A little bike work, and a return ride to Haverhill

I really noticed the problem when we were out Road Pickling back on August 18: my bike seemed to be making a lot of banging noises each time I’d go over a bump or even a dip in the road. It sounded like my saddlebags had come loose from their moorings, but I checked them and they seemed okay… so I chalked it up to just loose stuff inside the bags, rattling around.

Pretty naive of me, considering that we had previously noticed small puddles of shock absorber fluid on the garage floor on both sides of the bike. At our last stop on the Road Pickle ride, it was clear there was in fact a shock-related problem:

The following weekend I took the bike up to Big Barn to confirm that the shocks were both completely blown out. Disappointing, as they only had 7,000 miles on them. (It also happened to be “Demo Days” at the Barn, where they debuted the new 2014 HD bikes. Although nothing in the new lineup really grabs me, I did enjoy looking at some of the customer bikes.)

 Neither the Barn nor Progressive Suspension – the company that made the shocks – could provide free replacement since the parts were three years old and out of warranty, so we purchased another brand and Steve put them on for me during that following week. I was ready to ride again by Labor Day weekend.

As it worked out, Labor Day was the day we picked to ride so we decided to take a return trip to the Haverhill Social Club. We met up with Garry and Shirley shortly after Noon in Altoona where we got to see Shirley’s new-to-her bike, a Kawasaki 900 Vulcan in a really pretty dark metallic blue.

Our route to Haverhill took us east out of Altoona along County Road F48 to Newton, then we followed Highway 14 at Newton north to E63, where we turned back to the west to find Haverhill. It was a decent ride of about 60 miles, but it was the headwind direction and I had a crappy headache by the time we arrived.

We enjoyed our lunch at the Social Club and by 3:30 were ready to leave. We stopped at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in town, a century-plus Gothic style church completed in 1902, with a burgeoning parish dating back to 1877. (Sadly, the church closed in 2007 and is now only used for weddings and funerals of parish members.)

 The ride home seemed much easier than the ride up – we had the tailwind, for one thing, but for another it was just a prettier ride. We left Haverhill heading west on E63, and followed S62, F17, and S52 to the south to once again pick up F48.

It’s funny what a difference two weeks makes in the landscape here – the corn has that early-Autumn “glow” to it now, where the sun is a bit lower in the sky and makes the wide strapping leaves of the corn stalks seem to glow when lit from behind. The stalks are also starting to brown at the bottom, where just a couple weeks ago they were still fully green. And the soybeans are thick and healthy, dark green… when you get a large field of them, the breeze turns their leaves to the underside which creates a sort of silvery “wave” undulating across the field.

This whole route was so picturesque with old weathered barns and outbuildings, hilly fields of glowing corn and waving soybeans, groups of cows gathered under trees, and even some trees starting to change color.

We stopped in Altoona to say farewell to Garry and Shirley, then Steve and I proceeded on toward our next destination: Capital City Pub & Hot Dog, a restaurant not too far from our house, where we met up with friends Gerry and Janet. They had spent most of the day working, but had come down from Huxley for supper. We had a great couple of hours just catching up with them before we rode the remaining few blocks home.

The whole day was a lovely, 130 mile test for my new shocks, which passed with flying colors.

And speaking of flying colors, the ‘bike jewelry’ I added recently has also turned out to be a successful venture: I’m NOT getting whipped by either the fringe or the long strings of beads I attached to my clutch and brake levers. Hard to get a good picture of them, but I think they’ve added a distinctive and feminine touch to my bike.

Hope your August has been trouble-free! Have you had any mechanical issues, or made any cosmetic changes to your bike this year?

 

 

 

Road pickling with Sash & Highway

I had been a subscriber to the Motorcycle Philosophy blog for some time, reading occasionally via RSS feed. I always found Steve’s articles to be thought-provoking and appealingly personal.

It took me awhile, but I also eventually discovered Tina (aka Sash) on Twitter and at her blog, SashMouth, and was instantly struck by her no-BS style of writing and her “I gotta be me” attitude.

