First overnight of 2019

Put a few new stickers on my new helmet

There's nothing like blogging out on the front porch with a cup of coffee.  I am so looking forward to the day that we are able to buy a house with a breathtaking view of the mountains, so I am REALLY inspired when I'm writing.  It'll come :)

I decided on the blog today because our trip was almost more of a "business" trip, so we don't have any good pictures to share.  I would say that's the biggest disadvantage to riding my own motorcycle vs. being a "hubby hugger" is that I can't snap pics while we're riding down the road.  David tried to get some GoPro footage, but the wind on Friday was No Joke.  In fact, I'd say it was literally the most windy day we've ridden in at all.  It was crazy!

The only makeup I wear when riding

The weekend dawned almost frosty in the mornings, warming up to a crisp 60ish degrees.  Basically, classic Spring weather.  Our trip was to be an overnight Friday/Saturday one.  It sort of came about on accident; I suggested last weekend that we needed a hotel room w/ a hot tub to come home to, and that planted the seed for an idea.  We discussed a few overnight possibilities, but by mid week I'd already decided to scrap the idea.  We have a HUGE trip planned for July ... and this is already almost April.  So we need to save as much as we can in order to pull off what we have planned.  My creative side, David, came up with an interesting route taking us to just outside Nashville, then up into areas of Kentucky we've never been to.  We were planning to ride to Family Video stores.

You may be scratching your head wondering what is Family Video?  Well, it's basically a smaller Blockbuster Video type chain.  And yes, they're open and thriving ... the video rental business is NOT dead!  And just why would we want to frequent such an establishment?  David makes a little extra money here and there by buying and selling movie codes online.  Family Video buys their movies from places like Wal Mart, so they pull all the codes out of the movies and actually sell them.  David found out they have all kinds of sales on their codes, so he figured we could have the best of both worlds; an overnight trip w/ a hotel room and hot tub AND make a little extra money on the side.  Count me in!

We both managed to swing getting off work on Friday by noon, so we raced home (not on motorcycles; remember those frosty mornings??) jumped on our bikes, and hit the road.  Our plan was to make it to 2 of the stores before checking into our hotel for the night, then go eat, then indulge in the hot tub.  Time was on our side, because we fell back an hour as we headed west.  A lot of the route was Interstate, and it was CRAZY.  The wind was blowing so hard, the majority of our conversation back and forth was "WHOA!  This is CRAZY".  Lol.  I have finally gotten used to how much Khaleesi moves around at high speeds.  When I had only a few thousand miles under my belt, the movement would cause my heart to be in my throat, and my hands would cramp from holding my grips so tight.  Add in high winds, and the bike feels like she's literally dancing around underneath me.  But my mind was in such a serene place, it was weird.  I sat nice and tall, kept my hands relaxed on the grips, and twisted the throttle more than usual as we zoomed up and around the semi trucks.  What was interesting is I can feel the movement in my hips and core, but when I look down at my hands, the handlebars are secure and stable, NO movement in my hands.  That's why I've been able to store up my confidence, is that what I'm feeling isn't necessarily a bad thing.  David was almost feeling it more than me because he said the fairing on the Chieftan was catching more wind than he used to feel on his Vulcan.

Red Robin ... YUM!

We finally got off and rode some state roads.  The wind was marginally better, but definitely still there as these were 55/60 mph roads.  I was thoroughly enjoying myself because much of the central plateau area is not area we're familiar with.  The sheer rock formations and wide open fields gave me plenty to look at and soak in, and before I knew it, we were arriving at the first video store.  I didn't go in to any of them.  I grabbed my book (an oldie, but one I've never read; John Grisham's "The Pelican Brief"), grabbed my drink, and sprawled out on the curb next to the bikes.  I was comfortable in my layers and just took off my leather jacket at the stops.  

