Forecast for Sunday is Snow! We haven't had much snow yet here this Winter, only one time just before Christmas and it only lasted for 5-6 days. This past week has been very nice weather, and today in particular was spectacular, if not a little cool. With the Valkyrie still up on the lift getting a good cleaning of the underbelly after getting a new rear tire and servicing, it was the old Wing again for me. Sure am liking this having a second bike thing, haven't had this luxury in decades!
With the temperatures only getting up to around 4-5 C with our second bout of Winter weather on its way, I finally broke down and put the shield on the Wing...I've loved bombing around full on into the wind since I got this bike, but it's been getting a little too "refreshing" the last few times out. Coming down from our little mountain, the ditches and the beaver pond already had a skim of ice but the roads were dry and clear of frost and salt...and that sun,,,oh Yes, that glorious sun was out in full force
My cold weather riding gear consists of my heavy 30 year old leather jacket, leather vest, heated vest, and then a set of thin Merino wool undergarments under my t-shirt and jeans. My feet and hands don't really get cold so my regular boots and gloves work well. One extra bit of comfort I've found this year is a pair of my wool soccer socks with the feet cut off, pulled up on my arms...makes quite a difference. They also work well protecting the pipes on the Valk when working on the back end, and are a good conversation starter when the jacket comes off in the coffee shop
After a quick stop in town to run an errand and grab a cup of coffee (well, it was going to be quick until this old guy (mmm...he was probably only a couple years older than me, so I guess that makes me an.....
) comes running out of the coffee shop to talk to me as I'm starting the bike. Something about old Hondas...just like when on the Valk, most stops seem to produce this type of occurrence. Turns out this fella was a Kawi mechanic for 30 years, and actually pulled out some photos of a couple of 70's vintage kz's he was currently rebuilding. Wound up shutting the bike down and chatting for 30 minutes.
Once underway, spent a good couple hours riding the backroads of the valley. The shield makes a world of difference taking the blast of cold air off my chest and the need to hold on a bit at speed, and so it also inadvertently increases my speed by 20-30 kmh on the straightaways. Having just received a speeding ticket this past Fall, I gotta take it easy and be a good boy for a while.
One final stop at Kilby beach, just 5 minutes from home. This fabulous beach is on the Harrison River, and is a favorite spot of ours to come for a BBQ or fire, a swim in the Summer, to fish, or for a relaxing evening with a good book and watching the sunset.
It's also a great place to watch the trains wind their way along the river and over the bridge. Love watching trains, would spend hours as a kid on our beach on Kootenay Lake watching them roll along across the lake. Just the fact that they've been around for so long and are still such a relevant fixture on our landscape makes them interesting. Growing up in a fairly remote "behind the times" place, I guess it's the fact that I always use to think about where they were headed and where they came from, and what kind of wonderous things could possibly in all those cars, that held my attention. Now, i just finding it really relaxing to watch them roll on by.
Yep, it was a nice day for a ride
