Free range dogs are dangerous

I'm sure this is not the kind of thing my loved ones want to hear about, but riding a bike isn't always roses. This last Sunday a couple of FJR owners (and one soon to be owner) got together for a ride north of Denton. Jim (FallenJimRidesAgain) laid out a great route down some really empty back roads.

We started out in Sanger at a convenience store named The Sportsman. I showed up about 45 minutes early and had a chance to pickup some breakfast and watch the local folks coming in and out. The store has seating outside and it really was interesting to see how many people knew one another. I'm guessing that around two-thirds of the people there said hello to one another and asked about how this or that was going. I'm betting the other third was mostly out of towners like me. But even though I wasn't a local, I did have a good conversation with an older gent who asked if "that scooter" was mine. As I finished up my coffee, the other riders started pulling in. Pretty soon we were all saddled up and ready to go. Jim took point and I did my best to hold a good 2nd position.



The first half of the ride was fairly straightforward with some scenic areas but nothing too technical. For a new group, that really is nice since it gives everyone a chance to see how the others ride. Jim took it easy on us during that stretch.

The second half got quite a bit more interesting. The first minor "whoooa" moment came as I started to drift down the right side of the seat setting up for a banked right hander. As I started to roll on the throttle, I noticed Jim put on his left blinker. From my position, I didn't see where he might be going, but I stood her up and got on the brakes pretty hard (gotta love linked ABS). Sure enough there was a road heading South. As I completed the turn, I noticed Jim open it up and take off like a missle. I figured it was time for BlueThunder to stretch her legs so we quickly followed. We never really got that fast but it was an awful nice feeling to hear that engine spin up towards redline. We regrouped and worked our way through some really pretty areas. This is about where the free-range dogs made their appearance. On this straight stretch with tall grass on either side, I see this dark little shape shoot out after Jim. At that point I was about 30 yards behind him and started slowing down. Well tiny apparently had a friend, I'd guess about a 50 pounder. The second dog darts out trying to catch up to tiny but then I guess he noticed a second strange animal and veered off to intercept me. He angled from the right side of the road to the left. I drifted left a bit then swerved around on the right side of him. It all happened so fast and I'm not really sure how much I had slowed down by that point but talk about a pucker moment. Luckily we all got through the free-rangers just fine.

We crossed under I-35 and continued west making our way towards Bolivar. Somewhere over there, the pavement ended. Jim (being a dual sport guy at heart) didn't miss a beat and marched on. Since I'd already taken my bike off-road a couple of times already (probably a story I'll keep to myself) I took off after him. Slowly the two riders behind us began to fade into the distance, though I can't blame them since these heavy bikes can be a handful even under good conditions. We probably trekked a couple of miles that way before the pavement found us again. We regrouped and headed on to Bolivar where I had to part company. All in all a great couple of hours with some great folks.





Thanks to the clock always keeping track of me, I was only able to be a part of the first half of the ride, but maybe next time.

Blue Thunder comes home

So the forecast called for rain and thunderstorms later in the day. Most agreed that it wouldn't get bad until late afternoon. Texarkana is only about 230 miles, so I figured I'd get an extra early start and should have no problem getting there and back before the weather got bad. But the best laid plans of mice and men...

The first monkey to throw a wrench at me was when I found out my girls had their field day at school on Friday. So much for O dark thirty. I couldn't and wouldn't have missed their field day for anything. I'm just glad I was able to go and watch. So it would be a slightly later start, that's ok.

Then the second monkey popped it's head up and thew yet another wrench at me, only this one was a big heavy air impact wrench. Turns out Grandpa won't be able to pick up the girls after school as we had planned and a quick pass through the usual suspects of people to watch the girls comes up zippo!

So now it looks like a later start, dash to Texarkana, dash back and hope the weather doesn't slow us down so we can be back before school is out? Hmm... I can just see another monkey and a wrench waiting to fly. Besides, that just sounds like a bad idea all the way around. Wait till the next day? Forecast sounds even worse and saturdays belong to my kids.

Time for an executive decision. "Girls after your field day tomorrow morning guess what? We're going to Texarkana!" Response, "Going where?"

Turned out to be a smart choice. The teacher said it was going to be a very relaxed day, a couple of movies and some free time. So... we took our time there. Ate at a burger joint. Got to Yamaha Sportscenter and met Tony O face to face. From here forward I'm pretty sure I'm going to try and buy any future bikes from Tony. He's just been a pleasure to work with. So we get there and the weather is a little cloudy but looks like it might even clear up. Could have sworn I saw a faint patch of blue in the sky. Go through the pre-flight inspection with Tony. Complete the paperwork. Saddleup and get on the road.

Half an hour later... Is that wet stuff coming down? Time to pull a Clark Kent and turn into The Gordon's Fisherman. Put on the rain gear and got back on the road. There were a few times that it came down a little heavy and it sure was nice to move that windscreen up just enough to avoid most of it.

Pulled into the driveway to hear thunder in the distance and so... Blue Thunder made it home.




More pictures of the bike here. (sorry about the goofy grin on my face)