When I figured out that she was actually married to Steve (aka Highway) of Motorcycle Philosophy, and that the two of them were about to embark on a six-month nomadic motorcycle journey, I knew that the combined trip blog, “Road Pickle,” was going to be a must-read.

Via Twitter, I told Sash to get in touch if they found themselves headed through Iowa along their journey. Her answer was: “Janet, one of my dreams is to ride my bike to Iowa to see the corn. No kidding. I tell everyone!”

Corn? Oh hell yes! So much more, but corn for sure! Those tweets were in February – and in August, we made them a reality when Sash & Highway arrived in Iowa. Of course, they had already seen some corn by the time they got here – I don’t think there’s a path into Iowa that doesn’t include it.

But Iowa corn is different – legendary, even! – so I put together a little day-ride that featured corn and curves, food and friends, and, I’m happy to report, astoundingly perfect weather!

We met up in the parking lot of their hotel in West Des Moines, where the vivacious Sash came bounding out toting her sassy biker chick pal Asphalt Annie, the naked bed-headed Barbie with no blouse and sparkly pasties – and Annie’s pal Miss Ashley, supposedly a “calming influence” on her naked BFF, but likely, just as much a trouble-maker in her own right.

These three were followed shortly out the door by Highway, whose easy manner matches his blog perfectly. It was pretty obvious from the first moment you meet them that what you read on their blogs is just what you get in person: at once open, welcoming, enthusiastic, thoughtful… and one-of-a-kind.

In the parking lot, as Steve and Steve patiently chatted and possibly tapped their toes waiting for the girls to get going, I was interested to see how Sash had set up her digital camera for taking some of her amazing from-the-bike pictures: industrial strength Velcro and a “zip reel” played important parts.

I didn’t see Highway’s set-up, but both of them get amazing shots so, obviously, the only reason I’m not getting these same kinds of pictures is that I haven’t put enough thought into it. (Hand to God, I thought the amazing Mobile Eyewear Recorder was going to be the answer!)

I bungeed the startled Miss Ashley to my handlebar riser, and Annie took her spot with Sash over on the storied Ninja, Katie Scarlet. We soon took off for our first destination: the Nite Hawk in Slater, Iowa, where we were to meet up with Janet/Seven Over.

Our route took us through the suburbs of West Des Moines, Clive and Windsor Heights, into Des Moines and north up to Johnston, where I showed them the scenic half of the ride “up around the lake.” We cruised over the Mile Bridge over Saylorville Lake, where hundreds of gentle wave caps sparkled in the sun like a carpet of rhinestones on the water, and continued north through Polk City and up to Highway 210 into Slater.

 

The Nite Hawk is a casual bar-and-grille, situated along the recreation trail that eventually leads to the High Trestle Bridge just outside of Madrid. On this perfect day it was populated primarily with bicyclists. We met up with Janet, and were also soon joined by Susan (Coyote) and her husband Paul. Janet is a Road Pickle reader and was enthusiastic about meeting Sash & Highway.

Lunch was a wonderful mix of Road Pickle stories and other mutual motorcycling adventures… Sash even shared one of Highway’s food photography tips for making anything on a plate look irresistible. (“Focus on one element, and shoot at an interesting angle – it makes everything look delicious!” You can see this tip used to full effect over at RoadPickle.com!)

When it was time to depart, we accosted a friendly customer to take a group photo outside the Nite Hawk and we bid good-bye to Janet, who was headed home for a family birthday party. The rest of us headed back to Highway 210, which we rode west through Madrid, over the nearly-dry Des Moines riverbed and past the High Trestle Bridge, and through Woodward down to Highway 141. (Along the way I could see both Sash & Highway taking pictures, and thought, I’ve got to engineer this!)

We rode west briefly to Highway 169, where we turned south and headed toward Winterset and Madison County.

The Iowa road map is a little deceiving about a Highway like 169: from 141 down through Minburn, Adel, DeSoto, and into Winterset, it has very few curves. But those it does have are beautiful uphill or downhill sweepers, opening up views of gentle sloping meadows to the left and right.

