November 25th, 2015 - Polar Bear Grand Tour

Today was my first Polar Bear ride for the 2015 - 2016 season. We rode to the Appalachian Brewing Company in Collegeville, PA.

The weather forecast had been going back and forth about rain in the morning so I kept checking the 'hotline' to see if the ride would be cancelled. As of 08:00 the ride was still on so I gathered my stuff and headed outside. It was raining ever so lightly at the house so I decided to go...without rain gear. The weather map showed the rain letting up to the north and west, the direction I was headed.

I headed up Rt 70 and the rain started to get a little more substantial. I stopped for a minute to consider putting on the rain gear but decided to continue on with out it. Luckily the rain stopped in the next few minutes.

Our Group...that's me in the back on the right.

I arrived at the Wawa, a little damp, and met up with the other 8 bikes that were going. Jack wasn't there so today's ride was going to be led by Casey.We headed out with a slight drizzle starting up again but I\it wasn't long before the rain stopped.
The ride was uneventful, weaving our way through NJ to Trenton then through lower Bucks County to our destination.
We had a great lunch then headed back home. The return trip was via the turnpike as we all wanted to get home. All in all it was a nice ride.

Dirty, dirty bike

My bike is really dirty. I don't mean a little dust...I mean filthy, nasty, corroded, muddy, dirty. After a season of winter riding it is in dire need of a deep cleaning.

February 8th, 2015 - Ride to Pic-A-Lilli Inn

Today's run was a short one. The Pic-A-Lilli Inn is considered local to us. We logged extra miles because we rode up to Lakewood to the usual meeting place, Wawa. Barbara made this ride which was nice; she hasn't made many rides and she hasn't had a chance to try her electric heated gloves.

The weather was fantastic for the middle of winter. It was mostly sunny and the temperature topped out at about 52 degrees. I was finally able to make it out of the driveway.

We rode up to Wawa where we met with the usual cast of characters and a few extras too. We usually only have 6-8 bikes but today we had 13. We left the Wawa a few minutes after 10:00 and header down Rt. 70.

We wound our way through the Pinelands until we got to the Pic-A-Lilli Inn. There were quite a few bikes there, as was expected because of the nice weather.

Dan, Casey, Charlie, Jack, Craig, David and Barbara

We went inside and signed in. Today I had enough points to get my Polar Bear patch!

After we signed in we were given a table large enough to seat all of us. When you consider the number of people there we were lucky to get seated quickly. Lunch was fun. This crowd always has a great time when together...lots of good natured ribbing. 

We left the restaurant and worked our way back up to Chatsworth where Barbara and I split from the crowd and headed home.

March 22nd, 2015 - Polar Bear Grand Tour Ride to Brian's Harley-Davidson

My son Chris was supposed to go on this ride today but he sent me a text saying he wasn't going. Too bad...we spent a good part of yesterday installing HOG Tunes on his bike. I would have liked to do a little work on my bike but we ran out of time.

Since Brian's isn't very far we met at the Wawa at 10:00. When I pulled in to the Wawa there was a commotion around the gas pumps. Apparently a bus had cut too close to the concrete posts protecting the pump island and ended up hung up on one of the posts. Lots of debris...no injuries. I filled the bike and joined the other riders. While we waited to leave I hooked up my electric gloves. I left the house hoping it was warm enough to do without the electrics but my hands were a little cold.

We left Wawa right after 10:00. There were 10 bikes today, a good size group. If there's more than 10 bikes we have to split into two groups. It was a nice ride to Brian's. The weather was clear but a little breezy. When we crossed the Calhoun Street Bridge in Trenton the winds blowing down the Delaware River pushed the bikes around on the steel grates of the bridge.

We arrived at Brian's around 11:40. There were fewer bikes there than we expected. We parked the bikes and went inside to sign in for the Polar Bear Grand Tour to get credit for the ride. 

