News of Note (March)

Photo at left is from the Sunday March 18 ride in Charlotte, NC. Wanted to share some news of note. First part concerns Virginia-my other home. Some good news from the legislative front. The Governor of Virginia signed two laws of note- the first which is HB187 outlaws "Motorcycle Only" checkpoints. Be advised though, that checkpoints for all vehicles are still legal. Second, Virginia now allows (or will when both of these laws take effect as of July 1, 2012) motorcycles to ride side by side, which was previously illegal, with the passage of HB97 and the Governors ok., Second, I ride a Kawasaki, you can check them all out at the Kawasaki Test Ride which will be held April 14-15 at Westchester Commons (near the Regal Cinemas) in Midlothian, VA. Go to Kawasaki.com to register to ride. If not in Virginia, there are other events to be found around the country at the web site. Its a good chance to check out a variety of motorcycles. There are some requirements (a motorcycle endorsement to your license being one of them) before you can ride.

This is worth noting. Read in American Motorcyclist in the April 2012 issue that Lake Lure, NC almost required EPA labels on all exhaust systems. The Lake Lure Town Council voted to change to a "92 decibel limit  for any type of motor vehicle."    Loud pipes may save lives (as the myth goes) but certainly the noise is resulting in many more restrictive rules, and even outright bans on ALL motorcycles in many areas-both street and trail.

Check out the AMA web site for some competition events, as well as some interesting group rides in your area of the counrty. Many are listed in NC, SC and VA. I also have links to some events in North Carolina via Full Throttle Magazine, and also a site which tells of rides in Virginia at the top of this web site. However some events of note don't make those sites and I will be bringing them here as riding season gets into full swing.

Many of the bike nights are firing up. Coming in May is Bike Night at Quaker Steak and Lube in Concord, NC (one of my favorites), and many other places will be cranking up those events in the next few weeks. Great way to come out, check out some other motorcycles and their riders, and enjoy some great food and drink specials as well as (usually) some live music. I plan to make some of those events this year. They have many in North Carolina, and also in Virginia as well as some other places in the US of A.

Last ride of "Winter"

Enjoyed the best ride of the year (weather wise) on March 17 (St. Patrick's Day). Temperatures in the 80's and blue skies made for a great ride to Charlotte. Photo seen here is the Duke Power Building, which stands tall in the background in front of my Kawasaki Vulcan. I find what is known as "Uptown Charlotte" a very interesting city which always seems to have a lot going on. There was a big crowd downtown for the day which celebrates all things Irish-and it was a lot of fun to see it all.
Charlotte has a lot to offer with an interesting city, and some really fun neighborhoods on the outskirts of the city-it is many different cities. For St. Patrick's Day it was packed pretty much wall to wall and the bars had people standing in the outside areas like sardines. It was both fun and funny to check it all out (and I have a photo of one crowd scene on my "Richmond and Me" page). Nothing like a great motorcycle ride on a beautiful day, and this certainly filled the bill. It had been a while since I had been on the bike-too long in fact.

  Above photo was taken directly across from Bank of America Stadium, and I took the photo at left of one of the "big cats" that flank the entrances to the big complex. With my son, have spent many happy hours inside the stadium; nice to have the NFL so nearby, as well as many other sports in the area. Charlotte is a really good sports town.
As for the motorcycles, it is really good for that, and there were a slew of riders out enjoying the weather during the day. They were riding a great variety of motorcycles and everyone had some huge grins on their faces.
I roared into Charlotte via I-85 (which is getting some serious road construction between Concord and University), but took a calmer route back via NC-29. I like that, as it runs me through University City and to NC-49 past the University of North Carolina. Ride lasted a few hours, and was a really great time. I got back home in the early afternoon.

  Sunday was overcast most of the day, and looked like rain until later in the day, the dark clouds broke, and I once again got out on the bike. Ride was shorter than the day before, but did stop to take this photo of Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, NC. The big race track will be jumping with two events coming up in May: the All-Star Race first, followed the following week by the Coca-Cola 600. Like with Bank of America Stadium, have spent some remarkable hours in that facility watching some great racing.
I have a few upcoming events and items of note in VA and NC motorcycling that I will be sharing in my next post. Be sure to ride safe!

First Sunday in March

 Came into Carolina on a very rainy March 3, and made a stop at RideNow in Concord, NC. Still looking at the new motorcycles out there, and there I saw this 2012 Super Tenere by Yamaha. It is what is known as an "Adventure Tourer"-though big and heavy it is designed to be ridden on both pavement and dirt. The bike is powered by a 1200 cc twin and is a cheaper alternative to such bikes by BMW and Ducati. Of course it also comes with Yamaha quality, I have owned a few of the brand over the years, and frankly never had a bad one in the bunch. It is a very interesting motorcycle.

Course, my current ride (since 2005) is my Kawasaki 1500 Vulcan Classic, seen here during the Sunday morning ride in Concord, NC on Sunday March 4. After the rains of Saturday, it was a beautiful day, if slightly chilly, to ride. I was not alone as many took advantage of the sunny skies to get the motorcycles out. The bike was photographed on Union Street in Concord. Concord is located some 20 miles NE of Charlotte, NC and is home to many NASCAR teams (most of them are located in or just outside of Concord, NC) and it is also home to Charlotte Motor Speedway. It is also where the number one tourist attraction in the state is found-the giant Concord Mills Mall. Frankly my favorite tourist attraction is The Blue Ridge Parkway, but to each their own I guess. In 2010 Concord was listed as the 12th largest city in North Carolina. It is a fun place to live, and a nice city to ride a motorcycle in. There is a lot to see and do there, and being close to Charlotte is really nice as well. It is also not far from South Carolina- which is fun to ride in as well. I feel pretty lucky living here, and enjoy the time I spend in this city, and the surrounding area. Being a resident of North Carolina, and a part time resident of Richmond, VA tends to make my days pretty interesting.