North Coast Toy Run

A small contingent of the bikes gathering for the Toy Run.

The coastal weather was glorious and warm mid-day on Saturday, December 3, as about fifty motorcyclists gathered for the 12th annual North Coast Toy Run in Fort Bragg. With my red leather jacket and Kawi green bike, I was decked out for the holidays! I added a bow to my mirror post, strapped on a bag of toys, and Ms. Santa was ready to go.

Tony and I were the only two riders representing the “sportbike” category amidst the remaining cruisers. Despite the slow speed inherent in such a ride, there is still a thrill in riding as a group for such a worthy cause. You can watch a short video that Tony made for the paper by going to my Facebook page.

Our local toy run generated about 175 toys for local children, so it was a good day, indeed.

My bike on left as we headed out.

Four Days of Twisty Fun

Tony with his Suzukiyamahonducatisaki, rarin' to go

My sweetheart, Tony, left this morning on the first 300+ mile day of the inaugural northern California Motomarathonevent. A Motomarathon is “about riding as many twisties as possible, over four full days. Routes are kept secret until the night before each event. Through a series of self-recorded checkpoints, riders verify completion at the end of each day’s ride.”

Is this man excited?

Needless to say, Tony is as excited as a new puppy with his first chew toy! He’s been working on his bike for the past three weeks: painting, polishing, changing the brakes, installing a new upper fairing and headlights (so he can actually see at night if he’s caught out after dark) and more.

Why, you might ask, am I not accompanying Tony on this ride? Very good question indeed! The reason is because this baby:

…is turning into this beautiful 14-year-old young lady, and a mom cannot miss her child’s birthday, even for a Motomarathon!

Time to celebrate!

So I’m a Motomarathon widow this year (sort of).

Next year? If there’s another northern California ride, and the timing is right, you’d better believe I won’t miss that one!

Motomarathoners: May your skies be blue, the pavement dry, the checkpoints easy to find, and may you have huge fun during your four day adventure!

Kawasaki Promotes Female Ride Day

I just had this come into my Inbox: Kawasaki is offering a $250 rebate (granted, it’s “gift card rebate” but still…) and a KawiGirl jacket for (the first 50 who register online) ladies who purchase a new bike from Kawasaki May 6-8.

Read about it here: Ladies It’s Your Time to Ride!

I’m glad to see at least one of the big bike manufacturers promoting International Female Ride Day by encouraging women to come and shop, so that they can ride. If I had the resources, I’d take myself down to Santa Rosa and pick up a new 2011 Versys and enjoy some super-comfortable long distance adventure touring on it… fit it up with hard bags, a taller windscreen, drop it an inch or so, and away we go!

Thanks to web-bike-world for this image, and their reviews of the Versys.

Ladies, don’t forget to get on your bikes Friday, May 6… and Just Ride!

A Symbiotic Relationship

Although I’ve heard about them for a couple of years now, I’ve just had the great fortune of meeting David Harris (in person) and Kelley Litle (via phone and email) of The Zen House.

This fascinating couple (he, a former architecture student turned mechanic and she, a recovering psychologist turned yoga instructor) now live in Point Arena, California, having removed themselves from the hustle and bustle of southern California. They’ve set up the most unique shop in town, and I’ve been told this is the new mecca for motorcyclists on the northern California coast.

We connected via a mutual friend/colleague, Dave Mathews of KopiaWeb. I’m truly thrilled to announce I’ll be working with Kelley on print advertising for The Zen House (watch CityBike for upcoming ads!). And… David has taken Big Green away to check her out and get her running again! I am excited by both sides of this symbiotic coin!

The Zen House will be sponsoring some upcoming super-cool events which I will be reporting about as details unfold. Stay tuned!

Progress Report: Kawi ZX6e

Disclaimer: I am not writing this post to invite anyone’s opinions about what I should or should not be checking on my bike, what additives I should be using, what screws to turn or parts to replace… I am merely writing to update those of you who know and care that I am—still—sorely missing my ride.

