Work trip, part 1
Jun. 28th, 2004 07:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elizilla(Note, I wrote this on 6/28, but I'm sticking it in my journal a week later, due to slow internet in the hotel.)
Yesterday (Sunday) I rode from my home near Detroit, to my office near Boston. I am here in Massachusetts for a week for a training class.
As I was passing through Ontario I spotted not one, but two V-Stroms going the other way on the highway. The first one was a blue '02 on the 401 near London, at about 2pm. The second one was a yellow '03, with black Givi cases on the QEW near St Catherines. It was like seeing a mirror of my own bike coming the other way. Pretty wild. I have rarely seen any other V-Stroms anywhere except at Deal's Gap, where you see everything, and at the Strom east gathering, where you would expect to see them. So to see two of them in two hours is pretty startling. I wonder if they are simply more common in Ontario? Last time I was in Ontario I saw one there as well.
I didn't stop for anything except gas, all the way here, except I did sit in traffic coming back into the USA at Buffalo, which was sort of a break except my clutch hand got tired. There was a car near me in the traffic jam, that seemed normal for about an hour, and then suddenly made horrible noises and coolant flavored smoke starrted pouring out the tailpipes. Bet that was expensive. I was glad I ended up in front of him, not behind. If that car were to completely stop rolling on the bridge it would have bollixed up the only lane, and that would have been bad. Once I got over the bridge and down to the customs booths, all the booths were open and I was able to easily filter up to a much shorter lane. One lane splitting into twenty, in a big triangular lot, means there are many opportunities to get ahead of cars.
When I arrived at the training class there were two sportbikes in the visitor parking. A Blackbird with Pennsylvania plates, and a TL. Turns out they are in my training class and they sit right near me. The guy from PA is in the same hotel as I am, but he trailered his bike here. The other guy is a local. We were completely distracted during the lab part of the class, talking about our motorcycles. Everyone else in the class keeps looking at us like we are crazy, or maybe they are jealous because we're having more fun than they are. It's nice not to be the only maniac. We are all going to go to this bike night I know of, at an ice cream place in Lowell, tomorrow night.
One thing that is cool about my employer is that they have motorcycle parking right by the doors, with actual concrete pads that the sidestands won't sink in, and poles to keep the cages out. I have never seen that in Michigan, except at bike shops. Of course Michigan is the land of big auto so if a company there set that up they'd probably get in trouble for it. They don't just neglect alternative transportation in Michigan; they're actively hostile to it.
The bike parking was mostly full of Harleys but there was also a Concours in there today, and a little Ducati, not sure which one. At my last two jobs I never saw any bikes except my own in the parking lots.
The training class I am out here for is going very well, I am learning a ton of useful stuff. After the class I went across the street to my office and worked on some cases. I'm getting brownie points like mad, plus the cases don't go away simply because I am in a class, plus it's good to see my coworkers, and what else would I do here in the evening anyway?
Yesterday (Sunday) I rode from my home near Detroit, to my office near Boston. I am here in Massachusetts for a week for a training class.
As I was passing through Ontario I spotted not one, but two V-Stroms going the other way on the highway. The first one was a blue '02 on the 401 near London, at about 2pm. The second one was a yellow '03, with black Givi cases on the QEW near St Catherines. It was like seeing a mirror of my own bike coming the other way. Pretty wild. I have rarely seen any other V-Stroms anywhere except at Deal's Gap, where you see everything, and at the Strom east gathering, where you would expect to see them. So to see two of them in two hours is pretty startling. I wonder if they are simply more common in Ontario? Last time I was in Ontario I saw one there as well.
I didn't stop for anything except gas, all the way here, except I did sit in traffic coming back into the USA at Buffalo, which was sort of a break except my clutch hand got tired. There was a car near me in the traffic jam, that seemed normal for about an hour, and then suddenly made horrible noises and coolant flavored smoke starrted pouring out the tailpipes. Bet that was expensive. I was glad I ended up in front of him, not behind. If that car were to completely stop rolling on the bridge it would have bollixed up the only lane, and that would have been bad. Once I got over the bridge and down to the customs booths, all the booths were open and I was able to easily filter up to a much shorter lane. One lane splitting into twenty, in a big triangular lot, means there are many opportunities to get ahead of cars.
When I arrived at the training class there were two sportbikes in the visitor parking. A Blackbird with Pennsylvania plates, and a TL. Turns out they are in my training class and they sit right near me. The guy from PA is in the same hotel as I am, but he trailered his bike here. The other guy is a local. We were completely distracted during the lab part of the class, talking about our motorcycles. Everyone else in the class keeps looking at us like we are crazy, or maybe they are jealous because we're having more fun than they are. It's nice not to be the only maniac. We are all going to go to this bike night I know of, at an ice cream place in Lowell, tomorrow night.
One thing that is cool about my employer is that they have motorcycle parking right by the doors, with actual concrete pads that the sidestands won't sink in, and poles to keep the cages out. I have never seen that in Michigan, except at bike shops. Of course Michigan is the land of big auto so if a company there set that up they'd probably get in trouble for it. They don't just neglect alternative transportation in Michigan; they're actively hostile to it.
The bike parking was mostly full of Harleys but there was also a Concours in there today, and a little Ducati, not sure which one. At my last two jobs I never saw any bikes except my own in the parking lots.
The training class I am out here for is going very well, I am learning a ton of useful stuff. After the class I went across the street to my office and worked on some cases. I'm getting brownie points like mad, plus the cases don't go away simply because I am in a class, plus it's good to see my coworkers, and what else would I do here in the evening anyway?
