Look at that. Someone left a perfectly good motorcycle out in the snow...

This is our conversation over IM the other day:
him: you can post a pic of my bike under the snow tomorrow
me: oh, honey…
him: just title it “my husband the jackass”
me: i know you’re bike is fine and all, even in the snow…but we need to start putting it in storage in like, November
him: i know
me: i know you’re a die-hard and all…
him: i just don’t have the time to ride like i want to
me: esp. not in 18″ snow…

A lot of people take different approaches to storing their rides for the winter months. Some place their bikes in a storage facility that is climate controlled and then later have it professionally detailed, others have their own heated garages and lovingly polish the chrome in the middle of January as they “X” out the days of the calendar for Spring to arrive. Me, I am lucky that my parents let me store mine in their unheated, under utilized garage.

While my motorcycle is protected from sitting out in open, exposed to the harshest elements, it still gets exposure to some. Typically when I pull it out in March there is a fair amount of surface rust, mold on the leather and a few other things that make my hand and elbow ache as I start to think of cleaning all of those things.

dirty...and not in a naughty way!

moldy & dirrty leather

get me some engine cleaner, stat!

inspecting all the work ahead of me

Actually in previous years I’ve had good luck cleaning everything up with a Mother’s power ball (although these days I use a Flitz. It holds up a little better to wear and tear) and some nano polish, which was subject of one of my very early posts. Everyone has different fail-safe techniques but this one works for us.

So, as I followed my yearly tradition and visited my ghost-flamed, two-wheeled friend I also came to realize that this is going to be the year that I really have to make some major modifications. First on the list is new exhaust pipes. The one’s on there are stock, but I did drill out the baffles to make it a little louder (which now may be a bit too loud now, since the fascists in this state are beginning to crack down on noise pollution). Now the big question is: what kind of pipes should I get? I want some that look great and have a bit of noise to them but aren’t stoopid loud. Anyone have any suggestions?

That also means I need a new air kit. A few years back I was having problems with air flow with the stock set up and ended up drilling out the carbs to adjust the mixture, then I pulled the stock air kit and installed a Uni filter. But that opened up a new and different can of worms. So it’s time to try something else.

my saddlebags are begging to be cleaned...

I do love my Willie & Max saddlebags. I like the size and think the two-toned colors of the bags go well with the paint on my bike. The only thing I don’t like about them is that they’re not quick release. Does anyone know if there is a kit out there to modify saddlebags to do this? I also got a great little River Road studded fork bag from Riders Discount that I’m looking forward to using on some day trips.

Soon enough it will be back in shiny, summer time shape and I’ll be ready to rip up the roads!

The DMs started off as an Irish-punk band about 14 years ago (in my hometown Quincy, MA), playing small hole in the wall clubs in and outside of Boston. With constant touring they built up a core audience and started their unique tradition of playing a week-long string of St. Patrick’s Day shows, complete with bagpipes and Irish step dancers, which for the past 10 years have been the most popular tickets in town.

Dropkick Murphys

They gained a larger audience in Boston when in 2004 they re-recorded an old Boston Red Sox song called “Tessie,” which happened to be the same year the Red Sox won the world series for the first time in 86 years. Then you couldn’t go to a DMs show without it being an asshole convention…I mean, being filled with loving sportsfans waiting to hear that song.

In 2006 the Dropkicks gained national attention when the gritty, Irish-mob movie The Departed, directed by Martin Scorcese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, used the song “I‘m Shipping Up to Boston” on the soundtrack. And tying it back to the Red Sox, that song became the walk-out song of Red Sox closing pitcher Jonathan Papelbon, who would dance an Irish jig to the song several times throughout the 2007 Red Sox Championship season. During the team’s victory parade through Boston, Papelbon did the jig while the Murphys played the song on the same float.

So, there’s your little history lesson about the Dropkick Murphys. Now enjoy this song, “The Dirty Glass”.

Press release:

Record breaking crowds, sizzling entertainment and thousands of dollars raised for local charities marked Laconia Bike Week 2009 at The Lobster Pound. Visitors from across the globe converged on The Lobster Pound and the newly remodeled Laconia Roadhouse for the 86th Annual Laconia Bike Week.

The Roadhouse, a 15,000 square foot entertainment complex together with its recent 7000 square foot full service restaurant addition complete with a roof deck bar and dining area, was at the center of the action and saw as many as 40,000 visitors during the nine day event. Blues Legend, James Montgomery packed the complex along with the Tom Dixon Country Band every night.

The Lobster Pound

Wild Turkey girls

Visitors enjoyed a number of giveaways from sponsor Wild Turkey and their famous Turkey Girls. All State Insurance also set up shop complete with models and famous custom bike builder, Dave Perewitz. The crowd-pleasing Jack 94 Rum Custom Bike Build Off boasted four custom bike builders who built four choppers from scratch while competing for a grand prize of $5000. The entertainment culminated with Una and her motorcycle dare devil show. Complete with mid-air flips and twirls, at one point her assistant hung from the bottom of the bike while 60 feet in the air.

