Purchasing your first motorcycle

Ok, you’ve decided you want to ride. You’ve heard me talk about that freedom, and joy, and peace that riding a motorcycle can bring about. (It’s all true) So, what’s the next step? There’s such a big selection of brands and types, where do I start? Start at the DMV. That’s right, they have a motorcycle safety course where they supply you with a motorcycle and teach you how to ride and give you the test to get your motorcycle operators license. There’s a fee and it’s a 2 day class but it’s worth it if you want to ride. It also saves money on your insurance.

You can buy a brand new bike or save a few bucks and buy used. The newspaper and Craigslist are a great resource. Being armed with a little knowledge at the start is key. One look on KBB.com can give you the retail values of any motorcycle and it a great reference when purchasing a used bike.



Size and type are important to a new rider. I would suggest a smaller displacement bike at first but not so small as you would be dissatisfied with it’s performance right off the bat. To me, a sport touring or standard is perfect for great all around riding. My picks would be the Kawasaki 650 R, Yamaha 600 F 6, and Suzuki SV 650. All 3 of these bikes are lightweight, have easy to ride power, great brakes, and are relatively affordable at around $6,500. each. Check the manufacturers websites. These bikes can be found used at prices that drop about a grand per year. Buyer beware, though, used bikes usually don’t have warranty.

The problem with buying a new bike is the dealers will not let you try out a motorcycle. It seems that insurance problems keep them from this practice, which keeps many from finding the right bike. Most of the time, a used seller will let you demo their bikes, but that’s taking a big risk. Ah, there is one dealer that will answer the call, and that’s BMW. Although the BMW’s are a little more expensive, you get what you pay for. They really don’t sell a beginner bike, but do have several models that are easily ridden and perfect for any rider, such as the BMW F800 which comes in a sport model or a touring model. This is an 800 cc motorcycle that has a few more bells and whistles over your normal bike. They have information flat screen, ABS, on board computer, Tire pressure monitor
and maintenance free belt drive. These bikes start at about $10,000. but the value is in the resale and quality. These bikes are the safest on the planet. A little more money but worth every penny.

Once you’ve mastered riding (or at least feel comfortable) then you may want to step up or branch out to a different type of bike. Long distance touring, cruising, or even racing style bikes are all out there to enjoy. It’s wide open. Feel the warm smile come over you as you take your first solo ride on your new motorcycle. The open road lies before you as you blissfully glide thru the spring air and all your troubles fall to the pavement behind you.




30 Mar, 2008 | admin | Leave comment - 0 -

Motorcycling and the real world

Ya know, although the joy of motorcycling is reason enough to get on a bike, there are other very practical reasons for riding and owning. Gas! My friend, Carl, rides to work 5 days a week. His car gets 20 mpg, but his motorcycle gets 60 mpg. His trip to work is 40 miles one way, or an 80 mile per day round trip. Now his car would use 4 gallons per day, but the motorcycle would use only 1.5 gallons. That's a savings of 2.5 gallons per day or 12.5 gallons per week and at todays prices that would be over $40. per week or $160 per month. That's a lotta doe. I know he can't ride year round, or in the bad weather, but the savings are real and the carbon foot print savings alone are terrific. Not only that but he looks forward to his commute every time he rides. Nuff Ced.



Motorcycling is not all about taking long trips, but also just getting out for a short ride to free up the soul. Sometimes a half hour or even an hour on the bike is enough to shake off the blues or a stressful day at work. I like to ride up through the back roads around Hanover and sometimes find myself into Louisa and Caroline for a nice relaxing jaunt. One of my favorite local rides is to take 54 west to Scotchtown Rd. and left through Coatsville and on to Beaverdam, where I take Teaman Rd. over to Partlow and on up to Courthouse Rd. which takes you to Fredericksburg. It’s about an hour and a half round trip, sometimes stopping for a bite to eat before returning.

My favorite ride is to take Rt. 250 west to Afton Mt. and go north on Skyline Drive to Rt. 33 and then east to Ashland. Lunch on one of the Drive's eateries and the whole ride is about 5 hours. It's scenic and peaceful. Not all riding is about loud pipes and sleeveless leather vest. Riding can fit your personality and be a soulful experience. Also, not all bikes are choppers. Motorcycles have come a long way in mechanical sophistication and electronic innovations. The choices in bikes today are every bit as diverse as the car industry. Most manufacturers have multiple lines of bikes to satisfy every taste and price point. A new bike can range from $2,500 to well over $50,000 and every amount in between. There's a bike for everyone! Even you!

