otrfjr
Don't tell Mom
It was a beautiful start to the day in Gainesville: no clouds, slight breeze, with temps in the neighborhood of 60 degrees as I set out for supplies (sunscreen, water, ear plugs) and fuel prior to departure. I had been looking forward to getting together with other FJR riders to talk about their bikes, the mods they've tried, and their two-wheel adventures. I was a little nervous at the thought of the ride after lunch:having spent only 3 weeks & 1,600 miles with the bike, I realized that it is far more capable than I am in the twisties and its ability to inspire confidence in almost any situation could be a siren song leading to a rather nasty shipwreck. But the beauty of the day & the ride ahead quickly push aside any doubts. With the tank bag packed and no pending business at home, I head out to my recently polished ride.
I leave around 10:15 am which will put me in Cedar Key in approximately an hour. Earlier than necessary, but I want to be on the bike & enjoying the perfect weather. I pull onto NW 13th St, one of the primary arteries in G'ville, and wham: some sort of walk-a-thon gumming up the works replete with city workers in slow moving vehicles trailing the walkers as well as plenty of city LEOs monitoring traffic. Sigh. So much for the early start. Archer Rd--FL 24--is crazy with traffic as well with no opportunities to break the cycle of being stopped at every single light. I resign myself to the less than stellar start and focus on the traffic. Temp reading says 72 degrees. I'm comfortable in my vented leather jacket even when stopped & think it could be much worse: say 92 degrees in gridlock with lots of A/C condensation slicking up the staging areas at stop lights. Nearing the juncture with I-75, traffic picks up the pace and I pick a less congested pocket. Cages leave Archer for the freeway, and I breathe a little easier with the thinning of the herd. Still hitting all red lights and a pair of obsessive limit followers have created an antsy pack & the obligatory tailgating ensues. SIGH. Beyond the extreme eastern burbs of G'ville, I get my chance to put some space between me and the cages: at the last light I line up in the right lane which ends a few hundred yards ahead. I allow the pickup in front of me to blast off the line in order to merge, then pass him with space to spare. Finally: no one in front, those behind quickly dwindling, plentiful sunshine, wind, the unadulterated joy of spinning through rural vistas on two wheels. Suddenly I see a huge hawk drifting above the ribbon of the road: incredible.
But it wasn't the last bird of prey I would see: 6 hawks all told. Perfect! I always see them as kindred spirits: solitary and free, looking for slow moving prey to pounce on. Or pass in my case. A pack of vultures along side the road causes me to slow since I figure that they have been conditioned to react to vehicles moving at speeds close to the limit on that stretch of road. Laying on the horn for a good 5 seconds doesn't faze them in the least. Crows, large ones, were also out in force. Very little traffic and good sailing all the way to Otter Creek.
I'm trying out cheap foam ear plugs on the way to Cedar Key. A new bargain bin Z1R helmet has been giving me far too much wind noise, even with the windshield up. This is certainly a different sensation: absence of the deafening wind noise, yes, but also no engine noise--which I find disturbing. Even with my face shield up & the windshield up, leaning down into the quiet pocket near the tank yields only a hint that the bike is in fact running. I was worried about cutting off traffic sound, but since most of FL 24 is two lane, I don't have to worry about a cager sneaking up beside me without noticing it. A nice trial, but I think I'll save the ear plugs for longer trips.
Temp sensor is now reading 80 as I head down the lonely stretch between Otter Creek and Cedar Key. I use my Throttlemeister and set my speed a tick under 70. Curious about mileage, I toggle between the real-time and average mileage readouts. The bike just seems to get stronger and stronger: I get my average up to nearly 48 mpg with very steady throttle. The scenery is mostly scrub: palmettos, pines, and tangled undergrowth. The road has been resurfaced since last I passed this way, and the silky asphalt surface combined with the absence of traffic and the undeviating straightness of the road begs for a WFO pass. But not today: I'm enjoying just cruising & looking.
You smell Cedar Key long before you reach it, and today is no different. I ride into a pocket of warm, humid air that contains scents of marsh and ocean. I look up and see a pelican on some mission of its own and know that I am very close. When the water comes into view, I pull off at a snow cone stand on the outer edges of Cedar Key. Nearly dumping the bike on the uneven turnout (yikes!), I dismount. The owner of the stand eyes me and says, "Must be getting pretty warm for that jacket, huh?" I respond, "It's not bad as long as you keep moving." Then she sees me pull the camera from the tank bag and turns away to help set up the impromptu yard sale going on next to her stand.
