~ It's A Great Day For A Ride ~

When I got up this morning for church, at the crack of dawn, I looked out the window and saw a spectacular sunrise. The sky was painted in pink and Pikes Peak and the surrounding mountains were gorgeous. Right away I had a feeling this would be a special day. My first thought was to quickly get dressed, grab the camera & tripod and get a few photos. Then I got ready for church.


Once ready for church, the sun was up and the sky was a beautiful blue. I love the morning sky. Ususally by afternoon there is a haze over the mountains and the sky isn't crystal clear anymore. On the way to church I had my husband stop so I could get a picture of the peak in the bright sun. This way you can see the difference of the pink mountains and clear mountains.

After we got home it was decided that the roads were clear and safe enough to get out on, Yaaah whooooooo!!! Biker Bill pulled his bike out, turned the key and ... it wouldn't start. He had to hook his battery to the charger for 45 minutes. I pulled my bike out , pulled out the choke and at first it didn't want to start. It would almost kickover. I realized I had my brights on and turned them down, turned off the bike and let it set for just a few minutes. We thought we'd have to hook mine up to the charger after his. But I tried again with the light on normal and it started up. I let it idle for just a bit. After about 5 minutes of idling I walked around my bike to make sure there were no leaks or too loose parts. All appeared fine.

Then I decided to check my tires, since my bike had been sitting in a very cold garage for over a month. I checked the front tire and the tire gage wouldn't even move. My first thought was that the gage was broken. Bill suggested checking the back tire and it worked like a champ! That's when we realized the front tire was so low it wouldn't register on the gage.

Biker Bill pulled out the air compressor and I put air in that puppy, lol. It turned out the back tire was about 5 pounds low and I took care of both. That's when I got to thinking about what I learned in the Motorcycle Safety Foundation course. "T-CLOCK" came to mind and I racked my brain trying to remember all we are suppose to check before going out on our bikes. I asked Biker Bill and he couldn't remember them all either. Later I looked it up and here they are:

T - Tire Pressure

C - Controls

L - Lights

O - Oil

C - Chassis

K - Kickstand

I found the following checklist for doing the T-CLOCK check on your bike. Go to here for the checklist. It's very well written.

Once all was charged up, aired up, idled up, geared up, and ready *laugh* we hit the road and then gased up, lol. We had an errand at the north end of town at the mall. We were very watchful for gravel and large potholes. For the most part, the roads we rode were in pretty good condition. We took Powers, to Woodmen, to Lexington, to Briargate and to the Chapel Hills Mall. We did come across a few potholes of concerned, but easily manuvered around them. We did expect the roads to be worse then they were. We got to the mall and took care of business. We saw about four motorcycles on the way there.

Above is a very happy Biker Bill and his new ride, a 2000 Suzuki Intruder 1500. Now it's getting onto 4pm and it's starting to get noticably chilly and time to head home. We decide to head back by Acadamy Blvd, as it should be quicker. But surprisingly, it has twice as many potholes and more gravel to contend with. Once again, we manuveur around all obstacles. We have one quick stop at the grocery store and then arrive home safe and sound. It's now pretty chilly and we're glad to be home.

So it turns out to be a very successful day for motorcycle riding and there is high hopes to get out again tomorrow, as Biker Bill has a scheduled day off. One thing I have learned is to keep a better eye on my tire pressure. It does appear that my front tire has a slow leak. It will need to be replaced this spring, as the tread is wearing a bit thin on the front, too.

Wishing you adventures in your part of the world,

Biker Betty :)