Bike Week also boasted a jump in philanthropic activity this year, raising over $10,000 for the Have A Heart Children’s Cancer Fund. USA Lock and Load also raised $2,500 for Operation Home Front with funds going to assist veterans returning from combat with Russ from Wild Turkey getting the crowd to dig into their pockets and buy raffle tickets.

The 86th Anniversary of Laconia Bike Week proved itself true to its roots. Nine days of food, incredible entertainment and custom choppers confirmed that Laconia Bike Week is well-deserving as one of the longest lasting and largest events of its kind. Ultimately leaving visitors counting down the days to next years’ festivities.

The Weirs Beach Lobster Pound property was originally the site of one of the first Howard Johnsons in the country. A fire destroyed the Howard Johnson and Gandy Dancer Saloon 37 years ago. The Lobster Pound was then built and is in its 36th year of operation, The Lobster Pound has been a participant in the Laconia Rally for 27 years. The property was purchased from Lou Gaynor and Harvey Chernin by the Ray family three years ago. Major improvements were made when the Ray family purchased the property including a new 7000 square foot restaurant, an improved 15,000 square foot Roadhouse entertainment complex and becoming a corporate sponsor of the Laconia Race and Rally Association.

Those times come mostly in the winter once that holidays are over and it starts getting really cold and snowy. It’s compounded when the local news is showing ice storms and power outages where I live and my friends that live in the south are talking about how great their H.O.G chapters are or how fun the Galveston Rally was.

With all the subtlety of former WWE champion and current UFC heavy-weight champion Brock Lesnar, my husband has been filling the DVR with shows like Road Trip: Mount Rushmore to Yellowstone, Motorcycle Mania: Sturgis and any other road trip programming he can find.

I fire up my computer and in the browser is a google maps trip plotted from here to the Black Hills and back. I find articles about the Fly & Ride program that just happen to be left out on the table for me to discover. Sigh.

Those of us who live up north and don’t have the luxury of riding all year round get our fix in throughout the winter by working on our bikes, whether it’s adding more chrome, perhaps a new paint job or plotting out our good weather riding.

As you know I own a 2004 Suzuki Volusia and over the winter my project list includes:

• a new air filter
• new exhaust pipes (I can’t decide which ones, though)
• maybe some additional lights
• new pegs
• maybe new grips

My husband, on the other hand, is focusing on where he wants to ride this year:

What’s the latest on the Myrtle Beach Rally?
Sorry, hon. That rally is a matter of history.

Do you think I can ride to Florida for a weekend and be back to work on Monday?
Umm…good luck.

Can we take a detour to Yellowstone on the way home from Sturgis?
Yes? I guess so…

How much vacation time does he think he has? How much vacation time does he think *I* have?

It’s only just January and I’m wondering how I’ll get through the rest of winter. I figure I’ll get to read a few books about motorcycles. Last year I read some of Sonny Barger’s books, but this year I’d like to focus on a few books by female authors. Sasha Mullens has a few books out that I’m interested in, if you know of any good reads let me know or send one my way and I’ll do a write up on it.

So how do you get through the winter?  Are you like me, reading the catalogs and looking for just the right pipes and braided cables? Or maybe you scour the web looking for off-beat locations to ride to? Do you anxiously await your next biker magazine to show up in the mailbox?  Something else?

What keeps your motor running through the long, cold winter?

This will be mainly a photographic post. I gathered some of the images that I think represent what autumn feels like in New England.

Salem Common, Salem MA

carved jack-o-lanterns

somewhere off the Kancamangas Highway in New Hampshire

in the mountains in NH

mountain view

colorful corn at the Topsfield Fair

gords

hubster checking out large, prize-winning pumpkins

KISS pumpkins! These RULE.

me freezing my butt off on a charity ride

Hubster & me enjoying a frosty beverage in a toasty Irish bar after a day of riding

I’ve lived here for quite a few years and I’m sure it comes as no surprise that it is the mecca for all things Halloween. It is a haven for tourists who want to learn a little bit about history, maybe to learn what actually transpired during the Witch Trials and to be able to walk around wearing a witch hat, a cloak or a top hat without feeling self-conscious about it.

I am not exaggerating when I tell you that it’s absolute pandemonium on Halloween. The city shuts down all of the major streets to accommodate all of the people, the police recruit help from neighboring towns and traffic is backed up for hours at a time.

Here’s a video that was shot of last year. It’s a bit long but you don’t have to watch all of it to get the gist of what it’s like here.

While it is both an amusement and a burden to live in Salem, I do love seeing all of the various costumes people come up with. While it’s always been my favorite holiday, I was never one for dressing up in costume until recent years. Here are two of my recent costumes.

psychotic nurse from 2006

zombie concubine 2007

You can also view my Flickr set from Halloween 2007. There’s lots of good photos there.

With Halloween being this Friday, I cannot imagine what this year will hold for my quaint, little historical town. It will surely be insane. And I will be out there in the middle of it all.

While I’m reminded daily just by looking at his scarred body, there is something about this time of year that especially reminds me how lucky he is (and I am) that he is alive.

one month after the accident

I generally try to keep my personal life away from my blogging life when it doesn’t relate to anything motorcycle specific, but this particular instance is where I think the crossover is important to acknowledge. When I think about how much our lives have changed for the better in the past five years, I am grateful that things didn’t go the other way. My life would not be what it is today.

autumn riding in the White Mountains, NH

It’s easy to take your loved ones for granted until something unfortunate happens. Whenever I think about the accident any time of the year, it makes me give my man an unexpected hug or a smooch to let him know how much I love him.