I pull off a little farther on one of the many bridges to get a shot of the myriad marshy stands of grass that dot the scene. And an obligatory shot of the city limit sign.
Wow! The place is packed. Parking spots are nearly nonexistent. I do two laps down Dock St. hoping to snag a spot, when I meet another FJR rider, Allen, doing the same. I plan to meet him over by the boat launch, but on the way I see a small spot that will fit two bikes if they are placed perpendicular to the curb. Signaling Allen over, he parks his FJR next to mine. After brief introductions, we start looking for the others. We join Matt and Robyn and start toward Frog's Landing.
Soon we are joined by Lester, his wife Tammy, and their son Brandon as well as Bryan and his wife. Soon after that, Jim from Tallahassee and his brother Rob from Tampa--the lone Beemer standard bearer--join us. The restaurant fills quickly after we arrive, and once we pull tables together, the 10 of us socialize and enjoy seafood.
After the meal, we mill outside trying to decide where we want to head on our ride. The consensus bends toward a road with some twists in it. We settle on FL 44 which is south near Crystal River. Once we are all mounted--6 FJRs, the Beemer, and a V Star--we head back out FL 24 toward US 19. Jim and Rob take the lead with me in the third spot. We're quickly up to speed and running fast. (And during the brief stretch when 24 turns into a closed course, there is a roll-on competition between an FJR and the BMW.) When we hit Otter Creek, we pull into the parking lot of the post office to let the others catch up. Then we receive word: Lester and his wife signaled and then pulled off. Being a standup kind of crowd, we wait for them. While we chat and time goes by, we start to get worried: there are all of two county roads that they might have taken, but that doesn't seem likely. (There's probably a saying in that part of the world, "All roads lead to Otter Creek.") Then we become really concerned. Bryan goes back to find them while we settle into bike talk, jokes, and travel tales. Brian returns: the V Star ran out of gas. We are relieved that everyone is OK. We continue to chat and watch other bikers pass by with the occasional wave thrown in.
Seeing that the day was slipping away & that the Tallahassee and Jacksonville folks needed to start back, the group broke up. I traveled with Matt and Robyn as they headed for 301 and Jax. The trip back is much warmer and the roads are much busier. Less time for gawking at hawks. When we near Gainesville, Matt and Robyn tell me they are going to check out the University of Florida campus. I head them down Museum Road with directions to get them to the clock tower and Plaza of the Americas. With a wave, we part ways, and I head for home in a torrent of traffic. When I put the kickstand down, dismount, and pull my helmet off, I have a huge grin on my face. While a less than perfect location for a meet, the company was great as was the day and the ride to and from Cedar Key. Many thanks to everyone, and many safe travels!
I leave around 10:15 am which will put me in Cedar Key in approximately an hour. Earlier than necessary, but I want to be on the bike & enjoying the perfect weather. I pull onto NW 13th St, one of the primary arteries in G'ville, and wham: some sort of walk-a-thon gumming up the works replete with city workers in slow moving vehicles trailing the walkers as well as plenty of city LEOs monitoring traffic. Sigh. So much for the early start. Archer Rd--FL 24--is crazy with traffic as well with no opportunities to break the cycle of being stopped at every single light. I resign myself to the less than stellar start and focus on the traffic. Temp reading says 72 degrees. I'm comfortable in my vented leather jacket even when stopped & think it could be much worse: say 92 degrees in gridlock with lots of A/C condensation slicking up the staging areas at stop lights. Nearing the juncture with I-75, traffic picks up the pace and I pick a less congested pocket. Cages leave Archer for the freeway, and I breathe a little easier with the thinning of the herd. Still hitting all red lights and a pair of obsessive limit followers have created an antsy pack & the obligatory tailgating ensues. SIGH. Beyond the extreme eastern burbs of G'ville, I get my chance to put some space between me and the cages: at the last light I line up in the right lane which ends a few hundred yards ahead. I allow the pickup in front of me to blast off the line in order to merge, then pass him with space to spare. Finally: no one in front, those behind quickly dwindling, plentiful sunshine, wind, the unadulterated joy of spinning through rural vistas on two wheels. Suddenly I see a huge hawk drifting above the ribbon of the road: incredible.
But it wasn't the last bird of prey I would see: 6 hawks all told. Perfect! I always see them as kindred spirits: solitary and free, looking for slow moving prey to pounce on. Or pass in my case. A pack of vultures along side the road causes me to slow since I figure that they have been conditioned to react to vehicles moving at speeds close to the limit on that stretch of road. Laying on the horn for a good 5 seconds doesn't faze them in the least. Crows, large ones, were also out in force. Very little traffic and good sailing all the way to Otter Creek.
