Blowing Rock/The Blue Ridge Parkway (October 20, 2008)

A most remarkable day in many ways. Started out with a call this morning that offered me a job transfer to Richmond , VA (which I accepted). Though my bike will remain here in North Carolina (to be ridden on visits back to my house) I will be covering both those rides and motorcycling (though not as a rider there) in Virginia as well. It ought to be interesting. However, after that news, I got on the motorcycle (being on vacation) and rode to Blowing Rock at 10am on a beautiful if cool day.
I got to Blowing Rock after a bit over two hours of riding. It was pretty crowded there as the leaves were at peak in the mountains. I went via NC 77 and up NC321. Traffic was not bad, and though they are still working on 321 (which is a year behind schedule) it was in better shape than last year. I got the photo of the bikers riding in Blowing Rock while in town. I also got a little turned around, and ended up off the Parkway. However after a short ride via a nice mountain highway (which I believe was 105) I got back on the Parkway at Linville near Grandfather Mountain. I rode on it from there toward Blowing Rock.
I took the photo of the coffin trailer while on the Parkway. Thought it was warmer than the ride last year. Traffic though (being a Monday) was not bad, and the ride was pretty remarkable along its length. I don't think there is a more remarkable road to ride in North Carolina (though must admit I have yet to ride The Dragon). Had a great time up there. Saw a wide range of colors and met a lot of interesting people both on two wheels (as was this group of Christian bikers) and four. I really enjoyed the curves, and the road condition was excellent. It was one of the best rides of the year.


All too soon, I had to head back from views such as this! Headed back into Blowing Rock, and down NC321. I was concerned about the rush hour traffic, but other then a little slow going in Hickory, NC and again in Mooresville it was not bad at all. I got back to my driveway at just before 6pm, having covered some 255 miles in the course of the day. I have been on many trips to the Parkway, and have enjoyed them all, but I have to say this was among the best. I rode solo today, but considering the impact of the phone call this morning early, it gave me some time to pause and reflect on what I have been through in the past and to wonder about the future to come. Life is full of adventure, and this will be another chapter in that adventure. I look forward to the days to come. Be watching here for more on motorcycling in both North Carolina and (starting in February 09) in Virginia as well!

Ride to Lowe's Motor Speedway

Always enjoy riding the motorcycle, and today was a very good day. Today, rode out to Lowe's Motor Speedway to see the events going on prior to tonight's Bank of America 500. Going early they had just a few things going on, a very light crowds, so it was nice to wander around. I don't live but a few miles from the track, so it was a short drive. Sure a lot of cool things to see though. Like the cars, the displays, the trailers filled with driver items (shirts, hats, etc), and of course a lot of tv people around. I make one of the races every year; earlier this year I was at the All-Star Race, which was a great time, and enjoyed it a great deal.

After a while there, went for a short ride. Certainly a nice day, humidity is gone (hopefully for the year) and even seeing some of the leaves falling around the area. I am told that fall colors are pretty close to peak in the mountains, and a ride there is part of my plan for the vacation week which is coming up starting October 20.

There has been a lot of bad stuff going on lately; a bad accident to a worker in my area on b-shift, the fact the plant is closing in the next year or so, the stock market and the economy tanking. However, a fine fall day, out on the roads of Concord, blue skies, and the breeze from my motorcycle put a big smile on my face today. I hope you have some great rides as well!

Finally, fuel (and some updates)

Took a ride last Sunday, for the first time in something like two weeks. Combination of two things kept me off the bike. First was either a light flu, or a bad cold, but it really made motorcycling out of the question for a few days. I guess it came at a good time (if there is ever a good time for something like that) as due to Hurricane Ike, fuel was in very short supply. It was wild, no premium (and the Vulcan does not like lower grades of fuel at all, as I found out once by mistake) and very little regular. Some 80% of the stations were out of gas, some for a long time. Long lines, short tempers (some fights, even some guns pulled)......a real mess. Still some stations are out of some brands, and prices are among the highest in the nation (just in time to hammer the visitors here this weekend for the NASCAR race this weekend). I hope to get out to see some of the things going on around the racetrack; usually a lot of cool things to see sometime this weekend. Rain expected for the next few days here, but the weekend is supposed to be nice. We shall see.
Little bits of news here and there on the new bikes coming out (for those who have credit and could get one, the few, the proud, the rich!). I did see that Honda is going to bring the DN-01 to America, came out in Japan last year. Sporty looking bike, has a 650cc (or so) engine, and an automatic transmission. Its not the first motorcycle to have that, but considering that Honda is doing it, sure to have a lot of interest. Its a bit on the pricy side (around $14,000) but an interesting looking motorcycle which you can see on the Honda web site.
Other than Harley's not a lot of the 2009 motorcycles here yet (though a few of the older designs such as my Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 which returns for 2009) are in the dealers. I had hoped to make it to the HD open house in Salisbury, but had to work that Saturday. I will be checking out some of the new 2009 Harley's; they seem to get them out first, and the rest follow. I am also looking forward to seeing the new Triumph Thunderbird, a big cruiser with a big engine, and its a vertical (not a V) twin motor.
Read that the Myrtle Beach Fall Rally went ok; though there was one death there in a traffic accident. There were also a few protest rides over the restrictions (some were tested at the fall rally) being planned for the bigger rallies next year. Will certainly be worth following how it all goes, with the state of the economy, will be interesting to see how happy Myrtle Beach is about driving away people who want to spend money in their town.
As for me, will be doing some riding this weekend around the race track area; hope to get a few photos of that, and will try to get a good one for my next post. Race weeks are always a lot of fun, and have a lot of things going on here in the Concord area. Also coming up is a week of October vacation, and hopefully a ride to the high country to see some fall color. Did a ride last summer to the beach (Wilmington, with some friends) but looking forward to getting back to the mountains. Its a remarkable area to ride and always enjoy my visits up there.

Indian Motorcycle Open House and New Dealer Opening

A bit of late news, but I just found it out today. I got this information from the Indian Motorcycle Web Site, which you can see by Googling (of course) "indian motorcycle". The brand is making its return this year with the 2009 Indian Chief which is a re-designed version of the last offering though "under new ownership". The motorcycles are being built in the new factory in Kings Mountain, NC....which is located pretty close to the South Carolina/North Carolina border. I have done some riding in that area having visited the Revolutionary War battlefield located in that area last year.
Saturday October 4, the day will start at the new factory at 116 Battleground Road at Kings Mountain, NC. Tours will be offered of the factory, and this will be to my knowledge the first time the public has been inside. There will then be a ride to the new (and first in the US) dealership which will leave around 12:30. Live music will start around 1:00 pm at the dealership, which is really first rate from the photo I have seen (again at the web site). The event is scheduled to run until 7:00 pm.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to make the event; for one thing I am working from 7am-3pm, and for another (see previous post) can't be sure to have enough gasoline to get there and back, or to be able to find any. The fuel situation in Charlotte remains pretty tight at this time. However, I am planning to ride out to see the new dealership and the factory, and (hopefully) we will eventually have fuel again. If you are in the area though and have the gas, drop by and see what they have to offer. If you can't make the event this Saturday, be sure to check out theIndian Motorcycle web site; its got some interesting things to see there.