.  One rider stood and spoke of a near miss with a truck in a tunnel on the Parkway. Another rider, seeming to want to top the previous story, told a tale of how a patch of leaves on the asphalt nearly took his bike away. Another bared his right thigh to expose a large scar he received courtesy of an inattentive SUV driver. Then, as if to trump all of our scary stories, a rider stood and retold the story that had been coasting around the internet about the biker who went 175 mph on his new rocket bike and got impaled on a telephone pole. He described the gruesome photos of what appeared to be ground beef in a motorcycle helmet. Collectively, the members of the campfire road liar association gasped. How horrific! The rider retold another, "How about the one where the rider hits the back of the semi so hard that his helmet gets stuck in the cargo door rear door of the semi, only to be dragged to his death?" Spooky!  As the fire began to burn down, the shadows of the riders 'round the campfire stretched across the campground and into the trees. It was a great scene.

    I bid my newfound friends adieu and climbed into cool but comfortable confines of my tent and sleeping bag. The scents and stories reminded me of my Boy Scouting days. As scouts, we would tell scary stories around campfires with the specific goal of trying to scare the tears out of the rookie Tenderfoot scouts.  There was one campfire story that usually got the job done. It was the tale of the young couple who picked up the hitchhiker who turned out to be an escaped prisoner with a hook for a hand, and somehow at the end of the story, the hook got stuck in the sheet metal of the passenger door and the prisoner with a nub was parading around the woods ( as coincidence would have it) near our campsite. I can't remember the specifics, but I'm sure that any Boy Scout or Girl Scout would be happy to retell it in exchange for the purchase of cookies or popcorn. As a young scout, I would listen to the campfire tales and return to my pup tent. Once inside, my mind would race, "parading the horribles" as my Dad would say. I would imagine the worst scenarios involving a one-handed escapee and then how to be victorious in each situation. I would only sleep when I had won each scenario and saved the lads from certain death. It was a huge responsibility that fell to an 11 year old. In the motorcycle campground, amid the occasional beam of twisting headlights and rumble of late arrivals, I continued the tradition of parading the horribles.  Sleep came as the sun rose.

    The problem with solving "the horribles" of the really scary and gruesome motorcycle tales is that these scenarios are nearly always self inflicted. Too fast, too dumb. As a police officer, I've seen first hand the effects of "too fast, too dumb." If you are like me, you're not fond of cars and trucks. Sure, I own a couple of each, but I'd rather ride my bike in anything but snow than be relegated to the confines of the cage. When I'm left in charge of the universe (remain comforted my fellow rider, I actually have no political aspirations), we'll have interstates and air lanes to move commerce, leaving surface streets the exclusive domain of motorcycles and scooters.  With the recent sharp rise in gas prices, popularity of motocommuting has grown. It seems my evil plan for two-wheeled domination of the roadways may be working. However, some non riders hear our super scary road tales and cower away from our campfire. They recoil from motorcycling and return to the comfort and safety of their cages. Reminding them that the stories about too fast and too dumb are more caused by personal choice than freak accidents amy assuage some of the retreats, but we're called to do more. 

   For October, I will try to not make the Tenderfoot cry, instead, I will "up sell" our great sport by countering every scary story with a story of discovery of beautiful asphalt, a great diner along a cool stream or an attempt to describe the scent of fresh air at an overlook found along a blue highway.  I'll tell some great road tales, but not the scary ones. I'll tell of the Honeymoon Adventure my wife and I had; a motorcycle adventure gone wild and great having ridden from Atlanta to Seattle and back for our Honeymoon.  For me, the stories won't be of too fast and too dumb, it will be of the great adventure that awaits my listener, 'round the next bend.  I hope you'll do the same.

Until next month,

 Ride with Pride!

       ~Hawk  

September 2007  

Statistics:

In the world of all things motorcycle, statistics are given to us year after year. A vast majority of these statistics are painted in the worst possible way, with the blood of downed motorcyclists. For example, a Wall Street Journal piece published on July 31 of this year by Joseph B. White, titled “Motorcycle Fatalities Show a Steady Rise” he points to recent statistics of motorcycle crashes that makes my mother-in-law chirp, “I told you so.”

White pens the column EYES ON THE ROAD. It is usually dedicated to traffic safety in some shape or form. The article seems, not surprisingly, to draw attention to motorcycle crashes. It opens with an anecdotal paragraph about an E.R. doctor that was considering buying a motorcycle, until he saw a particularly gruesome motorcycle crash victim get wheeled into his E.R. White notes that crash statistics for 2006 from NHTSA show a decrease of 2% in motor vehicle fatalities (42,642 died in cars last year); compared to a 5.1% increase in motorcycle crash fatalities (4,810 died on motorcycles last year). Motorcycle crashes accounted for 11% of all motor vehicle crash fatalities. He goes on to say that, “…marks the ninth straight year motorcycle fatalities have increased.” EEe Gads, it sounds like if we just keep on riding, all of us motorcyclists will be killed in a few short years. 

Well, boys and girlz, I’m not ready to sell my little collection of high mileage, damage free motorcycles just yet. Why would I remain in what seems such a dangerous sport? For one thing, the statistics are true enough, fatalities among motorcycles have increased, but more correctly, the number of riders of motorcycles has increased exponentially in the last few years. For example, according to the Motorcycle Industry Council, motorcycle sales figures in 2005 showed that 1,149,000 new motorcycles were sold in the United States. Compared with 1999 sales of 546,000, it shows an enormous increase in new bikes touching down on asphalt in the past six years. Sales statistics for all of 2006 were elusive for me, but Harley Davidson indicated that their world wide sales were up 6.9% and 5.8% in the U.S. So, in increase in motorcycle crashes seems to be running current with or perhaps even a little behind overall motorcycle sales figures.

I can tell you first hand, as a police officer, the leading cause of fatalities of motorcycle crashes appears to be (in this order) the lack of a motorcycle endorsement, riding while male, speed, alcohol, and lastly other traffic failing to yield;  “I didn’t see you?!?” In 18 years as a police officer, I have never, ever been to the scene of a fatal, single vehicle motorcycle crash and seen a motorcycle endorsement on the license of the deceased rider. For that matter, I’ve not seen a female, licensed or not. And yes, I’m sorry to say, I’ve seen dozens of single vehicle motorcycle fatalities.  

I’ve got a buddy who is a Native American. I guess I’m supposed to call him that now, to be politically correct I can’t refer to him as an Indian anymore. He grew up on a reservation in Oklahoma in the late 1960s and like the generations before him, he had to prove himself a man before the tribe would accept him in that role. I have no idea what his right of passage was, maybe spending the night in a 24-hour diner, maybe wrestling a goat, I don’t know and I could care less- except for the fact that when it was over, he and his tribe could look back on that one event and indicate that was the time he became a man (and maybe a goat became lunch). For us Europeans, the rights of passage has been things like exploring new continents, wrestling mighty fish from the sea, slaying dragons; you get the idea. All cultures have used these rights of passage; except our current culture. In response, we plug in our own rights of passage.

The thought of the right of passage to become a “real man” came to me with great clarity just a couple of weeks ago. I led a small group of guys up to US 129 on the border of Tennessee and North Carolina. It’s a good piece of road, famous for its 318 curves in 11 miles. I suppose I like riding it, but I prefer greater scenery and wider, more sweeping curves. Well, most of the group had never ridden US 129, commonly referred to as the “Dragon” or “Dragon’s Tail”. They were just itching to slay the Dragon. I was itching to ride the nearby Cherohala Skyway and show them a road with great scenery, high elevation and little traffic. But they were all about slaying the dragon. So we did, I pointed them down the road and told them to meet up at the big lake for a return trip. Down and back, 22 miles and plenty of curves, they loved it. It challenged each and every one of them. Afterward, they spoke of all the near-misses and deep lean angles that they had never done before. Yippie! They bested the dragon, got the t-shirt and now they are all men. The tribe accepted them. I’m not making fun of them, I’m a man too. I’ve bested the dragon and made it safely home to my castle to my awaiting Queen and Princesses. It’s in our nature as men. However, it just might be the thing that keeps fatal motorcycle statistics in step with motorcycle sales.

Another thing to consider when investigating motorcycle crash statistics is what I refer to as the “Family Handyman” syndrome. I have spent many a Christmas Eve in my garage assembling bicycles, doll houses, and small semiautomatic weapons (just kidding on the last one). At no time during the assembly of a gift or during the installation of a faucet, toilet, shower head, radiator, or transmission have I glanced in the direction of the instructions which lay in the bottom of a cardboard box, still wrapped in plastic, as if to say; “Open in case of failure.” No, to look at the instructions would be tantamount to admitting that someone else knew how to assemble something and I did not. Some other man knew more about it than me. Poppycock! Only when the handlebar is posted on the frame and the seat on the gooseneck of the bicycle will I open the instructions. On those rare occasions when I must read the instructions, I come to the determination that they guy who wrote them is a total dumb ass and I know so much more about this than he does. In reality, the instructions were probably written by a team of engineers and writers who get their collective experience together to write and illustrate instructions a 2^nd grade boy could understand. As male motorcyclists we do that too. Compared to our female counterparts, we rarely go out for motorcycle instruction. Sure, we might have a buddy bring his Honda 250 to a dank parking lot and review how to get the bike in gear. It pales in comparison to the formal training that most female riders obtain.

I won’t debate about which sex, male or female makes a better rider. I will say that female riders get more formal education and lack the need to prove something to their tribes. Perhaps that’s why fatal motorcycle crash statistics involving women are shockingly low when one takes into account the fact that in the past 6 years the number of women on bikes has increased nearly 100%.  

What are the lessons to be learned from statistics? Motorcycle crashes are up, but so are the numbers of motorcycle sales. Really the questions we need addressed are; “Why are we crashing?” and “How to I prevent crashing?” We need more information. Information in the form of statistics is out there for the taking, but judge it for what it is-numbers. Not since 1981 has a comprehensive study been done of motorcycle crashes. Even that study, commonly referred to as the Hurt Report lacked comprehensiveness, it compiled data from only 900 motorcycle crash investigations and only 3,600 other motorcycle crash reports were analyzed for raw data; the entire report was based solely on motorcycle crashes in the greater Los Angeles area.

In my humble experience, we should concentrate on getting licensed, getting educated, getting sober and getting the word out that motorcyclists are here to stay. If we can collectively increase the safety of motorcycles, we’ll reduce the numbers of those who sing the chorus of the Dangerous Motorcycle (sung by my mother-in-law) and increase the national gas mileage, reduce traffic congestion and parking problems. So go out there you Dragon slayer! Be smart, read the instructions and ride safe!
 

Until next month-

Ride Safe!   

~Hawk

March 2007

freaks and geeks, all riders, all types

    With Daytona Bike Week in mind, my eyes recall the wild riders I've seen over the years. My eyes have observed felons and cops, strippers and nuns, business tycoons and blue collar workers, all sharing the same road and rides. What makes riders what they are? The answer is simple really, life makes people what they are. What they saw, experienced, how it effected them, makes them who they are today. Freaks and Geeks. At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter which side of that fence you fall on, it's important that you are on the riding side of the fence.

   Over the years that I've ridden, I've observed that there are literally dozens of major motorcycle manufacturers in the world, building bikes that range from scooters to trail riders, custom cruisers to crotch rockets. The sole common denominator of all types and brand of bike is that somebody, somewhere likes to ride it. Some riders are nerdy, some have the coolness of the Fonz. Maybe I just slipped into your definition of nerd for mentioning the Fonz,  at least I didn't write, "Cool as Dungeons and Dragons level 7."    I digress. Since riders are as diverse as bikes, why do some riders judge others by the bike they ride? Another question, what makes a rider "cool".  I found my answer to these questions. Let's see if you agree.

  To make a quick assessment of a rider, I glance over at their odometer. If the rider looks pretty, just left the shop with all the gear of the same brand name of their bike and there is low mileage, I might just have a nerd on my hands.  That's not to call brand loyalty nerdy, no sir. Brand loyalty is a good thing. Different brands of bikes give us different choices of rides. Some people have settled on one style of riding and one model. That's fine for them, seems a bit narrow-minded, but who am I to judge? I've observed that the most ravenously brand loyal people ride one type of bike, and ride exclusively with people who ride that type of bike. They oft can be heard noting that that to be "cool" you must ride an Aprilia (or insert the name of any other brand here)  and take offense when anyone who is short-sighted enough to ride something other than an Aprilia enjoys the comfort , fit and style of the Aprilia racing leathers. "I mean really, who would ride a JAWA with a red Aprilia jacket?" We've found a herd of nerd, but take heart, it's o.k. to be a nerd.  I recently spoke to a HOG chapter and they were decidedly unnerdy. Not just because they rode Harleys, but because they were good riders. They didn't suffer from the mindless exclusivity that permeates some brand clubs.                                                 

  The cool riders tend to withhold judgment on the nerd/cool question until they ride with someone. The nerds don't ride well. They have a hard time keeping their bikes upright; falling in parking lots and sliding off the road and speeds Capt. Kirk would be proud of. Excuses abound for nerds, like the kid who doesn't turn in homework. "There was an oily spot in the road. My carb has a flat spot and I just can't chop the throttle in that range. While turning in the parking lot, the bike just sputtered and died, so I fell down." Falling and crashing never seems to be the fault of the nerd. However, crashing doesn't necessarily make you a nerd. One of the coolest guys I know has owned dozens of motorcycles over the years and I swear if he had to buy tires for a bike without crashing it, there was national day of celebration.  What separated him from the herd of nerd was that he was honest in his assessment of his riding ability, he knew that he didn't do well riding fast, and after a crash would remark, "Well, that was stupid." While this might not sound "cool", it is. Nerds can't face their own shortfalls, which might explain why they travel as herds of nerds. Sort of a traveling group therapy session, there to lift you up if you suddenly feel uncool.  You wanna be cool and not nerdy? Rack up some twisty road miles of your bike without having to replace body panels due to asphalt surfing. 

   For me, I don't care what you ride. What kind of engine, or what it looks like, doesn't make you a freak or a geek. To tell you the truth, I'm not even sure if I'm a freak or a geek, but I'm 100% certain that I could care less. I think that separates the nerd from the herd. What I care about is that I ride, I ride far and I ride well. Maybe that makes me some kind of road geek, well, o.k., I'll take that.  Oh, the Harley Twins (photo above) I met at the South East Police Motorcycle Competition were unquestionably cool, or were they hot? I'm not sure if there's really a difference for them, regardless they make me feel cool, if only for a minute.   

   Returning from Bike Week, give a wave to the super cool biker that is towing his $70,000 bike behind his $45,000 truck and hope against hope that someday he really learns to ride it. Maybe the sight of you bravely riding your JAWA wearing your Aprilia jacket will stir him into learning to ride that nice bike of his.  If you have the chance to overhear a "truck biker" refer to you as a Geek, take heart, if a guy in a pick up truck towing a motorcycle thinks you are a nerd, you are probably painfully cool. Start a revolution and ride!  

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

February 2007   

On cold weather riding

Well, in HOTlanta, February started pretty cold. Which caused me to recall the hazards of cold weather riding and how to overcome those hazards. I’ll share these and hopefully, not offend your motorcycling intelligence.

My first real experience with cold weather was as an enlisted man in the US Coast Guard. My thought was that I could serve my country and live on or at least near a beach. That worked well for me for the first three years of my enlistment, I was stationed in Key West. Then, I was transferred to and Ice Breaker and sent down to Antarctica. While conducting a census of an Adele penguin rookery “and ma’am how many penguins share this rock?”, it came to me, "U.S. Coast" was in the name of the service I was in and I was no where near the U.S. Coast. Oh and it was cold. It got up to a balmy 18 degrees Fahrenheit. You’d think that the story of an Antarctic deployment would be the pinnacle of cold weather experience. No, that came in July, of 1998, unfortunately on my honeymoon.           

My wife and I had agreed that we would celebrate our nuptials by taking a cross-country motorcycle adventure from Atlanta, Georgia to Port Townsend, Washington (and back).  Convinced that motorcycles are the bane of the highways, my mother in law was non-plussed with the concept. It was a great trip. We rode on the two lane ribbons of asphalt that snake their way across the country in a slow tango. We had little schedule, we kept to our personal desire to keep riding or stop for a while. Only two destinations had deadlines, Jackson Hole, Wyoming and Port Townsend, Washington. We had reservations in Port Townsend and friends waiting for us in Jackson Hole. To make Jackson Hole, we had to keep riding despite our discomfort and lack of sunshine. (We choose to ride during daylight, so we could see the countryside, night time was the time to well, er, do what newlywed couples do). Leaning our motorcycle up the curves of the Eastern side of the Rockies, our elevation changed quickly and drastically. Signs warned us to watch for caribou, elk, free-range cattle and snowmobiles. Anytime you are riding a motorcycle and see a warning sign about snowmobiles, you’re in a cold place. So, two o’clock in the morning, been riding for 16 hours and now we’re cold. I was cold to the point of distraction. Snow was piled up on the sides of the road and we were wearing everything we had brought. It wasn’t a pretty sight, but we made it and I’m happy to report that Lisa and I are still married. We laugh now of that cold and miserable night. Discomfort. I was a real man, a real stupid man! Don’t get your machismo between you and safe riding. 