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Progress report? As you can judge from the above paragraph, there has been no progress forward, and perhaps some backwards, since I last wrote about my bike. My esteemed boyfriend-slash-mechanic, Tony, has been valiantly spending mucho of his precious weekend time trying to solve whatever ails my bike. He is fully as frustrated as I am. Carbs are clean, tank is clean, fuel filter is pristine.… wtf?

This weekend, while I traipse up to Eureka with a friend and our daughters, he’s got one last system to check out… but mum’s the word for now (because of said disclaimer at start of post).

My poor bike: she is scattered about in bits and pieces throughout the garage. The weather has been unseasonably warm, clear, and dry for three weeks now, and alas, I have not had a bike to ride—until today*. I would venture a bet that as soon as Big Green is up and running again, the rest of winter will descend with a vengeance—and she will sit some more.

This experience has been a lesson in letting go of desire (“desire is the cause of all suffering” —Buddha)… though letting go of the desire to ride is one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do. Even worse than childbirth—truly! Om mani padme hum…

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*Stay tuned for photos and stories of our latest acquisition.

Giving Sportbike Riders a Bad Rep

Guy on a 2008 Buell, drunk, fails to stop for CHP, evades officers and eventually crashes into another vehicle sustaining minor injuries for the vehicle’s driver (totalling that vehicle) and now in critical condition himself.

What is wrong with this idiot? Death wish? Thinks he’s above the law? Having a bad day? If you ride and any of these are the case… don’t get on your bike!

Come on… give responsible riders a break!

Women Ride, IMS Shows

I have now attended the International Motorcycle Show in San Mateo for the past three years. During the most recent show in November 2010, I volunteered a few hours of my time in the women’s area, titled Women Ride. I wanted to do my part to encourage women who might be thinking about getting on a bike for the first time.

The Women Ride area is graced with banners featuring photographer Christina Shook’s imagery from her book, Chicks on Bikes. For those who haven’t yet had an IMS come to a town nearby, make sure you go, if ONLY to see Christina’s photos. The imagery is powerful, and if you don’t yet ride, this may light the spark; I got goose bumps walking up to the Women Ride area and seeing Christina’s photos enlarged. I feel both a kinship with the women depicted and also a debt of gratitude to them for paving the way so many more of us can enjoy the sport of motorcycling, whether for commuting, touring, racing, or simply just the pleasure of being on two wheels.

Gin Shear and Sue Slate, of the Women’s Motorcyclist Foundation, are the driving force behind organizing the volunteers and seminars for the women’s center. They are incredible role models for riding, sharing enthusiasm, advice, wisdom and many stories of their decades spent on motorcycles. Women Ride also offers women’s riding gear to try on (with volunteers helping ladies get the correct fit), courtesy of the wonderful guidance of GearChic’s Joanne Donn.

I’m already looking forward to spending more time volunteering at the Women Ride center in 2011. It’s a great place to make connections, deepen friendships, and share my love of motorcycling with others.

Temperamental Beast!

“Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned,
Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned.”
—Will Shakespeare

If my motorcycle had feelings, she would be the woman scorned, having been ignored by me for the past few weeks. (Rain? Holidays? What else can interfere with the pleasures of riding?) She is certainly behaving as if she was spurned!

She runs smooth and strong when she’s getting ridden daily and weekly, but when left to sit for a few weeks, despite that she is well-loved* and garaged (no less), she simply does not live up to her usual standard of excellence!

As I attempted to ride into town today, the beast was shuddering and spluttering in the lower rpms, threatening to die at every stoplight and forcing me to keep up the revs in a range that I don’t usually even ride in. Upon filling up her tank with fresh fuel, my green beast refused to start again. (This is not uncommon; I’ve been stranded at this particular gas station more times than I care to recount!)

Finally… FINALLY… I got her going, and… nice weather be damned, I took her home because I lost faith in her reliability. I intensely dislike getting stuck and having to call for a tow or help, whether from Tony or AAA, and I just did not trust that big green was going to take me where I needed to go today. Hence, I became the woman scorned.

This sort of behavior has been common for my bike, and I wonder if the carbs of all ZX6e’s are particularly sensitive to lack of use.