After David did his thing, we made our way out to Hendersonville, TN.  We've been to Nashville several times, but always IN the city.  And never on the motorcycles.  Hendersonville is roughly half an hour from downtown, and it was fabulous.  Very beautiful landscape, lots of newer stores and restaurants, and our hotel.  Let me just say, our hotel was SO nice.  It had the fanciest bathroom of any normal "chain" hotels we've ever stayed in.  Nice brown and teal carpeting, a soothing and light scent, and crisp white coverlet on the bed; NOT the big, giant puffy things that normally cover the beds.  We ate at a spot that used to be a favorite treat, Red Robin.  I'm pleased to say it was super good; the one we have out here close to us is TERRIBLE.  Bad service, filthy restaurant, and bad food :(  We stuffed our faces and made our way to the hot tub.  YESSSSSS ... :):)

Fancy shower and fancy Kohler fixtures

The next morning we went to none other than our favorite Cracker Barrel and hit the road up into Bowling Green, KY.  This part of the ride wasn't much to talk about.  We had fun seeing the different landscaping and areas.  I got lots of reading done as David made it to 5 stores.  Finally, around 5:15 central time he was done.  We got serious about riding and found a few roads that were more curvy.  KY has interesting state roads, because sometimes they turn into tiny little country routes with twists and curves and lots of farmland.  Once we hit interstate, that pretty much ended our surface roads.  The wind was better, but as the sun went down the temps were dropping and I was getting straight up cold.  I held on to the bike and we roared through the twists and curves and ups and downs of I-40 E getting back into the Knoxville area.  It is NOT just straight, flat interstate.  It is very challenging to roar through at 80 mph up and down mountains and around curves on Interstate that mostly does not have any lighting.  I kept my eyes always looking for potential problems and wildlife, but our angels rode with us and we made it home safe and sound and 100% problem free.  

A road/motorcycle trip favorite

Our Indians are so ideal for what we do.  My bike is finally perfectly set up for my preferences.  My back doesn't get tired, my helmet doesn't get buffeted by the wind, and my knees don't hurt from only having pegs to rest my feet on.  David's bike has GIANT saddlebags with lots of room for all my extras, and he is so comfortable on his, too.  He did change out the seat that came stock on his bike for one that came stock on a Chieftan Elite, and he is much more comfortable.  His stock seat was just too soft and didn't give him enough support.  His new one is also soft, but it's supportive too.  The only thing he needs now for 100% comfort is a heel shifter.  That's what he's used to, and it's what he prefers.  My bike is so beautifully neutral in all conditions.  I can cruise at 85 mph up and down hills, and I can weave and twist through tight, no center line roads.  She never hesitates, never gives me trouble, and the 120 mile limit on the gas tank is a PERFECT stopping point for getting off and stretching/getting a drink.  Our bikes also spark up conversation everywhere we go, every ride, no exceptions.  We're always thrilled to promote the brand, and to meet enthusiasts where ever we go.  Looking forward to our next "business" trip ;)

How we secured our bikes at the hotel.  Just keeps honest people honest

Riding variety!

I haven't moved away from blogging of my rides; I've just added another platform.  Sometimes it's just too much trouble to pull out the computer to log everything; I actually have to upload all my pics to Flickr, download to my computer, then upload to the blog.  I added an adventure page to my personal facebook page; you can search "Jen and David Ride", or Indisaki Adventures on facebook and "like" the page if you don't want to miss anything!  If it's not a big, giant, epic ride, it's nice just to upload the photos to facebook along with the synopsis.

The teenager at WORK

Looks like my last entry here was our vacation.  We've had a few fun rides since then, only one long one.  The long one broke our Riding record on day one of the vacation; we rode 435 miles in one day!  It was a fun day; we rode out to Lynchburg and back.

Freshly washed beasts

Sadly, the day after our long ride, my FIL had another motorcycle accident :(  He was riding alone to his brother's house on his bike, and a kid texting on his phone rear ended him as he was turning into the driveway.  It was a pretty devastating impact; he was taken by ambulance to Kennestone Hospital in GA and it turned out he has a pretty severe broken back.  He had surgery to place 2 rods and 8 screws; David had to ride down to GA to pick C up b/c it was his week to hang with the grandparents.  Thank GOD he is not paralyzed; his helmet actually came off his head during the impact, but he didn't even have a concussion.

