So, I was sitting at the Cheshire Restaurant the other day, facing Plainfield, and a cool motorcycle went by. It was quite loud. Then another one by right behind it. And another. I quit counting after 60 had gone by.
10 minutes later, they finally quit. As the wait staff came away from the windows to get back to work, ones of them said “What was THAT all about?” Another one said “They’re riding for Toys For Tots.”
It was quite impressive. It also reminded me what it’s like to ride.
I had a Kawasaki in college. It was a screamer. I had a lot of fun on it, learned a lot about engines, and had a good time.
Until the rainy sunday morning I dumped it on the freeway. It wasn’t a big deal, I was only doing about 25, on the ramp from 131 north to 196 east. It was a bit slippery, and I could feel the backend going out, so I straightened t out and hit the curb at the bottom of the ramp. The only scary part is that I flipped right out into 196, and could have been seriously whacked.
I broke my shoulder blade that day. It hurt, but I’ve had MUCH worse. The real damage came in the fact that I couldn’t ride comfortably anymore. Everytime I rode, I’d glace down at the concrete going by and think “wow, that would hurt”.
I kept riding anyway. It was my only way around, and I had a job, and school, etc. But when the time came to get a car, I sold it without any sadness. I’m kinda sad now, I didn’t know at the time how cool that bike really was (I had the 500).
So, here I am almost 10 years older, with a family and some experience, and I’m thinking of getting another one. Why would I do such a silly thing? Well, because my needs are different, and the bike would be different. One of the things I didn’t like about my old bike is that it was TALL. This makes handling much less fun. Also, my ride to work is now only 5 miles, on slow back roads.
So, I’m thinking of either getting Adam’s bike, or a smaller bike. They each have their advantages. We’l have to see.
