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And another season begins...

Spring brought cold temperatures and flooding. May was not a good month for riding   The nights are getting warmer and inviting. Summer is not far away and the road is waiting. This picture is taken at Davidson QC. This run was taken after a health scare. Interesting fact, riding with the windshield off and a Buff over my face acts as a breathing aid. The world is my CPAP machine. Enough with the grim humour, this ride was a last minute decision made after I filled up with gas, not before I left home. Even if I knew I was going to be driving in the dark, would I have remembered to bring my clear lensed glasses? I’m not certain. As it was the sunglasses worked much better than I was hoping. Quite well, I’m sure they cost me detail on the periphery or something but I am comfortable repeating the experience. This is a third of the way through my ride and about fifteen minutes from darkness. The air didn’t cool too extremely. The colors were especially enjoyable but the shades may h
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Summer begins

" Adown the golden sunset way   The evening comes in wimple gray;  By burnished shore and silver lake  Cool winds of ministration wake;  O'er occidental meadows far  There shines the light of moon and star,  And sweet, low-tinkling music rings  About the lips of haunted springs." ...from   A Summer Day -  by Lucy Maud Montgomery Summer is upon us and I am often on my bike now. I have been seeing some really cool things. I have found that the road to Calabogie is filled with Harleys on any given weekend. The road that runs from Calabogie to Lanark is even more fun to drive. I have spent far too much time on the backroads around here but I keep seeing different things.  A few weeks past I was on a tear down Zion Line when some Mennonite looking service was just getting out at a very low key nondescript building. I can't tell you how cool that sea of clean old timey black clothing looks through polarized sunglasses. Some time after that I am passing the Ba

The bike is back from winter storage

I was all geared up to pick up the bike last Saturday but rain and plus 3 degrees celsius convinced me otherwise. I got to pick it up last night. No rain, warm enough, and just enough gas to get me home without the low fuel warning light illuminating. Of course there is NO shortage of rain today, also some planned for Sunday, what will be my first H.O.G. (Harley Owner's Group) get together. When I was in my late teens/early twenties - there was NO weather I wouldn't motorcycle in, including snow. I am much more picky nowadays. I am not keen on rain. So - wish me luck on Sunday. I would really like to putter around on the Quebec side with a bunch of Harley enthusiasts. It sounds like fun, and the breakfast at the river club looks good too. Good food & good company ... all I need is some luck with the weather.  With the recent leap in fuel prices, I don't think I'll have any trouble putting over $20 in the tank. My bike requires premium fuel. We will see just

March, in like a lamb?

I downloaded a countdown app for my iPhone so I could see how long before I get my motorcycle out of storage. The problem is that I don't know when that actually will be. It all depends on the weather. As a result I used the LAST accessible day I can get it out of storage. I think the last allowable day without incurring further storage fees is the following Monday, but May 12th is my birthday and a Saturday making the 150 km trip to the storage facility an interesting birthday present. Two months... how dreadful. Now I know for a fact there are folks on the road a lot sooner than my birthday so this is what has been bouncing around in my head as I grow more desperate to have my bike back. I don't just need warmish weather, I need ALL the salt rinsed off of the roads. The last thing I need is to accelerate any kind of rusting. Snowstorms in early to mid April are not all that uncommon but we have had several mild winters in a row. Apparently springtime is the time for fl

8000 km, end of season.

Tomorrow morning I ride to Ottawa to put the Softail to sleep until spring. She will be missed.

7500 kms - Autumn

It is October 11th and I have been taking wee runs to say goodbye to some of my favorite backroads. I am so lucky to live in an area with so many routes to choose from. It is a remarkably warm fall so far. The colours are amazing and still hanging on. The smell of burning leaves, fresh turned soil, horses and the heat from my engine. A heady mix. Still getting the odd person openly admiring the bike. Glad I got the one I did. It really is perfect for me. I am getting NO guitar playing or very much video game time as I really am trying to eke out the most kilometers before I have to store the bike until spring. I think the 93 octane gasoline available at the local Stinson's station seems to be a good match for the bike. I notice the already responsive bike is a touch perkier with the 93 in it. The photo is taken on Magnesium Road, Between Mine View Road & Queens Line. The road sign is the road that my wife's grandfather named after her when he built the subdivision.

5000 km

Just rolled past that milestone while driving by the "Big Stop" Irving gas station on Hwy 17 @ Hwy 41. Speaking of gas... I located a gas station that sells 93 octane gas... first fill up - just before Houston got hit by a tropical storm it was 1.33/L, bumped for the labour day long weekend. 3 days later... $1.43/L - my first $20 fill up (and the low gas light wasn't on yet.) For all of thet the bike just purrs with this fuel in the tank. I did take note of how quickly the tank depletes when one is hammering on the throttle. I think this octane gives the bike a boost. My takeaway lesson this week - Fog = wet. Who knew? Drove into work this morning in pretty thick fog. Serious issues seeing through the windscreen & legs soaked from the knees down. Don't imagine I have many biking days left this year. unsmiley