Thataway Ride (July 26, 2014)

 Turned out to be a good day for a ride. Sure was hot and humid, but one of those rare days when it felt good riding...was not that "hot air" feeling. Headed up VA60 (aka "The Midlothian Turnpike"). Did make a stop at Ultimate Cycle, which moved from close to my apartment (relatively) to much further away (some 21 miles to be exact). Nice dealership though not real impressed with the service department. Took them three times to replace a leaky seal.
All that said, nice to visit, and did enjoy getting there, and the points beyond....    

Saw a sign to Historic Powhatan, so ended up on VA13 (first time on that road) and stopped here at the historic courthouse (dates to before the Civil War). In fact, the Confederate Army came through here following the fall of Richmond on their way to surrender to the Union Army. Was a very neat town....also passed thru Tobaccoville and a few other little towns (including the very interesting one in the bottom photo). Nice road, passed a lot of nice houses, lots of corn and (of all things) Sunflowers in huge groves, and the road itself was very fun to ride. Lots of hills, curves and the road was (mostly) tree lined.  

Total ride on this day was some 92 miles, headed back the way I came (13 came off of 60 and ran back on it further down) with a lunch stop at Chick Fil A (had not had that in a long, long time.
It was a whole lot of fun, which got even better on Sunday when it rained buckets. Did go to the Redskin Training Camp though, that is on my Richmond and Me blog page.

BBQ Road (July 20, 2014)

 Nice Sunday ride-a little warmer than the day before, and a little more humid, with a lot more cloud cover, but a good day to ride.
Took this photo in Church Hill (a section of Richmond, VA) and one of my favorite views of the city (though in this case, blocked a bit by my bike). Headed out around 11am and the goal was to get a bit of lunch. Liked that idea, made a last minute charge. Been going to Moe's Southwest Grill, but this time decided some BBQ was in order. Had not been to Alamo BBQ in some time.

This is Alamo, which is in Church Hill also. You can either take it home or eat outside (I went with the eat outside option) and got the BBQ sandwich with texas beans (with bbq is how they make those). They don't have alcohol so had an Arnold Palmer-tea with lime juice (and very tasty) as was the food. One of my favorite places to eat and had not been there for a while, so enjoyed it a great deal.
Church Hill is a very interesting place, going through a lot of changes, but a lot of fun things there to see, eat, and explore. One of the largest civil war hospitals (North or South) is located there (though the buildings are all gone) .  

While at Alamo saw this Honda Shadow (think its a 750). I have a great fondness for these bikes...my previous bike was a Honda 600 Shadow and rode it for 36,000 trouble free miles.
Ride Sunday was not real far, though did finish up with a ride down Midlothian Turnpike. Clouds were building and thought parking it for the day was a good idea..as well as winding down to get ready for the workweek ahead. For the weekend got a total of 95 miles, most of which was Saturday, but some really great time on the Vulcan this weekend. Been lucky on those...so far weather wise for quite a few weeks in a row.  

Battlefield Ride (July 19, 2014)

 Very interesting ride....got out today to some favorite places; three Civil War battlefields in the Richmond, VA area. Got to say there are a lot of them here; some of them minor, and many major (as these are). Had not been there in some time, and got to travel some new roads...some great riding. VA 33 and VA156 were remarkable roads...hilly, curvy and scenic. Went past horse farms, farms, and just country.
It was one of the best rides in Virginia...if I had known this (or remembered would have done this sooner...but nonetheless on to the sights.   This first was taken at Malvern Hill which happened on July 1, 1862. It was one of the best uses of artillery in the war, Union forces defeated a confederate attack with some 40 cannon and 8,000 men. No one entrenched...they just stood and fought. It was the last battle of the Campaign called the Seven Days Battles.

This is my motorcycle at the second of the three battlefields I visited. The battle at Cold Harbor lasted for a couple of weeks with the major action on  June 3, 1864. Unlike The Seven Days Battles, where the Union Army was under the command of General McClellan, this time they were under the command of US Grant. Once again the Rebels were under General RE Lee. Lee stood behind 6 miles of earthworks and the Union Army charged them on June 3 in an early morning attack. Some 6,000 union were killed or wounded in something like 30 minutes. Over two weeks both armies suffered around 16,000 killed or wounded.
Grant later said,  "I have always regretted that the last assault at Cold Harbor was ever made...no advantage was gained to compensate for the heavy loss we sustained".    

