Ziggy

Traffic/speed management...

Low sided my Sporty on March 1st this year. Was wearing a Scorpion EXO400 full face lid, armored leather jacket, gauntlet style leather gloves, boots, and jeans. Same kinda deal, was having a nice ride, pulling into my neighborhood at 15ish mph, at dusk. Poor lighting and loose gravel that blended in with the asphalt, and my picking the wrong track through the intersection was all it took. It happened so fast, once it started, I was done. Nothing I could have done to recover. My gear did it's job, couple scuffs on my jacket, impact to my helmet, and tore up my gloves, but no rash, thankfully. I did suffer a concussion and a separated shoulder though, but it could have been so much worse! I sold my wrecked Sportster to a buddy of mine and took the insurance money plus the sale money and bought a new-to-me Softail the day I was cleared to quit wearing my sling 24/7, which was about two weeks after my accident. The Softail sat in the garage waiting for me to heal and get my mind right before getting out. I was still suffering the effects of the concussion about 6 weeks later, so "getting right back on the horse" wasn't really much of an option. Not to mention the fact that here we are almost 4 months later, and my shoulder's still kinda jacked up and hurts if I do the wrong thing. I had a lot of time to reflect on what happened that day, and when I encounter gravel on the road that I can see, I still have brief moments of paralyzing panic (talking split seconds, here...) that I have to consiously work through. I totally get being spooked though... When I started feeling like I could physically ride again, I realized I wasn't mentally prepared. It takes time, don't rush.

When I had my wreck a couple of months ago, I was compensated for my helmet, gloves, and jacket under my policy. You need to read your policy though, and don't take the word of the adjustor. Adjustors are human, and insurance policies are often subject to interpretation. The insurance company has no right to your property unless specifically noted in your policy that payment for those items is contingent upon surrender of the items. Obviously, in the case of a total loss vehicle (car/truck/motorcycle) your compensation for the vehicle is typically the value of said vehicle less the salvage value if you decide to retain the vehicle. When it comes to your gear, that gear is yours. Your damaged motorcycle gear carries no salvage value, despite how much you paid, and how much you could sell it for. You should be able to retain it. It really is no different from taking an insurance check for damaged parts on your car that you decide not to repair.

I've been a member of PGR for several years. I participate in the missions when I can, and have never participated in one that I regretted. I've done missions for WW2 and Vietnam vets, as well as casualties from more recent military action. The families and friends are always very welcoming and appreciative to have the PGR there. I've had many people come and shake my hand and thank me for being there as I stand outside in a flag line. I've always felt kind of awkward when they do that. I always consider the honor to be mine for being allowed to be present. The most amazing mission I've ever had the privelege to attend though, was when my wife and I happened to be in Northern VA visiting family when I saw a mission post for Arlington National Cemetery. We met at the Marine Corps memorial, and escorted the family into the cemetery to the plot. I'm proud to stand for those who stood for me. Good on you for honoring our fallen.

He said he "acted out" and was "in a rage"... I'm sorry, these are words used by bad parents to dismiss the bad behavior of their young children. I'm not an advocate of "beating" children, but I do believe in the adage "spare the rod, spoil the child". Junior is on a fast track to being a permanent guest of the state.

^^^^This...^^^^ With $800, you're in beginner bike territory on Craigslist. Do a search with $1000 as the high price, then look for something you like. Rebel 250s, Nighthawk 250s, sometimes even older Ninja 250s, and the occasional beat down larger displacement bikes often fall into that category.

I drove up from Cinci on Saturday morning, and back home again Saturday night. I too was disappointed by the vendors area this year. There were a couple of items that I was looking to score a good deal on, but really didn't see anything worth pulling my wallet out of my pocket. I did enjoy the new bikes, and am now, more than ever, convinced that my next ride will be a bagger of some sort.

I've used the AMA Roadside assistance twice. For what those tows would have cost, I figure I've got about 3 more years of membership before I'm "even". I just got my 4 year renewal package in the mail a couple of weeks ago.

Doesn't Burt Reynolds have a house in Jupiter, FL?

I got out and did about 60 miles on Saturday. First time out in a month, and man it felt good!

Welcome! I'm in Morrow/Maineville, work in Sharonville. Lemme know if you wanna ride sometime!