Inside the dealership they were hosting a free lunch...meatball sandwiches, macaroni salad and drinks. After we ate we checked out the store. Brian's has a very large and well stocked inventory of clothes, accessories and parts. I wasn't in the market for anything except women's shirts but there weren't any worth buying in the clearance rack. 

Me getting ready to leave Brian's

When everyone was done looking around we geared up and headed out. We did a quick stop at Jack's mother's house in Bensalem to drop something off. The ride home took us along the Neshaminy Creek through Bensalem, Hulemville and Croydon. We crossed the Delaware River again over the Burlington Bristol Bridge. When we crossed Rt. 206 I split from the group and headed for home. 

January 18th, 2015 - Polar Bear Grand Tour Ride...not!

It's raining. I've ridden in the rain and don't exactly care for it. Especially when it's about 35 degrees. Like Jack said, "It's no fun if you have to start out in your rain gear".
So it's no ride today...maybe next week.

January 11th, 2015 - Polar Bear Grand Tour Ride to Upstream Grille. Lake Hopatcong NJ

   Today's run was a cold one. I wasn't quite sure about going. Not so much because of the temperatures but because there had been some winter weather a few days ago and I was unsure about the road conditions where we were going. I text-ed Jack to ask about the roads and he assured me they were clear.
   When I went outside it was about 14 degrees. The big red bike was reluctant to start but on the third try it turned over and roared to life. While the bike warmed up I went about hooking the trailer up to the Jeep. I have the trailer hooked up and ready to go whenever I go on these rides...just in case there's an incident.
   Because of the temps I wear alot of clothes. At this point on top I had on a performance long sleeve T-shirt, a performance insulated top, on 'old school' insulated top, a turtle neck, a sweat shirt, a hooded sweatshirt and my riding jacket with liner. It may seem absurd but each layer has a purpose. I hope to order a new coat this week which will do away with the need for some of the layers. On the bottom I wear high athletic socks, performance insulated bottom, above the knee heavy socks, 'old school' thermal bottom and a pair of heavy, heavy lined blue jeans. On my feet I wear a pair of heavy, mid-height, Harley-Davidson boots. On my neck I wear a full neck gaiter which I pull up over my nose and on my head I wear a full face helmet. With the face shield pulled down my face stays warm...but there is a fogging issue whenever I come to a stop. To finish things off I have a pair of electrically heated Gerbing gloves.
   Fully dressed, bike warmed up I headed out...very carefully. My driveway was the trickiest part. Once on the road it was go time. I headed up to the Wawa in Lakewood to meet the other riders. I got a few strange looks and shaking heads when people saw me on a bike in these temps.
   At the Wawa were the usual characters,  but no Charlie. We had our coffee, chatted then headed out for Lake Hopatcong. It was going to be a high speed ride up; the Parkway to 287 to 206 to 80 to 15. At 75mph the wind chill was about zero. The ride was without incident although the traffic was a little heavy, especially on 206. We made one stop in South Bound Brook for the bathroom and coffee.

   When we arrived at the Upstream Grille there were already alot of bikes there. Many more than we expected with the low temps. The parking lot was almost clear, with only a few tiny spots of ice...but those spots will drop you if you're not careful.
   We went inside to sign in to get credit for the ride. I also had to sign in for my participation in the January 1st Chilly Chili Ride. Because I forgot the wrist band from the ride they were reluctant to let me sign but finally relented. By now I should have enough points for my patch so I'll get that on the next ride. We had a nice lunch even though Dan's chili 'sucked' and he was also way overcharged for extra bratwurst.
   As we went to leave Jack discovered that his heated gear was blowing fuses. Not good. He couldn't pin down the cause right away so he decided to ride home with out heat. We headed home under cloudy skies with a temp of 26 degrees. For the ride home we hopped off of the high speed interstate about half way and took 'back roads'. We stopped at the Englishtown Wawa for the bathroom, coffee and fuel. While we were stopped Jack isolated his electrical problem to his heated jacket liner. The rest of the ride home was smooth. The sun had come back out, the temps rose to about 35...a nice finish to a good day.