Night Riding

Obviously, his future wind therapy is in question.  The MIL says she's keeping her bike for now, but won't ride alone.  There's no telling when the FIL will be well enough even to contemplate getting back out there; he's having to get the strength up to even walk again.  So yeah, there's that.

Top of the Dam

Our ride this week was a night ride out to Norris Dam.  We thought about a Cherohala trip, but pop up showers in the area deterred our enthusiasm!  Khaleesi is almost completely perfect; the final piece of my "must have" accessories has been added.  Floorboards!  She now has a Mustang seat, a Freedom Shields flared windshield, reduced reach handle bars, an LED high projection headlight, and Kuryakan mini floorboards.  I love the mini boards because I have the option to hang my heels off the back if I so desire.  My "want" list consists of pipes and upgraded shocks.  Later!

Bottom of the Dam

Let me just say, that if you've never ridden at night, you're missing out!  It is truly an incredible experience, especially once you get beyond the streetlights.  Tennessee has a LOT of area without streetlights.  It's so amazing to look up at the sky and see how vast everything is without all the light pollution; it's breathtaking!

We stuck to mostly main roads and a little bit of Interstate getting there; the harriest part is the "State Park" road because it's not lit, it's 2 lane, it's not well traveled, and it's in the "Park", so lots of potential critters!  God was with us, and even though we smelled lots of skunks and roadkill, we didn't see ANYTHING.  It feels completely different in the dark, and the ride becomes about the FEELING of riding the bike instead of the looking around at the sights; the "sight" part is pretty much cut off.  My next investment is going to be some amber glasses to try for the dark stuff; I feel like I see pretty well with just my eyes, but I'm all for every advantage!  I was sooooo glad I packed my "layers"; I was wearing just a T shirt and my mesh jacket b/c it was pretty humid and sticky last night (got up to NINETY ... in OCTOBER), but once we got moving at a pretty good clip, I got chilly.

Worst selfie on the face of the planet!!

We took the most hilarious selfie, I just couldn't stop laughing!  I feel like the JenandDavid selfie is sort of our thing, and it is the most HORRIBLE picture, it just makes me laugh.  We encountered some teenagers that wanted us to roll on the throttles, and a gentleman at the gas station that I think wanted to snap a pic, but he wasn't fast enough.  We rode around 95 miles I think it was; we were out for about 3 hours or so.  For me, the night rides are "guilt free" because we go once C is down, and the teenager just has to be present in the house; he doesn't have to DO anything.  It'll probably be November before C can go back to stay for "his week" with the grandparents, and that's provided that the FIL has a smooth healing road, and his pain stays under control as he learns to live with the hardware in his back.  We won't have many more nights I don't think, as hopefully the 90 degree days will stop. I'm not looking forward to COLD weather, but I AM looking forward to FALL weather, which means day rides are the BEST ... and of course, I want to ride through the changing leaves.

MUCH better selfie, lol!

Taking each ride day by day.  I try to average at least once a week riding to work.  Found a new way to go that's fun on the bike; keeps me from riding the same ride over and over.  I just thank God for allowing us to own and ride motorcycles, and I'm SO thankful for His protection as we're out and about.  The teenager is learning to drive, and I'm WAY more scared for him out there in the car as a new driver than I am for us on 2 wheels.  FIL's accident has caused us to just add another layer of carefulness to our riding; as we slow down, we use dorky hand signals.  Sitting at a traffic light, we're "split", with each of us having an "out" if the worst happens and someone comes barreling up, not paying attention.  Thanks for reading, and happy riding!!

Riding goals

"Mav" made some biker friends!

The first weekend in June dawned HOT.  Dripping hot.  Friday after work, we loaded up the family in the truck and headed out to Foothills Mall to watch the "Hogs vs. Pigs" cone skills course.  It was 5 HOG riders vs. 5 motorcycle cops.  What a fun competition!  Definitely gives me something to aspire to; I would LOVE to learn to do the tight cone work ... just don't know how I can learn to do it without risk of dropping my bike!  There was one lady rider representing the HOGs.  She was amazing!  Turns out she's a member of one of my motorcycle facebook groups, and she's now a facebook friend.  I look forward to following her skills riding and hopefully meeting in person and riding together some day.

