Daytona Bike Week Trip

Honda VTX1800c With Bags

It's still February and for all intents and purposes, Spring has sprung! Today was 78 degrees and sunny, in fact the entire weekend will be warm and except for some rain next week it looks like the temperature will remain in the upper sixties and seventies from here out. We may have a cold snap, or cool nights but it doesn't seem like it's going to be frigid for long anytime soon.


This, of course is a good thing because it means motorcycle riding season has arrived! Here in the south we ride year around but it requires an effort to bundle up in winter.
We also look forward to Spring, Summer, and Fall because it means T-shirts and jeans are acceptable riding gear. Perhaps not the safest, but acceptable.

My brother on his Harley Davidson Bike

I am so glad to see this weather appear. An early Spring is just what I was looking forward to for the ride to Daytona Bike Week in March. Back a few months ago my brother and some friends started planning this ride. It was a good way to mull away the hours during winter when it was just too much effort to drag the bike out in frozen weather. Planning the trip or just thinking of the long ride and what to take, how to pack, where to stop and hotel information made for relaxing winter nights entertainment.

If you can't ride you can think about rides!

The time to go is drawing near and all the plans are made. We will leave on a Wednesday morning and come back Sunday. There will be six of us riding together, all on big bikes packed down with essentials we will need on the trip. We have our stops planned and hotel reservations. All we need to do now is meet up for a final "go-over" and then pack & go.

Daytona Bike Week is March 4th - 13th.

Daytona Bike Week

We can't stay for the whole thing but our two days should be enough fun to last a long time and an ample supply of memories. Plus it's a good chance to find stuff you can't find anywhere and either pack it for the trip home or FedEx it to the house.

I'm sure I will take plenty of pictures along the way during my adventure and some video as well. I will be taking my pocket camcorder and my Canon Elf still camera will also take video. I'll probably have the GoPro on my helmet for some of the trip for riding footage.
Perhaps when we get back I can edit and upload some of the video here for you to see.

Sounds like a plan.

Trying out the selfie stick! 

Speaking of planning, I just got my motorcycle out of the shop. It needed new brake pads for the trip and a tune up. "Tigger the Beast" is ready for the trip, now less than three weeks away.
I put the saddle bags back on and the trunk. I also have a small tank bag for small stuff like the cameras, and a larger duffel type bag for clothes and essentials.

I guess I'm as ready as I ever will be.

So, as they say, "Stay Tuned!" I'll have updates here. I will not be able to blog during the trip because all I'll have with me is my Kindle Fire and it's not easy nor fast to type on it.

Roll On And Ride Free!

So, I'll blog when we get back about the trip with pictures and video. If you want to follow me as we ride during the trip you can "Follow" on my Twitter account. Twitter Link.

I will also be able to post to Facebook when in the hotels in the evening if you want to follow there. I'll make most trip photos and posts public so you can see them.

Till then, keep the rubber side down and ride like you mean it. :D

Sombra {Honda Shadow Spirit 1100 Motorcycle}

It was July of 2014 that I bought "Sombra", my Honda Shadow Spirit 1100 motorcycle.  I've owned motorcycles before, my first bike was a Yamaha 100 back in the '70's.

Early 70's Yamaha 100 Street Bike

It was my primary mode of transportation back then and I rode it everywhere.

I spent years without a bike through the 80's and 90's but in the early 2000's I wanted to get back on the road on two wheels so I bought an old, beat up 1978 Honda GL1000 Goldwing.

I loved the bike but I wanted something prettier, so I sold it and got a 1982 Honda GL1100 Aspencade Goldwing. I rode that bike until I developed neurophathy in my legs. The position of the shiftier on the Goldwing was under my hip rather than out front and it made the sciatic nerve in my leg hurt like the dickens.
So, with my health an issue and the fact I was not a safe rider because of the pain, I sold my Goldwing.

Again I was without a bike.

1978 Honda GL-1000 Goldwing

July of 2014 I decided to try riding again. I never felt right not having a bike. It's like something is missing and you can't quite put your finger on it. But at some point you know deep inside it's because there is no bike in your life to ride. I had determined that a bike with forward controls would not hurt my legs and after some long contemplation I broke down and bought the Shadow.

For a year the Shadow (Sombra) was my bike, loved riding it but in July 2015, one year later I found my Honda VTX 1800c for a good price and since riding no longer hurt, I set my sights on acquiring the bigger bike.  I bought the VTX and later put the Shadow 1100 up for sale.
Over the winter I had few interested potential buyers but as the weather began to warm up someone contacted me about the bike.

Sombra rolled off my driveway yesterday.

It's an odd feeling of sadness and joy seeing that bike go. After all it was the bike that got me back on the road. I had many road adventures on it and made plans for more travels. A motorcycle becomes your baby, almost like a child and as such sometimes you have to let them leave the nest so you can afford another one.

1982 Honda GL-1100 Goldwing

The VTX1800 is of course a bigger bike than the Shadow 1100, but it was the 1100 that helped me overcome the fear that I couldn't ride any longer, and get me back in the wind. So, there was a special love for that bike. It was smaller and nimble. Just what I needed to get back on the tarmac.

Because of the Shadow I'm now planning a long distant ride to Daytona Bike Week in March on the VTX 1800.

It's a huge step forward.

There will always be a special place in my memories for the Shadow. I loved the look and style of the bike and though it was smaller, it was a powerful motorcycle. I will never be able to say it just sat in the carport because I was on it riding every chance I had. There is a special bond between a man and his motorcycle and we had that bond. I was sad to see her go.

2001 Honda Shadow Spirit 1100

It's not like I don't have a bike anymore, I have the VTX 1800 and that bond is also solid with her. It's a great ride and I have plans for many road trips, some much further than I had imagined with the Shadow.

The future looks bright!



I will likely have more blog posts on future road adventures. Hang around and look for updates, with a little luck I'll have photos and video as well. Stay Tuned. :)

  

2004 Honda VTX1800c Motorcycle