And of course, there was corn! Bright green with golden tassles, covering large multi-acre fields and even homegrown garden-size patches. Each time we’d pass a large stand of thriving corn, I wanted to stretch my arm out toward it with a big “ta-DA!” so that Sash would be sure to take notice.

Arriving at Winterset, we pulled in to the Casey’s General Store for a break. While here we met a young man named Shane, who rolled in on a homebuilt chopper and told us he had ridden some 400 miles already that day. Nowhere to go and all day to get there, he said, just riding around on the bike he had built before he got the wild hair to sell it – which, apparently, is something he does often.

We left Casey’s and rolled through Winterset, making a loop to catch a few photos in front of the John Wayne Birthplace on South 2nd Street, and proceeded south along County Road P71 with its beautiful sweeper just outside of town. A few miles down the road we turned left onto G50 and headed east, past scenic homesteads and into the tiny town of St. Charles where we were to pick up R35.

I recalled from an earlier visit that the junction with R35 is not marked. As we rolled through a 4-way stop intersection I looked to the right and saw the paved road heading out of town, and knew I’d missed the turn, so we simply rode around a quiet block and turned left – sure enough, it was R35, marked a little after-the-fact about two miles down the road.

We traveled south for about 5 miles, looking for G68 – again, turns out, not marked. Took a chance on G68 being the right-hand sweeper instead of the straight-away (correct!) and we were headed back to the west along the Pee-ru road (snicker).

One thing I really like about this type of ride is the noticeable difference between the major roads like 169 and P71, and the lesser “interior” county roads. While the former are designed to get you through the county from one end to the other, and they have no shortage of beautiful scenery, the latter are designed to get the locals home. The landscape here is less about wide open fields of crops and more about pastures, hills, and the quietest of Main Streets. It’s a marked difference which you can almost feel as well as see.

We rode through Peru and back to P71, north into Winterset, and just a skosh further north past the Highway 92 junction to G4R. Turned east onto G4R and enjoyed a final stretch of curves, corn, and lovely homesteads while we made our way back toward Des Moines. Rolled through Cumming, Iowa (I’ll soon be sending Sash an “I (Heart) Cumming” tank top as an Iowa souvenir!) and on into Norwalk just south of Des Moines, at about 5 pm.

We stopped at the Casey’s in Norwalk for some final farewells, thank-yous and hugs. In all I think we enjoyed about 150 scenic miles. But the aspect of this ride I enjoyed the most – aside from showing off some of the prettiest roads in my home state – was the chance to meet and solidify friendships with two adventurous people who truly are living their dream of living life on their motorcycles.

What a treat to be part of the RoadPickle journey!

(P.S. – Thanks to Sash & Highway for almost all the photos in this post. I’m working on it! LOL)

 

 

On the other hand… riding solo part 2

Editor’s note: I was really interested to read all the comments about my piece on riding solo, both here on the blog and over on the Facebook page. Interesting points made on both sides of the question! Michelle Landry of Tylertown, MS sent me this wonderful accounting of her initial solo riding experiences, and I wanted to be sure to share it with you so I asked her to send some pictures too! This is kind of the “other side” of the story – what happens when you step wayyy outside your comfort zone, and make something great happen!

 

by Michelle Landry

After years of talking about bike trips that my husband and I wanted to take, I realized our work schedules were going to keep us from ever going together.

That was when I started thinking about taking a solo trip: Stay at home and keep waiting or stretch my wings and find out if I had it in me to have an adventure alone. Needless to say, my husband was skeptical that I would actually do it and was also concerned for my safety.

I researched different routes and finally decided on the Natchez Trace. I would never be more than 500 miles from home, no commercial traffic or red lights, and plenty of history and sights on The Trace. I spent the next several weeks packing, planning, and getting my bike ready. The morning of my trip I had butterflies from nerves and excitement.