Great turnout at the rally

A "pig" showing off his superior steering skills

Saturday morning, we took Khaleesi to Willis Cycle Works to get the rear tire replaced.  We left from there and headed to Tazewell, then all the way up to KY.  We drove through the Cumberland Gap tunnel and up into Pineville.  We found the Pine Mountain State Park and ate lunch at the Lodge there.  Such a beautiful place!  We enjoyed some curvy, challenging roads in the area.

Threatening skies but dry ride!

Nearing Cumberland Gap

Made a big loop through LaFollette and then through Oak Ridge coming home.  It feels so amazing taking those long, sweeping curves in 5th gear.  There's nothing quite like it!  I was feeling much better as I forced myself to look up and through all the curves and stay right in the middle of the bike as it swept along the hot asphalt heading towards home.

255 miles and almost 6 hours out!

We rode again on Sunday ... a tube down a snow hill, and a helicopter!  The boys enjoyed spending some time in Gatlinburg for breakfast, then in Pigeon Forge for the others.  We went home via Sevier County backroads that normally are reserved for the bikes; Loved mixing the weekend with motorcycles and family!

Riding the Cherohala Low Way!

Wow.  Yesterday was something else; 440 miles total, combined rides.  And ALL for a cheap little "multi-tool" with the Indian Motorcycle logo on it!

I had been pushing since Wednesday to do a "long" ride on Saturday.  Rain all week was pop up showers, which had prevented me from ANY work rides.  I keep having a hankering to ride out to Rock Island State Park, which is out in the general area of all the other little state parks we've been to.  But then Indian Motorcycle of Marietta had to post their little poster on facebook that not only were they doing the IMC "multi-tool", but they were also doing a key chain.  Soooo, we HAD to head down that way to get both!!

City of Knoxville at midnight

The morning dawned WET.  Lovely clouds, wet roads, and dry people!  We took our 3rd Muskateer with us; he's undecided whether or not he really enjoys the longer rides.  I think he comes along for the food!  We hit trusty 'ol 411 S down to the Ocoee area, where we then hit Hwy 68.  We just took it easy, as the roads were wet enough to be kicking up water and wetting the bottom of our pants.  We went through Suches, which we coined "The Cherohala Low Way".  Dang, that would be a FUN ride on a dry road.  Twists, curves, and twisty little easier switchbacks going DOWNHILL.  Plus, on Hwy 68, we've come UP that way twice, but never down.  Totally different experience going DOWN. 

Barely missing a downpour

I was still shaking off my shakiness.  I have been reassured that my tire is just fine; that back one will be replaced within about another 1000 miles (which, at the rate we're going, will be about a month).  For some weird reason, I'm just in my head.  I don't know why.  I tried to analyze it as I'm riding, and I think I'm downshifting/upshifting in the wrong place in curves, and when I accelerate after the shift, it messes up my trajectory.  I've just gotten in a BAD habit of shifting period IN a curve, and you're supposed to be all set BEFORE the curve.  So, with that self diagnosis in place, I made a conscious effort to fix it, and I THINK it got better.  Once we got down the mountain, there weren't too many more curvy, curvy roads.

Love having our buddy with us

We stopped off at a hiking spot in Suches to stretch, use the potty, and take a pic, and we had NO idea how lucky we actually were!  We'd hit enough rain to that point to have to close our face shields, but it wasn't enough to soak through anything; no soaked thighs.  Like I said, lower legs up to knees were wet, but that was mainly because the road was so wet there were standing puddles.  As we pulled out and began the roller coaster, curvy descent, you could tell a SOAKER had just come through, WOW!

We were uneventful down in to Dahlonega, GA.  It has been forever and a DAY since I've been there.  It is so interesting driving through areas on a motorcycle that you were used to driving through 7+ years ago in a cage.  We hit GA 400 up north to head into Alpharetta, and we just HAPPENED to see our lunch destination on our left; The Varsity.  We had no idea Dawsonville had gotten a Varsity; we were planning to hit the one in Kennesaw.  Whipped a U turn at a light, and enjoyed a delicious lunch of chili dogs and onion rings from a famous Atlanta iconic destination.