So for us, October 15th is now the day we celebrate that a day of near tragedy paved the way to a (hopefully) long road of happiness.

We took our usual leisurely way up there, riding 1A north the entire way. While my husband is not a “beach guy” he did indulge me and spent a couple of days on Hampton Beach with me. I absolutely love the beach and could stay there from sun up to sundown as long as I have a lot of sunblock, a cooler with drinks, lunch and snacks and am near the bathhouse!. He, on the other hand, feels that sitting all day on the beach is a waste of time and could find a 100 other better things to do with his time-especially if there’s riding to do! So, it was a big deal to me to get some beach time in!

We rode locally around the Hampton/Rye area on most days. Riding the Hampton Beach strip is always a trip for me. I get lots of catcalls and thumbs up from dudes who aren’t used to seeing girls riding on their own motorcycles. Sometimes I actually get legitimate questions about my bike’s engine size, make and model, which is always nice because it means that people are actually getting over the fact that girls do ride and might even know a thing or two about motorcycles!

On a particularly mild day we decided to take a ride up to York, Maine. We packed a lunch, jumped on the bikes and rode 1A to 107 up the coast on some wonderfully winding roads. The ride was relaxing and enjoyable, the kind where you can see and smell things you normally wouldn’t be able to if you were in a car. It took us about an hour and half to go up the coast to our final destination: Nubble Light.

We’ve done this particular ride a lot since we’ve been riding together but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable. First of all, the lighthouse itself is so cool looking. It’s like being alive inside a postcard. The weather was also completely agreeable, being up on those rocks with the wind coming off of the water is so refreshing and is the essence of summer in New England. I probably sound very cliche, but these are the little things we look forward to when we’re knee-deep in snow in January.

We could only spare time for day trip this year (my stinky new job is eating into all my fun “me” time) and it was just a tease. If we plan on spending the whole week (or even just a few days) up in NH we usually take a nice leisurely, back-roads ride up to the Lakes Region. However for day trips we just hit the highway and blast up 93N for 100 miles until we reach the Tilt’n Diner.

Once making it to the diner most people shed their leathers and helmets and prepare themselves for the 13 mile trek to the Weirs Beach. It’s a nice scenic ride that can take up to 3 hours on the busy weekends.

Our first stop was the Belknap Mill. This old mill has a gallery that houses motorcycle exhibits during the rally each year. This year the exhibit was of some sort of acrylic-type paintings with a water color feel by local artist John David O’Shaughnessy. It was like line drawing meets forced impressionist. The show paled in comparison to my friend Art Biker, who had a show a few years back. But I might be slightly biased.

From downtown we headed to the beach, finding parking spots near the very end. We did the typical stroll, down the entire beach up to the drive-in area to peruse all of the vendors. After buying some swag, we were on our way back to our bikes when the skies opened up and we were nailed by the first downpour. Seemed like the perfect time to duck into a local watering hole and wait it out.

As we were hanging out I noticed that there weren’t that many customized motorcycles that knocked my socks off this year, but there was an abundance of photographers. In addition to my favorite motorcycle photographer (again, I might be slightly biased) we saw Michale Lichter and probably 10 other photo crews running around desperately shooting whatever they could find.

When the skies cleared we took the opportunity to jump on the bikes and rode the loop up the the Antler, back down past the Fun Spot and finding our way to the highway. While we were gassing up we got caught in a tremendous downpour and, along with hundreds of our closest friends, decided to hang out and wait for it to pass. Forethought told me to bring my rain gear, but I wanted to travel light (because my rain gear weighs so much?) so I left it at home on the table (perfect place for it, huh?). An hour later it finally stopped and was a bright sunny day again.

Did I ever tell you how much I hate riding in the rain?

I have some emotional reasons behind it, but mostly it just sucks. I don’t like not feeling in control and not being able to see very well, knowing that cagers are flying around me and might not notice I’m there.

This is what i was thinking as I headed out the Mass Pike last Friday morning at 6AM on my way to Springfield, MA to have breakfast at Cracker Barrel. My husband has this thing about starting a road trip with a Country Boy breakfast.

After we dried off and filled our bellies, we headed north up I-91 to route 2 where we got on the Mohawk Trail and the rain finally stopped (although it continued to be overcast). We meandered our way across the ass-end of MA, then cut the corner of VT up into NY. Riding through NY we rode through a plethora of farmland.

We pulled into our campground (ugh, camping) in Lake George, NY around 3PM. After unloading the bikes and setting up the tent, we made a beeline for downtown to scope out the activity. Having been there a few years ago, we knew the layout and the weird restrictions that the town has on bikes so we went to the Holiday Inn to get a parking pass (yes, you need a pass to park at this bike rally!) Once that was taken care of, we got a good parking spot and grabbed a much needed beer.