I spent the next five days and 1100 miles riding the Natchez Trace solo. I rode a few hundred miles each day and camped or stayed in a motel at night. I even met another woman riding the Trace solo! We ended up riding together a couple of days and had such a good time we decided to plan a trip together, so this past June I rode 800 miles to Tennessee where I met my new friend!

We spent the next few days riding the entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway. We don’t have switchbacks or mountain roads where I’m from so this was really something new for me. It definitely challenged me and my biking skills but we had a great time. And we met another woman riding solo! This time I spent 2 weeks on the road and rode more than 2500 miles, over half of the miles alone.

What if? What if your cell phone charger breaks and your family can’t reach you? You pack a wall charger just in case and use it when you get to a motel. What if your bike breaks down 800 miles from home . . . in a rainstorm? You call Geico or whatever towing service you made sure to get and have it towed to a garage to get it fixed. And be thankful you put everything in Ziploc bags. What if you have a minor accident on the bike? You make sure you’re ok and then use duct tape and super glue to fix a broken signal light.

I’ve had a lot of what-if’s happen but I’ve also had incredible experiences out on the road alone. I’ve ridden some beautiful roads and seen some gorgeous scenery. I’ve also met some really great people. When you ride in a group, other bikers will talk to you, but when you’re a female riding alone, everyone talks to you. Safety is always my number one concern and I have left places because I didn’t feel comfortable. You really need to listen to that inner voice. And riding alone gives you a good chance to hear her.

Each trip has left me feeling more empowered. Stronger. I’ve met obstacles and dealt with them. Yes, I would love to take a bike trip with my husband. Yes, we would have a wonderful time. But that doesn’t mean I can’t have a wonderful time riding alone. I’ve discovered I’m not such bad company!

 

 

Crossing the line at Lineville

It’s no secret that I love riding curvy roads, especially the big sweepers and the set-lean/set-lean of a well-engineered S-curve. I’m fortunate that my home state has lots of these types of roads – so you can imagine the little squeal of delight that I let out the day I was perusing my state transportation map and saw THIS:

Just LOOK at that luscious little hunk of R52: a paved County two-lane (solid gray line) with no fewer than 14 curves in about 8 miles. It’s no Iron Mountain Road, but it looked like it had some nice sweepers.

As the stars aligned on a recent Saturday – up early, perfect blue sky, temps expected in the upper 70’s with low humidity (in Iowa, in AUGUST?? Are you kidding me?), and early evening before we had any other commitments on our time – I pulled up the To Ride list and there was good ol’ R52, just outside of Lineville, offering a lovely ride down and back and a happy little squiggle in the midst of it all.

We had set our plans too late to expect that others would be able to join us, so this ride was just myself and hubby Steve. (That’s okay, he’s my favorite riding buddy!) Our route took us south out of Des Moines on R63, which has become quite the bladder-buster in terms of horrible unrepaired bumps (seriously, Warren County, get on this ASAP – R63 from County Line Road to the T at G14 is terrible!)… west into Indianola on 92, then south along Highway 65 all the way to Lineville.

Highway 65 looks pretty straight, but it is still quite nice. The straight stretches gave us a chance to notice some of the details along the way: the distinct smell (and the humidity!) emanating from a truckload of recently-cut round haybales (“elephant turds,” Steve calls them)… the slow flutter of a flock of opportunistic predator birds lifting off en masse from their roadkill feast… and the sight of a horse merrily trotting up toward his barn, inexplicably dragging along a bright blue tarp that he had clenched in his teeth.

We stopped briefly in Humeston, a tiny town that seemed like it would be worth a return visit if only to check out the Army tank parked along the roadside. Proceeded south to Lineville and its neighboring community of South Lineville, Missouri, where we stopped again so that I could claim I left Iowa at least once this year and so that Steve could be photographed as the scofflaw that he is, without a helmet in a state where they’re required. We took a few photos of the Nothing Much that was going on – a slow Saturday in Lineville for sure.

After narrowly dodging the long arm of the helmet law in Missouri, we coasted back into Iowa and headed west along J66 til we picked up R52.

