~ Nice Long Ride This Last Saturday ~

This last Saturday the Mountain Shadow Riders (a chapter of Women on Wheels) had our monthly chapter meeting. It was fun seeing everyone. We've got a lot of runs/activities lined up for the summer and I can't wait!!! The details have to be finalized, but our summer scavanger hunt has been decided on. Starting April 1st and going thru October 31st, we are to find businesses with either the words "Mountain" and/or Shadow in their title. We are to get a picture of our motorcycle with their sign. This will be a lot more difficult and some serious searching to find. But I'm up to the challenge!!

After the meeting those of us who could, gathered at 11am for a "Saddle Time Ride." We started off with, I believe, 11 motorcycles and 12 people. Added 4/7/07 - I can't believe I forgot two people, but I did. We had two of our members following in their car as back up, if anyone were to pull out and need assistance. Well, at a couple of time we did have some ladies pull out and off to the side of the road. Paula and Don stopped to offer any needed assistance. Paula and Don live up in the mountains and couldn't ride their bikes into town due to ice. But they came on the road trip and were very helpful a couple of times. Thanks Paula and Don, your help was appreciated by all.

We lost one before getting out of town. She was having problems with her contacts. The sky was overcast and threatening to rain. It was pretty windy all the way to Penrose down Hwy 115. Passing Penrose we stayed on Hwy 115 and somewhere we got on another hwy. I wasn't sure where we were going. Good thing I wasn't leading this group, lol. After a while we emerge on the main drive thru Canon City. As soon as we got on the main drive (Hwy 50), I recognized where we were.

We headed out of the city on Hwy 50, going west. A couple of miles out of town we took a right onto the famous Skyline Drive. I had never been on this road and I will never forget it. It's an extremely narrow paved road that rises 800 feet above Canon City. It's a one way road, thank goodness!! It is very steep going up and I kept hoping no one in front of me had any reason to stop before we got on level ground. I found out that this road was built in the early 1900's by convict labor chain gangs. I'm sure back then it was a dirt road.

Here we are at the top. We pulled off into a gravel pull-out and this is when one of our group had an oopsy-daisy. Her brand new Harley fell down. She's not sure what happened, but with gravel things can get squirrely. I've seen an experienced biker accidently drop a bike in gravel. It just happens sometimes. Many jumped to her aid and got her righted up. She was okay and there were only a few scratches on her Harley.



We took a little time to enjoy the view. It dropped for a long ways down. As you can see in the above photo. The above is a view to our right.

Here is the same view looking straight down!!!

Here is the view on our left side. It a great view of Canon City.

Here I am, helmet hair and all, lol. After we had a chance to look around, it was time to get going. It was raining off in the distance and we hoped to get home dry. We did stop on the way home at a coffee shop for a quick bite to eat. This particular shop was one of our awesome sponsors for our breast cancer run last year. Come back tomorrow night and I have a special post about that stop. I had my fellow comrade riders help me with the Saturday Photo Hunt.

It was soooo fun to have a nice long ride. It had been a while since I have been on my motorcycle for that long a ride. We left at 11:15am and I got home at 3pm. When it was all said and done, I had 131 more miles on my Star. An hour after I got home it downpoured. What great timing.

Wishing you travel adventures in your part of the world,

Biker Betty :)

Wordless Wednesday

Here's why I didn't participate in the last Wordless Wednesday. See first comment for details.

My favorite penny slot machine while there.

~ It was a very nice ride to work today ~

To work in this particular school's library I have to get up at the crack of dawn. I'm not used to having to be up at 5:15 am. I really didn't know this time of morning existed till I subbed here a few times, lol. But I do love these hours. When I get off work I still have time left to do something and I'm off in time to get my youngest son from school. I like doing that.

This morning was a balmy 40 something degrees. As you can see by the photo above, it was dark when I pulled out my bike and started it up. You can just make out the lights.

On the way to work I stopped at a shopping mall to get a picture of the sun starting to rise. It was very pretty. There were lots of people on the road this morning, but it was still a lot of fun riding to work. I kept a careful watch of the other cars and chugged along like the rest of them.

The above picture is a photo taken at the same mall from another direction. I love the colors on the horizon and the moon above. Talk about a nice time of day. I get to work safe and sound and even found another motorcycle in the parking lot. Of all things, the helmet is on the ground next to the bike. I find this curious. I take mine in the building, carrying my lunch in it, lol.