Next time: Bike choice and pricing. Thanks for reading!



22 Mar, 2008 | admin | Leave comment - 1 -

Home sweet home, the longest day!

I don't know about you, but I'm a softy when it comes to being away from home. I miss Ann, and just the comfort of my home on Henry Clay. After being gone a whole week the pangs are starting set in. So the conversation with my riding buddy went like this. "Carl I'm going to ride straight through tomorrow, I need to get home" Carl says, "go ahead if that's what you want to do". So I set the alarm for 4am and pack my duffle. The plan is to ride straight through.

The morning comes and I'm raring to go. Dress for the ride and grab the duffle and head out the front door of the hotel, ready for the 14 hour ride. Wait a minute, I can see my breath. I strap down my bag and start up the bike. My bike is equiped with an onboard computer that gives me a temperature read out. It reads 32.9. Rut ro! Oh well, I'm going. Mount the bike, turn left out of the parking lot, and up to the 95 north on ramp and quikly up to 65 mph. Hey, this isn't so bad. I'm dressed properly so I should be alright, right? Well, about an hour down the road, almost to the Georgia line, I notice I'm shivering. So, I stop at the rest area, thinking that maybe I'll do some jumping jacks and I'll be ok, but that doesn't work and I'm shivering worse. The custodian sees my dilemma and offers some advice. He tells me to go in the room where families can change their babies diapers, they keep it real warm in there, he says. So I go in, take off my jacket and sit on the bench for about 15 minutes, till the shivering subsides.

Mistake number 2
Thinking optomistic, I buy a cup of coffee from the machine, drink it down and head back out on 95. Hey, I'm fine, now. For me, a cup of coffee on my 55 year old, empty stomach is a recipe for diaster and found me not only shivering again but in need of the next rest stop. Whew! That stop comes withing 30 miles and the sun is now coming up but I glance at the computer and it still only reads 34 degrees. So, I make one more stop to warm up and relieve mistake number 2.

Back on the road and the sun is now high and temps are rising. The traffic is light and I am passed by an occasional motorcycle or two. Before I know it, I'm crossing the South Carolina border and I stop at the welcome center. I'm greeted by a sign that says, free coffee today. Turns out the Christian Motorcyclist Association has set up a tent at the rest areas through the Carolinas and is serving free coffee and snacks. Awesome, this is just what I need, a smiling face and more coffee. I get off the bike near their stand and am handed a nice warm cup of steaming hot joe. I grab a couple of their homemade cookies and take a break. This is nice. Well before I got to the NC border I had stopped again for gas and more coffee bring my total to 7 cups. Thinking the coffee might give me energy and keep me going, I didn't worry about the toll it was taking on my hydration. Instead of taking in proper fluids, I was actually dehydrating myself. You'd think I would know about that stuff, but my youthful exuberance blinded me from good common sense.

Crossed into NC and was welcomed by the South of the Border tower. Kind of a familier sight for all who travel 95 corridor. I figure I'm well over halfway home and NC goes by in a blur as I'm now approaching 10 hours in the saddle. As you ride you have to learn how to move around and keep your muscles loose so you don't get sore but this is the first time in my life I have ridden this far. I'm starting to cramp from the dehydration so at my next gas stop I buy a bottle of Gatorade and drink it down. Thing is, I should have done this way before now.

Wait a minute, there's the Virginia line. I'm almost home, well kinda. After a while, the wind noise from the road and helmet makes you def. All I could hear was a hummmmm. But, ahead I see a sign that says 295 and another that says 95 is only 40 miles which means I'm 45 miles from Ashland. I've got this licked! Man, do I feel good when I get off the ramp and on to 54. The stop lights never looked so friendly. Cross Rt. 1 and up England, cross the tracks and right to Henry Clay. I pull in my driveway and breath a huge sigh of relief. I'm home. I look at my watch, it's 7 pm. 14 hours have gone by. What an adventure.Pulling in behind me is my reward. Ann gets out of her car and gives me a big hug and a kiss. There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's no place like home! (There's no place like home!).........................................................