The happy little squiggle was indeed a lovely series of short straight-aways and gentle curves, lined with early-century homesteads, scrubby meadows, planted fields, and even the occasional junk-strewn yard: well worth the trip down, though it seemed funny that our destination was a road instead of a town.

We completed R52 and headed back to the north along Highway 65 from Leon to Osceola, where we cruised in to Chipps Harley-Davidson for a potty stop and a quick pass through the t-shirts and merchandise (closing in 15 minutes – WHAT??). Then continued on along Highway 69 to the north.

There was a point on the ride north where I was a bit startled – because normally I’m relentlessly scanning for these types of things – to see a single deer off to the right maybe a hundred yards ahead, having clearly just crossed the road and headed into the opposite field. My in-head dialog went like this as I started to slow: Uh oh, a deer, slow down, he might come back across, these guys can be really unpredict- HOLY SHIT THERE’S TWO MORE!!

Slowed wayyy down as two young ones crossed the road at the same spot, now maybe only 20 yards in front of us. It took me a few miles to ride out the pucker and get back up to speed – mentally kicking myself for slacking off in the hazard-scanning department, but really just a minor moment on an otherwise perfect ride.

We rolled through Indianola on 65/69, west along 92, and north again on R63 into Des Moines to complete the trip home. This trip kind of got me wondering, because we covered no less than six counties, just how many Iowa counties I’ve ridden to or through over the past decade-plus.

I’m going to count them soon.

 

 

 

 

It’s weird when I’m not in the lead

One of the things about the recent Divas ride to Haverhill that was really different – besides the unseasonably cool July weather – was the fact that I was not the one leading the ride. It’s unusual (though certainly not objectionable!) for me to be situated elsewhere in the pack, and it creates a really different riding experience.

Of course, the ride leader has the responsibility for plotting the route and keeping the group together as best she can, and getting the group re-united if separation occurs.

But the members of the pack have a responsibility, too, and it’s one I admit I haven’t had much experience with. It’s the responsibility to pay attention to what the rider ahead of me is doing.

Perhaps it was simply the novelty of not being the ride leader that turned me into a slacker. But whatever the reason, more than once, I found myself gawking at the scenery… blissfully unaware that my pal Dakota Coyote actually had her blinker on, signaling for an upcoming turn! In these butt-puckering instances, I not-so-blissfully hit the brakes, said a quick “Oh shit,” and managed to make the turn.

But not without kicking myself for shirking my duty! For you see, it’s not just my duty to pay attention for my own sake. It’s also my duty for the benefit of the rider behind me, so she knows where we’re going too, and so I don’t cause an accident behind me!

And here’s a tip that I haven’t really incorporated into my own “ride leader” repertoire, but will try to remember: hand signals REALLY help! Now I’m religious (pious, even) about using my electronic turn signals, wagging my foot when there’s something in the road, or pointing to one side if there’s a potential hazard such as a car inching its way forward from a stop sign. But I don’t typically use directional hand signals, and yet I noticed: while I might have easily missed Coyote’s blinking turn signal, I couldn’t help but see her arm hanging out, pointing left… or bobbing over her head, pointing right!

So the simple lesson is, pay attention! Responsibility to yourself and other riders doesn’t take a holiday just because you’re not leading the pack!

And now, for your further reading and purely as a public service, here are some common hand signals every rider should know:

*haha, no we’re not. Of COURSE we don’t drink and ride.

 

 

Solo riding

A few weekends ago, I had the opportunity to spend an entire day riding by myself. Call me a weenie if you must, but I am finding I am just not that into it.

Now make no mistake, I’ve done shorter solo rides and (usually) enjoy them when I do. A few times, I’ve simply wheeled the bike out into the driveway to give it a cleaning, and decided to take off for a putt without planning or fanfare. Those are usually short, sweet, and fun. (The very first time I did this, it was early in my second season of riding and was a bit of a revelation – it occurred to me that there was no reason on earth why I couldn’t just hop on and go for a blow-the-cobs-out test ride. So I did! And came back exhilirated!)

