I was actually able to ride to work yesterday and today. It started off cold, but by the time I got off work it wasn't bad at all.
Yesterday I knew it was going to be nice in the afternoon, so I just planned on riding. When I got up at O'Dark thirty I checked the temperature outside and saw that it was 35 degree F. I think to myself, "Okay, it's a little cold but who cares. It's going to be nice later." I get ready for work and just before pulling out my bike I check to see how much warmer it is. It's now 34 degrees!! I'm thinking, "What the heck?"
I'm still determined to ride and I think to myself "what's one degree less?"(LOL). I pack my lunch and get my stuff together. I pull out the bike and have it warming up. One last glance at the temperature gage - It's now 33 degrees!?! I thought it was suppose to be nice. I start having a few second thoughts, afterall the weather can change here without much notice. I think "what the heck" and go back to plan A and hope on my bike and go to work. I also pray to the weather gods that all will be well.
Driving in the dark early in the morning I take my time. There is gravel on the road and it's not too easy to see till you're very close. No problems getting to work.
Ah, all's well. The weather cooperates and it's pretty decent when I get off. I take the long way home (heh). I make it to the last turn onto my street when my bike slips. Luckily, I don't go down, but you can bet I was thanking the Lord for saving me on that. After parking my bike I had to hop into the car and go get my youngest son from school. As I pass the spot I slipped, I look closely at the ground. There was hardly any gravel, but it was there. Lesson learned.
Today I ride and it was a bit warmer when I start off (34 degrees). I take it easy in the dark and get to work. Now this morning I wash my hair and get lazy and don't put the conditioner in. When I get to work and pull off my helmet my hair is loaded with electricity!! It feels like it's sticking out and you know that feeling when your hair gets static? It was there. Oh man, it was there!! I'm looking in my mirrors and can't get it to cooperate at all. I get a momentary panic attack. People are arriving to work and my hair is looking like I just stuck my finger in an electrical socket. I feel like Bozo the Clown, the Wicked Witch of the West on the Wizard of Oz, one of those Anime cartoon charaters (I think you get the idea). On normal rides I don't care, but I'm at work and I would like to look okay. I run for the bathroom and wet my hands and rub it thru my hair. I was relieved to see that that did the trick. It actually looked better then normal, lol. From now on I will be sure to use hair conditioner when I ride to work. Lesson learned.
This whole week is suppose to be nice and I plan to ride everyday, yah!! It will always be cold in the morning, but I have the afternoon ride to look forward to. Bad weather is due sometime this weekend, y-u-k!
Wishing you well in your part of the world,
Biker Betty :)
9 comments:
You are tougher than I. I don't like to ride unless it's at least 50. And even then I want full sunshine and no wind.
We're hoping to get a ride in today before the weather goes to hell in a handbasket.
You are lucky you get to ride, and thank God you didn't go down.
Here I worry about ice.
We've got really code temps here in Seattle. I'm so jealous that you're riding in. When the skies are blue and it *looks* nice from inside, and then you realize it's actually in the 20s when you walk outside, it's just nature teasing us with potential riding. :-)
Hi Donna, I hope you got your ride in. Sometimes I'm tough enought to put up with the cold and sometimes I'm not (sometimes I feel like a nut and sometimes I don't)lol.
Hi Mr. Motorcycle, Thanks. We have times we have to worry about ice and when that's the case, the motorcycle stays in the garage.
Hi Jeff, Thanks for stopping by. I really hate it when it looks wonderful outside and turns out it's bitter cold - Ugh!! Hope it warms up soon enough for you.
One of the few ways to get really valuable experience is to ride in what we might call borderline conditions. That's borderline in how it relates to our comfort level. It's been neat to see you progress as a rider. We often don't realize how far we've come until we look back. Your confidence level has come up, I will say. Where a small slip in gravel would have deeply traumatized you earlier, now it's just a learning experience.
Got no tips on the helmet hair static. Unless you keep a "regulation" hair cut like me. Somehow I don't think that will work the same for you!
Well, well, well...what are we trying to do here...?
You wanna commit suicide, go jump off a cliff.
You wanna enjoy MM, then you need to carefully consider all your options...just like an airline pilot would. You behaved like a jet figther pilot... where choice isn't an option...
anyways, the short of it is: be careful on the road. we want you to be around for a long long time for I for one enjoy your posts.... Cheers, keep well and ride carefully
Hi Irondad,
Thanks. I do feel like I have come a long way since I first started riding, but I feel there is still much to learn. It's like coming into my pre-teen years, lol. It's about time for me to consider taking the advanced MSF motorcycle course.
Yea, I'm still fighting that static hair thing, even with conditioner. Oh well. I don't think the "regulation" hair cut will work. I plan on sharing it soon, but I have cut my hair short. I got tired of the knots and always having to pull it back (I guess I just shared it, lol).
Hi Baron,
Don't you worry. I try not to take any unnecessary risks. The road didn't seem like it had any gravel, so I had to go back to see what I slipped on. Thanks for the encouraging words.
Hi Betty.
One of the biggest things that keeps me off the road in the winter besides the snow isn't the cold, it's the sand. A gravel slip is scary enough when encountered by surprise in the summer. At this time of year though, the sand and gravel is just everywhere. I applaud your courage, especially riding in the dark when you really can't see it until you're literally on top of it.
Regarding the Advanced Rider's Course, I highly recommend it. I took it for the first time last summer. I went in thinking "I've been riding for years, there ain't nothing these jabroni's are gonna teach me..." Boy was I WRONG!!! I couldn't believe how much I picked up in that course, and how those improved riding skills stayed with me afterwards.
Good luck and be careful out there.
I always wait for the gravel to gravitate to the sides of the roads before hitting the roads again. There are quite a few motorcyclist that ride in the winter and do the same. By then most of the gravel is usually in the gutter. We tend to get as much gravel in the summer, with all the road construction going on. In the morning, when its still dark, I only drive as fast as I can see with my headlight. The speeds are not high anyway.
I loved the MSF beginner's course. My husband and I took it together and we both can't say enough about how much we learned. We loved it. I still like to practice some of it in deserted parking lots. I know we will like the advanced course when we get a chance to take it. I look forward to taking it, especially after hearing your great comments on it.
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