The wife just got a Nikon Coolpix L820. Pretty nice little camera, lots of photo options as far as landscape, panorama, decent zoom, blah, blah, blah. She bought from Amazon, and was able to get the camera and a camera accessory kit (camera bag, cleaning kit, tabletop tripod, standard tripod, 32g memory card) all for right around $250 if I recall. No complaints at all so far, but we've only had it for about 3 weeks.

I think I'm partial to the fairing, but I dig the look you've got going with the 10" mini apes... To my eye, the bike doesn't look balanced with all of the visual bulk below the seat height. I think keep the fairing and find/make a set of mini apes that'll work.

I like it!

Read your whole blog, and I gotta tell you, I'm JEALOUS!!! I'll be following along from Cincinnati. Be safe!

Trust me, never again!

Many thanks guys! I appreciate the recommendations. As to shooting in the back yard, I'd love to, but with my HOA, setting up a straw bale backstop isn't going to fly. I've got a couple friends that I may be able to work something out with, though.

Thanks! I appreciate the offer.

Just be careful distributing flyers and doing your own work while still working your "full time" job. I assume you're doing HVAC work for someone else right now. Most times an employer will be okay with you doing occasional side work out of his truck, but as soon as he catches wind that you're going to strike out on your own, you'll be running your own business whether you like it or not. My recommendation would be to outfit your own truck as soon as possible, and keep your business completely isolated from your day job. Don't carry any flyers in your boss' truck, and when you're doing work for yourself, make sure you show up in your own truck. Once you've got your truck outfitted, call your boss, and let him know what you're doing. Make sure that he knows that when you're on his time, you're completely focused on his customers. I wouldn't even carry a flyer in your boss' truck. Good luck on your new business venture!

Last spring, my kids' school offered an archery class as an elective a couple of days a week for 6 weeks after school. Up to that point, my son had never shown any interest in archery at all, but he really took a shine to it. So, for his 14th birthday, my wife and I bought my son a compound bow. Now, we're talking a Wal-Mart beginner bow, 40-60lb, with a 27" draw, so not exactly a toy, but certainly not a "professional" piece either. I bought him an arm guard, and a couple of additional arrows, and we bought him a foam target as well. I'm not completely ignorant when it comes to archery, but my experience is from Boy Scouts a *ahem* "few years" ago. The first arrow we sent down range (in the back yard) found its target, but thanks to my ignorance, broke the plastic arrow rest that came with the bow. It was all kinda down hill from there. We lost one arrow, bent one, and broke the nock off of another one, before deciding to call it a day out of fear for the suburban wildlife in our neighborhood. Yesterday, I was talking a guy at church, and telling him that I'm kind of excited for my son to get into archery, because I feel like I have a level of interest myself that will make it a fun activity for the boy and I to do together. In having this discussion, this guy offered to give me one of his old bows that he doesn't use any longer. Of course, I took him up on his offer, and now I've got a compound bow too! So that brings me to today. At this time, between the two of us, we've got exactly 3 arrows, and we really don't have a safe place to practice. Neither one of us harbors any aspirations to hunt right now, but we'll not rule it out as a possibility for the future. For the time being, we need to find a place to buy inexpensive arrows for target shooting, a safe place to shoot, and maybe someone to offer up some pointers. I'm in SW Ohio, near Kings Island if anyone has local resources for supplies or a suitable range.

I think Cincy is going to give Cleveland a run for the first in Ohio to declare bankruptcy. City councilmen with their heads in the sand, and a city manager, that feel installing a $17 billion streetcar (that the constituents don't want and the city can't afford to run) is a good idea, just don't seem to understand.

Had my forks off the bike to do some clean up work, and hastily put them back on and mounted the wheel. Elected not to get the torque wrench out because it was getting late and I was tired. Fast forward a couple of days, and I was excited to get everything finished up and go for a ride. You guessed it, forgot I hadn't torqued the pinch bolts down and didn't remember until I hit the first bump in the road and the left fork tube slipped upward about a 1/4". Fortunately, I was just going around the block, but it scared me all the same...

What part of VA are you headed to? My folks and inlaws are in Loudoun County, I'm very familiar with that route myself. Watch for construction around Washington, PA. They're building a fly-over overpass to replace the poorly designed transition from 79N to 70W. Lots of junk in the road. Coming back, look at US50. Fun road through WV and SEOH, but plan on spending 12-14 hours on the road.

Where was this event? Those are my kind of bikes!

Got hooked on Revolution pretty much from the start.