Hyperthermia  Cold Riding = Drunk Riding. First sign, cold hands, pain, then cold feet, pain. Once the pain stops and the numbness has set in, you’re in hypothermia. Your body begins to redirect warm blood away from fingers and toes to critical organs like your liver, kidney and heart, yes it still sends blood to the brain, but even that is somewhat restricted. So once your feet and hands go numb, watch your attitude. Stop for a break when you get giddy. With blood being redirected from your extremities and your head beginning to cool, your ability to make decisions will fade fast. With numb fingers and toes, feathering the clutch and throttle become a chore and shifting with a foot that can’t feel the shifter is an obvious problem. 

            Wind Chill

A 60 mph wind blast in temps below 40 is like standing on a Chicago city street in your boxer shorts in January. We have to protect ourselves from the wind. What works? 

        Good Gear

         Our momma wasn’t crazy when she told us to layer your winter attire, but flexible layers, we don’t want to be the Michelin Man. Warm, but unable to see, hear or react to the road is useless. As a general rule, if what you are wearing is flexible enough to swim in, it’s flexible enough to wear while riding.

Leather, Cowhide has been used for hundreds of years in the states, and animal hide has been used since the time of chro magna man. Today, we have evolved to the Chrome Magna Wheel Man but still wear animal hides for all the reasons of our distant, ancient cousins. Leather protects us from the weather, it provides some crashworthiness and it impresses the opposite sex. If you’ve ever surfed the asphalt, it feels much nicer to rub off a layer of two of cowhide than a layer of your own hide.

To be all those things, make sure your leather is motorcycle specific. I like the cool bomber jackets as much as the next guy. Laugh if you must, but the sight of a twenty-something Tom Cruise wrapped in his bomber jacket is a present most of our wives would fight to unwrap. The days of my Top Gun, Tom Cruise imitations are over but I still own the bomber jacket.  I’ve observed that the zipper in the front serves and a very effective vent, allowing the cold windblast to light on my chest. Which is fine for summer riding, it allows cool air to hit me mid chest, keeping my core body temperature down. In winter, it’s a sure way to get miserable fast.

Close that gap with a biker jacket, not a designer biker jacket, but a real one, with thick leather and an overlapping flap. That flap stops the cold air invaders in their tracks. Another thing to consider is your raingear.

My buddy, Tommy, who is dangerously too crazy to ride sport bikes, but wealthy enough to afford a few of the little road demons, has all the best summer riding gear. He leaves the house all leathered up. From head to toe, Tommy looks like he just left Road Atlanta aboard his Kawasaki painted like the Camel team’s crotch rocket. His gear is colorful and vented. So, riding in the summer time can be done safely and he doesn’t overheat. Unfortunately, those vents allow cool air to permeate his body on the dark rides home, because riding with me, we never make it home when we promised our wives “I swear, it’ll be a short ride, we’ll be home before dinner.” My wife responds, “Yeah, dinner on Tuesday, have a nice weekend, Hawk.” My wife is wise. On more than one occasion, I’ve loaned Tommy my raingear to wear as a windbreaker. Versatile gear is good.

Boots and socks. Wool keeps its insulating properties even when wet. If you’ve ever ridden with wet cotton socks, you’ve learned that cotton is really only comfortable when dry and warm. Rain boots to cover your riding boots serve as a windbreaker for your feet. Extra layer of wind protection and you can tuck your jeans into the rubbers, with your chaps outside the rubbers, keeps the wind from crawling up your legs. Also, tucking in your jeans to the top of your boots will do the same thing. Does it look silly? Maybe, but with your super cool guy looking chaps on, they won’t see that your jeans are tucked into your boots anyway. And you’ll be warm.

           Chaps? You bet. Crashworthiness, and protection from the wind.

Gloves. Glove liners. Like socks for the hands. Harder to find, (army/navy store), but equally important. Gloves that restrict your hands and make clutch feathering difficult are useless. I sometimes wear summer weight summer gloves over wool glove liners. Once it’s too cold for that, you’d better have some thicker gloves that have a gauntlet. The gauntlet is that long part of the glove that covers the cuff of your leather jacket. If you keep the cuff of your jacket uncovered, not only will you get a cold windblast up your sleeve, it will puff up your jacket to make you look like the Incredible Hulk.

Heated Gloves? Two answers, if you frequently ride in the cold or ride up north in the cold, buy the heated gloves with the thermostat. If you occasionally ride in the cold and want the benefits of heated gloves, spend $1 at Home Depot for disposable pocket warmers. These things begin to heat once exposed to the air. Put them in your gloves and ride on. Just make sure that they don’t restrict your movement.

Face- Cover your face with a scarf (I use a wool one) or a full face helmet. If you look like a Bandit from the old west, you’ve got the idea. Just like the cowboys did, cover your face for protection from the cold air, dust and bugs that seem to seek out those of us who are “real men” riding without windshields.

Here’s the secret tip of the night- two words- Udder Balm, sometimes available as Vermont Bag Balm. Farmers use this stuff to rub on the teats of their dairy cattle to prevent chapping of that sensitive area. I use it on my face and I can attest that no, you won’t grow teats on your face if you use it. It will prevent the premature leathering of your skin. When I was younger, I wanted to look older, so I didn’t use the stuff, now that I’m older I’m preaching the effectiveness of Udder Balm to anyone who might listen. Chapstick, carmex, blistex or any other kind of barrier for your lips are a must in cold weather. I carry a stick or two on the bike and in my pocket. I use the sticks because even if it looks a bit sissy to be applying lip stick, the tiny drums of carmex and blistex require you to use your finger to apply it. Stopped at a red light which I know from studying Murphy’s Laws will turn green at an inopportune moment, removing my hand from a glove to apply “manly lip balm” is just a waste of effort. Lip balm is not just for kissing sake either. I love Mexican food, but there are certain spices I just don’t enjoy with cracked lips, so for the sake of your love for hot wings and spicy cheese dip, wear some chap stick.

Helmet vents. No brainer, but I’ve seen experienced riders (me) suddenly feel a cold chill in the head (or worse still is the moist stream of water from a rain) by not taking the simple step of closing the vents of the helmet. 

Road hazards

Shady spots on the roadway, bridges tunnel entrances, and mysterious places in the road where water passes under roadway (like in a storm drain). Lane placement-Motorcyclists get to choose between three places in the lane, left, middle and right. The middle can be treacherous, in the wintertime, the tracks of the cages on the road tend to keep the left and right sides of the lane clear and warm, leaving in the center a small mound of snow, ice, oil gravel and road salt. About the gravel and road salt. Those two have the coefficient of friction (that little thing that keeps our tire on the road when we’re riding along) of goose guano. Also be aware of ice and snow “ridges” in the center of the road.

            Debris to think about; fallen trees and the like are also a hazard.

 Your bike.

Generally, your motorcycle will love cold weather. You will find better gas mileage in the cold weather, but might have to let it warm up or choke a bit more than you are accustomed to. The carburetors and fuel injectors of most bikes are close enough to the cylinders to keep them warm and prevent the fuel flow from being disrupted by the minute amounts of water that naturally find their way into the fuel system. ONE big concern- YOUR TIRE PRESSURE. As the temperatures go down, so does your o your tire pressure. Harley designed the motorcycle to perform optimally with a tire pressure of 38 psi. On a cold morning, you can expect your tire pressure to have dropped to the low 20 psi (No, you don’t have a leak, colder air is less dense, so it takes up less space in the tire and pressure drops.). If you were to fill your cold tire to 38 psi and then ride on a warm road for an hour, you might find your tire pressure had increased to the lower 40s psi. Tire pressure maintenance is a bit of a dance in the wintertime. For my bike, I ride with 38-40 psi and I’ve learned that in the morning, my pressure can be as low as 27 psi. I just ride carefully until the tires warm up and then I check them again.

   Motorcycle racers use soft rubber tires, and still require a couple of laps to “warm up” their tires. Super Kong-Grip racing tires don’t last long. We road riders use much harder tires, designed to grip the road, and are designed to last 10,000 miles or so. Do you think it’s important for us to warm up our tires? You bet.

 Go or No Go? Why leave when you know that bad weather is coming? I don’t mean rain, a little rain just makes us wet, but snow or ice storm? Why go? What to do if you are out of town and weather closes in? Towing services from a remote mountain town back to your home can be expensive, but one-way u-hauls are cheap by comparison. Stop by Wally World, buy some straps, ride your bike into the back of the u-haul and drive home. 

 Regardless of the gear you wear, you will lose warmth. Using heated gloves, socks and vests will increase your cold weather durability. Are you riding that bike just to ride, or do you want to see the sights and meet the locals? Get of the bike and have a cup of coffee in that funky little diner and try to learn from the waitress what makes Bryson City, North Carolina a good place to visit. You’ll warm your body core and might just meet someone who has been on the “fence” about buying a motorcycle and another converted biker means one fewer car on the road to kill us. 

 So, how’s your cold weather riding? Do you layer like the Michelin man, or are you flexible.

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

January 2007

 Now, where did I put that new year's resolution? 

    At the end of every year, riders tend to reflect back on their days of riding and recount all the great road tales we've earned. Last year, I rode in Maui and most of the southeast mainland U.S. Do I long to do some more riding? You bet, so here's my New Years Resolutions for 2007. Ride More and have more riding buddies. 

       We can all say we'd like to ride more, but the brainiacs who teach Goal Setting 101 tell us that every goal should be specific and quantifiable. Lets say that you want to set the goal to "Ride more in 2007." Well, that's great, but how will you measure that at the end of the year to see if you met that goal or not? For me, my goal is to "Ride More", but with a catch. The catch is, to make the measurement quantifiable, my real goal is to motocommute at least one day a week. That might not sound like a lot, but considering that goal is set, imagine how little I motocommuted last year. 

      As a bald faced boy, standing on Windgrove Road waiting for the school bus that would take me from the cold and blustery bus stop to the warm, inviting school, I would see Mr. Gilmore, everyday, without fail. Mr. Gilmore rode what I thought was a HUGE motorcycle in all kinds of weather. Rain, sleet, snow (no, not snow but you get the idea) it didn't matter to Mr. Gilmore, he was a motorcyclist. He rode all the time. For warmth he had "Hippo Hands" strapped over the controls of his bike. He had a little windscreen and always wore some kind of leather gear. Yes sir, Mr. Gilmore left quite an impression on this nine year old boy. I never spoke to Mr. Gilmore, but I knew his daughter. "Jeeze, he must be the coolest Dad!" I would say to little Jennifer Gilmore. "Um, I guess so, he's o.k.." she would reply, oblivious to my worshipful thoughts of the Greatest Motorcyclist who ever lived on Windgrove Road.  She thought I was crazy, and at nine, I might have been. 

     These days, I like to pick up my daughter from school on the motorcycle. With all the other children being shuttled into the automatic doors of countless minivans, my daughter beams with delight as she dons her helmet to ride home. All the kids in her class tell her that she's got the coolest Dad and refer to her as the "coolest girl in school." I have, in a sense, become Mr. Gilmore. And that's my point. 

     Quantifiable goal #1 Motocommute one day a week to the office. Goal #2- Convert two people to motorcycling this year. You don't have to work on the sales floor of a motorcycle shop to get someone interested in motorcycling, you just have to ride. You might get to tell some road tales and you have to be open to their questions. Be their Mr. Gilmore.  I bet that if you were to motocommute one day a week for the entire year of 2007, you'd find more motorcyclists in your office than you knew were there. You'll see them in the parking lot or in the elevator, carrying their helmet. You'll finally notice that their left shoe is always scuffed on the top of the toe from the gear shifter, a real sign of a member of the motocommuter club.  Folks will want to know why you ride to work, you'll have dozens of reasons. 

   Why I motocommute? Here are a couple of my best reasons-- 1- I'm cool; 2- it's cheaper than driving my truck; 3- chicks dig me on the motorcycle (just kidding, only one chick still digs me and she's thrilled when I ride); 4-there's a great road I ride during lunch that takes the thoughts of my nagging boss out of my head; 5- I get to swoop in the curves on the way to work versus just steering through them (swooping is a clear winner when competing against steering); 6- I share one parking space with 3 other riders and pay 1/4 the coast of a regular space... oh I could just go on and on.   

    For my motocommute, I ride about 20 miles each way and choose not to go anywhere near the interstate (which is a challenge in Atlanta). I ride past streams and rivers along some nice "swoopy roads", I take in the sights of a Civil War era ruin of a paper mill, and most importantly, I pass school bus stops. The kids wave like mad and I wave back, without fail. Once at work, it's plainly clear that I rode the bike in.  Coworkers stare at it as if it were a UFO of some kind. I get all kinds of questions about it and about riding in general. As you probably know by now, motorcycles are a great icebreaker. 

   So, what's you New Year's resolution? I hope that you'll take the effort to be Mr. Gilmore to someone and motocommute. And please, if you see me on the road or in the hallway with my scuffed left boot, give me a wave! 

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

December 2006

you have "End of the year angst"?  

    Therapists call it "Cabin Fever." They just love winter time. With morale-enhancing sunshine dwindling down to just a few hours a day and dark clouds threatening all travelers, depression reaches epidemic proportions in the winter months. Toss into the mix a healthy batch of stress from Christmas and Holiday shopping, cooking, gift giving, and strained/forced family gatherings causing an increase of the "guilt quotient", it's no wonder motorcyclists in particular dislike winter. 

    Even in the best of times, most of us look at the end of the year as interminably cold winter weather causing us to leave the comfort and freedom of our motorcycle saddles to the tight confines of our cars and trucks. We tend to give up the freedom of the road.  Another reason to become a four wheeler is that most motorcycle destinations close during this time of year. T.W.O. and the Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground are two glaring examples of "seasonal" motorcycle destinations. They both shut down near the end of October and remain empty husks until spring. The same is not true of the roads. Surely, some roads are closed for periods of time due to construction and surface condition, but by and large, the roads we ride don't voice a preference between the motorcycle or car.  But the riders do.

    It's important that you  ride. Feel free to pick a few of these to quote to your non-riding friends as they look at you like the RCA dog as you throttle up and ride off into the sunset:

• I have to ride to keep the fuel from gumming up my carbs/injectors.

• To keep my "mad riding skills" honed like flying prowess of a carrier based Navy Jet pilot, I've gotta kick the tires and light the fires every so often.

• My tires will dry rot and square off unless I spin them at high speeds.

• Have you seen the stars from the top of the mountain in the clear, cool air of winter? No? Me neither. 

• My battery tender spends more time with my bike than I do. 

• There's just got to be a Toy Run in town to raise gifts for kids in need.

• I need to leave a photos and note at my favorite motorcycle destination explain how bummed I was they weren't open on the day I stopped by to buy a new motorcycle tire and hamburger. 

• My Leather Jacket makes me look cool and I don't need to wear the English Leather cologne my kids bought me last year to smell good. 

• I'm paying the bank $223 a month for this scooter, I've go to go get in $223 worth of fun!

• Aunt Edna is a nice gal, and I don't want her to suffer the indignity of my refusal to eat another piece of her concoction known as pecan/sweet potato pie while I'm gone carving the asphalt of Route 2. 

    The paradox of relaxing excitement. Once you are on the road, the buzz, purr or thump of your motorcycle engine works to soothe all your blues away. By it's very nature, motorcycling requires 100% of your attention along every mile of the ride. While your thinking of how to set up for the next sharp left bend in the road and that dog over your right shoulder, Aunt Edna's disapproving glances are long forgotten.  The embarrassment you feel for your amazing "lampshade dance" performed for the delight of the CEO's wife at the office Christmas party slips behind you with the wind. Regardless of what you're escaping from, you know how to ride a motorcycle, go ride this month.

       As long as the road is clear, you really owe it to yourself to go for a ride.   Pick a warm day and stretch the ride out over the afternoon, or a cold evening (make it a short hop). For the good of the spirit of the season, get out and ride, your therapist will hate you for it!

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

November 2006

"Go" or "No go"? 

   That is the question. It's a question most riders have faced over the years. To some, the answer is, "NO GO" if there is a chance of rain, while other riders "GO" like polar bears out into the blizzards of Northern Canada. The important thing is that you don't "go" to impress anyone else. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor.

    A few years back (before I met my wife), I took a trans-continental motorcycle adventure with the "wrong woman" seated inches behind me. Oh, she was willing enough to "go" and didn't complain about the weather, but had to eat every 3 hours, regardless of our locale. When hungry, she was inconsolable, but that's another story. We were taking this trip in October and had planned to meet my little brother in Fort Collins, Colorado. After riding for two days across the great WINDY breadbasket of the U.S., the Rocky Mountains blocked further westward advances as we turned north to Fort Collins from Denver. 

     In Fort Collins, we spoke to my brother about riding further west. He described the high mountain passes in Colorado as treacherous for cars and SUVs much less a motorcycle (burdened with two hairdryers-just in case one broke). Looking at the map, I observed that although the mountain passes westward were at a higher latitude, they were at a lower altitude and the trade off might work. So, it was a "GO". 

