Angels for Sam benefit ride June 12

And the winner is…

Selected via Random.org, the winner of the J&P Gift Card is….

Comment #4, Froggi Donna!

I honestly wish I had more of these to give away – I REALLY enjoyed reading everyone’s comments and I appreciate each of you popping in to enter the contest!

 

J&P give-away expires soon

UPDATE: The J&P Gift Card Give-away ends at 10 pm central, June 8! Click the link below for your chance to win!

Just a quick reminder that the J&P Gift Card Give-away ends June 8! Click here to enter for you chance to win!

J&P Cycles gift card give-away – enter here!

A few years ago, I created a list of must-have accessories – my favorites at the time were a windshield, loud pipes, hand grips, saddle bags, and bling. That post just might be due for an update soon… I’ve since learned that a luggage rack, rider backrest, and highway pegs are pretty important items too, at least for me. Fortunately, one of my favorite retailers offers all of this and more. And, even better: they’ve once again invited me to give away a gift card!

J&P Cycles wants to give a $25 gift card to a lucky winner from Biker Chick News! If you’d like to be in the drawing to win, just leave a comment on this post with your answer to the question: “What’s the best accessory you’ve added to your bike?” If you haven’t added any, you’re not doing it right! just leave a comment so I know you’d like to win!

The winner will be chosen via random.org on June 9, so leave your comment (one per person) before end-of-day June 8. And, be sure to include your email address when you fill out the comment form so I can contact you if you win! I promise not to share the email addresses.

J&P is a leading retailer of after-market motorcycle parts for Harley, Yamaha, Honda, and other makes/models. They have specialty lines for vintage and racing bikes, too. AND – every year they host a fantastic Open House weekend at their Anamosa, Iowa location. So come on up, down, or over June 25 and 26 to the 2011 event!

And, don’t forget to leave your comment on this post to be eligible to win the gift card!

Disclaimer: As with the previous J&P Give-away, I was not compensated to promote their company or their website. In exchange for the links I’ve given them above, they are giving a gift card to a BCN reader.

 

Have you ever…

…Imagined you are looking down from above at your bike as it moves down the highway, giving you a sense of how small you really are in the world?

…Imagined a particular soundtrack playing along with the above “movie scene”?

…Happily recalled days on the bike that were terrifying at the time, but appreciate them now because they make such good stories?

…Noticed that when you ride or drive on a brand new street in your hometown that it just feels really weird, like you aren’t even in the same city?

…Suddenly had to make an emergency head call the moment you got the last of your gear snapped or zipped?

…Wagged your foot at some roadkill to warn your pal behind you, only to remember you’re riding alone? (Cagers MUST wonder what that’s about! LOL)

…REALLY wished you would’ve remembered to put the kickstand down?

Okay, your turn! Just for fun, start with “Have You Ever…” and add your best bike-related question in the comments!

Traveling? Load your bike with FLEAS!

Whether you’re already an expert, or brand spankin’ new to traveling long distances on a motorcycle, it’s important to know how to properly pack and load your bike. Your goal, of course, is to maintain the bike’s overall balance and center of gravity so that maneuvering isn’t any more difficult with the added weight of luggage and stuff.

Like every good problem-solver these days, I’ve devised an acronym to help remember how to most effectively pack the bike for a trip. So get ready to pack your bike with FLEAS!!

Forward - Keep your load forward, meaning over or in front of the rear axle when possible. A load that is too far to the rear can affect turning or braking, or cause the bike to wobble. Use common sense,  of course: a tankbag, while certainly forward, should not interfere with your ability to manage steering or hand controls.

Low - Keep your load low, meaning inside saddle bags as much as possible. Of course, this isn’t always possible – just remember that a load carried on the passenger seat should not be stacked too high, and should not be allowed to shift when traveling. (When we traveled to Sturgis, I had to learn to swing my throw-over leg over the luggage bungeed to the sissy bar, but I didn’t feel like the bike was unbalanced. It felt like I had a lightweight passenger on the back.)

Even - Distribute weight evenly between saddlebags so the bike doesn’t want to list left or right.

Accessible - Keep important items accessible even when the bike is packed. Rain gear, cell phone, tool kit, camera… whatever is on your must-have list should be available easily when you stop for a break, so you don’t have to unpack the whole bike just to get to them.

Secure - Goes without saying you should batten down the hatches as completely as possible, especially if you have a T-bag, roll-bag, or other “loose luggage” to attach to the bike. I use multiple bungee cords, criss-crossing them over the bags and making sure they are super-snug. It’s also helpful to know your bungee plan when using multiple cords.

I hope FLEAS can help you remember how to pack for a trip… oh, I crack me up!

A penny for your (riding) thoughts

Somewhere around the Internets the other day, the question popped up as to what one thinks about while riding. I think that for beginning riders, this is a tricky question – you are most likely thinking about the safe and proper operation of your bike, as well as simply trying not to panic. (Maybe that was just me…)

For me, now that I have almost ten years of riding under my belt (!), I can honestly say that I primarily think about three things: hazards, scenery, and my own cool factor.

