When I lived in Georgia and was married to my first wife, I spent an entire year riding a motorcycle daily. I bought the bike in April of 2001 and rode it daily until October of 2002 when my divorce took place. I learned a lot that year, firstly that my ex-wife was much better as an ex, but mainly that I enjoyed riding a lot. In that year alone, I racked up 18,000 miles on a 2001 Yamaha R6. Whether it was raining or sleeting, I rode the bike to work everyday and then to the mountains on the weekend when weather permitted.
After my divorce, I had to sell the bike to keep my finances together. I bought another bike a couple of years later, but that was for track use and I never rode it on the streets really. I sold it before moving to Richmond and haven't had a permanent bike since about 2004 until this last year when I bought the Beamer.
As the weather has shifted to cold, I've not had a chance to ride. In fact, the bike has sat in my garage for the better part of 2 months. I start it up here and there to keep it from killing the battery and gumming up the fuel lines, but the last "ride" I got to take was in October when I rode down the VCU and back. Yee-haw.
Thursday, the new issue of my BMW MOA magazine came in the mail and as I flipped through it, I had the urge to ride. Seeing as the temperature was about 30 degrees in the west end Friday morning, that was pretty much out of the question without me getting up at 6, suiting up and riding to work. I instead opted to drive home at lunch when the temperature was in the low 50's, meaning I would be able to wear less clothing and take less time to get ready.
I had forgotten how much cold weather riding can be. While 50-51 isn't super cold, it's pretty chilly on a bike. I wore my jacket with the inside layer zipped in, my polar-tec gloves and jeans (as it was jeans day at work). The ride home was fun as I had forgotten to wear my Arai with a clear shield and instead wore my AGV with a smoke shield. Half of the trip was done with the shield up so I could see in front of the bike in the dark.
Car drivers are stupid (mostly) when the weather is perfect. Give them darkness and their IQ drops like a Kardashians clothes when money is involved. I need to take a cold weather trip outside of Richmond, not straight down into the city. Hopefully, this winter will give me some more chances to actually ride and enjoy what cold weather has to offer.