     Well, we "WENT" to Evanston, Wyoming near the Utah state line, where we were stopped dead in our tracks by a blizzard. I spent a couple days of my life with the wrong woman in a tiny motel room, in a tiny town; waiting for the snow to clear. She incessantly reminded me, "Hawk, people come to Utah to ski, remember?"  It was a lesson hard leanred in "GO "NO GO" decisions making. 

    Other than weather, you have to look at the bike to help make decide, "GO" or "NO GO". Looking at your tires, do you have any doubt that they will be adequate for your entire trip? If not, can you get them changed before leaving? How about your service interval? So, your planning a transcontinental adventure, you'd better change the oil and air filter now and give the bike a good combing over, regardless of how many miles have passed since your last. Doing some maintenance before you leave will help convince you to "GO" versus "NO GO". Sure, there are some things that arise on all our bike from time to time, that's why we have a road ready kit, right (tools, first aid, extra $$ for gas, towing service card from our motorcycle club). 

   How about your equipment, like raingear and warm weather gear? Is it comfortable enough for you to wear it 20 hours a day? Does it keep you dry? Warm? Does it need to be replaced. How about that helmet. If it's more than a couple of years old, you ought to replace it. The foam inside is just Styrofoam, and the protection it affords lessons over time. 

   Weather? Whether club riding, riding with a small group of friends or lone wolfing it, weather is probably the biggest determining factor in "GO or "NO GO". I have a friend that would never dare ride his beauty in the rain, or mist or fog, or even under a cloud. That's his choice, I've got no problem with it, I'm not riding on his back seat! Others I know dress and pack for everything and head out in snow. I fall (no pun intended) somewhere in between. As a motorcycle officer for nearly a decade in Metro Atlanta, I have ridden plenty of wet miles. Water doesn't hurt, hail kinda does! I've opened my garage door and started the bike, only to stand at the threshold and wonder "Why would I anyone in their right mind leave the comfort of home and ride in this stuff?" Followed immediately by me throttling the bike from the warm and dry comfort of my suburban palace.  

    How about the rider? With hundreds of thousands of miles safely ridden (and some of that in pursuit riding), I have been the fatigued rider, unable to make it home. Pressing to make sure I got all the information I needed for the Virginia West Virginia guidebook, I rode a lot. I commuted from Atlanta, Georgia to Roanoke, Virginia with such frequency, I swear my bike now the way! One night, after a grueling week of research, I found myself "dosing" in the straight-aways with just two hours of riding left. Sure, I tried all the normal remedies, I stopped in the Waffle House in Andrews, NC and downed enough coffee to turn my hair brown, but it was no use. My body needed rest. So, I had shell out more cash for another night's motel room. But for the next 7 hours, I was sleeping like a dead man. Had I continued, I'm pretty sure that I'd have ended up as a dead man in a ditch with a motorcycle as my blankie. 

   When we drink, the first thing we lose is our decision making ability. As proof of this, I am not proud to report that it was an elixir that was used to coax me to date the "wrong woman" from the first paragraph. Decision making, agility, coordination, and self control are all signs of a great motorcyclist. Drinking and riding obviously don't mix. No, I'm not your momma, and I'm not telling you that having one and riding will get you killed. However, having one will lower your ability to make clear decisions, and around your pals, the decision to have another is frequently applauded and encouraged. That's when things get messy. I prefer to tip a few back at the end of the day, telling "road lies" with my buds and picking on each other for not being able to keep up. Once I'm off the bike and in the sauce, riding is a "NO GO". I've even ridden my bike to a bar knowing this rule. It kept me from getting stuck there making bad decisions.

             "GO" or "NO GO"

• Weather-It this something I want to ride in? Have I done it before? 

• Bike- Tires, Oil, Service? :

• Equipment-Will what I have to wear work for what Mother Nature hands me?

• Rider- Am I ready, rested, and trained for what I'm going to do? Have I packed my booze for later instead of sooner?

   Just remember, in this country, there is no one holding a gun to your head, threatening to kill you if you don't ride. You decide when and if you ride. I have more respect for the guy that stays home when he's not sure he can make it versus the guy who makes the trip only to become a burden with his bone headedness later in the day (like gets stuck in a small motel in a small town with the wrong woman). 

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

October 2006

 Choosing a therapist 

  One of my good friends is a wine connoisseur, and asked, "Do you know what the best wine in the world is?" "I have no idea, but I kinda like this one." I replied pointing toward the cheap gallon jug of table red wine. What followed was a lesson in winemaking and tasting, we talked of wine's legs, fruitiness, oakyness, and flavor. After about a half hour, my friend pointed to the cheap gallon jug and declared, "That's the best wine in the world," adding the caveat, "for you anyway." Just like wine, there's no best motorcycle or best road, just different choices for different tastes.

    I enjoy asphalt that has plenty of well-banked curves, tree lined for slow going. My mind falls into the rhythm of the road and takes me away from the cell phone wearing car drivers that make Atlanta traffic a misery. The Cherohala Skyway takes me so far from the asphalt jungle that I forget for a few hours the shrillness of the urban animals; SUV Elephants rumbling along, the buzz of the Bee sized Minis zipping by, and the quiet lowing of the midsized cattle cars sitting in the pasture. Where's your road? What's your escape route?

    Find your escape route and take it before it's too late! As therapy, I call it the paradox of relaxing excitement. On a  motorcycle, you have to dedicate much of your attention to the road surface, other traffic, your speed, the motorcycle handling itself, lean angles, and g force equations that would make your physics professor proud. All the while; figuring the correct speed to apply a sufficient coefficient of friction of your tires to overcome the pull of the centrifugal forces. If your head isn't 100% in the game when your riding , you'll be sliding soon, or pulling your bike outta the trees. It doesn't matter if your counselor was born in Germany, Wisconsin, Japan, Italy, just pick one that works for you. 

    For "counselors" (motorcycles), there are as  many choices as road types. You can go with the speed and agility or the comfort of a large seat with lots of leg room. For me, the choice of road or length of session suggests which "counselor" to take. For long sessions, like cross-country riding, I'll grab my trusty Goldwing. For quick in-town runs, I'm happy on a scooter. For a weekend mountain run with my buddies, a sportbike fits perfectly. As I write this, I grow to appreciate and understand my wife's need for so many different pairs of shoes! 

   So, for October, get out and do some riding. Winter is just around the corner and for many of us, that means that we'll not be able to attend as many counseling sessions as we might need.  

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

August 2006

Weight a minute!   

   As a helicopter pilot, I’m keenly aware of weight and balance information for the little helicopters I fly. Every time I fly, I have to enter my weight, my passenger’s weight and the weight of the fuel onboard into a complex calculation to determine if it’s safe to fly. For added complexity, I also have to compute the weight loss during flight from the burning of fuel to be sure that I am able to keep the aircraft safely balanced. How does this translate to a motorcycle safety? Well, proper loading of motorcycles for proper weight and balance has everything to do with safety. Fact is, most riders don’t consider weight and balance when preparing for a trip, they just pack what’ll fit into where it’ll fit and if it doesn’t fit, pack another bag and strap it to the back. Admittedly, I’ve done it too. It might sound Kung-Fuish, but to keep your bike well weighted and balanced is to have a safe trip, Grasshopper.

    First, let’s see how much we can take. I’ve chosen three popular touring models to see just how much we can pack on after we’ve put us and a passenger aboard. Of course, you will want to check your owner’s manual for your bike’s GVWR and wet weight. 

HONDA GL1800                    H.D. ULTRA CLASSIC                      BMW K1200 LT

GVWR            1303 lbs           GVWR            1259 lbs                       GVWR            1322  lbs

WET WT.        -881 lbs           WET WT.        - 848 lbs                      WET WT.        -  853 lbs

Assuming we’re riding two-up, the weight of the rider is 200 lbs and the passenger is 130 lbs Subtracting 330 lb weight of the rider and passenger from the MAX LOAD gives us the MAX AVAILABLE LOAD 

MAX AVAILABLE                 MAX AVAILABLE                             MAX AVAILABLE    

    “So what, I’ve overloaded my bike? Who cares? It’s not likely that the local police are going to put me on a scale and write me a ticket or something?” Not likely, but by going over the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) you will be harming your bike and causing premature tire wear and worst of all adversely affecting the bike’s handling. 

Two scenes, one properly loaded and balanced motorcycle the other overloaded.

Properly loaded- Confidently banking in the gently sweeping curves of the mountains, hoping that the ride doesn’t end.

Overloaded- Secure in the knowledge that you have packed everything you’ll need at your destination, but taking the curves like a drunken dinosaur; looking forward to the moment the hellish ride comes to a successful end.

Which ride do you want to take? I bet I know the answer… 

   “But jeeze, I have so much gear to pack and limited room!” you plead. I hear you, big guy. Here’s a trick to make the most room and subtract the most weight from your ride. Consider packing in two categories. The first category is the “I’m going to need this on the road” category the second is the “I’ll need this at the destination” category. More simply, “ROAD” and “DESTINATION”. This concept hit me like a ton of bricks when planning what became known as the Great Cross Country Honeymoon Motorcycle Marathon of 1998. It seemed that for me, a t-shirt, jeans, rain gear and some leather gloves would be just about all I need for the two-week trip. Apparently, my newly wedded wife had some other gear in mind. For those of you not yet in the know, a diffuser is a critical component to a hairdryer and not just any diffuser will do, you’ll need to have a specific one at the destination. So, a diffuser goes in the “DESTINATION” stack. The first aid kit lands in the “ROAD” pile. If you are riding somewhere to camp, the tent might land in the “DESTINATION” pile, but the sunscreen hits the “ROAD” pile. In the “DESTINATION” pile, toss in what you want to wear on the way home. That way, you are only packing enough clean clothes to reach the destination, and won’t have to wear dirty clothes on the flipside of your adventure.

    I won’t get into what to pack for the road, but pack what you think you’ll need on the road. Then weigh yourself without the weight of the “ROAD” gear then grab the road gear and subtract it from your weight to determine how much you’ve got. If your “ROAD” gear is less than what you’ve figured to be your bike’s MAX AVAILABLE LOAD you have packed well Grasshopper. If you are over weight, look back through your ROAD gear and move the items you might not need into your DESTINATION pile.

   Once you’re wrestled your ROAD weight down to a manageable level, grab that DESTINATION pile. You’ll take that pile to the Post Office or to one of those post-offices-that-really-isn’t-a post-office, you know, Mail Boxes Etcetera or Pack and Ship. Tell them where you are going and explain that you want to send yourself this stuff. If you know exactly where you are going, like a hotel or campground, make arrangements for the staff at the hotel or campground to hold the package for you until you arrive. If your plans are more fluid and you don’t know exactly where you’ll be staying, ship the DESTINATION gear to the post-office-that-really-isn’t-a post-office outlet in the town where you’ll be staying. Once at your destination, unpack your road gear, make the short jaunt to your get your DESTINATION gear. When your visit is over, ship your dirty clothes and other DESTINATION gear back home. 

   This might sound expensive, but when you compare shipping costs to the cost of new tires and/or a tow bill to get your bike out of the trees, you’ll actually be saving a ton. Besides, who wants to ride their bike on a great stretch of roadway like a drunken dinosaur? Certainly, not you.

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk 

July 2006

Animals. nice to see, not fun to ride with 

    Wild animals are just that, Wild. Untamed. Unpredictable. Unlike a sky blue, 78 Buick two-door pulling from the driveway, animals don't choose cross streets or driveways from which to fail to yield to motorcyclists. My daughter, Savannah, doesn't ride a motorcycle. Oh sure, she's been a passenger on mine since she was a little kid, but hasn't taken to throttle twisting. Good thing too when you consider that she's killed so many deer with her car this season that the DNR Rangers are watching her activities closely to make sure she doesn't go over her bag limit. All in all, she's hit three deer. The upside of this is that she's been uninjured in every encounter and I've learned the location and inventories of every auto salvage yard between my house and hers. Keeping her deer killing machine on the road has been a challenge, but so far, I've managed to replace the bent pieces and dig the fur out of repairable ones. I hate to think of what her deer encounter frequency mixed with motorcycling would mean. What follows is the advice I would give my deer slaying daughter if she were to start riding tomorrow. You can apply this to your own riding as well. 

         Be wild, know where the animals are and why they are moving. Just like hunters are keenly aware that wild animals move to water in warm evenings, motorcyclists should be aware of that as well. Say you're riding my a stream and it's dusk, are you watching for deer, antelope, caribou. or just the 78 Buick pulling from the driveway a few miles down the road? Having hit an armadillo a few years ago, I learned (too late) that they are attracted to the warm asphalt on cold evenings. Deer feed on grass, in the winter, they are particularly fond of rye grass. Rye grass is green in the winter and grows on the side of many scenic roads (like Skyline Drive and sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway).  

          Emperor's New Clothes or not, invest a couple of bucks in deer whistles. These little plastic whistles purport to emit an annoying whistle that can only be heard by wild animals and the noise drives them away from the road. I've never seen them work, but at the same time, I've never seen them to fail. I once had $3 deer whistles stuck on my bike and came close to some mule deer while riding in Arizona, but the deer were moving away. Make your own estimations of their effectiveness, but don't rely on them as a panacea.  

        I like to ride during the early morning and at dusk. There is less traffic on the road and the air is more crisp. Of course, that's the most likely time to interact with some wildlife. So, use caution when riding at dawn and dusk. Ride midday, that's when the animals are less apt to be on the move.  There are exceptions to this rule. For example, when the weather is particularly cold, the wildlife might choose to move in warmth of the midday sun. Just try to think like a deer or caribou (find a local hunting club to tell you when the wildlife is moving). 

        What about domesticated animals, more specifically, the family dog? Fierce to protect the family from the two-wheeled predator, the family dog can be a worthy adversary. Here's how to beat him at his own game. As you motor down the road, you see Bowzer awake from a nap on the porch. His brain goes into protect mode and creates an "intercept equation" with military precision. He has determined your speed, closing speed, and direction. Bowser will add all of those factors together and come up with his intercept plan to maximize his ability to catch you. To throw Bowzer off, slow down. This causes Bowzer to recalculate the intercept equation. As you draw close, increase speed once Bowzer has set his intercept into action. This works with just about anything that is "CBDR"- Constant Bearing, Decreasing Range- including the 78 Buick. If you see something that is CBDR, change your part of the equation to avoid impact at intercept. 

       Nighttime riding. Sometimes difficult to be avoided, but keep in mind that riding at night limits your visibility to the arc of your headlight. You might not even see the animal on the side of the road before it's too late. Riding at night, cover your brakes and be aware of your surroundings. More often, wildlife will travel more freely on moonlit nights versus cloudy, moonless ones. If you can see the road without the headlight, expect Bambi to see as well too. Cover your brakes, and slow down. I know that if you're riding at night, you're probably under the gun to get somewhere, because we motorcyclists prefer to ride "in " the countryside not "through" the countryside. Riding during hours of daylight gives us the chance to see the sights, riding at night removes about 1/2 of why we ride. So, despite your rush, slow down and be ready to stop. 

     Ok, so you've followed all the conventional advice and still a moose is marching across the road in front of you. Where to go? Wild animals rarely run backwards. For this reason, if you aim just past the hind quarters, you'll be better off than aiming just in front of it. Even if there's lots of road in front of it, you'll want to aim behind the animal. What if the animal is running with traffic (same direction)? DO NOT pass an animal that is running with you. For some reason, animals hate being passed and will cut you off faster than a rookie NASCAR driver. Behind an animal, it's harder for them to get you, get in front of it and you're in its sights. 

        Over the years, I've missed everything from cats to Caribou (well, I did hit an armadillo). Some of that good fortune might be attributed to luck of the draw, and some of it might be by following my own advice. Whatever you do, be mindful of the wildlife that share our roads. It's much better to see them and appreciate them from afar than to mix it up with them and have to find the local motorcycle salvage yards... 

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk 

June 2006

The heat is on!!

  My wife is a true Southern Belle, except when it comes to the tolerance of heat. She loves "Conditioned Air". Pardon the pun, but she serves as my barometer with respect to the degree of misery the temperatures inflict on motorcyclists. About two weeks into May, she let me know that the heat of summer had arrived. 

   You probably don't need to have my wife tell you this, but summer is here. In Georgia, 90 degree days have hit with with full force; humid days too, not some namby-pamby 105 degree 8% humidity day, we're talking "don't- hang-the -laundry-outside-because-it-will-never-dry" kind of humidity days. High humidity and high temperatures create a high heat index, just like high winds and a low temperature create a low chill factor. Fortunately, in the summer months, the high heat index is counteracted by the relative wind we motorcyclists can create by riding. I rode a police bike for nine summers in metro Atlanta, all the while wearing a dark blue shirt and a bullet proof vest underneath. I'd rather have a heat rash than a sucking chest wound (I'm trying to imagine a chest wound that wouldn't suck, but the the image of one escapes me).  From that experience, I've learned much about riding and particularly about warm weather riding. Just like in the winter, the faster we go, the cooler we feel. Unlike the winter, speed is more comfortable in the summer.  Still, heat is an invisible danger on the highways, just as deadly as an 18-wheeler in your lane around a blind corner. Here are some thoughts about avoiding trouble: 

   Water, and plenty of it. My doctor, as crass as he is, is a wise man, he retorts, "If you aren't peeing, you're dieing." Drink so much that you have to expel some. That's a good sign. Speaking of bladder, a hydration bladder (like a Camel Back tm) is a good source of convenient water. Sure, you can pack a bicycle bottle full of water or sports drink, but will it be easy enough for you to use and/or refill during your ride? Drink enough to feel full and watch for parched lips or thirst. When you are thirsty, it's too late to keep you body cool. Your body will use the water you drink when you are thirsty to keep critical components lubed and functioning, but won't actually help the cooling system. Water, water, water, you can't really get too much of it.  Try it next time you ride, drink a big glass of water every hour. You'll notice that the sweat pouring off your body will actually keep you cooler.  Oh and since I mentioned them, sports drinks are great when you have a break from riding, but save those for when you are stopped, spilling a sugary sports drink in your lap or chrome on a 100 degree day is a sticky mess that will quickly turn you from "rider concentrated on the road" to " pissed off biker" in such a short amount of time only the atomic clock in Colorado could measure it. 

