Fear sucks, screw it, let's ride!

So, I've been riding solo for about 2 months now. I bought a magnet that I keep on the bars to remind me that fear sucks. & Of course my bike had to have a butterfly. Saving my pennies for a custom paint job & louder pipes.

Not too long after I got the bike was an annual ride to the kids burn camp up in Prescott. In years past either I rode on the back with Papa Bear or chased in my truck. Dammit, I am riding my own bike this year.

The ride was the back way through Yarnel & up into the mountains into Prescott. Not sure of my skills, Papa Bear & a couple good friends agreed to ride that route with me a few days before.

At first, I was shaky & taking the steep mountain grades & curves too slow, Before I knew it, I was leaning into the turns without backing off the throttle.

Going back home down the mountain was a blast, I was leaning, down shifting like a pro. The best consumer reports on the 883 Superlow was the light & more balanced weight, how well it responds to curving & quick speeds. It was also mentioned that the design makes you feel like you are sitting in the bike, instead of on it. The reports are right. I wonder if there couldn't be a more perfect bike made for me.

The burn camp ride was a blast, I was riding with a very experienced group made up of mostly fire fighters. It was an absolute blast riding up the mountain with them, I gained quite a bit of more skills & really mentally connected with the bike.

Putting on the miles, several times to work now, more when the temp drops just a tad, a couple out of town rides & scootin' all over town.

Let's ride!

The bitch just passed you

When I was about 5, my dad brought home this little dirt bike. It had a two stroke Tecumseh engine & no gears to shift. Not sure if someone took a lawn mower engine & stuck it in a bike frame, or if it was actually manufactured. Didn't matter, I had a blast riding that. Grew up in the desert, so my riding range was limitless.

I graduated to a Honda 80 when I was maybe 8. & then was finally big enough to ride my dad's Honda 125. Then came boys with street bikes.

The first time I met hubby, he was on a bike. & I've been the bitch on the back ever since.

The first of this year, we went on a 300+ mile charity ride. On the way home, going about 80 down the freeway, I got a cramp in my leg. Hubby is yelling "Sit still" I'm yelling back, "I got a cramp" He yells, "We ain't stopping" & I then thought fuck this, I'm paying off my truck loan & getting my own goddam bike.

I did pay off my truck & took a beginner rider's course. Glad I did, the kids were just babies the last time I rode solo. As soon as I got on the bike at the course, I remembered everything. I passed & received a certificate to take to the MVD to get my motorcycle license without having to take the MVD riding test.

Last weekend, we drove over to the dealership & got fitted for a Sportster 883 Superlow. Beautiful powder baby blue paint job & am saving up for custom pin striping. I love that Harley realized that women ride too, & have come out with smaller & lighter bikes (& more expensive clothes).

if you can read this, the bitch just passed you

Back to playing basketball

Our Son is back to playing basketball, something not too long ago, we thought he would never play again.

A couple weeks ago, we got some not great news. The leukemia is in his stem cell, the odds of his having two types are so rare, there is another name for it. Biphenotypic acute leukemia. It will come back, when we don't know, but bone marrow donor match has began. (those with his caringbridge link can get the details)

But that isn't what this post is about.

It is about Son playing basketball again & is in a league. Last week he scored 42 points, his oncologist came & sat there with tears in his eyes almost through out the entire game.

Son is back to playing basketball, in the pickup games, leagues & street ball here, he has made a name for himself & has quite a reputation that the other teams always make sure to put their best player on him. So many people he has played against through out the years have come to watch him, support him & maybe finally try to figure out how to stop him on the court.

It is like poetry to watch him play, his passion for the game, his constant coaching & helping of not just his team mates, but those he plays against.

Our Son is back to playing basketball.

02/10/2011

Gearing up

AZ bike week is one of my favorite local biker events. It lasts a week. Dealer parties, bar parties, numerous charity poker rides. A straight week of no work, no worries, except "do we need gas?". Just a few more weeks.

Last year, a few weeks before, our son was diagnosed with Leukemia & lost some bikers in a very tragic accident. (fucking meth head driving a dump truck). We spent quite a bit of bike week hanging around the hospital, seemed that sometimes, we lived there. We did a couple rides & a couple parties.

God (of your choice) has played a very cruel joke on us. Our son's leukemia will come back, it is in his stem cell. Our daughter, his only sibling & most likely match for a bone marrow transplant, has been diagnosed with an auto-immune disease, whacked out thyroid & re-accuring shingles. She won't ever be considered for a donor. I encourage every one to be a bone marrow donor, all they need is your blood. (red, not blue)

Wednesday's Riding for Kids, go at your own pace, usually over 200 miles. Raising money for kids that have survived burns, this ride helps pay for a summer camp, so the kids can attend free. Some have small burn scars, some are disfigured & some crippled from burns. But to see the courage & life goes on attitude from these kids is absolutely amazing. I had made a bunch of crazy, flannel material, teddy bears for the kids. Now I'm using the scraps from the bears to make quilts for sick babies in neonatal care.

Pay it forward.

Special Olympics Torch Ride. Wow. 3,000 + bikes all riding in a very, long line. Police escorted. Breakfast served by members of the Special Olympics, seeing their smiles. A ton of money is raised every year, over 50k last year. Rolling thunder.

Haven't heard anything about the Chior Boys ride. They are a bunch of characters & just plain fun. If I don't hear anything soon, I'll register for Logan's Run.

Just a few more weeks.

Bike shows, live bands, vendors, food, same place where all rides end. I bought a raffle ticket for a '11 Sportster today. It's powder blue & I've always been told I look good in blue. I've had my eye on the factory paint pink & blue Sportster Low model, but the powder blue model will bling up just fine.

This past Saturday, we went on a 310 mile ride. at one point, I got a cramp while we were going about 90 down the highway. Papa Bear is yelling to sit still & we ain't stopping. Sunday morning, my thighs & back were stiff & sore. It's time to stop being the bitch on the back & start being the bitch that just passed you.

Just a few more weeks & we will be gearing up.