Very near Cold Harbor, is the Gaines Mill battlefield, which goes back to the first set of Seven Days Battles. June 27, 1862 McClellan met Lee and by nightfall both armies had suffered some 15,000 casualties. The house there was the HQ for the Union Army, now privately owned, it was built in 1820.
The battles can be found in a lot of US history, and also there are some videos on YouTube with some more information. All in all I rode some 80 miles on a very fine day, with low humidity and normal heat for this time of year. I had a remarkable time indeed!

Weekend Rides (July 12-13, 2014)

Good weekend of riding, though hot and humid both days. On Saturday the 12th rode out (via the backroads) to Short Pump where I had lunch at Buz and Ned's (my favorite place for cue in the RVA) and then a few more miles around the area. Did not go very far, but got to see some neat sights (here I have the bike on The Boulevard) and enjoyed the ride. Felt real good while moving, a bit toasty when I was not.
As I did when I was on vacation, brought the bike back to the apartment and put it under the motorcycle cover to get a quick Sunday start.  

After laundry and a little more apartment cleaning, rode to Moe's for lunch. This is just some art in Richmond, they are big on that here, and I thought it would be cool to get my Vulcan...another piece of art in front of it.
Again, a very nice ride.....a bit warmer but rode up past some really impressive houses. I also like riding Sunday in that the traffic is usually pretty light (at least early on) and its quiet on a Sunday. Good rides this weekend, ended up with a total of around 70 miles...not a lot of distance, but did get a lot of smiles from the seat of my motorcycle.  

Vacation - the last day (July 7, 2014)

 Oh well, all good things must end...so it does with vacation, but over the past few days have had some great rides. So it was today, another beautiful day. Have been lucky - all these days off, and no rain. In fact very few hot or humid days (and strangely that will restart with the first day of work...tomorrow) .
Got in a nice ride...got out to the Redskins training camp...actually a Chicago Bear fan, but still thought it was cool last year going to the camp, and will be back there this year.
The Redskins (least that is the name for a while) practice in Richmond, VA as of last year.

This is a photo at Velocity, which is my favorite motorcycle shop...they do stuff for a fair price, and do the work right. Sell Royal Enfield motorcycles, and some used bikes....such as this Kawasaki 900 and the Honda 750 Custom behind it.
Was a good ride, went to Carytown for lunch at Mellow Mushroom (love that place) and also to Legend's for a while too...just to sit and enjoy the river.
Last three days I have gotten in 100 miles, not a lot of big rides, but a lot of rides. The one big ride was a few days ago, the ride to Hampton, VA to the air park and Fort Monroe. I had a great time, though the highway traffic was something.
Will look forward to doing this again in a few months, had a lot of luck though with weather and ...well sometimes a plan just comes together.
Hope all have some great rides. Been a lot of crashes lately which I have read on the forums....be sure to ride safe. Motorcycling can be a dangerous thing.
 

Post 4th of July Rides (July 5 and 6, 2014)

Did get a good ride in on a beautiful Saturday....was not far (around 50 miles) but did get to roll down VA 5 a bit, and got this photo of Richmond at Rockett's Landing which is a beautiful place to get some good photos of the city. Was a nice time riding, and had good lunch (not too far from the apartment at a restaurant called "Galley" which was really good. Enjoyed having a (for the very first time ever) a "Breakfast Salad" which was really nice.
Was nice to get out, wanted to get the ride in and rest some...went to a fireworks display (which was great) later that night. Had a really fine ride though!!!!

On Sunday, in what is becoming a pattern rode to Moe's on Three Chopt Road to have lunch...getting quite fond of that ride and its a nice area. Night before a friend of mine had some dog issues (had to take the dog to the emergency vet, but could not lift it) so I came over and helped (Zeus is a neat dog) . We were at the emergency vet (in Carytown) till 3am; so did not get much sleep. Kind of cut this ride a bit short, but still enjoyed it...as it was a fantastic day. Last three or four days have been remarkable in that temperatures and humidity have been low, and that makes for some of the best riding there is. Here I am on Grace Street, love those pillars (or whatever you call them) and my bike is in the foreground.
Was a good ride, later rode to Cary Street Cafe for a glass of "refreshment" and a bit of the Sunday paper. Nice place to hang out for a bit. Went around 30 miles...so did both days something like 80 miles, some nice riding on a great weekend. Got one more good day tomorrow..the last day of my vacation.