    What to wear? Sure, we all know that blue jeans and a black t-shirt is the uniform of the day for motorcyclists, but in the summer, consider lighter clothing. Learn a lesson from people who ride near the equator. With rare exceptions, they wear baggy, light-colored, long sleeve shirts and light-colored long pants. The white reflects the warm sunshine while the long sleeve prevents excessive moisture loss. This keeps your personal air conditioner working at highest efficiency.

     I ride with a black helmet, my old police helmet was reflective gold. Many police helmets are white with black bands on the sides, and it's not by mistake or because it was the cheapest vendor. White helmets reflect sunlight while black helmets absorb the sun's energy. The gold on my old police helmet reflected more than it absorbed and was mighty more comfortable (temperature wise) than my personal helmet. My daughter, rides with a white helmet, and not just because of the temperature difference. A recent study from the University of Auckland (NZ) showed that riders who wore white helmets are less likely to be involved in a car vs.  motorcycle crash.  

    Your bike doesn't like the heat either. Watch for signs of fatigue from your iron horse. Lead her to a cool pond with some shade nearby, or in a more practically, a gas station with a cover and breeze blowing. Check the oil  and coolant levels (if so equipped) often. Talk to your mechanic about what oil to use during extremely hot weather to keep your engine from making that terrible banging noise associated with an overheated engine or a gremlin in the #2 cylinder. 

     Avoid stop-and-go traffic when the mercury is high. During the winter, I used to love stop-and-go traffic. The engine would serve as a heater to warm my hands. I'd grab the front jug of the police bike, get my gloves all warm and then warm my face with the gloves. The high temperatures have the opposite effect. Apart from the atmospheric anomaly known as wind, when the bike is idling and is stopped, it is not being cooled. For a air cooled bike, that spells disaster, like pulling a fish out of the water. Do a "breeze-out" by riding at higher speeds (higher than stopped, think 40 mph, not 90 mph) with low RPMs. At the end of the breeze-out, grab some shade and you drink some water while the bike takes in a deserved rest.  

      Keep your rubber from breaking.  Now, I'm talking tires here people!! With the sweltering sun above and the baking asphalt below, your tires are under assault. Check them often for pressure and wear. When it's warm, the air pressure in the tires rise. Most riders don't check their tire pressure very often, subsequently, many single vehicle motorcycle accidents attribute "loss of control due to incorrect tire pressures". Having the your tires filled with too much air gives you less of a "asphalt patch" gripping the roadway, which will lead to putting your bike in the trees. Who wants to deal with that? 

    The heat works on the road too. Somebody with the DOT came up with a brilliant idea a few years ago. They noticed small cracks forming in the highways and byways and thought it would be best to fill those cracks with tar to prevent water inclusion, thus leading to a longer road life. Well, that's just great, now we've got what we call "tar snakes" on nearly every road. Tar is applied hot, making it a lava-like thick but workable substance that is oily and sticky. Once cool, the stickiness fades. When cool, tar snakes are not venomous (but will bite when wet -check out June 2005 in the Archived Codes). However, when hot, tar snakes can spit their  venom with disastrous results. Tar snakes are quite slippery when hot, so avoid them where you can and when you must hit them, do so as you would a real snake (perpendicular as you can, with the bike upright).

     Whatever you do, and whatever happens, keep your cool in the summer time.  Being a biker (or motorcyclist or whatever you call yourself) is all about being cool. It's really hot. So what? That's no reason to avoid riding the Oak Creek Canyon in sunny (and warmmmmmm) Arizona!  

Until Next Month, 

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk 

May 2006  

Motocommuting  

  In May, I wrote about the benefits and pitfalls of MotoCommuting. While I tried and tried to get it moved to this page, I have failed you, gentle readers! If you have a question about MotoCommuting, please feel free to ask Hawk@MotoHawk.com. 

April 2006  

April Fools?

         Back in the mid and late 1980’s, I was a navigator in the Coast Guard. I plied the waters of the Caribbean and North Atlantic and then crossed the Pacific Ocean (the long way, from north to south) to reach Antarctica. GPS was something I had heard of, but it was not yet popular, or even used by military ships like the ones I had been assigned. Instead of GPS, we used radio navigation (Loran–C, Omega, and Radio Direction Finders), Radar Navigation (in those times we were close enough to land to see it on Radar), visual navigation and lastly, Celestial Navigation. That’s right, even as recently as the 1980’s, navigators used sextants to find their way across the great featureless voids of water. Today, I still distrust anything but my old sextant to tell me where I am in the world.

My good friend Doug retired from years of police work and rewarded himself with a Harley and a sailing yacht. I’ve seen him twice in the past four years. Once on the roadside, while riding his Harley around, we happened into each other and the other time, Lisa and I flew down to Miami to see him and sail a bit. Doug’s boat is a sturdy and sleek 38-foot sailboat with all the trimmings. Equipped with everything from air conditioning to a gas-powered blender (sort of like a chainsaw with a blender attachment), the Raconteur is a pleasure to sail. Doug knew of my interest in navigation and was eager to show me his set up. I had visions of paper charts, parallel motion protractors, brass dividers and sharpened pencils to draw lines and triangles on charts. What Doug showed me was a GPS system that seamlessly downloaded the boat’s position into a laptop computer that had a chart on the screen. I asked, “Well, what happens when the GPS goes down?” Doug replied, “I use this other one.” I remarked my discomfort with the lack of redundancy and Doug asked, “Do you have a horse in your garage at home?” Before I could reply with “Whaaaa?”, Doug continued to make his point, “Well, what if your motorcycle breaks down? Shouldn’t you have a horse to ride?” Point made, I suppose I was behind the technological advancements bell curve.

I’ve been behind this bell curve before, lots of times. I used to write letters, not typed, hand written. I was sure that the personal computers that were coming into vogue in the late 80’s would pass like Disco, because who would trade a handwritten card or letter for an impersonal email? Well, those “impersonal emails” have gotten mighty personal. Today, we can instantly send photos and video clips from any email portal, including a cell phone. Simply amazing. I’ve learned that it was me that was the April Fool about the email and reliance on GPS to navigate across vast expanses of featureless oceans, but GPS for motorcycles?

People have debated how to equip motorcycles for over a century now. Some claim that anything more than a frame, an engine, seat, handlebars and a wheels is just gluttony on a motorcycle. My first bike, a Suzuki GS 550 L had the luxury of a Windjammer fairing and throttle lock. When I stuffed a battery-powered radio in the pocket of the fairing, my friends all laughed and told me that it was sacrilege to defile the song of the road with a boom box. Today, many motorcycles come standard with sound systems. There are those riders who claim that these bikes equipped with CD changers and XM Radios aren’t really motorcycles. Maybe not for those riders, but I’ll keep my radio, thanks. But GPS for motorcycles?

I poured my eyes and hands over the new 2006 Honda Goldwing. Not that I have an affinity or loyalty to the Goldwing or the Harley or even the BMW; I’d ride a Schwinn with a Brigs and Stratton on it and be just as happy. Well, the new Wing was equipped with modern advancements like ABS, a CD changer, cell phone interface, air bag, and right there in the middle of the console was a GPS unit. “Interesting and useful”, I thought to myself, “if I were riding this motorcycle across the Atlantaic to France!” Maybe I’m the April Fool again, but when I’m riding my motorcycle, I’m typically on a road, a road with a name or a number, a road that appears on a map, a road with features that change, with which I can judge my progress, a road that passes under my motorcycle which clicks off my odometer, so I’m never lost- seriously, I’m never lost. GPS? Oh sure, because I’ve seen this before, I suspect that I’ll have a GPS system on my bike in the next decade and wonder how I ever lived without it, but in the meantime, I’ll just wonder who’s the April Fool and hope against hope that it’s not me again…….

If you’re a GPS rider, drop me an email and tell me why I should become one (and the reason has to be better than “gadget envy”).

Until next month,

 Ride with Pride!

       ~Hawk  

March 2006

Choosing a running mate

The ides of March. Julius Caesar was brutally murdered by members of the Roman Senate, his long trusted friend, Brutus exacting the final blow. "Et tu, Brute!" Lesson learned? Choose your friends wisely.

This is this time of year we begin to dust off our bikes and head back out into the not-so-cold temperatures in search of beautiful roadways and fun with friends. With friends of similar interests and abilities, simple rides can become great adventures. 

While I was still in my twenties and all my friends were buying sport bikes and Harleys, I bought my Honda Gold Wing. I chose it because of its reliability, features, handling, and comfort. One of my first trips on the bike was an impromptu search northward for snow. Yes, it seemed that I had found a bike to quench my wanderlust. With the bike came an invitation to join the Gold Wing Road Riders Association. It seemed like a no brainer decision to join. "Why not?", I reasoned to myself "These people ride the same bike as me, surely we'll have lots in common." I paid my dues and began to receive the monthly Gold Wing magazine. Then, I got a phone call to come to a meeting and a "dinner ride". I rushed to the meeting, arriving an hour early at the restaurant so that I could meet everyone as they came in. I was greeted time and time again by the friendliest people in motorcycling. They were as friendly as my grandparents and about as old as well. It seemed that I had joined a club with an average age well over double my own. At the meeting there were dozens of retirees and only a handful still in the workforce I had joined only a few years before. The dinner ride was across town to the Barn Dinner Theater. It wasn't a good fit for me. I liked the people and liked their bikes, but had so little in common, it was uncomfortable. I have remained a GWRRA member, because I occasionally enjoy the company of the aforementioned  retirees and the monthly magazine helps me keep up with all the goings on relating to my motorcycle. It's a fine association, it offers much to the membership, but just because someone rides the same type of motorcycle as you does not necessarily mean that they would be a good running mate. The same could be said of a HOG Chapter or Blue Knights Chapter. It's good to find people with a common interest, but don't let the Make and Model of your motorcycle be the deciding factor when choosing friends to ride with. And before my email burns up, I do know lots of retirees who can ride me into the ground, many of them ride much further than I do each year and I can't wait to join their ranks (in ten years, but who's counting?).

The important this is not if you can keep up with each other, or that you ride the same bike, or even the same type of bike; the important thing is that you can have a good time and can count on your buddy to be there when it all comes unglued. I have a friend that rides a sport bike, fast. He goes so fast that I don't care to keep up with him. I lounge and laze in the curves while he cuts them with surgical precision. It doesn't matter, because arguing about who will get the last Bass Ale in the MargaritaGrille is more important than who made it up the mountain fastest. Now, this fast friend of mine has come unglued a couple of times and I've had to scrape him off the side of the road. Not a problem, I've come to expect it. It's not really an inconvenience, frankly it's almost amusing. He's the type to say, "Hey man, watch this!" as he rounds the corner at a speed I'm mathematically certain will end with him in a ditch.  I'm glad to ride with him, because he funny and has an interesting riding style that I'll never bother to recreate. 

Another friend of mine rides a touring bike and rides it for distance. Sometimes I think he rides distance just for distance's sake. I live in Atlanta, he lives in Blairsville (in the mountains of North Georgia), he called me late one evening to invite me to join he and his wife for lunch in New Orleans the next day. His plan after lunch was to ride over to Houston before heading back to Blairsville. I like riding with him too, but not every time.

I have occasion to ride in groups. Some of these groups can be as large as ten and others as small as three. With groups, it's good to have a mix, and be ready to be flexible for different folks. Some might like to bend the twisties, others might just want to cruise. If you're planning the ride, let folks know what you have in mind and give them  highlights of what's round the bend. That way, if this part of the ride doesn't suit them, but has everyone else jazzed up, they know that their part of the ride is coming up. 

There are others, male and female that I choose to ride with, all for different reasons. Some because they are great at distance, some because they are amusing, some because they know all the nooks and crannies of where we're going. The important thing is this; in the game of life, the winner is the one who dies with the most friends and respect, not the one who dies with the prettiest motorcycle. Along the road, you're sure to enjoy a few curves and laughs. How's your game going? 

In the meantime, pick a few good running mates and go greet the spring roads! 

Until Next Month-

Ride with Pride!

~Hawk

February 2006

I didn't write about anything for February 

January 2006

New Year's Resolutions, fit to ride?

Because I'm known as a "motojournalist", I get interesting questions all the time. One of the more recent queries came from a reader who asked, "I'm making it my New Year's resolution go get fit to ride, any advice?"  With little more than a passing glance, the average person could correctly identify that I am not a marathon runner or body builder and they might even notice that I'm fond of chicken biscuits. However, fitness does come into play for motorcyclists of all riding styles and body frames. To ride a motorcycle, you needn't be in top physical condition, but to get the most out of riding, it's a good idea to have some degree of fitness.

"I wasn't always as fat as I am now." I sheepishly explained to the doctor. He politely replied, "You're not in that bad of shape, but could stand to lose a few pounds. Why'd you gain all this weight anyway?" As he checked my medical chart which revealed that I had gained an extra 35 lbs since my last check-up. I had gone from a svelte 175 lbs to a slightly pudgy 210 lbs.  I replied, "Larry DeWitt." From there, I had to tell the story.

It was 1993 and I was riding my trusty Kawasaki KZ 1000p for the local police department. I loved that motorcycle and came to call it "Flipper" because it sounded like a dolphin begging for a fish every time I bumped the starter. I was assigned a busy section of the county and, because I was so young,  loved the work. Larry DeWitt was old enough to be my father and he rode for the police department as well. Larry wasn't a large man, he was in great shape. Before reporting for duty on the motorcycle squad, Larry worked as the department's physical fitness coordinator. He could and did frequently press the fight to younger men and win. Then the wreck happened.....

Officer DeWitt had been riding down a five-lane state route in the afternoon on his way home, when a driver of a 1977 Chevy Impala pulled out in front of him. Dewitt had no where to turn, no chance to avoid the collision. The force of the impact shot DeWitt over the car and hundreds of feet down the roadway. At that speed, every time Larry's body touched down on Terra Firma, more bones broke and more skin came off. He was transported to the local trauma center and the worst fears swept through the motor squad. The call came to me from a fellow officer who asked if I had heard about the wreck. "What wreck?" He told me about Dewitt's wreck and added that he was on the way to the hospital to meet the other motor cops. Not because I possess any special skills in medicine, or would even be allowed to visit Larry, I just did what came naturally to me, do what I thought Larry would do if it had been me that wrecked. 

The surgeon came to the parking lot and spoke to our leather and badge clad band of brothers. He explained the after a few surgeries, it was clear that Officer DeWitt would make a complete recovery. He noted that "Officer DeWitt's excellent physical condition played a pivotal role in his survival today." As a young and insecure motor cop, I pulled the doctor aside and asked, "What do you think my chances would have been in the same wreck?" He answered with his head tilted to one side, squeezing my arm and making a quick assessment of my stature, "About half of that as Officer DeWitt's. You're a stick, you need some meat on these bones to protect them." With that, I started my regimen of junk food and weight lifting that shot my weight up over the 200 mark. Then, I started feeling the effects of being too big. 

I got into a foot chase and for the first time in my career as a motor cop, I lost the guy. I had built a body to survive a wreck, but not one that could do the work of a young police officer. I had some "tweaking" to do. Larry DeWitt had recovered from his wreck and used his experience as a physical fitness guru to guide me toward the light. 

For all riders; somewhere in between is the right place to be, not to skinny, not too fat. The necessary physical fitness level also greatly depends on the type of bike and riding you do. I've heard it said of sport bike racers that for every 10 lbs over 100 lbs on the rider, you can subtract one horsepower from the bike's performance. The same could be said of off-road riders. What about for the guys on the touring machines, the luxo-lines? For distance riding, it's all about comfort and from personal experience, I can say that the Dunlop cutting into your belt for hundreds of miles at a time can be quite uncomfortable. By "Dunlop", I don't mean the great tires that stick to the road like glue, no here I mean the Dunlop that is your gut which has "Dun lopped over your belt". If you need to conceal your belt, it's better to have a longer shirt than a bigger gut. 

Seriously, what's needed to stay in "Motorcyclist shape"? If you ask a hundred riders you'll get a hundred different answers. Here's my long answer to that short question. Obesity is a bad thing and frequently leads to diabetes. Diabetes isn't itself a death sentence, but carrying insulin and blood testing equipment, counting sugars and having to always focus on what and when you will eat next can strip layers of fun from the road. Obesity also makes riders less mobile. With few exceptions, you won't be able to twist and turn to see all that the road has to offer, good, bad and indifferent. The heavier the rider, the harder braking must be, because the heavier rider is attempting to stop more weight, the laws of physics just tell us that it will take greater effort to stop a BIG something than stop a REGULAR something. "Stickness" is easier to combat, just be careful not to swing too far to the opposite side of "stick". Balance is the key to being a fit motorcyclist. 

