Slobber, slobber, slobber......

Ok, I'm wiping drool off my chin after seeing the new cruisers for 2010 from the recent revival of Indian Cruisers. Check 'em out.

Have I told you about.....?

I had to skim thru my older posts to see if I've mentioned Confederate Motorcycles. It seems I haven't. While stumbling through the last pages of the Internet I came across this really, really cool motorcycle maker. The holidays are coming and I really want the Hellcat Combat...I've been very good this year :)

Forever

The Fighter

Seattle GLBT Motorcycle Club

So I've been toying with the idea of creating a motorcycle club (MC). To my knowledge we only have one in the Pacific Northwest, BorderRiders,  which really suprises me. I've checked out that club once and didn't feel a connection.

I want a club where members come from all parts of the Gay community, a true GLBT motorcycle club for Seattle and the surrounding areas. I'd like to see educational classes for safety, mechanics and anything else motorcycle related. Let's have a monthly social event where we hang out and build relationships. I ride cruisers but would like to ride with sportsbikes, BMWs, cruisers, choppers, cafe racers, etc..

And of course ride. I foresee planned rides every weekend, some afternoons and evenings during the summer months for advanced, intermediate, and novices. I hope we will have many members stepping up to lead multiple rides for everyone to choose from. Including some over-nighters or longer touring rides. Charity work would be a great addition to the clubs mission.

I'd like to avoid a fetish or specialized club based on leather, S&M, age groups, male or female, etc... It should be all inclusive. The focus being on riding and that you identify as gay. Everyone is there for all members to lend a hand.

Most importantly a kick ass name and logo so we can sport some hot jackets :)

One concern I have is the motorcycle community a large. I would like to see us involved with the overall motorcycle community but since I perceive it as mostly straight and not open to the gay orientation I hesitate around what that interaction would look like.

If you are local and are interested in this type of club please comment, leave an email address and I'll connect with you. Also if you aren't local but know about GLBT motorcycle clubs around the US, I'd love your thoughts or recommendations, so please also comment.

Thanks

Peace
ChopperRockerC

Bike Lust!

A friend of mine sent me this web address of a very hot cycle shop. Like Heartland USA, which provides Harley owners with kits to modify their bikes, Exile Cycle delivers very sexy kits to build it yourself.

Now I'm not mechanically inclined but it'd be fun to try.
Check out Exile Cycles

 

 

International Motorcycle Show Arrives for the Winter

Winter is upon us and the riding season for many has wound down. Unless you're a diehard (or insane) like myself and ride through the cold season then you've probably put your baby to bed all nice and warm and battery tended.

But that shouldn't stop you from enjoying all things motorcycle. Cycleworld is touring a show through the US. Check out http://www.motorcycleshows.com/ to see where it arrives in your area. In Seattle it's December 11th - 13th and I will be there. Bring a friend who loves riding as much as you do!

Man I'm Chapped!

Among the motorcycle communities your gear is an important safety precaution as well as a symbol of your style and attitude. Sportsbike riders tend to have a tight armored textile or leather jacket and pant combo with bright colors in a contemporary style if not a futuristic flavor. BMW riders have a similar style but with less of the colorful flare however the cloths tend to be upscale and can be costly. Cruisers like Harley bikes, Honda VTXs, Kawasaki Vulcans, etc.. tends toward more of the Easy Rider style, black leather jackets, leather gloves, dew rags, and leather chaps.

I ride two cruiser style bikes and the more I'm in the motorcycle community the more I am leaning towards that style. Now one of my favorite things to do is shop, yep I'm a stereotype. And so during the summer months when I was riding every weekend with my group the more I began thinking about leather chaps. I have armored textile riding pants already, great for wet weather and the cold. But in the summer time it can get too hot. I've been riding in just my jeans and no other leg protections. Not very good if I lay down the bike. But am I really a leather chap kinda guy or gay?

The beginning the leather chaps began over a hundred years for equestrian riders. The cowboy wore them while out on the range protecting their legs. It wasn't until the mid-1900's that motorcyclists appropriated that leg protection idea as well as the saddlebag concept.

Now chaps can say many things about a person. It can imply the person is a motorcyclist and is rough & tough, bad ass rider. However in the gay community it can also mean a fascination with leather and the S&M scene. That's fine if it's your leaning though it doesn't tend to be mine. I like leather more as a fashion statement, quality clothing and protection while riding. So as I contemplate getting chaps I have to decide why I want them and what it says about me.

Will chaps be comfortable? Will chaps be cooler than full textile armored pants? Will they protect me? And most importantly will they look good on me? I guess I'll have to see.

