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Sep. 27th, 2004 09:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elizillaOver the weekend I went motorcycle riding in SE Ohio and West Virginia with Phil. I almost didn't go. I was wavering on the fence Friday afternoon when Phil called and talked me into it. He had purchased a new used truck and wanted to give my Mazda truck back to me. And the idea of a nice ride was appealing.
I'm glad I went. It was fun.
Of course I was slow to get ready on Friday night; that is traditional with me. I got out of work only about 20 minutes late, but I wasn't packed, and I had to go buy cat food in Friday rush hour traffic, and I had to quickly cobble up a wiring harness for my audio equipment so I could run it on the TDM. (I've developed a severe addiction to on-bike audio, but without it the three hour freeway slog between here and Columbus is an utter snoozefest.) By the time I got my act together it was after 9, and by the time I got to Columbus it was almost 1am.
The only spots with much CB chatter on that run, are I-75 between Toledo and Findlay, the brief stretch where US30 and US23 run together, and I-71 between Delaware and Columbus. The only stretch where anyone had anything amusing to say, was that last stretch, where I got to eavesdrop on a trucker with a brit accent talking to a trucker from Oklahoma, and patiently explaining things like the difference between a 'tosser' and a 'wanker'. Hee.
When I got to Phil's place, we looked at pictures and listened to music until past 3am. Not exactly conducive to an early morning, but I woke up around 8:30 and he was rattling around making coffee and doing stuff so I got up. Even so, by the time we got breakfast and cleaned the oil out of the bed of my Mazda truck (Phil had left a bunch of used oil in containers in there and the sun had heated them up and made them leak) and finally got out of Columbus it was noon. I'm afraid neither of us is very good at getting organized and on the road.
Phil led me on a bunch of roads I haven't been on before. Many of them were not numbered state highways, roads that were not on the map. But they were almost all excellent. Phil is my favorite ride leader. He knows all the best places to go!
We stopped in Marietta and bought ice cream at the Dairy Queen downtown, and wandered around looking at the flood damage. Last week the water level in the Ohio went up about 25 feet above what it normally is, and the business district was under water. There was a lot of mud and filthy silty dust everywhere. Route 7, along the river, had been underwater in many stretches. Route 26 was worse, and was closed north of 260. Phil says one of the covered bridges, which had been there since the early 1800s, was swept away. You could see how high the water went in the various low lying areas, because of the mud in the trees. I was amazed at how far along the cleanup was; things were getting put to rights very quickly. The water level was back to normal and a lot of the silty dust will probably be washed away in the next rain.
After Marietta, we went to Volcano WV for the engine show. This is a festival where they display a lot of old steam engines that were used for pumping oil, or for farm chores, or even for old washing machines. Many of the larger engines were being run. They're impressive! Most of the working parts are right out where you can see them, you can watch the various shafts, cams, pulleys, oilers and governors doing their thing. They have fairly low horsepower compared to, say, a motorcycle, but they have gobs of torque. They make a sound like "bang... bang... bang... bang..." There's no whirring or revving sound, just the loud, slow whacking sound of something that only turns over about once every second or two, but does so with incredible force. One of the engines had a plaque with its story, and the story included a man being killed because he got caught in the moving parts.
From Volcano, we rode some more twisty roads, and eventually circled around to Phil's parent's farm in St Mary's, where they fed us dinner and put us up. Phil has nice parents. After dinner we went for a short test ride in Phil's new truck.
In the morning we went over to New Mat for breakfast at the New Frontier. We walked in the door and the guy running the place took one look at me and said "I went to your website!" Zoiks. I starting wracking my brain trying to remember what did I say about them in my website? It's been at least a couple of years since I wrote whatever it was. Kind of embarassing to realize I couldn't even remember what I said.
After breakfast we rode more twisty roads. I felt great! Phil says I am much smoother and faster than I used to be, and that following me no longer requires the patience it once did. Over the last year or so, I do feel much more confident out there. I almost never scare myself anymore, and I don't feel like I'm panting for breath trying to keep people like Phil in sight. I'm sure he could still ditch me any time he liked, but I feel pretty solid and comfortable, so I don't have to sweat as much as I used to.
