Return to Ashland (February 24, 2017)

Back to Ashland on a Friday. Visit to Kreggers was suggested by a friend at work who heard I was in Ashland last week.
It was very good food and has a very large beer selection. I did not have but one but loved the name of the beer which was - Satan's Pony. It was also very tasty as was the salad and the burger. The burger had a friend green tomato on it. I can only say this...Ashland is one of my favorite towns and I will be back to Kreggers.

Stopped at Ashland Harley-Davidson. Some impressive motorcycles in there of course. I like the whole Harley-Davidson thing, and they do make some beautiful motorcycles.
One of the things I am really impressed with on them is the paint. No motorcycle manufacturer does paint like Harley-Davidson does.
I moved to a lighter motorcycle from my big cruiser of the last 11 years (Kawasaki Vulcan) and so far very happy with the Triumph.

Stopped at Bass Pro Shop in Ashland, and this is the view from the restaurant in there. I have eaten there in the past, did not do so this trip, but sure love that big fish tank in there.
It is a neat store (has another big fish tank in the store) with a lot of cool things to see. I like to wander around there and check out things. Did not get anything while I was in there but have in the past and will in the future. It is a very nice store.

I did end up back in downtown (and historic) Ashland, VA. Here the bike and I watch a train roll by. There are two sets of tracks that run right through the downtown.
Ashland is a very cool town, and as I have noted one of my favorites. I love going there, and as I did last week, saw a number of new places while I was there.
Don't think though that all I did was go and stop at places. There was a lot of riding in between. I got to Ashland via I-95 but came back via Route 1. I rode some new streets in Ashland (new for me anyhow) and even a bit in Richmond...though those were familiar streets.
It was a wonderful day to ride with temperatures in the upper 70's and bright sunny skies. The clouds did build a bit during the ride but there was a zero percent chance of rain, and no rain came down during the ride.
The motorcycle performed without a flaw and to this point I am very happy with the Speedmaster. It is sure a lot of fun on a curvy road. This type of weather for the last couple of weeks are sure not typical of winter, but you won't find me complaining at all about it.  

A Short Monday Putt (February 20, 2017)

Nice ride on a wonderful Monday. It was not my plan to ride, but the day was so good, I was off work, and frankly the motorcycle was calling me. So I rode for a bit, starting out up Midlothian Turnpike. It was before rush hour(s) so traffic was not bad. I then rode up to Sedona Tap House for one beer (good selection there including the El Duderino I had Saturday, but they were out) so settled for a Hardywood Raspberry Stout. It is another favorite of mine.

Rode for a bit when I got close to the house, went though a cemetery I came across. Had not been in that one, was off of Maury Street and it is where I took the photo of my bike and the WWII Monument (seen from the back) there. This cemetery was right off of Jefferson Davis Highway.
The photo at bottom was waiting at a red light again on Jefferson Davis Highway getting ready to turn onto Semmes on my way home. It was a fantastic and wonderful ride. Not a lot of miles but a whole lot of smiles. Very nice time getting my knees in the breeze on the Triumph. Still a lot of fun with that motorcycle.

Ashland Virginia Ride (February 18, 2017)

Outstanding ride on a very nice Saturday in Virginia. For one thing, the temperature was to rise into the 70's. It did but not when I started out. First stop was to Hanover County Airport which was pretty neat. Some cool planes there and I do love aircraft. Nice early stop on the way to Ashland which is one of my favorite towns in Virginia and only some 10 miles from Richmond.

Took this photo from the bike in Ashland. Really like this mural painted on a building wall. Two train tracks run through the center of the city. They also have an old train depot there, but that is now used as a museum. I got a lot of photos there, and will add some more of them taken during this ride to my "Richmond and Me" Page.
Had a good lunch at Suzanne's which is there. First time I had eaten there and will not be the last. Was told it had the best ham sandwich in Virginia, and I have to say it was to this point. Lots of really good looking desserts also which I did not have this trip. Did get to sit outside and eat as the heat was for sure rising while I was there...and it did make and exceed the expected 70.
Took a walk after the meal and wandered around the Randolph-Macon College. Very, very nice, as it was an impressive school. Think it dates to just after the Civil War but now has a mix of new and old buildings. It was nice to explore that.
Decided to make a first time trip to Center of the Universe Brewing to check out the location and to have a beer there. Have had some before as some was sold last year at an event at the Poe Museum in Richmond that I went to.    