Now this is the same school that I did a post on March 3rd. Some of you had asked me to report if the office lady still treated me with apprehension as the last time. I walked in this morning, certain she would remember me, with a smile on my face and a cheery good morning. Well, she squelched that pretty quick. I have since learned she's just not an outgoing person. As soon as I walk in it's just about the same routine. She asks my name - I tell her. She asks who I'm subbing - I tell her. At first she seems not to believe me. I'm thinking "Oh man, here we go again" and brace myself.

The whole process in the office went much quicker this time and I get my sub badge and hightail it out of the office and head to the library. I'm now used to the curious stares of the students. If I sub here enough, they will get used to me, lol.

I find that kids at the elementary level so much more outgoing and excited about motorcyclist. They give me thumbs up and talk excited to me about motorcycling. You can tell they love motorcycles, both the boys and girls. The girls are especially excited to see another "girl" riding something that only boys seem to get to do. The girls love the purple motorcycle.


Like all the other schools I have worked at, I really enjoy working in this school. I have a friend working in the library. Her son and my son went to the same elementary school together and that's how we met. Now I have made quite a few friends at this school and enjoy the day. The day once again went by very fast.

The next thing I know I need to hop on my bike and head for my other school that I do afterschool math tutoring for. By now it truly is a balmy 70 degrees and a very nice ride. I get to the other school. When I walk into the tutoring room with my gear on, as I'm running a little behind, a few of the girls in the other group are giving me the thumbs up. This surprised me, as they have never done that before. The smiles on their faces said it all. The boys followed suit and we shared a fun moment together. Then it was time to get down to the business of math for the next half hour.

What an awesome day and awesome ride. I'm so glad my husband and I took the Motorcycle Safety Foundation beginner's course and got motorcycles two years ago. My purple V-Star 650 custom is very cool and fun to ride.

Wishing you great rides to work,

Biker Betty :)

~ This Saturday's Theme is Architecture ~

Theme: Architecture ** Become a Photo Hunter ** View Blogroll

When I learned of this week's theme I immediately thought of this picture taken last summer. I love the architecture of this building. It was taken for the Mountain Shadow Rider's scavanger hunt. I needed to find a red building. It's funny how things work out. This is where we did all the paper work to buy our house.

~ Sunday Riding ~

I get up this morning expecting to drive my van to church. My husband has to get there early and goes on his motorcycle. I actually don't feel envy this time, as I know there are times when one or the other of us can ride our motorcycles when the other can't. I get the youngest son up for him to eat and go to church with me. There was just one little hiccup. Yesterday evening he went to a birthday party that also went to the theater. He got home late and now I can't get him to stir. So I wake up the eldest to bring his younger brother to church when he goes to Sunday School."

Suddenly I'm the only person going in the van. Well, gosh, that's a waste of gas, isn't it? I had decided earlier this morning I wasn't riding today with my youngest on my motorcycle. There are spots of gravel on the road and I didn't want to take a chance with him on my motorcycle. You see, yesterday after dropping my son off to his party with the van I skidded on gravel. The backend of the van fishtailed a little. I know that if I had been on the bike, it might have gone down. But I also know I would have been a whole lot more careful and it probably wouldn't have happened like in the van.

So now it's just me. I can manuever around the spots of gravel, there was just no way I wanted to chance anything with my younger son on the back. So I change to "Travel Plan B." I quickly change my shoes to my motorcycle boots, pull my motorcycle out of the garage and get all my gear. Yahoo, I'm riding my Yamaha V-Star 650 to church!!! It's a gorgeous morning and I can't wait to get out and on my way.

The above picture is of my bike at church. I get there with no problems. There were patches of gravel to steer around, but nothing scary. As you can see, the sky is a beautiful crystal clear blue and a great day to get out on the bike.

After getting back from church, my husband and I decided there were errands to be done. First stop was Wally World (Walmart). After getting what we needed I snapped the above photo. How can you beat a view like that?


Or a view like this? Look at that sky. We had a few more errands that (oh darn!!) took us a couple of hours and 37 sweet glorious miles. We drove up into the driveway at dusk. We got everything needed and huge smiles on our faces with the fun of riding. What a great Sunday it was.