Around sundown the clouds finally burned off and there was a bit of blue sky. The temp dropped to about 80 degrees and the humidity went down a bit, too. About 10PM we were really pooped, so we got back on the bikes and hit the 8.5 miles down winding Rt. 9N (everything is route 9 up there, WTF?) and into our little home away from home. After battling the mosquitoes for space in the tent, I got as comfortable as I could and stared at the roof of the tent while my hubby fell fast asleep. The temp finally dropped around 3AM to a reasonable 50-something (and damp) degrees. In true camping fashion, we were up with the sun and back on the road.

Our first stop was the Harley-Davidson area over at the Ft. William Henry at 8AM. It was already 85 degrees out. A quick swipe of the HOG (Harley Owners Group) card and my man had his first ever HOG pin to add to his leather vest. Then we rode down to the convention center and we were the 3rd and 4th bikes parked. I guess we expected things to open a bit earlier than they did!

We hit the vendors at the expo center then took the shuttle bus to the beach, where we spent all day looking at vendors in 95-100 degree heat. It was brutal. That afternoon we went back downtown to get some food and people watch (two of my favorite activities!). That night we sat on a bench taking pictures, watching bikes go by and talking to people until midnight. We gassed up before heading back to camp because we knew it would be a mob scene in the morning.

We got up again way too early Sunday morning. I went to clean up in the lovely campground bathroom facilities (with all of the mosquitoes and water bugs) while my man broke camp down and packed up our stuff. We had breakfast at 4th Lake Diner, which was a real bargain. At 9am when we left, it was already 90 degrees out. While riding it felt like someone was standing in front of us with a hairdryer blasting on high heat. We opted to head back through NY and VT the way we came because the roads were so nice to ride on. Once we got to Rt 2, we just kept on it all the way home.

All photos copyright 2008 Rippin-Kitten.com and Forrest Frazier.

Even though the town itself is small, there’s definitely no shortage of events: ranging from New England-style clam bakes, lots of motorcycle demos, music, The Ride to the Sky up Mt. Washington (which I could devote an entire post to, it’s so amazing!), hill climbs and races, beautiful scenic roads to ride on and of course, lots of vendors.

Rippin-Kitten, Ride to the Sky, June 2007

Last year I was able to attend the rally for almost a week. Unfortunately I won’t have the same luxury this year, but I do plan to go up for at least a day trip. If you live or are going to be visiting a near by area, I suggest you do the same.

It was nice to spend some good, quality time with my metal-baby, giving it a good detailing since I busted it out of winter slumber. I know that everyone has a different method to their madness when it comes to cleaning their bikes, but I still swear by my own method (which I wrote about in detail last year). There’s such a great amount of gratification to see all of that chrome glistening in the sun after you spend time cleaning it up (here’s the pictorial from last year so you can see the difference!).

Gloucester Fisherman’s Memorial Statue

Yesterday we (along with everyone else and their motorcycles) went for a nice, relaxing ride up the coast to Gloucester. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect (although there were those few jackasses that you see riding around in short sleeved shirts, shorts and sandals…*sigh*). We stopped off for lunch: embarking on the the first of the summer seafood season that is paramount in this region, and soaked in some afternoon sun before heading back home.

Last night I finally had my winter frustration meltdown. I’m sick of snow and cold weather. I’m tired of layering up my clothes to stay warm. I’m ready for warmer weather and open-toed shoes. I’d even be happy with some rainy days as long as it was warmer outside.  Today is the last day of February and March usually brings more optimism.

Ok, no more complaining. I’m going to settle into bed and try to get better.

Here’s a few pics from around town:

arctic Kitten

around town

So here it is:
My best friend (who is now my husband) almost died in a motorcycle accident on October 15, 2003. It was raining heavily that night and instead of riding his motorcycle on the highway, he decided to ride back roads home instead. He didn’t give it a second thought. He had his rain gear and was used to riding in all kinds of weather. He had been in worse storms than this particular one.

The accident itself is hard to determine, but what we think happened is that he got to a rotary area and was forced into the guardrail by a cab. He was thrown from the bike and the cab never stopped (and no one ever came forward). Luckily there was a gas station across the street and the guys there called an ambulance.

I got a call on my cell phone around 4:45 am. When I saw his number calling I thought it was a case of him drunk dialing until I heard a woman’s voice on the line and she told me she was calling from Boston Medical Center and the only words I really focussed on was motorcycle accident.

My apartment at the time had a skylight and the rain was just pounding on it. I remember for a split-second wondering why was he out riding in this weather? and why didn’t he catch a ride with someone else? But that thought was replaced by the urgent need to get to the hospital. I threw on whatever clothes were close by and was at the hospital ten minutes later.

While I waited I called some of our friends and his sister, since his parents were out of the country on vacation. A bunch of people came to the hospital and kept vigil with me.

After 5 hours of waiting with zero information, the vascular surgeon finally came out and told us the extent of his injuries: his spleen had been punctured and removed, seven ribs broken and a collapsed lung, a large gash on his leg, 3 broken metacarpals and oh yeah, his left arm was almost severed: his humorous was shattered and the major nerve, veins and arteries were also severed. They had to transplant a large artery from his right leg into his left arm, which seemed to work because there was blood circulation going to his hand.

in the SICU the day after the accident

His spent the first three days in the SICU (surgical intensive care unit) unconscious and intubated and an additional two days there after he woke up. He had another surgery to fix his shattered bone by inserting a titanium rod and reconnect the nerve. Then he spent an additional week in the rehab ward. The doctors took photos of the entire surgery, but I’ll spare you guys those gory details!