I'm trying out cheap foam ear plugs on the way to Cedar Key. A new bargain bin Z1R helmet has been giving me far too much wind noise, even with the windshield up. This is certainly a different sensation: absence of the deafening wind noise, yes, but also no engine noise--which I find disturbing. Even with my face shield up & the windshield up, leaning down into the quiet pocket near the tank yields only a hint that the bike is in fact running. I was worried about cutting off traffic sound, but since most of FL 24 is two lane, I don't have to worry about a cager sneaking up beside me without noticing it. A nice trial, but I think I'll save the ear plugs for longer trips.
Temp sensor is now reading 80 as I head down the lonely stretch between Otter Creek and Cedar Key. I use my Throttlemeister and set my speed a tick under 70. Curious about mileage, I toggle between the real-time and average mileage readouts. The bike just seems to get stronger and stronger: I get my average up to nearly 48 mpg with very steady throttle. The scenery is mostly scrub: palmettos, pines, and tangled undergrowth. The road has been resurfaced since last I passed this way, and the silky asphalt surface combined with the absence of traffic and the undeviating straightness of the road begs for a WFO pass. But not today: I'm enjoying just cruising & looking.
You smell Cedar Key long before you reach it, and today is no different. I ride into a pocket of warm, humid air that contains scents of marsh and ocean. I look up and see a pelican on some mission of its own and know that I am very close. When the water comes into view, I pull off at a snow cone stand on the outer edges of Cedar Key. Nearly dumping the bike on the uneven turnout (yikes!), I dismount. The owner of the stand eyes me and says, "Must be getting pretty warm for that jacket, huh?" I respond, "It's not bad as long as you keep moving." Then she sees me pull the camera from the tank bag and turns away to help set up the impromptu yard sale going on next to her stand.
I pull off a little farther on one of the many bridges to get a shot of the myriad marshy stands of grass that dot the scene. And an obligatory shot of the city limit sign.
Wow! The place is packed. Parking spots are nearly nonexistent. I do two laps down Dock St. hoping to snag a spot, when I meet another FJR rider, Allen, doing the same. I plan to meet him over by the boat launch, but on the way I see a small spot that will fit two bikes if they are placed perpendicular to the curb. Signaling Allen over, he parks his FJR next to mine. After brief introductions, we start looking for the others. We join Matt and Robyn and start toward Frog's Landing.
Soon we are joined by Lester, his wife Tammy, and their son Brandon as well as Bryan and his wife. Soon after that, Jim from Tallahassee and his brother Rob from Tampa--the lone Beemer standard bearer--join us. The restaurant fills quickly after we arrive, and once we pull tables together, the 10 of us socialize and enjoy seafood.
After the meal, we mill outside trying to decide where we want to head on our ride. The consensus bends toward a road with some twists in it. We settle on FL 44 which is south near Crystal River. Once we are all mounted--6 FJRs, the Beemer, and a V Star--we head back out FL 24 toward US 19. Jim and Rob take the lead with me in the third spot. We're quickly up to speed and running fast. (And during the brief stretch when 24 turns into a closed course, there is a roll-on competition between an FJR and the BMW.) When we hit Otter Creek, we pull into the parking lot of the post office to let the others catch up. Then we receive word: Lester and his wife signaled and then pulled off. Being a standup kind of crowd, we wait for them. While we chat and time goes by, we start to get worried: there are all of two county roads that they might have taken, but that doesn't seem likely. (There's probably a saying in that part of the world, "All roads lead to Otter Creek.") Then we become really concerned. Bryan goes back to find them while we settle into bike talk, jokes, and travel tales. Brian returns: the V Star ran out of gas. We are relieved that everyone is OK. We continue to chat and watch other bikers pass by with the occasional wave thrown in.
Seeing that the day was slipping away & that the Tallahassee and Jacksonville folks needed to start back, the group broke up. I traveled with Matt and Robyn as they headed for 301 and Jax. The trip back is much warmer and the roads are much busier. Less time for gawking at hawks. When we near Gainesville, Matt and Robyn tell me they are going to check out the University of Florida campus. I head them down Museum Road with directions to get them to the clock tower and Plaza of the Americas. With a wave, we part ways, and I head for home in a torrent of traffic. When I put the kickstand down, dismount, and pull my helmet off, I have a huge grin on my face. While a less than perfect location for a meet, the company was great as was the day and the ride to and from Cedar Key. Many thanks to everyone, and many safe travels!
Last edited by a moderator:
