Watch This Guy Riding On Top of a Mountain

This is pretty nuts.  Watching it doesn't make me half as nervous, though, as watching this video about climbing an antenna tower...

A Bit of Eye Candy

No idea what all the cups are about.

It's always fun to see what's lurking around the periphery at car shows.  In my always humble opinion, the "big deal" cars are usually the least interesting.  I'm sure your brand-new Lamborghini is a wonder, but I'm more interested in the details of the Locost hiding off in an unvisited corner of the show. 

Anyway, Lady Luck and I were at a car show this weekend and nearly tripped over this cafe racer.  This bike makes me want to misbehave in traffic.  Didn't see the owner around, unfortunately, so we weren't able to talk shop.

Triumph Gently Introduced To The Ground

Here's a rough way to start the day: realizing far too late that the kickstand is not up, and trying desperately to keep the bike from falling over all the way.

I tried to catch the bike in time, which I'm paying for now that the adrenaline has worn off.  Instead of keeping the bike upright, however, I fell hard into the side of a truck parked next to me.  At least my efforts slowed the Triumph's descent a bit.

Lifting the bike proved to be a problem, as there wasn't enough room between the Triumph and the neighboring truck to squat down and lift the bike the proper way.  Luckily for me, a guy was walking by and I was able to convince him he wanted to help me pick my bike up off the ground.

It looks like there wasn't any damage to the bike, or the truck I fell on.  I keep discovering new little pains as the morning progresses, but I hope a bit of soreness and embarrassment will be the worst of it.

No pics of the bike on the ground because, hey, the Triumph doesn't need that kind of humiliation.  Also, my first thought was, "get the bike back up," not, "take a photo."   I'm sure you can dig it.

A Thought About Running Late, As A Motorcycle Commuter

Well before being labeled a Viking (a label I am totally OK with, by the way), I was just a guy who knew he liked motorcycles.  A lot.  If I were to list all the motorcycle-related things I read and watched and purchased prior to actually getting a motorcycle, you might think I had a bit of an obsession.

I know that no one would make that mistake now, of course,

Way back in those long-gone days, I read an article about motorcycle commuting that said one should not ride if sick, angry, depressed, etc. etc.  And I suppose that's pretty good advice, assuming that you've got a car to get around with.

I don't.  I've got my choice of motorcycle or scooter.* 

According to that article, one of the many, many conditions for not riding is, "if you are running late."  The reasoning being that you'll be all distracted and panicky and will end up ground into hamburger underneath an 18-wheeler and then your family will be all sad and your important projects at work won't get finished.

Well, this morning I was running late.  My choice was Vespa or Triumph.  I considered the 15 minutes I'd save by riding the Triumph vs. the safety of a sedate scooter ride.  A wiser biker than me once said that when he had to make a decision about riding, he'd ask himself, what would Beowulf do?

And I figured Beowulf wouldn't be much for tooling along surface streets when he could be blazing a fiery trail down the HOV lane.

So I took the Triumph.  Arrived early.





*OK, I can carpool with Lady Luck, but it's a hassle for her to navigate through downtown Phoenix and I'd really rather ride on most days.  I could also take public transportation, which I've done a few times and again, I'd rather ride.

Smell Like a Bad Ass

Embarassing disclosure: I used to wear this cologne back in high school. I totally felt like a bad ass. I was justified in feeling that way, though, since I was a bad ass.

Also, for what it's worth, the ladies loved it. It was actually a pretty decent scent.

How Cold Is It Where You're Riding?

I got an email from Noam Sayin', sometimes commenter, always scholar and gentleman, mentioning that he's been enjoying some unseasonably warm weather (40 degrees F in Minnesota??) and has made the most of it by breaking out the bikes for a little winter mayhem. 

40 degrees is about as cold as it gets here, though we have had a couple days below freezing.  I know some of you guys ride in much colder weather.

So, if you're still riding right now... what kind of temperatures are you dealing with?

Fantastic Motorcycle Photos



Been there.

I stumbled across a blog chock full of fantastic biker-y photos and just had to throw out a link.  The image to the left is but a sample of the wonders and surprises that await you.

So, get yourself on over to The World Is Flat and check it out.

(Photo swiped from http://aproposfoto.blogspot.com/. I presume Michael Schmidt holds the copyright.)