The day after the accident, the left image is the temporary “erector set” to keep the broken bones in place, the right image is a picture of his broken hand with the pins still in place.

The aftermath of having his spleen removed and his right leg where they had to take a vein to put into his arm.

The day the stitches were removed.

A year of pain, physical therapy and lots of determination helped him regain almost full dexterity in his hand, although his ring finger and pinkie finger remain numb due to nerve damage and he’s lost almost all of the muscle mass in his hand. To this day he cannot use his bicep muscle in his left arm (meaning he cannot bend his arm using the muscle) but he’s good at compensating for it in different ways. People don’t even realize there’s something wrong with his arm unless they see the scars or we tell them about the accident.

This experience has not deterred our enjoyment of motorcycles. A month after the accident my husband was daydreaming of riding again. Less than six months later he was back up and riding. And that summer I got my motorcycle license (although I did waffle on the decision beforehand). I’m sure everyone thinks we’re nuts but it’s a big part of our lives that we enjoy.

Maybe it’s a bit corny but the course of our lives changed that night. We each got a huge wake up call and a new outlook on life. It made us realize that life doesn’t wait for you to get your shit together, so get out there and try to accomplish all of the things you dream of. We are thankful to have each other every day. When this time of year rolls around we can’t help but to be grateful that the result of that accident didn’t go another way. And while it’s a day I don’t always want to remember, it’s a day I won’t ever forget.

Living in Massachusetts, it’s easy for me to hop on my motorcycle and be in New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island or Connecticut in an hour. Some of the most beautiful fall foliage around is in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The Green Mountains of Vermont are fun to ride, but since all the trees are pine they don’t change color and it’s just not as pretty.

So each year, along with thousands of other bikers (and way too many cagers) I try and ride up to the Kancamangus or out to the Mohawk Trail in the Berkshire Mountains for a brisk ride and soak in all the wonders of nature in New England.

This week is peak foliage time. Unfortunately, the weatherman says that this weekend we will get bamboozled with a rain storm. Trying to peep leafs on twisty mountain switchbacks in the rain with leaves all over the ground is not my idea of fun. I guess if I can’t go to New Hampshire this week I’ll probably try and head to a more southerly Massachusetts or Connecticut Valley location for next week. Either way it will be time to slap the windshield on my bike and wrap myself head to toe in black leather so I can be nice and toasty for the fall riding season.

It was a great day. And my video editing skills are improving quite a bit, too! By the way, I’ve got a new song, “Scary Kitty” featured in the video (got rid of that awful banjo music!) by my friends, the Missing out of NYC. So, BIG thanks to them for letting me use their song. They rock hard!

Unfortunately for me, that also means that riding time is dwindling. Kawasaki graciously extended more time with the Vulcan Custom, which is really generous. But I also feel like maybe I’m letting them down a bit. This is my first experience ever of doing a product review. I have been riding it every chance I get and I think that I have been really good at conveying my opinions about the motorcycle objectively—after all I need to keep it honest and true to my readers. I’ve been waiting to do a final thoughts kind of thing until I give it back, just in case something should jump out at me before then. Other than that, I’m not really sure what else I should be doing.

This weekend everyone was out on their motorcycles, bundled up to brave the chilliness. Added layers of clothing definitely make fall riding more comfortable, but also reflect the kick-off of autumn. We know what’s in store for us in the next few months: more layers of clothing, hot cider, pumpkins and motorcycle trips to mountain areas for fall foliage peeping. The summer is all but gone, the cold is coming in and soon the motorcycle will have to go into it’s winter slumber.

From Salem to Provincetown, according to Google, is 141 miles. Taking some backroads instead of highway the entire way, the trip was more like 155 miles.

This was the first time I had to pack any gear on the Vulcan and if you have seen the bike, you know it’s not set up to be a pack mule. I put my stuff into a dufflebag, which ended up sitting on the passenger seat. As I was going to bungee the bag down, I realized that the fender rails had no holes on the bottom side (like so many other bikes do) for the bungees to hold on to. The best thing I could do was hook one around the foot pegs and another under the fender itself. Note to Kawasaki engineers: give users a place to put bungee cords.

We left Salem and hit the highway around 10:30 am. This was the first time I got the Vulcan onto the highway and paid close attention to how it handled. I noticed a lot of vibration as I hit the speed limit and got a lot of hand-stinging bike vibration at 70 mph (um, Kawasaki peeps…not that I was speeding while riding this borrowed bike or anything! ‘k, thanks.). I don’t know if I eventually got used to the vibration or if the bike itself mellowed out but after ten minutes I barely noticed anymore.

On my Volusia I have highway bars with pegs, which is helpful to stretch my legs out on longer rides. The nice thing about the placement of the foot pegs on the Vulcan is that I didn’t have a problem stretching my legs out on them, they’re nicely placed for riding comfort.