Sometimes, if I know I want to ride but it’s too late to invite anyone and hubby doesn’t want to go with me, I might even pick a nearby destination and ride that by myself. I think this is the type of thing my friend was referring to when she said recently that she admired me for taking off on the solo rides: feeling confident enough, when others don’t feel like going, to just do it anyway. What usually happens to me on a ride like this, is I start out really enjoying myself, but after a fashion start feeling guilty and thinking in terms of “shoulds” – I should cut this short, I should get some laundry done, I should spend some time at home.

My recent trip to Drakesville, with my family out of town and no “shoulds” on the horizon, morphed into a real solo riding opportunity and so became kind of a test. Originally, a couple of friends were going to go with me. But their schedule changed at the last minute, and I was just stubborn enough not to let that alter my plans. Instead, I decided to see if, given the opportunity to take a longer solo ride, I could become really comfortable with being alone on a bike trip.

But even with a full day to ride alone, I found that I could not get past the “what if something happens” mentality. It went beyond simply being aware of potential hazards and looking for escape routes. I won’t expound on this too much because I don’t want to get morbid, but I definitely feel there is comfort in knowing someone else will be around if something goes wrong.

Aside from the short solo rides which are enjoyable until I start to over-think them, I also know that there are people who yearn to take an epic solo journey such as a cross-country trip or even a continuous nomadic experience with no end in sight. They save for it, plan for it, dream about it. Some of them even take it. I would imagine it is life-changing. I am not sure why I don’t share this dream. Without making assumptions about other peoples’ motivations, I wonder if it’s because I don’t ride for “big” reasons like escape or self-discovery. I just ride to enjoy the landscape, the view, the towns and the oddities along the way.

Now maybe 227 miles just wasn’t enough time to put my negative thoughts aside. Maybe one has to ride alone for a week or a month or a year before catching “the bug” to take an epic solo journey.

Maybe I dream too small, think too much, and worry needlessly.

Maybe I’m just not there yet. Maybe it’s just not a place I’m headed.

What are your thoughts? Do you enjoy – or even prefer – riding alone? Do you always ride alone and yearn for a “merry band” to ride with instead? Are you planning or dreaming of an epic solo journey?

 

 

 

Divas ride to Haverhill

It would be hard to overstate just how much I enjoy discovering new roads and towns here in Iowa. It seems like every community, no matter how small or out-of-the-way, has a lovely route leading to it and at least one “gem” (a business, a landmark, an attraction, a view) to recommend it once you get there. This sentiment was only reinforced on my July 27 ride with the Chrome Divas of Des Moines to the Haverhill Social Club.

Haverhill is a tiny town in Marshall County with a population of 173 (give or take). And yet, even though it’s so small that Wikipedia measures its area in acres rather than square miles, it boasts both a lovely “ride in” and a few “gems.”

Our Chrome Divas chapter is still small, and of course not everyone can attend every ride. So our group on Saturday consisted of myself, Penney, Susan and Val. (Those who could not join us were sorely missed!) We met at Sambetti’s on 2nd Avenue in Des Moines (the official home of the Chrome Divas of Des Moines – a huge THANK YOU to Paul, Susan’s hubby, for his constant support of our little group!) at about 10 am, and left around 10:15.

Susan did a magnificent job of plotting our route, taking us along some absolutely lovely, curving residential roads through Ankeny, the Berwick area, and the town of Elkhart, then transitioning to equally beautiful county roads heading up to Highway 210. (I tried very hard to pay attention to the names of the various roads, but until we got to Highway 210, they were numbers like NE 126th Avenue – not easy to remember… so I will have to ask her for a map if I want to re-create this ride!)

From 210 we simply rode east – through lovely communities including Maxwell, Collins, Rhodes (where there was a car show and Farmer’s Market going on – “Old Settlers Days,” perhaps?) and Melbourne. Along this route we picked up County Road E63 which goes into Haverhill. It’s “lush and green” season here, with columns of 6-foot corn lining the roads then opening up to views of hills and lower-growth fields of soybeans and – much to my delight – the occasional sweep past a stand of modern windmills.

