Did someone say Spring…..

According to the internet: Spring began with the vernal equinox at 7:02 A.M. (EDT) on March 20, 2013 in the Northern Hemisphere. However, someone forgot to send Old Man Winter the memo. I saw a post on Facebook that said, “I think its time for Old Man Winter to get Mother Nature drunk and have some fun making Spring”. I promise to provide the alcohol!! Anything they want!
But, smile… it is coming so get that bike in shape and get ready to ride!!

Lady Godiva on wheels… loosing patience with that darn Old Man Winter!!

I’m back… I think!!

Its been way too long since I have visited all my readers here on the old blog. I am just touching base to let everyone know where I was…
My dad had a sever decline in health early last year and I spent some of it taking care of him down in California. He was, at times a real trooper. Then there were the times when he went kicking and screaming! It was a journey for all involved. In November, just after Thanksgiving, he lost the good fight but he was ready. Not that it made it any easier for the rest of us….
One of the things my father and I talked about was my website, Motorcycle Travel America.com. He loved his Harley and loved the thought that we had motorcycles in common. He wanted me to continue on with the website and enjoy my life on the back of my bikes. Although it has been a tough grind to make the website do all I want it to do, my dad helped make the decision to forge ahead. Thanks Dad!
Yesterday was my grandest meeting with the web gurus and the search for funding has begun! The need to explain why motorcyclists need more than 10 waypoints on a map of a road trip proved to be difficult but I was successful!  Now the real work begins. Business plans, proposals and charts are all I will be working on for the next month. My sweet little trike sits down in Chandler, AZ in the talented hands of Jason Sarratt from Hellcat Customs. Although I would love to be out riding her… and I would… I know that I need to get some things done first. Jason has been so patient with me and I love he and Kelly for it. There will be lots of fun to come and many more stories to be written but they will have to wait for now.
So, there you have it. I couldn’t leave everyone wondering where I went and what had happened to me. Life.. that’s what happened to me. We all have our stories! Stay tuned and I will keep writing and let everyone know where I am and how its going. If there are hiccups and I stay away too long, I will always be back!

Lady Godiva on wheels getting back on the horse.

Las Vegas, here we come!

My bags are packed and Im ready to go…. Las Vegas Bikefest is calling my name.  I feel like Im waiting to give birth. Really! Think about it; I conceived a baby..the reverse trike idea, I found the best OBGYN…builder Jason Sarratt of Hellcat Customs, I’ve seen the ultra-sound…the teaser pictures from Jason, and now I wait to see what the little critter comes out looking like…at the Las Vegas Bikefest.
This is the last picture I have seen… notice that its not a whole picture! Jason is such a tease…

Now, as Jason has made perfectly clear…. What I am about to see in Las Vegas is simply the bike with the concept showing but, its not the finished product. My beautiful baby will be worked on until early spring… pre-mature birth and she still needs the tender love and care of her pediatrition…yup, you guessed it. Jason!  I dont even care! I will be falling in love in a matter of days….Im on the count down…Wednesday, Thursday, Friday!! Stay tuned to Motorcycle Travel America’s Facebook page for the baby pictures and videos.

A very happy Lady Godiva on wheels, packed and more than ready to go.
FYI.. my spell check is mal-functioning so no wise-cracks about my spelling. Im tired!

More time to ride…and a small suggestion to help you find some..

If you are reading my blog, you will have realized that I have been MIA lately. I couldn’t possibly explain it in one blog post… and, I havent the energy to try. Time is a commodity that I wish I possessed more of and don’t. Life is time-consuming.  With that revelation out on the page, I have a suggestion that might help me and hopefully, some of you. The Crockpot…..yes, as silly as it sounds, that amazing little appliance that cooks your dinner while you are out enjoying the day on the bike. Ahhh, I crave that and just typing it makes me yearn for it.

Here is a website with so many crockpot recipes that I defy you to say there isn’t at least one you like. Crockpot on in the morning equals dinner for all when you finally make it home from the ride…priceless!! Take a minute to check it out, pass it on to your friends, and use it when time is little and the open road just wont stop calling your name…. http://www.50plusfriends.com/cookbook/crockpot/index-5b.html

Lady Godiva …not on wheels and feelin blue.  “sigh”…

Protected by my skinny jeans….

These skinny jeans called “Slix” are made by a company called Drayko and come with a protective inner liner.
Watch this YouTube and get all the info you need. Also, notice her jacket at the end of the film.. very cool and made just for women!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loXuXzAYvkQ
I have been dying to get my hands on a pair of “Slix” jeans from this company. Go to their website and check it out. http://www.dragginjeans.net/product%20range/womens/pants/jeans. Will do a further review on the jeans when they arrive (and I lose 30 lbs!!). Style is great but, safety first.

Lady Godiva on wheels, safe in my skinny jeans..;)

A young man from Motorcycle Memoir,with a lot to say….

