So the day after my Bonnie came back to me, I came up lame. I just can’t seem to leap from a building in a single bound the way I once did. OK I was jumping from a flimsy gate, but the result is that I am still not riding and it’s killing me. Jumping from this wobbly platform resulted in a 7 hour stay at the emergency room and this boot for my foot.

But, just because I am not able to ride on this glorious day doesn’t mean I can’t recommend a site I came across in American Motorcyclist Magazine for those of you still on the road.

http://www.motorcycleroads.us

My foot is feeling better than it did a few days ago. I am tempted to go for a ride to test my shifting foot. I’ll keep ya posted.

One of my favorite local roads is on the site as well as many others. If you are a NY’er and want a nice day trip, take Route 23 out to Port Jervis and then ride along the Delaware on 97.

http://www.motorcycleroads.us/roads/ny97.html

Enjoy the ride. I hope to join you soon!

Yes, my Bonnie is back. Where was she you ask? A little over a month ago I was hit by a car. It was only my second ride in the city since I returned from my 12,000 mile trip across the nation. I turned on to my street and this lady jumped out of a parking spot and hit me from the side with her car. There was no room for me to maneuver as there were parked cars to my right and she pulled out on my left. She hit the front of the bike and BAM I went down. I wasn’t injured but the bike got a little banged up on the right side. I wasn’t going to mention this in the blog. But, it is part of the journey and there were lessons to be learned.

As I lay on the ground with the bike on top of me, I could hear the lady screaming when she got out of her car. A waiter from the restaurant nearby and a couple others lifted the bike off me and I pushed it to the side of the road and put the kick stand down. This lady was in a panic. blah blah blah. She was requesting that we not use insurance. This didn’t sit well with me, but I figured maybe it would be OK. We started to exchange info. She just wanted to give me her phone number and settle it via telephone. Ha! I asked for her drivers license. She didn’t have it on her. We went upstairs to talk to her husband. He walked back downstairs with me and we exchanged all the proper documents. We decided I would take the bike in for an assessment and then they would decide whether to use insurance or not. A few days later I got an estimate and called them. It turns out that they had already called their insurance company anyway. Then it took a while to contact their appraiser. Then it took a while for the appraiser to appraise. Delay. Delay. Meanwhile, beautiful riding days were passing me by.

The reason I mention this is because I can share the lesson:

Always call your Insurance Co. right away!

That’s what they are there for. My willingness to negotiate with the lady who hit me cost me unnecessary weeks of great weather without my bike. I have been a grumpy MF’er without my Bonnie.

I would like to say that the people at Freehold Triumph have been great.  It’s a hike for me to get to Freehold, but the satisfaction I get from the good work and good service makes it worthwhile to me. I bought my first Bonnie in NYC. I had it serviced in the city as well. It was always a pain in the ass. My 2009 Bonneville was bought at the store in Freehold, NJ and I have been bringing it there for all my work and maintenance. The people there have been friendly and professional. Jason at service has always been attentive and helpful. Thanks Freehold Triumph.

Schwarzenegger has always been a funny guy. This is great. If you take the first letter of every line of the veto letter the governor sent recently to the California State Assembly, it spells out a two-word expletive starting with F and ending with “you.”

Click the letter to enlarge.

When I woke up today and saw the blue sky, (knowing it had rained last night) I knew I had to hit the streets. I walked to a couple of subjects that have caused me problems in the past. The Flat Iron Building and the Jefferson Market Library. Today they were cooperative. As were a few other choice spots. It was a little windy, but I sat with patience for clear surfaces to take some shots.

Mike Bloomberg likes to call himself the GREEN mayor. So far he has killed more trees in his latest mailing list campaign for mayor than anyone in the history of New York politics. I get a large card stock 2 page brochure nearly every day in my mailbox. It’s really becoming annoying.

BLACKBIRD


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I had a great time at a new club in Williamsburg. Brooklyn Bowl, it’s half bowling alley, half concert hall, and the food is excellent! I ate a catfish sandwich so fresh it meowed when I took a bite. Delicious! A friend hooked me up to see Bob Weir on Friday at this new club from the former owners of Wetlands. It’s a great place to see a show. Bob Weir and the band were playing acoustically under the name Scaring the Children. Rob Wasserman was on bass and Jay Lane on drums.  The setting is intimate and it’s amazing that you can’t hear the bowling as the show is going on. The acoustics are great. Following the show we bowled until asked to leave. We were asked to leave because it was 4 am, not due to unruly behavior.

SET LIST

Maggie’s Farm > Easy Answers > Loose Lucy, Blackbird > Victim Or The Crime > Desolation Row, When I Paint My Masterpiece > Even So > October Queen > The Deep End > The Other One > Bass/Drums* > Dear Prudence* > GDTRFB

In the future, when music becomes a liquid you can drink, give me a tall glass of Sgt. Pepper with a twist of Lennon.

Click

the

Map

to see the entire trip in order.