We blasted down 95 and 93 south, through Boston and picked up Rt. 3A in Quincy-my hometown and home to a couple of dead presidents. We rode some twisty backroads through some of the more affluent Boston suburbs, then into more rural areas. Then we hopped on to Rt 3 to take us to the Sagamore Bridge, which for the first time in my life, was a pleasure. (For the past 3 years they have been doing construction in order to eliminate a rotary (a roundabout for all my UK peeps) which usually blocked traffic for miles). Up and over the bridge and we were finally on the Cape of Cod. Rt 6 and 6A took us down to the house where our surfer friends were staying in Welfleet.

After we unloaded the bikes we headed down to Provincetown (P-Town to us locals) to the absolute furthest point on the Cape, while the boys went surfing over at the beach.

Live webcam shot with real time photo of Cahoon Hollow Beach and the Atlantic Ocean from the Beachcomber.

One of my yearly traditions when I’m down the Cape is to get some fried clams and a root beer for lunch. I also pick up some dessert-type goodies for everyone from one of Provincetown’s many candy stores. If you have never been to P-Town before here is the low down: lots of motorcycles end up there and lots of gays-as it is a huge vacation destination for them. The main strip is arranged like this: art gallery, bar, candy store, restaurant, adult toy store, t-shirt shop…repeat for the next 3 miles.

Entering P-town, parking the Vulcan and a plate of delicious fried clams

Inside one of P-town’s many candy shops.

We had a large dinner with our friends, had some dessert (I ended up getting some fudge for everyone) and all the boys commenced with their monthly stogie night-sipping scotch and smoking cigars. Even though I was tired from the day’s ride, we stayed up to the wee hours of the morning.

Unfortunate for us, the next morning was overcast and cold. It was much cooler than the previous day-30 degrees cooler and 90% humidity. Luckily we packed our leathers and some warmer clothes, but it was still a miserable ride home (especially while hungover!). Our intention was to stop off at the last day of the Boston Tattoo Convention, but we were so cold, damp and tired that we headed straight home narrowly missing a parade blocking off the only road in and out of the cape.

Round trip we topped a little over 300 miles, not too shabby for a little weekend ride.

They describe themselves as “raw, low-down, grimy, greasy, dirtbaggy, unsavory clusterfuck of a shop that pulls off some pretty clean and class rides. We ride, and we build, back-to-basics old style chops and kustoms….Gritty, Loud, Fast, Dangerous, and DIY through and through!”

Welcome to the next generation of bikers, bitches!

The guys at Choppahead sell a lotta shwag, including dvds. Here’s a clip for “Chopper Animals & Mayhem Machines Volume 2.”

Thursday night I got all dolled up and attended the kick-off party for the Boston Tattoo Convention. We schmoozed with lots of tattooed people, got tipsy from drinking Dewars, looked at art work, played Guitar Hero and oogled strippers (because nothing classes up a formal party than strippers!) all night long.

Left to right: me in the car on the way there, the BTC logo and the Dewars bar

Left to right: some of the art on display, the fabulous Miss Jessica Lee & Mr. Forrest Frazier, crazy moustache

playing photographer, tattoos!

The evening’s entertainment, Jess, Natan & me and my fabulous outfit

Special thanks to Natan for the invite!

On Friday I barely made it through a harrowing day of work and promptly came home to prepare for what I was looking forward to all week and the topic of my next post: Saturday’s trip down to Cape Cod!

Since the Custom has such good throttle response, I did find myself getting a little daring with it. At stop lights I would pull up in the right hand lane next to other cars waiting at the light and just blow past them when the light turned green. I generally don’t do this on my Volusia because it just doesn’t have that kind of throttle response. I also noticed that more people tend to watch me ride down the street on this motorcycle and I think it’s because of the eye-catching paint color.

A kind of funny observation I had about the Custom is that the engine makes a whirring sound on acceleration that reminds me of a hovercraft from Star Wars. Which made me think of Star Trek and the obvious “Vulcan” reference. And the candy red color of the bike made me think of a lyric from Prince’s song “Little Red Corvette“-which made me giggle when I thought of Mr. Spock actually saying that line from the song:

“I’m gonna try to tame your little red love machine.“

Stream of consciousness while riding a motorcycle can be a funny thing sometimes!

The left photo is the story of my poor husband’s life: forever waiting for me while I get ready. Right: getting ready to take off. Behind me you can see the historical actors setting up for their witch trial re-enactments.

Like I mentioned before, we planned on avoiding highways and took a leisurely ride north up Rte. 1A. That took us all along the eastern coast and it was really gorgeous.

We got stuck at a bridge somewhere in Newburyport and took a moment to take photos of the boats. About a mile after that, one of my tail lights decided it wanted to fall off. So, I took the opportunity to take some goofy pics of myself while it was being put back on.

It was difficult to take pictures along the way because we got so caught up in the ride. We’d go past a picture-perfect farm with a tractor parked on a hill and horsies outside grazing and I’d think: wow, that’s awesome. I really should take a picture of that…oh, I’ll get it on the way back.

From left to right: stopping in front of “Kittens” gentlemen’s club in Salisbury. (Get it, “kittens/Rippin-Kitten”…yeah, it’s a stretch.) A quick shot while riding down the strip. And lastly, stopping off on the boardwalk at Salisbury Beach.