Would you wear chaps? Why and what does it say about you?

Harley Fags

Ok, so I guess I wasn't the first person to come up with Fag On A Harley. It seems South Park the cartoon had a whole show dedicated to this topic. Who knew?

Check out a clip of the video on my right side bar.

Pretty funny!

Zen Is Eluding Me

I tried, I mean I really tried. Step 1, get a motorcycle, Step 2 ride that motorcycle, Step 3 read "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert M. Pirsig, Step 4 learn how to fix your own motorcycle and find deep philosophical meaning in it.

I attempted Step 3 with diligence. Every night before connecting head with pillow I'd lay in bed, flip on the reading light and reach for this classic 1974 thoughtful book. I've read about quarter of it and reading it prior to turning in for the night definetly did wonders for my sleep, it basically hastened it.

Maybe I don't have the chops for this thought provoking tale. I really was enjoying his riding reflections.  Making his way across the country side with his son sitting behind him and two friends up ahead. The author relays to the reader riding challenges a motorcyclist can appreciate, from misbehaved weather coming upon suddenly to the sleepy crawl across a long haul of landscape sameness. In each, there is a personal understanding of yourself and the elements, as he often puts forth, when you ride a motorcycle you are a part of the landscape and the outside world and feeling cagers (car drivers) can't appreciate.

I too have been on a long ride only to be trying to outrace a storm which eventually spills overhead. I've also experienced the check and double check in my mind as to whether I brought all the correct riding gear I would need. And I've driven a long stretch fighting back the dropping of my eyelids. This part of his story's narrative I followed closely, I'm even charmed by the dated material which hasn't seen cell phones, CDs, DVDs, or hybrid vehicles yet. Probably because I grew up in that time.  The travel story is simplistic and human in nature and I can enjoy his ride without thinking too much.

Yet when he starts pontificating I am now fighting the sleep that suddenly overwhelms me. Face to face I can philosphize with some of the best and yet written down in this book it pulls me away from the simplier story of getting from here to there.

Funny, if I think about it his metaphysical overlay its probably saying pretty much the same thing....getting from where we currently are to where we might want to go.

Please don't let me deter you from reading the book as it has delighted many in the past. I just think I need to skip over to Step 4, learn how to fix your own motorcycle and find deep philosophical meaning in it.

Anyone know of a good Sci Fi/Fantasy novel I can pick up and loose myself within? Whatever we do, it's all about enjoying the ride.

Birds of a Feather

The internet is the Holy Grail for the niche' world.

I can find almost any topic that may pop into my head at 3:00 am in the morning. If there was a book I loved as a child I can find it with enough time and details. Many online e-Commerce marts have thrived on this fact. Do you know how many candle shops there are on the web? Then include sexual gratification fetishes for all fixations and you have a lot of happy individuals (not that I would know). The web both increases isolation and community, allowing you to spend hours alone surfing for like minded individuals to bond with and then chat with them from your studio apartment in your latex sailor outfit.

I don't know how many people out there know about Meetup.com but that's where I found my sailor group. In all seriousness Meetup.com has become a great way to leave the solitary world and get out and connect with real humans. I've been lucky to find several motorcycle groups in my area. I rode 7000 miles in 4 months with these people, made good friends and learned a lot from those more experienced than myself.

Facebook, Myspace, Friendster, and Twitter are other sites for social networking but I don't believe they provide the same opportunity for you to shake a hand, look across the table into someone's eyes, or experience the same moment with another person like Meetup.com and other social activity sites allow.

We can either expand our world or create borders around it. I'm learing to enlarge it with a tool that keeps redefining my interests and perceptions.

http://www.meetup.com/

Hot Bikes

Darwins - http://www.brassballsbobbers.com/ Brass Balls Bobbers

Knucklehead Bobbers

Malubu Motorcycle Works
http://www.malibumotorcycleworks.com/

Pan Fry'd Bike - SIZZLING HOT

Another example of exceptional design. Remember, the holidays are coming up and if you can't find me a gift....

A Sunday Opportunity

As I sit on my couch typing this entry the logs are crackling in the fire and I'm reflecting on a great Sunday. At the last minute an afternoon ride was arranged for my Meetup Motorcycle group. The weather forecast was for clear skies and 50 degree temperatures. An opportunity any self respecting Seattleite knows to take advantage because the day before it was pouring rain and tomorrow it will probably do that and more.

Though I still have a lingering cold and I've neglected my front yard shaming my neighborhood I decided I had to go on this ride. I threw on my warm cloths with long johns underneath, rubbed my dog Puck on the head and jumped on my motorcycle heading towards the meetup spot.