17 Mar, 2008 | admin | Leave comment - 7 -

2nd day/ to da beach

Saturday morning greets us with our best weather yet. After a hearty breakfast at the hotel we decide to ride out to the beach to check out the sights. We are going to ride the "loop", which is the cruiser route. About 4 miles we cross the bridge over the bay and can see the ocean. We decide it wouldn't be a good idea to ride on the sand on a motorcycle so we cruise the main street that is packed with other riders and people just taking it all in. This is what bike week is all about. I'm sure there are some riders that come to bike week just for this. Some riders do this everyday for a week. And this is in the middle of the day, I can only imagine what it's like at night.



We head back towards the racetrack area to get our seats for the big race, which is the Daytona 200 road race.
The road race uses some of the high banked car track as well as some of the infield for more turns. The bikes exceed 180 mph. As we enter the seating areas we realize that our seats are way up near the top. That's good because we will ber able to see the whole track. There is some pagentry before the start and then the Star Spangled Banner, and then their off. 70 riders taking off like dragsters in to the first turn for 69 laps or 200 miles. Exciting watching the manuvers and the high speeds. Although sunny and warm, the winds are blowing at a constant 40 mph and I guess I did'nt realize how powerful the sun was. (sunscreen?) Rut ro! No hat, and sitting high in the stands made for a serious sunburn that didn't show up until the races were over. You'd think an adult would have better sense, but nooooo!

Oh well, live and learn, the events and shows last in to the evening and we head back to the hotel and then to the Roadhouse for a bite to eat. Exhausted, from the day, a good nights sleep isn't hard to find as I fall out as soon as my head hits the pillow.



14 Mar, 2008 | admin | Leave comment - 0 -

Daytona by bike

I don't know how many of you have been to Daytona International Speedway, but if you haven't (like me), the shear monstrous size is shocking. After checking in to our hotel, we cruised up to the racetrack where the races and bike expo takes place. I was surprised at the area the complex covered, guessing that it was more than 5 times larger that the track in Richmond at the fairgrounds. So, just checking it out we went back to the hotel for a meal and checked in and decided to come back the next day to take in the expo.



Being only 1 mile from the track we walked Friday morning to take in the days events. We were probably the only two that did because there were thousands of bikes in the parking lot. Our first show was at Ducati. An Italian bred world renown for their high quality (and price) and eclusivity of being "hand made in Italy". They not only displayed all of their 2008 line but had a stunt show as well. The stunt show consisted of a rider on a supermoto bike pulling outrages wheelies, burnouts, and stoppies in an enclosed area. ( a stoppie is a nose wheelie, done by pulling in the front break to make the rear wheel come up and thereby looking like a reverse wheelie.) Pretty impressive considering the balance and practice it takes to perform these stunts. (had to be there, but see Superbikes on Speed on Tuesday nights)

Next expo was the Kawasaki area. Probably 3 acres, mostly under a tent, of everything they make for 2008 in every color they make it in. 4 wheelers, sportbikes, cruisers, dirt bikes, motocross bikes with reps there to explain any question you could ask. Massive! As we're walking through the display I see the host of Superbikes, Jason Britton, so I (touristly) ask if I can take a picture with him and he graciously agrees. Jason host the show on Speed and is a world renown stunt rider and ambassador for cycling. Good score!

We then mosey on over to the Yamaha, Suzuki, and Honda expos that are equally impressive in both size and information and spread out among the concessions where you can buy a bottle of water for just $4. And if you like, you can make a meal off of an $8. cheeseburger. Yum!

The next expo was one of the smallest but the one that gets my heart pumping. That's the BMWs. Although I ride a BMW there are still some of their lineup for 08 that I kinda drool over. Like the K1200S. Maybe when I grow up and save enough doe I will own one. But, a look at the watch tells us that half the day is gone and it's time to head back to the hotel to eat and get ready for the Supercross tonight. We'll ride our bikes tonight because I find out that Carl is not too fond of walking. I make fun of him, of course, and have to call him a sissy. He laughs.

After a little rest and a bite to eat, we hop on the bikes and ride to the track. We find close parking (beside a telephone pole) and make our way inside. This is my first view of the track and it's like nothing I've ever seen before. Enough seating and infield to house the population of Vermont. The high banked turns looked like they were out of place, but at 30 degrees of slant they help the racecars and bikes attain speed in excess of 180 mph. Crazy! The stands rose up from the asphalt like skyscapers that perimyd the seating so as to give every spectator an unobstructed view. Above that were the press boxes and luxury sweets that topped the already massive struture. As we climbed the stairs to our seats I could only wonder the design and constuction that it took to erect this monstousity. I'm impressed!