Areas not been in in a LONG time!

"What'll you have, what'll you have??"

From there, it was to Indian Motorcycle of Alpharetta, where I ended up schooling one of the employees, lol.  We loved their logo, which is why we even bothered to stop there in the first place (aside from we'd just never been there!).  As we checked out with our "dealer" T-shirts (with the cool logo on the back), the employee said he had no idea why their logo incorporated a train.  Um, hello!  The Polaris take on the Indian Chieftan fairing is BASED off the front end of a locomotive!  So I informed him of that little fact;)  On to Marietta!

Seriously?  Why the train?

We took back roads from Alpharetta to Marietta that I hadn't been on in SO long.  Certain areas were unrecognizable, it's crazy!  We dodged more rain, and finally the skies seemed to really clear up.  By the time we arrived, it was 3:00; 7 hours on the road.  We needed to get in a small hurry b/c the teenager had a party back home at 7 he wanted to attend.  We went in and they still have their race inspired Chieftan; oh, how I LOVE that bike!  When I win the lottery, I will get one, then have Jared Mees autograph it!!  The guys at Indian of Marietta really are awesome.  Super nice, very knowledgeable, and up front with all of their customizable options. 

Lottery bike!

We hit the Interstate up to Emerson; I-75.  Blech!  Crazy Atl drivers ... AND a Braves game.  Driving 80-90 mph on the interstate doesn't bother me at all, but all the stupid cars and idiot drivers make me hold my breath.  My windshield has made ALL the difference in the world, and my bike feels nice and steady at speed with no more head buffeting at all.  We filled up for gas for about the 400th time, then took backroads all the way to Calhoun.  In Calhoun, we hit a NEW road we'd just found in the car, Hwy 225.  It was fun; that area is just beautiful and peaceful.  Not too curvy, but not much traffic either.  That ended back on 411 just below the GA/TN border, and we took 411 home (dropping the teenager off an hour and a half late for his party).  My butt was SORE, lol.  And my glove was rubbing a spot on my clutch hand; and my hands were sweaty b/c these gloves don't breathe.  So I rode with naked hands for a few miles :)  And it got warm enough that I stripped ALL the way down to a Dri-Fit tank top, and my mesh jacket.  Felt pretty good!  Started with the tank top, T shirt, long sleeved technical pullover, and mesh jacket with liner.  Thank goodness David has saddlebags, lol!

First time seeing one of these in person; WEIRD!

Rest stop!

You THINK this story is over now, don't you?  Haha, NOPE!  We hopped in the car, went to the grocery store, stopped to get dinner, then sat at home for about 45 mins.  We then suited back up at 10:30 to get back on the bikes to go pick up the kid ... AND HE WANTED TO GO HOME.  Dropped him off, then David and I thundered off alone ... in the dark ... to who knows WHERE.  We took back roads over to Chapman Hwy, then into downtown Knoxville.  More traffic than I would have expected.  We rode over a bridge and looked to our left to see another bridge that was lit up so pretty; so we tossed in a U turn ... on a HILL ... to go back and get some pics.  By that time, we were so sore and exhausted, we made our way back home.  We rolled into the garage around 12:30. 

Just a pair of crazy kids!

Our longest mileage ride so far.  I don't think we've rolled over 400 in one day at all yet, even on our 2 overnighters.  Iron Butts, we do NOT have!  I can't wait for my Mustang seat to break in; it's really not that comfortable yet.  I still need handlebars and floorboards for my baby before those long rides can be done with no Ibuprofen, lol.  Happy to say ZERO issues.  No sliding stops, no close calls, no drama.  That's what I call a "SUCCESS".  Until next weekend!  Y'all have a great week.

Beautiful!  Never seen this park before!