Post Hurricane Ride (July 4, 2014)

Nice ride on a Friday....beautiful day following the "storms" though in Richmond we got very little rain (none from the Hurricane, only a bit from the front that passed thru from the other direction). Rode down 360 to Amelia,Va and back. Stopped for lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings (also on 360) they have a good weekday lunch special. Temperatures were in the low 80's, humidity was not a factor at all..there was blazing sunshine.
Photo at left was taken on Hull Street Road, another bonus was being the 4th of July traffic was real light...and like that.    

Stopped in Manchester (a section of Richmond) to check out Firework viewing sights (big display on July 6) and got a surprise Scoot Richmond is now also a Triumph dealer. Saw this Bonneville but they also have a number of Triumph's there...looks to be a full line dealer. Nice shop and now the only Triumph dealer in Richmond. As I have noted they do not have any BMW, Ducati (and a few other brands) here in the RVA. Enjoyed checking out these motorcycles.
Was a great ride, covered around 80 miles, and planning to get a few more miles in over the weekend, weather is going to be more of the same.

Hot Rides in the RVA (July 1-2, 2014)

 Whew! With heat indexes rapidly riding to the low 100's not been the best weather for some motorcycle rides. In traffic it gets toasty but did get some short rides in early in the morning. Took this photo at Shockoe Hill Cemetery in Richmond...very historic place- John Marshall, 3rd Chief Justice of the US is buried there, also a great number of Civil War and even Revolutionary War soldiers. There is also a famous Union spy, girlfriend of Edgar Allen Poe, and a number of Richmond mayors along with one Virginia governor. A very interesting place in a city that is full of them.

Running an errand made a quick stop at the Museum of the Confederacy where outside is this propeller shaft of the CSS Virginia. Converted to an ironclad from the scuttled USS Merrimack the Virginia sank two wooden Union Ships and damaged a third on March 8, 1862 at Hampton Roads (real close to where I was a few days ago during the Fort Monroe visit.) That night, the USS Monitor arrived (at Fort Monroe) and engaged the Virginia the next morning. Both ships fought to a draw. The Monitor was later lost in a storm, the Virginia was blown up in Norfolk, Va when Union forces recaptured the Navy base on May 11, 1862. Both ships though changed the history of Naval warfare.
Enjoyed the rides both days, though the heat got me back in early. This is good weather for morning rides or later evening rides (though tend to get storms in the late afternoon heat). Was fun being out though and enjoyed visiting these two places...again.    

Two days in the RVA (June 30-July 1, 2014)

 On  the last day of June took a ride to Midlothian Mines in Midlothian, VA. Nice set of trails and they have added some things to it-in a park across the street.
This building is over what was the "Grove Shaft" which was some 665 (give or take a few) feet deep. In 1882, a methane gas explosion trapped 32 men at the bottom of the shaft. They are still down there today.
Actually rode twice, on June 30, went to the mine and some other areas, and then that night went to the dentist (teeth cleaning) on it also.    

June 1 went to Shockoe Hill Cemetery, like with many places here it is full of history. A number of notables are here, which includes a former Chief Justice, a relative of George Patton, a few Civil War spies, governors and mayors, a girlfriend of E.A Poe, and quite a few soldiers from the Civil and Revolutionary Wars. It is a very cool place.
This was my second visit, but enjoy checking it out....course I love history and this is certainly the city to be in for that.
As the temperature rose today, headed toward Carytown and my date with lunch.  

Did get to ride on Monument Ave which has been named one of the most beautiful streets in America. There is a lot to see there, besides (if you can believe that) the monuments there. For there are also some very interesting houses to see.
Was a great ride, though this one was not very far. I did make a stop in Carytown to Mellow Mushroom (one of my favorite places to eat - have been a fan since I ate at my first one in Asheville, NC. Good food and a fine beer selection.
So anyhow...a couple of really good riding days. Weather is looking a bit iffy (first tropical storm of the year may be heading toward us for a few days) but looking better pretty soon.
Got some more good rides planned for the rest of the week, and the weekend is looking really good as well. Hope all of you have good rides and ride safe.
Be looking here for more sights and adventures in the RVA.....and beyond!