Eventually we went back to Phil's parents house, and his mother and I helped him load his bike in his truck. We took turns riding my bike and driving his truck, back to Columbus. In Columbus we unloaded his bike from his truck, and loaded my bike into my truck, and I drove home. I got in pretty late, but that's usual for me too.
I'm glad I went. It was fun.
Of course I was slow to get ready on Friday night; that is traditional with me. I got out of work only about 20 minutes late, but I wasn't packed, and I had to go buy cat food in Friday rush hour traffic, and I had to quickly cobble up a wiring harness for my audio equipment so I could run it on the TDM. (I've developed a severe addiction to on-bike audio, but without it the three hour freeway slog between here and Columbus is an utter snoozefest.) By the time I got my act together it was after 9, and by the time I got to Columbus it was almost 1am.
The only spots with much CB chatter on that run, are I-75 between Toledo and Findlay, the brief stretch where US30 and US23 run together, and I-71 between Delaware and Columbus. The only stretch where anyone had anything amusing to say, was that last stretch, where I got to eavesdrop on a trucker with a brit accent talking to a trucker from Oklahoma, and patiently explaining things like the difference between a 'tosser' and a 'wanker'. Hee.
When I got to Phil's place, we looked at pictures and listened to music until past 3am. Not exactly conducive to an early morning, but I woke up around 8:30 and he was rattling around making coffee and doing stuff so I got up. Even so, by the time we got breakfast and cleaned the oil out of the bed of my Mazda truck (Phil had left a bunch of used oil in containers in there and the sun had heated them up and made them leak) and finally got out of Columbus it was noon. I'm afraid neither of us is very good at getting organized and on the road.
Phil led me on a bunch of roads I haven't been on before. Many of them were not numbered state highways, roads that were not on the map. But they were almost all excellent. Phil is my favorite ride leader. He knows all the best places to go!
We stopped in Marietta and bought ice cream at the Dairy Queen downtown, and wandered around looking at the flood damage. Last week the water level in the Ohio went up about 25 feet above what it normally is, and the business district was under water. There was a lot of mud and filthy silty dust everywhere. Route 7, along the river, had been underwater in many stretches. Route 26 was worse, and was closed north of 260. Phil says one of the covered bridges, which had been there since the early 1800s, was swept away. You could see how high the water went in the various low lying areas, because of the mud in the trees. I was amazed at how far along the cleanup was; things were getting put to rights very quickly. The water level was back to normal and a lot of the silty dust will probably be washed away in the next rain.
After Marietta, we went to Volcano WV for the engine show. This is a festival where they display a lot of old steam engines that were used for pumping oil, or for farm chores, or even for old washing machines. Many of the larger engines were being run. They're impressive! Most of the working parts are right out where you can see them, you can watch the various shafts, cams, pulleys, oilers and governors doing their thing. They have fairly low horsepower compared to, say, a motorcycle, but they have gobs of torque. They make a sound like "bang... bang... bang... bang..." There's no whirring or revving sound, just the loud, slow whacking sound of something that only turns over about once every second or two, but does so with incredible force. One of the engines had a plaque with its story, and the story included a man being killed because he got caught in the moving parts.
From Volcano, we rode some more twisty roads, and eventually circled around to Phil's parent's farm in St Mary's, where they fed us dinner and put us up. Phil has nice parents. After dinner we went for a short test ride in Phil's new truck.
In the morning we went over to New Mat for breakfast at the New Frontier. We walked in the door and the guy running the place took one look at me and said "I went to your website!" Zoiks. I starting wracking my brain trying to remember what did I say about them in my website? It's been at least a couple of years since I wrote whatever it was. Kind of embarassing to realize I couldn't even remember what I said.
After breakfast we rode more twisty roads. I felt great! Phil says I am much smoother and faster than I used to be, and that following me no longer requires the patience it once did. Over the last year or so, I do feel much more confident out there. I almost never scare myself anymore, and I don't feel like I'm panting for breath trying to keep people like Phil in sight. I'm sure he could still ditch me any time he liked, but I feel pretty solid and comfortable, so I don't have to sweat as much as I used to.
Eventually we went back to Phil's parents house, and his mother and I helped him load his bike in his truck. We took turns riding my bike and driving his truck, back to Columbus. In Columbus we unloaded his bike from his truck, and loaded my bike into my truck, and I drove home. I got in pretty late, but that's usual for me too.