I’m totally serious. The thing I think about most often is still identifying potential obstacles or hazards and how to compensate for them. When riding in traffic I’m dodging potholes, looking for that guy backing out or turning left, and watching that green light that I KNOW is gonna turn yellow just when I reach the point of having to make a snap decision on whether to stop or go.  When riding on the highway I’m looking for upcoming curves, road damage, and animals both alive and (as a TV reporter here once actually said) “others not so alive.”

Second most-commonly, I try to grab appreciative glimpses of the scenery around me. This is tough to do given how aware I try to be of the road and potential hazards, but every once in awhile I find myself going, “Wow, that’s pretty!” as I come around a curve or crest a hill. There’s also a point in South Dakota, just outside of Rapid City, where you can suddenly smell the pine very distinctively. And in Iowa, at this time of year, you can easily catch whiffs of lilacs and other flowering plants out on the two-lane highways. I try to have as many of these “awareness moments” as I can every time I ride.

The third most-common thing I think about is just how hotsy-totsy I really am. I definitely think it’s cool that I ride a bike… that I ride this bike… that I faced some riding challenges and overcame them… that I have friends who are happy to accompany me on my little adventures, or to invite me along for theirs. It’s a great feeling to have conquered the new-rider jitters, and to realize that at that moment I’m very lucky to be doing something I absolutely love to do.

So how about you – what do you think about most often while riding?

Mustang introduces LowDown seat

You’re not expected to remember this, but a long time ago I ran the Picky Bitch with a Mustang solo seat. The rider’s backrest was a life-saver on the 2006 ride to Sturgis as well as the Estrogen Ride, but the trade-off was that the seat sat me an inch or so higher on the bike, and I was no longer flat-footed.

It looks like Mustang is beginning to address this problem with the new “Lowdown” seat, which sits a full 1.5 inches lower and has a narrower “nose.” This is a great feature for comfort and safety – I can tell you my Sportster solo seat would have been absolutely perfect if it had been a skosh lower. (Just look at all that down-in goodness!) The Lowdown is currently available in plain or studded finishes, with or without driver backrest, for the Harley Davidson touring line.

I asked the folks at Mustang what their plans were for the Lowdown – they told me they’ve only been offering it for a couple months and that there are currently no plans to expand it to the Sportster or other HD lines. (But, guys, you should totally think about it! I would’ve killed for this seat … well not literally, but, you know… when I had my 883!)

Hat tip to the venerable Cyril Huze Blog for alerting me to this new development! Photo of Lowdown seat snagged from Mustang website.

Sh*t hits the fan for local bike night event

Big debate going on here locally this week – what started out as a great new free “bike night” event in Des Moines (including classic cars/hot rods) is embroiled in a PR controversy because they have added a mandatory $5 fee to be collected at the gate that is supposed to be exchangeable for food or beverages on-site.

The explanation from organizers is that this is not a fee to attend the event – it’s just a way to ensure that everyone buys something from the concession stands, which “keeps the event free.”

But, the thing is – the $5 is mandatory for everyone over the age of 12. So, you can’t attend the “free” event unless you pay $5 at the gate for food/drinks you may or may not want. To me, that makes the event no longer free, because you can’t attend without paying. (Unless you are 12 and under – but, last time I checked, that age group is not really able to bring bikes and cars to a show… well maybe Big Wheels and Barbie Jeeps, but I digress…)

Overall I think the organizers of this event would’ve been far better off just admitting that they’re implementing a cover charge, and let the chips fall where they may. Trying to set it up (or “spin it,” for you cynics) as a “mandatory coupon” just doesn’t work.

Another problem for this event: parking was limited last week to just a few streets on our very large state fairgrounds, where before it had been more broadly spread out. Now, the bikes are forced to park 3 and 4 columns deep along one main street with the only overflow being a single column down a side street. If your bike is parked on that main street along the curb, you’re there for the duration whether you want to be or not because there’s no way to get out with all the bikes parked in front of you.

Between this and the spin over the cover charge issue, we probably won’t go back to the event any time soon. And that’s too bad, because it was a neat opportunity to see lots of great vehicles!

What are your thoughts? Do you pay to attend “bike night” events? Do you purchase food and drink from the vendors that are present? If you’re local, what are your plans for attending this event? (If you represent this event, my facts – and my opinion – are based on what I’ve read on your Facebook page and on your printed material. Do tell me if I’ve mis-represented your case!)

Highway peg installation: a sort-of how-to

Steve gave me a set of highway peg mounts and footpegs for Mother’s Day, so we had the idea of making a video showing how easy they are to install. Don’t even THINK about pointing out technical errors – I never said I knew what I was doing, but we did have fun making the video!

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