Neck, shoulders, back and knees; these are what feel most sore after riding a while. To keep them from feeling that way you have to work them out before you use them on a motorcycle. I'll start at the knees. Walk, run, ride a bike, whatever, just get the muscles in your legs up to par so that your bones and ligaments aren't having to bare the brunt of the weight. To keep your back feeling good over the long haul, work on your abs. For a laugh, I've told my riding buddies, "I've been working on my AB" as I slap my protruding belly. I don't have a six-pack, I have a pony keg, but I'm working on it. Your abs are the yin to your back's yang. The better of you are up front, the better off your back will be. It's not natural to hold one's arms forward for hours at a time, and motorcyclist's sore shoulders are good evidence of that. Work them out before you have to use them, do some dips and/or some push ups. For your neck, the push ups and dips you do to help the shoulders will also help the neck. Keep your neck limber and pain free by stretching often. 

I like to sneak physical fitness into my road routine. In all three of my books, you'll find chapters that recommend a short hike to a waterfall or another piece of cool scenery. Fortunately for bikers, motorcycle boots make pretty good hiking boots.  As I get older, I realize that the longer my right knee stays perfectly bent on the floorboard of my motorcycle, the more stiff it becomes and painful to move. Rather than pop Advil, I seek out these little hikes and catch some fresh air to boot. I've been known to do pushups in gas station parking lots, ten for every gallon of gas I pump into the bike. That gets the blood pumping and you haven't seen a gas station parking lot until you've laid down on it face first! Try sit ups in the motel room before you check out. Grab two chairs and do some dips to keep your shoulders from tiring.  Like the commercial says, "Just do it." 

Smoking? Well, I'm not your momma and I've smoked in a past life and still enjoy the occasional cigar. I won't tell you to stop smoking, but everyone is pretty much convinced that it's not good for you. Quitting when it's your choice, while you're alive,  is better than quitting  when the cigarettes get you and you're dead. Besides, think of all the gasoline you could buy with the money you spend on smokes!    

So there's your answer, Mr. Brian Donahue from Eat-A-Chip, Idaho! 

Fortunately, motorcycling does not require a vigorous workout. However, we will probably get more out of riding if we stay fit. 

Until Next Month-

Ride with Pride!

                   ~Hawk

December 2005

Tanks for the memories--

care and feeding of high mileage bikes

      Scientists tell us that nothing brings back memories like our sense of smell. A certain perfume will always make me think of my 2nd grade teacher, Miss Vandiver and the smell of Jet A fuel reminds me of my Coast Guard days. That said, nothing floods my mind with memory like the odor of gasoline. I think of my first ride on a bike, my Mom at the helm of a little Honda 50 Cub. I recall my first attempt at the riding a motorcycle solo (a minibike, which I immediately crashed into a chain link fence). Fondly I remember the hug of my wife Lisa as we rode Grand Teton National Park during our Honeymoon Cross Country Adventure.  All memories come back and they all get jumbled somehow! 

     As 2005 winds down, I pause to reflect on the year's events and perhaps what the future might hold. I think of the past as tanks full of memories, because the best memories I have were while twisting a throttle, flowing fuel through the carburetors of motorcycles long since retired. Still, there is one motorcycle in my garage that has shared over 12 years and nearly 150,000 miles with me now. Each time I look at "Raven" (ok, I know that's weird, naming a motorcycle, but jeeze it's one mean looking black machine!) it brings back memories of miles ridden and personal, life changing events. Some good memories, some not so good, but none that I would change for fear that I would have not ended up in this exact place and time. I'm glad "Raven" can't talk, if it could, I'm almost certain that it would gossip about the days gone by and tell on me for the evils and perils I've put it through. 

      This year, on a recent tank full, my daughter Annabelle (6 years old) became the latest in the family to join the motorcycle community. With a white, full face helmet adorned with enough pink and purple Barbie stickers to make a hard core biker smile and all the other biker accoutrements, she nervously climbed into the saddle. We agreed to ride just down the block from the house and return. As we neared the turn-a-round, Annabelle asked, "Would it be ok if we kept going a little while?" Those few words come to mind every time we ride. Despite my assurances to the contrary, since Annabelle has taken her place in the saddle, my wife is convinced that she'll never get to ride again. 

    Fortunately, I  have few recollections of any of my motorcycles leaving me stranded. Sure, all my bikes have done it, but their excellent service to me has far outweighed their failures. Being forgiving about the failure of my motorcycle is easy for me to do when I reason that I played a role in it's failure. For example, I know I'm supposed to change the motorcycle's fuel filter every 10,000 miles. I only recall this little tidbit when my bike bogs down under a load at high speed (a sure sign that the fuel filter is clogged with gunk and needs replacement). That's when I change the fuel filter, when there's a problem.

     To keep my bikes running and running well, I take care of most problems before they are problems. I met a buddy of mine for breakfast and asked him what that terrible ticking sound was coming from the engine of his Suzuki. He replied, "It's time for an oil change." My daughter Savannah, called me in a panic one day because it sounded like there was a "hammer in the engine". I added three quarts of oil to the four quart capacity engine and it got quiet again. In addition to oil changes here are some tips I've picked up over the years to keep my motorcycles happy for over 100,000 miles.

Confucius says; "A minute in the garage will save you hours on the road."    

• Oil and filter changes - At regular intervals, without fail, using the good stuff. I keep a 3 x 5 card in my saddlebag tool kit, marking the mileage and date of the last change.

• Air Filter changes - For my bikes, every third oil change. I note it on the same 3 x 5 index card. A fresh air filter prevents all sorts of problems. I learned this lesson the hard way when several breather hoses for the carburetors collapsed while gasping for air from under an old air filter. This caused the bike to sputter like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and needed more work (more money from me to the mechanic, too).

• Battery life - checking battery condition; water level, wire cleanliness and voltage output, will keep this component from ruining your day. 

• Alternator or Stator - Every 40,000 miles or so, I'll have a professional mechanic take apart my alternator and measure the bushings, and check the health of the brushes. It's far cheaper to replace components of the charging system than to replace the entire charging system. You can check the health of the alternator by using a voltmeter. Get technical help to learn how to use it properly and figure out what to look for. 

• Lights - In my books, I've written about Murphy's Laws of Motorcycling. In these laws is the "headlight will only go out at night" law. Actually, you will only recognize a headlight out as a problem at night. When one turn signal bulb goes out or when one running light fails, I bite the bullet and replace all my lights (provided there is no evidence of a problem with that particular light-like a melted terminal). This step in preventative maintenance gives me piece of mind that there are new lights all around and half a dozen spares in the bottom of my saddlebag (in an 6-pack egg crate).  

• Chain Lube or Belt Inspection - a snug fit and know when to say when.  I had let the chain get pretty loose on my old Suzuki and when it broke, it wrapped around the front sprocket and busted out the rear of the engine case. That was one expensive lesson! With belts, I've seen them break apart and lie in the road like a snake behind a motorcycle with "no go left". 

• Check Sprockets and Belt Pulleys - Replace a sprocket before it's teeth get so warn and sharp that it looks like it could be used as a weapon in a Kong Fu movie. For pulleys (what belt go around), check the tightness of your pulley's connection to the wheel. I've had one come unbolted and leave me stranded.  Check every oil change.

• Shaft Drive Lube - I change the final drive oil in my shaft driven bike every time I change the oil. in the engine. This helps me discover early problems in the shaft. If I drain the final drive gear oil and notice metal flakes, I know I'm in deep do-do. I also make sure that the teeth that join the rear axle to the rear wheel get a good lube every time the rear tire is changed. Knock on wood, I have yet to replace a drive shaft. 

•  Cooling system - air cooled engine- keep it clean, if there's a cooling of road grime or mud, the engine won't cool as efficiently it should. Liquid cooled engine - check the efficiency of that coolant twice  a year and be ready to replace it as needed. Not replacing coolant might cost you a new water pump or at the worst, a new engine. 

• Regular Maintenance - like valve adjustments, if you know how to do this great, do it often, if you don't know how to do this, don't guess! Find a local shop  and pay to have the work done properly. Then, if you're really into working on your bike, pay the mechanic to teach you how to do the work.

• Clean the Machine- keep your motorcycle clean, it will prevent rust from forming ad ruining the finish of the bike. Keeping the bike clean will help you spot problems while they are little, like a leaking brake fluid reservoir.

     These general guidelines are not an effort to replace your motorcycle manufacturers recommendations, but to give an idea as to what has worked for me. 

     Coming to the end of another great year, I'm thankful for all the tankfuls I've been able to enjoy.  I hope that you and yours have had a great year as well and wish you the best for 2006. 

Until Next Month-

Ride with Pride!

                   ~Hawk

November 2005

Night Riders

   Generally speaking, riding at night flies in the face of why most of us got into motorcycling. We want to be out in the scenery and see the sights. However, when faced with a book deadline and a distance far from home, I've ridden to get the research done. Why we ride at night doesn't matter to the road, whether we're riding to get to work before the rooster crows, returning from work after holding our nose to the grindstone, or pushing it to visit to Aunt Edna in Albuquerque, it's important that we ride intelligently. With the winter setting in and the time change, darkness has begun to overtake the road before we're done riding.                                                                                                                    

    For me, one particularly cold and dark ride was when doing research for the Washington's Forest chapter (p. 42, Book 3). I had been riding in northern Virginia all day and had to get into West Virginia the next day, so to get a jump on the next days riding, I took off from Harrisonburg, VA to Franklin, WV in the dark of night. Between those two cities lies the Allegheny mountain chain. It was early January, there was snow on the road's shoulder and apart from the warm, narrow cone of light shining from the front of my motorcycle, the only light I saw was from the occasional Christmas decoration, left up a bit too long in the trees of houses that sparsely dotted the roadside. In an hour of riding, I met no other traffic, but was ever vigilant for icy spots in the road and deer on the move. Rounding the corner on top of Shenandoah Mountain and entering West Virginia, I executed maximum performance hard braking to avoid what my eyes distinctly saw; a man standing on the double yellow line, wearing a black trench coat and fedora hat, holding a salmon wrapped in a San Francisco Chronicle newspaper. Once stopped, I realized that there was no man standing, no salmon, so fedora, no newspaper, it was just my mind, trying to keep itself sharp during a period of fatigue.   I crept into Franklin, found a cheap motel bed and slept the sleep of a dead man. 

Over the years I've picked up thousands of habits and riding tips, some good some useless. What follows is the best of what I've found about night riding; 

Equipment:

• 3M Reflective tape - by day it looks white, by night it becomes highly reflective. I've put a couple strips on the sides of my floorboards, and a strip or two on my helmet. This makes the motorcycle and rider easier to see at night.

• Reflective Clothing -many motorcycle jacket manufacturers have incorporated highly reflective material into the patterns of the gear they offer. If you're a "black leather jacket" kind of rider, consider a simple jogging sash made of reflective material to increase your visibility at night. 

• Additional Lights - We've all seen the bikes that light up like a Christmas Tree. Well, that's interesting, and might draw attention to the motorcycle and rider, but oftentimes, these additional lights do little to increase the sight distance of the rider. Look into a halogen headlight and/or driving lights to make your "narrow cone of light" less narrow. Before adding lights to your bike, check the state laws about how many you can mount and where.

• Scratchless face shields and windshields-To be a great night rider, you must have good vision. If you've ever cleaned your windshield with a plastic scrub brush, riding at night will remind you of a Halloween side show complete with a thick spider web! Clean your windshield with warm, soapy water, using an up and down motion, NEVER IN A CIRCULAR MOTION (this increases the spider web effect). If you ride with a full face helmet, keep the fog off the inside of your face shield by opening the shield a bit or the vent in the face of the helmet - helmet fog can be as detrimental as bad scratches. There are sprays and cleaners that claim to reduce scratches on windshields and face shields, but nothing is as scratchless as a new one. If you know you'll be riding at night, invest in some new Lexan. 

• Flashlight-Carry a small penlight in your pocket; you'll know you need it when you use it. It will amaze you; you'll forget it's there until you need to look at a map under the glowing streetlight in Bumscrew, Montana, which won't be bright enough to determine which squiggly line you're on, but that little light will be plenty. 

Rider:

• Comfortable-If you're distracted by discomfort from cold, wet or wind, you won't be able to focus on the road as well. Invest in good gear to keep your mind away from concerns of personal comfort. 

• Sober- Not just "not drunk" but sober from alcohol, anger, fear, or fatigue. If your mental capacity is challenged by another vice, riding at night will only exacerbate the situation. 

• Surrender-If you're battling fatigue and seeing things that aren't there, it's past time to stop. Be man enough to stop when the stopping is good. Better to spend the night in a cheap motel room than an expensive Emergency Room. 

Riding:

• Slow down-This gives you more time to react to changes in the road, hazards and animals. Making it to the next morning is far more important that making it to the next morning quickly.

• High Beam-Unless behind another car or faced with approaching traffic, keep your high beam on. This will make you more visible to other traffic and maximizes your available light. 

• Tail Light-When stopped, remember to have your right foot up on the rear brake pedal, illuminating that brake light, flashing it at cars approaching from the rear. Many drivers out late at night are drunk and need a little extra incentive to see you. When stopped, keep your bike in 1st gear, hand wrapped around the throttle, and a full bite of clutch, so that if aforementioned drunk sees you but doesn't seem to want to stop, you can open the throttle, dump the clutch and get the heck out of there...before he hits you. 

• Lane Position-Take full advantage of that 12 foot wide lane to see and be seen. Move around a lot.

• Use that Car in Front of You-Increase your normal following distance at night, but use the taillights and headlights of the car in front of you to give you the lay of the road ahead. 

• Planning- Know where you're going at night before heading out, because open gas stations and other services become scarce late at night. 

  Riding at night can be fun, and for many of us, a requirement. Use caution when riding, watch for deer and other animals, and for pity sake, if you see that guy with the fish, tell him to stay off US 33 between Harrisonburg and Franklin!

Until Next Month-

Ride with Pride!

                   ~Hawk 

October 2005

Bracing for Winter

   It is about this time every year, my dog spends less time out in the back yard with the rustle and crush of fallen leaves under paw. The weeds that make up most of my lawn, begin to die off and my wife and I are drawn to set aside a long weekend for a scenic motorcycle ride. With the cost of a car sized tank of gas well over $40, we expect to see fewer cars and more motorcycles on fall foliage trips this year. To keep the adventure safe and fun, I've picked up a few tricks to keep the chill from ruining our ride. Heed them or ignore them, but here they are:

• Plan for the ride by looking at the weather station to predict how cold it will be. If you're traveling into a significant elevation change, you can guesstimate the temps at higher elevation will be 10 to 20 degrees cooler. If cold precipitation is on your route, and you don't have experience in "snowplowing" don't let a far flung adventure be your test-bed.

• Whatever the weather, be ready for worse than predicted. Prep your passenger as well, that way, when it happens it's less of a shock. I once took my Suzuki GS 550 L to the mountains only to suffer carburetor problem in sleet. I was ill prepared for the sleet and the carb problem, so I lost many points with my passenger. 

• Be ready to layer. Often times, it will be warm here in "Hotlanta" only to be down right cold thirty miles north. Instead of leaving the house wearing everything I own, I'll get dressed in comfortable riding attire and then carry the additional outerwear. For example, I might leave with summer gloves, long johns, jeans, t-shirt, long sleeve flannel shirt, and a leather jacket. To that I can add chaps, glove liners (or winter gloves), face mask, and finally rain gear. 

• Even if it's not raining, snowing or sleeting, raingear has the ability to break the wind and prevent it from entering your protective layers of warm clothing. Think of your clothes as a "leathery sleeping bag". Providing some crash worthiness and comfort at the same time. 

• Utterly ridiculous! This trick I've had up my sleeve since the early 1990's when I was a youngish motor cop. My partner at the time carried a tin of Utter Balm, and rubbed some of the creamy stuff on his face to ward off the sting of windburn on cold days. Since that time, I've used Utter Balm and Bag Balm, as the names might imply they were created to be rubbed on the utters of dairy cattle to prevent chapping of the sensitive area. Surprisingly, the balm does not cause riders to grow utters from their faces (I was worried for some time that it might, but I swear it won't). Use this stuff and your face will appreciate it today and for years to come.  

• About heated gear; I ride with some of the bravest and heartiest individuals to ever saddle a police motorcycle, but they can't stand the cold. Heated gloves and heated jackets have become popular among the motormen. When I was the aforementioned youngish motor officer, I didn't have heated gloves, but a few years ago, the police department bought heated gloves for the motorcycle squad. After riding one particularly cold day with warm hands, my winter riding life had changed. If your hands are warm, you're free from the distraction of discomfort and able to pay more attention to the road and other threats. On my personal motorcycles, I don't have heated clothing, but I have traveled in wintry mixes a time or two. Off-duty, I use the "poor man's" heat source. Hit the hardware store on a warm fall day and buy a bundle of pocket warmers, the type that heat when exposed to the air. While called pocket warmers, I've put them in my winter gloves much more often than in my pockets. Heated gloves for $2! What a deal. 