It took us about an hour to hit the New Hampshire border, where we promptly ditched our helmets (don’t tell my mom!). I know it’s not safe to ride without a helmet, but it’s so completely liberating to ride without one. We made a pit stop on the Hampton Beach boardwalk to grab a bottle of water and I jealously eyed everyone that was playing on the beach, wishing that I could lounge there among them.

Onward, we pushed up the coast through Rye where the beach wind coming off of the water was refreshing, to say the least. Two hours into the ride we hit Portsmouth center, which is one of my favorite little towns, and shortly after that entered Kittery, Maine-home of many retail outlets (a shopper’s dream!).

Once in Maine, we rode through York and Cape Neddick (home of Nubble Light). One of the most distinctive things about riding through any NE beach community in the summer is the smell of fried clams in the air. It’s probably one of the most artery clogging things any person can eat, but they’re so unbelievably good! I haven’t treated myself to them yet this summer, but I will soon.

The rest of the road up to Ogunquit was through wooded, hilly and twisty roads with little pieces of settled areas sprinkled through out. We finally hit Ogunquit center, which was buzzing with tourists, about three hours after we left. We were hot, thirsty and well ready for some lunch. And we were almost at our destination.

So, why the day trip to Ogunquit?

To visit these two little munchkins who were vacationing there!

These little heartbreakers are my niece, Gianna and my nephew, Domenic (who was making motorcycle noises when we took this picture). We drove all the way to Maine just to have some lunch with them. And of course, all they wanted to do was climb all over our motorcycles! And in my opinion, definitely worth the trip.

But that’s if we take the highway. And when you’re on a motorcycle we all know it’s about the ride, not the destination.

Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel from coast to coast without seeing anything.

Charles Kuralt

Today’s plan is to ride back roads from here, up through New Hampshire and into Maine. We’ll be taking pictures along the way and hopefully can take some time to hit the beach for a bit.

The weather has been unseasonably chilly here in New England the past few days, but today promises to be nice and steamy! OK, I’d love to chat more but I’ve got to get ready!

A few years back I was caught going through a stop sign in a Dukes of Hazzard-type scheme. I was on one of those hills where you have to pull a few feet past the stop sign to see the oncoming traffic. Even though I was going 2 mph, I still got a ticket. Fast forward 6 years and the ticket finally falls off my record. Since I just moved I figured I go and change my insurance agent (because my current agency is too far away and their customer service blows).

There is a company right by my house. I went in and met with some of the people, who seemed to be nice and on the level. They walked me through the options of what I need for insurance and how much, you know, all that fun stuff.

Now let me tell you how bad my state of Massachusetts is when it comes to insurance:

• there is no competition here so you pay the same no matter what insurance company you go with
• unlike auto insurance, when you insure a motorcycle you have to pay into “personal injury protection” but if you ever get injured you can’t collect anything
• no multiple vehicle discounts – if you have a car and a motorcycle you don’t save anything
• no seasonal discounts – I ride from about March/April to November-ish (depending on snow) but pay the same to insure the motorcycle for 6 months or a year
• no discount for alarms – not that I have an alarm on my bike, but I do on my car and get a discount for that

So what’s the deal?

In Massachusetts we pay more for insurance that any other state and from the looks of it, I get less if an incident ever were to happen. I talked to some people in Laconia this year who pay about $400 to insure a Heritage Softail for the year, which is about 1/2 of what I pay. As of now I am getting a safe driver discount and have no points on my license.

So why am I getting screwed?

I’m guessing that it’s part of the Mass state theory of knowing what’s best for me. But come on people I am subjected to ads for Progressive, Esurance and those cavemen guys, why not let me buy that insurance? AND….to go to one of those sites and try to get a quote, if you enter MA as the state you’re from, they boot you right out of the page.

I know this is a bit soap-boxy, but lets be real. My bike costs 1/4 what my car does and I ride it 3 months less than my car. Why should my insurance be almost the same?

I don’t know when or even if they are still on TV, but when I had a different schedule I used to watch the show on Tuesday afternoon.

It’s mostly a half hour ad for Paramount Harley Davidson in Worcester, MA. There were some good segments about riding locally, some how-to’s and even this little nugget.

Mistress Carrie is a local radio DJ and fellow female rider here in Boston. She’s also one of my friends on the Rippin-Kitten MySpace page.

(music: “Push Push (Lady Lightning)” by Bang Camaro)

If you want to check out the actual photos in addition to the video, check out the Laconia photo set on my Flickr page!

I have a lot of photos to download from my camera and I’ll try to get those online sometime this evening.

Until then, here’s a little tease. This was taken last Thursday on my way up Mt. Washington!

The ride up here was long, cold and wet! We took the “scenic route” up and while the ride was gorgeous it was difficult to enjoy in the rain…We’re staying at the Naswa Resort, which is really close to the middle of everything!

Yesterday we rode up Mt. Washington. It was a little bit scary to get up it. At certain places the road turns into DIRT road and tryng to keep control of the motorcycle while hammering on the throttle to get up some of the steep parts was dicey. The payoff was worth it, the view were amazing. We got lots of pictures up there. I felt bad for this one old guy though. He was telling the employees up there that he was in trouble because he didn’t think he could get off of the mountain. He was totally spooked. They had to arrange someone to take him down in a van while they rode his Harley down for him. The irony is that going back down was much easier!