I guess next winter, my choice will be to keep the beast drained of fluids and on the center stand, like many of my northern compatriots—paired with subduing all desire to ride until the bike is “unpacked” again at the beginning of spring—or to make sure I turn the bike on daily running through tanks full of fuel keeping her warmed up and operating smoothly.

I’m weighing my options. What would you choose?

*Eek! She didn’t hear me talk about selling her so I could by a sport-touring model, did she?

How did 2010 fare in the goal department?

In looking back over my first post of last year about my then-New Year’s goals, I see that my anticipated mileage goal was much less than my expectation. I ended up with 5,062 miles last year, far short of the 8,000-10,000 I was jonesing for, and less than my previous average of 5,500mpy.

Weather played a huge factor in my lack of miles: it has been exceedlingly wet here in coastal California. Now, I know that weather doesn’t stop everyone, and it would not stop me if I were properly geared up for riding in the rain. But I’m not. Yet.

I also ended up with a bad back for several weeks, and ended up with my daughter in tow more weeks than in previous years. With all the items we lug around for school and sports, the car seems to be a more appropriate form of transportation.

On the positive side, I have to say the majority of those 5,000-plus miles were incredibly fun, skill-building, and at times challenging. From meeting Stacy in Boonville and guiding her to our home on a dark evening in February; to my first solo ride in May; to an outstanding July trip with Cindi to the BMW Rally in Oregon, then up to Portland with Jim Redbird and company and a solo ride home; to our High Sierra adventure in October—with everything from mechanical issues to storm fronts and new places visited—the miles on the bike this past year have been exceedingly rewarding, as only riding and touring on a motorcycle can be.

This year, I won’t set any specific goals, other than to keep fit, keep riding, keep writing, keep loving, and to keep living in each moment. Who knows what this year will bring? I will await the unfolding of the days, weeks, and months ahead.

The year winds down…

I am painfully aware that, as my life this year became more intense—as a new business owner, mother of a teenager, and volunteer board member—my blogging decreased exponentially… no, it totally crashed and burned. I can’t tell you how many posts I began and never finished during these last several months. Posts to finish the telling of epic rides, posts to describe people I have met and ridden with, posts to detail adventures taken and motorcycle shows visited, posts to talk about gear and bikes and more… Posts that never got finished because I was too busy, too stressed, too tired, or just plumb too out of time to write.

(sigh………)

But no matter. Tomorrow is indeed another day. Yes, I will live to ride—and to blog—another day, or another week, or another month, but certainly, it will be another year: 2011.

In the meantime, the least I can do is to share a few reminiscences of people I was fortunate to meet this year, new-found friends with whom I share a passion for motorcycling, and I am so grateful for having each of you in my life, no matter the capacity:

• Stacy, who visited in February during an epic solo journey (which inspired my own solo ride in July, riding home from Portland, 528 miles over two days time) and then gracious host when I returned the visit in April;
• Greg, who took a chance on me and got me started in social media marketing, and whose adventures I share vicariously through his words, videos and images;
• Judy, the dynamo behind MotorcycleTravelAmerica.com and an all-around bundle of great, good energy and enthusiasm for our shared love of motorcycling;
• Dan, he of all things tech, answerer of many questions, connoisseur of good food;
• Jimmie, minister of doughnut technologies, he of calming influence and rescuer of children from the airport… not to mention exquisite ride leadership and brilliant to watch in the corners on that twelvfiddy;
• the rest of PDX Sportriders—Albert, Don, Bill, Rooster, Rob—all really nice guys, fun and funny, and every one of them seriously kick-butt riders; I can’t wait to hang with you all again in 2011!

And the women with whom my friendships deepened this year: Cindi and Christina. You each add wonderful components to my life, and may I always return the favors of hospitality, selflessness, laughter. Ladies, let’s ride!

To those with whom I correspond but have not yet met… I’ll hope to meet you on the road soon!

Here’s a last photo for the year from our Eastern Sierra adventure in early October, along a stretch of the three dusty unpaved miles to the ghost town of Bodie. Who says sportbikes can’t go adventure riding?

Wishing safe journeys and smooth roads to all in the new year…