   "Snowplowing", sno-plou-ing- v - To ride a motorcycle in the snow, particularly without experience. 

I've heard of motorcyclists who live in Minnesota and Vermont who ride year-round. They commute on their bikes and take vacations regardless of the road surface condition. When asked what happened to him as a child, one winter rider explained that he learned to ride on ice, and after ice racing, the ride home on a snow covered road was relatively easy. I don't have experience like that, as a matter of fact, my experience of snowplowing is a funny story;

     On an inspired motorcycle journey, I took the wrong girl to California in October (before I met my wife, I dated the wrong girl, a couple of them actually). During this epic adventure, we rode through southern Wyoming to visit my brother in Cheyenne. After spending the day with him, we continued west, hoping to cross the Continental Divide and reach Utah before the weather got nasty.  It got cold, and we stopped for dinner in the last town in western Wyoming, near the mountain pass that would lead us into Utah. After dinner, the waitress asked where we were staying, I told her "Salt Lake". She laughed and reminded me that, "People ski in Utah!" We left the restaurant and topped off the gas tank. All the signs indicated that the next service station was 68 miles away, on the other side of the pass. No sooner had we gotten onto the lonely stretch of interstate, the snow began to fall. It was the big flakes, which quickly filled my windshield, making it an interesting mosaic of ice crystals. I stood on the pegs to see over the windshield, the snow now packed on my helmet shield. I popped up the snow covered shield and began to collect snow on my glasses. It was then I saw the sign at the state line that read, "Turn Around for Official Use Only". I decided I needed to "Officially" turn around. Limping back to the small town, I found one motel room and nearly a foot of snow. When checking in, the girl at the counter looked at my large boots, thick gloves, snowmobile suit and helmet with microphone and declared, "Oh, we have special rates for stranded Astronauts." I paid cash and pride for that room. In the morning, we were greeted by more snow and no real prospect of getting to Utah until the spring thaw, so I looked into renting a U-Haul one way to Salt Lake City and was ready in a few hours to ride the bike up the ramp, tie it down and drive to a lower, snow free elevation. 

Winter riding can be fun, if you're prepared for it. 

Until Next Month- Ride with Pride,

                     Hawk

September 2005 

How much are you willing to pay at the pump?        

Clues for better fuel efficiency on your bike.

   Now that the winds have subsided and the rain has stopped, the effects of Hurricane Katrina are no less devastating and far reaching. For most of us, further reaching than we had thought; today, near Atlanta, I observed people buying gasoline for $5 per gallon. Now, I'm one of those guy s that complained when milk rose to over $2 per gallon. If only I could get my Harley to run on milk! However, the pain and inconvenience we might endure is far less than what had to be endured in the immediate aftermath of Katrina in New Orleans, Jefferson Parish, Biloxi and southern Alabama. We can sit in our cool homes and whine and complain about having to pay so much for gas, but then we realize that we have fuel, homes, cars, motorcycles, jobs, bosses, we know where our family is sleeping tonight...... All in all, those of us suffering in the "outer bands" of Katrina are thousands of times more fortunate than those whose lives have been changed forever. All that to say this, the powers that be have told me that fuel prices will drop from the gouging $5 per gallon down to only $3. I don't know about you, but that still hurts. Now, where's that Vespa of mine???

    One of the funniest side effects of being a Police Motorcycle Officer and motojournalist is that people who don't know you will seek and follow your advice about what kind of motorcycle to ride. It's difficult to give a two-minute recommendation in the front door of a coffee shop or in the time it takes to drink on Bass Ale. However, I'm finding myself being asked over and over again, "Hey, with gas prices so high, I'm thinking of buying one of those little motor scooters from Pep Boys, what-da-ya-think?" Most of the time my response is something like, "I think you should buy something that people know. Those motor scooters might get great gas mileage, but I don't even know who makes them. Get yourself something you'll WANT to ride." Then, I get to hear how their mamma did  want them to have a motorcycle when they were younger or of the wife who forbade the purchase until gas prices we so high. Now is a great time to win converts! 

   I have a friend in med school and like most in med school, he's flat broke (of course he'll be doing well for himself in a couple of years).  Well, my buddy needed a cheap way to get around campus and commute to and from a part time job. He bought an old Honda Nighthawk 250. Because of it's thundering roar (not) and obvious power band weakness (more like rubber band) his fellow students dubbed it the "Nightingale". I'm sure they laughed when he painted the tank with flat black spray-paint and suffered the indignity of a carburetor problem that caused it to backfire like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. My friend called me about the carburetor problem, in turn I called a mechanic friend of mine who agreed to take care of the problem in an effort to "convert" a med student from referring to motorcycles as "donorcycles". With fresh work on the carb, the Nightingale gets about 60 mpg! The carbs and injectors are just one place to add miles to your gallons of gas.

Here's what I've learned over the years to stretch my fuel dollar:   

• Tune up whatever you ride, clean the carburetors or injectors, replace that fuel filter, change the oil. If it sputters, it isn't getting good mileage.

• Check and replace (or wash to manufacturer's specs) the air filter. A bike that can breath will suck more air and need less gas to bring fire to your pistons. 

• Have your brakes and axle bearings serviced by someone who knows. Test your brakes and bearing by putting the bike on a center stand or center jack and try to spin the wheels. If they don't spin freely, guess what? Your engine has to overcome that friction, and an extra sip of fuel is used. 

• Get into the habit of checking the tire pressure. I know it's "way down there by the ground", but check it often and know what the manufacturer calls the correct tire pressure. I've seen sport bikes with 10lbs of pressure in the tires, supposedly so that they can do tricks easier. On closed tracks, I'm all for everything, but on the road, you'd better have the full 40 lbs or whatever you're supposed to have. Keeping your tires low so that you can pull off a nifty pop wheelie costs you more in fuel, insurance and lost respect from those riders who have yet to discover our sport.

• Ride cool. No, literally, try to ride in the cooler times of the day. An air-cooled engine is more efficient when the air is cooler. 

• Ride cool. This time less literally, ride relaxed and with plenty of time to get there. Let it be you who scoffs at the Jackhole who's such a rush and speeding down the road. I know because I've had to be that Jackhole. In my personal observations, riding at high speeds for long periods of time will drain gas from my tank faster than a screwdriver sized puncture in my tank. I've gotten mileage as good at 48 mpg and as bad as 18 mpg, with the only difference being the Jackhole factor.

   If you ride, and I suppose that if you're reading this you do, you probably have noticed that there are more bikes on the road than ever before. This is a good thing, more bikes means less cars, less cars means more room on the road for us. Just watch for the new guy. Reread the April Code of the Road (click on Archived Codes) about the care and feeding of new riders. Have them read the June Code of the Road about common road hazards. For Pete's sake, recommend to them before they go buy a motorcycle, Vespa, moped or powered bicycle, to go get a class "M" endorsement on their driver's license (even if it's not required for their small scooter). What little they have to know to pass the test is the minimum any motorcyclist should know.       

   For the next month, enjoy commuting on our bike and getting a chance to enjoy the glares from the Jackholes who are getting 1/3 the gas mileage you're getting..... 

Until next month- Ride with Pride!

          ~Hawk

August 2005

 What to do when at all comes apart

Riding through long lonely stretches of twisty roads is what we riders yearn for. We loathe all things relating to the term "bumper-to-bumper" and seek out the remote and seemingly abandoned roadways. Remarking to a friend, "Hey, we haven't seen a car in miles!" is usually a good thing. Riding solo or with a group, the draw of the road is too great to be ignored. On motorcycles we ride "in" the countryside and the poor saps who've yet to discover our great sport are stuck riding "through" the countryside. I've long been an outspoken voice for the merits of motorcycling and a defender from its detractors. I usually remark about being able to see and feel the road versus merely riding upon it. I mention the "riders dance" of leaning into and out of turns and the adrenaline rush associated with beautiful scenery and an exciting road surface. Too often I spend my time defending the crash. I have to explain that in most motorcycle crashes, the rider of the motorcycle lacked experience and most don't possess a motorcycle license endorsement. However, I have to relent that indeed, even the most experienced motorcyclist can get tangled up in a crash. 

Simply put, the best way to avoid injury is to never be involved in a motorcycle crash. While this oversimplification might seem far fetched, here are a few steps you can take to reduce your chances of a crash:

• Be Educated- Having a Rider's Edge Course or MSF course under you belt greatly reduces the likelihood of a crash.

• Be Sober- Are we still taking about this? 

• Be a Mechanic- Know your bike, know and check for correct tire pressures and fork pressures. 

• Lean or Die- I have instructed this many times. I have observed that in a curve, a converting car-to-motorcycle rider will attempt to "steer" the motorcycle, instead of counter steering a leaning. 

• Dress like a Knight- If you've ever seen a great AMA motorcycle racer like Scott Russell, you've seen all their safety gear. Russell crashed two or three times in the same Daytona 200 and still went on to win. Dressed in a black t-shirt and blue jeans, I doubt Scott could have gotten up from the first crash, much less continued to participate in the race. 

• Be On Your Ride- Sometimes we ride to get away from it all. I call it the paradox of relaxing excitement; we have to concentrate so much on the road and scenery, that we're able to forget that jerk boss or teenage boy that sniffing around your daughter.... However, if the things you're riding away from suddenly catch up to you, and take just 10% of your concentration, better stop for a cup of coffee and think it through. 

• Be Mature- I swear I've seen this one, "Hey man, watch this!" was all I heard before I witnessed a perfectly executed motorcycle crash. Just ride your ride, don't push yourself to keep up with others and don't ride to impress. The most impressive rider I know has hundreds of thousands of miles on his bike whereas the worst rider I know loves to ride to impress, but he's never owned a motorcycle past the forth oil change, because you don't change oil on totaled motorcycles. 

• Be Ready- If it all comes apart and you witness a crash or are involved in a crash, have a first aid kit handy and a cell phone to call for help. About cell phones- don't count of them to work, be prepared to send another rider to call for help. Be ready to administer first aid for a hour or more depending on how remote you are. 

You can make all the preparations and take all the precautions in the world and still might be bit by the crash bug. There are thousands of ways to crash and millions of contributing factors that can coincide to get you in the trees or ditch. Once in the ditch, there are as many factors to surviving as there were to crashing. "Decide to live" sounds simple, but I've seen relatively minor injuries kill riders who just lost the will to fight death. Conversely, I've observed hellish crashes and wondered how anyone made it out of there alive. It has to do with the will to live and the will to go on. Remember Scott Russell? Do you think when he crashed he said to himself, "Oh crap, well I've lost for sure now and I'm probably hurt." No way! Scott probably thought, "I can do this thing!" and jumped back on his bike and rode toward victory lane.  So how can we help ourselves by helping those who arrive to help us? Here are a few tips that bear repeating:

• Be Educated- Coming up with a plan while someone lies bleeding is just bad timing. Have the plan of action in mind and simply execute it when the worst happens. 

• Be Sober- Don't let the adrenaline and emotion that is coursing through your body change your outlook on the event. If it is a friend or spouse laying in the ditch, freaking out will not help and will only give you something to regret later. Freak out later, work now. 

• Protect the Scene- In the photograph above, notice how the passers by stopped on the road? What you can't see to well in the photo is that the while some riders went to the aid of the injured rider, the others set about slowing down traffic on the twisty road. 

• Share Information- Other than where you hurt, the first responders will want to know other things about you like your birth date, your address, your spouses name and contact number, and insurance information. With a broken jaw, it's awfully hard to communicate, so have the information written down. There are commercially available "Emergency Information" cards that can be sewn to your motorcycle helmet strap. Of course, putting contact and other information on the back of your driver's license is a good idea as well.  

• Call or Get Help- Don't expect to get a signal with your cell phone. Part of the plan is to send someone away for help and make sure they know where the crash is or make sure that they can and will lead the first responders to the scene. A friend of mine sent me this tip- ICE your cell phone. No, don't put ICE on it to prevent swelling, have some ICE in it! ICE-In Case of Emergency should be a listing in your address book on your cell phone. First Responders look in cell phones for "Wife", "Husband" and "ICE" listings. From the hospital, they can call the people listed in ICE and get other information from ICE. 

• Have a Ready Bag- The first aid kit on my motorcycle is easy to get to and equipped with items ranging from headache remedies to triangle bandages. I made it out of an insulated lunchbox. You can make one out of an old camera case or buy a commercial one, just be knowledgeable enough to use everything in it. It makes no sense to pack a "jabberwoky" in it if you don't know how to use a "jabberwoky".  

• Work Now - Panic Later- I learned this from my mom. In the late 60's she was driving our ancient Pontiac in rural Iowa (I guess it's all pretty much rural) with all of my brothers jumping and fighting in the back seat. We hit an ice sheet and spun out of control into a corn field. She remained calm and got my fist out of my brother's nose and had all of us transported to the hospital before being scared of what could have happened.

• Be a Witness- Let those who are investigating know what happened. They didn't see it and what might appear to be one way could have happened a different way. Include information about the weather at the time of the crash, it changes so quickly. A rain squall 30 minutes ago is now clear and dry. 

While this might appear to be a lot of information, it's really just scratching the surface. If you're the "leader of the pack" for your group of friends, or a lone wolf, you are the one others will look to when it all comes apart. Have the answers, be ready and be safe.

Until next month- Ride with Pride!

          ~Hawk

July 2005

Celebrating Independence day 

There are hundreds of ways to celebrate Independence Day and I'm convinced that if George Washington and the other founders of our young nation had access to a nice motorcycle and a pristine stretch of roadway, they would celebrate with the twist of a throttle and ride from sea to shining sea, telling good road lies around the campfire and sleeping under the stars. 

        I'm not much of a political analyst, but I do take note of the world around me. Just last week, I was riding through the mountains of Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina. I happened to meet an older German couple who had moved to the United States as teenagers in the 50s, got jobs, worked hard, raised a family and like (apparently) most Americans retired to sunny Florida. Each summer, they ride their huge motorcycle (side car et al- for the dog...) up to New York State to visit their children. They remarked to me that the US is a great place to live because  you can travel so far without having to cross a protected border and the language is virtually the same from state to state. I laughed at his description of "virtually the same" because I was reminded that it was in the mountains of Western North Carolina that I first learned the word, "yuins' which is plural for "Ya'll" and can just mean a singular "you" depending on desire of the speaker. Now, I've got no phrase book, but I can understand my Tarheel friends just fine. Back to the couple on the big bike. They told me that they travel with no plans, rarely use a map and only slow down when they get hungry or need fuel. "Now that's the way to live!" I thought out loud. They agreed that it was the only way to live.  The residents of other countries are not so lucky. Sure, our Canadian brethren can ride for days on end without crossing an international border, but try to ride 2,200 miles through Europe without a passport! Taking their cues from the United States and desiring to compete with us, the Europeans have formed the European Union, so far, the "Euro Dollar" is the only thing running a common thread through the continent. 

     While normally, I distain camping, even the mention of it conjures up images of my father storming around a dimly lit campsite in a heavy downpour attempting to find enough twigs to start a fire to warm a can of beanie weenies. My family was never one of those families that hiked the Appalachian Trail together, but we did have fun and I laugh to this day about Dad. Since the days of camping with Dad, I've learned a few things that have helped my journey relating to Motorcycle Camping. There are books written on the topic (I'll admit I've not read one of them). Motorcycle Campers fall into two broad categories; 1-Those who camp for the fun of it and to be outside and 2-Those who save money because it's cheaper than a hotel room. Some nights, motorcycle campers can be a combination of the two. I camped last week at the Blue Ridge Motorcycle Only Campground near Canton, NC. Because the weather was good, I fell in between the two broad categories. 

      So, celebrate your Independence by enjoying some of the freedoms our forefathers fought so hard to attain and freedoms that are preserved today by the brave men and women of our nation's military who are in battle right now. It might sound funny to suggest, but leave the fireworks alone and Ride Far and Ride Well. Go see what's been won in the struggle for Independence for you to enjoy! Be young and sleep under the stars again.

Until next month, Ride with Pride! 

                    -  Hawk 

June 2005

Care and feeding of common Road surface Hazards

       Road hazards come in many shapes and sizes. Some road hazards are very mobile, like a drunk driver, or wild animal; others are more stationary, like gravel or oil. For the month of June, I'll open a discussion about these immobile road surface hazards. 

       I'm glad that road paint has grown from just narrow strips of thin paint to 1/3 inch reflective material that seems to glow at night. The advances made in lane striping have no doubt contributed to an increase in spatial orientation for the motoring public. However, that thick paint comes at a cost for the motorcyclists of the world. Let that giant turn arrow get wet and it becomes slick as an ice skating rink. There's a reason they don't make Zambonies out of Electra Glides. Generally, when wet, the drag factor or slickness vs. roughness of road paint diminishes to a tiny level. When dry, it still provides less "gripshion" than its nude asphalt counterpart. 

       I don't know who the genius was who came up with the stop gap measure of pouring tar into road cracks to prevent further road damage, but that person should have to ride a motorcycle! The byproduct of this procedure is known as a tar snake. I'm told by my friends over at the DOT that cracks develop in asphalt and cement road surfaces, caused by weather conditions, loads placed on the road, and thin construction and something must be done to these cracks. Left unchecked, these road cracks would fill with water and cause the subsurface to erode and water will freeze, causing heaving in the asphalt and cement. For motorcyclists who ride over a tar snake in the hot summer months or during a rain, the heaving and cracked road might seem a better option than sliding. Now, tar snakes are not to be confused with tire alligators, they are different beasts altogether and I'll be sure to cover those in the future. For now though, remember to stay away from the Tar Snakes, so they can't bite you! 

          Hiking on the Grease Trail. Ride over the interstate and you will see off in the distance not the thin, dashed lines dividing the lanes; instead, you'll see the dark remains to dropped oil from the millions of cars and trucks that have traversed that road. If that example is too vague for you, take your bike through the drive thru of your bank, you'll see a grease trail there for sure. Approaching stop signs and traffic signals, the grease trail becomes more pronounced. As the vehicles slow down, a greater quantity of oil drips onto the roadway. It's imperative that you avoid hiking in the Grease Trail with your tires or boots. As one rider who has picked up his motorcycle more than once because of the Grease Trail, I can tell you first hand that the only destination on the Grease Trail is to shame and vehicular embarrassment. 

         As a motorcycle officer, I had many occasions to direct traffic in the middle of a busy intersection. While drivers were bewildered by the absence of the traffic signal that has guided them through the slings and arrows of the intersection, there stood a motorman, moving in a slow rhythm that most drivers had forgotten or perhaps were never instructed to interpret. Looking back at the cars that are too afraid to follow my polite instructions to go, I passed the time by looking at what had washed up as flotsam onto the Debris Island found in the middle of the intersection. With traffic at a stalemate (despite my best efforts to coax the untrained drivers to follow my instructions) I have found several dollars worth of coins, a wedding band, tapes, CDs, cell phones and remarkably enough, a starter for a 1973 VW Beetle. Most cars pass these small, uncharted isles everyday with barely a passing glance. However, for motorcyclists it is imperative that we watch for these islands and steer to avoid becoming ensnared by their reefs. 

        There are other, less predictable road surface hazards. Sand, gravel, mud, oil spills, and running water can really decrease your traction in a curve. On roadways that are frequently used by heavy commercial traffic, look for gravel and sand to be strewn into the roadway on the inside of the tight curves. That's where the truck's wheels will bounce off the road, grab some sand and scatter it onto the road when the driver of the aforementioned truck awakens and decides that asphalt is a smoother ride than the front yard of a country home. I was once riding up Fort Mountain near Chatsworth, Georgia and came across what appeared to be a dark line in the middle of the travel lane. As I crossed from the outside of the lane to the inside of the lane to set up for the approach of a curve, my tires slid sideways and I was barely able to maintain control of the bike. Unfortunately, the young driver of his daddy's Jeep had gotten a little too rambunctious in the woods and severed an oil line and the result was a thin, but very slick oil spill.

         There are but a few hazards to watch for, but if you keep your eyes open, you won't get painted, bit by the snake, take a hike or shipwrecked on your adventures!

         Until next month- Ride with Pride!

                     Hawk 

May 2005

 heading out to enjoy the may flowers

      The road followed the mountain stream for miles under the shady canopy of old oak trees that leaned across the road giving just enough shade to keep the ride cool. Locked in a Tango, undulating this way and that in perfect rhythm, the stream and asphalt mirrored each other. Riding upstream, I could see the small waterfalls and every rapid in the water. Better yet, the water took the sting out of the hot Georgia air and caused goose pimples on my arms as I continued to ride without my jacket on such a warm day. Lisa gave me a satisfying squeeze that let me know that she was enjoying the ride too. There are many words spoken in the world, but as motorcyclists, Lisa and I have discovered a way which allows us to communicate without the trappings of the English language, we speak the code of the road in a series of squeezes and shoulder taps. She tapped my shoulder and pointed to the left. I saw in the bend of the road a small dam with water spilling over it in a cooling cascade. There were several flat rocks in the middle of the stream. A few of the larger boulders were in the sun, away from the shade of the trees. Judging from the tap, Lisa suggested this spot for lunch and a little sunning.  

       Have you ever noticed that humans are drawn to the edges? We go to just as far as we can go only to gaze further and wonder what lay ahead. Think of it; even you've done it. Bike week? Daytona, on the edge of land and water. Thunder Beach, same thing. Laconia- on the shore of Lake Winnipesauke. Granted, not all rides lead to the water. Sturgis is one that while it doesn't lead you to water will certainly take you to the edge.... but that's a different story for a different time. What is it about the water, the stream, the ocean that draws us to the edge? I believe that by solving one riddle, we might gain insight to what draws us to the road. 

      Last month, there were several mornings I gazed helplessly at the woman on the Weather Channel who told me with a gleam in her eye that there were thunderstorms in my future. As I opened the garage door, I saw the dark skies and could smell the rain that had yet arrived. As insurance against the inevitable, I wrestled my rain pants over my boots and zipped my jacket up to my neck. It was no use, no sooner had I finished my elaborate preparations, the rain came. As I cracked the throttle of my machine and brought her to life, the voice of Jim Morrison began to sing, "Riders of the Storm" my memory playback, stuck on repeat mode. Hey, it's better than the February rain song which was Eddie Rabbit's "I love the rainy night". There was hail on a few mornings and rain most others. Far from miserable, I don't mind the rain so much. Years ago I invested in some really good raingear and that has changed by entire perspective on the wet stuff. 

      Alone, raindrops have little effect, but when working in concert with their tiny wet brethren, that's a different story. We've all been struck by the lone raindrop, "Hey, did a bird just crap on me or was that a raindrop?" Alone, the raindrop is powerless against us. We shrug it off and press on. Our skin drying as we forget about the water that fell from thousands of feet just to land on our arm. However, get a few thousand of them together and rain can be a powerful thing. So powerful that we can do nothing to stop it. Sure, we can build shelters and wear rain gear to keep out the rain, but we're powerless against the onslaught of the wet stuff. Now, I don't know about you, but if something is more powerful than me, I stand up and take note. 

     Once the rain falls, we spend lots of effort catching it for drinking water and corralling it in lakes to generate electrical energy and enjoying it by riding in boats over it, canoes though it and swimming in it. In the end there's nothing we can do about its flow, we have to let it go. Rain falls onto our roofs and into creeks, leading to streams and rivers, then lakes, eventually spilling into the ocean. 

      As motorcyclists, we should take a lesson from the rain; Just let go and see where the road takes you. Early trade routes were carved next to rivers and streams. They provided water for the traveler as well as food, by way of fish and by game that were led to the water. Today, those small hiking trails have become asphalt ribbons for us to enjoy. Now that the April Showers are over, it's high time to head out to smell the May Flowers. 

      For me, the flowers really don't impress me much, you'll find me on the edge somewhere, enjoying the view. 

   Until next month, Ride with Pride!
                         ~Hawk

April 2005

April Fools

            With gas prices climbing ever higher and spring bursting all around us, the sport of motorcycling is experiencing unprecedented growth in 2005. Generally, new riders fall into two categories; "returning riders"- those with past experience, but it was over 10 years ago and on a 125 cc dirt bike, and "beginning riders"- those with experience limited to the back seat of a motorcycle, if at all. This month, I'll open a discussion about the responsibilities of current riders to work as road ambassadors for these new riders. 

           How should we treat our new brethren?  Maybe we should mandate that they graduate an MSF or Rider's Edge Course and then set them down with books that will reinforce what they have already learned? No? Well then maybe we should do the old "trial by fire" method of welcoming new or returning riders to the sport of motorcycling? The "trial by fire" method is when you convince your newbie rider friend that since they have a license, they have just as much a right to ride all the the Blue Ridge Parkway as everyone else. Once convinced, remember to pack your bull whip along for the trip, if the new rider stops for any reason other than fuel, give em a crack o' that whip!  Speed? Yeah, let's convince the new rider that the real excitement for motorcycling begins at 100+ MPH and if they are not riding on the edge, they're just taking up space?  

             I don't claim to be much of an Ambassador and I've never been accused of being Diplomatic, but I think that we need to be careful with our new riding friends to make sure that they don't meet with some painful demise or embarrassing incident. Of course, after they have been riding for a while, an embarrassing incident (like falling over in the Hooters parking lot) is worthy of a "Whoop, Whoop" or two. If we keep their confidence at a comfortable, but realistic level, and their butts from getting too sore, new riders will be the leaders of the pack in no time. 

           My little sister, Lara went out and bought a Honda Rebel 250. It's a popular first bike and the thing sips gasoline (78 mpg!). My brother, Christen recently purchased an older model 550 cc Honda Silverwing. Both of my siblings fall into the "beginning rider" category. Their confidence level is about right for them, if anything, maybe a little low. It's much easier to deal with a lower than appropriate confidence level than a higher than appropriate confidence level, and I shouldn't have to show you photos of a GSXR in a stand of trees to illustrate my point. For my brother, his motorcycle is cheap transportation, the bike needs some work and he's getting it done as he can afford to. All of the basics have been covered-new tires, brakes, etc. Mechanically, it's working fine, but cosmetically the thing is a monster, which is part of its charm. For my sister, her bike is for riding. Her boyfriend has  been riding Harleys since roads have been paved. She just wanted to get off the back seat and take the controls herself. Her little Rebel has mean, clean lines and aside from being a little underpowered, is a fine motorcycle. 

                  I spent several hours in a parking lot with my little sister, introducing her to the motorcycle and all of its controls. I dropped the bike in the grass and showed her how to pick it up quickly. We discussed riding positions, route planning and equipment. Frankly, I think she learned braking and steering; the rest just overwhelmed her. Last weekend, I got a call from Lara, she asked me if I knew the backroads to Mom's house in LaGrange from my sister's house in Smyrna. I reminded her that I'd better, since I've written these "book thingies" about motorcycle touring in Georgia!

             Knowing that this would be her longest trip, I choose a route that I hoped would have the least amount of traffic and stop-and-gos. Despite the fact that my sis had her Class "M" and had the legal right to use the interstate, I figured that she wouldn't want to travel that way. Instead, we rode two lane black top the whole way, turning a 1 1/2 hour trip into a 2 1/2 hour trip, but it was worth it! Along the way, Lara lagged behind, not willing to do much above 60 mph. Of course the speed limit was only 55, so her desire not to rocket her bike into the trees was a good one. I later test drove the little 250 and immediately remembered why riders don't like to keep the RPMs high for long periods of time, the handlebars vibrate like a Skil chainsaw cutting concrete! To see the look on my sister's face when we arrived at Mom's house was worth the extra hour in the saddle. Planning the return trip, my brother chose to ride with us part of the way, showing us Hammett Road, a "Road Which Does Not Stop". I guess it goes on forever......

               Because I knew where I was going and there were only two of us, I led Lara down to LaGrange, keeping her in sight and stopping frequently for butt breaks all the way down to LaGrange. On the return trip, my brother led (since he knew where he was going) my sister rode in the middle and I followed up. With new riders, it's best to keep them in the center of the pack, so that they have someone to follow and someone to immediately help if they experience a problem. This riding position also keeps them from interacting with traffic of the four tire variety. I remained supportive of my sis and told her that she was riding fine, I teased her about her slow pace, but affirmed her decision to ride within her abilities. As a result of our great trip, we've already discussed another "distance ride". Soon, she'll be riding down to the beach or out to Sturgis with the confidence of a veteran rider, because she'll be one. 

              Things to remember about new riders:

                  1~Confidence should be checked and adjusted as needed.

                  2~Get their input on route planning.

                  3~Just because they are new, they better not skimp on safety gear, better to return a "slightly used item" than to need to do some asphalt surfing in a jacket that was designed to make you look good in the corner office! 

                 4~Don't test their limits, like easing into cold water, slow works!

                 5~Let your prowess on the motorcycle be inspiring, not intimidating. Remind them that no one was born on a motorcycle, we were all new riders once. 

                 6~When group riding, a middle position is best for them.

         Show new riders what you like about motorcycling and joke with them about what you despise about it. They will form their own opinions, but remember to be kind to the newbies, you were one of them not so long ago (myself included).  Remember, more motorcycles on the road equals fewer cars! 

Until Next Month, Ride With Pride!

                                       ~  Hawk 

March 2005

The Refrigerator

     In March of 1993, twelve years ago this month, I bought a new Honda Goldwing Aspencade. Its purchase was preceded by the dismal failure of my Suzuki GS 550 L to keep running in cold, wet weather. If you've never been broken down on a cold, wet day, let me assure you that there are fewer things that will set your mind to thinking of purchasing a new motorcycle than standing on the roadside in the rain next to a nonworking motorcycle. My father had prompted this purchase as well, reminding me that I had never bought a new car and that I needed to get something with a warrantee. I had sold my 1982 Olds Cutlass a few years earlier. It  didn't break down too often, but had the unusual flaw of no wiper blades. Having no wipers wasn't a problem because the car 's windshield was frequently given coat of RainX which was all fine and well until it started to rain. Apparently for the 1982 Oldsmobile, to get the RainX to work, I had to get up enough air passing over the windshield to sheet the water from it. This meant that  I had to drive at 65 mph. Driving my Olds at 65 mph in the rain was likened to leaning back in a chair too far and you know that feeling that you get just before you fall backwards? Yeah, that's what it felt like to drive it. I could see, but the beast was hard to control. I digress....

      Proud of my new purchase, I went to my father's house to show off my new bike. He envisioned something different when I told him that I just bought a new Honda. He was thinking Accord, while I had been thinking "Goldwing". I showed him all the features on the bike and even gave him a ride around the block. My dad understood immediately why I bought the motorcycle and was relieved that he wouldn't have to worry about his son stuck on a mountainside with a stubborn and frozen Suzuki GS 550 L. 

       I showed the bike off with wild abandon. I drove it everywhere, while my Suzuki was unceremoniously sold to the neighbor kid for $500 (and I don't think he ever paid me...). My wing was solid black with little bits of chrome to please the eye. It had a radio, tape player, cruise control, air vents, tons of storage, and pleasingly large engine. Everywhere I went, the bike received accolades. It was common for people to stare and even to take a photograph or two of the black beauty I had come to know as "Raven." 

       The new bike would need service at the 500 mile point on the odometer and I was all too pleased with the task or racking up mileage on the bike to get it back to the dealership and get her ready for her first big trip (the first of many great adventures, to include all of the lower 48 States). It was early on a Sunday morning in March of 1993. I had settled on taking the bike up for a ride on GA 60 from Blue Ridge, through Suches and into Dahlonega in time for dinner. By thoughts were in the mountains as I rode the newborn north on the interstate. 

     Interstates in Atlanta are designed for rush hour traffic and it's not uncommon for them to be built twelve lanes wide, six on each side of the Jersey barrier, sometimes wider. Fortunately, most Sunday mornings are devoid of heavy traffic. I listened to the Sunday Morning radio talk show as I cruised north, wondering what great adventures I'd have that day. Traffic was light and fast. Next to me, a man driving a little Geo Metro honked his horn and gave me the "thumbs up" sign as if to say, "Geeze, what a nice motorcycle!" I gave him a wave back. Looking back onto the road, I scanned about ten seconds ahead, and saw a refrigerator standing upright in the far right lane. On the shoulder, adjacent to the misplaced appliance was a man standing, scratching his head. My mind attempted to determine if the errant Frigidaire was a hazard, I remained focused on the fridge, the man and the Geo Metro next to me. The Geo was in the center of five lanes, I was to the left of the Geo. Just as I had determined that this event would go down into my "book of crazy stuff seen in the roadway", I saw a white pick up truck stopped in the center lane. The truck was unoccupied, its apparent driver standing safely on the shoulder attempting to figure out how to get the refrigerator from the fifth lane back into his truck in the third lane. All the while, traffic swerved violently to avoid it all. It looked like a whitewater rapid, traffic continued to flow, but not without first swerving and braking. The man in the Geo was still transfixed by my motorcycle. I pointed forward toward the abandoned truck.

      Smoke begin boiling from the tires of the Geo. It was no use, with the given distance and the interstate speed, there was no way the Geo would miss the truck and as an accident investigator, I knew it was going to get messy for him. The Geo hit the truck at about 50 mph. The Geo crumpled and twisted violently. I was clear of the Geo, but it got worse. Apparently, the driver of the truck had been taught that if you have to abandon your vehicle in the center lane of the interstate to retrieve your appliance from another lane of traffic, you should always turn the steering wheel to the left. I saw the unmanned truck accelerate quickly and change lanes into the lane I was in. There was traffic to my left, how far back I couldn't tell. Given the option of risking it with a lane of traffic which was occupied by manned vehicles versus one that was quickly becoming occupied by unmanned one, I began to dive left. I pushed hard on the left handlebar and the bike leaned hard over to the left and was leading me out of danger. I looked ahead to my "safe exit". Out of the corner of my right eye, I saw the truck still coming. If I was going to miss this one, it was going to be close. 

      I heard the scrape, I felt the bike shutter as my brand new motorcycle was forced from her lean angle to an upright position. I kept my hand on the throttle and rolled it on. If I couldn't dive away, I'd speed away. Once passed the truck, I looked to my right rear view mirror to see if it still posed a threat. I could no longer see the truck. Not because it wasn't there, but because my rearview mirror wasn't there! 

      I slowed down and began to give the right side of my bike a quick scan. From the saddle, I could see that I had clearly hit the truck, or rather, it had hit me. However, I felt lucky because I hadn't done any asphalt surfing as a result. I was uninjured, but I worried for the driver of the Geo. I stopped on the left shoulder and ran back to be even with the crash. The would-be motorcyclist driving the Geo was unconscious, his car mangled around him like a sardine can. Now, four lanes were blocked. Traffic came to a halt. I went into the road to check on the driver and had a passerby call 911. It took only a minute or two for the first police officer to arrive on the scene. I explained what happened and he was as happy with the moron driving the truck as I was. The officer asked if I was ok. I told him that I was, but that my bike "had some damage". The driver of the Geo was cut out of his car and then the officer had the truck and Geo towed to the roadside to complete his paperwork. It was then I noticed that on the truck,  the driver's side of the front bumper was bent forward like an appendage. I checked my bike for corresponding damage. From stem to stern, the right side of my motorcycle was missing. The engine guard had been ripped off, the saddle bag, rear view mirror, passenger foot board, and even the right rear speaker (mounted on the trunk box) was gone. Looking at the bike, I could not see a place for my uninjured right leg to have been. Tucked tightly behind the engine I suppose, because the six cylinder, horizontally opposed engine was untouched. 

          Lucky to have survived the encounter, I rode the bike back to the dealership. Of course my mechanic had seen damage like this before, from riders who do a little asphalt surfing while getting accustomed to their new steeds. He was shocked to meet with the insurance adjuster who explained that his insured's truck had hit my bike on the interstate. My bike spent the next several weeks in the "hospital" while I continued to dream of mountain adventures. Once the bike was back, it was as good as new and the insurance company was only happy to have paid on the bike and glad they didn't have to pay additional injury claims. 

      Here are the lessons of the Frigidaire-Once you perceive a threat, keep scanning, because if there's one road hazard, it's likely that there'll be more. Just because traffic is light and fast, don't think that disaster won't strike. 

      And for Pete's sake, if you see a refrigerator on the highway, look for the truck that was carrying it!

Until next month, Ride with Pride!

                    ~Hawk 

February 2005

Getting Ready for the new season

  Fortunate are those of us who live in the warmer climes of the the U.S. If you happen to live where ice and snow are the norm, you probably haven't ridden in a while and might be a little rusty, not to mention your bike. This month, I'll give a few training tips for that will help riders who haven't ridden in a while and will augment those riders who have braved a cold season or two. First, we'll look at the bike, second the rider, and finally, rider skills.  

    Take a gander at the bike you're about to trust your life with. You never see a pilot hopping into a jet without at least taking a look around it. Spend a while in the garage with your bike. It's less of a drag on a great motorcycle adventure to find a problem in your garage than out on the twisties! This is the time of year I inspect my bikes as I knock the cobwebs off and move the Christmas ornament boxes from the seats. I use the TCLOCK method, which helps me remember each item.

TCLOCK-Tires, Controls, Lights, Oil, Chassis, Kickstand.        

    Tires; check for air pressure and dry rot. The most common mechanically caused crashes occur due to low air pressure. With colder air outside, you can expect the air pressure be low. Most manufacturers recommend a "cold tire pressure" leaving you without the mystery of figuring out how much the tire pressure will go up once you heat up the tire. You'll need some tread depth as well. Use the penny trick. You know this one; the head of Lincoln into the groove of the tire, if you can see the top of his head, replace the tire. If you see or feel cupping or uneven wear, better to replace it than to start a new season with it. After all, you feel better with a new pair of shoes on, won't your bike? Controls; remember that for most bikes, each appendage of your body has a corresponding control. I start with my right hand and grab a handful of throttle and twist! If she springs back-BONUS! If not, I've got some work to do on my return spring, or throttle cables. I also make sure that the brake leaver moves freely and the front brake is grabbing appropriately. Right foot, rear brake pedal; solidly attached, moves freely, no "squishiness". Left hand, clutch leaver; pulls in freely and releases out all the way. Left foot, ok, I really don't use my left foot for this one, I use my left hand and reach down and grab the gear shifter and try to pull it off! I shake it really well to make sure that it's on snug. I can't count the number of times my gear shifter has popped off my Road King. I'll twist the handlebars back and forth a couple of times to make sure that none of the control lines bind up while the handlebar is turned. Lights; I'll turn the key on and check the hi and lo beam, turn signals and brake light (front and rear separately). Oil; I like to change the oil if it hasn't been ridden in a while, but first I'll heat up the bike so it's easier to drain. I'll check all the fluid levels, particularly the battery. Chassis; I make sure that my front forks are "loaded" evenly (with the same, if any, air pressure), and my rear fork has sufficient pressure. I'll take an overall look at the frame for signs of rust on welds or bolts. Kickstand; After months of not moving, the kickstand on my old Suzuki had to be hit with a hammer to get it to move at all. Make sure that yours is springing all the way up and staying up. Lube and/or replace the spring as necessary.  If you find a problem that is beyond your mechanical skills, get the bike to a shop for repairs (preferably in the back of a truck or a trailer). 

    For the rider, I won't ask you to stand naked in front of a mirror and examine yourself as a physical specimen, but I will remind you that motorcycling is a sport and in as much as it is a sport, we have to take care of ourselves to be good riders. There are thousands of reasons to be in great shape. Before you remind me that "round is a shape", it is not a shape that has ever been successful on the motorcycle racing circuit. It's ok to be heavy, it's ok to be just plain fat, as long as you don't blast past the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of your motorcycle. I've known some pretty good recreational riders who were large and they got along just fine. However, after a weekend of riding, these big guys were as sore as if they had just gotten out of the ring with a pro boxer. Things you'll need for riding are quick reaction times, smooth hand-eye coordination and physical endurance. When I was riding to research my Virginia/West Virginia book, I commuted to and from northern Virginia on weekends. You'd think that my butt would be the most sore after three 16-hour days in the saddle, but it was my knees that paid the dearest price. With a little physical conditioning (walking around my neighborhood), my knees felt better and stopped hurting on the long rides. Stay dry on your bike, but drink lots of water. Contradiction? Not really, what I meant by "dry" is sober. On motorcycles, the best piece of safety gear we have is judgment. The first thing we lose when we drink is judgment,  remember that girl you picked up in Albuquerque? I like a beer or two, but I'll get to where I'm going, find a room within crawling distance and party on! My family is too valuable for me to risk riding at anything less than sober.

      Kicking the cobwebs off your skills is simpler than you'd imagine, but often  overlooked. Honing your skills does not require the purchase of a large number of traffic cones and road paint. If you try these two simple exercises, I promise that your skills will improve greatly over the coming months.  Friction Zone Practice- Stopped at a red light or stop sign, use the friction zone of the motorcycle to stop the bike and hold it upright without putting a foot down. The friction zone is the merging of the rear brake, throttle and the clutch to keep the bike under balance. On the police motor squad, the motormen routinely compete with each other at traffic signals to see who can hold their bike upright longest with the least amount of forward movement. It takes practice, but you'll reap the benefits as you work on slow speed control. Figure Eights-You can do these anywhere. A figure eight is exactly as it sounds, you steer the motorcycle in the shape of an 8, as tight as you can. I've been riding professionally for about fifteen years now and I still do figure eights when I leave my house, park at the office or when ever the mood strikes. This exercise will give you confidence when making tight turns at slow speeds and uses the friction zone as well. If you can get to an empty parking lot, try to fit y0ur figure eight in four parking spaces. That will give you an idea about how tight you can make them.

  Ride with Pride (and practice, practice practice!)      

                          ~Hawk                                                   

January 2005 

     Resolutions we can all keep    

       Now that the parties are over and the peach, ball or fish has dropped (depending on the area of country you happen to live in), it's time again to decide to make a New Year's Resolution that will be easy enough to keep, but beneficial enough enjoy. Most of us are accustomed to hearing our colleagues make resolutions to lose weight, quit smoking, get in shape, or spend more time with the kids. The percentage of these that fail by January 31st is astronomical. So, I have devised a resolution that is easy to keep and beneficial as well. If you are serious about riding, you might want to consider a similar resolution. 

      I do not smoke Crack, so one resolution that would be easy for me to keep is "I will not start smoking Crack!" But that leaves me with a shallow victory in that other than the obvious health benefits for not smoking crack, the likelihood that I would choose 2005 as the year that I would begin smoking it is so minute that it bears not mentioning. Instead, my resolution is to get to know roads I have not yet met. I mean get to know the curves, towns, scenery and local flavor of the roads. I don't yet know where they are, but when I find out, I'll let you know. 

    How do I go about meeting a new road? Maybe head over to the local honkey tonk and buy it a drink and swoon it? No, to get to know five roads, I'll have to get out there and ride! Which has more to do with my resolution than anything else. You see, if I make the resolution to "ride more" I can certainly do that. I could join the Iron Butt Association and rack up thousands of miles on my motorcycle in just a few days, but how much interstate do I care to see? How about you? If you are drawn to the "sport" of motorcycling, instead of the "transport" of motorcycling, the Interstate Highway System holds little for us to enjoy. In my quest to meet five good roads, I'll certainly meet a few frogs. Once while researching the North Carolina book, I was directed to a nice stretch of road that was rarely used. As I turned off the main road, I was pleased by its smooth asphalt and sweeping curves. All too soon, the pavement ended and became a violent dirt road that appeared to have been used as the set for the movie M.A.S.H.. It was a frog. Deciding not to go any further, I made a u-turn and resumed my search for great roads. 

     To help you in your quest to know five great roads, there are several aids available. Travel/touring books, (particularly mine... sorry, but it is my website) give a good overview of roads, maybe a few near you? Another method is to look at your trusty state maps. These are the kind that are available free at interstate welcome centers. The very same that do not refold into anything bearing their original appearance. Just unfold the map and look for a narrow squiggly line that connects two points of interest. Then, go see if that squiggly line is a good road or just a frog. Another method is to join motorcycle club and take a few rides with them. Who knows, maybe one of your best buddies you've never met is a member? You can also ask the guys who work on your bike to give you pointers on good roads in the area. Unlike aircraft mechanics, most motorcycle mechanics are avid motorcyclists too, but I have yet to meet a helicopter technician who was also a pilot (one telling me, "No, I'm not a pilot, you guys are crazy to fly these things!"). And finally, you can ask the locals where the great roads are. Don't be shy and they will answer in kind. Most local folks are eager and enthusiastic about directing visitors to the local sights and flavors. 

       It was a local who directed me to avoid NC 80 near Little Switzerland, NC because it was "too curvy for motorcycles."  Sometimes, you have to listen to the words the locals aren't telling you to get the good road. As it was, I did ride down NC 80 and discovered that its asphalt was so old that I'm pretty sure it was paved by George Washington himself. Aside from old asphalt, the road was perfect. On it, there were no cracks in the pavement, good views, frequent well banked curves, and food at the beginning and end. I liked NC 80 so much that it became part of my book on Western North Carolina (Little Switzerland Loop p. 106, Motorcycle Adventures in the Southern Appalachians, Asheville NC-Blue Ridge Parkway-NC High Country).  

     That's my take on meeting new roads.  I hope to see you out there, getting to know a road or two (or five!). Along the way, resolve to be a good example of the sport of motorcycling, take care of your bike and your body and it will take care of you, and continue to wave! Oh yeah, don't start smoking crack either... 

   Until Next Month, ride with pride!

December 2004  

     How to crash while stopped at a red light   

       Honestly, crashing while stopped waiting for a red light to turn green is pretty easy. Conversely, NOT crashing while stopped waiting for a red light to turn green is what takes some effort. This month, instead of pointing you toward a great holiday gift idea for the motorcyclist or biker in your family (for that click on "order" on the left side of this page....) I'll try to convey a simple way to protect us from those dastardly car drivers. 

      Just this year, my little sister and my brother purchased motorcycles, 01' Honda Rebel 250 and a 82' Honda 500 Silverwing respectively. It is because of the addition of these two to the road and my road warrior, Vespa riding, sister-in-law, I'm compelled to write about safety. Little hints like how to crash while stopped at a red light are important to pass along to the rookie riders and to reiterate to veteran road warriors. 

       Let me set the scene for you: You're on a leisurely ride with some friends. Riding mountain passes, you can smell burning hickory in the chimney of a small cabin you just passed. You can almost taste the warm wassail that is being served in that cozy cabin. You long for a cup of that hot liquid, not to drink, but to hold. Just the thought of the warm cup thawing the sting from your fingertips is enough to get the blood circulating sufficiently to twist the throttle through the next curve. Once through the curve, you come to a stop light, red as it can be. Your friends are ahead of you, searching for a place to stop to warm up a bit. As you wait for the light to change, a couple of cars pass under a green light while you think, "Man, why do I always get the red lights?" and "I wonder if this light will ever change?" That's when the white Volvo Station Wagon comes from behind and knocks you into the intersection just as another White Volvo Station Wagon is crossing. OUCH!!! It's that easy to crash while stopped at a red light, and the paramedics aren't even going to stop to buy you a warm cup of wassail. 

      Once again, my distain for the White Volvo Station Wagon as resurfaced. You may have a different kind of "road enemy". Sooner or later, we all have our own stereotypical "road enemy" we long to avoid. Whatever yours is, here's how to avoid a mix up with it while you are stopped in traffic, whether at a red light, stop sign, or just bumper-to-bumper traffic. 

       If you are lucky enough to own a motorcycle and a car or truck, go park the two side by side and compare the size from the back. O.k., you don't really have to do this, you'll get the point in a minute...   It's obvious that most motorcycles (Honda Goldwings included) have less to show in the rear end than cars. That is to say that 4-wheeled vehicles are the big butts of the roadway and motorcycles are their skinny assed cousins. Notwithstanding personal preferences between the "more to love" vs. "Less is more" debates, 4-wheeled vehicles have the advantage of being seen from behind more readily than motorcycles. Plainly, there's more to see. It is more likely that the driver of a Volvo approaching a red light will see another Volvo stopped at the intersection and will slow to a stop behind it versus stopping for an 883 Sportster. 

      We're back to that topic of conspicuity I mentioned last month. Make the car drivers see you, break their "road trance", expect them not to wake up, predict that they will try to kill you, and execute this simple plan for avoiding this collision. Unless you have a rare bike, your motorcycle is equipped with a rear brake at the right toe, throttle on the right hand grip, clutch on the left hand, and gear shift at the left toe. Without getting too deep into braking, you should use your front and rear brakes to slow from high speeds and then use your rear brake to steady the bike at low speeds. Once stopped, many riders get into the habit of lifting their left toe, knocking the bike into neutral, releasing the clutch, putting both feet firmly on the ground and taking a big stretch. For your own good, break that habit. Let tomorrow morning be the first day of your recovery process as a "stop light-resting addict". I'm not against having a break on the motorcycle, you should be comfortable, but get off the road before you let your guard down. If you are resting at a stop light with both you feet on the ground, hand off the clutch and hand off the front brake handle, you do have lots of stability, except if the bike is on an incline, it may roll. Start by having that right foot up on the rear brake pedal. This will serve two purposes; 1-The bike won't roll forward or back with the brake depressed and 2- That red thing (brake light) on the back of the motorcycle will be shining brightly. This bright shining light will make you more conspicuous to traffic behind you. 

      Great, now you are stopped at the red light and you are shining a red light of your own from the back of the bike, but the Volvo keeps coming. First off, how will you know that you are about to get hit? You are going to scan your rear view mirror 50% of the time while you are stopped. That sounds like a lot, but considering that when you are stopped, the danger of getting rear ended eclipses the risk of other types of collisions. For this reason, it's best to keep the eyes in the back of your head wide open. Now, you have your right foot on the rear brake pedal and your eyes scanning the rear view mirrors, what else? 

     Get your exit strategy ready. If you've ever forgotten to down shift when approaching a red light (who hasn't) only to discover yourself bogged down by third gear when the light turns green, you already know the importance of first gear. O.k., so, back at the red light, we've got our right foot on the rear brake, we're watching the rear view mirrors for the fast approaching Volvo and we're in first gear. Of course if you are in first gear and the bike is running you must have your left hand wrapped around the clutch leaver. What's left? Grab that throttle, all of it and be ready to twist! While you are scanning 50% behind you at the red light, 50% should be in front of you, and most of that time should be spent answering the question, "Just before this car rear ends me, where can I get this bike quickly with the least likelihood that I will be hurt in the process?" Sometimes the answer to that question is to run the red light and cross the active lanes of traffic- that's why you have to be watching! Other times, it might be best to make a quick right turn on red to avoid the car behind you. One additional word of warning, don't be fooled by the "I've got a car stopped behind me, now I can take a break" syndrome. How far will that car roll forward when it gets rear ended by that White Volvo Station Wagon? 

     Bottom line; When stopping, left foot shifts down to first gear. Once the bike comes to a stop, the left foot goes to the ground, right foot continues to press the rear brake pedal, left hand has the clutch pulled in, right hand gripping the throttle and the eyes in the back and front of your head on Volvo seeking-escape route finding overdrive! 

   Until Next Month, ride with pride!