D - 495 Days

The Staten Island ride went off without a hitch. The highway was a piece of cake, the ride was more scenic than I expected, I got to do some things on the bike for the first time, and I stayed warm enough.

It was 35 degrees out with winds of 8 to 10 mph. I wore warm socks and the Timberlands I always wear to ride, long johns and jeans, and six torso layers: a tee shirt, a long sleeve Dri-Fit shirt, a lightweight long john shirt, a lightweight thermal, my Social Distortion hooded sweatshirt, and my black nylon jacket. I wore an ear band around my neck and rode in my ski gloves for the first time. I'd always thought they'd be too bulky to allow good control of the throttle and clutch, but they were great.

I held my breath when I pushed the ignition, but the bike started right up. I made three stops before leaving the Slope: first at a locksmith on Flatbush to get a duplicate key made (I'd tried five other shops before finding this one that could make a 1989 Kawasaki motorcycle key); then at the new Chase on 5th Ave. to get some cash; and finally at the Hess station at 4th and Union to top off my tank (it took 1.4 gallons even though I'd only ridden 28 miles since my last fill-up; still not sure why I'm not getting better mileage). Then I headed down 4th Ave toward 278.

It only took about half a mile on the highway to realize how much easier a windshield will make highway riding. Riding at 60 mph feels exactly like standing in a 60 mph wind. A shield deflects most of that air over the rider, making it easier to stay warm and improving aerodynamics. They also reduce fatigue, though that wasn't an issue on this short ride. I don't love windshields on motorcycles, especially the big police-style ones. Here's a picture of an awesome Vulcan with a good shield. I think something like this will give a good combination of aesthetics and wind protection:



My motorcycle only felt underpowered a couple of times, when I wanted to accelerate through the 40s and 50s while riding uphill into the wind (since it always felt on my chest like I was riding into the wind, I tried to judge wind direction based on ease of acceleration and whether or not I was being blown from side to side). I think it's more my fault than a limitation of the bike, and that I was probably one gear too high when I felt the bike was lagging. Next time I'm in that situation, I'll wait a little longer to up-shift. I didn't rev it up much higher than about 7,200 rpm today, but I think my bike is at its most powerful closer to 9,500 (it redlines at 10,000).

I aced my first tollbooth experience. I looked for and found a dry spot to put my feet down (I learned in my MSF class that tollbooths can be hazardous for motorcyclists because the pavement next to them gets slippery from oil drippings from cars). I took off one glove, paid my toll (only $5 - half the wheels, half the price!), got my glove back on and carefully pulled away (again, the oil) before the guy behind me had to start honking. Nice.

As great as the experience was, one more thing to add to my list of things to get for the trip: an E-Z Pass.

I got off 278 a couple exits later and the rest of the ride to Egbertville was awesome. I got my first taste of riding on something like a country road, curvy and hilly and lightly trafficked, with a speed limit of 35 or 40 and curves suggesting speeds of 10 to 20 mph. I loved every one of the bends and practicing what I learned about braking, lane positioning and line selection, looking out at where I wanted to go, and accelerating smoothly through the turns. I really can't wait to get upstate and ride in the country this spring.

Eventually I wound my way down a short, steep hill on a curve and turned off of Lighthouse Avenue and found a pizza place and Italian restaurant. I parked, took a picture of my bike in the parking lot, and went in.



I got a couple slices and a bottle of Bud Heavy and relaxed for a few minutes, then headed out. I took the outbound directions off my tank and taped the return route on.



Lady in car next to me at stoplight on Staten Island: "Is that your directions?"
Me: "What?"
Lady (pointing): "Your directions?"
Me: "Yep."
Lady (after a pause): "What happens if it rains?"
Me: "Shut up."

Just kidding.

Me (for real): "Haha! Well,"
Lady: "You'd have to put plastic over it."

The ride home was a blast, even easier than the ride out. I made a bunch of flawless lane changes; nothing is easier or safer for a Gordon driver than changing lanes. My Dad is one of the world's foremost experts on blind spots and head checks and he's passed his mastery on to the three of us kids. A Gordon driver would stand on his or her head and operate the pedals with hands and steer with feet before he or she would make a lane change without a head check. One of the absolute highlights (for all of us) of my Dad and sisters' most recent visit to the City was his administration of his "Can you see my now? How about now? Can you see me now?" test while I sat on my motorcycle.

I wasn't quite ready to stop yet when I got back to the Slope so I bombed up and down a couple of the avenues in the neighborhood and then parked in front of my house.

Next borough to conquer: Manhattan. Stay tuned.