I have SOOO much to say, I must break it into 2 posts! Part 1 ... Devil's Triangle

First of all, I can't believe I forgot a crucial part of my last story!  Where we rode into Waynesville and played on the Rattler.  I HAVE to fill y'all in on that because it was CRAZY!  So we were racing home, trying to beat the rain.  We made it through Townsend and were about 2, 3 miles from home.  The roads were soaked.  I'm usually SUPER cautious and approach traffic lights like I'm pulling a loaded horse trailer; that means as I approach green lights, I back off the throttle, downshift if I'm up in 5th, and just see what happens.  Once I'm past that point of commitment, I go on, regardless if the light changes.  Well.  We were hauling butt and did NOT slow down as we approached the FINAL traffic light before the turn to our neighborhood ... and Murphy's Law, it changed.  I was WAY too far from it to run it, but was going WAY too fast to effectively stop, especially in the rain.  OMG.  As I stepped on both brakes, I told David in the radio, "I'm sliding, I'm sliding, I'm sliding".  My tires were fully locked down, and I was fishtailing all over that road like a snake slithering to food.  I didn't panic; I kept my eyes up, kept my hand and foot on the brake, and finally just slammed my feet down to try and stop the momentum.  FINALLY, I stopped, almost 1/4 out in the intersection.  Fortunately, there were NOT many cars around, so why that stupid thing changed, I have no idea.  S.C.A.R.Y.  Will DEFINITELY be going with ABS brakes next time, don't know what I could have done differently (other than slowing like usual before the light).

Anyways!  BEFORE last week's demo ride, David and I took an impromptu trip to Oliver Springs on Easter Sunday.  I did NOT enjoy my ride at the Devil's Triangle last time we did it.  Quite frankly, it scared me.  I felt uncomfortable, like I couldn't get in a rhythm, and like it was kicking my tail.  So, I thought maybe that had been a case of not enough technical experience to fully conquer all the twists and turns and the undulations of the mountain triangle, so we were just looking for the perfect opportunity to try again.  It's close enough to us that we get a GOOD ride to it and around it, without taking hours and hours.  I've often said, "I wish it was a better ride so we could do it more often".  Well, this time was MUCH better.

CRAZY fog blanked off Foothills this past Tuesday AM

Except for one small detail ... I got the super bright idea to tackle it without my windshield.  I try not to complain about it too much, but I have hated my OEM shield since I rode Khaleesi off the lot.  The ONLY thing it does is keep the wind off my chest.  So, for the first time since I've owned her, I rode shield-less.  Um, BIG mistake!  Speeds above 35 mph got up under my helmet (I was wearing the Marvel one for the good shield it has) and lifted it so high off my head I felt like I was getting clothes lined.  Dang, that was a TERRIBLE experience for me!  I did it because with my Mustang seat, my head was now so far above my OEM shield that the wind was being sent directly into my face/head and the buffeting was nearly unbearable.  Well, no shield is definitely worse, FYI :D

No windshield is NOT how I roll!

SO; we decided to run the Triangle opposite of what consensus says the "good" direction is.  Instead of counter-clockwise, we ran it clockwise.  The ONLY problem with that is it puts the most technical aspect of the ride at the very beginning, and also in the more difficult direction.  When you have 10 mph switchback turns, it's easier to come at them from the left because you have a wider turning radius.  And SOME people think down is easier, but I personally think up is easier, but I digress.  I was actually really enjoying the VIEW with no shield; as we began winding our way up the mountain, the slower speeds wasn't too bad.  David warned me about the switchbacks coming up, and I shook off the butterflies.  First one, I held my outside line close to the yellow line, looked hard up and around the curve, feathered my clutch to keep the RPMS up, and before I knew it, all 4 of the S's were over.  3 right, one left.  I NAILED every single one of them, it was AWESOME.  Didn't cross into oncoming traffic once. 

Little pep talk before tackling the Devil's Triangle on Easter Sunday

The rest of the ride was fun; a usual ride for us of some faster straightaways with slower curvy sections, and winding up, over, and down the mountain.  I had David put Carrie Underwood's "Champion" song set during the switchbacks.  I have literally gotten emotional TWICE now, lol ... it's just such an awesome feeling when you conquer a fear and do something WELL that maybe didn't go so well for you last time.  Here is the video of the first 22ish miles.  The Triangle is 44 miles, we tried to break the videos perfectly in half.

