Rode Hard, and Put away Wet.

[tcblack]

I drive a bus for a local Crisis Pregnancy Center in the nearest city to us; and last night was an opportunity to take a ride into town a little early just to enjoy the cruise.  I checked out the forecast and saw rain coming in after 10 and thought, hey no big deal - I'll be home before it hits. 

I took off and enjoyed the beautiful sunshine and revelled in the increasingly familiar growl of my Valkyrie as she rumbled happily beneath me.  We took the only twisties available in Central Illinois: the entrance ramps to the highway with a certain relish as I leaned her over and tested more of the sidewall than usual at a slightly higher speed than normal.  She loved it and so did I.

When I finally made it into town I assumed my duties on the bus and accomplished the pickups before returning back and reading for an hour while the classes went on in the various classrooms.  At one point, one of the men walked in and congratulated me on the beautiful valkyrie in the parking lot.  There are no emblems anywhere on her but the back of the sissy bar so he either looked at that, or knew it by sight.  I didn't ask.  But he did mention that he loved them.  I thanked him for the praise and promised (as usual) to ride carefully.

When I walked out to begin the drop offs My eyes were constantly drawn to the darkening sky and the increasingly frequent flashes of lightning on the horizon.  Don't worry, I told myself - I'll be able to stay ahead of it.  When I finished my route and pulled into the lot to return the bus, the sprinkle had started.  No big deal.  I haven't had Eir in the rain yet but this is mild.  I'll pull ahead of it and get home quickly.  I was wrong.

By the time I had my jacket and helmet on, the sprinkle had become a rain.  As I pulled out of the lot cautiously - the rain became a deluge.  I navigated the streets of Decatur newly slick with rain and the oils of more than a few barely maintained cars.  Soon the puddles I feared were growing and the rain continued its torrential advance southward - apparently at the same speed I was moving through town.  Eir navigated the road for me and never gave a hint at losing her grip on either the road or her rider.

When I finally cleared the last stoplight I had to pull over and wipe my glasses down with a handkerchief since I'd let them get wet instead of closing my face shield like I should have.   Once dried I returned to the road and navigated the last thousand feet of the city limits and found the highway.  Just as I did, I exited the deluge and found the sprinkles on the southern end.  On the highway I opened the throttle and let the dragon roar. 

Water beaded off the windshield and flew away as I dried my jeans in the night air; but the storm behind me was speeding up while the lightning in front of my continued to increase in intensity and frequency.  When the rain began again from the side I had to slow down to maintain traction.  The approach of my home was a sight for sore eyes.  As I pulled into the garage, Eir steaming and dripping, I shut off her fuel valve and let her idle for a few moments before putting her to sleep for the night.

This morning when I woke  her she growled uncomfortably for a few moments and I warmed her up.  I think she was mad at me at first, but she soon forgot her ill treatment as I pulled out on the highway and twisted the throttle.  With relish once again she lept forward and roared out her pleasure just to show me that she's got even more where that came from.

[Valkorado]

Fun read!   

In Western Colorado during monsoon it's often forecast,  schmorecast.  I often think I was checking the wrong day!

[Bighead]

Remonds me of a ride home about 3-4 yrs ago from the FCR I rode through some rain that would scare a fish. I onew there was a gas station about 2 miles ahead and a car wash beside it. I make it there to find about 6 Harleys huddled in the car wash bay but I pulled in anyway I talked with the guys and one was looking at the radar on his phone and said look at the rain right on top of us. There was a ton of yellow on the screen and I said not to worry that was just me on the radar causing all that yellow. I was on my ‘97 Bee. They all Got a laugh and 10 minutes later the rain let up a bit and I took off leaving all those dry bikes sitting in the car wash bay. 

[da prez]

  My brother an I were coming back from Spearfish and went thru Iowa to visit RJ.  We left and headed for Illinois. A final fuel stop in Iowa and on the road. A few miles in Illinois , it got dark (really dark) and the rain started. It rained so hard and it seemed to be horizontal. Old2soon lost sight of me and passed. I turned around and sat under a street light and waited as he returned and went past me again. I caught up and led him into a parking lot. We then remembered a gas station just up (?) the road. The entry had about a foot of water we drove thru. Inside we asked if there was a hotel/motel nearby.
 Just up the road was the Taj Mahal. $35.00 per night for each room. In the morning , we awoke in the roach motel. O2S is ex Navy. His comment was "now I understand what any port in a storm means:.
  It took my leathers over a month to dry out. Then leather conditioner for quite a while.

                                           da prez

[tcblack]

Ha!  Great story there.  What can I say, Illinois rain storms don't play around.