The Supercross race was just about to begin when the pitter of rain started to fall, but I knew they would not cancel because Supercross goes on rain or shine, right? Yeah, right.
Side note: Supercross is a closed course event run on dirt, with jumps of all shapes and difficulty and left and right hand turns. Very exciting. (That's what I used to do)
Ok, The races are about to begin and the freakin sky opens up. Now I'm not talking about a spring rain, I'm talking about a monsoon. I rush out to the concession stand and buy a poncho and I sit huddled under as the racing proceeds. Although it had a little misery, it also made the event that much more excting, because I felt I was now a part of the experience. (knowwhatImean?) The participants were actually riding in water that was at times up to their seat and yet they kept on going. Over the jumps and around deep rutted turns like they were posessed. The heartbreak came when the leader of the race stalled his bike 2 turns from the end and couldn't start it, letting the 2nd place rider go ahead for the win. Awesome!

Now come our biggest challenge of the week, so far. Riding back to the hotel amongst thousands of other riders in a monsoon rain. Well, we found the bikes and mounted up. I motioned for Carl to follow me as I crossed through the dog tack parking lot into an open lane and found a way where there were no cars. That lane luckily took us to the main road. I then turned right like I was going to the airport and found the road that the hotel was on. As luck would have it, we ended up finding the rear entrance to the hotel and made it safely and missed 90% of the traffic. Day 2 in Daytona, done.



12 Mar, 2008 | admin | Leave comment - 0 -

Leaving on a cold Monday

Leaving on a cold Monday, heading out to Goochland Couthouse area to meet Carl to begin our journey. Packing and dressing properly were a challenge as I fit a weeks worth of clothes and accessories in a 2' duffle bag and bungee it to the rear of the bike. I say goodbye to Ann (what a gal) and I'm off.

As a side note, the most important part of the long distance riding experience is your gear. Here's a short list of the things to prioritize:
1. A good quality, Snell and Dot approved helmet with an antifog, full, face shield.
2.Cold weather specific riding gloves.
3.Comfortable leather or cold weather frabric jacket and pants. Layer underneath.
4.Riding boots should be comfortable and cover the ankle,(I wear Red Wings)

So, I leave at 8 am and head to Carl's house where we'll head over to Rt. 360 west. We take Rt. 360 to South Boston on 58 and then left on 119 and head south. Beautiful rolling hills and farms, sunny but windy weather take us on this 2 lane highway at 55mph on to our first stop in Rockingham, NC. A short day of 6 hours riding time, but we don't want to overdo. The plan is to get to the hotel and check the weather for Tuesday which is calling for storms. Bad storms! We're stuck for the next day, with lightning, torrential rains, and high winds, so we wait it out.

Ah, Wednesday morning, the sun is up and the 40 degree air temp seems good to go. After a Huddle House breakfast, we head south into the South Carolina pines. Did I say pines? At least 50 miles of nothing but, on both sides of the road, only broken up by the occasional farm or country store. After the pines came the peach farms which seemed to go on for miles. Two lane, smooth, winding roads were the order of the day as we made our way to Statesboro, Ga. home of Georgia Southern University.

The next morning brought us our best weather yet, as we started with sunny and 50 degree temps, knowing that we would cross the Florida line and reach Daytona by 2 pm. Somewhere, just south of the Florida line we met with another rider. Believe it or not, his name was Robert Kennedy, and he ask if he could ride with us. Sure, the more the merrier. Robert even offered up a different route for us to bypass Jacksonville. Sounds great! Well it was fun but it took us about 50 miles out of our way. As we got closer to Daytona we started to see more and more bikes. Every shape and size, every brand and color, but mostly Harleys. Carl and I, being on sport touring bikes, felt a little out of place but it seemed like we fit in just because we were riding. Before we knew it, we were in a pack of about 50 bikes (scary) headed in to Daytona and towards the Daytona Internationa Speeway. Not what I had intended, but it was all pretty exciting. Turns out our hotel was just down the street within walking distance. There were motorcycles everywhere, and not just a few, thousands. Whew! We're here!



10 Mar, 2008 | admin | Leave comment - 0 -