After we left Mt. Washington we rode on the Kancamangas highway for a little bit. Oh and did I mention that the weather was gorgeous? It was great. We rode a little more than 200 miles yesterday. I was exhausted last night! We had a bite to eat at the Smokehouse and then I put my sorry butt to bed!

Today there were noticably more and more bikes arriving. There is a steady stream of rumbling motorcycles day and night. Today we hit all of the vendors on the beach, ate yummy sausge & pepper subs and had a few beers. It was a hot day today and my dogs are barkin’ from all the walking we did!

OK-it’s getting late and I’m sure everyone around me is wondering why I’m in the lobby typing on a computer when I should be drinking and singing “Wheel in the Sky” at the top of my lungs…

My bike comes stock with a HUGE air cleaner, lovingly referred to as “the football” and a “pair valve” (California emissions control device). The plan was to rip off the pair valve, replace the football with a hidden K&N air filter, re-jet and debaffle the exhaust pipes (since I have not made a decision on what style of new pipes I want). I realize this was ambitious, but I started over a month ago and figured I’d be done by now. The problem is that I still don’t have all the parts that I ordered! The one big thing I’m missing is the jet kit. But I couldn’t wait, so I started anyway!

Getting half-naked.

When you remove the pair valve and the football on the Volusia, it allows you an unobstructed view of the V-twin cylinders (or “jugs”) so some smarty-pants refers to them as having “Naked Jugs“. I began to set my jugs free today by removing the pair valve. Things went fairly smooth except for the front air breather, that’s a bitch.

Once that was done I figured since I can’t re-jet yet that there was no reason to replace the football. My bike runs lean anyway so the last thing I want to do is give it more air.

The top row of pictures is the pair value before and after I removed the casing. The second row is me tackling the “football.”

Voila! Naked jugs!

So now the bike is half-nekkid. I’m going to have to wait until I get back from bike week to re-jet and go au naturale.

Baffled that I haven’t debaffled before now.

I decided to do a partial debaffle of the exhaust pipes. There are 3 separate baffles in the Volusia. My goal was to remove the first one.

We picked up 2 hole saws to cut through the plates in the massive pipes. You cut out a doughnut and the baffle becomes unrestricted. Then put a dowel in the baffle and wiggle it around until the metal fatigues and breaks off.

Pull the baffle out: lather, rinse and repeat on the other pipe.

What a difference! The sound coming out of those pipes now is unbelievable!

So, as I mentioned before I will be at bike week from Wednesday to Sunday and will try to post updates while I’m there. I’ve been working on a special feature that uses a GPS that I put on the bike and Google maps so you can see me riding in real time. Look for the “Where am I” link under pages in the right hand column. When it’s there, that means I’m on the road! Check back soon and check often…

Nope.

While it is going to warm up we’re expecting thundershowers this afternoon, continuing on for the entire weekend. Crap. I will have to live vicariously through other people for the next few days.

I suppose I could have taken the chance by riding in to work today. I do have a rain suit for such weather, but I definitely don’t have a flavor for riding in it.

Kittens don’t like to get wet.

Here’s some other interesting facts:

• it’s usually held in June and typically ends Father’s Day weekend (except in 2008, when it’ll actually start on that weekend)
• motorcyclists began converging on Weirs Beach, NH in 1916
• it began as a weekend event for races, shows and hill climbs
• the popularity of the “biker” image caused a surge in attendance which extended it to “bike week”
• in the 60′s, Laconia saw troubled times when riots between bikers and the police broke out, causing a decline in attendance. The week-long eventually downgraded to only 3 days.
• in the 90′s local businesses, hoping to boost tourism, looked back to the bikers and reviving the week-long event, which is now run by the A.M.A
• 7 years ago, motorcycle week turned into a 9-day event and attracts 100,000 to 400,000 people
• I have been going for about the past 15 years

So, anyone else going to be there that week?

I wanted to be able to take some pictures to share the lovely commute to work I have everyday. And the only way to do that is to be on the back.

Here I am, ready to go!

This is the old Salem jail, now haunted and waiting to be condos!

Dave Frank’s is the local motorcycle and gun & ammo shop. I firmly believe that they have a gimp in the basement.

This is the view from the Salem to Beverly bridge that I go over everyday. It’s nice to finally see boats in the marina.

Passing by Montserrat College

Look you can see me in the mirror!

This is the entrance to Long Hill

Here’s a wild turkey

And this is the long, winding driveway to go to work!

There are some benefits to working up in the sticks! It only gets more lovely as the warmer weather gets here.

I’ve seen plenty of people out and about on their bikes already, but I live in an area where parking is at a premium and because I’m a renter, not an owner, my motorcycle is still frustratingly still in storage. Plus, there’s still a fair amount of sand on the ground leftover from the latest snowstorms (and the forecast is for more snow this week, argh!).

I”m just itching to bust it out, make it nice and shiny and get it going for the season. Plus I have a few modifications I’d like to do, like lowering it two inches and possibly getting some new exhaust pipes…besides, I just got a new leather jacket that I’m dying to break in!