Arriving in Haverhill we parked in front of our lunch destination, the Haverhill Social Club – a humble little building on the outside and eclectic old-timey delight on the inside! It features a big open room where the walls are lined with taxidermied critters and odds and ends of all kinds. A huge bar spans the far end of the room. Wooden poker tables line one wall, from one end to the other. More tables line the other side, and there’s a large kitchen serving up good Iowa tavern food including burgers, tenderloins, and more.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed the lunch and the camaraderie – we couldn’t get over the weather! It had barely broken 70 degrees, and the wind was significant and noticeable. I was SO glad I had worn my heavy leather coat, lined gloves, and neck-gaitor, and was very comfortable despite a riding temperature (given our speed and the wind) in the low 50’s.

With lunch finished it was time to head out and toward home. We left Haverhill along E63 to the east, turned south on State Highway 14, then back to the west on 14/County F17 – where we encountered some pretty serious headwinds – and into Baxter. A quick gas stop at Baxter, and we were back on the road to home, down Highway 330 into Altoona, then to the west back into Ankeny and home.

My total mileage was 126 – others had a little more because I’m the one who lives closest to our starting point. I am looking forward to a return trip soon, to investigate a couple more Haverhill gems: The Immaculate Conception Catholic Church – a striking brick structure dedicated in 1902 – and the Matthew Edel Blacksmith Shop, of particular interest to me because I have at least one known blacksmith in my family tree!

 

 

Help! How do I Pack for Sturgis?

Here’s a question I recently received via email:

“I’m riding pillion with my friend to Sturgis – I haven’t ridden for awhile or been to Sturgis for even longer. What can I expect, and what should I pack, to go to Sturgis?”

With the 2013 Sturgis Rally coming up August 5-11, I decided to write up a full post on the topic (rather than just reply privately to the email) and also posed the question over on the BCN Facebook page. On Facebook, the consensus on how to pack is sensible and three-fold: 

 

• Take less than you think you need – you’re going to need less than you think.
• Use space-saving containers and methods wherever possible. 
• Take travel- or sample-sizes of bulky toiletries. 

I would also, of course, refer you to my helpful and amusing post from 2011, Load Your Bike with FLEAS, for more useful tips.

From my perspective, “what to expect” on your Sturgis trip and what to pack depends entirely on what you plan to do once you’re there. Are you going to ride? Or are you going to party?

Speaking personally, our trips in 2006 and 2009 were primarily about the scenic riding. The closest we came to a party was the wet t-shirt contest we happened upon when we strolled into the Sidehack during a downpour.

But I digress. :) Here’s a little more info that hopefully will be helpful without being preachy. I’m a mom, but you’re an adult. You don’t need me to tell you what to wear or how to have fun. :)

When you’re riding, the three primary things you can expect and pack for are wind, heat and rain.
Wind: Foam ear plugs really deaden the fatigue, noise and discomfort of heavy crosswind howling through your ears.
Heat: I found that a thin undershirt layer, with a white long-sleeve layer on top, is cooler than riding in a t-shirt. White, because it reflects rather than absorbs heat. Long-sleeve, to prevent windburn. You can always wet the long-sleeve layer if it’s unbearably hot.
Rain: It rains just about daily out there. Consider getting a rain suit if you don’t already have one. You might even consider wearing it.

The ear plugs, by the way, do double duty as post-partying equipment, because I suspect wearing them is the only way to get any sleep in the campgrounds. (It’s also been suggested to me that “drinking til you pass out” is the only way to get any sleep in the campgrounds. I haven’t tested that theory.)

Additional expectations:

• Heavy traffic
• Large crowds
• South Dakota requires motorcycle helmets for riders under the age of 18. Not required for adults. 
• South Dakota requires motorcycle handlebar handgrips to fall below shoulder height. Extreme ape-hanger bars don’t pass this test, JSYK. 