Devil's triangle

Literally once we got home from that ride, David had me order a new windshield ... WHAT?!  Woo hoo!  So I ordered my Freedom Shield and waited with bated breath!!  I tried the first real long ride with it today (just came on Wed) and it is freaking AWESOME!  It has a curve at the top that directs the wind up and over.  My Indian helmet I love/hate even stayed UP with no rubber band today, crazy!  I have NO wind in my face, and the usual higher speed buffeting is so much better! HIGHLY recommend this shield; when we get our Chieftan (lol) we'll get a Freedom Shield for that too.  Details from today's ride to follow soon!

Yep, THIS happened!

Oh, and I SLAYED my 10,000 mile goal!  Hit it Tuesday on the way home from work.  My bike isn't a year old until tomorrow :)

Taller and wider; got it too tall for now to compensate for when I get my longer handle bars.

Wishing for warm, Spring days ...

Officially a "Steel Cowgirl"

This week has dawned cold and rainy for the most part.  This weekend was looking like a complete wash, but we stayed patient, bided our time, and squeezed out a rain free ride this afternoon!

Layering up for a ride on the cool side

My sister (in-law) gave me "tattoos" of 'Khaleesi', and my aunt (in-law) gave me a bell for my birthday.  David put on the tattoos and I put on the bell.  Technically, the bell really isn't low enough on the bike, but I don't believe a talisman is going to protect me anyway; my guardian angel ALWAYS rides with me, whether on a bike, a horse, or in a car.  I put the bell on because it's cute, and it's a kichy thing with motorcycles.

"Lady Rider"

Before hitting the open road, we jetted down to one of our favorite hole in the wall Mexican restaurants and ate some yummy food. 

Motorcycles, Mexican food, and no margaritas!

We weaved our way through Maryville traffic, cussing a few idiots out along the way.  It is SHAMEFUL the way people drive.  It truly should be a requirement for schools to teach DRIVER'S ED instead of freaking Geometry in high school.  The kids should have a comprehensive, semester long class on driving.  And adults should be required to go through it again every 5 years.

Indian girl for life!

David had his GoPro to record the Foothills Parkway.  We finally made our way out past the worst of the traffic made the right hand turn onto FHP.  LOVE that road, one of my favorites.  I never get tired of it.  David let me lead, and I smoothly shifted up through the gears, keeping my hands "soft" on the grips.  My eyes sought to seek out the curves of the asphalt ribbon, and Khaleesi leaned and floated through every corner without a single bobble.

Fontana Lake

I twisted the throttle off each curve and kept her up around 50 mph through the L shaped curves.  I always have to fight myself a little bit with wanting to be a granny through the turns, it's pushing yourself out of your comfort zone that gets you to stretch and grow as a rider.

"Gremlin" Bell

I only touched my brakes 3 times the entire trip.  The third time was as we pulled up to the stop sign at the end of the road.  David kept me in the lead as I turned down 129 and then zagged onto 72.  David directed me to a right hand side road that carved through our East Tennessee countryside and came through to 411 and then down to Greenback.

Tattoos are sexy

65 miles later, we thundered back into the garage.  There is talk of maybe "gutting" my catalytic converters in my pipes.  I'm not unhappy with the power of my bike; I WOULD like it louder b/c anything for cages (cars) to hear/see us better, the BETTER.  I don't really want to drop $500+ on a set of pipes just for sound.  I have a few things on my list that I want to do to upgrade her, and once those upgrades are complete, that's it.  Any additional money spent will simply be on maintenance and clothing (Ahem, helmets, gloves, and jackets).

Sexy siblings

This coming weekend we have rides planned Friday and Saturday, weather permitting.  My weather will is STRONG, so I'm hoping I can talk God into blessing us with sun to go along with the mid 60's temps.  Right now it's looking overcast with some rain, so we'll see!

Mufasa just celebrated his one year anniversary in the Bishop household!

Daytona bike week is happening this week.  Sure do wish we could pop on down for a few days.  In the mean time, I'll be stalking all the videos and fun things going on.  Maybe next year!

Love making my bike my OWN.