Friday, January 30, 2009

Medford to Corte Madera (367 miles)

Today was the reason why I ride. It was foggy, cold and icy on the passes so I waited to leave Medford until about 11:30 or so. Once I got up and out of the Medford valley, I encountered perfectly clear skies, warm sun and the best riding conditions one could hope for. Yesterday's misery made today even more perfect.

There are perfect moments where the rhythm of the turns, the thrum of the motor, the warmth of the sun, the hawk flying overhead, the beauty of the forest, all come together and you feel a sense of flow that is unlike anything else. It is seductive, a sensation of oneness with the road, the bike and the world. I want more. This is why I ride, for those perfect moments, the sense of freedom. The Siskiyous were incredible.

I-5 becomes distinctly straight and boring from Redding on. But that's okay, 'cause I got to shed my layers of fleece and open up the throttle. Also in Redding was an impressive display of law enforcement on the other side of the freeway, which had been shut down after they arrested an apparent bank robber. Since most of the CHP seemed to be congregated in the vicinity, I figured they were otherwise occupied thereby letting little ol' me ride a steady 75-80 mph.

God, it's good to be warm. Tomorrow, I'm riding out to Point Reyes and maybe up Mount Tamalpais if there's time. You see the world from a different perspective on a bike, and I can't wait to smell the ocean.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Bellevue to Medford (450 miles)

I discovered something today. It's really, really stupid to take the electric gloves and not take the electric jacket. Specifically, I froze my ass off. It was foggy and 40 degrees through most of Oregon, with occasional sun breaks. Riding at 75 mph, I figure the wind chill made the temps down to something like 20 degrees or so. My toes were numb, my arms were cold and I finally broke down and bought more fleece at the local Joe's in Lake Oswego. And foot warmers. I could barely move after assembling all the layers - long sleeve tee shirt, turtleneck fleece, new fleece jacket, Cordura Harley jacket with liner. I gained 20 pounds I didn't need to gain just in layers. I felt like the kid in The Christmas Story; I'm quite sure if I'd fallen, I couldn't have gotten up. But I was warmer.

I also discovered that trying to listen to in iPod while riding at 75 mph and with loud pipes is a fruitless exercise. I may have to buy one of those Bluetooth helmet rigs so that I can listen to tunes. I will say that the Garmin Zumo 550 GPS is one of the best purchases I've ever made. For you non-riders, it's a motorcycle-specific GPS with large type so that leather-clad fingers can use it. Very cool. Very useful. This is its maiden voyage.

Other observations of the day: There are a lot of sheep in Oregon. Cute little lambkins, gamboling about. Man, they're good with garlic and rosemary rub! There are a lot of twisty passes requiring intense concentration. My brain hurts. There are idiots who drive U-Hauls and think it's a good idea to pull into my lane going about 40 mph, when I'm going about 75 mph, thereby giving me the opportunity to practice my braking skillls. And exercising my middle finger.

When I pulled up to Thor and Farida's place in Medford, it took about half an hour before I stopped feeling as if I was vibrating. We had a lovely Italian dinner and talked about old times. I've known Thor for 32 years. Gack. How did we get to be this old? Tomorrow, I have another cold morning to look forward to as I head over the Siskiyous and into California. And the further south I go, the warmer it will be. And Richard is being a sweetie and UPS'ing my electric jacket and electric socks to me in Santa Barbara so that I won't be miserable on the way home. Thanks, honey!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The First Solo Bike Trip

I'm not working, and I'm tired of looking at the same four walls. It's been a long time since I last visited with some of my friends and family. So I recently got the idea of doing a solo trek to see them, head toward warmer weather and have my own little adventure. I have a window of decent weather and I'm taking off tomorrow to ride from Bellevue to Santa Barbara and back. The total mileage will be somewhere around 2,300 miles, plus side trips. I'm going to write about what I see and experience along the way. I'm leaving early on Thursday, January 29th, heading to Medford as my first stop.