Additional packing tips:

• You don’t need clean jeans every single day. Clean underwear every single day, yes. But a couple pairs of jeans should last you all week, which is a huge space-saver. Facebook fans agree on this point. One even posted a video about packing for a bike trip, so be sure to look for it!  
• Take a heavy jacket. It’s less common, but still possible, that temperatures could drop. Our friends reported rain and temps in the 40’s the morning they planned to come home a few years ago.

 

Now it’s YOUR turn! If you have packing tips to add for our Sturgis-bound friends, share them in the comments!

 

2014 Indian Chief to be unveiled at Sturgis Rally

It’s only fitting that the much-anticipated 2014 Indian Chief motorcycle would be unveiled at the Sturgis Rally this August – it was a local Indian motorcycle club, the Jackpine Gypsies, that started the Sturgis Rally back in 1936. (You ARE much-anticipating this reveal, aren’t you? I actually *am* – I’ve always loved the “fully dressed” look of the Chief and hope that the latest incarnation retains some of its historic style elements.)

And, true to the heritage of the Indian Motorcycle, the Chief will be the first model to be unveiled in the new model year as the brand cointinues to emerge under the stewardship of Polaris Industries, which acquired it in 2011. First introduced in 1922, the Indian Chief is historically Indian’s most popular selling model and is widely regarded as one of the most iconic motorcycles ever produced.

The re-styled and re-engineered Chief, powered by Polaris’s ThunderStroke 111 engine, will be unveiled at the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum located at the corner of Junction and Main Streets, on Saturday, August 3 at 8 p.m. . The event is free of charge and features live music, celebrity appearances featuring Mike Wolfe of American Pickers, interviews with Indian Motorcycle team members, a multimedia tribute to Indian Motorcycle’s history and more.

Other Rally events centered around Indian Motorcycles include displays, demo rides, and, on August 9, Indian Motorcycle Night at the Buffalo Chip.

While Indian’s history hasn’t been continuous these past few decades, the industry will be watching -and Indian enthusiasts will be waiting a bit breathlessly – to gauge the level of commitment Polaris is willing to make to the brand.

The 2014 Indian Chief will be built at Polaris’s Spirit Lake, Iowa production facility with a starting MSRP of $18,999.

Sydney’s Wish Poker Run September 7

Sydney’s Wish Poker Run
September 7, 2013
Registration 10 am at The Fraternal Order of Eagles #109
6567 Bloomfield Road, Des Moines
Cost: $15 per person

Click here for the full flyer

In 2011, a young student in central Iowa named Sydney Schwienebart was driving her car on a rural road near Colfax, Iowa. According to news reports, Sydney struck a guard rail going around a curve. Her car went over the rail, flipped several times, and landed upside down in a creek. She died at the scene. Sydney was a senior at Southeast Polk High School, with plans to attend college and become a history teacher.

This week in my email I received information from one of Sydney’s family members about the Second Annual Sydney’s Wish Poker Run, coming up September 7. This run will raise money for the Sing Me To Heaven Foundation, which assists grieving parents with funeral expenses after the loss of a child. Funds will also be raised for the Sydney Schwienebart Memorial Scholarship Fund at Southeast Polk High School.

The loss of a child is certainly a parent’s worst nightmare – my own daughter, now 19, is just six months older than Sydney, and her personal safety has been a constant weight on my mind since the day she was born. It seems cliche to say it, but I truly cannot imagine the pain of something horrible actually happening to her.

But Sydney’s story touches my heart for another simple reason: The road on which she died, F-48, is one of my favorites to ride in central Iowa with beautiful curves and far-reaching views. I am sad and sorry to think that this road – which for me offers nothing but beauty and the joy of a motorcycle ride – holds such grief and suffering for another family.

I had not heard of Sydney and her story until this week, but I am grateful for the opportunity to learn about her many gifts and talents, and her dreams for the future. I wish her family peace, and I encourage you to enjoy the ride on September 7!

 

 

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