Wishing you great travels in your part of the world,

Biker Betty :)

~ Are You Judged by What You Wear? ~

(Read all about it below)

I have some extra visitors coming by from Blogging Chicks.
Ladies - You love to blog? You, too, can join Blogging Chicks.

Funny thing happened this last week at work. I've been a substitute school librarian for 4 years now. Until two months ago I was only subbing in my son's school. Suddenly I started getting asked to sub at other schools and am now able to do it now that my youngest is older. Now I get calls all the time. I get warm & fuzzies that the ones I work for call me personally now to sub again. I love being with the kids and working with the books. I don't just sit behind the desk. If there's nothing to do I go out into the books and straighten them, pull them forward, put in order those books not in their proper place. I love to do this. The people I fill in for love that they can come in the next day to an orderly library and know that things are in their place.

This last Monday I was asked a second time to come back to this particular high school. With pretty decent weather I rode my motorcycle to work. So I drive up to the teacher's parking lot and park my bike and then walk into the office to check in. I get lots of stares. It's chilly and I'm wearing my motorcycle jacket and leather chaps, carrying my lunch in my helmet and a book bag over my shoulder with my notebook and all I need for the day. The above photo is showing what I was wearing, but I was carrying my helmet and not wearing it (remember - lunch?).

I walk into the office and immediately the office clerk is right there asking "Can I help you?" It just felt like that question was loaded with lots of unsaid stuff. As she was asking that, I got the impression with her tone that she was really stating "I don't think you're in the right place." She's looking me up and down. So I answer that I'm here to sub in the school library. She's looking bewildered and wants to know who I'm subbing for, but once again with her tone I sensed she felt I wasn't in the right place and she's sure I couldn't possibly be there to sub. I would have loved to be able to read her mind. She was asking questions but her tones were saying something completely different. I answer her questions and took no offense. No reason, she's just doing her job. She then asks have I ever subbed there, because she has never met me.

Well, I had subbed there about two weeks ago and she was in the office, lol. That particular time I was dressed in normal work clothes and walked into the office and no one even batted an eye. I had driven my van and didn't need all the protective gear, lol. No one took any notice and didn't ask if they could help me. Luckily, I had been in the day before to get briefed on my sub job with the library clerk who I was to replace for the day. So I knew where to sign in and grab a badge.

Today I walk in expecting to just sign, grab a badge and go Suddenly I'm getting the third degree and only able to walk about four steps into the office. They were nice about it, but leary of this motorcycle garbed woman who had just walked into the school office that they didn't know. I did finally get my pass and was able to go do my job.

This high school is obviously not used to people driving motorcycles and wearing the proper protective gear. As I'm walking thru the halls to the library I get lots of stares from students and staff. They're the kind of stares that if I was wearing a dress I'd have to duck into the girls bathroom to make sure that the back of my dress hadn't got caught in my pantihose, lol.

It's amazing that what you wear can bring so much attention. Everyone at my son's school doesn't think anything of it, but they know me. They do think it's cool that I drive a motorcycle and love it's purple color. The kids there are in childlike awe. At another elementry school I had no problems when driving my motorcycle and walking into the office, they knew me from one other time. They remembered and recognized me even wearing the jacket and chaps.

I guess high schools can get busy and who knows whose going to walk in off the streets and declare they're there to sub. I have been asked to sub there again in a little over a week. I hope for nice weather to ride my motorcycle. If I'm able to do this, think they will remember me by what I wear? LOL

Now I ask you, do I look dangerous? Okay, bad photo, lol.
This is one of the photos for the MSR scavanger hunt last summer.

Wishing you fun journeys in your part of the world,

Biker Betty :)

~ How about a little "salt" with your motorcycle in this week's

Saturday Photo Theme ~

Theme: Salt ** Become a Photo Hunter ** View Blogroll

Some very dear friends of ours gave us these motorcycle "Salt" & Pepper shakers as a gift. They were on vacation when they saw these and thought of us. Bet you thought there was no way a motorcycle could get in this theme, lol. I also had to include Sponge Bob Sqaure Pants who lives in a pinapple house at the bottom of the "salty" ocean in Bikini Bottom.

Why not test your knowledge of how much you know about Sponge Bob. I did and I actually did pretty good, lol.