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It is the time of the year when I love to ride my bike everywhere. It has gotten a little hard to go everywhere on the bike since CC is with child now (Were gonna have a GIRL), the trade-off is worth it though. I love to feel the cold air chill my nads and long rides are not like they are in a cage. In a cage during the winter that heater can be your worst enemy. It is for me at least. Driving and hour to Nashville and an hour home can be pretty tiring, especially at the end of the day. Last year I took off the drivers side mirror to the truck. Fell asleep in a construction zone, woke up and swiiiinnng. There went the mirror, one of those fiberglass lane-seperation poles wacked it off. On a bike the cool/cold/freezing air will make sure you don't doze-off. If you don't have to stopp to warm your fingers up. Them water-cooled Jap-bikes don't get as hot in the winter as them Harleys. Takes a little longer to un freeze them pinkies. LOL.
The amazing thing is there are more motorcycles on the road now than in the summer. I have noticed a decline in motorcycle traffic during the summer for the past two years, but this Fall I think there will be a trend in Winter motorcycle riders, I hope at least. It has only gotten down to the mid-40's here in Middle-Tennessee this time and day, it feels good in the morning.
The only part I don't like is the ritual of putting on all the riding garb to keep warm. Leather jackets are for protection and not for warmth, that is a fact. Three sweatshirts, leather gloves w/thinsulate linings, thinsulate boots, loggers cap, and scarf are the required equipment at this time. In about anoter month and a half I will add the Military Bomber/Artic Mittens and Flight pants. Gotta keep warm you know. I will tell you what is freaky also, my father-in-law gave me a gortek jacket from LL Bean and it does twice the job that the leather jacket does. I doubt it would take the same asphalt skid absuse if there were an accident though. Have to trade off somewhere I guess.
I don't remember if I mentioned it, but I finished the trailer hitch for the Magna. Yea, I metioned it. I remeber talking about it when writing about the Gatlinburg trip this summer. I will tell you that I haven't taken that trailer off the Magna for over a month and a half. I use that trailer to pack all my stuff around where ever I go. A dude at school asked me the other day, "This may sound stupid, but what do you drag that trailer on your bike around for?" I pointed to my roll lugage that I put my books in and explained simply that it is easier to throw it in the trailer than to strap it down to the bike and have shit hanging everywhere. I would encourage anyone that travels distance to TRAILER THEIR BIKE! LOL. Get it ,Trailer Their Bike? I thought it was funny. Gives a new meaning to the phrase doesn't it.
I have access to a digital camera now and will get that pictorial of the chopper up real soon, in the meantime I will work on getting a page setup for the trailer hitch article and also on th trailer.
Later gearheads, REDBIRD.
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