Often on days like this as I ride away from my house I'm thinking whether I chose the right gear; leather jacket instead of the textile armored jacket, a zip up fleece, armoured over-pants, thick gloves (but tossed the lighter ones in the saddlebags just in case), and the 3 quarter helmet instead of the full faced helmet. Typically, 15 minutes from my house I remember I left my ear plugs at home. I've recently promised myself I would start wearing them because I really like my hearing a lot and statistics say riders loose their hearing after prolonged exposure to the wind and exhaust pipe noise. And my exhaust pipes are very loud, proudly I annoy the neighbors at 6:30 am when heading out for work due to those same pipes. As any biker will tell you, loud pipes make safer riders. Cars are more aware of you due to those pipes.

The group was meeting first at a Starbucks up North and then we'd connect up with more of our riders at an eastside Starbucks.....hey is Seattle, what do you expect? At the first gathering there was around seven of us but our final count on the eastside would put us at 20, nice size group for a ride.

We hit back roads all the way to the eastside, through nice twisties. Twisties are those twists and turns you get on the country roads of Washington. They are the lifeblood of the motorcyclist, getting your adrenaline soaring as you slide through the curves. Some part of the roads still have moisture on them if still in the shade so you have to be very careful your aren't hitting the turns too fast or you can loose traction. I can feel my tire slip just a little so I have to let up on the throttle and apply a bit of brake. Every time I go on these rides I know if just the slightest miscalculation on my part and I can get very hurt. You're in control of your bike but not the road, so it becomes the unknown factor and creates the excitement.

As any of my friends can tell you I'm a control freak. So I like having control of the bike and testing my skill against the imperfections of the road. You just never know where there might be some gravel, leaves, a bump or ditch around the next corner. So you have to always be looking far enough ahead. As I've heard said before, if you are looking down there is no way to stop or make corrections because you are already there.

We picked up the rest of the bikers, some men and some women, several cruisers and a few sportsbikes.  All are made welcome. Back on the roads I am always fascinated by the beauty and rustic scenery I see zipping past. Multi-colored leaves on large old trees, weathered farm houses and Norman Rockwell barns, rolling hills with horses and cows, tractors, cars and ATVs lining front yards. In front of us Mt. Rainier is in the distance. As a boy from Arizona where cactus is all the rage this kind of landscape is still foreign and breathtaking to me. I love Washington State and specifically Seattle.

After riding for an hour and a half we stop at a very small bar that tends to cater to motorcyclists. Today there are many out on the roads taking advantage as we are. When riding past each other we make the customary hand signal, a two finger peace sign point downward. Motorcycling is both solitary and communal. You ride with yourself, in your own thoughts but share the road with others who have your passion either in passing or in groups.

The bar is filled with people and our group orders drinks. Now I have no problem with drinking alcohol but I try not to drink and ride a motorcycle. First, I'm a lightweight, one beer will have me very buzzed even though I'm a 200 lb guy...ok maybe 208 lbs these days, I'm working on loosing that. Anyway, secondly managing a motorcycle takes all of your concentration and so I don't like to be less then my best when riding. So with another rider, a woman, I don't know, we decide to hit the cafe across the way and have hot chocolate. Man it was good after riding in the cold. I got to make a new friend and have chocolate, that's perfect for me.

After the group finishes their drink we get back on the road heading back to Seattle via those back roads again. We lost much of the group as many went on their own to head home. Those in my now small group all are heading the same way. So with the Fall Back daylight savings time in effect it's getting dark out. Riding in the dark with wet and dry roads is more scary then daytime riding because you really can't see what you're up against. Caution is the keyword here. It's gotten a lot colder and I had on my thinner gloves which I found I was regretting. With thicker gloves you gain warmth but loose the finer sensitivity to your hand controls and grip. But does that really matter if you can no longer feel your fingers as I was starting to develop.

Riding back there is a full moon, it's amazing to see as the light starts dissapearing. At this point I'm ready to be home and having dinner. But still the leader of the group takes us through a route only he seems to know. We trust he knows where he is going as we follow and focus on the road.

Eventually we hit a main highway I recognize and I know we aren't far from home. At a specific stop light I wave my goodbye and gun my engine shooting out ahead. I get home and of course forgot to leave any lights on. My poor dog is laying in the dark house wondering when he'll get fed.

It was a nice day, nice ride and a nice relaxing evening with Pad Thai Chicken, 3 stars and a fireplace roaring.

Nite!