I am always intrigued by people who have found a way to turn their love of something into a vehicle for giving. It seems to prevail in the motorcycle community, from toy runs that helps to make a sick child smile to poker runs that use the proceeds for researching the cure for one of countless diseases and everything in between. I believe it works well with we motorcycle riders because our community is so endless. Motorcycle riding transcends age, religion, economics, race, location, gender and on and on. Even the manufacturer of the bike you ride becomes immaterial if you are in need. You don’t even have to be a member of the community to benefit from the efforts that so many have made to be of service. I don’t know too many non-church communities that can make that claim. And, that is the foundation for so many opportunities to help others.
Here is an example of one young man who has done just that, to the extreme:

“Follow the journey: six continents, two-hundred countries and twenty-four time zones, as I ride my motorcycle around the globe to raise funds and awareness for the number one cause of death in the world: Hunger. ~ O. Christopher Sorbi”

I am spotlighting one particular blog post, not because I want to advocate his political views or that I agree or disagree with them, but because he delivers them with such incredible passion. I hope everyone can find that “something” to be passionate about!
Enjoy reading all his postings but, start with this one;  http://www.motorcyclememoir.com/?p=1983

Lady Godiva on wheels, feelin the passion..

Guess what I did 4th of July weekend… Part 1; Author Christina Shook.

This weekend was one of those weekends that happen every now and again and you have to keep pinching yourself to believe that its real. Then you look at all the pictures and realize that you don’t even have to embellish to make this weekend look good….
First thing to happen was that I was fortunate enough to host a four-day stay in my home for my friend, Christina Shook, and her two darling little girls.  Christina was on her “West Coast Book Tour” for her photo expose book of female bikers called “Chicks on Bikes”. That meant that where she went, I got to follow!! And, follow I did…

Christina spoke and signed books at several locations. Her first stop was Cascade Moto Classics http://www.cascademoto.com/map1.html here in my hometown of Beaverton, where she was welcomed by patrons and invited to the monthly breakfast meeting of the local Triumph riding club, Triumph Riders Association of Portland, and the Moto Guzzi National Owners Club of Oregon, both sponsored by Cascade. The next morning, we joined the group for a great breakfast and more QandA. The group was such a nice bunch of people and we both enjoyed them all.

Next up was MotoCorsa in North West Portland http://www.motocorsa.com .  This event was a bit of a surprise to Christina, especially when she was presented with a bottle of “Corsa Vino”, MotoCorsa owner Arun Sharma’s signature wine www.corsavino.com .  The love of motorcycles and the taste for enjoying a fine wine, made the atmosphere at MotoCorsa a real pleasure for Christina as it is for everyone that visits the shop.

And, last but hardly least… the 2nd Annual Latus Harley Davidson “Wall of Death” event for 2010 in Gladstone, Oregon http://www.latus-hd-motorcycles.com . Christina was awesome with some slide shows and QandA complete with some wonderful stories told by Cookie Crum, the “Queen of the Hell Drivers” and eight year veteran on the “Wall of Death” in the late 40’s and 50’s. I will have much more to say about the day we spent with some wonderful and incredibly interesting people in my next couple of posts.  

The evening of the 4th brought LOTS of fireworks. The locals near my home do fireworks in a BIG way. It gave us a fabulous display to enjoy. We sat out by the fire pit and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows while the sky lit up all around us. My poor puppy, Turbo, a 150lb Rottie/Ridgeback mix, was less than excited about all the loud noises. He is pictured here being comforted by his new friend, Christina’s daughter, Marlena. She called the fireworks “booms” and when she wasnt taking care of Turbo, she was curled up in her mommys lap, enjoying the show. Christina’s older daughter, the very bright and lovely Ella, enjoyed the show as well.  

 The next day gave me enough time to make good on my promise to let Christina ride my Brammo Enertia electric bike. She took a spin around the town but, would have loved to have made it a day ride and get a real feel for the bike. It surprised her in many ways and she was amazed by a few others.
A few more pictures and a couple more laughs and that made it time for my friends to hit the road and make their way up to Seattle http://cretins.org/ for the next book signing opportunity. I sent them off down the Columbia Gorge to enjoy the sites of the Multnomah Falls and the wind surfing mecca of Hood River then across the “Bridge of the Gods” to Washington state. We had such a wonderful few days and are looking forward to getting together again in the future. Look for Christina’s wonderful photo journalistic book, “Chicks on Bikes” at http://www.chicksonbikes.us   

 So, that is just part of what I did this 4th of July weekend! Next up… the “Wall of Death”.           

 Lady Godiva on wheels…. savoring the unreal weekend!!

 

The perfect picture for Brammo…

This is a picture of my bike, while charging, at my son’s house.  He got a new camera and couldn’t resist!!
It would be perfect for a commercial about a new color for the Enertia… Black, aka  the “Shadow”…

Well, I think my son is a brilliant photographer! (Gosh, motherhood makes you blind as a bat!!)

Lady Godiva on wheels… lovin my boy.

Today is the first day of Summer….

Here in the Northern Hemisphere, we welcome the first day of summer!!  And, you know what that means….  Lets ride!!

According to Kelly Whitt at Suite101.com;
“If you have been watching the sun each day leading up to the summer solstice, you will see that it climbs higher in the sky each day. On the day of the solstice, which marks the first official day of summer, the sun appears to stand still. It has reached as far north as it will get. The word “solstice” means the sun stands still. This is also true for the winter solstice, when the sun gets as far south in the sky before coming to a stop.”

Let me put this in perspective for you;
There are 93 days until the first day of Autumn (September 23) and 182 days until the first day of Winter (December 21).  Those lazy days of Summer will be gone in no time.

Lady Godiva on wheels….. hoping for the sunshine!!

Here’s to the ladies… this is a biker we can all love…

While I was reading all of Stephanie’s blogs to find out if I owed her a big “Thank you”, I found this; 
From “The many thought of Harley Girl” 8/24/06 blog…

Stephanie… you are such a bad girl!! With very good taste!!

Lady Godiva on wheels… ready to ride.;)