Center of the Universe Brewing was very good. Think I found a new favorite beer there. Very nice people but no food. They do have food trucks there and one was setting up, but knowing I was going to have beer wanted to make sure I did it on a full stomach so the earlier lunch was a really good idea. Prices were really reasonable and love the location. There was a nice outside area with tables and umbrellas. I had a beer with a guy named Ken who rode in from Virginia Beach on his Suzuki V-Strom 1000.  

After the beer played four of these pinball machines. Metallica, Ghostbusters, Game of Thrones and also The Walking Dead all got a workout from me. Love pinball and it was a lot of fun. A very nice and fun place and I will be back.
Ride back was nice, rode up on I-95 back to Richmond via Highway 1 which is one of my favorite roads in the area. Just a wonderful day and a very, very good ride. Don't expect this kind of weather in February, but was fine with me!

Amazing Day for a Good Ride! February 12, 2017)

Amazing day. In fact it got up to 81 today. That just does not happen in February, but I will take it with a smile. Got to Chester, VA around 1030 and rode for a while with a friend (Adam) from work. He is by the truck and has the Suzuki Hayabusa. Needless to say, he has a "slight" horsepower advantage. Kidded him that he was going ahead of me looking for cops. Actually it was like having a jet fighter (his) vs a biplane (mine) but a good ride. We had lunch at The Tilted Kilt and then headed our different ways.
 

I rode to Hopewell, to City Point (was not far from that). Nice place and was a giant port for the Union Army during the Civil War. This is the plantation house that was there. US Grant also had his HQ there. From there, took the long way home on what was just a wonderful ride. Ended up getting in some 90 miles and enjoyed every one of them. I will be glad when this weather is the routine, but this is February, so don't expect a whole lot of this for a while. Enjoyed the hell out of it though.

35 Days Later (February 5, 2017)

 It's been awhile. My last ride was January 1, which was a really nice day. Think if I remember right might also have been to this place. After a check of engine oil and air pressures in the tires I headed out. The day was somewhat cool being on the low side of 50 but it was sunny and just warm enough to get out for a little bit. I stopped at Zaxby's for a late lunch. This was a favorite of mine when I lived in North Carolina. Fast food, but good eats.  

I also stopped at Carolina Ale House in West Broad Village which is in the Short Pump section of Richmond. That is a mixed use area with both apartments and condo's which are also the home of a number of businesses. That also can be found a lot in North Carolina and I think that idea is neat.
This is a view of some of them, usually apartments/condo's above the businesses which are below. Makes it awfully convenient to get things done, and sure would save wear and tear on cars or for that matter...Motorcycles!
I enjoy going to Short Pump, it is one of the big retail and commercial areas of Richmond, and includes some of the largest malls. It also includes of some of Richmond's heaviest traffic but it was not too bad when I went there on Sunday. Might have been a matter of timing.
Coming back on Broad Street they had a lot of cones out, and are apparently planning some major road work which did back up traffic. I got off of that road and wandered through some of the side streets to Church Hill/Shockoe Bottom area of Richmond. Some very old houses and places there which I enjoy seeing.  

Coming back I did make a stop at Shiplock Park which as part of the old Canal System had locks which got ships into the James River from the canal (or the reverse). Nice old park with some really interesting sights. Not via motorcycle but was a favorite place of my wonderful dog Mollie who died not too many years ago. Many happy memories there, and frankly a lot of history from Richmond with many interesting things to see. I ended up riding around 45 miles. Was not a day to really get some distance, or to get all that fast in the breeze but it certainly was a wonderful time out on the motorcycle. I am really enjoying riding the Triumph and it is a great deal of fun out on the streets. Seems to get a lot of attention and complements too which is really nice. Looking forward to Spring and the great rides to come - though will take advantage of any more winter opportunities that happen to come by way.